Creating a budget for you and your household is a fairly elementary task that everyone must do regularly in order to keep a tally of their finances and expenses. Many people do not do this, however, for various reasons. Maybe they don't know how to use a spreadsheet, aren't good at balancing checkbooks, or just aren't "math people." This can mean disaster, though, if the budget is neglected.

It's in everyone's self-interest to create a budget and balance their income with their expenses so that they are never running short. Some people opt to hire someone else to do the task, which is fine if you find someone you can trust. Budgets include simple totals of income and expenses every month along with projected increases or drops to either. A good budget also has a "buffer" so that if something unexpected comes up or something changes in the budget itself, it can be accounted for.

If you are comfortable with spreadsheet software, you can use any number of programs to make and track your monthly budget. Spreadsheets like Microsoft's Excel, OpenOffice's Calc, and others are commonly available and known. Even Google has a free spreadsheet software on their site.

If you don't use software spreadsheets, use a pencil and notepad to create one by drawing lines vertically and horizontally to make columns and rows. In one column, have your monthly income sources listed (job, interest or annuities, etc.) and in the other have your monthly expenses (mortgage or rent, car payment, and so forth). Include everything and refer to your last month's bills for proper numbers.

Now compare the totals in the two columns: what you make versus what you spend. Now you can see if you're ahead or behind yourself or barely breaking even. Now to do some more fun budgeting.

Re-figure the expenses column and remove interest on your auto loan and credit cards. Remove about 25% of your impulse buys from shopping visits. Now total your expenses. See how much you could save if you were to cut down on your impulsive shopping and credit card spending? What about if you were to refinance your car or pay it off early? For most people, this is a substantial amount of money!

The key to keeping a good budget is two-fold: realism and determination. Be realistic with the numbers you list and how they affect your life and budget. Be determined to save money, stay within your budget, and pay off your debts and interest quickly. After you've had a good look at your budget and how interest and other things affect where your money goes, you'll be less likely to buy things on credit, saving up to buy them with cash instead.

You'll also see how you can manipulate your money to make it work for you, so you can save by consolidating some credit card bills or paying more towards one instead of another to get it paid off more quickly. High-interest credit cards and loans as well as other cards that go with hidden are the biggest detriment to most people's budgets and should be eliminated as quickly as possible. Seek for helpful pieces of advice from a financial advisor or check out the list of bank service information in your area.

So make a monthly budget and review it often. See where you stand right now, as the month progresses, and stick to your plans to save! This is the real secret to getting rich.