As I assist others in the creation of workable budgets, I see certain issues crop up often.  These are reasons that budgeting might be difficult for some people.

1.  Unwillingness to change behavior.  This is an out-and-out rebellion!  A refusal to recognize that INCOME - OUTGO = EXACTLY ZERO will not eliminate this fact from being reality.  If someone is unable to pay their bills, and they are still getting weekly manicures, something is wrong!  If someone is unable to pay their bills, yet are still spending $50/week eating at restaurants, something is wrong!

2.  It is not about money at all.  It is a TRUST issue.  Wow!  You want to see power struggles in a marriage?  Get them to talk about their money!  I believe this is a HUGE reason that it is hard to budget for some couples.  It is about TRUST.  Do I TRUST you enough to put our money together into a single checking account?  Do I TRUST you enough to let you pull cash out for spending money?  Do I TRUST you enough to follow our written plan - the budget?  Do I TRUST you enough to hear your opinion about where we should spend our money?  Do I TRUST you enough to believe that we really need to spend that much money at the grocery store?  Do I TRUST you - because you have screwed it up in the past?  I am telling you this is a HUGE reason why it is so hard to budget.  Ppssssst!!  You can do it!  I believe in you!

3.  One spouse is not interested in working together.  This will kill a budget before it ever starts!  I have seen multiple examples where one person works like crazy to get their money in order, only to have the unfortunate surprise that their spouse has a huge credit card bill run up, or shows up with a new car, or buys a new boat, or signs up for an expensive vacation, or …  Oh my goodness!  Then the other spouse (who has been using a spending plan) is VERY TEMPTED to throw in the towel and join in with the frivolous spending.  They reason, "Well, if he/she can have what they want, I deserve it too …"  Couples who do not work together on major financial decisions run a high risk of not maximizing their potential.  They also run a higher risk of divorce …

4.  Failure to recognize that there is an "INCOME" portion to the INCOME - OUTGO = EXACTLY ZERO equation.  Seriously, I can't believe I have to write this, but it is SO true!  I have people show up for counseling, and they are not working!  Now, I can understand a couple of weeks without work (maybe), but I REALLY DO NOT GET NOT WORKING FOR SIX MONTHS!  My GOD!  How is this possible?  GET OFF OF YOUR BUTT AND GO TO WORK!  There is a great place to go when you are broke!  TO WORK!  It is a sure-fired money-making scheme! (Thanks, Dave Ramsey!)  There is NO EXCUSE in God's greatest nation on the planet where there are at least 1,000,001 ways to make money.  Go get a job.  I don't care if it makes someone feel sad to take a job at McDonald's!  It makes me feel sad when they draw welfare for 6 months when they have ABSOLUTELY NO REASON that they cannot work - except for "it makes me feel bad".  Waaah!  Earn some money.  It will cure depression.

Well, I have ranted enough today.  I know that it can be difficult to budget, but I believe that you can do this!  I believe that you have the know-how, the capability, and the inner-strength to work together with your spouse, avoid the debt trap, develop a plan for your life, and have fun doing this together!

Today, Jenn and I are off to Christmas shop.

It is a blast to shop with real money.  I have found that it means that I have to spend less (because we refuse to spend money we don't have - i.e. those dad-blamed credit cards), but that forces us to be creative!  FUN!

So, we are going to shop until we drop and then spend time as a family getting our Christmas cards out the door.

Life is a blast!

By the way, I highly recommend you budget for the following Christmas albums:

• Harry Connick Jr. - When My Heart Finds Christmas
• Elvis - Blue Christmas
• Muppet Christmas With John Denver
• Clay Aiken - Merry Christmas With Love
• AND MY ALL-TIME FAVORITE: Maria Carey - Merry Christmas

I'm off to spend cash.

I have a dream that we will be able to teach the Financial Learning Experience to at least 100,000 people in the next 5 years.  It is my passion to help people accomplish far more than they ever thought possible.  One HUGE way that I will be able to to do that is to equip others to manage their money in a way that enables them to achieve their life goals.

My dream is that all persons who attend NewSpring Church will one day be entirely debt-free.  My dream is that all persons living in Anderson County, South Carolina will one day be entirely debt-free.  My dream is that people will be able to do exactly what they were put on this earth to do REGARDLESS of the income potential.

I love seeing people doing what they love to do.  It pumps me up!  I love to hang out with people who do what they love to do.  The energy is contagious!  The excitement is tangible!  I love it!

When people get themselves set financially, it provides an unbelievable springboard to go do exactly what they have been made to do.  I dream about helping people achieve this.  It is what makes me get up every single morning and say, "YES!  I get to continue my crusade!"

I have HOPE for you!  If you are stuck in a horrible financial mess, I offer HOPE for you.  If you have no real idea of what you were created to do, I have HOPE for you!  You can do this!  You can win with money and get on with doing exactly what you were created to do.

These are my dreams.  Join me in my crusade!  Pass it on!  Go help you neighbor, your friend, your relative.  Teach them what you are being taught.  Go after this!  You can do it!  You don't need a finance degree - I don't have one!  You just need to care and be willing to share your story.

Dream.  How long has it been since you dreamed of what life could be like … ?

You can listen to the Financial Learning Experience that happened on December 4, 2006 at NewSpring Church right here in all of its unedited glory!

I am regularly asked questions, so I thought that today I would write out a few common questions that I get along with my answers.

Do you really use cash envelopes?

Yes.  Jenn and I believe that it is the best way for us to ensure that we do not overspend the amount budgeted.  When we utilized the debit card, we blew the budget EVERY SINGLE MONTH!  Therefore, we use the cash envelope system.  I will say, however, that we only use cash envelopes for those categories that tend to go out of control - groceries, dining out, entertainment, blow money, household (stamps, haircuts, flowers, plants, holiday decorations, etc.).

We do not use cash envelopes for the utilities, the house payment, or other expenses that we do not have the ability to splurge on.  One category that we are debating right now is gasoline.  We have always used a cash envelope, but it is not like we are going to splurge on an extra tank of gas.  Where would I put it?  We may be moving that to a debit card transaction for a trial period.

How do you and Jenn put together a budget?

Whenever we plan an outing or event, we mark it on the calendar.  About 1 or 2 days before the month begins, we will sit down and put together the budget using the budget forms (you can get your free copy by clicking "Tools" in the top right-hand corner).  We have kept loaded the expenses from the previous month and adjust them according to this particular month.  Because this month is December and we will travel more and spend more time out on the town with family, we bumped up the "Gasoline" and "Entertainment" categories.  We also bumped up the "Household" category because we are purchasing Christmas Cards and snail-mailing them.  We knocked down the "Groceries" category because we will be at our family Christmas and eating leftovers for a week (YES!!!!).

We then ensure that the secret formula is applied:  INCOME - OUTGO = EXACTLY ZERO

Print it out, put the cash in envelopes, write the checks, the end.  Fun stuff!  Total Time:  20 minutes

What type of cash envelopes do you use?

The ones handed out by the bank.  We ask for a couple of extra ones and replace the torn/battered ones.  I know other people who use the free envelopes that come along with those wonderful credit card applications.  Best part - Free.

Does your daughter use cash envelopes?

Yes, our daughter does use cash envelopes.  It is priceless! :)  When the money runs out, it's over!

Do you tithe (give 10% away)?

ABSOLUTELY - and then some.  I believe that people who live in the wealthiest nation in the world have a special responsibility to help others.  Jenn and I passionately believe in some things - Purdue University (Go Boilers!), NewSpring Church (Yeah!), and Missionary Work (Alaskan remote regions and the Military).  We want to support these causes financially so that they can accomplish their work effectively!  Maybe we should give more to Purdue because their football team has struggled (SMILE), but we LOVE these things.  We can't help BUT give.

Does Jenn believe in this stuff as passionately as you do?

I would say that Jenn believes in this stuff at least FOUR TIMES more than I do!  Here is the big secret:  I did not come up with the budget in our family.  It was JENN!!!  I am the spender!  I hated the word "budget"!  But when I saw that it would enable us to WORK TOGETHER and achieve the PLANS we have for our life!  Oh yeah, I became a kool-aid drinking fool about this stuff!

Let me know if this type of Q&A helps you!  If you have any questions that you would like me to answer on this blog, post it in the comments or send me an e-mail.  Thanks!

Last night was simply amazing!!!  I had the opportunity to teach the tools that Jenn and I used to obtain financial freedom to over 350 people!  It was awesome!

I was able to swim in credit cards last night.  If anyone has a picture of that, I want it!  It was totally unplanned, but it just felt right.

I was able to show people how to calculate their debt freedom date.  You can do it as well!  I have loaded the Debt Freedom Calculator under "Tools".

I was also able to show people how to spend all of their money on paper before the month actually begins.  There is POWER in putting this plan TOGETHER BEFORE the month ever begins.  You can obtain a blank budget and start doing this for your family as well.  Just click on "Tools" above.

We took the time to write out the reasons we want to be financially successful and write down goals that we want to achieve.  For many people in the room, it was the first time that our dreams were written down on paper!  For many people, it was the first time in years that they have been able to even dream!

We calculated how much money we will need in our retirement funds to be able to retire, and once again we observed the power of compound interest.  It IS the 8th wonder of the world!  $100/month for 40 years @ 12% annual growth is $1,176,477.  The money invested is $48,000, but the value is $1,176,477.  WOW!

At the end of the Financial Learning Experience, everyone completed a survey.  I wanted to share some comments that were made because they have rocked my world and are THE REASON I do what I do.

What are you going to do as a result of what you learned tonight?

• Do a budget plan with my husband for the 1st time in 32 years.  (WOW!) 
• Work on our finances together
• Change our lives
• Start tonight 
• Plan a financial goal tonight
• Calculate my debt freedom date
• Start investing
• Share with my wife
• Work with my husband on our finances
• Make a budget
• Share the information with husband and children (wow!)
• Sign up for the 5 week class
• Stop adding new debt

To those who attended the FLE tonight, THANK YOU!  I am so PROUD of the HUGE step you made tonight to learn more on how to improve your finances.  This was a HUGE step.  Do you know that over 690 people signed up for the FLE, but only 350 showed up.  Why?  Because it is TOUGH to face the dragons!  This is emotional.

Never stop pursuing education about this!  Don't give up after one month of budgeting.  The 1st month is the toughest.  You CAN do it.

Thanks!

I believe that EVERY person needs AT A MINIMUM the following items in their financial plan: 

• Will
• Term-Life Insurance
• Health Insurance
• Disability Insurance
• Auto Insurance
• Homeowner's/Renter's Insurance
• Monthly Budget
• Debt Freedom
• College Savings
• Retirement Savings
• Wedding Savings (or other large expense that you are expecting someday)
• Teach Your Children!  Teach Others!

You could print this list out OR you could click on "TOOLS" in the top right-hand corner and print it out in MS Word format.  (OR you could click here.)