Budget Advice

The end of the month is here, knocking on your door with all the stress it brings. You don’t just endure it once every year, but twelve times!  You log into your account just to see that the number is dwindling with each expense.  You find yourself wondering about the next month, and the next, and even the next year.  The budgeting stress grasps you like a crushing handshake. So, what are some statistics that indicate the overall financial stress … Read More

There are many pitfalls and mistakes in budgeting.  We can say that because we prepare budgets for a living.  In fact, we like to say that a budget is a lie as soon as it is written. When you think about what a budget really is, you are attempting to predict the future.  You can predict some of it, but all of it?  We don’t think so. Why is so much financial guidance out there right now not working? The … Read More

Every morning my wife listens to the weather forecast on our local news channel.  If I happen to be talking, I might be shushed.  Yes, she knows she heard it 10 minutes earlier, but maybe they discovered something new.  I’m not so much of a weather addict.  We’ve all seen cases when the forecast was way off.  A 100% chance of rain instead brought clear days and a 10% chance of precipitation brought long periods of showers. Budgeting as a … Read More

Yogi Berra said, “Baseball is ninety percent mental and the other half is physical.” This begs the question:  How do we mentally reconcile all the disparate and often contradictory financial rules of thumb we hear?  “We should have 6 months’ worth of expenses in a rainy day fund!  No, make that year.  You should spend 25% of your gross salary on this but 10% of your net on that.” If you Google financial advice, you will surely come across the … Read More

Just over fifty years ago in July 1965, the Rolling Stones had their first number one hit, “(I Can’t Get No) Satisfaction.”  You want to GET SATISFACTION with your spending. This is what we call utility value, and it’s a VERY subjective thing.  The question is, what is the best way to determine the utility value of your expenses? How Do You Determine the Actual Value of Your Expenses? The value one places on goods or services are often different … Read More

Yogi Berra once said “Baseball is ninety percent mental and the other half is physical.” This begs the question –How do we mentally reconcile all the disparate and often contradictory financial rules of thumb we hear?  We should have 6 months of rainy day fund, no make that year, no wait 8 months is now good. You should spend 25% of your gross salary on this but 10% of your net on that. If you Google financial advice, you will … Read More