Difference between a plan and a budget.

BYE-BYE BUDGET

The Spending Plan is not a budget. The word budget derives from the Old French bougette, the diminutive form of bouge— leather bag—and means a small purse. You can’t carry much in a small purse. A sense of insufficiency and restriction is inherent in the word, a sense of not having enough. A budget confines you to a dark little room while everyone else is outside playing in the sunlight. It’s no wonder that most people are depressed by budgets and don’t stay with them very long.

A plan, on the other hand, is a detailed scheme, a method worked out beforehand to accomplish a goal. A general doesn’t budget a victory, he plans a victory. A lover doesn’t budget a romantic night, he plans a romantic night. The distinction is important. There’s a world of psychological difference between a plan and a budget.

Ask yourself: “How do I plan to spend my money this weekend?”

Now ask: “How am I going to budget my money this weekend?”

It’s not the same.

Budgets constrain and limit you. Plans give you choices and options. Budgets are fixed~ Plans are flexible. Budgets lead to penny-pinching and deprivation. Plans encourage action and increase.

The Spending Plan is not an absolute. It is merely a set of guidelines to point you in the direction you wish to go. It’s important, also, to understand that it’s a thing of the moment. As you continue to work this program, tour money will steadily increase and you’ll revise your plan accordingly. In time, your expanding options will include what are usually called luxury problems.” Do I want a blazer, some shirts, and slacks or do I prefer a formal suit? Should I buy a video camera or new speakers? Do I wish to spend the money flying to Spain or renting a cabin in the Adirondacks? Everyone who works this program encounters such questions sooner or later.