I. Stuck place: Denial

My new client works in finance, but he’s like the cobbler whose kids have hole-y shoes. His major pitfall, like lots of us, is just not looking at his own cash flow. Period. Usually this happens when you’re not feeling in control financially because you know that if you face the flow, you’d have to make decisions about it. And those decisions can be challenging.

Trick to Unstick: Collaborate

Ask a trusted person to sit with you for an hour and help you put together a structure–a cash flow projection, a list of ideas, even a to-do list. Commit to a time and place and call someone to be a witness to your process. The effect of collaborating gets you out of your rut, doesn’t let you hide from it, and opens you up to a new person’s insights. Have them help you take a look at what you don’t want to look at: online bank balances, a spreadsheet you haven’t updated in a long time, or your financial tracking.

We have so many stories in our minds that rule our financial lives. Having someone you know and trust listen to those stories can point out inaccuracies. Plus that person will hold you accountable to your decisions the next time they see you. Collaboration will keep you moving forward.

II. Stuck place: Can never get ahead

Nine times out of ten, people can’t get ahead because they are spending outside their means.

Trick to Unstick: Pay yourself first

One of best ways to get unstuck is to put 10% of your earnings into savings immediately. Make it your first keyboard stroke when your direct deposit arrives. If you want to get more radical, take 10% and give it away. What occurs is a total awareness of your money. Putting that 10% toward oneself or a dedicated donation makes people doubly responsible and conscious of that other 90%. It kicks off what you really have to live on. Try it for a month. You’ll be surprised how quickly you become aware of that 90% you have to spend.

III. Stuck place: Bank juggling

The average American household has a relationship with over six financial institutions and an average of 11 different accounts (i.e. checking, savings, IRA’s, mortgages, etc).  As a result, many people feel that it takes so much time to manage their money that they can’t help but keep falling behind.

Trick to Unstick: Go local

When your financial accounts are scattered all over several entities, it’s time to interview the regional banks and credit unions. See which people you connect with best. Find out how long the reps have been there. Is it more than five years? Do you like the bank? Their product? If so MOVE EVERYTHING to that one bank, as fast as you can.

The reason? If I am spending outside out of my means and forgot to cover a check, my banker calls me. He leaves me his cell number to reach him. He asks if I want to transfer funds or choose another option. Also, while I have him on the phone, I can handle other items at same time because all of my accounts are there. He knows my style and my accounts so well it’s like having a banking assistant.

That is one of the best ways to get unstuck when feeling overwhelmed by maintaining your financial life. At any time, someone at my bank can give me a clear diagnosis of my financial health. From there, I have new action steps to either maintain or step up that health.

IV. Stuck place: Time management

Life has a way of usurping the time we meant to spend developing our financial picture. But this practice has to become compulsory, like brushing our teeth and getting ready for bed at night.

Trick to Unstick: Get help

Before you dismiss this one out of hand, consider what an hour of your time and sanity is worth. Is it worth $10 an hour that you could pay the high school or college student down the street to help you organize twice a week? For $80 a month, you could free up hours of time that normally seizes your brain, opening mail, handling bills more than once, making customer service inquiries, organizing grocery lists, mapping out the family menu. Get creative about the things you can delegate and re-prioritize what your visionary time is worth. When someone else helps you handle the small stuff, you can take time to focus on what you want to create with your evolving financial picture. Do what you can to make your life easier. The return on your investment will grease the wheels of your cash flow and keep you moving ahead.

Do you have any tips on how to unclog your cash flow?  Share them in the comment section!  And don’t forget to try GreenSherpa to see what your cash flow projection looks like!

CalcMoolator Pro ($9.99)

This the most useful personal finance calculator that I have seen.  This development team has pulled together the most useful financial calculators.  What I loved most was the ability to play around with different credit card reduction scenarios based on the factors that mattered most to me; did I want to pay off my credit card debt in 12 months or is it more important to me that I pay a fixed low amount each month?  There are over 35 calculators and because it is web-based the CalcMoolator team is adding more calculators every day.

Beacon ($.99)

Beacon is an ambient stock market information tool.  It pulls stock quotes from Yahoo Finance and then gives you a varying color degrees based on whether the market is up or down.  My favorite is the soothing yellow glow when the market is calm.

Allowabank ($1.19)

Manage your kids allowance easily from your iPad.  This app is an easy and straightforward tool for keeping track of allowance.  The only hitch is if you have kids who love the iPad it is a challenge to keep them away from this app and altering the amounts themselves.

Chase (free)

Who knew that I would ever put Chase and like in the same article but I have to say that the Chase iPad app is in my top 5 favorites in terms of usefulness.  It isn’t so much that it is Chase.  Please insert your own major bank name in place of Chase.  In a quest to capture market share of online banking users looking for a new bank Chase has designed a clean interface that makes online banking enjoyable.

Tippster ($.99)

Tippster is just cool.  There are many tip apps out there but using Tippster is simply fun to use.  The graphic playfulness makes it a usual and pleasurable app.

Forbes Investment Guide + (free)

Forbes has survived the economic downturn primarily by staying relevant.  This app is another example of how they talk directly to individual who in this economy is focused on larger issues then their portfolio.  They offer daily money ideas and help create strategies for to meet your financial goals.  Forbes continues to give relevant financial advice.  Ch lo

The best way that I reduce my costs and increase my income is by working on my overall efficiency.  Here are a few iPad apps to increase your productivity.

Things ($9.99)

I have been a fan of Things on my Mac desktop and my iPhone for over a year.  Things is based on the philosophy of “Getting Things Done” by David Allen.  It is by far the easiest to use and most effective To Do List planner I have used.   I set up regular to do’s to handle my finances but I also use it to brainstorm and keep track of ways to increase my overall financial health.

smartNote ($.99)

smartNote is a FREE tool for managing documents, sharing your ideas and keeping track of your projects like you would if you were in a college course.  You can organize your PDF’s by project, make comments on them, insert photos or other files and share these notebooks or PDF’s with others.  It is virtual file sharing and collaboration as if you were sitting next to the person in class.

iBrainstorm (free)

I am a huge fan of brainstorming to really capture your best ideas, turn them into to do’s and either delegate or make your own commitments for completion.  iBrainstorm is the perfect app when you want to release all your creative ideas, concepts or as I have used it when you are waiting in line for coffee.  iBrainstorm can support up to 4 people collaborating and brainstorming together by using your iPad or iPhone.

I am always on the search for iPad apps that increase my income.

Craigslist Pro for iPad ($.99)

There are free versions of Craigslist software tools but this is by far the best.  You can easily post to Craigslist, manage your account, add photos and helps you search across multiple cities.  It will save your searches and will also email the posting to a friend through their own built in email program.  It streamlines searching, posting and managing your Craigslist account.

Have any other awesome finance apps for iPad not listed here?  Share them with us in the comment section!

For anyone who wants to add working tools to their financial toolset, J.D. Roth’s book, Your Money: the Missing Manual, directly addresses the topics and resources that put spending and talking on the same page. J.D. Roth is the man behind one of our favorite personal finance blogs,  Get Rich Slowly.

Roth has often been referred to as the regular-guy-turned-financial-guru-for-the-rest-of-us.  His intelligent conversations about money come from his own experience of being in debt and getting himself out of it. In Your Money, he puts the emphasis where I believe it needs to be – on cash flow.  He dares to ask the fundamental question, “Do you spend less than you earn?”  If you make that the basis of your ritual, then growing your money from there puts you on the road to true financial freedom:

“When you spend more than you earn, there’s never enough money to go around.  You end up spending money you don’t have – using credit cards, taking out loans – which leads to more debt, which puts you deeper in the hole.”

If someone had written a book on this topic at the height of the credit swap debacles of 2004 and later, it would never have been published.

What makes such fundamental basics of cash flow seem overly simplistic? I won’t get into the political aspect but I will address the philosophical undercurrent.  Tell someone to live within their means and they don’t know what their means are, they internalize this as a demand to restrict themselves, and they feel powerless.

I share Roth’s mission to educate people about the basics of cash flow, to share the importance of spending within your means, and to do what he does so well in Your Money—turn the reader on to the deep satisfaction that comes from spending only what you earn.

Recurrent spending within your means, without fail, turns cash flow positive.  When the cash flow tide is turning positive, there’s a high feeling that comes with it. I have yet to meet someone who gets a taste of that success hold back from taking his or her financial growth to the next level.  There is an intrinsic feeling of goodness and bliss that comes from honoring the agreement you have made to only spend what your income can hold.  That righteous feeling fuels a desire to do more.  It’s like diet and exercise: “I just lost 10 lbs!  Tell me what to do to lose another 10 lbs.”

Roth’s approach to frugality is like a spiritual practice.  It is a ritual of getting yourself back on track when you are off track and this lifestyle he believes will result in you being “wealthier and happier.”  He moves from cutting costs into the real power realm of increasing your income.  This is a critical piece where Roth reminds us that cash flow is a craft.  The focus can be on reducing spending while also increasing your income and that this is a game to play that requires your attention to mastering it.

Roth’s “Your Money” addresses the first concern of reader of “where do I start?” and walks them through how to make responsible spending decisions.  He gives practical advice on how to achieve financial freedom but also reminds us that:

“Financial success is more about mastering the mental game of money than about understanding the numbers.  The math is simple:  it’s controlling your habits and emotions that’s hard”

By emphasizing that this really is an emotional mastery over your money, he is able to suggest tips and tricks to help you to stay on track when you feel most overwhelmed or in the grip of overspending.

Roth demystifies the credit card industry, shares his knowledge of personal investing, retirement and tax planning.  As the title suggests it truly is “the Missing Manual”.  It is a must read for anyone newly entering the workforce or someone who is looking for a fresh perspective to give a boost to your financial health.  Under Roth’s guidance I truly believe that you can be “wealthier and happier”.

J.D. Roth is the creator of the well-known personal finance blog Get Rich Slowly, and was recently named most inspiring money blog by Money Magazine. His new book Your Money: the Missing Manual, is in stores now.

Go through all your gift certificates, gift cards, and ask your friend to all contribute small amounts to give you something lavish, like a massage.

Beating the birthday blues

Having a birthday as an adult isn’t quite like when you’re seven. If you share a bank account with a spouse or partner, you end up paying for your own gifts in the end, whether it’s an expensive dinner or a vacation. The excitement just isn’t there anymore because you’re concerned about going over your budget.

My birthday this year was the best yet. And cheap! It started with a run on the beach. Next, my friends treated me to a pedicure, something I would never pay for on my own. Then we played spa day, bringing our own sample-sized spa products to a cabana club we got into for free, thanks to a friend’s connection, and planning ahead.

After we felt thoroughly pampered, we brought gift certificates we had for a decadent Oceanside lunch. After lunch at the country club, we took advantage of the pool, stretched out in the sun and read magazines.

Then, we arrived at dinner at my favorite restaurant. There were dozens of cupcakes at our table from my favorite bakery. Even better, my friends had invited a group of my closest family and friends to share in the good times, and pick up a piece of the tab. At the end of dinner, my friends presented me with my gift: a new iPad paid for with donations solicited from coworkers, friends and family.

Ask for community support for celebrations

What made my birthday so special this year was that the entire day cost me nothing, and it only cost others what they felt comfortable contributing. It also took less than two weeks to plan. By pooling our community resources, I was able to do what I loved with the people I love, on the cheap.

We really aren’t alone in this economy. Even if it takes getting outside your comfort zone, asking for community support can turn a birthday, or any other celebration, from a stressful day into a day of decadence.

That sinking feeling

Do you have loan paperwork or other important financial documents that you have yet to send to your financial advisor? Write down your incompletes and schedule hard deadlines for when you plan to complete them.Imagine if instead of cursing at a pile of tax papers that have yet to be filed, you have a set day in your planner where you intend to finish that task. Once something is on paper where you can see it everyday, it’s harder to ignore.

This same philosophy applies to your physical space as well as your finances. You can’t expect to get any organizing done if your financial documents are piled between books and sweaters. Start with the physical obstacles. If every time you walk past a window you have yet to buy curtains for you get a stab of guilt, schedule it. Write it down and set a date to get it done.

To get ahead financially, imagine all of your accounts, documents and appointments with advisors as moving gears in a great machine. If one gear goes missing, the entire system breaks down.

Delegating tasks, even if it’s to yourself, will quell feelings of impending doom. By listing every incomplete in your life and making it right, you can be sure your goals won’t get bogged down.

Some tips of the trade (things that I do to ease stress when overwhelmed by incompletes):

Walk of completion

Take a walk and with every step state all the incomplete items in your mental space.  Walk until you can’t think of one more item that clouds your mind.  Turn around and walk back. With every step back forgive those tasks. You can say something such as, “I am letting myself off the hook for not cleaning out my garage.”  Now take out a piece of paper and free write every item that comes to mind that you need to accomplish.  The list that comes out of this exercise is always incredibly clear and concise.

Clearing house

Go through your entire house and pull any item, piece of paper, detail that is out of place and put into a huge box. Clear off an entire table that you can use for an action staging area.  Take each item out of the box and label each with an action such as, “Call, Send, Replace, Mail, Fax or Mend”  Cluster each item in the appropriate action category. All items to send are in one area and so on.  Now pick 2 activities that you are going to do and do those.  It may be to make calls and send faxes. After you complete those two tasks chose another two tasks. You will be amazed at how efficient you become.

What tips do you have to get out of a financial rut? I’d love to hear from you. Leave a comment…

In a world that involves more paperwork than ever before, how do you manage your finances on the go?

I figured it out: Box.net. It’s an online data storage site that allows you to organize and view all of your files, plus share files with other users. Financial planners use Box.net all the time to integrate their clients’ data and transactions. I got very excited at the prospect of having a virtual filing cabinet for all of my records.

Reduce, recycle and digitize financial documents

I started by calling my bank and asking them to email me PDFs of all of my statements rather than mailing them. Then, I uploaded them to Box.net. Next, I scanned and uploaded all my paper documents.

Now I am literally living virtually. I can access my Box.net account and email a document in seconds rather than have to be in a dedicated location to fax it. And my accountant can access my account to check on a statement without a phone call. Box.net has a password protected sharing feature that allows you to give approved people access to selected files. All of your information is right there in one place, perfectly organized.

GreenSherpa and Box.net, a perfect match

Box.net is so great, GreenSherpa has partnered with them to integrate our online personal financial management tool with the best in cloud computing solutions. Tip top organization and cash flow planning all in one place? I can hardly contain myself.

There’s no way to start on the right track with new financial management systems without first clearing out the old, ineffective systems. I’ve met clients who have asked me to help them set up a money management system, whose houses are like walking into a disaster zone: piles of receipts, disorganized bank statements and not a folding file in sight.

Clean up before you set up

One of my favorite exercises when I need to shake things up around the house is to go through every room with a big black trash bag and get rid of things I no longer need. Once all of the old stuff is in the donation bag, and out in the curb for pick up, the room feels fresh. There is new space in which to think clearly.

The same method can be applied to finances. Whether it’s purging unneeded files on a desktop computer or organizing your bank statements, if you don’t clean up before you set up your new money management system, you’ll have to slog through extraneous material every time you look at your money picture. That is not fun, and makes a very simple process heavy and difficult.

Money imitates life

A friend recently said to me, “Something good has got to happen or I’m going to have a nervous breakdown.”

My response? “No! Step away from the dramatic statements!” You can’t layer a desire or hope for something good to happen on top of a feeling that everything is awful. You have to clear out that old, bad energy to make room for the good stuff. Once you do, it will come into your life that much faster.

The same goes for a beginning user of GreenSherpa or any other personal financial management system. The program won’t work for you if your financial world is in chaos. It’s the same situation as me trying to work on a new project in my house while staring at all of the old mess. Erase the negative static with some basic organization and clarity, and the system will work for you.

I had one of the biggest financial lessons ever when my parents remodeled their home.

My parents aren’t great money managers. Both of them have done well with high paying jobs. They prepare their own taxes, and their retirement funds had been doing well for some time. But they don’t understand the more contemporary concept of cash flow. Similar to what most Americans practice, they are conservative spenders but like to live high on the hog when they’re flush.

A new generation of money conversations
That’s what happened with the house. Once both my parents went into retirement, they remodeled their house from the ground up. But they hadn’t thought it through financially. The market crashed and they had to put their dream home up for sale.

When your income is tied to a retirement fund tied to the stock market, you have to manage your money really carefully. Today’s tech savvy generation does this by using online financial planning tools. But my parents’ generation doesn’t live and breathe on Quicken files. They don’t know how to utilize the tools that are out there.

Their dialogue about money planning was indicative of their generation of spenders also. Instead of having fundamental kitchen table conversations about income and expenses, they’d only talk about money when they were feeling stressed out.

Bring digital value to money tradition
After the house debacle, I went back to teach my parents how to manage their finances in the digital world. We used GreenSherpa so that everything would be totally automated and display the information to help them make decisions.

My mom was thrilled. It was like magic for them. But they never logged on to check anything. My parents were still living by their bank balance, and letting that inform what decisions they could make.

Cloud computing as a financial solution
This is where the cloud computing generation can bring value to their parents. I realized that my parents needed a person, not a computer, to keep them on track. As magical as GreenSherpa was to them, it was still through a human interpreter that they were going to get value. So I offered to meet with them every quarter, to look over the software and make a plan for that quarter. Handily, one of the features of GreenSherpa is that an adult kid can be a partner on a parents’ GreenSherpa account.

Prior to now, my generation of consumers may have never known what its parents’ financial situation is, until they see what’s left in the will. But by having an ongoing conversation about money and using a software tool to facilitate that, adult children can help make their parents’ lives less financially trying. The sandwich generation–those of us in our thirties and forties–can be responsible for having important financial conversations with an older generation.

GreenSherpa is the first Software as a Service (SaaS) application designed specifically for a more sophisticated user—typically mid-career individuals looking for a better way to take control over their financial life. GreenSherpa’s online web application includes such powerful features as automated synchronization with bank and credit accounts, goal setting and progress tracking, and even online collaboration with other trusted individuals such as a spouse, family member or financial planner.

With the inclusion of Box.net, GreenSherpa users have even more ways to access and share important financial files. Box.net makes it simple for businesses and individuals to share, access, and manage all of their content online. With today’s partnership, Box users can connect their files directly with GreenSherpa, making data access from within GreenSherpa a one-click operation.

“Box.net and GreenSherpa are the perfect combination for a new era in personal financial control,” said Masen Yaffee, chief executive officer of GreenSherpa. “Today’s consumers are demanding flexible Web services that make their personal lives easier. By linking these state-of-the-art tools, people have what they need to gain the power over their cash flow they’ve always wanted.”

“Box.net gives GreenSherpa users a very simple tool to facilitate conversation and collaboration around a critical piece of their lives—their finances,” said Karen Appleton, vice president of business development for Box.net. “By linking Box.net and GreenSherpa, users can bring their money managers, lawyers, and families into shared, private workspaces as needed to provide ongoing access to important documents.”

To learn more about Box.net and its subscription plans, please visit www.box.net

To learn more about GreenSherpa’s personal finance app, visit www.greensherpa.com.