An effective management of personal finances is very important. Life is never always the same – it has its share of ups and downs. And whiles the ups are good it brings you more money, the hard days can be daunting. The worst part about being on a low tide is the money crisis. You suddenly fall short of money and can not buy the basic necessities, like food, clothes, childcare, education and your health. Some people turn to instant payday loans but be aware that these are for short term financial solution and are not intended for long term financial needs.

This is where the role of personal finances comes in and with the help of effective money management you can plan for the hard times. Here are a few simple steps that will allow you to accomplish this:

• Make a list of your finances: The basic thing to start with is, in simple words, to get organized. Most of the times, you simply don’t know where your money is getting spent and how how the money gets spent so fast. You get a paycheck at the start of the month and before you know it’s gone by the end of the month with no savings. So sit down on a calm weekend and make a detailed list of your expenses: put down everything you can remember from car expenses to money spent on daily groceries to the expensive dine-outs every weekend. Try to think of the unusual spending, the expenses that suddenly spring up out of nowhere. The list should contain all your expenses.

» Read more: Take Control of Your Own Personal Finances With These Easy Steps