My 7-month experiment with budgeting without making it complicated

I started this because my weekend felt a little stuck, and debt seemed like a manageable place to experiment. The funny part is that the smallest change was the one I kept.

Context: I am not an expert, just someone trying to make Personal Finance feel less intimidating. I wrote down what worked, what felt awkward, and what I would do differently next time.

I know this is a tiny sample size, but after 3 attempts the pattern is pretty clear. When I keep the setup simple, I actually follow through.