You can do it put your back into it

Did you know that if your back hurts it’s advisable to strengthen your abs? Did you also know that if you did 1,000 crunches a day you’d still be left with flab and back pain?

Perhaps your answers are: “No.” “No again.” And “what does this have to do with my financial fitness?!”
Hang with me for a minute.

The pain in your back is decreased the stronger your abs are. That’s because abs help hold up your body weight. (I learned this through my years as a former gymnast and current work as a workers compensation attorney.) So you might think that some crunches would do the trick. You’d be about half right. While crunches make your abs stronger they don’t reduce excess body weight. And excess body weight is usually a cause of back pain or at least a contributing factor. Here’s the bottom line: In order to alleviate back pain one needs to lose excess weight AND strengthen their abs. Make sense?

If you understand the connection between losing excess weight, strengthening abs, and easing back pain then you’ll also understand why you need to clean out your closet in addition to strengthening your good financial habits if you want to be financially fit. (Wow that was a mouthful but good job – you made it through 😉

Here’s the point (finally): Financial fitness can not be achieved by strengthening good habits only. You’ve got to lose the excess stuff in your drawers, closets, purses, cars, and homes.

Let’s make sure you get this whether or not you understand my back pain example: Clutter weighs you down and makes holding up your money harder; it makes your financial situation more painful. You definitely need to develop strong financial habits — we’ve been sending you tips on that and will teach you more in our workshops – but you’ll also need to let go of the things and habits that harm your finances.

Here’s why you need to clear out the clutter:

– It helps you feel like you’re making a fresh start
– It reduces the stress and chaos in your surroundings

– It allows you to see (and hopefully appreciate) what you already have

– It removes anything that no longer serves you and which sucks energy from you

– It makes it easier to take care of what you value
– It reduces feelings of overwhelm and makes decision-making easier

– It keeps you from wasting money

– It supports your organization skills in other areas of your life (like your finances!)

– It tells the universe that you’re available to receive (this is a BIG one that we talk  about more in Your Relationship with Money)
Trust us on this one — you will feel lighter and more peaceful

Here’s how we recommend you do it:

1. Empty the container (whether that’s a drawer, closet, purse, table/desktop, or car)
2. Wipe down the empty container
3. Go through the stuff and toss (or donate) anything that’s empty, expired, or you haven’t used in a year
4. Wipe down/clean everything that remains (that should make you think twice about whether you really wanna keep something)
5. Put each item back in a place that makes it easy to find and see

And here are some tips to getting it done and having fun while you’re at it:

1. Invite a friend over to help (maybe you can help them do the same – I’ve done this with one of my best friends from high school for years. It’s become our little tradition 🙂
2. Play some good tunes
3. Start small – your purse or one drawer – and use the small senses of the accomplishment to power you through bigger projects.
4. Once you get into it you’ll notice it’s strangely relaxing so just get started.
5. Plan it out (like one drawer a day and one closet a weekend) and schedule it
6. Give yourself a goal date or deadline (whatever language is more helpful)
7. Reward yourself (not with shopping, silly! something like a nice bath or some bad reality TV — Kardashians, anyone?)
8. Consider a “one in, one out” policy. So if you buy a new dress you have to get rid of one dress or one other piece of clothing.

By your clutter-free side,
Chelsea (and Olivia too!)

P.S. As if I didn’t give you enough to do already, please remember to vote today. Even if you’ll be looking at the candidates and the propositions for the first time at the polls. Political apathy is harmful to our collective financial fitness!