Managing Money

[Neodude1123201]

I've come to the realisation that i'm extremely careless with my money. I Earn a substantial amount for a 17yr old (I Get paid monthly) yet i still managed to run out of money mid-month, then have to borrow money to get to work the rest of the month!

I've tried budgetting before but i can never stick to it, any suggestions?

 

[sniperviper21]

Dont buy crap you dont need, if you dont need it to get by, just dont buy it.
Think to yourself

Ok so i make 10$/hr, and this is 200$
i had to work an entire 20 hours JUST to buy this ONE thing.


Think like that on everything you buy an then you'll realize how much time it takes just to make money. I do it all the time.

And if your getting by without something already, you obviously dont need it.


Pretty easy to control if you ask me.

 

[Neodude1123201]

While it's easy to say that, i think it may be compulsive spending, if i know i have money in my bank account thats not immediatly needed, i'll assume i can spend it and i'll just make it up later....

 

[sniperviper21]

It is easy, either stop making excuses for how u can spend it, or get used to being in debt lol

And for real, what possibly can a 17yr old be buying so much that bankrupts them.
So, what do u spend it on

 

[Fanatic4Christ]

Ever since I started working I've always spent all my check, never saved any of it.. When I needed money for something that broke down or just something like that I would spend all of my money on that and go into broke mode.. My broke mode consists of making sandwiches for lunch and only going to work and back. No going to the store, there is water to drink... No getting food, there is something in the kitchen you can fix... No need to buy that new thing lol

Just try and actually watch what your buying.. Add everything up and it'll surprise you.. I was spending 1300 a month with 200 being towards bills and 100 for gas back and forth to work every month. That means I was spending 1000 a month on fast food every day, clothes, stuff for my car, stuff for my computer, snacks, ect ect..

 

[superman22x]

Put your money in harder to get areas that you can't simply access via debit card or similarly. Like stocks. Over the summer, I sold my first mustang and made a good chunk of money, so I put it in Ford stock knowing otherwise I would end up spending it. So far it has returned 30% too, lol.
If you don't want to risk it in the stock market, try a CD.

 

[Celegorm]

I do two things that helps. First like sniper said I think about how many hours I work to afford what I'm getting but usually I lower my wage a bit to try and adjust for taxes.

Then I also have a list of things I would love to buy. I put any spare change I have into a separate account that I use to save up for these things. By doing this, I've found that I'm spending less on other small crap that I'll use once or twice and appreciating the things I really want a lot more.

 

[jmacavali]

While it's easy to say that, i think it may be compulsive spending, if i know i have money in my bank account thats not immediatly needed, i'll assume i can spend it and i'll just make it up later....

That's your first problem. Make a budget of everything that has to be paid (all your bills, etc.) in the month. Then see how much left over you have. Then take 75% of that and put it into a seperate bank account (ideally via direct deposit if it's from your work) that you don't have easy access to (no debit card - meaning you'll have to go into the bank to get money out). That way all the bills are paid and 75% of what's left goes into a seperate "saving" account. This leaves you with 25% to put into a "spending" account. The key is that you don't move any money from the main account into the spending account so you have to save up to buy things.

I've found that having two accounts makes managing money much easier. This way I'm not tempted to spend everything in my bank account because it's just sitting there. I know that I only have what's available in my spending account to use on my impulse buys. I usually don't have any more than about $100 in that account so that I can' buy anything too crazy.



Or you could just get married .... a wife can really change your spending habits....

 

[Cabbs]

Don't buy what you can't afford. Think about other priorities you're going to need money for first before you spend it on something you want.

 

[David Lindon]

While it's easy to say that, i think it may be compulsive spending, if i know i have money in my bank account thats not immediatly needed, i'll assume i can spend it and i'll just make it up later....

Just think before you buy something, do I really need it? Wait a week and see if you still feel that you really need it.