One of the main tenets of this website is that managing your money shouldn’t be a lot of work. If you put together a few systems, you can be lazy and let your money work for you.
I almost never write about budgeting. Most every system, I’ve seen requires significant work. I don’t want to write down all my spending. A long, long time ago in a universe very far away, I tried to use Quicken to manage my money. That was a nightmare when it got out of sync which seemed to happen daily.
Over time, I’ve found what works best for me. I’ll get to that in a little bit. First, I want to share some lazy budgeting strategies that may be a fit for you. Several of these strategies can work together.
1. The “Set It and Forget It” Money System
Remember those infomercials about rotisserie ovens?* This is the financial equivalent. Set up automatic transfers the day after your paycheck hits. The idea is to split it into three buckets/accounts:
- Bills and fixed expenses go to checking account #1
- Fun money go into in checking account #2
- Everything else gets whisked away to a savings account
You can look to reduce your expenses to minimize #1. When the savings account has a certain amount of money in it, you might want to set up a transfer from it to a brokerage for investing.
Deciding how to split the money between #2 and #3 is up to you. Investing and taking advantage of compound interest is the best way to make your money work for you. The earlier you get money invested, the earlier you can live the lazy life.
2. Use Credit Card for Automatic Categorization
I use credit cards for all my spending. I might as well get 2% or more back, right? I have an American Express Card that gives me 6% back at grocery stores. I only use it for that. It’s easy to know how much I spend on groceries every month or every year because I can look at the statements. Even my 2% cash-back card categorizes my spending. The categorization is not perfect, but it’s very, very good.
The key is auto paying the full balance each month to avoid mailing checks and paying interest. Set it up once, then never think about it again.
3. The “Painless” Savings Hack
Remember those “Keep the Change” programs banks used to advertise? Well, modern apps have taken this to a whole new level. Some examples of these apps are Oportun, Qapital, Goodbudget, Chime and Acorns. Many charge a small monthly fee. Also, you may want to, beware of fintech. I wouldn’t leave too much money in these accounts. The beauty of these apps is that they squirrel away money gradually. I would set a calendar appointment for every three months to remember to transfer the money to invest.
4. The “No-Think” Bill Audit
This idea isn’t a budgetting system, but it pairs well with any budgetting system. Once a year, spend one hour – just one – reviewing your recurring bills. Put it in your calendar. I like to do it on Groundhog Day. That way I remember to do it while I am watching the movie. Reviewing bills while watching Bill – get it?
5. The Lazy Man Anti-Budget
This has been my budget plan since my mid 20s. I refuse to budget every little expense. Instead, I was very frugal when I was younger. Once I had a comfortable enough buffer, I didn’t need to be as frugal. Everyone has to decide what that buffer is for themselves. Back when I started, have an extra $1000 in my bank account made me feel like I could splurge a bit.
Instead of budgeting, I made it a habit of doing a net worth report every month. My system was to create a group of bookmarks to all my financial institutions. I include Zillow for real estate and Kelly Blue Book for cars. The bookmarks take me right to my property and the cars we have. My password manager is ready on each tab to log me in. Nowadays, you might be able to do faster with mobile apps that log in with your fingerprint.
As long as I saw my monthly net worth going in the right direction, I knew I was doing okay. Fortunately, the markets have usually done well over the last 25 years. The dot com crash came too early in my career for me to lose too much money. The crash in 2009 became an opportunity to buy more stock at low prices.
This lazy budget has served me well over the last 25 years.
Final Thoughts
The best budget is the one you’ll actually stick to. The most sophisticated budgeting system in the world is useless if you abandon it.
These lazy budgeting methods work because they require minimal ongoing effort. In most cases, you set them up once and move on.
If you take away anything from this post, let it be this: You don’t need to track every penny to be good with money. Sometimes, the lazy way is actually the smart way.
What’s your favorite lazy money hack? Drop a comment below.
* Quicken and Ronco Showtime in the same email. How did I get so old?
