Hello everyone! I wanted to talk about budgeting. I’ve mentioned in the past that budgeting for three months at the beginning of your financial journey can allow for some transparency in how you spend your money! This is an example of a budgeting spreadsheet to help make that a little easier!
This is the Will Working Want Monthly Budgeting tracker. I’ve spoken previously on Will Working and Want being categories of spending based on Desired Goals, Current Obligations, or Impulse Desires. Having it color coded helps to see where funds are going and how to prioritize better on where money you make can make the biggest difference.
And don’t worry, I’ve included this spreadsheet at the end of the post!
The previous total column allows you to put what your last expense cost was for the month. You can take this from any bill or statement form the last month to compare to current costs for this month.
The budgeted column reflects what was actually available for this category of spending for the month. The actual column reflects what was actually spent on this category. If these two columns differ, that is okay. In fact, it’d be best to have the actual amount be lower than the budgeted amount so you can save the rest!
Lastly, the change column is meant to represent the change between the previous total and the actual amount paid for the current month. This will help reflect on where spending is increasing or decreasing.
The entire purpose of a financial journey is to create an awareness and an ability to masterfully manipulate money. I am a very visual person, so a colorful spreadsheet helps me visualize what my next steps should be and to help stay on track. Hopefully this helps you too!
Like I said, here is a copy of the spreadsheet for your personal use! Use it wisely and take your financial journey to the next step!
From my mind to yours!
~Jay
I enjoy sharing what I have learned through my own personal finance journey!
