How To “Budget-Bust Proof” Your Spending Plan

Okay, I am going to call this Confession Tuesday. I have spoken to so many people that struggle with creating a budget. I can hear the guilt and even shame in what seems to them like their inability to live within their means.

I know exactly how all of you feel because it took a few years for me to get the hang of a budget. I was living within my means, but I did not account for every expense. Then I would have an unexpected expense and scramble to figure out how to pay for it.

After awhile, I figured out that my problem was that I thought a budget was simply writing down my bills. My bills rarely busted my budget. It was what I called the “expected unexpected” expenses that ripped my budget to shreds. I realized I had to give every dollar a name and plan in advance for things that I know are going to happen just not when. The following were my budget busters:

The holidays. I know this may come as a shock, but I learned after budgeting that Christmas comes every December 25. Somehow I would get amnesia and forget until I smell turkey and them scramble to get the cash to buy gifts. After I realized this was a serious budget buster, I went old school and started saving for holidays with a Christmas club account.

A Christmas club account is a savings account that typically earns very little interest and generally does not allow withdrawals until about November 1. Keep in mind, I was not looking for the best interest rate, just a way that would discipline me to save and prevent me from raiding the account. Now I have a category in my budget for holidays and I treat it like a bill except the funds stay in my checking account until I start shopping

The children. I love my children so I hope no one was offended when I bought my infant daughter a onesie that said “My Little Mortgage Payment,” since that is the cost between daycare, diapers, wipes and all of the other expenses. As they grow older and start school, I learned to have a category call “kids.” This category is my catch-all for school activity, school picture money, and clothes since my kids seem to be growing by the hour. I have a specific amount that I put in monthly that stays in the checking account until I get the infamous school slip requesting money.

The car. Guys, I am an optimist. I am a positive person that looks at the world as half full. But one thing I am 100% positive of is that something will happen to your car and you will need cash to pay for it.

Some things like tags, taxes, oil changes and scheduled maintenance we know are going to happen. Others, like brake work or a flat tire, we know will probably happen but we don’t know when. Set aside an amount every month for car repairs.

If keeping the money in a checking account makes it too easy to spend, consider opening a savings account at your bank and using the online “hide” feature so you won’t see the account. For some people, out of sight is out of mind. If that does not work then consider opening the account at a separate bank. Now that I have had my confessional, I hope you can take some of my lessons learned to “budget-buster proof” your spending plan.

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