Develop a Budget
Take control of your own financial situation. Do a realistic assessment of how much money comes in, and how much goes out.
Start off by listing all of your incomes. These can be wages, dividends or any other money that comes to you.
Now list all of your fixed bills, like rent, telephone, car payments and other expenses that don't change from month to month. Make sure you can make ends met on all the basic necessities like food, housing, health care, insurance and education.
After this, you can see what is left over for other, less important, expenses like clothing, entertainment and recreation.
Public libraries have some good reference books on personal finance, budgeting and money management techniques. There are also some low cost services that can help you to analyze your income and expenses and develop a budget and spending plan. Ask about these at your bank, consumer protection office, or local non-profit organizations.
Remember, creating a budget is the easy part. Sticking to that budget is the hard bit. You need to be strong and have the willpower to say to yourself "that's not in the budget, so I can't have it". this is hard at the start, but once people get used to their budget plans and thinking about how things fit in with it, they are usually amazed at how much money they realize they have and what they can do with it to make their money work for them.
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