Living within a Budget

Over the years I have written a number of budgets, managed cash-flow, scrimped and saved, and made minor to major financial decisions -- both personal and business-related. Finding a balance between what is needed and what is available is always the trick. We have more wants than needs, and as the song goes, “You can’t always get what you want…  but if you try sometime, you just might find you get what you need.”

When money is tight I tend to first save on food. We don’t go out for dinner. At the end of the day, when I don’t feel like cooking and want something nutritious, instead of buying a pizza or going out, I stop at the grocery store and buy a green salad and a cooked chicken or frozen shrimp or even smoked salmon (depending on what I have to spend).

I used to go to the library frequently. There I could check out all kinds of books from cookbooks to 

fix-it-yourself books, some on how to sew, and others on writing and drawing. When the toilet broke or the faucet leaked I found out how to repair it in a book. If it needed a valve with a plumber’s expertise, then I called one in. In the long run it's less costly to have this kind of repair done correctly than it would to pay for the damage caused from a major water leak. Today, the Internet may offer the same solutions to do-it-yourself household repair.

Starting with a realistic budget is critical. Then finding ways to stick with it is the challenge. Engage the help of your partner if you have one because you will need his or her understanding to make it work. If only one lives within the budget and the other does not, there is sure to be some conflict.

Betsy Hanscom is the owner of Maine Warmers, LLC. She designs microwave heating pads in traditional and animal shapes.