Avoiding facing financial problems inevitably leads to more irrational, knee-jerk spending. Mel O, a certified financial planner and host of the podcast Finances: The Other F Word, says budgeting is the most productive solution to combat self-destructive purchases and to shed financial stress.
Ahead of hosting a free Budget Bootcamp online on September 15 (register at freebudgetbootcamp.com), she offers some tough love advice on money management.
Understand your cash flow.
Budgeting begins with understanding your cash flow, which means poring over your statements.
“I will tell you that you spend more money on the s**t you choose to spend money on than you think. That’s a given,” O says.
To understand cash flow, she says to categorize your spending over the past 30 to 90 days into four buckets: fixed bills, fluctuating bills like power,…
