Last week, I initiated #thebudgetchallenge which is very far from the challenges you guys are familiar with. My purpose for creating this finance-related challenge is to aid our fellow Steemians with their financial growth.

After sharing my own Budget Plan a week ago, I challenged our fellow Steemians to share their budget plans as well. To see more of the challenge’s details, click here.

I honestly think this undertaking will not excite our fellow Steemians, but it turns out to be the exact opposite. Ten promising Steemians just shared how they were able to manage their finances, and I am beyond grateful to read those creative and effortful budget plans.

I didn’t know having this decision would be so tough because I believe all of the participants should be greatly rewarded for their impressive efforts. In fact, I consider all of them as winners!

Note: I added some SBDs to the original reward pool of 25 SBDs. Special thanks to @dreamiely for sharing 5SBDs for this cause.

Here are the rewards for the winners:

- Superb Entry: 7 SBD

- Excellent Entries: 5 SBD

- Marvelous Entries: 3 SBD

Here are the Winners, you ready?

_{38 SBD Pool Rewards}

Disclaimer: All of the entries are equally impressive, but I have chosen three powerful entries (Superb and Marvelous Entries) which greatly stood out.

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Superb Entry

The Budget Challenge: Principles and Systems for People Who Can't Stick to a Fixed Plan by @thegaillery

Her flexibility in taking over her finances is truly commendable! She’s a concrete example that financial success isn't only attained through following fixed plans.

@thegaillery surely knows how to separate her needs from her wants! This is one of the highlights of her budgeting technique:

I have this system that I use for keeping track of my wants. It goes like this when you want to buy something take note of it. Beside it, place the date when you've decided that you want it. After a month, go over that list again and ask yourself if you still want it. If you still do, buy it. More often than not, your interest in buying things will have been lessened in a month's time.

This method prevents me from buying expensive things on an impulse and so far, having everything that I've wanted in a list and seeing how I've managed to get them gives me a feeling of satisfaction.

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Excellent Entries

• The Budget Challenge: Budget Plan From An Engineer Who Used Not to Save by @caratzky

No, this challenge isn’t only for people who have established their budget plans already. In fact, this fellow @caratzky just made a budget plan after assessing his current financial state. Assessing the expenses that ate up most of your budget before creating a strategic budget plan is the best way to start. We just have to look at some alternatives on how to lessen our expenditures in order to save more. I hope our fellow Steemians will learn from this too.

Author’s budget plan highlights:

Although there are a lot of unexpected, urgent and unavoidable expenses, I'll just have to stick to my plan. Even if I don't achieve the target for this month, Php 1000 or Php 3000 lower than desired is already commendable. I have to get to that. And I strongly believe I can.
Just as the long journey begins with the first step, the success of my entire year's budget challenge will be reflected on how I'd perform in my first month. Good luck to me!

• Dealing with Current Liabilities by @fojrance

I am particularly amazed by his Professional Budget Allocation. It reminds us to invest in our personal career development. In his budget plan, you’ll able to learn how to overcome financial struggles due to liabilities.

Author’s budget plan highlights:

I wasn’t really good in budgeting before. My principle was, as much as the liabilities are already paid then I wouldn’t mind any longer how to spend the remaining. I had no proper allocations to specific needs or investments.

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Marvelous Entries

• The Budget Challenge: My Cashflow Management by @namranna

She is religiously sticking with her ideal budget plan and is keeping on track with her actual expenses. I was completely amazed by this fellow’s budgeting techniques. Even @curie found her cash flow management exceptional!

One thing that really surprised me is her allocation for Self-development. I actually consider this part as self-rewards (buying books and attending seminars), when in fact, it should be considered as a great part of my pie! I really admire @namranna for being able to come up with such allocation. I will definitely incorporate this into my budget plan!

Author’s budget plan highlights:

I also have target responsibilities which I look forward achieving in the future. It includes the big events in the family and other responsibilities of myself as an elder sister and a daughter. I list them down so that I could prepare for it and also prevent debts when the time comes. I often remind my parents and brothers that if ever they need something that is excluded from my monthly budget for them, they have to inform me a week or two ahead so that I could include it in my budget and prepare for it.

• My B.U.D.G.E.T. Principle (A Witty Way towards Financial Freedom) by @nikkabomb

She is taking this challenge to a deeper level! Reading her budget principles greatly contributed to my finance vocabulary. With those effortful words and images, it feels like I am reading a finance magazine. This is a must-read article!

Author’s budget plan highlights:

Don't settle for a fixed plan. You should continually adjust your mindset, your sources of funds, and most especially your monitoring. Always strive to be the better version of your yesterday.

• How am I surviving the real world by @mickzzz

This man surprised me on how he was able to relate Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs to his personal budget plan which is actually based on his actual expenses assessment!

Author’s budget plan highlights:

So that's my budget challenge right there. I know it's not perfect, but it has actually helped me throughout my working years. I now have a home, a car and a family that I can support with, so I can pretty much say this worked for me.

• Living on a Tight budget by @dannyopana

This guy is my superior in our department. I actually had a sneak peak of his budget plan a year ago, which inspired me to make my own.

Author’s budget plan highlights:

Budgeting is a critically important part of planning our finances. It is a kind of tool we used for decision making. It is very difficult to establish a perfect Budget plan, For me planning our finances require 50% discipline, 30% commitment, 20% Goal. It is not necessary that you have a big/small income before making a budget plan the purpose of budgeting is to determine where you should allocate your money.
I started using this principle last year and it really works for me.

• Blueprint of Priorities by @ ja9garnett

This fellow is a proud Kuripot, in a good way. I know how well she manages her finances while sticking to her budget plan religiously!

Author’s budget plan highlights:

Since I start my career of being an engineer, I somehow learned how to manage my expenses personally. During my payday, the first thing I do is to part my own expenses from the money that I will give to my family.

• My Own Version of Budgetting by @ jonnahmatias1016

This Engineer-Entrepreneur workmate is on her way to establishing a food franchise!

Author’s budget plan highlights:

A good, simple budget should do the work of managing your finances for you. Your Budget is the plan for your money. Setting a budget strategy is based on choices you make and priorities that you identify. Once you already have the lists of budget expenses then you can proceed of identifying or set goals with it. A goal is the result of something a person intends to acquire, achieve, do reach or accomplish. Setting goals help an individual identify and focus on items that are most important and then make a decision that helps to obtain those items. If you never budgeted before, now it is the time to get started. You can track your spending by weekly, daily or monthly.

• My Steemit Financial Freedom Goal! by @ emdesan

Our fellow Steemians must learn from this fellow especially in using our Steemit earnings into more valuable use (Emergency Fund and Investments).

Author’s budget plan highlights:

Why did I choose presenting my Steemit earnings budget plan? Because it is fun to see that my extra income will not only go to splurges and food! It will definitely be allocated to more sensible stuff.

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Thank you soooo much for participating in this challenge! I hope our fellow Steemians have learned a lot from your budget plans as much as I did.

CONGRATULATIONS for taking a step towards Financial Freedom!

Note: It may take a while before the next #thebudgetchallenge. I’ve got to save more SBDs for the next pool of rewards :D