The following is an excerpt from an online Q&A at wallethub.com. Arwiphawee Srithongrung, associate professor in the Hugo Wall School of Public Affairs at Wichita State University, provides budgeting advice in the feature.
Q: What’s the best budget tip you’ve ever received?
A: I teach public budgeting and finance and both are the same. For personal budgeting, I would say having a realistic plan and follow the plan for the entire budget period, i.e., monthly or weekly budget.
First and foremost, the good plan is the plan that balances between revenue and expenditure. If we earn more, we can have more needs and wants; if we earn less, we must limit our needs and wants to correspond with what we make.