The most important aspect of budgeting isn’t necessarily sticking to it (although that is important), the real purpose is to feel in control of your money and gain understanding about where it goes. In fact, you can’t create a realistic budget unless you first know what is happening; until you have several months of spending data, it’s pointless to try. For anyone who has struggled with budgeting in the past, I recommend Mint, which is free personal finance software. Mint is a great tool for helping you track your spending as well as track other areas of your finances. And for the person who doesn’t enjoy budgeting, it’s easy to use for expense tracking without getting distracted by a lot of the other bells and whistles. Here is my 5-point plan to start Mint simply: If you adhere to these five rules, you’ll have plenty of time to review the Trends tab in Mint to gain more clarity over your spending; and then you’ll be able to act strategically to positively affect your cash flow. (Photo credit: Accounting via Shutterstock)
