The Purpose of a Budget

A budget is much more than just listing your monthly bills. It is a plan to help us meet our financial goals. Our goals are what really drive the budget. The point of a budget is to help families set limits on ALL their expenses in order to achieve their goals.

So, the first step to making a budget is to setting goals.

Get together with your family and set short-term (0-12 months), mid-term (1-5 years) and long term (more than 5 years) goals. Make a plan and strategize how everyone in the family can help. Have the family make a chart of the goals to track progress. Give everyone a job duty for the poster based on their age (coloring, cutting, stickering, writing, etc.). Put the chart on the refrigerator and often discuss the progress of the goals during family dinner. You can also make individual note cards of the goals for keep member of the family to carry in their wallets. This will be a good reminder when someone is about to make an impulse buy.