When it comes to managing your money, planning ahead makes a big difference. Here are 3 things you can do to take charge of your finances right now.

1

Reviewing your spending 

Having a clear understanding of your finances will make you feel more in control and able to take action where it’s needed. It will also help you to do the things you want to do with your money. 

The best place to start is to work out how much you have coming in, how much you spend, and how much you have left over each month. If you don't have much left over or have a minus number then you need to take action fast. There’s lots of help available, you are not on your own in this. Start by taking a look at your spending and see if this is an area you can make changes to reduce outgoings. If you’ve not looked at this lately you’ll be surprised how direct debits and subscriptions services creep up. Our advice is to be ruthless, cut what you don’t need and negotiate hard with your service providers.

2

Use tools to help keep on track

Many of the banking apps have some useful features such as virtual money pots which enable you to keep money aside for specific things (Starling Bank) or a spending breakdown which shows you the types of spending you are making. It’s well worth having a look around your banking app. I have a spreadsheet detailing income and outgoings. I split outgoings according to category type such as household bills, vehicle, food etc. so that I know how much I am actually spending on each area. This enables me to make savings and target my money towards the things I want.  When you are dreaming of something big, start saving now. I started saving for my house by putting £1 away each week. It gets easier once you start and the more I saw in the account the more I wanted it, and thought I could do it.

I review both the spreadsheet and my banking app at least every couple of months. I look critically at where I can make savings and I have a column for actions required. This is really important because sometimes I can’t make the changes I want to straight away. Having the column there enables me to check progress as well as find new savings. Another good thing to do is use the Turn2us Benefits Calculator this will help you check if there is any additional support for your current circumstances.

3

Set a Budget

A budget can help you feel in control of your money, set aside savings and stop spending on the things you shouldn’t. Once you know how much you need to cover your costs and how much you can afford to save, you can create your budget. Don’t worry if it’s not how you want it right now. Knowing what you have and what you want to do makes it much easier to work on creating the financial life you desire. You'll naturally start to look for new income streams, better financial offers and other things too.  

This post is not financial advice, simply things you might want to consider, all actions are entirely your own decision and COG cannot be held responsible in any way for any decisions you make or changes in the suggestions offered in this post.