Learning to Drive Before Buying Your Car

 It's a sunny (and hot) Wednesday afternoon. I'm sitting at my desk (working) and listening to a webinar on how to organize digital photos.  Something she says causes my ears to perk up.

Photo by Thought Catalog on Unsplash

"Focus on learning how to drive. Don't focus on the car." She was talking about buying a fancy car, but not knowing how to drive. She was comparing that to the variety of photo software that's out there, but if you don't know how to organize none of those options will help you.

This got me thinking about my approach to many things in life, but particularly budgeting and managing finances. I have tried different types of money management software and different budgeting systems over the year. However, the fundamentals of budgeting seems to escape me.

Yes, I know that I need to spend less than I bring in. I need to set aside money for saving. Etcetera.

But how do I manage my money when the demands (actual things we need) are piling up? What about doing that while dealing with emotional and personal health struggles? 

I have to admit, I'm still at a loss with some of these things. And I'm worried about how I am hurting my family. I also realize I'm in the same boat when it comes to managing a household. I have so many tools and ideas for cleaning and decluttering....but when it comes down to the implementation and  deeply understanding the concept, I could use a little help (and maybe a professional?)!

I have all the tools, but I need to understand the fundamentals before they will actually help me.

Is there an area in your life where you have tried all the things, but you now realize that you need a deeper understanding before any of those tools will actually be of use?