Creating a budget requires some time and effort on your part, but constantly viewing your finances is vital. When you document income and spending, you can see exactly where your money goes.

If you already have the budget, now is a good time to update it. Make sure it reflects your current income and expenses. Perhaps your income has changed recently which could happen due to working reduced hours or unemployment. No matter the specifics, an accurate budget is vital for making good financial decisions.

When looking at your budget, consider the following:

• Identifying subscriptions you no longer use and cancelling them
• Planning grocery shopping to avoid buying food that you don’t need. Also consider buying food that you can store in a freezer.
• Look at discretionary spending. This refers to things you want but don’t need. This can include eating out, TV subscriptions, travel and many other things that you can cut back on.
• Look at trying to increase your personal savings and paying off debt like student loans and credit cards.