All of your budgeting can be done using a pen, a piece of paper, and a calculator. But you can also use software like Excel or apps like Mint or iAllowance to create a detailed budget with charts or graphs to go with it. These also have the added benefit of doing all the math for you. Make a list of the things you do each month that bring in money. Do you get an allowance? Do you babysit? Do you mow lawns in your neighborhood? Include anything that you do regularly. Then add up the amounts of money you receive for these things. For example, if each month you earn about $200 working at a cafe, $100 babysitting, and $50 walking dogs, then your monthly income is $350. If these amounts vary from month to month, add up your income from the last six months, and then divide by six to get an average. Do your parents make you buy your own clothes or pay for your own food when you go out with friends? If you drive, do you have to make a monthly car payment, or pay for gas? List everything you regularly spend money on, then add up about how much you're spending each month. For example, if your parents make you pay for new clothes, think of all the pants, tops, and shoes you bought last month. Estimate how much you spent on all of it. If you only buy new clothes every three months, divide that number by three to get a more accurate monthly total. If you have a debit or credit card, you probably receive a statement in the mail or through an online portal. Look at these statements from the past few months to see exactly where your money has been going. It's also a good idea to review your statement and look for any fraudulent charges so you can report them right away. If you earned $350 last month, and you spent about $300, then you have a balance of $50, which is great! You can spend or save that money however you see fit. But if the numbers are reversed you earned $300 and spent $350 then you have a negative balance. You're spending $50 more than you should be, and you'll need to make some cuts. To figure out where you can cut costs, look at your list of expenses again. Circle everything you don't have a choice about spending money on. For instance, a car payment is a necessary expense if you drive to school or work. But new clothes are not a necessary expense, since you could continue wearing your current wardrobe. Other necessary expenses might be gas or insurance for your car, school supplies, toiletries, or a cell phone. Other expenses that aren't necessary are eating out, going to movies, buying video games, or buying extra pairs of shoes. This budget breaks down into three parts: 50% necessities, 30% wants, and 20% savings. So if you're making $350 a month, then $175 can go toward the necessary expenses you circled, $105 can go toward the unnecessary expenses, and $70 would go into savings. If you find that your necessary expenses are more than 50% of what you're earning each month, you'll need to adjust the proportions of your budget. For example, if necessities are costing 70% of your income, adjust your wants down to 20% and your savings to 10%.

Summary: Use budgeting software or apps to help with calculations. Add up how much money you earn. Add up costs you're responsible for. Look at your monthly statements. Subtract what you spend from what you earn. List necessary expenses. Aim for a 50/30/20 budget.

So the game has started and you will be feeling a lot of adrenaline and may be a bit scared. Shake those nerves off and get ready to play. Your first task will be finding a place that you can regularly play paintball. Urban areas typically have indoor fields and obstacle courses that you can pay to play at, while rural areas will often have outdoor parks in which you can paintball with your friends. All paintball facilities will have different rates, fees, and features, so explore what's available in your area to learn more. If you don't have access to a paintball facility in your area, it's perfectly fine to paintball on private property, if you choose. Read this article to learn more about setting up your own paintball facility. All paintball fields are different, usually set up with a variety of hiding places, alleys, barrels, bins, and other things that you can use to your advantage. Likewise, there will usually be big open places where you won't want to find yourself without protection. Before the game starts, or just after you get on the field, make sure to walk around the facility a bit and get a sense of the lay of the land. Pay particularly close attention to good hiding areas you might want to bunker down in with your team. While you're playing, keep your head up as much as possible. Watch for signs of motion. Watch for the glinting light of your enemies helmets as they flash in the sun. Listen for signs of movement. Listen to them talking. Be aware. Bad paintballers start shooting the second they run onto the field and don't stop until they're totally out of ammunition. While some paintball guns are more accurate than others, even the best of them aren't super-accurate. Wait until you've got a smart shot, and don't just spray paint all over the field. Different players have different philosophies. You came to play and shoot after all, so let 'er rip if you feel the need. Lay down some suppressing fire to guard your buddies. Keep moving, to avoid getting caught in a compromising position, but also keep an eye out for good places your team might be able to guard and stay safe in. Look for big bunkers that you can hide in and lay down fire from. Look for places you'll be safe for a while, to avoid running around like a chicken with your head cut off. Don't run aimlessly. Find a place to go, then move. Practice firing a few shots before you run somewhere, then run quickly and get to where you're going fast. Paintball can get pretty intense. Make sure to take deep breaths and calm yourself down, or your panic can cause you to make mistakes. Listen closely, watch the other players to follow instructions and go with the flow of the game. And have fun. Don't worry too much about getting hit. The first time you get hit, it will sting for a split second and may even surprise you, but it does not hurt that bad. It is also a good incentive to make sure you keep cover. A good paintball team talks, verbally and non-verbally. Establish different roles in your team, helping to guard the other players, or find new territory, or go out on recon missions to shoot at other guys. Depending on how you're playing, you might have a more specific objective in mind, so listen up and keep talking so you play well as a team. Listen to your instructor. Just before your game, you may have an instructor explain the objective and useful ways to win. Listen carefully as they do know what they are talking about. Coordinate attacks and time them well. Split up into a few groups and attack your opponents from two angles at once to pin them down and go in for the kill. Pay attention to the more experienced players to come up with a good strategy, but chip in when you feel like you've got an idea of your own. If it's good, you'll be helping the team.
Summary: Shake off the nerves. Find a place to play locally. Be aware of your surroundings. Shoot smart. Move around, but know when to bunker down. Stay calm. Communicate with your teammates.