Important Financial Steps

**disneysteve** · 01-04-2009, 05:26 AM

It is a little hard to answer your question without more info. We can't tell you how to go about getting your finances in better shape because we don't know what is wrong with them currently.

Are you not saving enough? Do you have debt that needs to be dealt with? Are you having trouble paying your bills? Tell us what the problem is and we can tell you how to go about fixing it.

**Jazzmint98** · 01-04-2009, 05:28 AM

I would recommend tracking your expenses for at least one month. Just carry a small memo notebook with you and list the amount spent, category (food, medical, entertainment, auto, etc.), and date. This will give you a better idea where your money is going each month and doesn't take much time to record daily; however, it does require some consistency to make sure that you account for every penny that you spend. This will be valuable information that you will need to develop a budget.

I have been keeping track of my income/expenses more closely for several months now and it has become a habit that I think I need to continue to document that information. It gives me an idea of where I can cut back and possibly save more money per month.

Good luck with your financial plan however you decide to do it!

**maat55** · 01-04-2009, 05:54 AM

I don't have time is a bad excuse.

Write down all your expenses
Find what you can cut from them
Build up a small emergency fund (500 to 1000)
Invest in any company 401k to the match only
Use all extra funds to payoff debt (credit cards, auto loan, personal loans etc.)
After debts are gone(excluding house payment) build EF to 3 to 6 months expenses
Start investing 10% or more into a Roth(if applicable) in stock mutual funds.

Thats the general, IMO, if you have specific problems, post them.

**TheTicket** · 01-04-2009, 05:54 AM

I agree with huffydeb. I track by putting everything on a credit card that pays me 1-3% rebate on every purchase(of course I DO pay it off every month-very important), then I download all transactions monthly into a spreadsheet with each coded. Not a lot of work, but a very good indicator of where my expenditures are. Right now, don't buy anything you can't pay cash for(how many times have we heard that!). Good LUCK!

**maat55** · 01-04-2009, 05:57 AM

Originally posted by TheTicket View Post

I agree with huffydeb. I track by putting everything on a credit card that pays me 1-3% rebate on every purchase(of course I DO pay it off every month-very important), then I download all transactions monthly into a spreadsheet with each coded. Not a lot of work, but a very good indicator of where my expenditures are. Right now, don't buy anything you can't pay cash for(how many times have we heard that!). Good LUCK!

Keep in mind that many with poor financial management skills should not be using financial tools they cannot handle. CC's are for the responsible user.

**scfr** · 01-04-2009, 08:12 AM

Spend less than you earn.

**Bimmer** · 01-04-2009, 10:55 AM

Important Financial Steps? How about making finances important to you be the first step! "I do not have time" does not work.

**Snave** · 01-04-2009, 11:05 AM

I hope closely behind financial management on your resolution list is time management!

**ceejay74** · 01-05-2009, 08:45 AM

I agree w/ Bimmer and Snave. Even with my finances in pretty good order, it takes at least 5-10 minutes per day (usually a bit more), not 5-10 minutes per month, to keep them that way. Initially, I had to spend a few hours tracking down all my info and figuring out my income/outgo to see if they matched up.

If you're like I was when I first started, I had no idea whether my basic income covered my basic bills. Until you find that out, you can't really do anything else.

**jIM_Ohio** · 01-05-2009, 10:04 AM

Budget is step 1
if you don't have time to do one, I am sure your money has time to ruin you before you organize it. The choice is yours.

Budget needs to step 1 (spend less than you earn).

Important Financial Steps