“There’s no right or wrong budget,” says Leslie Linfield, executive director of the Institute for Financial Literacy. “The only rule is, don’t spend more than you make.” 

Don’t spend more than you make should be the budgetary golden rule. Saving money is important but when you have to cut out all of the little things that are important to you and you still haven’t made a dent in your finances.  Then maybe you need to look at the bigger picture.  Time’s article on How to Save Bigger also discusses that larger items take a good chunk out of your budget  - such as housing, food, and transportation. Saving on housing costs, such as utilities and appliances may save money, but cutting back on a small indulgence such as a cappuccino probably won’t make that big of a dent, suggests the author. 

It all depends on what you spend you money on. If you figure a cappuccino or latte into your budget or even dining out into your budget, then you will be able to manage. Other things such as housing are different. Though changing your living situation isn’t as easy and cutting back on your utilities or cable package going cold turkey doesn’t really work when you are budgeting.

A financial middle ground is what is needed – not spending too much, and not spending too little. Good financial sense doesn’t teach people to be miserly and to avoid buying themselves anything. Cutting down on larger items saves more money but at what expense. If you are saving money in one area to make your life more enjoyable in another without going into debt this works. The article also stresses that there is no right or wrong budget.