Building financial independence and security takes time. In large part, good financial decisions and behaviors are variations on a single theme – spend less and save more. But simply knowing that it’s a good idea to do those things can seem too abstract, unless that knowledge comes with some guidance on how to take action to actually do those things. Don’t try to change every aspect of your financial behavior all at once. It can be overwhelming to try to completely change too many behaviors all at once, and that can make it difficult for any of those changes to...

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In order to take control of your financial situation, you need to know what’s happening to your money. It might seem like an obvious point, but in fact many people aren’t quite sure whether their financial situation is getting better or getting worse. They simply don’t have an accurate picture of where they stand. Trying to figure out the best way to meet your financial goals can be difficult (if not impossible) if you don’t know where you are now. One effective way of coming up with a baseline for your current financial position is to calculate your personal “cash...

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An increasing number of people are using their iPhones for tasks that previously would have been handled in some other way. Point and shoot cameras, pocket video cameras and dictation recorders have in large measure been replaced with functions built into every new iPhone. Even many personal budgeting tasks can now be done with the iPhone. In fact, some individuals are finding that because they usually have their iPhone with them at all times it’s easier than ever to create budgets and track those budgets. Much of the initial resistance that many people encounter with following a budget has to...

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Let’s face it – budgeting can be a real chore. But if you want total control over your finances, it’s an absolute must. Without a budget, it’s next to impossible to keep track of where your money is going, find ways to cut back, save up for future needs or even make sure you’ll have enough money to pay your bills each month. You don’t have to be a financial guru or even good at math to budget successfully. There are plenty of tools available online and off that will help you create a budget tailored to your income, expenses...

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Coming up with a budget can be a challenge for just about any household. Preparing a budget requires you to make assumptions about your future income and future expenses, and to get those numbers into some type of balance. As an added challenge, it’s usually necessary to include some extra room into your budget for unexpected expenses. Since you’ll certainly encounter unexpected expenses at some point, it’s important to incorporate a financial buffer to account for those types of expenses. Traditional financial advice can get you most of the way there, but you might need to use some additional...

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Creating a budget isn’t rocket science. Once you get started, you’ll find that it’s really pretty easy. You don’t even have to be a math whiz – that’s what calculators are for. But sticking to your budget is often an entirely different matter. Some people find that simply creating a budget and seeing how much money they can save is incentive enough to stay with it. Others find themselves faltering after a few months, or worse, not even getting off the ground with it. Here is some budgeting advice that you need to consider help keep yourself on track.

Be realistic....

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Some of us are frugal by nature. Others go through money like they have holes in their pockets. But no matter which end of the spectrum you’re on (or if you’re somewhere in the middle), you can benefit from creating a household budget. Budgeting is one of the best ways for anyone to save money. It gives them a realistic picture of their financial situation, and that’s the first step toward getting a handle on your money. Here is some money saving advice and some of the specific benefits of having an accurate and detailed budget.

• You know exactly how much money...

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