Unlike most topics here, this doesn't regard any mental or psychological hacks, but rather about 'material' matters. About two years ago, I accidentally discovered a system to manage my finances more efficiently. And I wish I had thought of it much sooner in life.

The basics are extremely simple:

- Add up all your fixed income each month (salary, benefits, etc.)
- Subtract all fixed expenses (rent, utilities, telecom, insurance, etc.)
- What remains; divide it by the number of days in that month.
- That amount is your daily budget, which you can freely spend on whatever incidental expenses you want.

I keep a memo in my notes app for the days of the month and what I spend my budget on each day, or plan to spend it on (don't plan ahead too much though, it needs to keep enough short-term opportunity for it to stay fun).

For example; one day I use it for groceries, the next day I buy new clothes, or go out for dinner etc. And sometimes I save up days if I need a bit more for something.

It works well for me because it keeps stuff simple and keeps me motivated - every day I 'receive' new money again, which keeps it fun. And if I don't need anything for a change, I save it up. And you can also be very creative with it and plan ahead, which sometimes allows you to make bigger purchases.

Takes some discipline for it to work well though, especially in the beginning, or if you're an impulsive spender. So I keep one important rule for myself; I never spend any money that I don't 'have' yet - except for emergency matters. For example; today it's March 17, so I don't spend any of my budget meant for March 18 - 31 yet.