Manage Debt: Create a Payment Calendar

No matter how well-meaning you may be, at some point you've probably been blind-sided by a big bill at just the wrong time. Maybe you forgot it was due, or maybe something came up unexpectedly, or maybe you're just overwhelmed with all the other bills you have to pay. Maybe you feel like it'll never end. 

Don't despair. Debt, whether big or small, isn't the dead end it sometimes seems to be. Forming a payment calendar is a simple but remarkably effective method to put your bills into perspective so you can see, comprehensively, where you're at and where you can manage money more effectively. Don't ever be surprised by a bill again!

Step One: Create Your Calendar

Form a Word or Excel document to track your upcoming payments. The field names should include the following:

Date 
Bill to be paid
Amount of bill 
Total for period
Total from other source (if applicable)

Step Two: Track Your Paydays

Under "date," list your payday dates for the next month. Leave enough space between them to schedule in all your bills. 

Step Three: Regular Bills

Now compile a list of all your regular bills that you pay at the same time every month and are the same amount every month. This may include car payments, house payments, car insurance, etc. Now look at your payday schedule. What date is each bill due? What payday falls far enough ahead of the due date to allow for mail time and processing? Schedule in your regular bills first, referring to your paydays as the date to pay these bills. 

Step Four: Non-regular Bills


The next step is to fill in your calendar as far into the future as you can, based on bills you expect and for which you know the amount. You can estimate if you're not sure how much these upcoming bills will be, but to be safe, estimate on the high end. These may be bills you've been putting off, bills you haven't been able to fit in, or bills that haven't arrived yet and will be due for payment within 30 days. Work around your regular bills to schedule these lesser bills at optimal times to keep your overall total for the payment period to a minimum.