So, right before I depart for a weekend get-away, I sat down, combed through my credit card activities, and manually entered in all my expenditures into my trusty PearBudget spreadsheet.
Yeah, I admit, I got a little tired of entering in every. single. expense., but guess what? Actually typing in $66 (dinner with CB) or $132 (tickets to Disneyland) is different than just seeing the figures on my credit card statement on a screen. The former prompts the reaction: “oh, wow, I’ve been a little liberal with the spending there, should rein it in…”, and the latter inspires more of a, “hmmm, that’s nice. Great modern technology helping me keep track of my spending” attitude.
So I guess just the act of typing in some not-so-big numbers that ADDS UP to pretty big numbers is different than passively viewing the figures.
I don’t doubt that there won’t be times I stray from PearBudget, but I’ll probably find my way back. My wallet will thank me for it.
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Is PearBudget any different from other kinds of budgeting software? And do you have to pay $3/month to use it? Would love to know more
I think I’m going to switch to some sort of budgeting software…and away from Excel. I want something a little easier and less time consuming.
I wish I had your patience but if I had to do it manually it would never get done. The best budgeting tools are the ones you actually use. For me, mint.com is a lifesaver.
I use my PDA to track all my expenses, but the process – it really makes you more conscious, doesn’t it? I’ve also heard good things about Mint.com, but haven’t tried it for myself yet.