Excel 4 Ur Business

If there’s any one kind of bank account that almost everyone has, it’s a checking account. As useful as they are, checking accounts still provide several ways for you to get into financial trouble. In this chapter I’ll show you how to get the most out of your checking account without the usual downsides.

How Checking Accounts Work

Wait—doesn’t everyone know how a checking account works? Make deposits, write checks, and hope that you don’t have an overdraft. Yes, that’s certainly true, but there are more details you should know about. (more…)

Believe me, it’s a rare event for someone to analyze her expenses and find she is spending less than she should be! Like 99% of people, you are likely to be faced with the prospect of balancing your budget by adjusting things so expenses are equal to, or preferably less than, income.

Some ways of reducing expenses, such as reducing or avoiding credit card and bank fees, are covered in later chapters. In this section I present a few additional tips and suggestions for successfully balancing your budget by reducing expenses.

(more…)

Once you have decided that a budget is something you want to do and you have learned how to use the Home Budget template, then what? I won’t kid you, living on a budget is not the easiest thing to do. The potential benefits are huge, however, so it’s really worth your best shot. Let’s take a look at how the budget can help you and some of the difficulties people experience.

Analyze Your Spending

People usually have a pretty good idea of where their money comes from. It’s the spending that’s the big mystery! This is perhaps the most important area where a budget can help—enabling you to figure out exactly where your money is going.

(more…)

A budget is one of the most important tools available to you for taking control of your finances. In this chapter you’ll learn what a budget is and why it can be so useful. You’ll also learn how to use the budget template to manage your own money.

What Is a Budget?

Some people say, “I’m on a budget,” and mean nothing more than that they are limiting their expenditures. “I can’t go to dinner at Chez Pierre’s tonight because I’m on a budget.” In that sense, pretty much everyone is on a budget—after all, how many of us can spend money without limitations?

In another sense, a budget is a way to keep precise track of your money, how much comes in and how much goes out, and to determine how much you can and cannot spend on various things. Money that comes in is divided among the various budget categories, such as mortgage or rent, groceries, and entertainment. Each expense is likewise charged against the corresponding category. There are two main advantages to a budget.

(more…)