Here’s an interesting nugget of info: 70% of Americans say their financial planning needs improvement. Yet, 60% of Americans don’t budget.

That means people see they have a problem—but aren’t working the solution. Why? Often, they’re busy, afraid to look into their money situation, or at a loss for where to begin.

Budget methods abound, and it’s intimidating to pick one. But instead of playing “Pin the Tail on the Budget” after an online search (which would damage your screen anyway), let us help.

The 50/20/30 Rule is one popular method out there. But before you pin all your financial hopes and dreams on it, let’s look into what it means and how it works—and see if it’s the best way to budget.

What if someone asked if you wanted all your income or just part of it? You want all of it, of course! You worked hard for that money.

But if you’re not budgeting to zero, you’re essentially missing out on money that’s yours. The good news is that it doesn’t have to be this way. A zero-based budget is the easiest way to make sure you have a handle on all your cash and are putting it toward what’s important to you.

Here’s everything you need to know about zero-based budgeting:

So how much does a wedding cost? The short answer is $38,700.(1) The long answer is thirty-eight thousand seven hundred dollars.

But what does that include? What should you be prepping to pay for the most magical day of your entire life?

The list of possible wedding costs has as much length to it as the train on Princess Diana’s wedding dress. Let’s unveil a few of them.

Ah, snap. Things were going so nicely. You felt like you had your life together. And then . . . it happens. It meaning your water heater busts, your car manages to get two flat tires, and you crack a tooth . . . why?

Thankfully, you had an emergency fund. Unthankfully, now you don’t. It feels good to pay cash to fix the problem, but then your emergency fund is drained—and now what?

Now you go all Rocky Balboa on it and run up a bunch of stairs chanting, “It ain’t about how hard you hit. It’s about how hard you can get hit and keep moving forward.” Meaning, you rebuild that emergency fund.

There’s no shame in that game. This is what the fund is for—emergencies. It did its job—and well—so get back on those stairs and show life you’re going to keep moving forward. You will rebuild your emergency fund.

Ever catch yourself counting down the days until your next paycheck?

Maybe you decided to take out a store credit card for the 20%-off shopping day and the bill just came in. Or maybe your “check engine” light is on and you’re dreading the repair. Either way, that paycheck can’t come fast enough—and might not be enough.

For 78% of Americans, living paycheck to paycheck is a way of life, an endless cycle of money going out almost as soon as it comes in.(1)  Kind of like a revolving door you can’t exit, it keeps you from getting where you want to go. But it doesn’t have to be that way anymore. Here’s how you can escape for good.