Learn 6 ways to improve your money management so you get more done in less time. Free online tools can help you stick to a budget, pay bills on time, and automate investing so nothing falls through the cracks.
Money Girl
203 MG Six Ways to Revolutionize Your Money Management
H5N1 bird flu is spreading in some animals. If you work with poultry, dairy cows, wild animals, or with raw, unpasteurized milk, wear protective gear and take precautions. cdc.gov/birdflu, a message from CDC. Imagine earning a degree that prepares you with real skills for the real world. Capella University's programs teach skills relevant to your career so you can apply what you learn right away. Learn how Capella can make a difference in your life at Capella.edu. Hi friends and thanks for joining me on the Money Girl Podcast. I'm Laura Adams. It's no secret that I'm a huge fan of online banking. Online checking and savings accounts offer some of the highest interest rates. Getting e-bills is better for the environment, is more convenient, and gives you more protection from identity theft. The internet also provides another major plus when it comes to making the most of your money. Online money management. My new book Money Girl Smart Moves to Grow Rich Gives examples of different ways to set up your money management system online. In chapter 4, I even take you step by step through my personal system for managing money. The paperback and e-book are now available everywhere fine books are sold, like Barnes & Noble and Amazon.com. Using online financial tools for the first time may seem daunting. Redesigning your personal finances can be a little scary. It takes a leap of faith to go outside of your comfort zone and adopt an entirely new way of handling your money. But the benefit is that you might be able to get a lot more done in much less time if you make some simple changes to your financial routines. I'll give you six ways or methods to revolutionize your personal finances and tell you why making a leap to online money management is worth it. Online Method #1 Online Banking You're probably familiar with online banking by now, but if not, it's the first step to going digital. Online banking simply means that you sign up for an online account with your bank, so you have access to your information 24/7. Don't get online banking confused with an online bank, which is a bank that exists in the virtual world only. Most brick-and-mortar banks offer some level of free online banking. You can log in and see your account balances, transaction history and statements, and you can move money between accounts. Banking at midnight in your pajamas sure beats having to drive or walk to a branch location during limited business hours or having to call an annoying tele-banking system. Online banking is so convenient because you can check up on your accounts anywhere there's an internet connection. Some banks, including Bank of America and Wells Fargo, also offer free mobile apps so you can bank on your smartphone or tablet device. Get this, with iPhone apps from USAA and Chase, you can deposit a paper check by taking a picture of the front and back of the check using the iPhone's built-in camera. That rocks. Online method number two, online bill pay. After you get comfortable using online banking, the next step to revolutionize your money management is to start paying all your bills electronically and to stop sending out paper checks. Additionally, make all your everyday purchases with a credit card, debit card or cash. It's dangerous to carry paper checks in your wallet or purse because a thief can do a lot of damage in a short period of time by making multiple copies of just one stolen check. Institutions that offer online banking generally also offer free bill pay. If your bank doesn't have it, I'd consider that a deal breaker and switch institutions just to get this fantastic free service. It's so awesome because you'll pay bills in a fraction of the time it took you before. You can pay any individual or company in the country, whether it's your next-door neighbor or a mortgage lender with the click of a button. The bill pay service either transfers your funds electronically or mails out a paper check for you for free. That means no more checks to write, envelopes to address or stamps to lick. It's like you hired an administrative assistant who saves you time and money and also works for free. Initially, you have to add each company or person that you want to pay into your bill pay center. An easy way to tackle this chore is to enter each of your bills as they arrive instead of trying to do it all at once. Then you simply type in the amount to pay and the date you want your payment to arrive. You can set up recurring payments for bills that are the same each month, like your rent or a car loan. Then create email alerts to remind you when a bill is due. So nothing in your financial life falls through the cracks again. H5N1 bird flu is spreading in poultry and cows. It's rare in people, but bird flu can make you sick. If you work with poultry, dairy cows, wild animals or withdraw unpasteurized milk, wear protective gear like coveralls, NIOSH-approved respirators and eye protection, and wash your hands often. If you start feeling sick, seek medical care and tell them you work with animals. Learn how to reduce your risk at cdc.gov/birdflu, a message from CDC. Today we'll be exploring the sounds of comfort. Listen closely. That's the sound of you getting a complimentary hand massage at the nail salon. And that's the sound of your favorite Pedram fan still spinning after five years. Now listen to the sound of a cold, creamy Starbucks mocha frappuccino drink. With deliciously satisfying flavors, Starbucks frappuccino drinks are comfort in a bottle. Earning your degree online doesn't mean you have to go about it alone. At Capelli University, we're here to support you when you're ready. From enrollment counselors who get to know you and your goals to academic coaches who can help you form a plan to stay on track, we care about your success and are dedicated to helping you pursue your goals. Going back to school is a big step. But having support at every step of your academic journey can make a big difference. Imagine your future differently at Capella.edu. Online method number three, e-documents. Once you get in a groove with online bill pay, you'll see how convenient e-bills and e-statements are. They can go directly to your bill pay center, to your email inbox, or to both. From now on, when you receive a paper bill or statement, go to the company's website and request to go paper lists. You'll feel like a new person with less paper to process, shred or file, unless you want to print out a copy. Another huge benefit to sending and receiving fewer financial documents through snail mail is that it helps you stay safe from identity theft. Be sure to listen to my previous podcast, 8 Tips for Identity Theft Protection, to learn more about how to stay safe. Online method number four, online brokerages. When it comes to investing, the secret to success is to play a Jedi mind trick on yourself by digitally automating the process. With automation, money gets transferred from your checking account into an investment account before you have the opportunity to spend it. If you don't have a 401(k) or 403(b) plan at work, open up an IRA at an online brokerage like Share Builder or E-Trade and set it up to invest a set amount on the same day every month. To reach your long-term financial goals like retirement, choose diversified investments and feed them on a consistent basis. But don't procrastinate because the sooner you get started, the less money you'll need to put aside to accumulate your nest egg. Online method number five, financial web services. After you create online accounts with all the financial institutions in your life, you can take full advantage of free web-based personal finance services like mint.com, money strands, and myspendingplan.com. These financial services give you a bird's-eye view of your finances by aggregating all your data from multiple online accounts into one place. They use secure technology to import transactions from places like bank checking and savings accounts, brokerage accounts, and credit cards. Once all your digital transactions are funneled into one place, you can see how you spend money, monitor your investments, categorize your transactions, and create a budget. These web-based financial services are not banks, but they do allow you to get a handle on your cash flow. Some even allow you to manually enter cash transactions, so you have a complete picture of your spending. Online method number six, financial software. If you need a financial system that's more advanced than a free service like mint.com, there are powerful desktop software programs for managing your money. Quick in and QuickBooks, do what the web services do and much more. They display your bank, credit card, and investment accounts in individual registers, allow you to import transactions from each of your financial accounts, automatically categorize your transactions, make it simple to create and monitor a budget, and offer a wide range of financial reports. The price for Quick in starts at $59.99, but I can tell you from experience, there's no better way to stay on top of your bills, get organized, and be ready for tax time. If you want to try out a free personal finance software, download newcash from newcash.org. And by the way, you'll find links to everything I've mentioned on the blog at moneygirl.quickanddirtytips.com. One of the first reactions many people have to the idea of moving their money online is a fear that it won't be safe. Going digital is actually one of the best ways to protect yourself from identity theft because you stop receiving and sending confidential documents through the mail that could fall into the wrong hands. A few quick and dirty tips for staying safe are to password protect your computer or mobile device, create strong passwords for your online financial accounts, and to access financial websites from a secure internet connection only. If you follow these guidelines, you'll maintain control over your private information and reap all the great rewards of digital money management. When you downloaded my free Special Edition ebook yet, it's called Smart Moves to Deal with your Debt and is loaded with great ways to attack your debt no matter how much you owe. It also includes a free chapter from my new book. This Special Edition ebook is free on amazon.com, Barnes & Noble, and in the Apple iBook store. Great thing is that you don't even need to buy a Kindle or a Nook device to read ebooks now. You download a free reading app from either the Amazon Kindle store or the Barnes & Noble Nook store and read ebooks right on your PC, Mac, Smartphone, or mobile device. I'm glad you're listening. Cha-ching. That's all for now. Courtesy of Money Girl, your guide to our richer life. Each 5N1 bird flu is spreading in poultry and cows. It's rare in people, but bird flu can make you sick. If you work with poultry, dairy cows, wild animals, or withdraw unpasteurized milk, wear protected gear like coveralls, NIOSH approved respirators, and eye protection, and wash your hands often. If you start feeling sick, seek medical care and tell them you work with animals. Learn how to reduce your risk at cdc.gov/birdflu, a message from CDC. Earning your degree online doesn't mean you have to go about it alone. At Capelli University, we're here to support you when you're ready. From enrollment counselors who get to know you and your goals, to academic coaches who can help you form a plan to stay on track, we care about your success, and are dedicated to helping you pursue your goals. Going back to school is a big step, but having support at every step of your academic journey can make a big difference. Imagine your future differently at cappella.edu. [BLANK_AUDIO]