I’m pretty proud of myself, I mean, the simple fact that I actually started my budget is monumental. For years and years I knew I should of had a budget but only now did I actually do it.
But that’s where my pride ends.
Once I got all the numbers plugged in, the income, the credit cards. loans, rent, and typical expenses, it wasn’t that bad. It certainly wasn’t good, because the leftover money was kind of skimpy.
Then I came home and plugged in my wife’s debt, at which point my budget started circling the drain.
Essentially, I have about $500 left over for the month after paying all of my bills. That might not sound too bad, except that I didn’t plug in any funds for food, groceries or eating out. Keep in mind, we are a family of four to include two teenagers.
This is the point where most people start asking “How have I been surviving with so little money?” “Why haven’t I seen this before now?” I don’t have to ask myself this, because I already know the answer, the credit cards. I have been watching them grow, like mold on wet drywall, for a while now. I knew we were in trouble. Which makes me all the more proud to have finally started my budget.
I have seen this before. Yes, that’s right, not my first rodeo. You don’t get to call yourself a Financial Moron without having the credentials to back it up ya know. In fact, I have seen this a few times before. But with all of my “vast experience” in screwing up my financial well being, I can’t for the life of me remember how I got out of this situation the previous times. Since I have never claimed bankruptcy and/or won the lottery, I can rule them out. That only leaves the typical, more organic method of recovery, the financial struggle.
Yay me.
So now I have to put together a plan. Something that will help me make some headway toward getting some of this paid down. More immediate though, is figuring out what I need to do so that I stop digging myself in deeper.
If you remember back in one of my previous posts, I mentioned my budget fears. One of them, a quite prevalent one, was that I was afraid that I would have to change my lifestyle once I decided to buckle down and do a budget. It’s still a major concern of mine. Based on what I just saw on my newly formed budget, it should be.
Getting out of debt would be easier without a wife, haha. Don’t tell her I said that. I won’t stop there, because it would be even easier without the kids too.. Now ditching the wife and kids? I could be paid up/off in no time. Where do I sign up for that? Just kidding. Truth be told, my wife brings home a small income but ever penny helps. Her income is valuable to us. The kids contribute no significant financial value however, they just cost me money on the daily. Cool kids though, otherwise, I mean.
If I didn’t have the wife and kids, and I was as determined as I am to pay off my debt, then doing so would still require almost the same sacrifice. It would be easier simply because it would be MY sacrifice and wouldn’t involve anyone else’s feelings. But this isn’t the case, and I’ll just have to work with what I have and figure it out.
I’ll be doing some brainstorming and you’ll need to as well. Even if you have a ton of money left in the budget after your bills are paid, you’ll need to make some money changes if you wish to get your finances in order. You cannot continue doing the same thing and expect different results.
I’m going to look at things like the Cell Phones, the Satellite TV service, the Motocross allowance, and even food, more specifically, the restaurant type. Even though I didn’t include it on my budget for this go around, I need to consider its impact on my finances just the same.
Don’t panic people, we’ve got this.
Dave
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