“Clutter” is one of those words that gets tossed around (guilty as charged!); but what exactly is it? A gardening friend recently told me: Do you know what a weed is? It’s a plant you don’t like that’s growing where you don’t want it. As a financial organizer, I’ve transplanted this definition from the garden to the house. After all, …
Financial Paperwork — Get it Done, With Belly Laughs
No question about it, the financial paperwork that accumulates on my clients’ desks and kitchen tables—from tax documents to medical bills—is no laughing matter. It all has to be taken seriously. But that doesn’t mean that we can’t also have fun. As a financial organizer, I get my best results by actively engaging clients in the process, and making the …
My First 100 Days as Your Financial Organizer
I’m often asked what I do as a financial organizer / daily money manager. (Understand, first, that I am not a financial planner or advisor; I don’t work with your investments.) So what should you or a family member of yours expect from working with me? What is my role? Why does someone contact me for help? In short: to …
“What Should I Do With All The Books?”
I grew up in a home full of books. My parents — avid collectors — took us to book fairs the way other kids are taken to the zoo. But my real education in the book world occurred when my mother moved into assisted living and eventually passed away, leaving thousands of books behind. I was left to figure out …
What is a Daily Money Manager … and Why You Need to Know!
Late payment notices, overdraft fees, missed deadlines, confusing medical bills–you don’t have to be a senior to encounter these unwelcome surprises in your mailbox. While keeping up with paperwork is something people of all ages must do, it can be especially overwhelming for seniors and the disabled. A trusted family member or friend can help, but people often do not …
5 Paper-Organizing Challenges … and How to Overcome Them
In my 10 years of financial organizing / daily money management, I have seen the good, the bad, and the ugly when it comes to people’s attempts at paper-organizing. Here are the top paper-organizing challenges that have tripped up my clients, and the solutions I have shared with them and helped them implement: No “landing strip” for your mail. One …
Billions in Unclaimed Funds: is any of it Yours?
Here’s my best unclaimed funds experience as a financial organizer. It was not an unusual first visit with a client who had contacted me to help manage her paperwork. What was unusual was the very first envelope I picked up from the pile of unopened mail. Inside was a letter from a bank saying that if they didn’t hear from …
Finding Memories on the Back of an Envelope
Clients expect me, as a financial organizer / daily money manager, to be all business, forging ahead with one goal in mind: to work with them and conquer their paperwork clutter. But my work as a financial organizer is more nuanced. After all, I am working with people, not just paper! The key to success in my close-to-10-years in business …
Daily Money Managers: No Longer the Best-Kept Secret
Daily Money Managers (and the important financial organizing work they do with clients) are in the news! In case you missed it, here’s a short roundup of what’s being said about DMMs with links to the complete articles. Last June, The Wall Street Journal quoted Personal Money ManagerSM in “When Aging Parents Need Help With Financial Tasks.” That article states: Daily …
Jump Into Your Taxes
Ready to take the leap? Start with setting up a 2017 Taxes file. Yes, you read that right. Start on next year’s taxes now! (Of course, have a bin ready for your 2016 tax documents as they arrive. Put it right next to where you put arriving mail.) While it’s tempting to stop there, I urge you to soldier on! …