When the prices of commodities are booming and expenditure is increasing in every manner, it becomes essential to make some planning for your income.

• The best way to take care of your money is to plan a budget. A budget should keep a track of all your expenses. The indispensable expenses like education fee of the kids, the bills, the fuel, taxes etc. should be estimated and subtracted from the monthly salary. Then monitor the other likely expenses like gifts on friend’s birthday in that month, your anniversary, weekend outing and the like. The amount that is left after reducing the essentials should be planned in such a manner that you end up with little, at times even negligible savings.

‘A Penny saved is a Penny earned’. Savings are very crucial in today’s life. But many people do not understand the relevance of savings. An individual, who develops the habit of saving money, never falls short of it especially in exigency situations.

If the outlay outweighs the income, situation is called a negative cash flow. In this case you ought to be extra vigilant while spending money. Try to reduce the weekend trips, partying at home or outside, purchasing needless items etc. If possible make a new budget where you have optimized the costs. It then becomes your duty to abide by this budget in order to avoid pitfalls. While if the case is other way round i.e. the cash inflow is more than its outflow, its time to cheer and of course make some savings for the future.

• Next good thing you can do to manage your money is to make investments. Investments can be of different types. You can invest in a property or land, in banks, in stocks etc. The investments you make not only keep your money secure but also give you good returns. Like money that is kept in a fixed deposit in a bank is supplemented with interest amount, the cash invested in purchasing shares of an eminent and successful company, always give a great output etc.

If you are investing in some trust or insurance policies, your wealth will not just be beneficial for you till the time you live; it will also be a financial security for your children and grandchildren in future. So investments generally are rewarding, they do not go futile. But before making any investment, you must enquire about the pros and cons of it. For instance, high risk is involved in investing money in the stock market as the economy is fluctuating unbelievably. Here, you should acquire complete information that when to purchase the stocks and for which company that will never let you down etc. The case is not different with investing in property, but the risk factor is not so high here. The rates for property are never stagnant. So it is better to purchase the land when the market is down and sell it when the prices take a flight. In any case, first acquaint yourself with all the facts and basics, and then only invest. Remember your purpose is to make money from money not to lose with whatever you have.

• Are you a credit card bug? If you are and your expenses do not meet the income, forget the credit cards. The credit card money is charged with high rate of interest. Though it is the easiest form of money, yet it can be very troubling later. People keep on withdrawing the money from the bank’s or company’s credit and the interest simultaneously keeps on accumulating. Finally, the credit card bill comes as a nightmare to many. So it is better to avoid using credit card wherever possible. Try to use it only in case of an urgent situation.

• Keep an accountant if you yourself are not able to keep a track of all your transactions.

Money Management is simple, if you become a little judicious.

Mansi aggarwal writes about money management guide. Learn more at http://www.learntomanagemoney.com .