People spend between three and five hours a day on their cellphones, and that’s where they’re conducting their finances, said certified financial planner Douglas Boneparth.
“People want to be able to log into their phones and check their account balances, contact their financial advisors and basically just communicate thoughts and ideas that they have in their financial life to the professionals,” said Boneparth, president of Bone Fide Wealth.
People turn to their phones for quick answers to their financial questions, he said, and even rely on budget apps such as Mint to make sure they’re meeting goals.
However, people need to make sure they’re dedicating enough time and focus to their finances in the “age of screens,” he said.
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“There are areas of financial planning where you should not apply shortcuts,” he said, adding that when it comes to the fundamentals of money management, you’re better off staying offline.
“For those of you getting ready to budget, maybe paper and pencil or Microsoft Excel is the way to go about putting that together, and then reconciling that over time by actually looking at what it is you spent your money on,” he said.
“It’s a very manual process, and it requires you to do the work so that you can change behaviors and save more money,” said Boneparth.
