Its that time again folks.. wow do Tuesdays roll around fast don’t they!??
Today’s topic will be documentation! When I was in college, I was an RA for a few years and whenever we had an ‘incident’ (which could be as lame as a lightbulb bursting or a window broken or as exciting as a drug bust) we were required to write ‘an incident report’. We were supposed to document everything we smelled, saw, heard or did. In detail. When I wrote my first one and it was only about 12 sentences I was asked to redo it and put more thought into what had occured. Sigh.
Then in Grad School, we always had to account for every test and moment we had with a client/patient so that we could keep track of everything and everyone in case someone else saw your patient after you graduated and beyond. Record keeping is of UTmost important in medical fields..
How does this relate to CENTS!
Well its important when your setting up a budget whether it be SOLO or as a couple to document document document.!!! It may seem trivial to have to write down every stamp you purchased or coffee, but it is important. So today you’ll get THREE steps.. for two cents:)
First off: To set up your budget take an older NB, ideally small so you can have it with you all day/week without it pulling you down (or even use a line of your planner to document!). You need to find out what your spending during the week, and eventually the month. So take a month and just write it all down. Write down the day, and then the amounts. The more detail you keep track of the better to pull it all out later.
For example: 1/2/10- Dunkin Donuts-$4.36 in the column ‘ wants’.
1/2/10- Wegmans- $22.56 in the column “grocery”..
1/2/10-Sunoco- $44.50 in the column “gas’.
By clearly defining your areas while you go it helps you to determine the nooks that ‘need tweaking’ and also where your likely to go askew. (I know you read donuts up there and I know you know what that means, dangerzone!).
This is especially important when your sitting down discussing with your partner how much needs to be alloted,, as what someone may consider a ‘want’ (donuts),,, another may consider a “need” (breakfast). Its opening the conversations so you know where you stand and where your partner stands.
Secondly: After amassing what you spent in the course of the month compare that to what you made income-wise in the course of the month. You may (LIKE ME!) be shocked and horrified by what you actually spend and how your ‘wants’ are often superseding your long term goals and ‘needs’. This will help you highlight your ‘danger zones’ and also help you become more honest about the reality of your decisions. When you realize that your once a week Dunkin Donuts runs amass to about 20 dollars a month and therefore about 240 a year it makes you feel pretty terrible spending that kind of money on donuts. Even if they are delicious. For me it was a super slap in the face because here I am trying to get my ‘trifecta’ in line and exercise/health along with financial are all being sacrificed for a donut.. well that’s just ridiculous!
Step Three: Okay so you’ve been documenting for a month,, you’ve figured out how to NOT spend more than you make in the course of one month (tough battle there!), and now your off and running with your partner. You’re all ‘joint checking and stuff’. You may think your off the hook now…but now is the most important. Now you need to own up to your decisions and keep your checkbook current so that each person knows what is in and what is out before they go buying more groceries or paying bills or,,, like I said at the start… getting a measly stamp. This is where the documenting becomes a form of communicating what you have and what you need. Just like a grocery list of finances!
