So I have finally gotten around to getting my year organized....on paper that is. This year I have certain goals for myself and my family and I plan to continue keeping things as organized as possible and running smoothly. That was one of my goals for last year, which I actually accomplished....*insert roaring applause here*...and have managed to continue into this year...*insert standing ovation here* :-)
My finances are a big goal for this year. I run the family checkbook, God help us! and instead of living by ATM receipts and checking my balance online on a daily basis, my goal is to actually keep the checkbook in order, get the bill schedule straight, and not do the whole....I will send this check out today even though I don't have enough to cover it in my account in the hopes that it will take a few days to get to its destination, a few days to clear, and will be semi-on-time before my next paycheck gets here. Yes, you know what I'm talking about...don't pretend you've never done that. But I do it waaaaay too much. I think that the bulk of my problem is that I don't have things organized into a system that actually works for me.
I am trying something new this year and really have high hopes for this system. I have color coordinated things, I have written everything down for the entire year as far as income dates and scheduled bill dates. I am really hoping that by making myself do a 15-minute financial check in every other day, if not every day, that I will have a more clear picture of where our dollars are going, where we can cut back, and strive to put more into savings and preparation for fun, vacation, and holidays this year! YAY!
I have this organizational folder for home finances from Day Runner Home.
I'm not sure you can still get this particular one, its quite a few years old, but the last time I was super organized financially (which seems like ages ago now), I used this organizer. They have a newer version of this here.
Inside, it has a clear zip pocket to hold stamps, address labels, envelopes, things like that and then the organizer itself has a pocket page for each month of the year with a few extra at the end for odds and ends. It gives you a place to list bills that are due and the dates they are due, but honestly I don't use that so much. My plan is (and this is the way I did it before) to take each bill as it arrives (and really as it arrives, not throw it on the counter, wait 5 days, clean off the counter and then rediscover the bill that has been sitting there for almost a week) and put it in the proper pocket in the organizer. Here is what the pockets look like on the inside. Mind you, mine is worn pretty good because it is old.
the monthly pockets
I then went here and printed out each month of 2011. You can use just a regular calendar if you like or whatever works for you, but I wanted the monthly calendar visible in each pocket for each month, so that is what I chose to do for me.
I then went through each month and wrote down in green pen the days that my husband and I get paid. After I got that done, I went through and wrote in red pen all of the bills that are set by date, ex. rent, loan payments, credit payments, that sort of thing. I also have some bills that don't have an exact due date, such as some doctor bills, some magazine subscription reorder bills, etc. I took my red pen and wrote them all down at the top and the bottom of the calendar so that I had them visible but didn't assign them a date yet to pay so that I could decide as the month goes on where I would be able to fit them in. So when I was done, this was what my month of January looked like....
I also added at the bottom goals for our savings so that I don't forget that my utmost goal is to save, save save!! As the bills get paid, I will write PAID in blue over the entry so that I know what has been taken care of and what is left.
So its pretty basic and probably quite elementary as bill paying systems go, but I thought I would share. The rest of it is basically discipline! I have to get those bills opened, written down, and paid as they should be and then save the difference at the end of every week. Of course, there are the other expenses, such as gas and groceries, that I have to factor in and I am still working on how to go about that. They are weekly expenses and will change depending on our weeks, but my next step is to set a budget for those certain things and stick to it! It all sounds super simple, right? :-) I just HAVE to stay on top of things, and for me that is the biggest challenge.
Brightest Blessings!
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