I am Noah! Do you have a big goal? Maybe you want a new skateboard, a special video game, or you want to save up for a summer camp trip. Goals are exciting, but they don’t just happen by accident. Today, we are learning the most important tool for reaching your dreams: a budget! A budget is your roadmap. It tells your money where to go, instead of you wondering where it went!I am Chloe. Some people think a budget is about saying “no” to things, but it’s actually the opposite! A budget is about saying “yes” to the things that matter most to you. It helps you track your earnings—that’s the money coming in—and your expenses—that’s the money going out. It is the ultimate blueprint for your financial life. Whether you have five dollars or five hundred, a budget is how you manage it like a pro.I am Liam. I’m going to show you that a budget isn’t just a list of numbers; it’s a living plan. Sometimes your spending is bigger than your earnings, and that is where the real strategy begins! We’ll learn how to adjust and prioritize so your “future you” gets what they need. It’s all about balance and making smart choices today for a better tomorrow.I am Maya. We’ll also talk about the importance of record keeping. You can’t have a budget if you don’t know what you’re spending! We’ll look at how logging every dollar helps you stay in control. Let’s start our blueprint by setting a goal and looking at our time frame. Are you planning for a week, a month, or the whole summer?Step one of a budget is identifying the purpose. Let’s say our goal is a new bike that costs one hundred and fifty dollars. Now, we brainstorm our earnings. This is all the money you expect to receive. Maybe you get a five-dollar allowance every week. Maybe it’s your birthday and you get twenty dollars from your grandma. Or maybe you earn ten dollars by helping a neighbor with their garden. Write all these in your “Earnings” column. These are your positive numbers—they are the fuel for your budget engine!Step two is brainstorming your expenses. These are the things you plan to spend money on while you are saving for the bike. Be honest! If you know you’ll want a four-dollar snack on Fridays or a six-dollar movie ticket, write them down. Now, here is the math part. Add up all your earnings and all your expenses. If your earnings are bigger than your expenses, the money left over goes into your “Savings” for that bike! But what if your expenses are thirty dollars and your earnings are only twenty-five? That’s a “negative five,” and it means your plan won’t work yet. This is where you have to be a budget detective.When your budget doesn’t balance, you have two choices: earn more or spend less. This is called adjusting. You could add an extra chore to your “Earnings” column to get that five dollars. Or, you could look at your expenses and prioritize. Do you really need that snack every Friday? If you cross out the snack, your expenses go down, and suddenly your budget works! Prioritizing means choosing your long-term goal over a short-term want. It’s a pro strategy that adults use every single day to pay for houses and cars. It might feel tough to say no to a snack today, but imagine how great it will feel to ride that new bike!A budget is a living tool, which means you should check it often. I always recommend sharing your budget with someone you trust, like a parent or a teacher, for feedback. They might help you remember an expense you forgot—like the tax we talked about in the last video! If you forgot to budget for tax, your “nine-dollar” snack might actually be ten dollars, and that could mess up your whole plan. Record keeping is the final piece of the puzzle. Every time you spend money, write it down in a notebook or an app. This record tells you if your budget is actually working in the real world. If you planned to spend five dollars on snacks but actually spent ten, you need to adjust your budget for next week!The biggest pro of having a budget is peace of mind. You never have to worry about running out of money because you already planned where every dollar is going. You are in control! It’s also important to remember that budgets are personal. Your friend might have a different budget because they have different goals or different ways to earn money. That’s okay! A budget is about your financial well-being. Take a look at the blank budget template in your lesson today. Try to design one for a small goal you have. Even if it’s just for one week, seeing the numbers on paper will give you a whole new perspective on your money.And remember, don’t be discouraged if your first budget doesn’t work perfectly. Budgeting is a skill that takes practice. The more you do it, the better you get at estimating your expenses and finding ways to earn. Every time you adjust your plan, you are learning more about yourself and your habits. You’re building a blueprint for a successful life! We’re so proud of the work you’re doing. Keep planning, keep recording, and we’ll see you in the next video, where we’ll talk about the truth behind credit and debt!
