Pre-February Challenge: Task 1

The February Challenge will be organizing your finances. Now, I am by no means claiming to be a financial guru. I definitely am not. But we can get our finances in order, together, so that our homes will run more smoothly each month when it comes to paying bills.

Here's the schedule:

• Week 1: Tracking Everything Down
• Week 2: Organize the Paper Clutter
• Week 3: Create a System/Schedule for Bill Paying
• Week 4: A Look at Some Online Tools That I Use

So, to start you off - if you'd like to begin just before February 1 - I'm giving you a monthly budget worksheet printable. It's one of the best sellers in my etsy store. The version I'm giving you, for free (just for the first week of the challenge - it will disappear on February 8) is blank and not editable, unlike the one in my store. I'll show you mine, with all of the categories I use, tomorrow. This document is 3 pages. Download it below.

download the blank monthly budget worksheet

Before filling in the categories in the left column, you may want to make a list of how/where you spend your money. You can look at receipts, your bank account online, or bank statements. If you have credit cards, look there, too!

I want to keep typing and getting into the challenge...but I won't. More tomorrow. =]