千年指南不走向破

How confident do you feel about your financial future? If you’re unsure or perhaps a little concerned, you’re not alone. Research suggests that while女性，60％担心他们不会有足够的资金来维持到退休， 只要one in three Americans have a detailed budget。看来我们都担心未来，但我们不采取我们的消费习惯的控制。如果这听起来很熟悉，它的时间“坦白和正轨你的财务状况。为了帮助我们，我们问一个领先的金融专家，以创建一个简单，浅显易懂的，一步一步的指导，为我们指出了正确的方向。Get started by saving the budget worksheet at the bottom of the article, and fill in the gaps as you follow along to these five steps. Consider it a money map—your new financial future starts here.

第一步很简单:找到你的最新paycheck to calculate your monthly income after taxes are taken out. This is the amount deposited into your bank account each month after deductions like 401(k) contributions. If you’re self-employed or paid on commission, take a look at the past four to six months to create a realistic monthly estimate.

接下来，列出所有属于不可转让的费用。“固定费用是那些经常性费用是因为他们是你的，你已经做了幸福或承诺，是至关重要的，你必须支付每月，”劳拉·亚当斯，金融专家和作者说Smart Moves to Grow Rich。认为房租，水电，汽车付款。此外，一定要包括在这紧急情况和退休基金捐款部分，他们应被视为一个重要的成本。亚当斯建议在一个单独的行标记每个固定费用。

现在，不要忘记那些没有定期结算费用。“一些固定支出你实际上并没有以相等的量每个月支付，所以想出了一个平均每月，”她说。“举例来说，如果你付保险每年仅两次，计算你付出的年度金额，然后由12或者，如果你的水电费波动了很多，你研究了整整12个月期间所支付的总，然后除以分12。”

亚当斯还建议说你的公用事业公司，以找出是否它提供了一个预算结算方式，每月支付的金额相等。如果你住在一个地区有灼热的夏天和冰冷的冬天，这是为了考虑不同的使用成本一个聪明的办法。

Now it’s time to chart your extra expenses—think clothes shopping, gym memberships, hair appointments, or money spent on going out. “Variable expenses are those that can change each month or are discretionary,” says Adams. “Try to think of all the ways you spend money. Going to the movies or to a local coffee shop are black holes for your money. Be sure to create separate categories just for them.”

以准确预测变动费用，关键是要对过去消费记录来电。如果你还没有被跟踪，下载一预算应用程式，例如薄荷或Level钱。Once you link your bank accounts, both apps automatically categorize your past expenses so you have months of spending data at your fingertips.

其次，分析你的生活习惯，并尝试建立一个消费指南。找出是最大的漏财，而你的问题是否能削减你的预算这些费用的地区。

“When you subtract your monthly fixed and variable expenses from your monthly after-tax income, what you have left over is your discretionary income,” says Adams. In layman’s terms, discretionary income = monthly income – expenses (both fixed and variable). It’s your leftover money, which ideally should be put toward long-term goals, like saving for a property or putting extra money away for retirement.

“The obvious goal is to grow your discretionary income and make saving a priority over spending,” she says. “Decide how much you’d like to save each month, and then decide where to cut back. You have many needs and wants that are all competing for your limited resources. You have to decide the best way to balance your current expenses and savings needs so you never spend more than you make.”

Adams recommends two ways to approach it: Either aim to reduce all variable expenses by a manageable amount, like 15%, or highlight a few key areas of the budget that could be cut dramatically.

最后一步是至关重要的。计算多大比例的收入被投入达到预算的每个区域。然后审查预算，并仔细审查你如何分配钱。问你自己，Is there a way you could be better spending your paycheck? Are you happy with the amount you’re contributing to savings?

A popular way to divvy your budget is the 50/20/30 rule. This suggests that 50 percent of your income should go toward essential costs (fixed expenses), 30 percent should be allocated to lifestyle choices (variable expenses), and the remaining 20 percent should go toward financial priorities, like paying off debt or growing your savings account.

好消息：你就大功告成了！现在，你已经归类你的消费习惯，并分配新的目标，你应该有一个简洁的预算投入到位。不输气势，虽然;现在是测试你的预算，看看你是否已经设定现实的限制时间。使用预算应用来跟踪自己在你targets-的顶部支出和住宿我们已经围捕了一些我们的最爱在这里。

铅笔在每个月底30分钟，以检查您的预算，并与你的消费习惯比较。预算是一个进展中的工作，所以一定要微调的类别和目标，直到你已经有了一个可行的个性化的指导。

现在，再次问自己这个问题：如何自信我觉得你的财务未来？经过这五个步骤，你可能会发现你有一个非常不同的反应。

准备找出你花（和保存）多少钱？保存下面使用预算表作为一个简单的模板。