Tithing and Fast Offerings: Both Dan and I have never questioned the importance of paying tithing. It's never been debated, we just pay it - and pay it before any other financial decisions are made. Also, we have gradually increased our fast offerings (For those who aren't LDS - we are asked to fast once a month for our own spiritual welfare, but in the process, we are asked to donate the $ not used for food during that fast. It's used for the LDS welfare programs.) A couple years ago a friend of ours told us that if we would increase the amount we were giving - even if it seemed we couldn't spare more, we'd be totally blessed. We've now seen the truth to that.
Savings: It took us a couple years to understand the vital importance of saving, even if just a little, each month. We thought the best thing to do would be to get out of debt as fast as possible. So in putting any extra $ we had toward debt payment, we found that when our car broke down or the furnace quit in record-breaking cold February . . . we had to use the credit card again bringing the balance back up to where we started. So in establishing our savings, we avoided that. Now our goal is to build up the savings enough to a 3-month's salary . . . and consider that our "0" balance. Anything else we need to save up for goes above and beyond that.
Credit Cards: Don't get sucked in!!! The day we were completely 100% free from credit card debt was one of the most freeing days of our lives. Currently, we have certain credit cards that we use on a very regular basis, but we pay the balance off EVERY month, NO EXCEPTION! We use them to earn airline miles - now that we have to purchase 5 tickets to get the whole family somewhere . . . those miles come in handy!
Budget: It's amazing what a budget will do for a sense of freedom! We have our finances broken down into VERY specific categories. Our checking account holds the $$ for set monthly expenses, each is documented with the due date and how it's paid (check, electronic with-drawl, credit card, etc.) I go through that list once or twice a month, making sure each gets checked off for the month when it's paid. Next, our first savings account gets an automatic deposit amount each month. This $$ is broken down into categories that aren't monthly expenses like Auto maintenance, computer ink & maintenance, subscriptions, medical, and even Christmas. Those categories accumulate $$ in the savings account so it's also gaining interest - and not so easily tempting. Then, we have our cash budget. We withdraw the same amount of cash each month and stash it in category envelopes - these include things like groceries, household items, entertainment, stamps, beauty products, gifts, emergency preparedness, etc. (These categories are VERY specific.) It's amazing how much better we are when we are working with cash - it's easier to be disciplined when you SEE the money come in and go out. Finally, we have a second savings account for our bulk savings.
Allowance: A budget is SO MUCH EASIER to stick to when you have your own money - to spend however you want - no questions asked. Once we worked an allowance for both Dan and I into our budget, it's amazing how I didn't go over our grocery budget or spend too much in our household budget. We are able to pursue our interests or save for something big - having our own $$ is vital to making the budget work.
Now that we are in our dream home, I can see how all the discipline has paid off. I think we have made a complete turnaround in the past 2-3 years. It really doesn't take that long to regain the control over finances. It just takes goals, a plan and a bit of discipline.
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