Tips on Sticking to a Budget
If you need to stick to a budget then it is not always easy. You might be motivated at the beginning because you are enthusiastic and want to really make a big effort but the novelty can wear off. You may even find that it takes very little time before you start to wish that you had not even at the budget in the first place. There are things that you can do to help though.
Write Down the Goal
If you write down your goal and the reason why you are budgeting this will help. So if you are trying to repay a debt so you can have a better credit record to get a mortgage, saving up for a holiday, making sure you make ends meet or whatever, write it down and stick it somewhere you will see it. You can give details too, such as when you want to achieve it by, what the advantages of achieving it are etc. So perhaps – ‘save £50 a month for two years so I can afford to go on holiday to Spain’ could be the sort of thing. Make the effort to read it through each day so that you keep remembering what you are aiming for. This should help you to keep going with it.
Focus Hard on the Process
It can be a fun challenge to change things we are doing so that we can achieve something we are aiming for. Try to focus on this and try to enjoy what you are doing so that it makes it easier. Work on finding ways to make it fun, break it down in small goals you can achieve daily and find ways to praise yourself for doing well. It can feel good to know that you are achieving what you want and try to muster up that positive feeling when you have a good day and are able to achieve what you want to.
Ignore the Bad Days
Try not to focus on the days when it does not work out well, just start the next day with new determination. There will always be days when we just cannot help but not stick to our plan. We might overspend or we are not able to save as much as we wanted or things like this. It is a good idea to think about what went wrong and try not to make the same mistake again, but do not punish yourself, no one is perfect and so there will always be times when things get out of control and we need to accept that and move on.
Treat Yourself
It can be hard though so make sure that you treat yourself from time to time when you are doing well. You may be able to think of treats that are free but if not just something really cheap to help you to feel good and stay motivated. This is not always easy but it should be possible to think of something you will be able to use as a reward even if it is a lie in at the weekend, a long bath, small chocolate bar or whatever. Just make sure they do not get too expensive and do not treat yourself too often it should be a reward for a significant amount of hard work. Try to also just praise yourself and feel good about what you have done. We need to get out of the habit of thinking we need a treat that costs money every time we achieve something good or else it could lead to us spending too much again.