If you are a millionaire, a movie/rock star or own a business comprising of multiple food chains or something like it, I would seriously urge you to hit Ctrl+W and look somewhere else for whatever you are looking for to kill time. You may also do it by simply clicking the “X” sign in the right top corner of your screen, for the information provided here is by no means meant for you. It is in fact meant for people who happen to fall in the salaried class, by the salaried class I mean those people who work all month long and then queue up for the monthly check which somehow vaporizes in less than a month. So even if you have get paid in five or six figures chances are you will have financial problems at one time or another. This article is not meant for any class or category of the employee, in fact I am just writing down a few tips which will help you keep yourself in check, and if you are lucky may even help you in saving some money for those “rainy days”.
Before I begin let me just say, most of the problems in life whatever their nature maybe can be tackled by good management skills and financial matters are no exception! Read on for drawing some wise lessons…
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Analyze your income versus outcome. This has to be the first step, you just can’t prioritize your life without this step. Use a simple pen and a paper or some out of world software for this but this is simply inevitable. Write down your take home salary in whatever currency you get. Next jot down your monthly expenses one by one, down to the minutest details.
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Classify your spending. Once you have a list of the expenditure for at least one month as described in the above step, next classify these spending in to various headings like groceries, fuel, recreation, entertainment, travel, clothes, utility bills, kids fees (if you happen to have any), etc etc. Do not make a lot of headings or you will confuse the thing. Just the essential elements which will help you in making out how much you are spending on utilities, groceries, entertainment, fashion etc.
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Set the limits. Now is the time to make an honest judgment and decide which expanses are really killing you. In doing this it makes sense to make use of a bar, pie or any other form of chart so that you can also see it graphically where you are going wrong. Read it carefully and set your own limits, this is important since only you can decide what is required and what isn’t required for you. Set the limits and follow them strictly, this will ensure that you do not go off track.
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Re-analyze. After two or three months again do the same exercise and see if you have shown some improvement or have gone down. In any case your bank balance should also tell you this.
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Plastic Money Issues. More often than not its the plastic that kills your budget. So what is the solution? should one simply dump the plastic and start using plain old bank notes? The answer is why not switch to a Debit card instead of a Credit card? This way you will be sure of how much money you are spending, besides this will also keep a tight check on your spending. If a Credit Card is in any case inevitable then get one with a lower credit limit instead of that $5000 limit.
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Restrict those Outings to the market. Window shopping is an addiction for some, but the consequences of such outings generally result in more spending than nothing, simply because the market is tempting out there. When you see the shops full of stuff resisting the temptation is really hard, and couple this with a credit card and you have the right recipe for overspending. Go to a park instead, or better still visit an old friend, a library or even a movie theater rather than going to the market.
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Resist the temptation. Although resisting the temptation to spend monay is difficult but before swiping your plastic or rolling out your dollars on the counter ask yourself this simple question, “Is my life going ok without this item?” OR “can I survive without this item?” Believe me that should do it.
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Take a note. Maintain you wish list instead of just dropping dead in front of a shop. carry a small diary in your wallet/purse and note it down, or even type it down in your mobile/smart phone for later reference.
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Plan your outings. Do not, just simply go to the market without a h=genuine need for it. Instead plan your outings, go only if you need to go to the market.
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Do Not shop in Bulk. Generally stores offer more discounts on items in bulk, but this also results in more expenditure. Buy stuff according to your requirement, if you can live with a small jar of coffee for a month why go for a large one and block your money? same is the case with other grocery items. When you shop, shop intelligently instead of just filling up the cart and repenting later. Shop with a neighbor, this way if you buy in bulk you can share the cost as well as the items.
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Save on fuel. If you have never heard of car pooling just Google the term and you will be surprised to know how much fuel, money and environmental degradation you will be able to save. Take a walk or even go on a bicycle instead of your vehicle, it will do you good financially as well as putting you in shape.
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Those dreaded Utility bills. In places where extreme temperatures exist utility bills can seriously off balance one’s budget. The important point to understand is that you work and earn money in order to spend your life comfortably, in this it is important to prioritize your things first. Besides all, if you give low priority to utility bills your quality of life will suffer badly. But if you simply do not care about your utility bills then you are bound to pay huge bills, so set the priority straight. However, utility bills can be controlled by using Energy Saving lamps instead of incandescent bulbs, by switching off lights/fans when going out of a room/house, by making use of smart air conditioners/refrigerators, LCD TV/monitors etc. Remember to think Green, always.
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Eating out. Eating out can be fun and is a necessity, the best of us get bored eating the same food over and over again. A little change revitalizes and is good for the mood also. However, remember that restaurants charge a good amount of money as compared to home cooked meals, so habitual eating out will cost a lot of money. In such cases set a rule to go out once a week or in a fortnight. Talk to your friends and pool in where either everyone shares the expenses or everyone simply pays for their food.
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Save some if you can. The best way to save money is to simply keep it aside at the beginning of the month in a separate bank. This might as well be called your “rainy day account”. This can be utilized for special;l occasions like Eid, Christmas, or any other important event like a Holiday trip or even a loved one’s birthday.
Follow these and chances are you will never run out of money and hopefully will have a few dollars more once in a while. Best wishes 
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Article by nauman
I am 39 year old technology enthusiast trying to keep myself updated on the latest happenings in this field. I like to keep things simple and everyday I learn something new to share with the world!