How hard is it to stick to a budget? If you have ever prepared a budget only to give up on it 10 days later here are some key ideas that can help you stay motivated in keeping your budget.

1. Make it realistic

   Set goals that you know can be achieved. This is the most important thing you can do to ensure success, stick to your budget and prevent overspending. The first reason people fail to stick to a budget is simply that it is too hard. And once people know they can't stick to the budget they just give up. Sticking to a budget is so much easier if it is realistic.

   For example, if you love your daily coffee then keep it. Maybe you could make it at home instead of purchasing it on the way to work. Or maybe you would be happy to take your lunch each day and keep the purchased coffees. Ensure that the budget is realistic for you. This makes sticking to your budget much easier and your chance of success is much better.

2. Make it specific.

   The more specific your goal, the more likely you are to succeed. Having a detailed budget of where your money is spent and which areas can be cut back on makes a huge improvement to your chance of success. So instead of saying you are going to save $20 on food, say you will cut out 3 coffees per week (saving $10) and take lunch from home twice per week (saving $10).

3. Make it a habit.

   So much about sticking to a budget is about making it a habit. The idea behind a spending budget is to adjust your current spending habits to habits that allow you to have a higher surplus of money. So once your new spending behavior is habit - sticking to your budget is much easier.

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   The hardest part is the period of time between when you start your budget and when this budget becomes habit. So this is the period where you need to keep yourself motivated.

4. Make it visual.

   Seeing your savings add up in a visual form is powerful way to keep you motivated to stick to your budget. Make a chart and pin it on the wall where you will see it. Update it each week or each day to display how much money you have saved so far. It is incredibly motivating each time you increase the saved amount and watch it get closer and closer to your target.

   This works particularly well in the first few weeks of your budget. Seeing your progress in a visual form is a very powerful way to keep you motivated.

5. Make it adjustable.

   Most people fail to stick to their budget because they make it too rigid. Things that they enjoy are completely cut out without giving themselves time to adjust and without finding an alternative. Remember you can change your budget as you adjust to the change in your spending.

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   If you are used to overspending, a big jump to save $100 per week might be too hard. Instead, start by saving $10 per week building up to $100 per week. Making saving money easy to do makes it more likely that you will stick to your budget. Finding a good alternative helps make the adjustments that much easier. For example, instead of buying sushi, try making it. Instead of going to the movies, try renting a DVD.

6. Make it fun.

   The words budget and games don't often go together. But you can make a budget a game. If this budget is a solo effort, you can create your best score and then challenge yourself to beat it each week.

   If you have a friend or partner also trying to stick to a budget you can compete to see who meets the budget. With bonus points given if you can save even more money!

7. Make it worth it.