The Budgeting Woman

When you hear the words “personal money management,” what thoughts come to mind? Confidence or confusion? Peace or anxiety? Or maybe just nothing at all? Regardless of the feelings that surface when the topic of discussion turns to money, the truth is that it will always be something that demands our attention.

Being a young adult requires a lot of maturing and figuring out how life beyond college really works, and a big part of that process means learning how to handle money. But if your college experience was anything like mine, you probably didn’t have to take a course on budgeting or how to pay back student loans or what to do when your dream job doesn’t pan out immediately.

And yet that’s what ends up being a lot of people’s post-college reality: trying to figure out how to navigate adult life on their own with very little guidance. After I graduated, I quickly found myself in that place, with the most challenging upstream battle being how to handle money, particularly in a Biblical and God-honoring way.

Since then, I have learned many things about how to “adult,” and I have found that the biggest key to managing money well has been making a monthly budget. At the beginning of every month I sit down and input my expected income and expected expenses, intentionally telling my money where it’s going to go. Then throughout the month, I continue to keep my budget updated to reflect extra income and any additional expenses. Sometimes it’s a tedious task, but I love knowing where it’ll going instead of, at the end of the month, wondering where it went.

In doing this, I have managed to pay off thousands of dollars worth of student loans and a car loan in the last fourteen months, and should be totally debt free before the end of the year. I am so excited about all of it that I find myself telling others that they, too, can take control of their financial situations with some goals, perseverance, and a whole lot of grit.

So, whether you are single or married, and whether or not you have debt, here are some of my tips and tricks for budgeting:

• Take the time to pray over your finances, and ask God to give you direction, discernment, and discipline.
• Continue to tithe, no matter what your financial situation looks like. It’s important to give back to God what is rightfully His before ever using it for yourself. Consider setting up automatic payments if you have a hard time tithing regularly.
• Have at least $1,000 in your savings account at all times for emergencies that pop up. If you are debt free, that number should be somewhere around 3-6 months of expenses.
• Create a zero-based budget every month. My favorite tool for this is EveryDollar.
• If you have accrued consumer debt (loans, student loans, credit cards, etc.), make it a priority to pay it off as soon as possible by taking on extra work or cutting frivolous spending habits (see my tips for this below).
• Still leave some room to treat yo’self. I have given myself little incentives along the way after each debt gets paid off, which has helped me stay more focused and motivated.
• If you are married, you and your spouse have to be on the same page. Sit down together each month to plan your budget, and hold one another accountable to your plan throughout the month.
• If you are single, ask a trusted friend or mentor to be your accountability partner. My “budget buddy” and I meet at the end of each month to look at where my money went that month and to plan for the following. This has been crucial to my success thus far.
• Stick to your budget every month. Discipline isn’t supposed to be easy, but in the end it will be so worth it.
• Seek to learn the art of contentment (Hebrews 13:5-6) and remember that money is just a thing. Guard your heart against the love of it (because idolatry – 1 Timothy 6:10)

One practical way I started to make more money and put it toward debt was by taking on extra jobs. It’s not a revolutionary idea, I know, but it works. For the last year, I have been taking on anything and everything that has come my way: babysitting, petsitting, home organizing, interior painting, tutoring, and, more recently, commissioned art pieces and photography gigs. Another way to save the money? Planning ahead and learning to say no. Here are some of my tips for doing just that:

• Make your coffee at home. Why spend $4 on a latte you can make at home with fresh brewed coffee and some frothed milk? At-home lattes in cute to-go mugs are my jam.
• Carry tea bags with you in your purse. Sounds weird, I know, but then if you find yourself out and about needing a bit of caffeine or meeting a friend at a coffee shop, all you’ll need is a cup of hot water and you’re good to go!
• Keep snacks in your purse, car, desk, everywhere. I always have a LaraBar or Kind Bar in each of those places for the moments when I just need a little something to satisfy my hunger.
• Make your lunches at home instead of going out everyday. Lunch plans with a coworker? Suggest bringing your own food and having a picnic. Not only is this more cost effective, but it’s a whole lot healthier, too.
• Say no to the things might be considered frivolous spending (i.e. a concert, new sunglasses, that spring break trip, etc.). This is probably the hardest tip to put into action, but I have learned that saying no to things now allows me say yes to even better things later.

Taking extra income and immediately separating it into an account for debt payoff has not always been easy, but it has been super rewarding. Maybe your challenge isn’t paying off debt, but saving for a big trip or preparing to a buy a house. Watching those numbers dwindle (or add up if you’re saving) is truly so gratifying, because you literally get to see your hard work pay off. And maybe your current financial situation is different than mine. No matter what your circumstances may look like, there is so much value in learning as early as possible how to handle your money in a way that sets you up for success and glorifies God.

One last key to any success is to remember that it is all a gift from God, not an idol to be worshiped or a master to be enslaved to. God is Sovereign and knows the needs of people, but we must also be responsible with that He has given to us. It isn’t always easy, but our acts of obedience now with the resources He leaves in our hands will undoubtedly set us up for greater things in the future. I hope that through these words you have been encouraged to be intentional with your money planning, aggressive with your debt payoff, and frivolous in your generosity, all to the glory of our Father.