This week on the One Minute Retirement Tip podcast, it’s time for a financial checkup. I’m helping you take stock of your situation, to help you catch the cancer in your finances before it spreads. It’s a good idea to do this  each year, so why not do it now? 

Today, I’m talking about your spending and your budget. Most people don’t have a budget. Most people spend a little here, a little there, pay their debts, pay their bills, and don’t manage to save much at the end of the month. 

In my experience, I am continually surprised at how little assets most people have given their income. And that’s because most of us don’t track expenses and don’t know where our money goes every month. 

Too many Americans spend money in a way that isn’t consistent with their goals. So I ask you: what’s most important to you when it comes to your money? Does your monthly spending and your budget reflect that. 

If travel is really important to you, but you haven’t taken a vacation in 3 years because you can’t seem to save enough for the trip you really want to take (forget about Covid for a second)....you’re not spending your money in a way that’s really important to you and will bring more fulfillment to your life, but you stop at Starbucks every day, then you aren’t spending your money in a way that’s consistent with your most important financial goals. 

Your most important financial goals and your spending habits need to match up, hand in glove. If they don’t then you need to re-evaluate where your money is going. You can’t possibly do that until you track and categorize your spending. 

My recommendation is that you look at your budget in depth every few months and that you keep it up to date. If you’re not doing that, start where you are today. Start tracking where your money goes. There are lots of apps and tools to help you do this. Track your spending for 1 month, then 3 months, and start to identify patterns. Then ask yourself if your spending habits need to be adjusted to help you work towards what is most important to you. 

The other benefit of keeping a close eye on your spending is that you’ll catch those services and subscriptions that you’re still paying for, but no longer using.

That’s it for today, Thanks for listening! My name is Ashley Micciche and this is the One Minute Retirement Tip.

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Tags: retirement, investing, money, finance, financial planning, retirement planning, saving money, personal finance