Things You'll Need:
- Computer
- A good idea of your income and outgoings
- Spreadsheet software such as excel.
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Step 1
In excel, title your first column Income. In this column you should write the expected income (after deductions) for your household for the next two months. Next to the amount, you should write the date it is expected. Select the lines you have written in and about fifteen below is to, then click of the 'formula' button, which will automatically add the total.
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Step 2
In your next two columns, titled Current Balance, you should write what your current bank balance is whether it be negative or positive. This should only be the balance of your checking or current account and shouldn't include your savings. Again, select to the same level as the Income column and click the formula button, even if there is only one amount in the column.
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Step 3
In the next column, titled Debt, list all credit card bills. Select the column to the same level as the first two and click the formula button.
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Step 4
In the next column list all the regular monthly expenses you have. This should include your rent or mortgage payments, utility bills, cell phone bills, daily travel costs, gym membership, any car or other repayments, health insurance. You should write down the amount per month for the next two months and detail which month each payment is for in the adjoining line. This column should be called Essential Monthly Outgoings and should be added up a formula.
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Step 5
Your next column should be Spending. This is everything you expect to spend on groceries, going out, hair appointments, dental or doctor appointments, presents you need to buy, trips you need to take. Essentially anything you think you're going to spend in the next couple of months on non essential items. This list should also be highlighted and added with using the formula button.
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Step 6
Your final column is your Spent column and is essential to keeping track of your finances. Once an expected cost has been spent, remove the figure from its original column inserting the word: spent. Then add the amount spent into the spent column next to another column which details what the money was spent on. This column too should be highlighted and added togther using the formula button.
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Step 7
This is the most important step. Add together all your formula but selecting a cell and clicking the formula button. In the formula you will need to write in the following formula, the cell number of the total from your first column should be added to the cell number of the total of your second column then minus the totals from the remaining column.
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Step 8
Your formula should look something like this:
=Sum(A17+B17-C17-D17-E17-F17) -
Step 9
The number there represents whether you have enough income to cover all of your outgoings. If the number is a negative, you will need to see what you can reduce in your non essential outgoings. Perhaps you insert instead of your total credit card debt, a little more than your minimum payment. Or you can reduce your grocery budget and choose less expensive options at the grocery store or you can sacrifice something you would like but is not essential.
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Step 10
You should try to move your out goings into spent item as the months go along so that you can see if you've over or under spent and maintain control of your cash flow.
