Categorize your transactions
The monthly habit that makes everything else work: open Uncategorized, give each row its label and its need or desire, and watch the count reach zero.
Your workbook may look different. If there is no brown band of buttons along the top, use the Money Mastery menu in the menu bar above your workbook. The names are a little different there: Categorize is Categorize Transactions, Reports is Clarity AI & Reports, Dashboard is Open Dashboard, and Start Here is Getting Started.
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Read the transcript
Click the Categorize button on the brown band at the top of your workbook. The window opens in a new tab with every row from your account tabs, newest first.
At the top of the window, click the tab that says Uncategorized. The list shrinks to only the rows that still need you, and the number on the tab tells you how many.
Look at the first row. From the left: a checkbox, the date, the description, the amount. Next to the amount is an empty box with a small arrow. That box is the label.
Click the box and type the first few letters of what it was. Type G R O for groceries. A short list drops down with the matching labels. Click Groceries. The box fills in and the list closes.
Or click the small arrow in the box to open the whole list, with the groups as headings, and pick from it. Scroll to Fun, click Gym.
Next to the label are two small buttons, Need and Desire. Click one. Rent is a need. The gym is a choice, a desire. The one you clicked turns solid. There is no wrong answer; it is your pattern, and the Needs and Desires tab in your workbook will show you it later.
Look at the bottom left of the window. It says Saving, then Saved. You did not have to click anything to save.
Move to the next row and do the same. Three clicks a row. The count on the Uncategorized tab goes down as you go.
Some rows already have a label written in italics before you touch them. That is a suggestion from Clarity, based on what you chose before. Click the Clarity tab at the top to see them all together, and click Accept on the ones that are right. The next video is all about those.
When the Uncategorized count reads zero, the month is done. Wait for Saved, then click Close at the bottom right. Everything is already in your workbook.
Type a few letters and the list filters as you type, so Groceries is G R O and Enter, three keys and no mouse.
That is all it is. Label the meaning, not the merchant, and your reports will explain your life. See you next time.
Step by step
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Click the Categorize button on the brown band at the top of your workbookThe window opens in a new tab with every row from your account tabs, newest first.
-
At the top of the window, click the tab that says UncategorizedThe list shrinks to only the rows that still need you, and the number on the tab tells you how many.
-
Look at the first rowFrom the left: a checkbox, the date, the description, the amount. Next to the amount is an empty box with a small arrow. That box is the label.
-
Click the box and type the first few letters of what it wasType G R O for groceries. A short list drops down with the matching labels. Click Groceries. The box fills in and the list closes.
-
Or click the small arrow in the box to open the whole list, with the groups as headings, and pick from itScroll to Fun, click Gym.
-
Next to the label are two small buttons, Need and DesireClick one. Rent is a need. The gym is a choice, a desire. The one you clicked turns solid. There is no wrong answer; it is your pattern, and the Needs and Desires tab in your workbook will show you it later.
-
Look at the bottom left of the windowIt says Saving, then Saved. You did not have to click anything to save.
-
Move to the next row and do the sameThree clicks a row. The count on the Uncategorized tab goes down as you go.
-
Some rows already have a label written in italics before you touch themThat is a suggestion from Clarity, based on what you chose before. Click the Clarity tab at the top to see them all together, and click Accept on the ones that are right. The next video is all about those.
-
When the Uncategorized count reads zero, the month is doneWait for Saved, then click Close at the bottom right. Everything is already in your workbook.