One of the first steps to take in getting a handle on your budget is to start tracking your spending, and for those who like to do it analog, moleskine small ruled notebooks ($10.50) are awesome.

They fit in your pocket. They have a nice hard cover with a bit of pliancy. There’s a folder in the back where you can hold receipts. There’s a built in ribbon as a bookmark. An elastic strap keeps the whole book bound shut. It feels very legit and professional, yet personal.

Ok, so what’s the point of all this fetishization? Won’t a regular notebook or piece of paper do? Certainly.

But if you have trouble committing to the anal record keeping required to track your spending habits, the psychological heft of putting it into a nice notebook may be just the trick you need. They’re also easy to mod out with all sorts of tabs, too. — BEN POPKEN

Moleskine [Amazon]

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