Summer is coming to a close and it’s been a blast. You’ve had fun in the sun, enjoyed quality time with friends and family, and feel relaxed and refreshed.
Your budget on the other hand? Not so much.
The Summer months are an easy time to overspend. From vacations to barbecues and more, it’s easy to get carried away with spending and not even realize it.
If you’re feeling a little spent after the Summer, here’s how to get back on track.
When you go on a spending rampage and see how little progress you’ve made towards your financial goals, it’s easy to beat yourself up. But doing so won’t help you move forward.
Instead of feeling bad, acknowledge the issue and commit to improving the situation. Oftentimes when we’re harsh with ourselves, it’s easy to give up on progress altogether (or make it hard to start).
You’re only human and we all make mistakes. If you overspent this summer, realize that was in the past and now is different. Whenever I want to change something, I say to myself, “That was yesterday, this is today. Today is a new day.”
It gives me a fresh perspective to start anew and try again. Remember, progress over perfection.
Now that you know you overdid it this summer, you’re going to need to go back to basics with a budget. Maybe you’ve budgeted before or you found yourself getting a little lax with it over the Summer. Either way, it’s key to get back to budgeting so you have a spending plan.
Give every dollar a job and allot a certain amount of money towards food, entertainment, and more (don’t forget to include savings!). Next to each budget category, write down whether it is a ‘need’ or a ‘want’. This is important, because as you go through the month you may find yourself needing to cut back even more. If that’s the case, where do you cut back? On the wants.
I believe in budgeting some money for fun, but make sure you’re not putting too much cash towards this category and neglecting your savings. I know — I’ve been there! Your budget should reflect your needs and adapt when necessary.
In order to budget effectively it’s crucial that you track your expenses (and yes, you can do this while you’re implementing the budget above). For one month, write down each and every single purchase. But don’t stop there.
Next to each purchase, write down how the purchase made you feel. You could use a simple happy or sad face, or a few adjectives. There’s no right or wrong answer, but I find that tracking your spending and your emotions can help you determine where you can cut back even further. Not only that, but you can quickly see when you are not spending on your values. Any time you feel guilty, sad, or out of sorts with a purchase it should be a giant red flag — it wasn’t worth it!
Maybe you had a blast in the Summer and want to commit to spending less, but the holidays are right around the corner. The holidays are an expensive time for nearly everyone, so instead of falling back into a trap of spending too much, start creating a holiday budget and saving now. It sounds super early to be thinking about this — but in the end you won’t regret it.
You don’t want to turn to debt or feel stretched thin during the holiday months, especially after an expense-filled Summer that you’re just climbing out of.
This may be the toughest advice to implement of all, but if you want to get back on track with your budget, you have to learn how to say no.
You have to learn how to say no to that little voice in your head that says “I deserve this.” You have to learn to say no when temptation strikes.
In addition, you have to learn how to say no to your kids, your spouse, your friends, and colleagues. It can be tough, especially when people expect so much of us.
No can be a powerful word. Saying no now means saying yes to something else, like future savings, less stress, and a stronger financial foundation.
If you’re feeling like you overindulged this Summer, use these tips to help you get back on track. It’s a new season, a fresh start — a perfect time to reevaluate your budget and track your spending so you can end the year in good financial standing.