A member shares a tool they have found helpful:

“DA does not endorse any particular number tracking method, so I struggled for a long time for a simple tool to do my numbers. I felt compelled to share my experience with a product that fits all our DA needs. Read on to discover what they have found is the best tool for doing your numbers.

“Regarding recommending any tools in DA, one member shared recently that ‘DA doesn’t endorse paper, but it is suggested we use it anyway’. Individuals often suggest software at DA roundup meetings. They divulge their “secret” freely in hopes it helps the many members who suffer from the paralysis of not doing their numbers, or getting caught up in piles of ‘late entry’ stacks of overwhelming receipts.

“What it is: Mint.com(*) is the simplest method of tracking your numbers. It is a one stop shop for all DA numbers. And it is free. And it alerts you when you are over the planned amount. You enter a dollar amount and a payee and assign it to one of the out of the box categories or a custom category you create. If you enter your savings and loan accounts you can also calculate your net worth.

“What is required: The only requirement for using Mint is that you have at least one online bank account and be willing to enter your username and password into Mint. (For more about security see the mint.com website.)

“Some of what you get:
1) a report of your spending Comparing plan vs. actual. You can drill into each category. Categories in red are over plan, green is at plan, yellow is under plan.
2) if you use it on a smartphone: GPS recognition of your payee as you enter it. For example, the system learns that when you create a transaction in a church basement you usually are donating to DA. You don’t have to enter a payee after the first time.
3) a chart of monthly totals, that you can drill into to see the underlying transactions. 4) asset tracking: a space to enter anything you own that is of value.

“What to put in: Separate books for personal life and business.

“Your Emotions: for many members, Mint is a less emotional yet highly efficient way to process their numbers.

“How to enter transactions:
1) if you are using your debit account you ask for receipts.
2) reconcile receipts and toss them when the transaction shows up from your bank (usually within two business days). Pending transactions from the bank are shown as Pending, and usually will get a better description once they are no longer pending.
3) if you are making a cash transaction, you can enter it cash right away. As soon as you can stand still for a minute, after a few single-handed key strokes you have created the transaction and assigned it to a spending category, and you are done with your entry!”

Has what I have been doing up till now been working for me? If not, am I willing to try something new?

Meditation for Today:

If I automate my numbers, I reduce the time it takes to do my numbers, and I am more likely to do them and keep them up to date.

Affirmation for Today:

Today I will learn something new and grow in the process. I am more powerful each day I adopt a new tool or technique in pursuit of the perfect number tracking technique for me. I will be in afraid. I will educate myself in what is out there. I will develop a plan for acquiring the tools I find appropriate for me.

Prayer for Today:

I offer all my numbers to my Higher Self. I humbly turn over any lingering fear of numbers I may have. Help me scale and automate my numbers, for a more accurate and honest reflection of where I put my energy, my money, my time, my love. In this process, help me discover the path to your enlightenment and truth. May I not be true to this cause of discovering the truth in my numbers.

Links and for further reading:

Mint.com is a free application written by Intuit (the makers of Quicken).  You can register using this link: http://Mint.com.  You can also download the app on the Apple app store, or using the Amazon app store here: Mint.com Personal Finance.

To my best knowledge there are no good books available yet for using Mint.com.  The books that are available are poorly rated.  So I’m thinking of writing an eBook about how to use Mint to track DA numbers, if I get enough votes.  Please email admin@plentoftimemoneyandlove.com if you are interested in this idea, or log into this site and post your comments.  Include comments about Mint.com in general.

If you do register on this website, you may be more comfortable (anonymous) posting comments if you pick a generic username.  Whenever you post a comment, your email address is never be displayed, just your username.  Email if you have any questions about registering, admin@plentyoftimemoneyandlove.com.

(*) Mint.com is not DA Conference Approved Literature. Mint is not a sponsor of this website. Plenty TML is not affiliated with Mint.com. Use mint is at your own risk.