Do you balance a home checkbook? I took a quick, little survey with 15 responses and found most people no longer do so. Only three of the 15 responded that they are checkbook keepers. In fact, many don’t even have checks.

Surprisingly, even accountant friends said they don’t maintain a checkbook. Since most payments are made via online banking, they felt it was unnecessary. They simply keep in mind the rare check payment that hasn’t cleared the bank. However, a few responders stated that they do use some bookkeeping system such as a spreadsheet or a software program such as Quicken.

I used to be diligent about balancing the checkbook to-the-penny but the last few years I may wait months to do so and plan not doing it anymore at all. I would track my payments weekly and then refer to the checkbook to post them to an Excel spreadsheet for income tax purposes. Now, I find my credits and debits online and post them on my Excel sheet for tax records.

As long as we are careful, taking this time-consuming activity off of our to-do list lessens the load. The scary part is for those who pay their credit cards off in full each month and must have that amount in savings–or for those who don’t and end up with an unpayable credit card balance. Credit card statements can be substantial in this economy, especially while we do not go without or budget for the non-essentials as our parents did.

**Employers typically provide full-time employees with two short and one longer break each workday, because it’s common knowledge that their employees are more productive with periodic rest periods You also will be a better caregiver when you stop to recharge. –Excerpt from Inspired Caregiving. Weekly Morale Builders.