Loud Budgeting Doesn't Work for Me. Here's What I Do Instead

Loud budgeting has taken social media by storm. The concept goes like this: Rather than deal with your financial woes and objectives quietly, you go public with your challenges and strategies on platforms like TikTok to garner support from the masses, inspire others to follow your lead, and keep yourself accountable.

Let's say your primary financial goal is to buy a house, and you need to save another $12,000 in the next year to do that. You may decide to put out a video announcing that goal with subsequent videos tracking your progress.

It's a system that may work for some people, but not for me. I've always been a private person by nature, and for me, social media is more of an obligation than something I enjoy participating in. I have an account to keep up with my kids' activity groups and school happenings more so than anything else.

As such, I'm not about to blast my financial worries and goals for all of the world to see. And I don't have to, either, because I've come up with a system that works well for me.

Automating my savings helps me stay on track

If you're someone who struggles to save money, then you may need support to meet your goals. And if loud budgeting is what you need to do to get that support, go for it.

But I've found that automating my savings helps me stay on track. And because of that, I don't need other people's support for the most part.

One thing I do every month is have money leave my checking account and go into a retirement plan off the bat, before I can spend that portion of my earnings. So even if I'm tempted to buy concert tickets or whatnot, if the money is already gone, I can't. It's that simple.

I turn to my spouse for support

My financial objectives aren't goals I have to tackle completely alone. My husband and I partner with one another to meet joint goals. And when challenges arise, like costly home repairs, we work together to address them.

That's another reason I don't need loud budgeting. I have someone else in my corner who I can team up with to tackle financial matters.

Other options for you to consider

If you've taken up loud budgeting and feel that it's helping you, then by all means, continue. But if that's not in your comfort zone, there may be a better way to go about things. You could try to:

• Put your savings on autopilot and see if that helps you meet your goals.
• Play around with different budgeting apps if you're worried about your spending or expenses.
• Find a family member or friend to confide in when you're struggling with financial decisions.
• Find a financial advisor and let an expert help you establish and work toward your goals.
• Keep a log of your financial wins and successes you can refer to when you need motivation.

Loud budgeting isn't something you should feel compelled to do if it's not your thing. There are other steps you can take to get to a great place without sharing details of your financial life with the world.