For things to run smoothly, we must make money and spend money. The key is doing both in a way that keeps the cycle going.

A budget is what gives this cycle a direction, guiding our decision on how much to spend on what, based on expected income. It is the way we manage money before the money even comes in.

Some people have budgets that are linear and straightforward, but that does not apply to everyone. My income is inconsistent. For project-based work, a good budget is what keeps me paid in fat months and stable in lean months.

How I plan my budget

A budget runs better on a fixed monthly income but as I mentioned earlier, I don't have a fixed income. And more to this, my income is not like a salary paid after all deductions such that what they receive is all theirs. In my case, from what I receive as income, I must spend first on materials, equipment, labour etc then pay myself from some of what is left.

Yes, some of what is left because the balance is not mine yet.

Let me give you a sample of what might happen within a space of 6 months.

Months	Expected Income
June	2,000,000
July	500,000
August	0
September	1,500,000
October	0
November	0

On the table above, you can see the inconsistency, June, July and September are productive months while August, October and November were not productive. And I did not make four million in six months.

Months	Income	Expenditure	Balance
June	2,000,000	1,300,000	700,000
July	500,000	150,000	350,000
August	0	0	0
September	1,500,000	800,000	700,000
October	0	0	0
November	0	0	0

The tools I use

Now for my Monthly Fixed Needs, I will love to show you the tools I use for my computation.

This is a screenshot of the WPS spreadsheet on my Galaxy A15 and based on the computation of my monthly needs, my basic salary is 200,000

TOTAL BASE SALARY 200,000

The income column from June to September shows my inconsistent income, but the salary column as you can see is consistent. Each month I paid myself 200,000. Then the Surplus was retained in the company account.

By September, the company's retaining buffer account reached 950,000. October and November had zero income, but the company continued paying my salary from savings.

By the end of November, the balance is 550,000, enough to sustain my salary until January.

Unnecessary Expenses

I would love to point out that I have two sets of expenses, the project expenses like materials, labour, subcontractors, trans portation to the site, tools and fuel are all necessary. I must spend it to make money.

It's only in my personal expenses that I can list the following as unnecessary expenses.

1. Extra phone recharge and data
2. Travelling to Dubai
3. Changing my phone every month
4. Buying expensive watches and cars

Saving for rainy days

Saving is the cornerstone in this budget because my income is not fixed. I save in my company's buffer account. If it accumulates to a point where I can survive 12 months. 2,400,000 being my target balance, the excess is invested in real estate where it will mature with time. This is my savings, but not in liquid cash.

I also have savings from my salary which as of January should contain 20,000 × 6 = 120,000
Growing by 120,000 every six months if not used. This is savings in liquid cash and could be accessed in an emergency.

Budget that improves financial situation

Yes. The sample budget I have presented in this contest demonstrates that I have created budgets that can improve my financial situation.
It accounts for income uncertainty, builds a cushion for emergencies, and still leaves me much room for growth.

Showing practically how I did it.

Load WPS Office on your phone

And open a New spreadsheet and you will have this screen

Cells C2 and D2 are merged together and it carries the company name @manuelhooks registered as a Public Liability Company.

From B4, C4, D4, E4, F4 and G4 respectively, type in the following headings

S/n, Month, Income, My Salary, To Company, Balance

We will consider a six-month sample space. So you can go to the serial number and enter 1 to 6. And the months will span from June to November

Under the income column, this is what we have left after executing the project
June = 700,000
July = 350,000
September = 700,000
All other months are zero

In the salary column. We had agreed based on regular expenses that salary should be 200,000 monthly

Now subtract the salary in cell E5 from the income in cell D5 using the spreadsheet formula
=D5-E5

So same in cell F5, F6 and F8

To get our balance, we take the amount in last month's balance and add to the current income then subtract 200,000 as salary.

Months with no income will add nothing to the existing balance but will still remove the 200,000 as salary.

Advice for great budget planning

You should be actively involved in the design of your budget, because you are the one who understands how your business runs.

A custom budget system that is tailored specifically to meet your needs will likely serve you better compared to getting a general system, make sure you adjust it to fit your circumstances.

Test-run different variables with alternating scenarios to see how the system holds up.

A good budget will do more than help you manage your current funds, it should help you build wealth while it remains ready for eventualities.

I am inviting @josepha, @diamond and @bnrenny to participate in this contest

Media Credit

Composer	@manuelhooks
Graphics from	Galaxy-A15
Entry type	SLC32-W2
Organizer	@ahsansharif
Contest link	Click here
Community	Steem For Pakistan
Date	Tuesday.. 2nd June
	(@) 2026