How to Make a Budget (and stick to it!)

Jane is a Peace Corps Volunteer currently serving in a pueblo in the department of Atlántico, Colombia.

This seems like a silly article to have to write. One of our main jobs as community economic development volunteers in Colombia is to teach business owners and students how to budget, but learning how to budget our own volunteer stipends can be a challenge in itself.

After a few months in a row of running out of money (a common citizen might sneer, but we’ve all been there), I decided it was time to start 2019 off right with a sparkly new personal budget. It took several months of trial-and-error and running out of money before I figured out the strategies that work best for Peace Corps budgeting.

This “how-to” guide is designed to help you tailor your budgeting strategy to the amenities available in your Peace Corps Colombia site. Some sites, for example, have easy access to an ATM, commercial supermarkets, and internet — while others have only a few or none of these things. Considering food and connectivity will be some of your largest and most basic expenses, these elements are critical to maintaining a budget that not only helps you save money, but gives you the flexibility to spend on things to keep you happy (or at least sane) during your service.