How to take control of your finances
Here are 13 easy ways to create smart money habits without hiring a financial advisor. Learn how to save money and manage your finances more wisely starting today.
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BUDGET
If you’ve read my other money posts you’ll know that budgeting is not something that my family and I do (in the traditional sense), though we have been trying.
Seeing how much money you make versus how much you spend (and on what) is a HUGE eye-opener.
My husband and I have an online income/expense sheet that we review on a monthly basis. Depending on what is going on we will review it more frequently or less frequently.
There are several ways you can budget:
Use the cash envelope system
Use the 50/20/30 rule (50% necessities/20% savings/30% flexible)
Pay yourself first, zero-sum, opposite of a budget-budget
Ultimately it comes down to spending less than what you make. If you go over budget in one category try to spend less on another category. Balance.
USE A FINANCIAL PLANNER
My husband will tell you, I have sticky notes and pieces of paper all over the place.
Most of the things I wrote don’t get done, at least not when I want them to because my papers are constantly misplaced.
I personally prefer to have 1 electronic version of our finances and then a hardcover book that I can carry with me so that whenever something comes up I can make notes on the fly and keep better track.
Check out this financial planner. It helps you keep track of your grocery spending, has a monthly budget template, and cash envelopes with stickers.
EBATES/COMPARE PRICES
I love saving me some money. Ebates is a FREE (yes legit) cash back site that sends you a check/PayPal from purchases you’ve made online or in-person.
>>Check out my Ebates Tutorial/Review and see how you can earn money each month.<<
Before making a purchase, shop around and compare prices.
One time I bought an item from a retailor that had a slightly higher price than their competitors, because the percent cash back that they were offering on Ebates was significantly higher.
Taking that into account, I spent less money than if I had made the purchase from the retailor with the cheaper price.
Ebates also gives you promo codes and offers from free shipping, but don’t forget to also check RetailMeNot.
AUTOMATE
We were able to save OVER $20,000 last year because a lot of our savings is automated.
A portion of each of our checks is direct deposited into our retirement funds, Roth IRA accounts and kids’ funds.
If you don’t already have a bank account designated for savings consider opening up a high-yield savings account.
Have a set amount of your paycheck go into this account each week. You can start with as little or as much as you feel comfortable with. If things go well increase this amount (even if it feels like you’re pushing yourself) as time progresses.
Related posts on managing your money:
6 Bank accounts everyone should have
12 Things we stopped buying to live a more frugal life
CUT BILLS/NEGOTIATE
The fastest way to improve your financial wellness, get out of debt and save more money is by cutting your spending.
I go through our bills on a monthly basis to make sure nothing increased in price and to see what adjustments can be made.
Related posts on bills you can reduce:
* Easy ways to cut your grocery bill in half
* 16 simple ways to reduce your telephone bill
* Slash your heating bill without freezing your butt
E.g. My cable bill went up because the promotional rate we had expired. This tells me I need to call our cable provider to see what they can do or it’s time to start looking for an alternative solution 😉
Remember it doesn’t hurt to ask. I’ve had fees waived, our car insurance reduced, etc.
When you call your service provider/creditor here are some of the things you can say:
“Hi, my name is ____ and I have been a loyal customer of yours for ___. I was comparing the prices of your competitors and was thinking about switching providers. Is there anything you can do for me?”
“Hi. I can no longer afford the monthly bills and am thinking about cancelling my account. Can you help me reduce my bill in any way?”
Be courteous and just because they say “no” now doesn’t mean they will say no in the future.
There have been a few instances when I’ve left a company that they come back with even better deals later on.
INVEST IN YOURSELF
I have been able to grow my family’s money faster because I took the time to teach myself, read, and invest.
Some of my favorite financial books are:
The Little Book on Common Sense Investing
My husband came across Dave Ramsey’s Total Money Makeover in one of his storage unit cleanouts and he knew it would be something I’d like so he saved it for me. And love it I did!
We had just finished paying off all of our credit card debt, but the advice and debt payoff stories in this book were so inspiring. He also includes worksheets, tips on life insurance, and credit card usage I found helpful.
If you’re looking to get out of debt this is a book you must read.
Not looking to spend any money right now. Your girl got the hook up.
For a limited time try Audible for 30 days FREE and get 2 free audiobooks. This means 
GET OUT OF DEBT
Don’t accept debt. Destroy it!
The sooner you pay off your debt the sooner you will have extra money to do what you want with it.
Whether you need to cut your spending, increase your side hustle, or do BOTH, get out of debt. Don’t give away your hard earned money to interest.
We sold our way out of credit card debt. By side hustling and cutting out unnecessary expenses we were able to pay off our debt fairly quickly.
BUILD AN EMERGENCY FUND
You MUST have an emergency fund no matter how small, though I suggest you reach at least $1,000 as soon as you can because emergencies don’t tend to be cheap. (car trouble, home repairs, etc.)
Here are the basics of building an emergency fund.
We just recently had our own home emergency when the pipe underneath our kitchen sink cracked and started coming into the house. Cabinets were destroyed, mold buildup, not a pretty sight.
When this happened my mind panicked and I wondered if we would have enough to cover this emergency. Thankfully we had enough to cover a plumber for the crack and my handy father-in-law assisted with further repairs.
This is why an emergency fund is one of the bank accounts you must have if you want to stay debt-free and save money.
PIN FOR LATER!
STOP USING CREDIT CARDS
I like to use my credit card whenever I can because I earn cash back. Yes, I know what the title of this section says…
Okay, that being said it is my own personal opinion: if you are struggling to keep your head above water you should stop creating more debt for yourself ASAP.
Paying cash is a great way to see just how much you are spending and possibly limit unnecessary expenses. Each person is different. Some people spend more when they pay cash so do what is best for YOUR situation.
Because most of our bills are automated I chose to do try using the cash envelope system for our groceries and entertainment for a few months. It made my husband and I more aware of our spending habits.
We are now back to using credit card, but have an easier time keeping our grocery bill within our budget.
If you have to put a purchase on plastic you can’t afford it.
SPENDING FREEZE
A spending freeze is when you literally spend no money other than the essentials (bills, food, mortgage, etc.).
Saying “no” might sound boring and make you feel poor, but in actuality it means you are strong because you are actively working on changing your current financial situation.
There are a lot of free and super frugal things to do for fun.
-Stay in for a movie night.
-Camp out in the backyard.
-Go on a romantic picnic date.
-Have a potluck and have your friends bring their favorite beverage of choice.
-Take pictures.
–Declutter your home and find things to sell to make money.
You can do a month long spending freeze, weekend spending freezes, or a no-spend challenge.
The sooner you want to improve your financial situation the more no-spend days you should try to do.
MAKE FINANCIAL GOALS
Write down your money goals and put it somewhere visible.
Do you want to save more money, get out of debt, increase your investments?
A dry-erase thermometer or these free debt tracking charts are a great way to keep yourself motivated.
Make short AND long term goals.
Short term goals are great because accomplishing small wins will keep you motivated throughout your journey.
Long term goals give you something big to shoot for.
My long-term goal is to one day be mortgage-free.
SIDE HUSTLE
When I started dating my husband he had several side hustles that he had done on and off throughout his life.
He has done clean outs, flea market flips, storage unit auctions, and more.
Anyone can do a side hustle.
Write down several things that you can do and turn into a cash.
Side hustle ideas for newbies
Cleaning houses
Selling unwanted junk from your house
Babysitting
Dog walking
Tutoring
Uber/Lyft
My biggest tip when it comes to side hustles is to take the money you make from your side hustles and put it straight towards your emergency fund or bills. Act like you never had it because it will just disappear.
I used my latest blogging paycheck to pay for the majority of my new laptop. This way when the credit card bill comes I’m not taking extra money out of my pocket.
REVIEW FINANCES REGULARLY
Take just a little bit of time to go over your finances.
It may be just 5 minutes a day or 20 minutes a month. However long it takes.
By going over our bills regularly we see how we can save more money and can figure out how long before we reach the financial goals we have at that time.
FINAL THOUGHTS
With just a little bit of time (and some planning) you can control your money better and reach your financial goals sooner.
The best part, most of the things on this list you can set and forget.
Now get your planner and start improving your finances today! Don’t forget to pin this post for later as you get things checked off 🙂
