[GS] What has the recent update made you do differently?

[Victoria]

money is always tight?

Science and culture are usually good, in first or second place in both.

Both of the above are signs you are not doing a key thing that make higher levels easier.
Early in the game building lots of districts cost gold maintenance and you do not have a lot of gold.
Place your districts to lock in the price but do not finish them. The only things you should be doing for the first 50-70 turns is expanding (settlers, the odd builder for better production, granaries perhaps.... and also army, playing peacefully or not army will not only help you attack and defend but get you eurekas and inspirations which are important.
You need to concentrate on culture a bit early to get to Feudalism. 5 charge builders are so much better than 3 charge, especially as builders get more expensive and Pyramids helps a lot.
If you are doing all of this then are you slotting the 50% settler card?
You should not be first or second in science/culture at T70 but maybe at T100 as it is during this phase you start to get your districts down in earnest.

With regards to barbarians, getting a unit like a scout, slinger or warrior first, send it the opposite way out of your city that the warrior and both units should circle your city looking for close camps and blocking barb scouts.
Remember, build on a hill and you are a barb beacon as barb scouts can see you from 3 tiles away.