As I mentioned in my last post, one of my resolutions for this year is to save more money. Part of that resolution is to get my checkbook back in order. I can’t save money if I don’t know exactly how much I have, right? Sometime this summer, I got into the habit of stuffing my receipts in my purse or throwing them away. I quit writing things down in my register and then checking them off when I got my bank statements each month. It’s not my fault really. I blame it on the invention of internet banking and bill pay. I usually have a good estimate of the amount I have in my checking account in my head, but if not I can log in and see the exact amount. Who needs to write things down if you can just look it up?
So tonight, I spent some time going through my purse(s) and getting rid of receipts. I think I was stuffing them in there on the off chance that I would start to write everything down again. I’m not going to spend hours entering each of those purchases. Instead I’m starting all over. Part of me still thinks I could just continue to use my bank’s website to keep track of everything. You can’t argue with Christian Finnegan’s logic that I don’t have to look over every statement and bill because someone else out there is doing it for me. However, maybe by writing everything down, I’ll figure out where my money goes (*cough* eating out *cough*) and find a way to cut back my spending.
Now I’m off to find my paper shredder.
