5 Ways to Budget & Maximize Your Money as A College Student

College students tend to have a hard time with finances, so learn to manage your money wisely and spend effectively.  Easy said, hard to do?  No, not hard at all.  Download this, THE FINANCIAL EMPOWER KIT™.  This kit has all the customized worksheets you can use to make your budgeting a piece of cake! 

Hi I’m John, Your Financial Mentor, and I created THE FINANCIAL EMPOWER KIT™ to help YOU (and many more helpful tools coming your way!)  This KIT has all the proper tools for you to not just budget, but to also make a spending plan.  

Start early, know your finances, know your income and expenses, know your cash flow. 

This KIT has all the tools & resources you'll need to take the first step to take charge of your finances!  

WHAT IS A BUDGET? WHAT IS BUDGETING?  

The term budget is no strange word to many people, but somehow a disconnection between knowing, and understanding what it is.  Don’t worry, just know a budget is a spending plan.  

So how can budgeting make a difference?

1. Know your expense & income sources (will make your life easier)
2. Have an emergency fund (to avoid using credit cards or loan - much more costly) 

Financial planning is about making the best of your income and living below your means. 

• Can build wealth faster, with extra money saved
• Plan your desires and wants, based on your income and financial situation
• Know yourself, know what you want - plan for it. 
• A house, a big family, a safe future: requires savings and good planning
• Carefree life, carpe diem: you can use money as you have it, just plan for future struggles when you don’t have enough funds to keep up with your lifestyle
• Have the right mentality!
• Good mindset leads to good planning which leads to good savings, so it will get you closer to achieving your goals/dreams/future
• Once you start saving, and seeing the pot grow, it really becomes addicting because it’s so rewarding. :)

Regardless of your financial situation, there is always a way for you to budget your money and get your finances in order. 

1. Set realistic financial goals - use the FINANCIAL EMPOWER KIT
2. Track your spending
3. Live below your means
4. Automate your finances
5. Have an emergency fund  

1. Set realistic goals

This is the most important thing when it comes to budgeting.  THE FINANCIAL EMPOWER KIT™, has an interactive worksheet to specifically help with this! Check it out.

Remember, your financial goals must be “realistic”.  Don’t underestimate your expenses.  This can lead to poor planning and unrealistic expectations, yielding negative outcomes.   Expenses should be overestimated, income should be underestimated, to give a good buffer.   When accounting for expenses, you can overestimate the number, just don’t spend anywhere close to or more than that number! (don’t sell yourself short.) Having a goal makes a plan more concrete.  

Sit down and think about your goal.  Is it to:

• save for a down payment on a house? 
• pay off your debts? 
• build up your savings account? 

Once you know your goal, write it down and put it somewhere where you'll see it every day. A post-it note can be super useful. Having the goal to focus on will drive your passion, motivating you to save, and soon you’ll realize, following your budget closely will be second nature. Over time, your financial goals should slowly change (for the better) as well.  

As your savings grow, your spending habits will too.  As a result, your priorities will also change over time. This may mean that at some point, you'll need to take a break from budgeting for a while, until you want something different out of life.  

2. Track your spending

Realistic goals will lead to right planning, which will lead to good budgeting outcomes.  You MUST track your spending. This means keeping track of every penny that goes in and out of your wallet. When you know where your money is going, it will be easier to make decisions on how to spend it. 

Although there are different ways to track your spending, the most important thing is CONSISTENCY.

Pick a method that works best for you and stick with it! 

Some ways:

• budgeting app
• spreadsheet or worksheet similar to THE FINANCIAL EMPOWER KIT™ – seriously, save yourself some trouble, just use this :)
• tracking sheet - formulas input, entry input, print for records
• Notebook (simple transactions recording). 

Budgeting APP/interactive spreadsheet

I can't overstate the convenience of having a budget app on your phone. It's just way more efficient when you are spending on the go.  Cash can then be tracked easily.   

These can help you keep track of your income, expenses, and even your net worth with very little effort

Tracking Sheets

Tracking sheets (like you can make on Excel or similar program), can automatically sort the amounts you entered in each budgeting category once you have set up the correct formulas. The advantages to these sheets are that you can use them on any computer, and they are easy to print out if you decide to start this the “old-school” way.  

Notebook (simple old-school way)

Finally, there is always the option of just using a simple notebook or even your cell phone to write your transactions down. It doesn't have to be fancy, just whatever is easy for you! Whatever method you choose, it's good to practice on a few smaller transactions at first until you get used to the process. Once you do, just keep track of every transaction, and within a few weeks, you'll have a good enough idea of how much money is going in and out of your bank account for this budgeting thing to work!  Remember CONSISTENCY is the key!

3. Live BELOW your MEANS 

It may sound a little unappealing at first, but at the beginning of your financial growth, live below your means! You don't have to make huge sacrifices in your daily life, but once you're tracking your earnings and spending; you'll be able to figure out where you can cut costs.  

4. Automate Your Finances 

Budget your money by automating your finances. This means setting up rules and systems that will help you stick to your budget without having to think about it. 

• All your bills will be paid automatically from your designated bank account(s)

For example:

You can set up a rule that says all your bills will be paid automatically from your checking account. This will help you avoid late payments and fees and stop additional costs from building up.

Another great way to automate your finances is to have online banking set up if possible. This is so you can have multiple 'digital accounts' with very little - to no fees for opening or using the account.  Have an account for food budgeting, and another one for “treating me out,” etc.   Don’t mix money when you're trying to stay focused on budgeting or saving.  

5. Have an Emergency Fund

This is a savings account where you put money aside for unexpected expenses. Unexpected expenses can include anything from car repairs to doctor bills and they can quickly add up. An emergency fund will help you cover these costs without having to go into debt or dip into your other savings. Ideally, you should try to save enough money so that you could cover three to six months of living expenses. This may seem like a lot, but it's important to remember that you're not saving this money for fun things, you're saving it in case of an emergency! 

To put things in perspective: 

A basic budget could put away 

• 40% for bills (including living expenses, food & travel), 
• 20% for investing, 
• 20% for spending on yourself and 
• 10% for an Emergency Fund. 

If you struggle to pay your bills with 40% of your income, don't change your budget! 

Rather, you should increase your income coming in, OR decrease expenses/bills.  This is the real key to building wealth! 

You can either review your spending through tracking it as stated above, or you can start side hustles like selling crafts or taking on extra work. The second that you change that budget, and you give in to short term gain; you will then sacrifice your future wealth and growth.  

As a college student, you need to be extremely vigilant with your budget, as any investment or sacrifice you make today will pay off in the future (and it's still possible to be financially independent at your age). 

If you're struggling to get started, don't worry! You can do this on your own or hire a financial planner, or LEARN FROM ONE, I’M HERE TO HELP.  

Remember that everyone is different and only you know what works best for you and your lifestyle. If you follow the tips I've outlined in this article, you will be on your way to creating a fantastic budget! Remember that the most important thing is to have a goal in mind and get started tracking your spending. The more consistent you are with both steps, the sooner you'll be able to get ahead financially.  

Download & Use THE FINANCIAL EMPOWER KIT™ for all the tools & resources you'll need!