Today I started getting my Excel pages ready for next year’s tracking. I do track every cent that comes across my path incoming and outgoing. I have been doing this for many years now so it’s just part of my strategies. Timewise I have found it best to do this ahead of time as if I leave it to late I never get around to it and end up with a big mess budget wise. It’s easy as I have made templates for each set of pages.

I always am looking for the best way to do this. I work with floats as some bills I never need from year to the next but the money is there if it’s needed. Starting with $1300 in floats I do put total amount of bills plus extra 10% each pay away for just bills then just pay them all when due. Having worked out via my

Bill Estimates Tracker (I wrote about this here) then using this bill tracker to calculate the amount that I need at for each pay cycle. This amount is allotted to the bill A/c. I try never to spend this amount as I consider this is not my money to spend freely. On an age pension it’s not easy to make it up if you do so it’s best if you think it as not your money. I worked in retail for many years and took this view at all the money that crossed my path while working. It was not my money so its value to me was that of an item that I was selling at the time and I had to look after it just the same.

Then if any money is leftover above the amount needed at the start of the next year it goes into savings or special projects after I taken out my floats for the following year.

Most of floats can be used as an Emergency Fund at pinch but must be paid back as you will have problems later down the track. Creating Emergency Fund