2. Budgeting Exercise – Part 2
Bank Statement Review
In this section you will review your bank statement
and color code it into a few different categories. Grab
some highlighters or even crayons, you’ll need at
least 5 colors.
These Categories Include:
• Take-Out
• Grocery Store
• Gas
• Online Shopping
3. Bank Statement Review – Cont’d
Color #1: Take-Out
Take-out should include
any food/drink that you did
not buy at a grocery store.
Example:
4. Bank Statement Review – Cont’d
Color #2: Grocery Store
Includes all your purchases at a
grocery store for food/drink.
Example:
5. Bank Statement Review – Cont’d
Color #3: Gas
This is for all stops you
make at a gas station to
put gas in your car.
Example:
6. Bank Statement Review – Cont’d
Color #4: Online Shopping
Anytime you bought something
from the internet
Example:
7. Bank Statement Review – Cont’d
Color #5: Optional
Use this as an opportunity to look for other habitual purchases or
activities you see on your bank statement. (example: ATM
withdrawals, subscription plans, lotto, app or game purchases, etc.)
Now that you know the categories, it is time to begin!!
8. Bank Statement Wrap-up
Grab a calculator and start totaling
each category color, make sure to
indicate which color category those
totals belong to.
When you are done totaling all the
costs from all the pages, add them
to the second column (actual) of the
budget worksheet in the
corresponding expense category.
It’s time to add up all those totals!
9. • Were you surprised by how you
are actually spending your
money?
• Are there areas of your budget
that need work?
• In what categories can you adjust
your spending?
Bank Statement Wrap-up–Cont’d
10. As you can see your actual spending is probably
drastically different from your estimated spending
budget. This exercise was developed to show you
just where your money is going. Do this each month
and work to curtail your impulse spending. Before
you know it, you will have money left in your bank
account between paydays.
11. Bringing it all together
How to be successful
Budget
Have a spending plan in place before the money gets in your hands.
• Have a plan, so that you’re clear about spending before you receive
your paycheck.
SAVE!
Make this your first monthly expense
• Set aside money for “rainy days”.
• The savings plan should be thought of as an investing plan because it
is an investment in your family’s future.
12. Think Positive and Don’t Quit!
Did you know Origin SC offers individualized sessions
on budgeting and credit improvement? These sessions
are offered as face-to-face meetings, via telephone or
even video conferencing – we even have limited
weekend and evening sessions available.
Make your money work for you and make the necessary
financial decisions to get ahead! Call 843.735.7862 or
visit www.originsc.org/financial-coaching/ to learn more!
