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For me, I need to have it the other way around. Regular withdrawals of similar amounts on my bank statement tell me nothing about how I spent my money a month f
by r4indeer 3y ago
For me, I need to have it the other way around. Regular withdrawals of similar amounts on my bank statement tell me nothing about how I spent my money a month from now.
When paying with card, I leave a paper trail for myself to review later. I can also look at my banking app anytime I want to check how much is left. I actually do that before most purchases that go beyond a few bucks.
- wussboy 3y agoWhile I could make the same reply to almost every comment in this thread I have chosen yours at random. I believe you are conflating the goal of "spending less" (which is hard) with a simpler goal "knowing more about how I spent my money" (which is easy). You claim to review your paper trail to gain insights, but again, even if you truly did this consistently (and knowing human nature, I doubt that you do) this in no way means you spend less.
- r4indeer 3y agoYou are right, I left out an important part of my budgeting setup: Every month, after income, everything above a set amount is transferred automatically into a savings account. So at the beginning of each month, I have the same amount of money in my checking account. Still, even just the number going down tells me exactly how much money I have spent this month – like looking into my wallet would. But I have the added benefit of knowing what I spent it on even long after the purchase. I don't always review the paper trail, only if my spending is higher than what I expected it to be. But I always check the balance before any bigger purchase. In both cases, I know to spend less in advance and can make an informed decision. * I am translating from German here using some quick Google searches. I hope these account types make sense for a US reader.