Making lists AND the "B" word

This is one of my favorite things in the WORLD to do! I love making lists! Juuuuuust kidding. I Hate it with a passion. BUT I have learned that lists are really kinda magical.

If you make a list of groceries you need and don’t veer from it, then the magicial piece of paper you are holding has just saved you money. If you leave the house with a list of errands to run then you come home feeling accomplished instead of saying “DANGIT!! I forgot to..”.

I make a financial sheet every single month.(budget) Its silly really because I am almost excited to write it up. I write at the top of it “OCTOBER 1st” and on the other side I write “OCTOBER 15th”. Of course I change the month up when I need to BUT. I do that because those are the 2 days that I get paid. Some bills are due towards the first, others towards the 15th…you get the gist of it. Its not rocket science. BUT but doing this I actually take out that handy little LIST every pay day and go down the list. You write them in your check book of course but then you highlight them off of your list. ACCOMPLISHED. I may be broke as a joke by paying that last bill BUT I know they are all paid, I know they were on time, and I haven’t put any of them off.

I ALSO know just how much is left over…if any! I know how much I have left so I can split it in half and put half in savings, or my Christmas fund, or whatever. If you JUST use your checkbook to keep up with what you spend, you WILL SPEND TOO MUCH! Having it on paper, like a REAL sheet of paper will serve you well.

It may seem un-necessary to you to make budget, or a list, or a financial sheet…but it was when I did that that I began WATCHING where my money went. Now I am like some fanatic about NOT spending money. Now its all about the money that I can hoard.

Just try it… its a pen, a piece of paper, and remembering ALL of your bills. Look at the due dates. Which pay period can you pay that in? Its a sure fire way to make sure you are never late, everything gets paid and YOU have CONTROL of your finances…all by simply writing them down. Just sayin’…its worth a shot. You have nothing to lose but 15 minutes of your time…and you MAYBE just MAYBE will save yourself late fees, $$$, overdraft fees, $$$,….who knows. Its worth it.