This packed file contains expense, income and checking account files, along with a macro sheet. These files are designed for a self-employed writer, but can be modified for almost any personal business. A working knowledge of Excel and its database functions will help you use these files. Review the documentation or consult Doug Cobb's excellent tutorial, Hands On Microsoft Excel.
To make full use of these files you must have the macrosheet open--though it does not need to be visible in the window. If you have a MacPlus you can easily open all four files at once. Using a hard disk and Nevins' Turbocharger speeds things up a lot. Also, keep all these files together in one folder (or loose on the desktop) as they are linked, and otherwise have a hard time finding eachother.
I've included some example data in the files to illustrate their use. Obviously, you must clear out this data before entering your own.
Start by opening the macrosheet and expense files--then click on the expense file to make it active. Along the top left you'll see a reference list of codes (0-office 1-auto....). Assign these codes to each item as you enter your expenses; come tax-time you can then easily break expenses down by type.
Begin entering expenses in row five. You can use the notes column to attribute the expense to a client or project. I've left space for your first three entries, after that use the insert macro to insert blank rows--just as the sheet says, press command-option-l to insert a line.
Once you have entered some expenses, you can use Excel's database to extract those expenses that meet your particular requirements. If you entered "Project A" in the notes column on all your expenses for Project A, and then wanted to pull them out from the rest of your expenses, follow this procedure:
Scroll to the right, into the area marked criteria range. In the cell directly below the label "notes" enter "Project A". Be sure to press enter after you type in the text. Now use the extract macro (your macro sheet is open, isn't it?). You can keyboard the extract macro by hitting command-option-x. Presto-chango, Excel scrolls a bit more to the right, into the extract range and begins looking thru all your entries and pulling out the ones with Project A in the notes column. The expenses, with a sum total, are displayed in the extract range.
Now let's look at the income file. It's linked to both checkbook and expenses, so you can quickly get a handle on your financial health. It works much like the expense file--use the macros to insert lines and extract data. In the column marked "exps" you should enter only those expenses you can bill to a client, in other words, stuff you will be reimbursed for. I use the term "slug" as the name of the story I'm writing, but you could change that to product, service or whatever.
The checkbook works pretty much like the other files. Enter your beginning balance as the first deposit in column E, row three. Enter the check number or the text "atm" (for auto-teller withdrawals) in column B. Next is the amount of the check. If it's a deposit, enter the amount under deposit. Very simple, very easy. Again, use macros to extract data and insert lines. I've yet to incorporate a method for balancing the checkbook against your bank statement, but if you note which items have cleared in the first column, you can figure it all out fairly easily.
As someone who always scored high on the verbal skills and bombed out in the numbers arena, I approached Excel without much enthusiasm. Take heart, all you math dummies--I've found the logic of this spreadsheet has given me a good deal of arithmetic courage, and its impact on my finances has been dramatic. I hope these files help you, and that you can customize them to fit your own need. If you improve them, please be so kind as to share your work with all of us. If you have problems or questions, you can contact me on Compuserve (73247,2615) or Genie (S Proffitt).
