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The Intentional Budget Template - Launching Now!

Can you believe it? 2023 is a quarter of the way over. And I’m way off pace.

No, I’m not running, biking or swimming. I’m talking about my financial pace. The amount of money I aim to net monthly and yearly in order to meet goals I’ve established for myself.

And what is that pace you might ask?

It’s $30,000 per year. After taxes and all expenses.

Now I’m no Musk or Bezos. I have a decent job, but I keep my overhead real low. I live with someone else, drive my Grannie’s old car, eat the ramen, you get what I mean.

How did I come up with this number? My goals. Owning a home someday, maybe moving a to a new city, not driving my Grannie’s car, etc. I let my goals have a cascading effect to my finances. It doesn’t dictate my life, but it helps point me in the right direction

Sometimes $h1t happens. Ya lose your job. Like I did. (which is why I’m way off pace) But I was ready for a situation like that.

Now how did I manage to do this three years running? I used a Microsoft Excel spreadsheet. A homegrown one developed by yours truly. I think it’s powerful, and I finally think it’s ready to share with my readers… Keep reading to see how you can get it.

Spend or Save, the choice is yours. There is no choice when comes to your awareness.

This sheet forced me to do exactly that. Be aware. Be conscious. Be intentional. When I first started, I wasn’t making very much money. However I was intentional about what I wanted, where I was, and where I wanted to go.

Brick By Brick

Maybe I’m a bit obsessive here, but I tracked every expense. I entered them in. Every two weeks. Categorized them. Saw the results. It was intentional. I knew I could get where I wanted to go.

I did try budget apps. Most aren’t as powerful (and fun!) as spreadsheets. Many of them have a set it and forget it mentality ingrained into it. They’ll categorize your transactions for you (even the best app with AI can only do it right 80% of the time - what if you head to the gas station and get food - not gas?) and track your net worth and investments every day. Every day. Kinda much, isn’t it?

I turned to the almighty spreadsheet. I created my own app that fit those requirements. I didn’t care about my investments/net worth changes every day. I didn’t need to be up in there all the time. I go in a few times a month, categorize, and enter in my expenses, then be done. It’s that simple, but an extremely powerful habit that’s allowed me to do this.

I did one simple thing. I get my “Net” monthly - then subtract the amount I want to commit (to saving/investing) and then I get my “cash to spend” for whatever I want. Usually I don't spend that though lol.

Want to amortize an expense across multiple months? Done. Custom chart? Equation? Investment rebalancing? I gotchu. All in this sheet. Check out out the link below for a discounted FREE template.

Being intentional has given me the ability and visibility to get ahead.

Yep. Nuff Said.

Okay maybe you don’t like your Grannie’s car, having a roommate, or eating ramen. I get it. I’m not trying to say you need to be a cheap ass. I could pick up a second job, spend more, and still be at the $30k mark.

Awareness is key, and personal finance is personal, after all. Do what you need so you can do what you want. Your goals and your money is your life, not someone else’s.

Interested in seeing if the spreadsheets are for you? Check out the link to my template below, where I’ve provided a discount code for both the automatic and basic versions. Enjoy!

As always, Stay Frosty my friends.

Andrew

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