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Create a BudgetIf you are beginning to get
into difficulties with your finances, one of the first things you might
want to do is set up a budget with which to manage your income and your
outgoings. You can do this using a simple spreadsheet, such as excel and record all of your weekly and monthly expenses. This could include rent, gas and electricity and phone bills and any other regular bills which you are responsible for such as council tax or water rates. Add to this other bills such as groceries and toiletries. Although these are essentials, it's easier to cut down on these and so they should be given a separate section on your budget sheet. Then list travel costs - if you have to travel to work this will probably be a fixed amount per month, unless you don't work a fixed number of days per week or sometimes get a lift to work.
Excel will add up the bills for you and in a few seconds you can see exactly how much the essentials are costing you. Deduct this amount from the total of your take home pay and any other regular income that you have and you'll see how much is left for entertainment. If your income and outgoings aren't too complicated, you can do this without the use of a spreadsheet and simply write everything on a sheet of paper. But if you have a family and all sorts of additional payments such as pocket money, fees for extra tuition, ballet classes or music lessons, the spreadsheet might make things a little easier. You can also include dates when payments are due, which will help you to ensure that bills are paid on time and avoid paying late charges. If you have children, you can use your budget to help them learn about finances and to understand just how much various items, like the latest trainers or video games cost. If you buy a product through
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