Budgeting for a Brighter 2025: Your Path to Financial Wellness

January is Financial Wellness Month, the perfect time to focus on building healthy financial habits. Setting a budget is one of the most impactful steps you can take to achieve financial wellness. By planning and taking control of your money movement, you can ensure your spending aligns with your priorities and long-term goals. In this article, we’ll review why you need a budget, how to create one, and the tools C&N offers to help you succeed.

Why You Need a Budget

A budget provides clarity and control over your financial life. It allows you to:

• Understand Your Financial Picture: Know exactly how much money is coming in and going out.
• Avoid Debt: Ensure you’re not overspending and accumulating unnecessary debt.
• Achieve Goals: Allocate funds for savings, investments, or big purchases.
• Reduce Stress: Gain peace of mind by knowing you’re prepared for unexpected expenses.

How to Get Started

Starting a budget doesn't have to be overwhelming. With a few simple steps and a commitment to regularly review and adjust your plan, you’ll be well on your way: 

1.    Track Your Income and Expenses:

• Start by recording all sources of income, including your paycheck, side gigs, or other earnings.
• Use C&N’s MoneyManager tool to categorize and analyze your expenses automatically, or export a month's worth of transactions from your digital banking to see where your money is going.
• Some expenses may be annual or quarterly - be sure to account for these as well. 
   

2.    Categorize Spending: 

• Divide your expenses into fixed (e.g., rent, utilities) and variable (e.g., dining out, entertainment).
• Don’t forget to account for irregular or seasonal expenses, such as holiday gifts or annual insurance premiums.
• Identify areas where you can cut back to save more.
   

3.    Set Realistic Goals:

• Short-term: Build an emergency fund with three to six months of living expenses or pay off a credit card.
• Long-term: Save for a house, retirement, or a dream vacation.
   

4.    Use the 50/30/20 Rule:

•  Allocate 50% of your income for needs, 30% for wants, and 20% for savings and debt repayment.

What to Track in Your Budget

• Fixed Expenses: Rent, mortgage, insurance, utilities.
• Variable Expenses: Groceries, transportation, entertainment.
• Savings Contributions: Emergency fund, retirement accounts.
• Debt Payments: Credit cards, loans.
• Miscellaneous Costs: Subscriptions, memberships, and one-off purchases.

C&N Resources 

Check out these tools to make budgeting easy and effective:

• C&N’s Home Budget Calculator: Jump-start your budget with our budget calculator. Enter your income and expenses to see a full breakdown of your spending and identify areas for improvement. Explore additional calculators to help with goals like saving for a purchase or deciding whether to rent or buy your home.
• Banzai® Budget Calculator: bolster your budgeting abilities with Banzai’s budget calculator. Just enter your information to get a budget plan that works for you! 
• C&N Library: Carefully crafted advice written by our own industry experts at C&N on topics from budgeting to business ownership and everything in between.

Budgeting is a skill that grows stronger with practice. This Financial Wellness Month, commit to taking control of your finances. By creating and sticking to a budget, you can reduce stress and achieve your financial goals. It’s never too late - take the first step and start today.
 

Above & Beyond

Employing some or all these budgeting tactics will put you on the right path towards proper Financial Wellbeing. If you want to learn more, you can always contact your local C&N expert online or by phone. 

If you are a member of a school or organization, our C&N experts welcome the opportunity to present to your group! Simply submit the C&N Speaker Series form in minutes to get started.