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Write It Down
Write out your budget, your debt and your goals. Research shows when you write down things, you tend to remember the things you write down vs. what you don't write down. It could be you write it out on your electronic device or it could be you write it out on paper. But write it down. You need to know the numbers!
I have discussed budgets in several previous blog posts. And it is really important to get it down on "paper" and keep it in front of you for easy reference. It's also really important to write down every debt you owe and the balance of each one. It might seem overwhelming at first, but once you have it all written out, you can develop a plan to get rid of it, one debt at a time.
List out the obvious debt, like credit cards, car loans, mortgages and equity loans. But don't forget about cell phone installment agreements, student loans and even IRS debt. And list them out in order of the smallest balance to the largest and total them up. Then, later, you can "brag" about how much debt you paid off. Check out the Debt Snowball blog I posted November 2020 on how to get that debt paid down fast. But if you don't write it out and know what you owe, how will you get it paid off?
Lastly, write down your goals. Emergency fund ($1,000), 3-6 months living expense (for longer-term emergencies), Christmas, vacations, renovations, etc.
Writing it all down will get it all exposed so you know exactly how to address it. Not writing it down will keep you wandering and wondering how you will ever get it done.
You can master your money... and I can help!
Contact Michelle Serna by filling out the Contact Me form to the right of this post.
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