3 money habits to start now

There are times when you think of clearing all the mess that you may have created while managing money. Then may it be closing the extra credit card accounts or may be paying off long credit card dues. However, there are these three habits that you can start right away and de-clutter all your mess. This would also help you in making your financial life much easier.

Save more
Saving more is the key to creating wealth over long period of time. There are various ways in which you can save more. First you should clear all your credit card dues and close all those extra credit card accounts. Having at max 2 credit cards can serve your purpose. The next thing that you can do is start paying yourself. Ideally it should be 10 to 20 per cent of your income. However, you can initially start with say 5 per cent and then gradually increase your savings. This will not just help you to inculcate the habit of saving but also help you to have a good amount of surplus that can be used to invest to achieve your various life goals.

One-time expenses
Personal finance or financial planning doesn’t mean that you should just concentrate on saving and end-up not creating any enjoyable moments in life. In fact, it helps you to save for such moments, so that other important things stay unaffected. We all know that birthdays come only once in a year and we love to celebrate and socialize by throwing a birthday party. However, while spending on it other important things might go for a toss. Having said that, it is always wise to decide a budget for it and then save accordingly for it so that you know where is your money coming from and going. Having a financial budget is the most important thing which needs to be in place even before you start investing for your financial goals. So, it is always better to have a habit of drawing an annual budget and follow it.

Credit cards
Everyone would agree to this that we use credit cards every now and then and even for very small things like petrol and movie tickets. This usually leads to piling up of credit card dues. It is very important to understand that, when it comes to debt, nothing is more cruel than credit card debt. One should use it very responsibly. Often having a credit card should help you in case of emergencies. So, it is always better to make a habit of paying credit card dues on time and use it in case of emergencies only.