“Never trust anyone who has not brought a book with them” – Lemony Snicket
This quote must be somewhat of a joke in this age of smartphones, iPads & Kindles. A book doesn’t arouse curiosity as much as a smartphone app probably these days. Google Keep, Evernote, Colornote etc, the Google Playstore or the Apple App Store are filled with APPS to make the daily TO DO list easy. Everything seems to be at the fingertips these days .
In such a world EXIDE LIFE has come up with a MONEY BOOK. I must admit that when I first read about it, I was very skeptical. We are living in a virtual world, a world where typing on a keypad is more fashionable than writing in a book and most of the time convenient too but nevertheless I was curious to know about this book and hence I applied for the review.
When the package arrived, what I found was a nice handy, compact book, neither too big nor too small. The fact that it was hardcover bound was the icing on the cake which meant longer shelf life.
Now coming to the inside, I opened the cover(Which by the way has a large heart on it) and read the introductory page which gave a 3 point gist of what the book is all about.
– Helps you stay organized
– Its useful when you need it the most
– Its easy and useful
This is followed by the standard PERSONAL INFORMATION page seen in all diaries where you enter your personal details. A section is even included to enter the details of ones family members, contact number, blood group etc. What I found really thoughtful was that they had even provided a section for IMPORTANT PEOPLE like doctor, Chartered Accountant , Advocate and Financial Advisor. You need any of them? They are at your finger tips!
The First section of the book is MY INSURANCE POLICIES which is further divided into
– Life Insurance
– Health Insurance
– Motor Insurance
– Property Insurance
This section is absolutely without any flaws. The space provided for each of the sub entries is adequate with upto 8 Insurance policies allowed. That should cover everyone in the house! Everything has been thought of including “Company Helpdesk Number” Somebody has indeed spent a lot of time detailing this book!
Section 2 is MY BANK DETAILS which has been sub divided into
– Accounts
– Lockers
– Demat Accounts
– Credit Cards
Again the amount of detailing here is amazing. From Account number to the branch IFSC code, they have thought about everything. If there’s one grouse I have in this section is that only 2 bank accounts are allowed. When you can allow entries for 8 insurance policies surely you have allow at least 4 bank accounts. Something for the guys at EXIDE to think about in the next edition.
Section 3 is MY LOANS with sections for
– Home/ Property Loans
– Auto Loans
– Personal/ Consumer/Durable Loans
To have actually divided sections for Home/ Auto & durable loans is fantastic!
Section 4 is MY INVESTMENTS subdivided into
– Fixed Deposits
– Mutual Funds
– Property
– Public Provident Fund
– National Pension Scheme
– Other Investments
Not only have they thought about the usual investment schemes, They have even provided abundant space for OTHER investment schemes.
This book definitely achieves what it was meant to and that is to keep your finances totally organized. All in all, however gadget savvy you are, this is a book you would enjoy having!
