trim budget $100./m

I seem to live outside my means by about $100./m. I must trim back my spending!!! I fear that if I made a hundred more, I'd only go over that budget. It's arbitrary how much I make, and the fact that I always go over my budget. It's just a mindset or a habit. I do the same thing, being exactly ten minutes late for work every day. Ten measly minutes!! So shabby. Couldn't I just reset my alarm clock to ten minutes earlier? I am ON TIME at ten minutes late, every day. Weird consistency. Same with my money.

I just joined Dave Ramsey's My Total Money Makeover. I tried to fill in a budget according to his guidelines. It was hard, in fact, so far impossible. I do have a budget, and I modify it for every paycheck within the general setting. Somehow I can afford the things I need to pay for...except for the lost $100. But Dave's method makes my budget not look realistic. Maybe I should take a closer look!

Here is the stuff I can use out of the 7 Baby Steps:

$1000.00 ER fund (had it, used it, need to rebuild it)

debt snowball (doing it, on the last, big chunk of it)

ER fund worth 3-6 months monthly expenses (12,000)

15% monthly income to IRA (that would be the $300. I'm working towards. I'm 1/3 the way there now)



My personal budget:

monthly take-home 1980.00

rent 670.
PGE 35.
Water 22.
Car Gas 20.
Car ins. 33.
phone 60.
DSL 40
credit card debt 500.
hair dye 10.
groceries 200.
meals out and entertainment 200.
misc. 90. (things I always need but not every month)
gifts
donations
parking tickets
hair cut
medical copays
small car needs, like windshield wipers, oil...
cosmetics, clothes
books
short road trips
small entertaining
IRA 100.

What is difficult is that my DSL went up 20/m and my rent went up 65/m as of March 1st, acknowledged above. Before, I had more to put toward my IRA. I still have a lot going to my workplace retirement, which comes out of my check before I get it, so I didn't count it above.

I figure that if I ever get a raise, the first thing I want to do is get a total of $300./m into my personal IRA. After that, I need a bigger emergency fund. When I pay off my damn debt, then I can dedicate the $500./m toward that. Meanwhile, I get 26 paychecks a year, so two of them give me a mini-windfall, which goes to a mini-emergency fund. I used all of it last year when my car was stolen twice, recovered both times with the steering wheel column busted! No repair insurance, so I used the er fund, did some of the work myself and had to wait to build up the extra money for more repairs. But I didn't go into more debt!!!