It’s hard to believe that we are nearly 3 months into 2022! We all had great intentions of starting of a New Year with new resolutions, but after a few weeks’ things start to slip. But it is important to get back on track.

One of the toughest resolutions to stick to is budgeting! But why? Is it because your income/spending is inconsistent? Impulse buys? Or perhaps you simply don’t have a clear budget plan in place.

In order to stay to a budget, it's critical to make budgeting enjoyable. You can do this by rewarding yourself for reaching specific goals. For example, if you stick to your budget for the entire month, treat yourself to a meal at your favourite restaurant or a piece of clothes you've been saving for. This will give you a reason to look forward to budgeting and not find it strict by limiting yourself too much.

Setting short, medium, and long-term financial goals is an important aspect of achieving financial success. Strong financial goals will help you avoid overspending and keep you motivated as you seek to pay off debt or save for the future.

It isn't a goal to make money. The idea is to see what you can do with that money. It's worthless to create a budget if you don't know why you're doing it. The effectiveness of the budget depends on the creation of clearly defined financial goals with savings/budgeting. You may set a goal of saving £600 each month in a savings account, but what will you do with it? If you create a "why" you're saving £600 a month (for example, because you need £2000 for a car deposit). It's simple to design a budget that sounds wonderful and hope that you stick to it month after month. However, if you can't stay to your budget, it won't benefit you very much. As a result, it's critical that you set a savings goal, which will lead to an emotional bond that will be triggered if you tend to go over budget.

If the pandemic taught us anything, it's that none of us knows what the future holds. It's possible that things are going well financially right now, and you're just scraping by on your current wage. But what would you do if you were faced with a financial emergency? It’s recommended you have at least 3 months’ worth of living expenses in an emergency fund. To avoid being tempted to dip into your emergency fund, you might wish to open a separate savings account for it. Additionally, you may be able to receive interest on your savings. You want to be able to get to your money immediately if you need it, so it shouldn't be locked away in a savings account or invested.

You should also start thinking about what sinking money you'll need in addition to your emergency reserve. A sinking fund is a way to set aside money for large, predictable expenses. For example, Christmas or an upcoming holiday, together with all of the associated expenses, is a scheduled expense. Every year, it arrives, and you know it's going to happen. Many people, however, do not prepare for it and consider it as an emergency.

Take some time to evaluate if your budget is serving you in the way you want it to. Not only that but the way you need it to achieve your financial goals. We all want to spend less, yes, BUT, that might not be realistic for some of us. Setting an unrealistic budget is just setting ourselves up for failure, so it's critical that your budget is realistic for YOU. Remember, your budget should not and will not look like anybody else's.

Below is a basic template we at MOVE. follow, however each individual is different and may need to altered to meet their needs.