Articles on Budgeting

Your budget: envelopes or a plan?

When I was first introduced to budgeting, the model used was the envelope method. Every payday you'd take your cash and divide it up among envelopes labeled "Rent," "Groceries," "Electric Bill," etc. [more]

Plan for expensive fuel

Does your budget include a contingency for fuel to get much more expensive? Because it ought to. I learned about the need for contingencies early. [more]

Start with recurring monthly expenses

I tend to divide spending up into four categories. [more]

A Budget is Not a Constraint

When people resist the idea of budgets, the most common reason is that they view the budget as an unwelco

The Financial Balancing Act: Musings on Balancing Being Responsible with Having Fun

Sometimes, balancing debt (or staying out of it) with fun things we really enjoy brings up hard questions. [more]

How to live on $12,000 a year

In my first job out of college, I was on 12,000 English pounds per year. That was back in London in 1996, i was single, lived with two friends and only had rent and travel to pay for. And I still remember how tough that was. [more]

Ponder it: to budget or not to budget

Some of us need or want a budget, some of us don't. Here are some tips for deciding which category you're in. [more]

Budgeting for the rest of us, or How to follow a budget without breaking down in tears

Budgeting can be difficult. For some people (like me!), it brings up things that they may not want to see. For others, it's a necessary but frustrating tool to curtail spending, or a painful reminder of how much they overspent, yet again. [more]

Balancing Act: The Perils of Budgeting

Tackling a budget requires you to do one big thing with your finances — find the balance.

Frugal is More than a Way to Spend Money, Part 2

Frugal is a way of life — are you spending too much, or too little?