Planning ahead

The most important thing you can do when trying to keep your finances on track is plan ahead. Even if you have impulse spending under control a lack of planning will derail all of you efforts

Today I bough ink for my printer, so I’ll use that as an example. If I’d waited until my printer was low on ink I’d have to go to a local retailers and spend double the money. Instead I planed ahead and ordered online. Even with the price of shipping I saved half of what I’d spend at a big box store.

That’s one example but it extends to all areas of life. A big area for most folks trying to reduce spending is food. Planning ahead can ensure that you have food for the week to avoid ordering pizza or going out. Making sure you have something to make a quick breakfast on busy morning will help you avoid the drive through.

In addition to keeping you budget in check planning ahead can help you create a more accurate budget. At my last oil change they told me the tread level of my tires. Instead of saying ok and going home I asked when I'll need a new set. He let me know that by summer I should get new ones. With three to four months I can do research on the best tires for my needs and shop around for the best prices. I can also write the amount into my monthly budgets to save up.

Anything you wish you'd planned ahead for? Or an example of planning helping you?