You might not think that personal finances are terribly exciting. This attitude often changes when you discover that your financial situation has gone sour without your knowing about it. You can avoid this kind of problem in the future by using a few simple techniques to manage your money better. The suggestions presented here are excellent ones for you to try out.

If you’re currently living without a monthly budget, it’s time to give the alternative a try. Begin by totaling up your income and listing all of the expenses you know you’ll incur every month. In the case of bills that can vary, such as utilities, use three or four past bills to make a reasonable estimate of their average amount. Hopefully, the sum of your expenses doesn’t quite match your income, and you have a bit of money left over every month. Here are some way to use it:

Reducing debt is always a great way to put your surplus income to work for you. It might be difficult to accelerate the payment schedule of large, secured debts like mortgages or car loans, but whatever unsecured debt you’re carrying (e.g. credit card balances) is easy to put extra money towards. Do not doubt that spending money this way improves your financial situation; not only do you save yourself money on interest payments, you also free up credit for use in an emergency.

A savings account is another great place to store a little bit of money every month. If your budget allows for it, you can set up automatic transfers from your checking account into savings. This is a terrific way to build up a supply of liquid cash that will can also be used in emergencies. The interest that money in a savings account will earn you represents a small but notable way to increase your assets over time.

The final use that you can make of extra income is retirement planning. If you have retirement options made available to you through your employer, it’s high time you took a look at them. Most employees have ways to invest their money in long-term investments with a variety of different risk profiles; you can likely find one to suit your personal taste. Even if you don’t have access to retirement plans through your job, you can always set up one of your own with a minimum of effort. It’s never too early to start saving for your retirement!

One personal finance chore that many people are neglecting these days is record-keeping. Although paperless billing and electronic statements offer you tremendous convenience, they also seem to be easier to ignore than old-fashioned financial documents that arrive in the mail. Resist the temptation to let your financial information run away with you; sit down once a month and review the activity of each of your accounts.

Paying attention to your personal finances is important, even if it’s not exciting. What it lacks in glamor it more than makes up for in stability and security. Take action today and put yourself in a better financial situation! The more informed you keep yourself about your finances, the better decisions you can make in the future.