How do you keep track of your financial life? When I was just starting out, it was a combination of sticky notes, highlighted pages of a notebook, Excel spreadsheets and an unbalanced checkbook. I would make a transaction and then tell myself that I’d record it later, but of course later never came.

In fact, one time I forgot to record that I wrote a check out to support a friends graduate school project and when he cashed it nearly a month later I over drafted on my account. Paying a $35 overdraft fee while your trying to save money is beyond frustrating, but when you’re constantly on the go and juggling several projects at once it can be tough to get a handle on your money.

Since 2008, I’ve been using Mint.com on my smartphone to manage and track my finances. It removed the hassle of recording every single transaction and has even helped me prepare my documents during tax season. In order for me to reach my financial goals I needed to get rid of the paper clutter and have everything all in one place. Now, all my bills, savings, checking, retirement and investment accounts are linked to Mint. The app shows me in real time my current balances, upcoming bills, net worth, alerts for better interest rates, trends in my spending and advice on other ways to save and diversify my investments (also discuss this with your financial planner.)

Photo Credit: Mint.com

Read More: http://www.blackenterprise.com/money/wealthforlife-wednesdays-apps-to-manage-your-money/

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