Control of one's money requires first knowing, in detail, where it is going. There is a reason every successful business, large or small, tracks to the penny, their incoming and outgoing dollars, and actually look at the categories frequently, that are consuming their greenbacks. Today, with a personal computer, tracking personal income, even a teen's part-time income and where it goes, is very easy and cheap, or free.
Quicken and Money Plus are readily available and are the market share leaders for money management software. However, alternatives exist which range from free (GNUCash), to just under $50, which can give a single wage earner all they need to track and stay on top of their money, budget, and savings plan, making it a very easy and even addictive process after initial setup.
If you aren't reviewing where your money was spent on a monthly basis, if you aren't budgeting the cash in your pocket or wallet on a weekly basis, if you aren't reviewing at the end of each year how much you took in, and where it all went, you are not in control of your money; nor are you in control of your future. Getting control of your money and realizing your wish lists and goals in life begins with software that reports back to you everything you want, and need to know about how your money is slipping away from you.
One person reported kicking the StarBuck's addiction after doing their first annual report in Quicken and discovering they had spent $782 dollars on coffee over the last 12 months. When the person realized they had gone without needed dental work for lack of the $550 deductible and co-pays it would require, they realized they weren't spending their money wisely. Their money tracking software got them their dental work in just months by showing them that buying a thermos, making coffee and a sandwich at home to take to work, would pay for the dental work.
Do not say, "I should do that."
Do it. Do it now. You will be the wiser and better off for it.
Quotes: Personal money management:
- "Most people are willing to pay more to be amused than to be educated." -Anonymous
- "Money is better than poverty, if only for financial reasons. " -Woody Allen
- "You can't have everything. Where would you put it?" -Steven Wright
- "Money, it turned out, was exactly like sex. You thought of nothing else if you didn't have it and thought of other things if you did." -James Baldwin
- "The more horse sense a fellow has, the less he bets on them." -Kin Hubbard
- "To be upset over what yo don't have is to waste what you do have." -Unknown
- "Success is getting what you want. Happiness is liking what you get." -H. Jackson Brown
- "Bargain stores are where I go broke saving money." -D. R. Remer
Mr. Remer,
Enjoyed the article. We have used Quickbooks for this purpose for a couple years now, and Microsoft's Money program before that. It really is amazing how much money we kept for important things when we began tracking where it was going and made decisions not to fritter away the few dollars at a time several times per week, that we were.
Saving is not hard. Not spending is hard. But it gets easier with practice, and the reward is that when we do spend money, it is always on something that will last and provide enjoyment or convenience for years, instead of hours.
Test