Balancing Student Loans and Other Expenses

I'm going to be a senior in college and am extremely stressed with anything and everything to do with money! I have student loans that will need to be paid off eventually, and in the meantime I have to pay for books, transportation, cell phone bills, food ... I could go on for another half hour. How do I balance all of this?

First of all, deep breaths! I was like you as a senior, juggling a double course load with work-study to try to pay for everything. Outside of finding a way to bring more money in (I did nails in my dorm room for $5!), it's all about keeping track and knowing what's a fixed expense (tuition) and what's a flexible expense (food). To help, sign up to a free personal finance community site like Wesabe.com or Geezeo.com which will help you track your expenses, budget and get tips from users like you. Cut flexible expenses, if and when you can and make sure to not hide your head under the sand. What you do with your money and especially credit and bills now is going to follow for many years. You can do it!

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