Smart Budgeting

3 Tips on How to Stick to a Budget

Making your daily, weekly, or monthly budget can feel tricky, but you’re not alone! Here are three ways to make your budget stick.

1. Sleep on it

Impulse shopper? Train yourself to sleep on your next shopping decision to see if you still want to make that purchase the next day. This is perhaps one of the most useful, low maintenance skills you can learn if you to help you keep making your budget work.

2. Get an accountability partner

Ever have a friend who could persuade you to put off your impulse purchases when you were out shopping together? Now you can put that friend to good use! As your accountability partner, your friend can be someone you report to, someone who helpfully looks over your shoulder to make sure you’re sticking to your budget and not making impulse purchases again.

3. Make sure your budget is the right one for your lifestyle

Sticking to a budget can be tricky if it’s unrealistic. It can’t do you much good if it’s not tailored to fit your lifestyle, your necessary expenses, or how you spend money. Strict budgeting can be tough to tackle, but worth it in the long run.

Make sure your budget is realistic, flexible, balanced, and accurate. It should reflect the true nature of your basic expenses while being balanced enough so that you're not putting all your earnings into paying off one or two items while neglecting others. It should also be flexible so you have money for any emergencies.

You may stray from your budget a few times, especially if this is your first time getting serious about it. That’s okay! A contingency plan can help you avoid serious debt so you can get back on track as soon as you can. If you can swing it, work with an accountant or a financial advisor to craft a customized budget plan that’s tailored to your real earnings and expenses.

When banking with GO2bank™, it’s easy to check in on your balance right from your phone.
Learn more about how you can use GO2bank’s mobile bank account to take control over your financial journey with our incredible features here.

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