This monthly budget form was key to understanding and planning my monthly spending plan. Fill it out and see where your money goes. I try to save first, then spend the rest carefully.
I work closely with my wife and reach agreement as much as possible on financial decisions. I had abdicated my responsibilities for 10 years too long!
If you answer NO to more than 10 of these questions then chances are you probably are in the majority of folks that struggle with personal finances in some way either in handling it or in reaching agreement on how to handle it.
Fill them out and track your monthly spending. See where money wasters are if you dare! Use it fo focus on your goals.
Here are lots of other free forms for you to check out. The debt reduction and planning forms are very useful. Just follow the examples.
Avoid trying to be Top Dog. It was freeing for me to stop competing with other people and comparing myself to them - in cars, homes, clothing or other stuff. Knowing who I am and what my wife and I want for our lives was the key. A smaller home, older cars, debt-free living, college for the kids, giving more, peace, not keeping up with the Jones, you get the idea.
This is just the tip of the iceberg on money principles, more will come. Check out the Family Dynamics Quiz to assess your personal risk. Check out the free home finance and budget forms. The monthly budget form can tell you what is coming in, and where it's going out. The debt reduction form can help you 'snowball' your debt repayments by applying the monthly payment of a paid-off debt to the next debt. Here is one pet peeve of mine. It is like being stolen from, each day, though it is subtle most people don't realize it. Don't fight with your wife if things get tough by the end of the month - part of the problem has to do with forces outside of your control - inflation. This is a monetary problem caused by the loss of sound money principles.
What Money Really Is
INFLATION - Money is a concept, nothing tangible in itself, legal tender I.O.U. that if put to work right a way can be of value. Try as we might to squirrel away money, remember that it is losing its purchasing power daily. Since it is created out of thin air by central banks, it unstable as a long-term 'store of value. When the dollar was tied to gold and silver it was reliable, and from 1776 - 1935 it held it's value as $20 for an ounce of gold, hence the $20 gold piece was about an ounce of gold. Today it is $680 for an ounce, so the dollar has lost 97% of it's value since 1935. Another risk to our money's purchasing power, is that the trade deficit is so large, that foriegners now own multiple trillions of US dollars. China and Japan own about $2 trillion between them. Like anything, dollars are subject to supply and demand. As foriegners accelerate the selling of dollars in favor of other assets, it will weaken and will fall, causing prices in the U. S. to rise. It can be that simple. So it is prudent to diversify our savings if we are to stay prosperous.
YESTERDAY YESTERDAY
Silver Dollar $20 Gold Piece
- 1936 1$ -1936 $20
- 2006 $25 -now $1300
TODAY TODAY
Today's Dollar has lost about 97% of it's value, or purchasing power in 70 years. Like the German Deutschmark of Weimar Germany in the 1920s, or the Russian Ruble of the 1980s, and 1998, the fate of the dollar is clear, though it is hard to believe, it's true. Look at the coins above.
So, diversifying into various assets is wise, don't just keep your savings in only cash. In fact, diversify into 7 different areas before this happens:
