Source: http://www.thriftyfun.com/tf000522.tip.html

Where Has My Money Gone?

By Doris Dobkins

I just finished doing my business books in Quick Books this week (actually my sister-in-law did it for me [hi Jackie]) and I learned a big lesson. The lesson I learned is that I should be doing business books on a monthly basis instead of once a year. The Balance Sheets and Profit and Loss Statements provided some valuable information about where my money was going. Some of the information was alarming and there are definitely some trends in my spending habits that I need to keep an eye on.

So how does this translate to my personal finances and what does it have to do with the question of "Where has my money gone?"

When you set up a budget and track it monthly, you will know exactly where your money is going, where your strengths are as well as your weaknesses. Maintaining a budget is a revealing process providing valuable information to help you control your finances. If you don't have a budget or don't know where your money is going, you may want to first do an exercise that can help you plot your course.

Make a list of all your expenses over the past twelve months. Get out your old checkbooks, bank statements, credit card statements and other logs of all your past purchases. Divide them into categories and by month. If they are things you pay once or twice a year, put them in a separate column entitled "miscellaneous annual. Be sure and account for every dollar you can. Total all your expenses for each category and you'll see exactly where your hard earned income for the past year has gone.

This is a great exercise to assist you in your financial goals for the future. This is a great way to start out a new year. If you don't already know where your money went in 2000, do this exercise and take the first step towards a great 2001.

Happy New Year to everyone.

About The Author:
Doris S. Dobkins, is a money saving expert and the author of the book "Financial Freedom from A-Z". She is also the publisher of a weekly online ezine $mart Money New$ full of financial strategies and money saving tips. To subscribe, or visit her web site today at: Creative Finances

Source: http://www.thriftyfun.com/tf000522.tip.html

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