- 1). Find out what your billing period "really" is. If your wireless provider says your billing period ends on the first, it's natural to think our account refreshes to zero minutes that same day. Not so for companies such as T-Mobile. The company actually refreshes your minutes-usage on the second you originally started. Read the fine print on your bill or ask a representative at your cell phone company for the real deal.
- 2). Buy a spiral, ruled notebook or start an Excel spreadsheet on the computer. Whether you're handwriting your log or typing it into the computer, use a columns-and-rows format.
- 3). Create your log. At the top, write or type the following column headers: date, phone number, time start, time end, total time, text message in, text message out and 411. For the last three categories, you'll want to use check marks. Make sure you can access your log throughout the day.
- 4). Log your wireless activity. Write down your calls in order throughout the day so the morning calls show first and the nighttime calls show last. The ideal way to log your calls is to write down the phone number, date and time when you receive the call, then log the end time when you hang up. It's also ideal to do this when you've sent or received a text message or called directory assistance. If you can't log your activity as it happens, see Tips for ways to handle this.
- 5). At the end of each day, total your call minutes. If you get free minutes after a certain time, draw a line between calls made before that time and calls made after. Do a separate calculation for each. Use a calculator with receipt paper so you don't lose track of the numbers you entered. In Excel, you can add a new row above the calls made after your free-minutes hours and use your formula tool to calculate only those minutes.
- 6). Total your activity at the end of the month. Start a new sheet by creating columns for the day, total minutes, total texts and directory assistance calls; then calculate all of your numbers.
- 7). Match your log with your bill. If you have AT&T, check whether the company included rollover minutes for the time you did not use. In all cases, if there's a discrepancy, look for the detail in question in your daily log and call your wireless provider to discuss it.
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