Keeping a budget
	Record the purpose and amounts of your expenditure for one month. Acount for everything; it may be tedious but doing so will give you a database of information about your spending habits. Gather all your receipts and include your credit card bills and loan repayments in this exercise.

As the days go by, you will be able to add up all your tracked expenses and compare it to your income. Remember the key to budgeting is to spend less than you earn. Your analysis will show if you are spending more than you earn and what expenses you may have to cut back on.

Evaluate what you consider as necessities and get rid of the luxury items. For example, instead of going out for lunch, pack food from home, or buy coffee from a hawker centre instead of from the fancy coffee outlets. Sometimes, luxuries can be disguised as necessities, and it's up to you to weed them out to help ease the strain on your budget.

If you are spending less than you earn, you are in good shape. You can use the extra money to pay a greater chunk of your debt, or increase your savings.