Welcome back to Finance Friday.

It's another special edition of Money Girl where I answer your burning money questions.

Today's topic comes from Teresa Jay, who says,

Thanks so much for all your great advice.

I listen every week, and although some things don't apply to me,

I inevitably learn something new.

I'm a self-employed notary public and have owned my business since 2016.

The last three months of 2024 were slow and I used up all my savings to make ends meet,

which scares me.

I want to create a budget, but never know what I'll

earn until the month ends. Plus, my utilities and business expenses vary and are going up.

I'm overspending and not saving, but don't know where to start. How do I budget when my income is

irregular? Thank you so much for your question, Teresa.

There are many people like you with jobs or businesses that earn an unpredictable income.

You might be self-employed like Teresa with an unknown number of monthly clients or a salesperson

paid solely on commission like maybe a real estate agent or a car salesperson.

That certainly makes budgeting more challenging, but in this podcast, I'm going to give you

strategies to better manage your cash flow and feel more in control of your money.

Thanks for downloading episode 899 of the Money Girl podcast. If you're new here,

I'm Laura Adams. I'm an award-winning author, a speaker, an on-camera spokesperson, and founder of

the money stack. That's my free substack newsletter. You can learn more and connect with me at

laura d. adams.com.

...