Every day we make many small spending decisions, and if not for our unique Spend Cube, we could easily blow all of our money on things that don’t matter to us. The Cube allows you to prioritize your spending by categorizing it in the way that makes the most sense to you and your personal needs and interests. We’ll look at what each part of the means, how to use it to stay focused on your goals, and how to tweak your cube as necessary based on changing situations and circumstances in your life.
How to use the Spend Cube
The Spend Cube is a powerful tool for those who want to make better financial decisions, but it’s not just for businesses. You can use it yourself or share it with family and friends. The Cube allows you to categorize expenses and see where your money goes each month. The categories are Expenses, Investing, Debt Repayment, and Savings, although you may need more or fewer categories based on your spending habits. Get started by filling in one cell of each category and fill in more as they come up during your month-to-month tracking. When all of your spending information is in one place, you’ll have a clear picture of how much money is going where—and that’s when real-life changes happen!
Track what you’re spending every month to create a clear picture of how much money is going where—and that’s when real-life changes happen! Using a Spend Cube allows you to see what you spend your money on and gives you an idea of where you can cut back. For example, if you spent $500 on groceries and restaurants last month, what did that look like? Did it include some pricey dinners out with friends or last-minute trips to fast food joints because there was no food in your fridge? Were your grocery purchases mostly healthy foods or were they mostly junk food items? It may be hard to tell, but tracking your spending will help reveal patterns so you can find ways to improve.
How much should I be spending?
With a Spend Cube in place, you can determine how much money you have to spend at any given time. A good rule of thumb is to take your monthly income and divide it by 3—this is what you have to spend on fixed expenses every month (housing, utilities, etc.). The other 2/3 is yours to allocate as needed. Once your fixed expenses are covered, allocate 1/2 of your remaining budget toward short-term saving goals and long-term saving goals like retirement accounts or emergency funds.
Put together a Cube with your financial info to help you determine how much money you have to spend at any given time. It will also show you how your different categories of spending compare so that you can adjust accordingly.
How do I save my money?
If you want to save your money, all it takes is one tool. The Spend Cube is a savings pyramid where you push your money from broad categories (e.g., groceries) into more specific spending buckets, like gourmet coffee or lunch at work. This will help you prioritize your spending and narrow down what’s important in your life versus what isn’t. When I was 20 years old, I saw an interview with James Altucher about his daily financial rituals. Learn more about how to set up your Cube and how to use it today!
James Altucher, in his interview, explained that his spend cube helped him visualize how he was spending his money. The Cube is simply a savings pyramid where you categorize your spending into broader and broader categories. To get started on yours, here are three main categories that apply to most people: Fixed Expenses (e.g., housing), Variable Expenses (e.g., groceries), and Savings Goals (e.g., paying off debt). You can spend a few minutes every month categorizing your expenses into those buckets or you can use an app to help you with that process quickly and easily!
Where should I start?
Spending Cube is a budgeting and spending tracking tool that enables you to get a clear picture of your overall financial health. It allows you to prioritize expenses while enabling you to easily track your progress toward savings goals. Spend Cube comes with built-in rules that help you set limits on how much can be spent on certain types of items or categories so that you know where your money is going at all times, which can prevent overspending. Cube is also available for iPhones and Androids in case you need to review your accounts away from home or office. You can even use it for planning, by logging what money is available before any major expense occurs.
If you feel like your finances are out of control and you’re not sure where to start, Spend Cube could be a good option for you. It offers a simple way to get an overview of your spending, which can make it easier to focus on how much money is going into and out of your account. You can use any time to review a month’s spending or Suppliers Performance set up recurring monthly reminders about upcoming bills. The app comes with built-in expense tracking features that let you take pictures of receipts or manually enter in expenses to keep track of how much money is going where.