Set limits on discretionary spending in particular. Pick a set amount that you cannot go over each month and stick to it.  It’s fine to budget for discretionary spending -- you can’t live a life without any fun. However, setting a budget and sticking to it will help keep that spending in check. For example, if you routinely go to the movies, set a budget of $40 a month for movie tickets. Once you’ve spent that $40, you can’t go to any more movies until the next month. Even your essentials section should be looked at closely. Regular expenditures should usually only take up so much of your income. For example, food purchases should only take up 5 to 15 percent of your budget. If you are spending more than that, you should consider cutting back on that spending. Obviously, the percentage you spend will vary; for example, for groceries it will vary depending on things like the price of groceries, your family size, and any special nutritional needs. The point is simply to make sure you aren’t spending money you don’t need to. For example, do you spend a lot of money on prepared foods that are more expensive, when you could cook more at home? By incorporating expenses for possible contingencies into your budget, unexpected medical, car, or house maintenance costs will have less impact on your overall budget and financial health.  Estimate what you might have to spend on these in a year and divide by 12 for your monthly budget. Your buffer will mean that if you go slightly over your weekly spending limit, it will not affect your hip pocket and will not end up going on the dreaded credit card. If you get to the end of the year and have not needed to use your buffer for these types of expenses, then great! You will have extra money that you can funnel into your savings or retirement investment plans. These are not contingency costs but instead are part of your plan. Do you need to replace any household items this year? Do you need a new pair of boots this year? Do you want to buy a car? Plan for this in advance and you won't need to draw on your long term savings.  Another important point to note is that you should aim to only buy these items after you have saved for them. Ask yourself, do you really need it right now? Once you actually send the money that was budgeted as a contingency or planned expenditure, record the actual expense and delete the provisional expense you had created, otherwise they will end up being doubled. Combine your buffers and goals with your actual expenditures and income. This exercise will not only assist you in making an effective budget and helping you to save, making your life a little less hectic and more relaxed, it will also motivate you to trim your expenses so you can achieve your goals and make the purchases you aspire to without having to go into debt to do it. Try to stick to just spending on the fixed expenses. Cut out the discretionary items wherever possible.
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One-sentence summary -- Target specific areas of your spending to decrease. Estimate and incorporate contingency expenses into your budget. Calculate how much your short term, medium term, and long term goals are going to cost. Draw up a new budget.


If your friend also has feelings for you, congrats! You’ve successfully escaped the friend zone. The two of you can now begin moving your relationship forward. Taking things to the next level with a friend can be a wonderfully rewarding experience because it’s a given that your personalities are compatible. You’re already comfortable around your friend and know that they’ll accept you for who you are, and this can make maintaining the relationship much easier.  Since you already know your partner’s character, habits and insecurities, you can skip the sometimes awkward first stages of getting to know each other and cut right to showering each other with love and affection. It’s okay to pace yourselves. Dating a good friend might feel a little strange at first, so give yourself time to adjust as you grow closer. As great as dating one of your best friends can be, it also changes your dynamic. You need to be ready to respect the new boundaries and expectations that arise as your feelings develop. Show your partner that you care for them as more than a friend, and that you take your new relationship roles seriously. Make an effort to put them first rather than treating them like any other friend.  You may feel quite comfortable with a close friend becoming your new boyfriend or girlfriend, but that doesn’t mean that you shouldn’t still treat them with the same consideration that you would in any other relationship. The behavior that you displayed toward each other as friends might need to be altered in order for your relationship to be successful. For example, your partner might expect you to text them when you wake up or before you go to bed. If you’ve historically been bad at texting, it may make you look insensitive once you’ve started dating. As a couple, you can keep doing the same kinds of things you used to do together as friends. Go see bands you both like, hang out with mutual friends or agree on a favorite spot to meet for dinner. Your history together as friends will have prepared you for a romance full of fun and excitement and allow you to connect on a much deeper level. You’ll be familiar with your partner’s likes and dislikes right off the bat. Best of all, the two of you may never run out of things to talk about. One of the best things about transitioning from friendship to dating is that there’s a guarantee that the two of you have lots of things in common. This takes the difficulty out of planning dates and thinking of ways to spend time together. Communicate with one another openly and be able to positively resolve issues when they pop up. It can be tempting to vent to your other friends when you get upset, but this can complicate things and put them in an awkward position, as they’re so close to both of you. There needs to be a degree of privacy in your new relationship so you can keep your interactions with friends separate from your life as a couple.  Sharing too many details about your relationship with your friends could change the way they look at the other person, which is tricky if they’re also friends. Fortunately, even arguing will be easier if you’ve started off as friends, as you’ll already know what sets the other person off and how to talk to them when they’re upset. If you do need advice about handling a relationship conflict, look to a mentor.
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One-sentence summary --
Enjoy the comfort of dating a friend. Be ready to live up to new expectations. Enjoy your common interests together. Don’t involve your mutual friends in your problems.