Today, we’re honored and excited to again be recognized by the Webby Awards and accept

• an Official Honoree designation in the Banking/Bill Paying category
• a nomination in the Financial Services category. This year's polls just opened up and are only open until the end of the month (April 30th), so please cast your vote. We need your support! Please help us add another one to last year's win (pictured below).

Paperwork: it would seem that in a world that is becoming increasingly paperless keeping important documentation should be getting easier. Keeping good records still remains an important part of managing your personal finances, and knowing what to keep and what to get rid of will make your life much easier in the long run.

Things to keep

You can possibly save yourself a lot of time and headache by keeping the following important paperwork well organized and easily accessible.

• Pay stubs. These pesky little pieces of paper can really add up however you would be well served to keep track of your pay stubs at least until the end of the year to confirm the amounts match the totals on your W2. In addition you may find you are asked for proof of income for various applications and having your pay stubs organized can make the process much easier.
• Tax returns. It is recommended that you keep tax returns and supporting paperwork for at least seven years from the date the original return was filed.
• Real estate documents. If you own property you will want to keep your titles, deeds, appraisals and property surveys in a safe location for easy reference.
• Estate planning. Your will, living will, durable power of attorney, life insurance policies and final wishes should be stored in a safe place.
• Retirement documents. Keep track of your pension, profit sharing, 401(k), IRAs and nondeductible contributions as well as annual statements you receive for each of these plans.
• Personal records. You should keep and file any personal records pertaining to military history, separation or divorce, insurance policies and any death benefits that may be due to you.
• Children's records. Until your children reach adulthood it is important to keep track of their personal records including birth certificates, life insurance policies, medical history and any other documents they may need in the future.
• Investment documents. Keep confirmations to show when you have bought and sold stocks, at what price, as well as what the commission charged was. Statements showing gain or loss should be kept for seven years after you file your tax returns.
• Receipts. For major purchases such as jewelry, furniture or items under warranty until the warranty expires.

Things you don't need

You can feel confident in properly disposing of the following types of paperwork (shredding financial documents is the safest way to keep your information safe).

• Brokerage statements. You can toss your monthly or quarterly brokerage statements if you have an annual year-end statement that summarizes your yearly transactions.
• Monthly bills. Some people prefer to keep utility and other monthly bills for reference, but this can quickly result in an overwhelming amount of paperwork. Realistically, once you have paid the bill and the checks have cleared you likely do not have to keep the paper statement.
• Canceled checks. You need only save these if you are required for tax purposes.
• Bank deposit and ATM receipts. Once you have confirmed your deposits have posted and recorded ATM withdrawals, there is really no need to hold on to these little bits of paper.
• Offers of credit. You definitely don't want pre-approved credit offers falling into the wrong hands. If you are not accepting the offer, shred the information to ensure it doesn't fall into the wrong hands.

It is important to find a system that works for you. Invest in a fire-proof safe where you can keep all your financial records safe and secure, and organize them in a way that you can find the information you need easily should the need arise. For certain legal documents such as your will or estate planning, it is wise to consider having a copy of the original documents held by a third party such as your attorney or in a safe deposit bank.

In a down economy, the classic money-saving methods always seem to gain renewed interest. One that has been getting tons of mainstream media coverage is the use of coupons. In particular, those that take the idea to the extreme seem to be getting a lot of attention. New coupon-themed websites – especially those coupled with advice for stay-at-home-moms – seem to be popping up on a daily basis.

The first question that comes to mind is whether the extreme use of coupons is worth all of the fuss. In an example that should quickly affirm the value of the extreme coupon movement, Coupon Mom Stephanie Nelson demonstrated how to combine sales, store promotions and double coupons and paid only 25 cents for $100 worth of common grocery items. While that example was a sensational piece to lure viewers, it is reportedly possible to regularly cut your grocery bill in half.

Few of the many tips provided in the referenced article above were truly original, but collectively they do form a system that could save you considerable amounts of money. The old excuse that spending 20 minutes clipping coupons to save a nickel seems less valid as the dollars saved per minutes worked increases.

With deal and coupon sites that find many of the best deals for you, it is certainly possible to find greater savings in less time. Even if you have dismissed using coupons in the past, you may want to give them another try. Spending half as much on groceries is something that would be helpful to budgets in normal times, and seems even more valuable in the current economy.

Have you started using coupons more frequently as a result of the down economy?

Here's a surprising fact: now might be the best time to start a business. I know what you're saying: it's a recession! No one should be starting a company! However, for many reasons, the truth may be the opposite - now might be your chance to shine.

This post from Harvard Business Publishing mentions some prominent examples of recent companies started in a downturn, including Clif Bar, Chipotle, Hanna Andersson, Cranium and Honest Tea. Why does this contradiction occur? Why would startups flourish in a terrible economy? An article from Personal Dividends mentions several reasons.

"Cheap resources: Everything from office supplies to rent to machinery are available at low prices, not available just a few years ago...

Lower payroll costs: With unemployment reaching higher and higher levels, there are many skilled workers coming on the market that are willing to take a job at a discount to compensation levels they were enjoying in their past jobs"

Additionally, there are many other reasons. Competition is lower---older companies are failing, and newer companies can operate more cheaply. Being the agile and small startup has many benefits. However, this doesn't mean it will be easy. Starting a company at any time is difficult, but you can use the recession to your advantage. The article from Harvard Business Publishing says it best:

"The bottom line: a downturn presents many unforeseen opportunities. Entrepreneurs view financial challenges and, instead of wringing their hands, find ways to innovate and spin them into gold (or social transformation). It doesn't hurt that entrepreneurs are used to being nimble, responding quickly to market shifts, and managing cash flow."

Have you thought of becoming an entrepreneur? If you are waiting for the recession to end to start your company, maybe today is the day to start. What companies do you think could benefit from a downturn?

I recently described the practice of actually saving the money you save by shopping sales, using coupons, etc. A related activity that can be used on all purchases, not just those on which you receive a discount, is to tax yourself on every purchase you make.

The basic idea is to add a percentage to each purchase that you must then transfer into a savings or investment account. So if you set your personal tax rate at 10% and filled up your car for $40, you would obligate yourself to save $4 (10% of $40). Every dollar you spend would effectively cost you $1.10. The key to this saving method is to make it mandatory. You can’t leave a store (in most states) without paying sales tax, so don’t allow yourself to make a purchase without applying your personal tax.

At first glance, it may seem that this technique would cause your spending to increase an amount equal to your personal tax rate. In practice, an interesting event occurs. Knowing that you have the added personal tax cost on all purchases will make you less willing to spend money and more diligent in searching for deals. If you have $100 to spend on groceries this week, you’ll need to find a way to spend less, so that the total – including your personal tax – is within your spending limit. You won’t necessarily be able to reduce all of your expenses, like your mortgage (yes, the personal tax applies to your mortgage too!), but you will be very inclined to adjust those expenses which you can control.

Taxing yourself is a great way to start saving, but this practice can also be used to supplement another form of saving. Even if you already save a significant portion of your income, by adding a personal tax on expenditures you will only accelerate your progress towards meeting your savings goals.

We’ve grown so accustomed to taxes in our lives that one more isn’t going to kill you. The fact that a personal tax pads your own accounts, rather than the government’s, makes this the one tax you’ll be happy to pay.

Have you tried taxing yourself?