When it comes to money, the first thing that most people tend to do is spend it. This is especially true of students in college who are newly in control of their finances. However, in gaining this newfound control there is also a lot of stress involved.
Here are some tips for being able to manage your money in a way that saves your emotions and your wallet from strain.
The first thing that anyone in control of their finances for the first time should learn to do is balance your checkbook. A checkbook is an important way to keep track of your spending habits. By keeping it updated you can better decide if you want to spend money on that $60 video game or restock the food in your dorm room.
Along with this you can also check your bank accounts online and see exactly what you are buying and when. Needless to say once you learn how to use these tools it may become obvious that the old adage “money doesn’t grow on trees” gains a lot of truth.
Being able to see exactly what you are spending your money on can encourage better spending habits and also set goals for yourself to better save money and get the things you want most. Anxiety often occurs when you can’t keep track of spending habits, so making use of the checkbook as well as being able to check your bank accounts online can help ease this anxiety greatly.
Making lists is another way to reduce the anxieties of spending money properly. Just as writing things down can help you remember certain tasks, it also helps to write down exactly what you need to spend your money on. Keep the most important items you want at the top of the list and the things you can wait to spend on at the bottom.
Cross off items as they are obtained and you’ll have a visual reference of what you have purchased and what you have yet to buy. Since many people are highly visual learners, being able to see what you’ve spent money on in this way can be very helpful as well.
However, before you make the list mentioned above, it pays to simply take a moment to sit back and decide exactly what you want to buy beforehand. As much fun as it can be to go on a random spending spree at the mall or online, this can easily lead to overspending and angst when you realize you’ve bought a lot of things you don’t actually want or need.
We all want to buy the things that make us happy but sometimes pushing what we like aside for what we need is the better path. Just taking a moment to think before you act is an important thing not just in spending money but life in general.
These ideas and more can help with the emotions that come with managing one’s money in college. It can be very stressful, but learning from experience is what makes money