Put Your Money to Work with a Spending Plan

With a spending plan, you can make your money work for you, seize opportunities you might otherwise miss and find areas to save. Can you spend less on day-to-day expenses? On impulse buying?

• Identify all income, net pay and otherwise.
• Identify all expenses, from mortgages to dry cleaning. Keep a log if need be. For more information you can download our Your Money—Making it Work For You publication.
• Subtract expenses from income.

Decide what you want your money to do. How much savings do you need? Is there something you want to buy? Make a plan and stick to it.

In the service? You could get burned if you lump in military housing and/or food allowances with the “income” part of your spending plan. Both resources can disappear when you are deployed.

• Guidelines for Planning
• When to Revise