XLYourFinances Customer Interview (Christie)

Christie heard about XLYourFinances (xlyf) from a mutual friend.  She has been using the spreadsheet for approximately 18 months.  I followed up with Christie to see if she would be willing to do a personal finance interview and she agreed.

Tell me about your personal finance journey and where you think you are on that journey?
"My financial journey began as a young child, when my parents presented me with a Giving Bank (http://www.christianbook.com/my-giving-bank/9789834502706/pd/502702) and started paying me a $1/week for doing chores. My dad is a professional financial advisor, so stewardship and wise management practices were ingrained into me from an early age. As an adult, I now realize how impactful financial decisions can be, and thanks to his training, I didn't have to learn too many lessons the hard way. Currently, I am at a place where I'm working to get a realistic picture of our family's spending, in order to create and maintain a practical budget."

How did you handle your personal finances before you started using xlyourfinances?
"Before xlyourfinances, I used a very basic spreadsheet that I created myself. I put together my "best guess" of a monthly budget, and then tried to remember to record expenses by collecting receipts and manually entering the data. It was time consuming and inaccurate."

What do you like about the spreadsheet.  Any favorite features?
"My favorite feature, by far, is the integration of Mint.com data! I love having live data from all my financial accounts that uploads directly into my xlyourfinances spreadsheet... no more saving receipts and manual data entry! Also, I categorize expenses pretty specifically, so I liked being able to set up my own categories and having lots of them. The budget feature is also great! How convenient to input your budget one time, and then have xlyourfinances keep tabs on your spending to let you know how you're doing throughout the month."

How has your view of your finances changed since you started using xlyourfinances?
"Xlyourfinances was exactly the tool I needed to finally feel like I had control of all the details. My previous attempts at expense tracking and monitoring a budget were haphazard and ineffective. It's so nice to have all this information in one place. It also has helped me to develop a weekly routine of reviewing all of our transactions and keep an eye on all of our accounts."

Were there any surprises or 'a-ha' moments once you started using xlyourfinances?
My biggest surprise was seeing our actual spending. Xlyourfinances makes it easy to categorize expenses, and that was the most crucial information for me to see to make positive changes.

What advice would you give for someone who is struggling with their finances?
First of all, you need a system. Throwing receipts into a shoebox and hoping there's enough money at the end of the month is always going to leave you scrambling. Secondly, set some goals. Figure out what's most important to you: debt reduction, savings, decreased spending, etc. and implement practical steps that can develop into good habits. And lastly, sometimes it just comes down to old-fashioned discipline. Learn to say no, to prioritize, and value the delayed gratification of proper money management. It's worth it!

Any other thoughts or ideas you would like to share?
I appreciate that you refer to this as a "personal financial journey", because it's exactly that: a journey. A process. Keep learning and keep building on the good habits you already have in place. Change and growth are always possible, but they usually don't happen overnight.

Thank you Christie for taking the time to share your experiences with us!