Being disorganized is expensive

Being Disorganized is Expensive!

Karen CaccavoGetting organized, Paperwork Organizing

Are you disorganized?  Have you considered investing in assistance from a financial organizer / daily money manager or another type of professional organizer?   When weighing the cost of professional services, be sure to put into the equation the cost of NOT getting the help you need. Being disorganized costs you BIG. Surprise!  Being disorganized carries a big price tag, in …

Looking closely at vital documents

Document Vital Information

Karen CaccavoImportant Documents, Living Independently, Organize my finances

I’m a financial organizer / daily money manager.  I help clients manage their financial paperwork.  In my previous career as an insurance broker, I learned the importance of documenting client needs and information, and I use that experience in my work with senior clients. Now more than ever my senior clients need the support of another set of eyes or …

April 15th is the Usual Tax Return Deadline -- but not in 2020!

Tax Time Lessons Learned

Karen CaccavoOrganize my finances, Tax Organizing

In the middle of tax time in 2020 — my 13th tax season as a financial organizer / daily money manager — I find that working with a client to organize their tax documents and information can provide a great learning experience for both of us.* “Tax time?” you ask.  “Hasn’t that been put on hold?” Yes, but while July …

I Participated in Alzheimer’s Research: This is What it Was Like

Karen CaccavoCognitive Decline, Financial Organizing

On a hot and sticky August afternoon, I arrived for my appointment as a volunteer Alzheimer’s research participant at the Nathan S. Kline Institute for Psychiatric Research (NKI) in Orangeburg, NY. I was going to participate in NKI’s Memory Education and Research Initiative (MERI) Program, a study begun in 2003 to provide both evaluations to members of the community and …

As a financial organizer, I keep both the big picture and the details in focus at all times. It's a balancing act.

The Big Picture and the Details

Karen CaccavoDaily Money Managers, Financial Organizing, Important Documents, Paperwork Organizing, Working with Clients

As a financial organizer / daily money manager, I keep both the big picture and the details in focus at all times.  It’s a balancing act that’s essential to doing the job well. In a typical month-end client visit, I and my client open and review the bank statement. Using this as a jumping-off point, here’s how I zoom in …

Organizing your papers may not at first seem scary. Other than a few cobwebs and dust bunnies, what’s the worst danger that can be hiding in the far corners of an attic or file cabinet? You may be surprised!

Does Danger Lurk in Your Paperwork?

Karen CaccavoImportant Documents, Paperwork Organizing, Working with Clients

Organizing your papers may not at first seem scary.  Other than a few cobwebs and dust bunnies, what’s the worst  that can be hiding in the far corners of an attic or file cabinet? Does danger lurk in your paperwork? You may be surprised! In my work as a financial organizer / daily money manager, clients have shared with me …

What worries keep seniors up at night? What "elephants in the room" remain unacknowledged?

Facing the Elephants in the Room

Karen CaccavoLiving Independently, Working with Seniors

What worries keep seniors up at night?  What “elephants in the room” remain unacknowledged? Many of these “elephants” exist for clients and their families.  Here are some of the concerns my senior clients have shared with me.  They may sound familiar: “I will start to slip and important things will fall through the cracks.” “l’ll be a burden on my …

Bring that back-to-school energy to your financial organizing

Bring that Back-to-School Energy to Your Financial Organizing

Karen CaccavoFinancial Organizing, Organizing Tips

Feel the energy and anticipation of the back-to-school season?  After a long lazy summer, change is in the air!  (And regular readers know that I enjoy any excuse to “hit the refresh button” when it comes to my specialty, financial organizing / daily money management).  So what is it about autumn back-to-school time that can inspire your financial organizing?  Here …

keep vs. shred

Paperwork: Keep vs. Shred

Karen CaccavoImportant Documents, Paperwork Organizing

The question I get most often as a financial organizer / daily money manager (Personal Money Manager™)  is “What do I need to keep and what do I need to shred?”  Sometimes, anxiety over this question stops clients in their tracks—they’re afraid to do anything with their papers for fear that they will part with the wrong ones. As with …

Practicing yoga and organizing your paperwork have a lot in common.

Yoga and Organizing: Making the Connection

Karen CaccavoLife Lessons, Paperwork Organizing

Readers of this blog know that I enjoy making connections between my work as a financial organizer / daily money manager and the other seeming disparate parts of my life—like “mommy” to a new kitten and keeper of a sourdough starter.  (For more, explore the “Life Lessons” category on my blog).  In this post, I explore the connection between yoga …