reflections on budgets
The lessons about budgeting in this course have impacted me the most. Journaling how I budget time on a typical day has opened my eyes to how I can change current behaviors to increase productivity and allow more time to do things that I find meaningful and fun. Budgeting, in the financial sense, has also been very important. I found it a very useful exercise to think strategically and specifically about one of my financial life goals using the GANTT chart. Evaluating whether or not my financial goals were S.M.A.R.T. (specific, measurable, attainable, relevant, and time-bound) was also valuable.
For a while, I have avoided making a personal budget. It always seems like a good idea – something that responsible adults do – but it also feels intimidating. I think: it seems like a long, complicated process, I don’t have time. I think: maybe through the process digging into my finances, I’ll uncover some unpleasant finding and will have to go on a monetary “diet!” Not fun at all! I think: well, since I can pay bills on time and am pretty good at keeping constant mental note of the balance in my checking, savings, and credit card accounts at all times, I don’t need an “official” budget in black in white.
I have had, in fact, some experience creating and sticking to a budget despite never having really made one for my personal finances. When I was a “resident artisan” at a nursing home in downtown Lancaster, I was given free rein to create three separate indoor wall murals but had to work within the small amount of money allotted for the beautification project. I carefully made lists of materials and researched the cheapest materials I could buy without sacrificing quality. I was able to successfully stay within my budget and create stunning murals for the residents of the nursing home.
With graduate loans, increasing “adult” spending needs (i.e. bill paying, insurance bills, etc), and the need to actually save money (not just spend it carefully), lessons in budgeting and healthy spending need to happen now. I’m ready to make the transition from thinking of budgets as being reactive tools to thinking of them as tools I can utilize proactively (Fontinelle, 2008). I’m also ready to start calling budgets “personal financial plans” because it seems more articulate and specific.
I think a major goal for me is to work for more financial security involving planning for emergencies and unexpected spending. Spending money in a crisis is always stressful. I desire to have the discipline to set aside money each month for savings. Another immediate goal is to find an easy way to document and review my finances. It would be helpful to be able to have all of that important information easily accessible and easy to understand quickly.
The implications of successfully mastering a personal budget and achieving S.M.A.R.T. financial goals will be enormous. Not only will it directly influence my quality of life going forward, it will equip me with practical tools that I can then share with organizations I hope to be employed with in the future! Taking steps toward a healthy financial future will ensure that I am being a responsible steward of my resources and that I am living out my life mission to my best and fullest potential.
For a while, I have avoided making a personal budget. It always seems like a good idea – something that responsible adults do – but it also feels intimidating. I think: it seems like a long, complicated process, I don’t have time. I think: maybe through the process digging into my finances, I’ll uncover some unpleasant finding and will have to go on a monetary “diet!” Not fun at all! I think: well, since I can pay bills on time and am pretty good at keeping constant mental note of the balance in my checking, savings, and credit card accounts at all times, I don’t need an “official” budget in black in white.
I have had, in fact, some experience creating and sticking to a budget despite never having really made one for my personal finances. When I was a “resident artisan” at a nursing home in downtown Lancaster, I was given free rein to create three separate indoor wall murals but had to work within the small amount of money allotted for the beautification project. I carefully made lists of materials and researched the cheapest materials I could buy without sacrificing quality. I was able to successfully stay within my budget and create stunning murals for the residents of the nursing home.
With graduate loans, increasing “adult” spending needs (i.e. bill paying, insurance bills, etc), and the need to actually save money (not just spend it carefully), lessons in budgeting and healthy spending need to happen now. I’m ready to make the transition from thinking of budgets as being reactive tools to thinking of them as tools I can utilize proactively (Fontinelle, 2008). I’m also ready to start calling budgets “personal financial plans” because it seems more articulate and specific.
I think a major goal for me is to work for more financial security involving planning for emergencies and unexpected spending. Spending money in a crisis is always stressful. I desire to have the discipline to set aside money each month for savings. Another immediate goal is to find an easy way to document and review my finances. It would be helpful to be able to have all of that important information easily accessible and easy to understand quickly.
The implications of successfully mastering a personal budget and achieving S.M.A.R.T. financial goals will be enormous. Not only will it directly influence my quality of life going forward, it will equip me with practical tools that I can then share with organizations I hope to be employed with in the future! Taking steps toward a healthy financial future will ensure that I am being a responsible steward of my resources and that I am living out my life mission to my best and fullest potential.
references
Fontinelle, A. (2008, September 28). Budgeting Basics - Introduction | Investopedia. Retrieved August 21, 2015, from http://www.investopedia.com/university/budgeting/