Good morning everyone,
It has now changed to cold and grey skies here in the Ohio area. Thursday schools closed due to ice on the roads. Which I think about when I was growing up watching the bus slide past our house and bumping into a curb to stop. When I looked at my mom she said, “What are you waiting for get on the bus.” Granted I did not walk to school in six feet of snow uphill both ways like my parents, but still. I am a little bitter when it comes to snow days with minor amounts of snow.
Sorry for getting off topic 😊
On to the discussion about the most fun topic most people have, budgets. When I talk to most people they tell me they budget by looking at their bank statement every month and if there is more money in the account than what went out they were successful. I used to be like that personally when I was younger. I would pay off everything and hope I had money left over at the end of the month.
Along came Financial Peace University that my mom asked me to take. It was a 13-week (back then) course on the importance of managing money. In the course I learned how to budget. It has been something I do every month with my wife now and I even took the sheets and created an excel spreadsheet for our family. We do monthly budget meetings prior to the first of the month to decide where the money will be going. We use a lot of cash for purchases still that we have put into envelopes. The class was great and since starting I have been able to direct where my money is going each and every month.
I now also lead Financial Peace University classes for my church and am on my fifth class. It is so much fun to see others grasp the concept and move forward. Using the principals of the class to direct where the money is going and not spending money at will has brought quite a bit of structure as well as being able to save a great deal of money. By telling the money where to go we are able to wisely invest a great deal, give a great deal, and spend a great deal on things we need rather than blowing all of our money on things that will not do us any good, but made us happy in the purchase.
Budgeting is crucial to your business as well as your personal life. I currently am running two budgets. One for my family and one for my business. Knowing how much I have to spend on projects helps me really think about how the money is going to be working for me in the future. While I have been writing my book. I have been going back over the budget and reviewing what I need to spend on each stage as well as if I need redesigns on the covers or layout. I could have easily spent $10,000 on this book, but have been able to keep the budget considerably lower while sourcing individuals to do the editing, layout, interior graphics, and covers. Had I not budgeted I don’t think I would have been able to get this far with the book.
I encourage you especially now that Christmas is on its way and the Black Friday ads are coming to do a budget before buying your gifts. It can get out of hand how much you spend on people no knowing until the credit card bill shows up. If you have questions on budgeting feel free to reach out to me. I am happy to help. Also look up Dave Ramsey’s Financial Peach University, and some budgeting apps like mint and every dollar.
I am old school so I choose to do excel. I know call me archaic, but hey I used to have to get on the bus during icy road conditions and I turned out just fine!
Have a great weekend and get ready for eating Thanksgiving meals with family!
Sincerely,
Kevin Sidebottom
Sales and Leadership Enterprises