When it comes to money management and financial planning, there’s a whole lot of focus on your work and your business transactions. But, realistically, if you want to change something about your monetary situation, a better place would be to start by more effectively managing your life expenditures in general.
For example, look into the basics of your life concerning things like the price of alcohol, the cost of owning a car, how much is costs to live where you do, what your food budget is like, and how well organized your bills and subscriptions (think newspapers, internet, etc.) are. The mundane aspects of life most likely have more to do with your overall financial picture than simply your job.
The Price of Alcohol
If you want to achieve greater financial success in your life, you have to be very careful about alcohol consumption, because there are several costs involved in drinking. First is the cost of the alcohol itself, which can get up there quite quickly for regular drinkers or people with expensive taste. And the other cost is with health detriments. Too much drinking causes all sort of problems like liver damage, brain damage and issues with blood pressure and circulation if done to excess.
The Cost of a Car
Cars are all sorts of hidden costs that affect your financial management options over time as well. There’s the initial cost of the car, and then the insurance, and gas, and repairs over time, along with expected maintenance, and then the possibility of any kind of accident. By understanding the cost of a vehicle in advance, and getting the least expensive one that you can, you’re really improving your overall financial portfolio.
Where Do You Live?
And if you’ve overshot your ability to afford your home and your neighborhood, that’s going to be a difficult hurdle to overcome when it comes to long-term financial planning as well. Especially with how the real estate market has been wandering around, it makes more sense than ever to spend within your current means, not your predicted ones.
Your Food Budget
And if you want to manage your money on a day to day scope, one of the first places that you’re going to start is with your food budget. Learn to buy in bulk. Learn to use coupons with fast food. Find out how not to waste things that you’ve already paid for. The smarter you are about food money, the smarter you are about money in general.
Bills and Subscriptions
And what bills and subscriptions do you have that will add up over time? Do you have music or magazine subscriptions? Do you use them often enough to make it worth the price? These are the questions to ask yourself when it comes time to do a full financial management session.