Also, look at your expenses really closely. Its obviously much more applicable for some people that others, but that can be the easiest way to start with making the budget not so tight. As an example, if you are paying for some things for convenience that you could do yourself and you look at it like a part time job that you can work at home. The classic example is cooking more versus takeout or fast food (also coffee or picking up something on the way to work for breakfast, etc.). Another example is looking at your vehicles, is there any opportunity to replace one with something less expensive (the vehicle cost, but also things like insurance, maintenance and fuel cost, and registration).
