If you are anything like me, you have the best intentions of having a productive day. You go to bed thinking about all the things you are going to do tomorrow, including reviewing your budget.

And then…

You hit the snooze button one too many times.

Scroll through social media until you lose track of time.

Rush to get ready and out the door for work.

You get home from work tired.

Stay up binge-watching Netflix.

Then you fall asleep on the 3^rd episode of your new series.

You had every intention of checking your bank account and reviewing your budget but life happened. It seems like the bigger the task, the easier it is to avoid it. You may tell yourself, “tomorrow I am getting up early to manage my finances,” but the reality is, for that to happen, there must be some changes.

What is the real reason why you don’t have time to budget?

It’s easy to say that the ONLY reason you don’t keep up with your budget is that you don’t have enough time when it is not the case. You can keep up with your budget in 15 minutes or less a day if you really wanted to.

The reality is that budgeting can be mentally draining. You experience decision fatigue. Decision fatigue is when you have to make too many decisions in a short amount of time.

What bills are due and when?

Has that check cleared?

When is my annual subscription due?

Did I give the kids enough money for lunch?

All of this can be exhausting and your way of dealing with it could be just to avoid it. Don’t avoid it any longer, it is time to make budgeting more manageable with a budgeting routine you can stick to.

Set Reminders

The first thing you can do is to set a reminder or an alarm to let you know that it is time to sit down and manage your money. Let’s face it, your money isn’t going to manage itself so someone has to do it.

Once you set your reminders, make sure everything you need for your “money time” will be ready for you. Gather all bills, laptop, statements, and whatever else you may need, put it all together so can be ready when you are. This will take away the procrastination when the time comes to budget and manage your money.

Start Small

Start with small financial tasks so you don’t hesitate to complete it. If you start with smaller tasks such as checking your bank account or paying 1 bill, you are more than likely to complete that 1 task than a series of too many financial tasks. Remember decision fatigue? It’s real and it will drain your energy.

Here is a list of some tasks that will take 15 minutes or less to complete

• Check bank accounts
• Pay 1 or 2 bills
• Check retirement account
• Enter 5 transactions into your budget tracker
• Pay tithes and offerings or give to charity

Rome wasn’t built in a day. Start small and complete at least 1 financial task per day. Just like with any habit, the more you do it, the easier it gets.

Reward Yourself

Rewarding yourself when you follow your budget routine for 30, 60, and 90 days. This will continue to motivate you to continue day after day. The reward does not have to be big. It can be as simple as treating yourself to your favorite meal without the spouse and kids. LOL.

Final Thoughts

Making a budgeting routine isn’t always easy. If you use these strategies, it will make budgeting a little easier. Remember why you are choosing to create a better financial future.

Sometimes you need to do less in order to ultimately do more.