Are you having a difficulty in budgeting your finances? If you want to address this issue, continue reading this article for you to learn from Chinkee Tan- one of the Filipino motivational speakers and best-selling authors in the Philippines.
In this article, we are going to reveal and uncover the reasons why everyone of us is facing a hard time budgeting our daily expenses. And there are 10 lies or mistakes we tend to believe that hinder our proper financial management.
10 Biggest Lies About Budgeting
1. Income is Not Enough
Reality is those who came from a family of nothing know this is not true. You know what is the philosophy of a poor?: it’s better to eat once a day than have no food at all; it’s better to live in a small house rather than no shelter at all. In short, they believe that it’s better to have something rather than nothing. So, if those people can sufficiently budget their small income, why can’t you budget your current income which is much bigger? Hence, the problem is not the income, but the person who is handling the income.
Read: 50/30/20 Monthly Budget Calculator
2. Incapable of Budgeting
This looks like saying that you can’t establish a business or doesn’t know how to invest. Let’s say you indeed do not know, what should you do? Learn. All things can be learned nowadays especially that resources are almost accessible online, same with budgeting. However, the question is do you want to learn it? If yes, then find some ways rather than reasons.
3. Rewarding Self with a Break
Well, why are we earning money? To enjoy. You only live once. Can you bring your money with you when you are dead? That might be true. You need to reward yourself once in a while but always allot money for emergency fund, and your future. Don’t always say you deserve a break, or else you will break your budget.
4. Necessity for Upgrade
Upgrading your phone, computer, or look? Well, there is no problem with upgrading everything as long as you have a budget allocated for it. The problem is, if you can’t afford the upgrade and yet you borrowed money to make it possible. Distinguish whether it’s a need or want. If you need an upgraded phone for your business or blog, go for it, as this will earn you extra income but if you will upgrade just to show-off that you can buy the latest release? That’s a no-no. The problem is not the sale or upgrade, but the budget you have for it.
5. Grand Party for Child
It’s true that your daughter or son will have their debut once in a lifetime, but is it necessary to borrow money to conduct this event? Do you really want it for your child or you just want to brag in social media that you are capable? If it’s really for your daughter, why not just invest it so he/she will benefit from it when he/she turns 60? If you have the budget for a debut, proceed with it, but taking out a loan for it is not advisable.
6. Buy During Sale
Yes, you can save money by availing products on sale. But always ask yourself if you have a budget for it. Again, the issue is not the sale, the issue is if you have a budget for it.
7. It’s More Practical to Eat Out
Imagine you will have to cut ingredients, you will waste your time, and you will need to cook. Yes, it’s agreeable- if you are alone and you opt for a cheap restaurant, fast food chain, or food stall. But if you are a group of five, it’s not practical to eat out.
8. Necessity for Branded
If you always thought that you need to buy branded things because you want to brag about it and that you can afford it, then stop that mindset. Do not borrow money just to avail branded products.
9. Branded Coffee is More Delicious
There’ no harm in buying branded staff or branded coffee but make sure that you have the money to afford it. How will you know that you can afford a thing? Try multiplying it by 5. Let’s say you want to buy a Php200 coffee, Php200 x 5 is equal to Php1,000. Based on your income of Php15,000 to Php20,000, do you afford a coffee? Why not opt for a 3 in 1 coffee which cost you around Php15,000 each?
10. Necessity to Help Relatives
Yes, we need and we want to help but take note that you can’t help others if you can’t help yourself. You can’t give what you do not have. Sometimes, the reason we break out budget is because of our inability to refuse when someone ask us for help. Family first. There’s no harm in helping but always ensure you have the capacity to do so.
And there we have it the top 10 biggest lie about budgeting, among the list, which of it, are you most guilty at?
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