JW (from We Need to be Debt Free) has been doing his budget in Google docs, and I thought it was a great idea, so I did the same! :)
Is it working properly? I don't really use Google docs, but I thought this feature was really nifty... makes updating the budget a heckuva lot easier too! No more adding and subtracting for me! Woohooo
I realize I have a $233/mo deficit... I'm going to see how my spending looks this month and then tweak the budget to try to get rid of it... but I'm not sure if it's possible.
2 days ago
7 comments:
You seem to be working fine to me. :) I could never do a budget like that... Maybe why we've been spending nearly all of our money that doesn't go to bills on eating out. (I really need to fix it, but I'm not even sure how right now. Cold turkey won't work though, I know that for sure.) It just seems too constrictive, even though I like planning and all. Probably why I like the idea of Emergency and Freedom Funds. But that's just me. :)
I don't feel constricted by it... it's very fluid. If I find an amount is set too low, then I'll raise it. It just allows me to see (when compared with my actual expenses) areas where I'm overspending and helps me find some balance. I like the idea of an emergency and freedom (or vacation) fund too... but I can't start contributing to those until I make sure I can cover all my basic expenses.
Also, because I get a large lump sum from school, it's very easy to get into the mindset of "oh, I have a lot of money now, I don't have to watch my spending"... the budget shows me that, to the contrary, I don't have much, and I had better watch myself or risk going broke in no time at all!
I am totally impressed by how detailed your budget is! It looks like you've really accounted for all the specific subcategories of spending--which, I bet, will make narrowing your deficit much easier, as you're able to really pinpoint where your money is going.
One way of finessing the math might be creating a separate summer budget, when you'll have the opportunity to work and earn more, and saving some of your once-a-year expenses (like some of the car-related stuff) for that worksheet.
I love Google docs. What a creative and ingenious idea. ;)
ps - i use it quite often and your created budget looks great!
I've never used Google Docs, but it looks a lot like the excel sheet I use.
That's great that you realized you were heading to a deficit and can fix it! That's why I love budgets :-)
Looks fine, hope you can close that deficit. Ouch. I use a simple spreadsheet for my budget, I also don't include as many categories. All of my fixed expenses are there and then I just have a leftover amount for spending. I tried more stringent budgeting and found it took a lot of time to track. I think you have alot of useful info in your budget.
@mfaorbust: A summer budget is a great idea! :)
@MoneyFunk: Thanks! Google docs is really growing on me... I was a little resistant at first... but it's really useful, especially since I sometimes save docs on different comps... this way I don't have to transfer everything around. :)
@Simplelivin: Yeah, I think it's the equivalent to Excel. Maybe Excel has more features? I've always been biased in favor of Word... and have avoided Excel like the plague. <.< Kind of silly of me!
@Miss M: If I stopped eating, I wouldn't have a deficit, and I could lose some weight... <.< heh. Well, if I can't get rid of it, then a new job will be the way to go!
Post a Comment