Whether you’re redesigning your finances or starting your savings from scratch, the first thing you need to do is get organised, right? So, let’s have a look at how you can do that when payday rolls around in order for you to reach your financial goals.

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Payday Eve

To be completely ready for payday, the monthly routine actually begins the day before. For me, this is when I check in with each account and create a plan for the month ahead. Let’s get started!

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Firstly, a good starting point is to move any leftover money out of your account before you get paid again. You could put any extra cash towards savings, debt, a ‘treat yourself’ fund, whatever you like, as long as it allows you to start the next month from scratch.

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Next up, check your bank account for any fraudulent activity or incorrect payments over the last month. This can be a good habit to get into, especially if you tend to refrain from checking your account balance (we’ve all been there). You could also take this time to do a quick check of your bills/direct debits to see if there are any payments you could potentially save a bit of cash on either by changing providers or reducing your outgoings. With the current cost of living crisis, now is a better time than ever to streamline your finances.

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Finally, check the status of your sinking funds and savings - are they on track? This will help make your plan for the month more clear.

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Payday

First and foremost, check your payslip against your bank account to ensure you’ve been paid correctly. Up next, sort all of your bills and essential payments as these are non-negotiable expenses.

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Once that is dealt with, look at your calendar for the next month. Your budget can be flexible depending on what you have going on, so make sure you take into account big plans, birthdays or trips that you may have coming up so that you can cover them with ease. From there, figure out your budget for the month, making sure to include savings, sinking funds (pay yourself first!) and spending money.

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If you like to keep your spending money separate, it can be handy to keep a buffer amount in your main account just in case an unexpected expense appears.

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Tips

• Use multiple accounts - having your spending, saving and emergency funds separate can makes things so much clearer when it comes to reaching your financial goals

• Put your monthly leftovers towards one goal - rather than let it rollover each month, try to motivate yourself to stick to your budget by having your leftovers create another savings pot

• If you have variable payments, make sure to keep track of these throughout the month so you will have a rough idea of your upcoming payslip amount - examples include side hustles or overtime

• When checking your pay, make sure to look at deductions too, like tax, student loans and pension contributions

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