Comments on: The Budget Puzzle

By: New To Enemy Of Debt?

New To Enemy Of Debt? — Thu, 15 Apr 2010 19:30:56 +0000

[...] – 7 Tips To Make Your Budget Work ~ The Budget Puzzle ~ How To Give Yourself A Raise ~ The “B” [...]

By: Manage Your Money Pre-Challenge Post: On Paper On Purpose | Enemy of Debt: Where Behavior Meets Reality

Fri, 26 Feb 2010 20:24:13 +0000

[...] The Budget Puzzle June 11, 2008 [...]

By: Brad Chaffee

Brad Chaffee — Sat, 14 Jun 2008 00:18:31 +0000

Hey Larry, it is so nice to see you on here!! Very nice surprise!!

You are absolutely right about budgeting. There is nothing easy about it. Doing the budget is easy but sticking to it is the difficult part. We all need each other for encouragement and support.

As I said in the blog, you can be rolling right along on a budget and everything is going fine and then one day out of nowhere-BAM! Murphy stops by for a visit! The one thing we all share in common is LIFE happens to ALL of us.

Good luck Larry and thanks for stopping by!!

By: james larry

james larry — Fri, 13 Jun 2008 22:58:48 +0000

Thanks Brad for this blog and your dedication to helping others. If doing a budget was easy then everybody would be on a budget.The first time someone talked to me about a budget they mentioned putting money in envelopes. I got it. I started envelopes the very next day. I also started a budget. Usually about the 25th I loose track of my money and my budget BUT I always start over on the first, every time. In the last three months I have switched from eating out about 90% of my meals to eating at home for 95% of my meals. This was NOT EASY. I have stopped eating Chinese food at all. The desire or need to treat myself seems to be diminishing. All these changes occurred as a direct result of my working a budget. My budget advances 2 steps forward then one step back. When I am sitting right on top of a “one step back” day, and can’t seem to remember why I need a budget, I have help from others like you Brad with this blog and from other like minded people. thank you all.

By: Brad Chaffee

Brad Chaffee — Thu, 12 Jun 2008 18:05:05 +0000

Hey Tanya, it is so nice to hear from you again. I am so glad that my blog has helped you. You are going through what everyone goes through, it is pretty normal. I think we have to be reminded and encouraged on a daily basis. It is so easy to fall away from what we know. I am so glad you are back and I know you can do it!!

In case you didn’t know I have started the Enemy of Debt Forums for everyone for the purpose of helping with exactly what you were struggling with. Please come to the forums and register. It is new but if you need encouragement or just want to vent about things you can do it there.

You will be in my thoughts and prayers Tanya! Thanks for reading!

By: Tanya

Tanya — Thu, 12 Jun 2008 15:36:13 +0000

Thanks for this post Brad! I started FPU in January and did well for the first 2 months…then car trouble before I had an EF in place, the class ended along with the ‘gung ho’ enthusiasm and I gave up and fell back into old habits. Your post is a reminder that failure will happen but success will happen when you get up and try again. So, I’ve forgiven myself for the last 2 months and have started over for June. Back to cash and using envelopes and sticking to the plan. This first (almost) 1/2 of the month went just as I planned on paper! Keep on with the blog, I look forward to reading what you have to say. You always have encouraging posts.

Thanks!

By: Brad Chaffee

Brad Chaffee — Thu, 12 Jun 2008 02:28:56 +0000

Sounds like a good idea Darla. There is nothing at all wrong with that. When we feel secure and prepared with our finances, it gives us one LESS thing to worry about leaving us able to handle other important aspects of our life. I know for me there is ALWAYS something I could improve on.

Do you also have “sinking funds” on top of that?

By: Darla

Darla — Wed, 11 Jun 2008 23:01:59 +0000

We have a “life happens” account in addition to our EF, I named it “Darla’s safety net” (not even kidding).