Mrs.Stapleton tells me that two families may live side by side in identical houses，in the very same suburb，have the same number of children in the family，and receive the same income—yet their budgeting needs will be radically different.Why？Because people are different.She says a budget has to be a personal，custom-made job.
The idea of a budget is not to wring all the joy out of life.The idea is to give us a sense of material security—which in many cases means emotional security and freedom from worry.“People who live on budgets，”Mrs.Stapleton told me，“are happier people.”
But how do you go about it？First，as I said，you must list all expenses.Then get advice.In many cities of twenty thousand and up，you will find family-welfare societies that will gladly give you free advice on financial problems and help you draw up a budget to fit your income.
Rule No.3：Learn how to spend wisely.
By this I mean：learn how to get the best value for your money.All large corporations have professional buyers and purchasing agents who do nothing but get the very best buys for their firms.As steward and manager of your personal estate，why shouldn’t you do likewise？
Rule No.4：Don’t increase your headaches with your income.
Mrs.Stapleton told me that the budgets she dreads most to be called into consultation on are family incomes of five thousand dollars a year.I asked her why.“Because，”she said，“five thousand a year seems to be a goal to most American families.They may go along sensibly and sanely for years-then，when their income rises to five thousand a year，they think they have ‘arrived’.They start branching out.Buy a house in the suburbs，‘that doesn’t cost any more than renting an apartment’.Buy a car，a lot of new furniture，and a lot of new clothes—and the first thing you know，they are running into the red.They are actually less happy than they were before—because they have bitten off too much with their increase in income.”
That is only natural.We all want to get more out of life.But in the long run，which is going to bring us more happiness—forcing ourselves to live within a tight budget，or having dunning letters in the mail and creditors pounding on the front door？
Rule No.5：Protect yourself against illness，fire，and emergencyexpenses.
Insurance is available，for relatively small sums，on all kinds of accidents，misfortunes，and conceivable emergencies.I am not suggesting that you cover yourself for everything from slipping in the bathtub to catching German measles—but I do suggest that you protect yourself against the major misfortunes that you know could cost you money and therefore do cost you worry.It’s cheap at the price.
For example，I know a woman who had to spend ten days in a hospital last year and，when she came out，was presented a bill—for exactly eight dollars！The answer？She had hospital insurance.
Rule No.6：Do not have your life-insurance proceeds paid to your widow in cash.
If you are carrying life insurance to provide for your family after you’re gone，do not，I beg of you，have your insurance paid in one lump sum.
What happens to “a new widow with new money”？I’ll let Mrs.Marion S.Eberly answer that question.She is head of the Women’s Division of the Institute of Life Insurance，60East 42nd Street，New York City.She speaks before women’s clubs all over America on the wisdom of using life-insurance proceeds to purchase a life income for the widow instead of giving her the proceeds in cash.She tells me one widow who received twenty thousand dollars in cash and lent it to her son to start in the autoaccessory business.The business failed，and she is destitute now.She tells of another widow who was persuaded by a slick real-estate salesman to put most of her life-insurance money in vacant lots that were “sure to double in value within a year”.
Three years later，she sold the lots for one-tenth of what she paid for them.She tells of another widow who had to apply to the Child Welfare Association for the support of her children—within twelve months after she had been left fifteenth thousand dollars in life insurance.A hundred thousand similar tragedies could be told.
“The average lifetime of twenty-five thousand dollars left in the hands of a woman is less than seven years.”That statement was made by Sylvia S.Porter，financial editor of the New York Post，in the Ladies’Home Journal.
Years ago，The Saturday Evening Post said in an editorial：“The ease with which the average widow without business training，and with no banker to advise her，can be wheedled into putting her husband’s life-insurance money into wildcat stocks by the first slick salesman who approaches her—is proverbial.Any lawyer or banker can cite a dozen cases in which the entire savings of a thrifty man’s lifetime，amassed by years of sacrifice and self-denial，were swept away simply because a widow or an orphan trusted one of the slick crooks who rob women for a livelihood.”
If you want to protect your widow and your children，why not take a tip from J.P.Morgan-one of the wisest financiers who ever lived.He left money in his will to sixteen principal legatees.Twelve were women.Did he leave these women cash？No.He left trust funds that ensured these women a monthly income for life.
Rule No.7：Teach your children a responsible attitude toward money.
I shall never forget an idea I once read in Your Life magazine.The author，Stella Weston Turtle，described how she was teaching her little girl a sense of responsibility about money.She got an extra cheque-book from the bank and gave it to her nine-year-olddaughter.When the daughter was given her weekly allowance，she “deposited”the money with her mother，who served as a bank for the child’s funds.Then，throughout the week，whenever she wanted a cent or two，she “drew a cheque”for that amount and kept track of her balance.The little girl not only found that fun，but began to learn real responsibility in handling her money.