What do you like to do in your down time? Perhaps you enjoy settling in on the sofa and reading a good book. Maybe you prefer to go on a walk or take a bike ride in your neighborhood. Whatever your favorite method of relaxation is, one answer we don’t hear a lot of is cleaning or organizing the house. Let’s face it—there’s a bunch of other things we’d rather be doing in our spare time than scrubbing our bathrooms or cleaning the kitchens. But you have to admit it, once you actually do, doesn’t it feel amazing?
There’s really no better time than now to de-clutter your life; after all, a new year means a new you. Having a closet in your home full of mystery contents or a drawer with too many miscellaneous items is so last year. This is 2018; this is going to be your year where your life has minimal chaos and excessive order.
It sounds a lot scarier than it is; after all, we’re always afraid of some potential, hidden problem we’re going to find. But getting your finances in better shape, particularly with tax season right around the corner, is going to be the most therapeutic and beneficial way to get a fresh start in 2018.
Here are a few things we consider to be helpful to declutter your financial life in 2018:
Pay Bills Immediately
Never receive a bill, set it aside, and pay it later. Not only are you adding extra steps to your process, but you are just adding more paper to an already growing list of bills. Instead, open your mail as you are in your home office, and pay your bills immediately with a computer in front of you. Better yet—set up automatic online payments as you work on that computer.
Buy a Shredder
Bills like credit card statements and bank statements don’t need to be saved; often your bank will easily be able to access that information online for you. We recommend you go for a cross-cut shredder to help declutter your files.
Ditch Paper Receipts
There’s an app we are loving right now that will easily declutter your life in 2018. Foreceipt Receipt Tracker is a great way to take pictures of your receipts and organize them digitally, set budgets, and track your spending. It’s an easy way to both store the information you need while significantly cutting down on paper.
Organizing your storage, re-evaluating your financials, or cleaning out your closet doesn’t have to mean that book that you’ve been reading gets abandoned. Decluttering your life and sorting out your bills means bringing a renewed balance between your professional life and your personal life. For more information on how to start the new year right by better financial organizational tips, contact your friends and experts at Fairmont Federal Credit Union. Call 304-363-5320 or visit one of our locations today.
