Calendar Connoisseur Amos Forecasts Into the Future With PocketSmith

Read how Amos is future-proofing his personal and business finances using PocketSmith’s scenario and forecasting tools.

Tell us a little about yourself?

I’ve been a software engineer for the last 25 years and live in sunny Texas (currently). I’m originally from Michigan but have moved around the country quite a bit over the years for work. I currently work remotely as an independent contractor. When I’m not working, I’m usually either golfing or running (both of which I’ve taken up recently).

How would you describe your role in your household?

Currently, it’s just me in the household, so I guess I’m the Chief Financial Officer, but also the guy who does the laundry and feeds the cat.

What drew you to PocketSmith?

Several years ago, I was looking for a tool to get a handle on all of my accounts, income, and expenses — something to pull it all together and make it easier to manage. I tried several other tools before landing on PocketSmith. From the moment I saw the calendar and the ability to forecast weeks, months, even years into the future, I was hooked. It made so much sense to me — this is how I was thinking about my finances anyway (I think a lot of people do), and finally, a tool was actually mirroring that internal thought process. I loved it right away.

How long have you been with us?

I’ve been using PocketSmith for just over 10 years. I can’t imagine managing finances or operating without it at this point. I can’t believe it’s been a decade, but also can’t believe that I somehow managed my finances — and stayed sane — in the dark days before PocketSmith.

What do you primarily use PocketSmith for?

I use PocketSmith for both personal finances and tracking income and expenses for my contracting work. I use it (especially the calendar) for forecasting both business and household operating expenses, and it allows me to be smarter about what I need to keep in everyday accounts, and what I can move to investment accounts, etc.

How has PocketSmith changed the way you do money?

I can say with confidence that the complexity of my finances would be completely unmanageable without PocketSmith. It’s not just a tool to make things easier — it’s as essential to me as my electricity service. I make smarter operating and expense decisions, and consequently, smarter long-term investment and savings decisions as well.

What are your favorite features?

Calendar, calendar, calendar! It’s an absolute game-changer. Being able to adjust scenarios and roll ahead months and years to see how that affects your bottom line is a special brand of magic that I never want to go back to living without.

Got any tips?

Dive in and play with forecasting and scenarios. If you’re still a Free plan user, try the Foundation plan for a month and see how being able to forecast up to 10 years into the future changes how you look at things (no, I don’t work for PocketSmith, really!)

What’s the best money decision you made in the past 12 months?

Renewing my PocketSmith subscription.