Budget class

I think the most significant thing we can do is have God's help. I think of my Heavenly Father as a father and I believe He deals with us much like a Father would a child...especially when it comes to money. I believe He sent us here to learn and grow so a lot of what He does is His effort to teach a lesson. I think there are eternal laws that apply. Understanding these laws makes it easier to make decisions day to day. He has asked us to pay tithing.

Elder David A. Bednar gave a talk in October 2013 in General Conference. He talked about his mother-in-law and how she had kept careful records of the family finances and noticed that there had been many significant and subtle blessings they had received and could have been easily overlooked. Heavenly Father had given these simple blessing in seemingly ordinary ways.

This seems like the story of our lives. For example:

We let the Boy Scouts have a yard sale at our house and something I've been really needing/wanting is donated and I can buy it cheap.

When money is really tight I decide to stop by the grocery store to find all the meat I need on a mark down sale. I got there at just the right time.

We get some unexpected money and then the car breaks down....we have enough to cover it.

Craig's forthcoming mission meant 2 large suitcases would need to be purchased, usually around $100 each. Sears had their large suitcases on sale Black Friday.... for $19.

Through a conversation with a church member we were lead to find out about an airlines called Copa Air. Through that airlines we were able to get tickets to Brazil to pick Ethan up from his mission...for $3000 less than we could find tickets anywhere else.

When the idea first presented itself that Ethan would go away to college, we were not prepared financially. One day I told Heavenly Father that I really needed $12,000. I included that I knew that was a little farfetched but nonetheless I really needed $12,000. Right after that I was offered a permanent position in the local High School Cafeteria making....(drum roll) $12,500.

How has God blessed you?

I believe the Lord doesn't ask for our money because He needs it. He asked so our hearts will be turned to Him. He is completely capable of compensating for the money and more. As we seek for His blessing He hopes we notice that the blessing are from Him.

But like a Father I think He wants us to do all that is within our power to take care of ourselves. He wants us to put forth the effort. That is where I believe a Budget comes in. It is the easiest way to know “If we've done our best.”

How do you feel about having a budget?

Some think about budgeting like “I will never get to do or have anything if I am limited to what it says on paper.”

“Having a budget makes me feel poor.”

“If I have a budget it will only tell me I can't spend money that I already know I can't afford to spend.”

It might be helpful to practice thinking something more like this -

“I can spend my money on whatever I really want because I have a plan to make it happen.”

“I am in control. I decide how my money will be spent.”

“I can decide how I want to spend my money when I not pressured and have the facts.” 

“I can decide carefully what I really want.”

When Julie was a baby, we lived in an apartment and I wanted a house. When I told Doug I wanted a house he said, “We aren't even making ends meet now. I can't pay the power bill until you buy groceries because I'm afraid we'll bounce a check.” I knew in my heart I wasted a lot of money on things that didn't matter and I was willing to sacrifice it all if it meant I could have a house. So I asked him to help me do a budget. I had flat refused to do one when we got married. A year later we bought a house.

A wise man (Zach) recently said that “If you don't have a budget - your checking account becomes your budget.” Meaning, all decisions have to be based off the bottom line, based off all the money you have. With this plan it makes it hard to make decisions quickly. 

Let me give you an example: 

Your child comes to you with the order form for school pictures. You have to make a decision -“Do I have enough to buy them...and if I do, how much can I spend?” Later that same day - A telemarketer calls and is selling a family movie that sounds really interesting... “Can I afford to buy the movie and if I do will I have enough left to still buy the school pictures?” There are SO many decisions like this that often need to be made quickly. That is where a budget can give great peace of mind in helping to make decisions. A budget can be made when there is time to think and ponder, "How will I choose to spend my money.” Then when a decision presents itself we can answer based on what we've decided. It's your money so you can decide to change to budget. You are in control. You get to decide how to spend your money.

Okay.... so your thinking maybe you'll consider it.

Fortunately today there are many options for easy online budgets. My sweet husband is an accountant and a Excel genius so ours is just a homemade Excel spreadsheet. You might want to find something online or an app that is cute and colorful.  This is one that is almost exactly what we use.  They even send you emails everyday to help you learn all the end and outs of budgeting. Its not free but I think its totally worth the investment.  Its a one time fee.  It could save you hundreds of dollars in not that much time.  If you watch the 4 minute video on the You Need a Budget website you won't need to read the next 3 paragraphs:)  YouNeedABudget.com and the calculators on ProvidentLiving.org under finance

After 25 years of budgeting let me give you idea what you're looking for.

You are looking for is something that helps you separate you money.

For example:

The more categories you have, the more divided you money is, the faster you can decide if you want to spend your money on whatever it is that is asking for your money.

The other thing that is nice in a budget is the ability to see the future.

There are things, like Christmas, that are predictable, but not every month.  Planning for that can sometimes be challenge.  Same thing with birthdays, car insurance, gym membership, tags for the car, back to school, planning for them all year makes it less painful because the money will have just collected right before you need it. Its exciting to get a bill and then check the budget and the whole amount is already there, just enough, waiting to be paid!

So when looking for a budget try to find something that will divide your money into categories so you can make decisions quickly and also a budget that shows what will happen to your money if you keep doing what you are doing all year. It will let you see if what you have planned will help you have what you want in the long run. It will help you see the future.

Now I know what often happens when someone decides they are going to try a budget. They write it all out and there is not enough and worst... now there is proof there is not enough. That is actually what usually happens because people don't normally start a budget until they need one and they need one because there is not enough money - so don't be discouraged. I promise - this is the fastest, easiest, least painful way of getting what you really want from your money.

So maybe we need to stop and look for ways to save money. It's tempting to look at the large sums of money on the budget and say, “If this category went completely away then we would be fine.” Maybe... and if that is possible that's great, but if not.... then maybe you could just shave a small amount from many categories and bring your budget in line.

Here are some examples, in principle, that you might consider. 

Let buying something new be your last resort.  First see if you have anything around the house that will work.  Second consider borrowing it.  Third barter for it.  Fourth buy it used online or at a yard sale or thrift store.  Plan ahead and buy it on a sale or with a coupon.  As a last resort buy it at the store where it is cheapest. Be flexible and stay open to the Lord's help and inspiration.

Deck, new shirt - What are some of your great deal?

Become a price expect. The best way to know if something really is a good buy is to always notice what things cost. Just notice. Always check the price of everything you are considering buying. Notice prices even if you don't intend to buy the item that day. For example, notice the price of gas when driving around even when the tank is full. By simply always noticing, you will become a price expect on the things you often buy. Then when a good price presents itself you'll know it's a good deal... because you're an expect!

Play 'Price is Right!'

Try to see everything as a raw material. The more refined a product is the more it will cost. Everyone that's handled that product, got paid. Could you do the work yourself or some of the work and not have to pay as many people. That applies to everything from growing you own food or buying it at the farmers market to buying your furniture wholesale. Of course in Alabama we have an entire industry of used household goods that can also be a really good buy. 

You can also pray for help. All things are spiritual to the Lord, even money. Expect miracles, watch for them, stay positive - no fear. The Lord will help. You can do this.

So lets say you have a budget and you've shaved what you spend down to where it all fits, tightly maybe, but it fits. Now what? Track it!

Tract the money means we record what we have spent. We are creatures that forget....some of us more than others. “Where are my glasses anyway....?” Oh, right, on my head where I put them. Geez! Anyway... because we easily forget, we might forget that we spent money and still think we have more than we do. So we need to track what we spend. We do that on the budget. If we make the budget but then don't look at it again we might make choices that aren't in keeping with what we have planned.... because we forgot. So how often to do we need to record what we have spent? That depends on how much you want to save. The more you track the more you save....like a lot more. Remember the wealthy know how much money they have because they keep up with it. We could do that too.

Okay so one last story. (Zach said I needed to put this in.) Now this story is not about buying drinks at the gas station. It's about spending money and not realizing it.

I was talking to a friend one day about money. I asked her for her perspective. She had cleaned houses for years and her husband was retired from retail. They never had a lot of money. Every nickel counted, yet their house is paid off, their cars are paid off. They live comfortably and can buy what they need and lots of things they want. They raised a big family. She said she had a good example of how fine a line there is between being financially okay and being in a financial crisis. She said she had a partner in house cleaning. They worked together and made the same thing. She was married and her husband made good money. But she wasn't able to pay her bills. She had asked my friend for advice on money. She didn't know how to help her because she didn't understand why she was having the problem. As she tried to figure out how to help her she began watching to see how she spent her money. This is the example she gave of what she had noticed. My friend said that if her co-worker had $20 in her purse, whenever they stopped for gas she would use the cash to buy a drink and some chips. Sometimes she bought drinks for everyone in the car. But then later she would realize she didn't have gas in her car and the money she had spent was supposed to go for gas. Because she had spent all her cash she would borrow from her rent money with the plan to replace it when she got paid. But when she got paid she forgot about replacing it and then when the rent came due she wouldn't have enough. She had had to move several times because she couldn't pay her rent. When I shared this story with Zach he said, “And she probably had no idea where the money went, she did even notice she had spent it.” Sometimes it seems like the little things are so little they wouldn't even matter. But maybe it does. What matters is that you choose to spend the money on what you really want. You are in control of where it goes.

That's it in a nutshell. We pay our tithing and pray and watch for God's help. We budget so we can have what we really want and we make a plan to get there because we can see the future. We track our expenses so we don't forget what our plan is and we use these tools to quickly make the best decisions about money.