Comments on: We need to talk

By: Finance

Finance — Fri, 27 Jul 2007 16:13:00 +0000

Great post! I must have missed this one. I have you on my blog reader to read your updates, just need to go through your archives more thoroughly. Your blog is one of my favorites! Read my blog http://www.bookfinance.com/

By: Kizz

Kizz — Thu, 26 Jul 2007 01:59:00 +0000

I'm with Polly, please teach me.

I just made my budget a daily feature on my blog. I'm disclosing every penny that leaves my care for the next month so I can see what I'm spending.

Then what do I do?

By: SavingDiva

SavingDiva — Tue, 17 Jul 2007 20:06:00 +0000

Great post! I definitely need to build a better budget!

By: SF Money Musings

SF Money Musings — Thu, 12 Jul 2007 09:22:00 +0000

I budget but my numbers are conservative which is why I feel so restricted and unable to do much except work on making more money freelancing.

but what's a reasonable (i know there's no right or wrong answer. just curious on the percentages.) amount to budget for eating out and entertainment not netflix but like concerts or events. i make $32K a year, my rent's about $550, cell phone $70 (i pay for a family plan and get reimbursed) groceries i budget $50. are my numbers a bit too conservative?

any input would be great. thanks!

By: Nicole

Nicole — Sun, 08 Jul 2007 23:10:00 +0000

I probably can do that. Is there a way to post attachments?

By: Heather

Heather — Sun, 08 Jul 2007 03:12:00 +0000

Do you want to share your spreadsheet with us?

By: Nicole

Nicole — Thu, 05 Jul 2007 15:01:00 +0000

And Warren, if you’re just the dude we met in Ireland that LOOKS like Warren Buffett, you don’t have me fooled. But I do owe you a round of whiskey. I’m still calling you Warren, though, and I will not sing you “Danny Boy.”

By: Nicole

Nicole — Thu, 05 Jul 2007 14:58:00 +0000

I agree with the majority of your comments. If you have a system that works for you, by all means, keep it going. But I know there are lots of people out there who are totally unaware of where their money goes. And lots of others, like Polly and anonymous, whose system isn’t working for them. So that’s really what this post was about. I guess I use the term budget for “system.” Sounds like it’s more about semantics.

As far as anonymous goes, I’m going to post your question as an entry and see what our readers say.

By: Polly

Polly — Thu, 05 Jul 2007 10:38:00 +0000

I am your pupil, if you’ll have me. I need instruction. I can make a budget just fine…. It’s a lil thing called will powere that I’m lacking.

By: Anonymous

Anonymous — Thu, 05 Jul 2007 02:06:00 +0000

I was one of the people who voted that they don’t have a budget. What I really meant was that I do live within my means but I don’t break it up into categories and spend certain amounts on food, clothing, going out, etc. It just doesn’t work for me. I max out my Roth IRA, put 10 percent (changing to 20 this month) in my 401k, and put away another couple hundred each month in regular savings. I’m 25, make $48,000 (up from $30k when I started working three years ago) and have managed to save $25,000 in retirement accounts and another $10k in savings. So I think my system is working pretty well for me (though everyone probably has room for improvement). Each person has to figure out what works best for them.