
Just as creating a budget is important in controlling your personal finances, tracking your expenses is critical in creating a budget. That brings us to the importance of this free, downloadable Daily Expense Sheet template. The concept is that you account for all of your money and plan for the future. Ramsey isn’t encouraging us to spend all our income on consumables but, rather, some of the “expenses” might be savings or investments. In fact, Financial guru Dave Ramsey states that “ budgeting is essential to your financial success.” He uses the term zero-based budgeting to explain “a way of budgeting where your income minus your expenses equals zero.” But, either way, personal financial experts seem to agree on the importance of budgeting – developing a plan that balances your income and expenses. Others avoid it at all costs – knowing it could cause a multitude of cascading financial issues in a fragile balance of income and expenses. Some of us are not concerned and have enough monthly income or savings to cover the debt anytime. According to a yearly Planning and Progress Study by Northwestern Mutual, in 2018 “the average personal debt (exclusive of home mortgages and among those with some debt) climbed higher this year, exceeding $38,000.” The study continues with other trends suggesting “that Americans are digging further into – rather than out of – debt….” One of those trends is that “wo in 10 people allocate a staggering 50%-100% of their income towards debt repayment.”Įveryone responds to personal debt differently.
