There’s a myth that budgeting is for people with tight finances. That once you’re earning well, budgeting is optional – even restrictive. But in my experience, the more you earn, the more important it becomes. Compare a startup to a Fortune 500 company and it is the same.

The budget is a forecast, not a leash

Our budget starts with an annual plan – a spreadsheet that forecasts household spending by category. It includes the boring stuff (mortgage, bills, insurance) and the big, variable stuff (household capex, travel, birthdays, kids’ gear). We track spending each month through an app, tag and categorise it, then reconcile that to the budget. It’s not about precision. It’s about pattern recognition.

Monthly check-ins keep us honest

My wife and I review our numbers monthly. Not because we enjoy it, but because we’d rather do that than have surprises later. If we’re over, we check if it’s a one-off or a new pattern. If it’s under, we decide if we want to redirect the surplus or keep the buffer. The point is not control. The point is awareness.

We flex categories all the time

No category is fixed forever. Life changes, and so does our spending. But we flex within boundaries. If home maintenance overruns, we’ll dial down holidays or push back other costs. If the overall trend is bad, we step back and reassess. But we don’t stress about any single month. In fact every year we question the categories and sub-categories and change to fit what was working well or providing clarity and what wasn’t. It’s not ideal for longer term comparisons year over year but it works and that’s what’s needed.

It matters more now than ever

A five percent overspend in our current budget is thousands of pounds a year, gross up for tax and your talking about a lot of salary, something I never want to take for granted. It’s a big deal. When income rises, so do expectations, and without a budget we’d fall into lifestyle drift. Budgeting keeps us aligned with our values and plans. It’s not about squeezing joy out of life. It’s about making sure we’re choosing the right joys.

If we stopped budgeting, nothing would explode. But we’d lose clarity

The truth is, we could stop budgeting and we’d probably be fine. But we’d be flying blind. Budgeting is not about restriction. It’s a system of feedback. Without that loop, we’d spend more reactively and drift from our goals. Data lets us make better decisions. Data allows you to see if your spending is aligned with your values. Data provides the reassurance that you are on track. Comforting when you survive another round of redundancies.

Do you have a budget, or are you just watching your bank balance?