Previously we discussed that if you’re a business, in most cases you must save all receipts and line-item data for tax purposes. But what if it’s a personal use case? You still need your receipts. Right off the bat: receipts are required for returns and warranties. Snap a picture, keep it safe, and thank yourself later. Secondly: to save money. Hear me out. There’s only one real reason to analyze line-item data as a consumer: saving. Otherwise it’s just a hobby in itemization. Income minus expenses equals savings. Expenses are simply everything you spend money on. Which means you always face two choices: 1. Buy more for the same amount of money 2. Buy the same things, but for less money Either way, you get more for less. That should be the goal. Eliminate overspending and make the best possible price/value choice. The problem is most people do the opposite. They buy less and spend more. And those situations are everywhere, hidden inside bank statements. That’s why receipts matter. A bank statement tells you where you spent. A receipt tells you what you actually bought. With line-item detail, you can see your real needs and preferences: - How often you buy certain products (How much you need of something?) - Which brands or choices you repeat (What's the best deal around) - Where hidden costs creep in (How to prevent overspending) That is where saving really happens.

1. A bank statement isn’t enough. You literally have to prove every line item. Ask your tax advisor or CPA and look into their eyes. 2. They don’t tell you because the burden of proof is on you, the business owner. And if their clients sent them receipts for everything, they’d drown in them. 3. If you don’t scan receipts, you end up with bank transactions not supported by receipts. It creates EXCESSIVE stress, mess and clutter during tax season. 4. Not scanning receipts has a direct effect on your income after tax. Every receipt you miss is a deduction you lose. 5. Full transparency for your partners and clients. We have a production agency that tags receipts (like photo development) for client reimbursements. Before switching to ReceiptScanner.ai it was a mess, and once we even lost a receipt. It was a very awkward situation 🫠. 6. You stay in the pre-AI era and don’t use the full capacity available. It’s like choosing 70% accuracy versus 99.8%. 7. Not knowing all aspects of your expense breakdown creates a grey zone. (it costs $ you!) 8. How your team handles money. Do I need to explain the impact of transparency on culture? 9. Last but not least: you sacrifice peace of mind. You have to remember everything unless you use technology. The worst feeling is trying to recall what an expense was and why.

My first goal ever was to track 100% of all expenses and know everything about every dollar I spent. I faced huge resistance from my inner self – is that what we're doing now? Track every dollar to save some extra? I sabotaged myself. While I logically knew tracking is important, I couldn't convince myself to do so. So I imagined what a $100/week can do to me – it's $5.2k in 12 months. I imagined... is extra $5k have to be THE SACRIFICE? Is it necessary to CUT, just to have a little to myself? We all had experience when we could buy something for $5 instead of $8 and the quality is much better, you just have to know where to shop for what, right? Not only I found out what I truly LOVE purchase and consume, I was able to save more than I thought as a part of the process. (in my case, it was just extra $100/week). Guys, I understand that extra $100 might not change your life. But finding out how to save my first $100/week was the most important thing for transformation. First $100 give you the tools and knowledge to developed a granular vision for your buying habits.

It hit me like a brick… The only thing I control is my spending. But I had no control over my spending for my entire life. I’ve always felt behind my peers when it comes to money and savings. To be honest, I hit 30 with no savings. (something that was hard to admit when you hold masters degree in economics!) There's so much noise around about investing, portfolios, cryptos — it feels lonely to realize you have NOTHING to invest.... I thought I can't be alone in this situation. So I started my own journey of figuring out how to live and be OK with spending money everyday. Is there a cure? What can I do to be sure about my day2day spending? Months later, I created my third company receiptscanner.ai because all the apps in Appstore (prove me wrong) just copy your bank transactions with PLAID integration, which isn’t enough for analyzing them with AI. Also, THEY NEVER TELL YOU, that bank transactions not sufficient proof of expenses! You need to keep a copy of an actual receipt with every line item on it for a few years. Here's what I’ve experienced firsthand in my first year of tracking receipts. 1. Receipts are not useless. First, I always need them for business expenses and reimbursements. Secondly, my expenses today determine my future, literally. 2. Wealth is built after expenses. All books and courses essentially say the same thing: Income - Expenses = Savings. The gap matters the most. You can Grow Income, Lower expenses or do both. 3. Expenses are tricky. They hide, shift, stretch. When your income goes up, costs creep too. 4. My saving journey is not about wanting "Less" or "sacrificing". It's about figuring out for yourself “How much is enough?” 5. Optimizing your personal or household “enough” creates freedom. You can decide what to do with it, like paying off debt, buying something, or investing. 6. It's my own responsibility to track my expenses and take care of my future. 7. When you just begin, the only thing you control is spending, even if $100/month budget – you can begin your journey to improve relationship with money. Don't be afraid to take a step. 8.