Getting a Sense of Your Bearings {Day 11 of 21 Days of Hope + Help for Your Money}

This is Day 11 of 21 Days of Hope + Help for Your Money, a series providing you encouragement and tips to start the year off on a note of hope. Catch up on previous posts here. For future posts, come back daily or subscribe to have them emailed directly to you.

“Facing the reality of your today allows you to work on your tomorrow.” — Alaya

On Day 9, you got organized. Didn’t that feel good? (If you haven’t done that action step yet, hopefully, you’ll get to it today!)

Even when your finances are a mess figuratively, there’s something to be said about literally cleaning things up. It’s all about gaining a sense of your bearings.

To build on that, let’s look more closely at your monthly needs.

Do you have a good sense of how much it takes to run your household and take care of your basic necessities?

Today’s action step is about figuring that out.

Action Step

Create a Basic Budget

Download the Quick-Start Budget Form below and set aside about 30 minutes to complete it. This is not a detailed budget; it’s just one to get an idea of your basic household obligations.

You’ll notice there are no spots for your debt payments or all your expenses. This budget just focuses on your basic needs and is a precursor to a more detailed budget.

For some categories, you’ll be able to take advantage of your newly organized bills and pull your most recent statements to see your monthly payments. For other categories, like groceries, you may not have a clue what you spend yet. Just put your best guess for now.

Download the Quick-Start Budget

To download the budget immediately, please enter your email address. You will also be subscribed to the weekly Hope+Cents newsletter if you do not already receive it.