Get into the habit of paying with cash. It seems over the past twenty years or so, since credit card companies loosened their credit rules, that people are using their cards more than ever. And while this is good for the credit card companies and merchants, it is not necessarily good for you. When you pay something with a credit card, you are actually spending borrowed money.

If you happen to have a zero percent interest credit card, then you are in a slightly different situation. You can carry your balance forward for a certain number of months without paying an interest penalty. But, most people are not like that. And, as a result, they end up carrying balances on their credit card for years. And, over the years, all of the interest that they are paying on their balances can really eat away at their savings. If you pay in cash, however, you are never under any delusions as to whether you actually can afford something or not.

Create a budget for your family. The advantages of having a budget are many. But it main benefit is that it allows you to know, at all times, exactly where you are financially. Many people get in trouble with their credit cards and finances simply because they think they have more than they actually do. For example, someone getting paid $10 an hour may actually feel that he has $400 in his pocket after a week of working. But after taxes, FICA, and various other deductions, he may actually only have a little over $300.

The reason for that is simple. At the subconsciously level, the four hundred dollars is still foremost in his mind. As a result, overspending is easy. And it’s not until the end of the month where he is wondering where all of his cash went.

Creating a budget for your family is not foolproof. But it does help to prevent scenarios like this. Furthermore, a ton of studies have conclusively shown that those households who make a budget and stick to it, are just about always better off financially than those who do not have a budget, but earn the same amount of income.

If the average family were to simply do these two things, and nothing more, they would be a lot better off financially than most families in the U.S. In the age of quick gratification and lack of personal responsibility, however, the odds of most families doing this is very small indeed.

Know Your Operational Costs

Right from the start you should know what it costs to run your business on a monthly basis. Certainly, there will be some variable costs that change on a monthly basis but you should still have a rough idea of what they are so you can form a budget. If you do not capture all your expenses then you are quite likely to forget about some of them. A few hundred dollars here and there can quickly add up. The easiest way to do this is to draw up a simple spreadsheet. Capture fixed expenses such as rental costs and salaries first, and then have sections for variable costs such as stationary, telecommunications and fuel. These operational costs should form the basis of your budget. They define your break-even point of your business. Bring in less income than that and your business will be in trouble. Always know the target that you need to reach in terms of turnover.

Define Your Payment Dates

Try not to have all your expenses payable at the same time of the month. Most landlords require that you pay the rent up front yet many insurance companies, for example, will allow you to schedule your debit orders for the 10th or 15th of the month. What this does is spread the load of your payments throughout the month. Instead of having to make sure that you have a lump sum of cash available at the end of every month, you need only a portion of your expenses to be covered then and have some more time to get in the balance of your cash before the next batch is payable. It may initially seem like a mission to split up the payment dates but it can make a huge difference to your cash flow.

Be Strict with Your Debtors

This is a trap that too many business owners fall into. They do not want to offend customers and potentially lose out on their business so they bend over backwards to accommodate them and let them get away with paying late on a regular basis. Large companies often use this tactic to help balance their cash flows. The longer they can stave off paying a small business, the greater benefit to them. You don’t have to be aggressive when chasing payments. From the outset with clients, make sure that you clearly communicate your payment terms. Ideally, small businesses should operate on a cash-on-delivery basis but in many industries, this is not possible. Try to have as short a period as possible for payment. Ideally, it should be seven or 14 days. At the outset, it should never be more than 30 days. If it is seven days then clearly state this on your invoice and when you make delivery. If after the eighth day you have still not received payment, make a phone call to find out if it has been processed. If it has but doesn’t yet reflect in your account, let your client know that you will call to confirm as soon as it does. This is a polite way of letting them know that you watch and manage your cash flow closely and that they cannot get away with delaying payments.

Make Sure You Have a Wide Customer Base

Many small businesses start with just one or two major clients. While this is great initially, think of what will happen if that big client delays payment or doesn’t pay at all. How will that affect your cash flow? It is much better to have lots of smaller amounts of cash consistently coming into your business than to depend on one or two large payments every month. To have large clients is great but make sure you can break even without their payments. That way, you will always have a strong cash flow.

The following strategies to save money make a great place to start rethinking the way you spend money, and they could mean that you can afford more of the things you enjoy than you had originally budgeted for!

1. If you spend it, list it

For at least one month, preferably two so you can see the spending patterns, make a list of every penny you spend. Make sure you put not just what you spend, but also the dates. Look for patterns such as going to the same supermarket 3 times in one week, and how many times you ate fast food, etc. When you analyse the lists, you may be surprised at what they tell you.

2. If it’s not on the list, it’s not in the basket

Before you leave for the supermarket, make time to create a comprehensive list of everything you need. Go through your cupboards, fridge and freezer and write down all items you need to buy. Meal planning for the week ahead is time well spent as you can list all the items you’ll need and buy them in one visit. Be strict with yourself, if you’ve missed it off the list, live without it. The savings on this strategy is that you don’t just buy items on impulse, but you are also planning ahead so that you will make one trip to the supermarket, which will also save money on petrol (as well as your time).

3. Homemade food is healthier and cheaper than convenience food

While it might save money to buy readymade pizza, or microwaveable meals, these food items aren’t just expensive, they are also full of additives and artificial this and that which makes most of them unhealthy food choices. Instead find some quick and easy recipes that you can put together in less than 10-15 minutes and leave to cook while you do the laundry, vacuum and do other household tasks that need done.

4. Batch cooking saves time and money

If you don’t have the energy to cook homemade meals every night, why not try batch cooking. Dedicate one day a week when you prepare meals for the week ahead. Cook the meals completely and freeze them so that you only need to add sauces or gravy after you thaw them. Alternatively always double your recipes and place half of each complete meal in the freezer clearly marked with what it is and the date. If you don’t use the frozen meals too quickly, you could create a routine which means that you cook fresh every second or third night and use the homemade frozen meals on other nights. Another benefit of this plan is that you can bulk buy meats on special price and make even more savings.

5. Small savings reap long term rewards

Each month commit to saving a certain amount of money. Even if it’s only a few pounds, it will add up and give you some extra spending power at the end of the year, or a small financial cushion for an unexpected bill. More importantly it will get you into the habit of putting money away. If you can save money when your budget is tight, you can do it when you’re financially healthy.

These are just a few easy to follow strategies to save money that you can try to stretch your budget further. Give them a try for a few months and see how they impact your finances. You might save more than you think!

Don’t fix it in solid

Your first job as a Project Manager is to ask your Sponsor “So how long have I got and what’s the budget?”. Your succeeding job is often to ask for extra period and funds to promote your probabilities in achieving.

You can perform this by writing a Business Case, Feasibility Study, Project Charter to present your Project Sponsor that you will need extra cash than that known to date, to meet the project aims. When you have agreed on a value that you think is sufficient, ask them to “fix this quantity as a budget, but make available another 10-20% as contingency”. That method, your budget isn’t established in solid. Yes it’s an accepted amount but at least you have contingency.

Planning ahead

Right at the outset, produce a Financial Plan so that you have a narrow prospect of all of the expenses that are getting to arise and when they will be obtained. And if you haven’t done it already, complete a Project Plan so that you know the price of every task to be established.

In this operation, you know for each week in the project the sum of money that will be taken. Make sure that the quantities in your Financial Plan and Project Plan coordinate with the budget set. That way, you recognize that you have a good chance of delivering within budget from the outset.

Setting out

From the minute you’ve determine the budget, you need to begin registering the real cost of the project. This takes the latest value of your time, your faculty, contractors, equipment and materials. If you’re applying internal staff, then designate a prescribed range to the hourly cost of these resources and ask them to accomplished a Timesheet so you know how many hours they are spending on the project.

If you don’t hold a financial organization, then use a spreadsheet to record the day-to-day cost of the project. And if you want to get specific, then also register the costs against the labors in your project plan. By accurately recording the project costs throughout the whole project, you will be able to determine you keep on course.

Keeping on path

To ensure whether you’re on track, supervise your real costs vs. your predetermined costs, and identify any differences. If you’re constantly under your planned weekly cost, then you’re probably to carry your project under budget. It’s that simple!

What to Expect with a Debt Counsellor

Choosing a company that will help you with a formalized debt management plan is essential to getting out of debt. You will be amazed once you sit down with a debt counsellor at the amount of money you are spending on frivolous expenses such as dining in restaurants or purchasing a cup of coffee each morning on your way into work. In addition, the amount of interest you are paying for expenses such as credit cards can be quite shocking.

A counsellor will help you formulate a budget plan so that you can list what your top priorities are first to make sure they are taken care of before you tackle other debt that accumulates interest or is in arrears. For instance, your mortgage or rent along with utilities and food are top priorities along with council taxes and other daily living expenses.

For other creditors, your debt counsellor works with them to come up with a satisfactory plan which will not only help you achieve payments you can afford within your budget but also effectively reduce your debt load as well. This may involve your counsellor negotiating a reduction of interest rates or settling for reduced pay-off amounts.

Working with Any Debt Situation

There are a number of reasons why you may be in debt. Perhaps you relied on credit cards and student loans to get you through school. Divorce is a common problem that produces adverse financial situations. Injury while on the job and a lack of disability insurance can cause you to get behind on your bills as well as losing your job.

Whatever the reason for your debt, it is important to face the problem now rather than eventually declaring bankruptcy and risk damaging your credit beyond repair.

Get some peace of mind and take control of your financial future. Talk to a counsellor at a debt management company and come up with a plan that works for you and your creditors.

In recent reports a number of industry officials have predicted that credit card defaults will continue to increase, and that many families could find themselves facing difficulties when it comes to making repayments on their cards in the near future. With this in mind many professionals are now reiterating the importance of careful budgeting to ensure that credit card payments can be met.

For families that feel that they are verging on struggling with credit card repayments it is a good idea to sit down and go through your budget with a fine tooth comb, making cutbacks wherever possible, even if it just means ten pounds here and there on shopping, going out, etc. Any money that you save in this way can go towards your credit card repayments, minimising the risk of default and helping you to clear your balance more quickly.

Those that find that they are increasingly having to take cash out on their credit cards to pay for every day purchases and necessities have been identified as being at increased risk of falling behind with repayments. One official recently stated that people that find themselves in this sort of situation need to take early action, stating: “You need to take steps to confront your situation, and rectify it as soon as possible, and your first step should be to make a strict and truthful budget that will set out your finances and help you see where you are overspending, can cut back, and such like.”

Anyone that is already experiencing or at risk of experiencing problems with credit cards repayments is urged to contact either their lender or a debt charity or advisor to try and sort out the issue as early as possible, as this could save a lot of stress and hassle as well as a lot of money in late payment fees.

People who do have credit card debts but also a good credit rating should look to compare 0% balance credit cards, and cut the interest out of your repayments for up to 16 months.

Alternatively, anyone with a large balance who just doesn’t fancy the trouble, worry or hassle of having to move again at the end of an introductory period or face high interest rates again should look at life of balance transfer credit cards, which offer a much lower rate of interest that will remain low until the balance is repaid in full – additionally many of these cards won’t charge a transfer handling fee either, which can be around 3% of the amount being moved.