Sticking to a budget will help you to reduce debts

The first step of course, is to have a goal — something we want to achieve.

I recently read an article about budgeting and the author suggested visualizing your goal. For example, if you are saving for a house or a new car, take a picture and post it where you will see it daily.

If your goal is to pay off debt, post a copy of the bills you are trying to reduce. As the money owed decreases, post your progress where you can see it frequently.

Here are ten tips that can help you save money.

Focus on savings. Pay yourself first. Determine the amount of money that you can afford to save each month and, if you can, have it deposited directly to your savings account or to an investment account. Wherever you decide to keep your savings, make sure you put money into the account every month.

Use cash. Carry enough money to last one week at a time. When you only have cash available you are more likely to question whether the item you are about to buy is a need or a want.

Determine how much you will need each week for necessities only and put credit and debit cards away.

Take control of grocery bills. Plan what you and your family will eat for the next week or two.

Factor in leftovers and use this menu to create your shopping list. To avoid spoilage, only buy fresh food as you need it.

Every time you go to the grocery store, save the receipt. Create a spreadsheet and record every grocery purchase. This will help determine your budget and develop a price list.

When you can remember what certain items cost you can better determine deals and specials.

It’s also a great way to comparison shop. Your spreadsheet is a good checklist to use when putting together your menu plan and shopping list.

How much are your habits? If you spend $2 each day on a cup of coffee, $9 on a pack of cigarettes every few days and $50 at happy hour weekly, you are spending about $5,000 per year.

Could you use that money for something more worthwhile, such as paying off your credit card bills?

Some habits can be hard to break but in the end you will have more money.

Quitting these habits will also improve your health — you will save on healthcare expenses later.

Share the responsibility. Every member of your household should participate in the budgeting process, including children.

This is a good opportunity to lead by example and teach youngsters responsible money management.

Sit down together to explain the goal and determine how much spending money each member of the household should have.

Every week assess how well you are doing. If everyone shares the responsibility it will be easier to save money and realise your goal together.

Pay down debt. Paying the minimum monthly payment on your credit card bill could take forever, not to mention how much you will end up paying in interest. You are prolonging the agony and causing yourself stress. Examine your monthly expenses and see where you can find the cash to pay more than the minimum payment. We can all sacrifice some monthly spending to pay off debt.

Keep your receipts. Once the budget is set it can be tempting to stop counting every penny and keep up with every expense.

But if you really want to see exactly how much you spend, save your receipts and write down every penny you spend and where — and do not forget bank charges. You will be less likely to overspend if you have an accurate account of how much money has gone through your hands.

Analyze your spending. Examine your budget — can you find any expenses you can avoid?

What is more important to you? A pedicure every other week can cost about $2,000 a year, while eating lunch in a nice restaurant twice a week costs about $1,500 annually.

One might argue that these luxuries contribute to our piece of mind and improve our mental health.

One could also argue that an extra $3,500 every year comes in very handy. Do the math and decide what you are willing to sacrifice to reach your financial goal.

Special accounts. When you have finally put aside a good sum of money, put the funds where you do not have easy access to them.

Set up an account with early withdrawal penalties. Banks and other institutions pay more interest if you will agree to let them use your money for a longer amount of time.

Putting your savings into a yearly certificate of deposit (CD) will yield more than a three-month note would.

When a $25,000 new car may be fine, we break our budget and buy one costing $45,000.

We buy $50 handbags with $100 designer labels attached. We opt for $150 meals at swanky restaurants when a $30 meal at home would taste as good.

Think about where you spend your money and what you can accomplish financially by spending less.

Eventually, with sensible spending, financial success can be achieved.