You can keep it as simple as you like, or get crazy and track
everything. Personal finance software is the best way to stay on top
of your money. It takes away most suprises. After you use the
software for one year and enter all of your yearly, quarterly, and
monthly bills, you will know in advance at all times what bills are
coming. It's a beautiful thing. This will become your check book also.
If you do your bills on the software before you send out your
payments, you will be able to see if there will be a problem.

When you set up the software you are mostly concerned about any
bank accounts you are depositing to. You can also track balances on
credit cards and loans. If you are good with computers, go for it and
track everything. But if not, at first you should be most concerned
with is tracking your checking and savings accounts.

The first thing you do when you get paid is to open the program and
enter your deposits from your pay check into the various accounts.
Then go online and check the balances to make sure they match. If
they don't then make the nessesary changes to make them match in
the program. Once this is done, then enter your due bills in the
program. Next make sure that you have enough money to cover the
bills, then go ahead and pay them.