Former Slacker

In our attempts to tame our expenses, we put ourselves through a lot of hoops. We try only paying cash. We go through the hassles of writing down every expense, or saving every receipt. But why? Why do we continually do this to ourselves? We know it’s a hassle. We know it goes against our nature. That inner slacker is fighting to get out.

Why not just stop? Instead of writing down every expense, or saving every receipt, or always paying cash, why not stop trying so hard to keep up with all our expenses? What happens if we stop watching our expenses constantly? So, we overdraft a bit. So what? So we find ourselves forced to dip into emergency savings regularly. Who cares? Maybe we go into a bit of consumer debt. Is that really so bad?

Okay, that really is bad, but it doesn’t have to be like that. Why? Because someone else is already watching your expenses for you. Your bank is watching every time you buy a CD with your debit card. Visa is watching when you charge that new stereo system. They are already keeping up with every transaction you make, so you don’t have to. If you put everything on a card, you’ll already have records of your transactions.

So, just charge everything and hope it works out at the end of the month, huh? Well, not exactly. I charge or debit pretty much everything I can. However, every few days, I sit down at my computer and tally up how much I owe American Express, and how much is left in my checking account. I always have a very good idea about exactly how much money is available to me. I don’t keep my receipts, and I definitely don’t try to pay cash. My cards track my expenses for me. All I have to do is tally them up and divide my expenses into the right categories for my budget. It takes no more time to tally this way than if I were tracking via receipts, and I don’t have to carry a wallet full of worthless paper.

This isn’t for everyone. There are some people who simply cannot trust themselves with a card, and if that’s you, I understand. Pay cash.

But if you can be responsible with a card, there’s no reason to put yourself through unnecessary hassle. You can do this with a debit card or a credit card. It really doesn’t matter. You need to spend a little bit of time every so often making sure your expenses match your budget (they do line up, right?), but that’s all. So save yourself the trouble of keeping a fistful of receipts, and the danger of carrying large amounts of cash. Let Mr. Mastercard and Mr. Chase watch your expenses for you.

(Okay, so the title isn’t completely accurate, but “Track Your Money without Obsessing Over Every Single Purchase, Every Single Day” just didn’t have the same ring.)