Personal Budgeting for Financial Success!

# Save money consistently! - Instantly see your budget as you make each transaction
# Control credit card spending! - tracks credit card spending as well as checks and cash
# Portable! - fits into a checkbook. No bulky notebooks or worksheets.
# Simple! - even used to teach young people how to manage money!
# Flexible! - works with any budget and any combination of checks, credit/debit card and cash transactions.

"BudgetMap is compact, tidy, and amazingly effective ... I find BudgetMap to be a unique and useful money management tool. When you consider the price is less than one bounced check, BudgetMap also represents quite a bargain."

"BudgetMap takes the fuss out of making and sticking to a budget. I've found it to be easy, effective, and relatively inexpensive."

Success through simplicity
Save money consistently, become debt-free, and reduce your work with the BudgetMap® system. BudgetMap® has helped thousands of people get control of their finances - it will do the same for you!
So simple - used by high schools, home schoolers and universities to teach youth. So successful - used by mortgage companies, seminar instructors and churches to impart principles of personal finance and stewardship to adults.
Immediately ...
• Get organized financially
• Start managing your household budget
• Begin saving money

"The system is so simple, it's mind boggling. I have tried other budgeting systems ... Your system is a dream.
Carry it with you
The BudgetMap system replaces your check
register and fits into a normal check book.
• Take it wherever you go
• Stop unwanted purchases
• Immediately see if you are overspending
• Save money consistently
"Because you carry it with you, it provides a clear picture of your current financial situation anytime, any place.
Save your precious time
Most personal financial systems make you enter information in your check register and then again in a software program, spreadsheet, or notebook. Do you want that?
Save your time with the BudgetMap system. It combines the budgeting system with the check register -- no separate budgeting system is needed.
• Instantly see your spending plan as you make each transaction -- and how each transaction moves you toward (or away from) your goals.
• Budgeting becomes a simple and easy part of daily life -- not an extra task that you have to do every week or month.
• Stop overspending before it happens.
Get the "Missing Link" for successful budgeting
Have you ever ...
• Bought a book on budgeting?
• Taken a course on personal finances?
• Used a budget planner?
... but you still can't budget successfully? Have you given up?
Many books and courses do an excellent job of motivating and educating but don't offer an easy way to implement what they teach. Some even have you write out your budget plan -- but it is a quantum leap to put your plan into action.
You need more than a budget planner -- you need a budget implementer. The BudgetMap system does both. You get the "missing link" to implement what you learn.


"Big picture" gives you control
You need to look forward more than backward when you budget. Most budgeting systems emphasize details and hindsight (where you've already spent your money). The BudgetMap system emphasizes the "big picture" and foresight -- it combines the normal detail checkbook information for tracking (hindsight) with the budgeting system (foresight) so you can see both at the same time.
• Gives you an instant picture of the balance in your account -- plus what the money in the account is for.
• Protects you from inadvertently spending money that is being saved for a special budget purpose on the wrong item (you spend the money for your house payment on clothes -- oops!).
• Changes budgeting into a positive, pro-active tool that frees you to accomplish your goals -- and look forward financially.

"BudgetMap helps you face the facts. Your financial situation is there plain as the nose on your face. It's really quite ingenious.
Make quick decisions ... without mistakes
Sometimes you have to make a quick decision. The BudgetMap system allows you to be flexible and spontaneous -- while avoiding impulsiveness. What's the difference?
Impulsiveness is reacting without thinking (bad!) -- and you make a lot of mistakes. Spontaneity is immediately responding after thinking through the consequences (good!). The BudgetMap system enables you to see where you are in your budget at a glance -- you can make quick decisions based on knowledge instead of emotion.


"Using a BudgetMap register has made managing our finances much easier.It's helpful to see at a glance what we are able to spend. The convenience of the BudgetMap register has - on many occasions - prevented us from overspending. It's been a great tool for our family.
"The BudgetMap system is the most innovative, profoundly simple financial tool I've ever tried, and I've tried many! I've been using it for two years, and couldn't do without it now."
Say:Mr.Nazeef from Srilankan)

7 Ways to Entertain on a Budget

Just because the economy is suffering doesn’t mean your social life has to as well.


Here, your guide to turning those late nights out into late nights in with these tips for stylish soirees.

Decor
The easiest way to create a feeling of luxury is with candles. Buy a candelabra at Target or Bed, Bath & Beyond for your centerpiece and place smaller candles around the base and along the table. Start collecting candles when you see them on sale, and when the day of your dinner party arrives, place them on the table in varying heights and colors. Candles can be used over and over so they are a great investment.

Create a festive vibe by downloading a mix to your iPod.

No need to spend on a full set of china. Instead, mix and match dinner plates and glassware — it’s trendy and it adds to the experience. Your guests will think you did it on purpose.

Plan your menu with colorful food. If you are serving meat, select colored vegetables like carrots and broccoli.

Drinks
BYOB — why not? Most guests will bring a bottle of wine as a house gift anyway. Don't store the wine; use it the night of your party. I'm a big fan of California sparkling wine — it's less expensive than champagne and tastes delicious. Also, vodka is on the market in every flavor imaginable. Put your mixologist skills to the test and create martinis using pomegranate or blueberry vodka. One bottle of vodka will go a long way, and your guests will enjoy trying your flavored drinks — they won't even miss the expensive vino.

Dessert
Make your own chocolate-covered strawberries for dessert. They are decadent, and, more important, really easy to make. Buy fresh strawberries and chocolate in the baking section of your market. For under $15 your guests will be blown away by your effort and creativity.

Do Without...
To save money, cut back or completely eliminate using fresh-cut flowers — they are expensive and don't last. Instead, decorate your dinner table using things you already own. Use a favorite house plant as a centerpiece or replace your picture frames with pictures of the guests attending your party.

11 Ways to Save Money on Your Energy Bill

1. As long as plugs are inserted into an outlet, they're drawing electricity--unplug your phone and laptop chargers when you're not using them.

2. Everyday appliances such as computers, game consoles, plasma televisions and DVD/VCR players burn up energy—about 40-percent of your total bill—even when you're not using them. Instead of leaving them on standby or sleep mode, turn them off.

3.Attach appliances and battery chargers to a power strip, and get in the habit of unplugging or switching it off when you leave the house for the day.

4. We won't ask you to take cold showers, but you can wash your clothes in cold water, which expends about half as much energy as hot rinses. To save even more, make sure to clean out the lint tray before starting the dryer.

5. Showers account for most of a household's hot-water use. Cutting showers from 30 minutes to 10 could slash water-heating costs by 50-percent.

6. Lower your thermostat to 58 degrees if you’re away from home for a chunk of the day. You use much less energy to heat the house up when you return than to keep it heated while you’re away.

7. Keep your refrigerator full. It'll operate more efficiently.

8. You still need to wash your dishes, but now you have a great reason to stop hand-washing and invest in a dishwasher. According to Consumer Reports, just pre-rinsing your dirty dishes uses roughly 20 gallons of heated water a day. Just scrape the food off and drop them in the washer.

9. Alliance to Save Energy claims a one-degree thermostat reduction can save 3 percent on your heating bill.

10. Replace your lightbulbs with Compact Flourescent Lightbulbs. CFLs not only consume up to 75% less energy than their incandescent siblings, but also last 10 times longer. Your savings account will appreciate the switch--the average U.S. household will save $180 per year by swapping their current bulbs for CFLs.

11. Refrigerate efficiently--keep your fridge out of direct sunlight and away from the stove or dishwasher, and close your kitchen curtains, especially in the summer.

What recession? Keep your wallet padded with 39 more tips for saving money on clothes shopping, your commute, grocery shopping and eating out, and your taxes.

11 Ways to Save Money on Clothes

1. Ask and you might receive. It won't always work, but sometimes all you have to do is ask nicely for a discount to get one. Next time you hit up your favorite store, try to get on the checkout line with an employee your recognize behind the register (if you're a frequent shopper there and you recognize them, there's a bigger chance you'll look familiar!). As they're ringing you up, ask if it's possible to get a discount on your purchase. This is more likely to go in your favor if you're just buying one thing, so don't be greedy — as when you're replacing your favorite jeans or buying a new pair of running sneakers, not mid-shopping spree.

2. Take care of your clothes. Dry-clean when the tag says to dry-clean, hand-wash nice lingerie, and don't let your floor double as a closet. Your favorite items will last a lot longer if you take care of them, and you won't have to replace them after a few months. This goes for shoes too. A $5 repair or touch-up on your favorite pair of heels every few months will go a long way in keeping them looking new.

3. Don't let gift cards go to waste — you can swap it for someone else's unwanted card on sites like cardavenue.com.

4. After an item lingers in stores a month or more, retailers start dropping its price to get it out the door, says Kathryn Finney, author of How to Be a Budget Fashionista. If you have the self-control, wait to grab it until six to eight weeks after an item hits the stores.

5. There's no worse feeling than finding out that your latest splurge went on sale days after you bought it. Before you hand over your credit card on a big purchase, ask if the object of your fashion lust is going on sale soon. The salesgirl might clue you in that a sale is coming up, or might even ring up the sale price right then and there.

6. Take advantage of buy-one-get-one-half-off sales and similar discounts — not by buying all that you can carry out of the store, but by clueing in your fashion-forward friends. If you're both craving a new pair of winter boots, hit the sales together and take advantage of the special deals.

7. Befriend the salesgirl at your favorite shopping hot spots. You don't have to friend her on Facebook, just make an effort to say hello to her when you're shopping, ask for her opinion on something you're trying on, and make sure you jump on her line when she's at the register. Be a familiar and friendly face, and she might give you a heads-up on sales or ring up a discount code for you once in a while.

8. Hit the stores on a weekday to make sure you get a good selection. Thursdays are ideal — you'll likely be able to take advantage of weekend sales while still having a big selection to choose from. If you go later in the weekend, your favorite stores are more likely to be picked over.

9. Get the best deals by stocking up on seasonal clothing right as the season is ending. Scour sale racks for short sleeves in November, sweaters in April, and bikinis in September.

10. We all have that one store that impairs our shopping judgment. Force yourself to stick to your budget and prevent impulsive shopping sprees — load up a store gift card with how much you can spend and leave your credit cards at home.

11. Thrift shops can be just as expensive as pricey boutiques, if not more so. But your friends' closets can be free. Organize a clothing swap with your chicest pals. Not the same dress or shoe size? Swap accessories — new scarves, headbands, bags, and costume jewelry are great ways to freshen up your style.

What recession? Keep your wallet padded with 39 more tips for saving money on commuting, your grocery shopping and eating out, taxes, and your energy bill.

The Best Ways to Keep Track of Your Money

Ever wonder where all your money went, mere days after payday? Between the cell phone and cable bills, gas tank refills and every day expenses, keeping track of your finances is as onerous and daunting a task as calorie counting. While most banks offer easy access to online checking and bill pay, they won’t tell you if, say, you’re blowing all your cash on lunch or nights out with friends. For those interested in scrutinizing their spending, a slew of new websites have arrived to help you nickel and dime yourself. Their services, generally free, promise secure tracking of your expenses plus analysis of your problem spots. While they won’t tell you if those Laboutin pumps are worth the cash, they may remind you it might be best to pass this time around. We’ve reviewed the best of the bunch.

How to Save Money While Traveling

On the forefront of most wanderluster's minds today is getting the most out of one's travel budget. After visiting 24 countries since I was fourteen, I've racked up several ways to save money while out galavanting around the globe. One great way to do this is becoming familiar with airfare cycles and alternate routes to save on tickets. Knowing the seasons that airfares change and not reserving a flight in peak travel times will be much cheaper. Be inventive with the routes you search for and don't rely on default search results when using travel bookers online. Combining that with searching dates that are somewhat flexible will likely save you a bundle.

Another good place to save money is by avoiding the kitsch. A lot of travelers get sucked into the souvenir craze and end up spending a large amount of their budget (and time) souvenir shopping for friends and family back home. If you're feeling pressure to bring something back for absolutely everyone you know, don't discount the simple ways to share your experience. A fun photo of you in front of a monument can be framed once you get back home and will last a lifetime. If you also concentrate on buying from smaller local shops or rural communities, you'll end up with souvenirs that are authentic and budget friendly. Never shop in heavily trafficked tourist areas as the price is surely jacked way up due to location; instead opt for side street shops or street artists. Many cities around the world have artists who sell prints or original artwork and this is a good way to have something affordable, as well as easy to pack.

Many times you'll be approached by independent guides once you arrive in a city's airport, train station, or ferry port. They can actually be a helpful way to see a city and offer affordable rates and there's nothing wrong with hiring an expert to give you insider knowledge and help keep you safe. Just keep in mind that you've hired the guide to take you for a tour, not for a ride - they may be receiving kickbacks. Souvenir shops, restaurants and tourist sites will often give a percentage or per-head commission to tour guides. This is illegal in most places, but not always enforced. If prices of souvenirs and food seem far above the local community standard, tell the guide you would like to go elsewhere. They will likely protest, but stand firm and save money.

Renting an apartment can help you save on lodging costs & provide flexibility, especially if traveling with a group of friends. Most apartments come with a kitchen and you can save on the cost of breakfast and some dinners this way. Another way to have very low cost lodging is the growing trend of house-swapping, it's a clever way to make the most of the assets you already have, and experience local-living in your destination.

Nix the traveler's checks unless you enjoy seemingly endless fees and difficulty exchanging them for local currency. The best way to access cash is to use your debit card to withdraw money from bank machines along the way (bonus travel tip: don't ask for an 'ATM' abroad, ask for a 'bank machine'). The fees are lower and you usually get a great exchange rate. Using your credit card for as many transactions as possible will also reduce the amount of cash you carry around and hopefully rack up some airline miles too. Be sure to check with your card issuer before departing about any fees they may charge for foreign currency conversion. It shouldn't be more than about 3%, which will still be lower than the costs associated with traveler's checks.
What are your favorite ways to save money while traveling?

9 Ways to Save Money on Your Commute

Many Websites are tracking gas prices across the country so you can check the cheapest and the priciest pumps in your neighborhood. Log on to gasbuddy.com or gaspricewatch.com to find out exactly where to fill up for less.
1. According to the American Automobile Association, it costs an average of 54.1 cents per mile to drive a car as of 2008--that's $5453 annually. Ridesharing with one other person can save you $2726. If the thought of carpooling to work with the antiperspirant-averse guy from the office makes you a little ill, see if you can work out an arrangement with friends you don't work with. Feeling adventurous?

2. If possible, commit to a seasonal or monthly pass for the train or bus you take every day. It'll save you cash in the long run--but make sure not to buy one for periods of time when you know you have a vacation or days off scheduled, so you're not paying for days you're not commuting.

3. Don't call in sick to save on your commute. But if you stick to a 9-5 schedule at the office and your job is telecommuting-friendly, consider asking your boss to let you work from home once a week. Or try to get a longer weekend and put in an extended workday four days a week so that you can take one day off. Just don't push it--you still want your boss to remember that you work there.

4. Cut gas costs by keeping your heater or AC on only long enough to get your car the right temperature, and then turn them off. Better yet, if you're trying to cool off, take advantage of Mother Nature's natural air conditioning and roll down the windows.

5. Depending on where you live and your public transit system, if you lose a seasonal, monthly, or weekly bus or train pass, you may be able to get your money back--as long as you have proof of purchase. If you're the scatterbrained type, put ticket purchases on your credit card to keep a record of them so that you don't end up paying for what you don't use--you may even be able to register your train or bus pass online as soon as you buy it.

6. We're not suggested you walk seven miles home from work every night, but if you're taking a train or bus, double-check the route and find out at which point your fare goes up. If you can save a few bucks a day by getting off two blocks earlier, it might be worth the extra cash.

7. Ask your Human Resources department about company benefits that might subsidize your commuting costs. They might also offer car service if you work past a certain time in the evenings.

8. Ditch the road rage--speeding (over 75mph) and rapidly accelerating and slamming on your brakes is eating away at your car's fuel efficiency. So keep your cool, and keep your speed steady. And make sure your tires are properly inflated--flatter tires can also decrease fuel efficiency.

9. Be familiar with local gas prices. It pays to know if the gas station two blocks away from the one you go to now charges less per gallon.

What recession? Keep your wallet padded with 41 more tips for saving money on clothes shopping, your grocery shopping and eating out, taxes, and your energy bill.