Money for your lifetime

OVER THE PAST couple of weeks you have been asked to assess how much of your money you consume and then complete an exercise over time to see how your assessment of your consumption bears out with reality.  
Most people are shocked at how much more of their earnings they consume than they thought. These exercises serve to present the real spending habits for those who are confused, frustrated or upset about the poor state of their finances. Typically, what is going on in their heads from day to day is not what is really happening with their money.
These critical exercises will give a better knowledge and understanding of how money can slip out of your life without you noticing until it’s too late; they will provide the basis of your organizing your money to suit your lifestyle for your entire lifetime.
Where before, it seemed like there was never enough money to do everything you wanted, you will now have a template for scheduling those events and activities within the reasonableness of your earning rate and capacity. You will be in a position to prepare a realistic plan for funding any project or undertaking you desire.
Your financial decision-making will be more explicit and this will build your confidence about how you utilize your money. You will be in a position to talk pragmatically, comfortably and reasonably about money issues with your loved ones.
Most of us were not taught how to handle money. Our parents, at most, would have given us a daily or weekly allowance during our school days. We may have even earned relatively small amounts for doing chores or working in the nearby grocery store. Our focus would have been mostly on spending those funds and getting the maximum amount of service or merchandise possible.
Then we land a real job after completing studies and have a much larger budget of funds to deal with; typically, we are still in that early spending mode: look how much more we can now buy! No one counselled us about how important the way we handle our money is to enjoying the best life ever.
Keeping track of all the money you earn over a period of time and knowing your spending are exercises that teach you most about bringing the way you manage your money in line with the goals and objectives you have for your life. The ultimate goal is to still have reasonable funds available to support yourself when eventually you can no longer work – during retirement.
We, adults, in turn can start by showing our children more about how to handle money, an important component of their future happiness.  Eventually, it all comes back to taking the time to know your money.  
We are not in the habit of taking at least an hour each week to review and plan our money behaviour. Anecdotal evidence has pointed to the trend that the more time we are willing to commit to considering our financial condition, seeking financial advice and making firm plans for improving our finances, the more likely will be our chances of succeeding financially.
So if you care to be in control of your money, commit to setting aside a specific half hour or hour each week or month to looking at your finances. This way, your money will most likely serve your purpose for your lifetime.    
• Louise Fairsave is a personal financial management advisor, providing practical advice on money and estate matters. Her advice is general in nature; readers should seek advice about their specific circumstances.