Monday, April 25, 2011

Organizing Your Finances Thinking Outside Shoe Box

If you're like most people, your personal financial records are likely stored in less than a "good accounting practice" standards.For example, stashing old ATM receipts and hanging on to suggest what longer pay for the annual package two years ago (cash, of course) may be given your paycheck stubs, credit card statements - paid and unpaid alike - as well as a few tax forms, stray paper clip and a penny. Anything from an old shoebox with a set to you for personal financial tracking method, but you can do better than that.
Not to worry. Here's how:
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A) the plan a few hours' time is with your financial records. This is a dandy time to pack children off the mall, packed with excellent coffee and a little snack (preferably chocolate), how to behave when you are finished pot.
2) Supply yourself a lot of space, for example, a large dining room table. Make sure you have enough organizing supplies close at hand: sticky notes, folders, store them in a bath hanging folders, large envelopes, check file, ring binder / s, and three-hole punch, if you want to open stacking file, and organizer / sort. Trash can on your side is essential.
3) Get everything from everywhere - in shoe boxes, check files, file folders, etc.
4) While enjoying your coffee cup, the game plan. Decide what you are going to do when for example, inspections and reports go to a specific file for checks and statements, credit card statements can be unfolded and placed in a file folder, etc.
5) Start sorting on the table. Checks go here, ATM receipts out of paycheck stubs to go there, paid bills go on the other side, and so on, until all the "stuff" is divided into neatly organized piles. Use sticky notes to mark what-goes-where on the table to avoid confusion.
6) All of the "paid" items away first. Be ruthless - they throw away perfectly good two years of receipt of the Mint.
7) Place the broken items in envelopes, folders, select files and other data storage devices as a leisure interest, functional and easy to get from your local office supply store.
8) Have another cup of coffee and tackle the active, or open to the elements. Decide what you are willing to pay and when. If you have an open stacking file, you will find one with four compartments (one for each week of the month), very handy for this purpose.
9) Balance your checkbook. Now.
10) Enjoy your chocolate after everything away where it belongs, and, oh by the way, make sure that when you do it again next month calendar.
Of course, next month will be done much faster.
I highly recommend the use of technology to make it much easier and faster. Programs such as Quicken and Microsoft Money will help. Really any spreadsheet program will do.
Is each life area you spend the money category. Once a week or a month to pick up your receipts, checkbook records and written notes and record where he spent all his money .... every penny. One of my students were shocked to learn he was spending $ 75 a month on orange juice! Legend has it that the Rockefeller boys did this and they turned out well.

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