Two weeks ago, I told you all about the time management methods and tools that I use to keep an organized schedule. For me, using GCal as a schedule of my work, school, and social life is critical for ensuring a relatively stress-free situation. Second on my list of most important areas to keep organized is my finances, so I am going to use this post to lay out the organizational tools and methods that I use to keep my finances in order.

Photo by stitchdata.com

Firstly, and probably most instrumental, is the use of Google Sheets. I used to use Excell spreadsheets for all of my finances, and the debate over which is better is still quite a hot one, but I have concluded that, for my purposes, the ease of access that Google Sheets provides ultimately works best for me.

Photo by Courtney McDowell

I have created a template of the Sheet that I use to keep track of my finances. If you would like to use this for yourself, simply click here, and you will be able to add a copy to your Google Drive that will be your own document. To do so, simply navigate to the top right corner of the page, click “File” and “Make a copy…,” and you’re all set!

Now let’s get into the details of the document. I receive a deposit for work every two weeks, so I have made twenty-five biweekly budget tabs. The only tab visible now is entitled “Paycheck Calculator 18 Jan.” To open the rest of them, click “View” and hover over “Hidden sheets” and you will be able to select the sheet that you would like to edit or view. Within this biweekly budget, I have a breakdown of what the funds are used for. The top left module of the sheet is the general breakdown of the biweekly funds. The bottom half contains categories that I spend money on frequently. There, I keep track of my discretionary income.

The other tabs allow me to keep track of my savings, taxes, and tithing.

The “Savings Breakdown” tab denotes several accounts in which I keep my savings. There are modules for several accounts in which the savings that come from my paychecks are automatically added. At the bottom of the sheet, I keep track of the general savings that is much more long-term such as a house, new car, and retirement.

The “Taxable Income” tab allows me to keep track of the funds that I will need to have to pay as taxes in February, and the “Tithing” tab allows me to keep track of the funds that I pay as a tithe to my church. Both of these take the amount from the biweekly budgets that I am supposed to pay–this is connected via formulas and cannot be edited–as well as a separate module that I use to keep track of the funds that have been withdrawn.

If you have any finance-related tips, comment below!

Over and Out.

-Courtney