We all know that we should have a budget.

And yet so few people actually do. Or if they do, they use it after the fact, instead of to plan and direct their spending.

There’s a saying that goes like this:

Show me your checkbook and your calendar, and I’ll tell you what you value.

How you spend your money and your time demonstrate your values. We can SAY whatever we want, but our actions are much more important than our words. Actions speak LOUDLY.

A great “self-help” diagnostic is the “Live, Give, Owe, Grow” tool. In shorthand, we’ll call it the LGOG tool.

Gather your tax returns, pay stubs, investment accounts, debt statements and charitable receipts. How much did you give (this could be tax deductible or not)? How much did you set aside for growth and future needs? How much did you spend on debt? How much did you spend on taxes (income, payroll, property taxes, sales taxes)? Whatever is “leftover” must be current lifestyle.

Are you surprised by the results?

Now try it again. This time making declarative statements of what you WANT your “pie” to look like. What do you need to do to make that a reality? Increase income? Reduce lifestyle? Increase giving? Sell the home to reduce the mortgage?

If you have questions regarding the LGOG tool, we would love to talk to you!

An example of what an LGOG chart looks like…

To view a sample worksheet, click here.