Be conscious of your spending

It's important to track every penny that leaves your possession. To many, this may sound crazy. How can I possibly track every penny I spend? My question to you is: How can you not? You work hard for your money (I'm assuming), so how can you not know where you spend your hard earned money? I hear from people all the time, "I seem to deplete all my extra money at the end of the month." Now, emergencies and unexpected purchases pop up all the time, but it's important to manage these expenses properly by saving for these expenses. By saving extra money at the end of the month, you'll have money to pay for these unexpected expenses and won't need to rely on a credit card.

I think many people are afraid to really see where their money is going. It's much easier if you just turn a blind eye to it! But you can't!

Here's how I track my expenditures:

• I have automatic bill pay setup through my bank. I know what these expenses will be each month (or roughly, things like electricity fluctuate).
  
• I make a conscious effort to limit my spending when going to department or grocery stores. I set a budget before I even walk into the store and try not to go over this amount.
• I log into my bank account everyday and track my spending. I reconcile each transaction. Bank of America makes it easy with online tools to set budgets and track expenses. See my previous post here.
• I make sure I'm not going over my set budget for each category. If I am, I adjust accordingly in other categories.
  

Plug the holes in your checking account today. Make a conscious effort to understand where every penny you spend is going.