Offer your thoughts or opinion on the input financial query or topic using your financial background.

I've tracked my spending and have created a budget, now what do I do with it?
Use the budget to drive down spending so you can save (for retirement, for college, for expenses) and so you can pay off your mortgage early.  Some, (Dave Ramsey, for example) advocate for an "Envelope system"...  If your budget says 100 a month for restaurants, then at the beginning of the month, you put 100 into that envelope.  Once you've spent that much on restaurants that month, you're done for the month.  On the other hand, if you don't spend the 100, then you have two choices:  either you can adjust the budget downward and put the money somewhere else (like your Mortgage) or you can build up cash in that account so you can afford a really expensive restaurant in a few months.