How to Get Your Spouse on Board with Budgeting
A new year means new goals and for a lot of people, saving money is one of them {and a good goal to have too!}. Whenever I talk about building budgets or give budgeting advice, I always stress the importance of getting your spouse on board. If you don’t, YOU WILL FAIL.
You might make temporary progress, but in order to maintain a budget for your household or reach any long-term savings goals, the household has to buy into it! Plain and simple.
Here are some easy tips to help get your spouse to buy into your budget:
Have a sit-down family meeting
Go over your plan of action. You could even incorporate this into a date night. Sit down at a nice meal and talk money. I don’t recommend blindsiding your spouse; let them know what the date or meeting is about before it happens or it might feel like an intervention!
When you do talk to them, have a concrete plan in place so they know where your head’s at and what you’re hoping for.
Ask for their advice and input.
Work together to create a feasible budget. Explain the issues or the goals and ask for their ideas and advice. They’re much more likely to participate if they had a hand in creating your budget. And be flexible.
If you are set on one way but your spouse has other ideas, compromise. As long as you’re working towards the same financial goals, trying different methods won’t hurt. Plus, it shows your spouse you really do respect their opinion and want them to be a part of this journey.
Show the benefits.
A lot of time you have to sell your plan. Normally budgets require sacrifice, so your spouse needs to hear the eventual benefits or there will probably be no buy-in.
Have spreadsheets, show your current expenses vs. your desired expenses, and show the savings progress if the budget is implemented. If you’re saving for a house/car/vacation, show them how long it will take to hit your goal. Seeing it might help them believe it.
Get outside help.
If you are struggling to convince your spouse, turn to Dave! Seriously! My husband and I love listening to Dave Ramsey podcasts when we are in the car. Dave knows what he’s doing and he’s an expert, so if you can get your spouse to hear from him the importance of budgeting, it might help!
Get everyone on board!
Kids, too! Your spouse might be more willing if it’s a family affair. You can sit down and meet with them, too, so everyone knows the plan and how they can help.
Be patient.
Rome wasn’t built in a day, and so saving for the down payment won’t happen overnight. Plus, change is HARD sometimes. Be respectful of that. This might be a case of baby steps for awhile. Show gratitude for any willingness to make changes, large or small.
Is your spouse on board with your budget? If so, how did you get their buy-in? How did you implement a family budget if your spouse wasn’t willing? Please share any tips you have below for others. We’d love to hear them.
Keep calm and save on!
~Mavis
Rosemary says
I am so blessed to have a hubby that is on the same page as me with budgeting. There was time (before we were married many years ago) that my hubby would not use a coupon. When we were dating, he took me out on a date to a restaurant that I just happened to have a coupon for. He was shocked and embarrassed that I even suggested he use a coupon. Fast forward to being married– he now asks for coupons before he buys something or goes to a restaurant. (After showing him how much money can be saved, he stopped being embarrassed.) He saw the benefit and jumped on board!
Linda says
Our budgeting started when we realized we were seriously in debt. I’m glad that we both decided something different needed to happen at the same time. Except he still wanted to spend money we didn’t have playing golf. When I threw his clubs down the basement steps, he finally got that message. Sometimes you have to get their attention before they hear you.
Annette says
I highly recommend Dave Ramsey class or video or book. Life changing. Even if you can’t follow his whole program, do part of it. For instance, start using cash at restaurants. It’s a known fact that you spend more if using a credit card rather than cash. I go to the bank on the first day of each month, get cash and divide it among our envelopes for different categories such as dining, gifts, haircuts, clothing, etc.
Lesley Parent says
It’s nice to hear someone still using the envelope method. I can still remember the sound of my mom opening her dresser drawer to pull money out of whatever envelope was needed that day!
Sarah says
We were poor as church mice when we got married, no credit cards, virtually nothing in the bank. I think it made it easy to work together in every way. 38 years later we have no debt, no mortgage, and are almost ready to retire frugally.
Being supportive of each other in our frugal life has made for less stress, and we have so much to look forward to.