Is my raise keeping up with inflation? Work out your real raise
Is my raise keeping up with inflation? Work out your real raise against prices and your own ledger, then decide where the extra money goes before it vanishes.
7 min read
Topic
Budgeting
12 posts about budgeting, newest first.
How to budget for a health insurance premium increase in 2027
How to budget for a health insurance premium increase: price the 2027 renewal, compare plans on total yearly cost, and fund the deductible before January.
7 min read
How to do a subscription audit and cancel what you don't use
How to do a subscription audit from your ledger: find every recurring charge, price it per month, decide keep, cut or downgrade, and stop subscription creep.
7 min read
How to make a holiday budget you can pay off before January
How to make a holiday budget from your ledger: find what you can pay in cash by the last payday, list every cost, cut to fit, and save it per paycheck.
7 min read
How to track buy now, pay later payments before they stack up
How to track buy now, pay later payments across every app: put each instalment on one calendar, see the month they stack up, and budget for it.
7 min read
Sinking funds: how to budget for irregular expenses without a shock
Sinking funds explained with real numbers: list the irregular bills, divide each by the paydays left, and stop annual expenses turning into emergencies.
8 min read
How much emergency fund should I have? Size it from your ledger
How much emergency fund should I have? Essentials per month times the months you need, worked out on real figures — plus where to keep it and how to build it.
8 min read
Keeping business and personal money apart when you are a company of one
The line between business and personal finances for freelancers and solo founders: two books, one salary transfer, a tax reserve, and the four expenses that always end up on the wrong side.
5 min read
How to budget in more than one currency without lying to yourself
Pick a base currency, record every entry in the currency it happened in, convert at write time, and choose which exchange rate you believe. The rules that keep multi-currency money honest.
5 min read
Debt snowball vs. avalanche: the math, and why the extra payment matters more than the method
Snowball and avalanche worked out on three real debts: months to freedom, total interest, and the one number that changes the outcome more than either method.
4 min read
Zero-based budgeting when your income changes every month
A zero-based budget for freelancers and anyone paid irregularly: budget from a floor, pay yourself a salary, hold the rest in reserve, and stop refactoring your life every payday.
5 min read
The 50/30/20 budget, with real numbers (and where it quietly breaks)
How the 50/30/20 rule works on an actual paycheck, how to set it up in an evening, and the three situations where the rule needs bending before it fits.
5 min read