Last week we took the first step to improve our finances by reflecting on how we had been spending our money and creating a budget.  Eye opening wasn't it? I recently had a client who was frequently frustrated with her husband and his irresponsible spending only to realize that after this exercise of recording their past spend, she was no better than he was.  They agreed to call a truce, still have an allowance for the things that they enjoy, but to set limits in order to stay within their means.  This is the focus this week, making sure that you are living within your means.  If you are spending more than you have then find ways to cut back immediately.  Keep in mind that some of these things that we will have to cut back may only be temporary.  For example, you may need to cut back on the NFL network and Starbucks for a few months or a year in order to not overspend and that could be your reward next year when you gain on our finances. You may actually find that you do not want to reintroduce those things back into your budget because the creative solutions you found were sufficient and your reward was being able to build a savings or investment account. Do not think of a budget as restricting or depriving you of something, we are simply telling our money where to go so we don't wonder where it went. Expanding Excellence - Personal Paradise Builders Blueprint, Productivity Training (expanding-excellence.com)