Envelope System
Some of us fall into the trap of spending more than what we are actually getting. This in turn causes problems. Sometimes, just to cover the costs, one resorts to taking a loan or pawning jewelry and other valuables in order to straighten out the budget.
This was my problem before. Back then, my paycheck has already been allotted to bills and miscellaneous items that when the time came for me to get the money, I just counted the payment and distributed it all away. There even came a time when all I had left was transportation allowance for another two weeks before the next pay date. It was a difficult time indeed.
After learning it the hard way, I decided to finally do something to correct the problem. I wrote down my expenses and provided a short envelope for each category, for example, food, bills, car fund, etc. When I got my paycheck, I distributed the money on the envelopes and even set aside some for our family’s savings. This helped me because if I needed to buy food, I’d just get money from the food envelope. This way I budgeted wisely and noted that I only have such amount for that category. Just to be on the safe side, I also had a miscellaneous fund envelope which was like a fallback just in case there are unexpected expenses.
So far, this has worked for me. It also helped that I took note of all the expenses so that I won’t have any difficulty finding what I have bought and where the money has gone to. No more rummaging in my purse for the receipts.
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