3 Ways That I Stay Organised With My Finances

A couple of months ago, I wrote a post about how I'm tackling my fears around money. It was a super popular post, and I've since been feeling much better about my financial management. I haven't written about it much, because if I'm being honest, talking about money is still something I find quite challenging. 

But I know that if we don't speak about money and finances more often, it will just remain a taboo subject... and I don't want that! 

I haven't always been organised with the money I have. In my first year of uni, I was so terrified of ending up broke that I barely spent anything. But as time went on, and I dropped my guard, I spent a little bit too liberally. There were plenty of months where I ended up broke after a week of my allowance coming in, and had to call my parents begging for them to help. Thankfully, I've learnt a thing or two since my uni days. Today I'm going to share with you 3 ways that I've found that work really well for me when it comes to staying organised with my finances. 

Accountants:

One of the very first things I did when I went self employed was to hire an accountant. I knew from day one that I wouldn't be able to handle the stress of tax time. I also didn't feel like I could trust myself due to the dyscalculia I have. So I budgeted for my accountants, and I can't begin to tell you how happy I am that I did. Tax return time is never stressful for me! I email them at the end of the tax year, send over everything they need, they sort out the paperwork, I check it over, and then it's done. 

If you're self employed, and don't get have an accountant, or at least a book keeper.... get one. I really can't stress enough how much of a valuable investment it is! 

Monzo Card:

A year or so a go, my boyfriend introduced me to Monzo, a new banking start up based out of London. They started off as a prepaid credit card, and are now offering current accounts. What makes Monzo amazing though, is the app that you use to manage your money. I've never come across such a user friendly, easy banking service, ever! 

The best thing about Monzo? The ability to create "pots." I like to think of these pots as little envelopes. Like your grandma used to have for grocery money, travel money, etc. Only this is on your phone and in your bank. At the start of every month, I divide the money I have into various different pots. My pots include things like: "Fitness" (to pay for my personal trainer each month), "Petrol," "Eating Out," "Books," and anything else that I know I'll need to pay for that month. My boyfriend and I have a joint account too, so I also transfer our "food shopping" money into a seperate account. 

The Monzo system for pots helps me stay SO organised, I can't begin to tell you how life changing this has been for me. Gone are the days where I didn't know how much I had left to spend each month... I can see it right in front of me! Whenever I need to pay for anything, I simply get my phone out, log into Monzo, move whatever money I need into the main spending account, and pay. I adore this system, and if it sounds like something which would work for you, I really encourage you to get yourself a Monzo account. 

Profit First Method:

I mentioned this book a few months ago on Instagram Stories whilst I was reading it. I first heard about the Profit First method after listening to the Being Boss Podcast. It sounded amazing, and like something I definitely needed to read. I ordered the book on Amazon, and read the first few chapters in a week or so. I'll admit, that it was hard to finish, as once I'd understood the system and overall concept, I couldn't really be bothered to finish it. I skimmed it all, and put the system in place. 

Profit First is a system designed by Mike Michalowicz, an entrepreneur who was fed up with never making a penny of profit from his businesses, so he created a whole new system of money management for himself. This new system meant that from day one of any business, the person running it would make profit. After all, the whole reason we get into business is to make money... right? 

This system is quite straight forward and easy to follow, but I won't be very good at explaining it. So for that reason, I'll let you read the book. However, to give you a quick idea (similar to my "pots" method with Monzo), you create different bank accounts for your business' money: One for expenses, one for putting aside tax money, one for personal income, one for profit. I think there is a fifth in his method, but I've stuck with the four as it's working perfectly for me. Each month, you split your money up according to percentages, and move them into their designated pots. 

This system has made me not only feel really organised with my business' money, but also gives me so much clarity on exactly how much money I have to spend, and how much I need to earn. It's made a huge difference to my life, so I can't recommend reading the book enough! 

So there you go, the three ways that I'm currently staying super organised with my finances. All three of these things have changed my life massively, so I hope that they help you, too. If you have any questions about any of them, feel free to leave a comment or come and send me a DM over on Instagram. 

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