Let’s face it, overcoming procrastination when creating a family budget is not always the easiest task especially in keeping up with it. Now, I am not a financial expert, but I do know a lot about procrastination strategies and what works. I offer you here today some family budget tips to make it easier on yourself and the rest of your family.
My Story
I am hoping that as you read my story, you might identify.
I have read and followed many books on creating a family budget as well as in my training in overcoming procrastination. My husband and daughter don’t want to be bothered with details. They usually expect me to come up with a plan and then they follow it, badly. Last month I created a plan and the results are a mixed bag.
Have you ever shopped for a particular item that your family wanted, only to find the container on a shelf, unopened, a month later? This is our hard earned money! Well, in my case, the issue is breakfast foods. We purchased two different types of oatmeal. Last week, as money was getting tight, I looked inside my cabinets for a snack and guess what I found?
It happens to all of us. We shop for food and then we forget we have it. Part of the plan involves eating whatever we have in the pantry. And guess what? It saved me about $10 in eggs and cheese last week and this week. Now you might think that $20 is not a lot of money. And yet, if you manage to save $10 a week, you will have $520 in one year. I don’t know about you, I like having money in the bank.
Every plan requires a system that must be created. We tend to put creating a family budget on the side of things that we do not really want to deal with. We avoid effective overcoming procrastination strategies because we are scared, not wanting to know how much debt we are in or how little assets we have. We are looking for any excuse or for “it” to go away.
Personal budget planning should make your life easier, not more stressful. Bite the bullet and get to work. If you fail to learn about how to stop procrastination, it will take you even longer to get on financial track and I doubt that this is what you want.
Here are 7 simple Overcoming Procrastination Strategies to help you succeed:
1. Gather all your bills and put them in a box.
2. Sit down and make a list of all your bills.
3. Write down the name of the company, the amount of your monthly payment, the total amount and if applicable, the interest rate.
4. Take a second piece of paper and put your list in order of smaller to bigger. (total amount owed)
5. Make a list of all your sources of income.
6. Add the total bills, the total monthly payments and the total income.
In a perfect world, you have some money left over for the rest of your budget. I’m hoping that you have money for groceries, gas, bus rides, and the rest.
7. Now, create your family budget worksheet to help you start overcoming procrastination.
Our Simple System
After creating a family budget, my family has developed this system that is working for us:
I do a household budget for six months. Why? Because it is easier to control expenses if you know that you have a limit of time. If you decide you are not going to the movies for six months it is more doable than trying to commit to not going to the movies ever.
I have a simple formula: 10% for charity, 10% for savings, 10% for the smallest bill and the rest for the family budget. We like to donate, and for most religions, 10% is tithing anyway. The savings is because you never know when you will have an unexpected emergency to deal with. If you use an extra 10% on the smallest bill, you might be able to clear a couple of bills by the time your six months are up.
The success in overcoming procrastination when creating a family budget is to make this automatic and you will not feel it as much. I do all of my donations through the Internet the same day I get paid, transferring from checking to savings and the payment of the smallest bill.
My household budgeting system is not perfect, but I am doing something. These Overcoming Procrastination Strategies I have given you here today are only a suggestion, a way for learning how to stop procrastination and getting some bills out of my life forever.
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Roxana Núñez is the Procrastination Princess. She specializes in overcoming procrastination strategies as a source of stress relief for women over 40 and writes about everything from family budgets to health and every other goal you might have. You can find her at www.procrastinationprincess.com
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