Where Does Your Money Go?

Recently my clients have been asking questions about budgets. The root of all their questions is really, “Where is my money going?” My catch-all professional answer is “Through consistent accounting and accurate reporting those questions can be answered easily.”

Budgeting has been a hot topic in the personal finance world the past few weeks. The thought of creating a budget can be anxiety provoking. It’s no wonder we avoid it like the plague. Well, today I thought I’d offer Queercents readers a lighthearted twist. Here is a simple guide to figuring out where YOUR money goes!

1. Boot up your computer.
2. Empty your wallet and spread out your bills.
3. Log on to Where’s George (or Where’s Willy to track Canadian Currency.)
4. Enter the denomination, series, and serial number of the bills along with your zip or postal code.
5. Press enter and you might find out about the travels of your money.

Where’s George and Where’s Willy are online currency tracking projects. If someone else has entered the bill in your possession, you’ll find out its history.

If the website reports there is no information about your bill, in you were the first person to enter it. Hopefully the next person who sees the bill will log on and post an entry about where and when they received the money. Be patient. It can often take a while before someone logs your bill again.
Register for an account and let the program track the bills you’ve entered. You can quickly check back to see where your money is going. If you choose not to create and account, you can still track the bills. Just keep a list of all the bills you’ve entered. You’ll need to re-enter the denomination, series, and serial numbers again to follow the money.

There are also extra reports about the value of the money you’re tracking, states your bills visit, and other statistics. You can learn about the speed at which money travels across the country. For example, one of my bills traveled 1,084 miles from California to New Mexico in 31 days, 14 hours and 37 minutes. That’s an average of 34 miles a day!

When I get stressed out about where my money goes, it’s fun to take a break and think in these terms. Oh, a final note, I received several bills with wheresgeorge.com handwritten on it! That is how I learned of the site. I’m not advising you deface money!
Enjoy!