Working on the initial budget is going to be time consuming, but worth it. It takes time to get everything set up. It takes time to fully understand how to use whatever system you plan on using, but ultimately it is a tool. A saw doesn't make a good hammer, you need to use the right tool for the right situation, and that may take some instruction.
I spent much of this morning working with the online Money Manager on USAA. I also called their financial advice office to get a personal tutorial on their program. I also made a spreadsheet so I can project future spending and help us make long term spending, repayment and giving goals.
My next step is to get all of our other credit card accounts onto the USAA account. It will help give a clearer picture of our spending. One problem we have is that one month my credit card will be too high, so I'll stop spending, and then my husband will do all of the shopping, and paying when we are together. Then my credit card is lower the next month, and his is too high. That system doesn't seem to be working. We need to get all of our accounts in the same place so we can really see how much we spend on groceries, gas, clothes, etc each month.
I also went out this week and did some stocking up and last chance shopping. I bought a box of diapers and a box of wipes so we have them in storage. Wouldn't it be great to not spend any money on diapers for an entire year? I also use cloth, so that's my no-spending strategy there. My other strategy is attempting to get my son to potty train. There's no incentive like money, is there? We've been working on it all day. Wish me luck!
I spent much of this morning working with the online Money Manager on USAA. I also called their financial advice office to get a personal tutorial on their program. I also made a spreadsheet so I can project future spending and help us make long term spending, repayment and giving goals.
My next step is to get all of our other credit card accounts onto the USAA account. It will help give a clearer picture of our spending. One problem we have is that one month my credit card will be too high, so I'll stop spending, and then my husband will do all of the shopping, and paying when we are together. Then my credit card is lower the next month, and his is too high. That system doesn't seem to be working. We need to get all of our accounts in the same place so we can really see how much we spend on groceries, gas, clothes, etc each month.
I also went out this week and did some stocking up and last chance shopping. I bought a box of diapers and a box of wipes so we have them in storage. Wouldn't it be great to not spend any money on diapers for an entire year? I also use cloth, so that's my no-spending strategy there. My other strategy is attempting to get my son to potty train. There's no incentive like money, is there? We've been working on it all day. Wish me luck!
No comments:
Post a Comment