Saving money can be a difficult task, let alone trying to follow a strict budget. Fortunatley, for those who don’t know where to start, money expert and Instagram user Beth (@budgetjonesdiary_) has shared her simple way to give your finances a refresh.
Beth is a chartered accountant and aims to help people save money and “ditch their debt.” In a recent post, Beth shared the six simple steps you can take that will give you a solid place to begin to save, budget and plan ahead.
Broken down into “bitesize” steps, Beth has shared these six steps:
Take stock
Define this as your starting point, then think about where you want to be and how you’re going to get there. Note down things you want to start, stop and continue
Set your goals
Break these down into short, medium and long term and get real specific. Money is a tool to get you where you want to be, but where is that?
Create a budget
Give every penny (if you can) a purpose. Pop your income at the top, then list your expenses underneath and then whatever is left, is yours to divvy out to whatever goals you set in step two.
Plan of attack
This will be an extension of your budget. A real solid plan you can refer back to every payday. Whether it be for paying off debt, saving, or something else, define how your journey is going to look
Automate where possible
Take the emotion out of it and let the tech do all of the hard work. Whether you’re sending a fixed amount to your investments or simply switching on roundups for your savings, every little helps
Education
You may need some advice or further support and there are lots of resources online to help you so definitely nosey around for what you need. But the learning never stops, it’s about continually improving upon what you already have/know – books, podcasts, ‘finfluencers’, they all get you thinking about how to improve your finances (which is why you’re here now)