Deal with it NOW...or Deal with it LATER

This month my sister and I are in the midst of getting our mother settled into her new home in an assisted living community.  Her memory is going and she is no longer able to live independently, so we’ve had to sort through her lifelong accumulation of worldly possessions and figure out what to do with it all. 

I am learning a lot as we go through this process with my mother, so this month I am sharing a few tips with you.  You or someone you love may be going through similar circumstances.  If you are not dealing with this presently, you’ll probably have to at some point in the future.  Here are some tips that I hope will help you.

Deal With Your "Stuff" Now!
To whatever extent you can, I encourage you to get rid of clutter, and encourage other family members to do the same.  Here’s my definition of clutter:  Anything you own, possess, or do that does not enhance your life on a regular basis.  

When we moved my mother from Phoenix to the Seattle area six years ago, I wrote an article called Letting Go: De-cluttering Your Life.  I did what I could in 2002 to help her “let go” of some clutter, but she was not ready to say goodbye to much of it and we paid to move it up to Seattle with her.  Now that she has moved into a studio apartment in an assisted living community and can no longer afford her storage unit, she had no choice but to let go. My mother paid to store things for six years, most of which she never looked at and never needed.  Let’s see…a Public Storage space rented at $98 a month for a total of 77 months … she paid $7546 over the years to store things that we finally just went through with her.  Most of it was either given to charity or was tossed. 

Whenever possible, I encourage you to let go sooner rather than later.  Otherwise,  you will saddle your loved ones with the task of dealing with your worldly possessions when the time comes that you can no longer manage it all yourself.  If you can help an older person in your family to let go, it makes it so much easier when the time comes. Also, by de-cluttering now, they have the opportunity to enjoy their environment more!  I have a friend whose mother isolates herself in her home because she is too ashamed to invite others in to see her clutter.

In addition to helping loved ones, consider looking at your own clutter.  Do the things in your environment enhance your life on a regular basis?  What would be possible if you let go of it?  Imagine how you might use the space, who you might invite into your home or office, or what you might do with the money you'd save.  There are huge costs to storing clutter or not being able to find what you need when you need it.

Getting the help of a professional organizer can be extremely helpful.  I encourage you to check out www.napo.net (the National Association of Professional Organizers) to find a member in your area who is qualified to assist.  

If you want help managing things in your office, please register for a free monthly webinar this week!  See the end of this article for more details.

Feed Your Brain
It’s difficult to see someone you love slowly lose their memory.  Over the past few years my family has witnessed my mother’s brainpower diminish, to the point that her doctors have said she can no longer live alone.  Her long-term memory is still intact, but her short-term memory is rapidly declining. 

Up until about a decade ago, it was believed that we were born with a fixed number of brain cells that eventually died.  Now scientists know that brain cells regenerate throughout our lives.  To keep your memory sharp for as long as possible, get moving!  Studies have shown that people who engage in aerobic exercise perform better cognitively and show increased brain volume.  In another study, participants who exercised showed lower rates of dementia.  That’s because exercise actually encourages neuron generation in the part of the brain that processes memories.  Of course, it’s good for your heart, muscles, bones, mood, and many other functions, as well.

Leverage Your Time
My sister and I have both spent an enormous amount of time assisting my mother, especially over the past month.  We both have businesses to run and other responsibilities to tend to.  Going through this process reminds me of the importance of being able to leverage my time, so I don’t take a huge financial hit when I must cut back my work hours for any reason.  Life happens -- health challenges, a family crisis, or something wonderful like having a baby -- all of which can significantly alter our ability to work.  The more we are able to leverage our time, the less these life experiences throw us off. 

For several years I have been putting things in place to leverage my time, so even though I have significantly cut back the number of hours I’ve devoted to my business over the past month or so, my income has remained the same. 

Here are some articles I've written about this topic:
The Power of Leverage
Do You Have the Time?

Leverage Your Money

My mother has not only done a poor job of saving and investing, but she also accumulated a huge credit card debt and took out a second mortgage last year – something my sister and I both tried to talk her out of.  Although she needs income for her retirement years, she doesn’t have any cushion left and is now in deep debt. Instead of living comfortably in retirement, she is now in a real mess.  Unfortunately, my mother's story is not uncommon.  So many others have fallen into similar circumstances.

With our economy in the tank and so many investments taking a hit, many people are in a panic right now, especially the elderly, who don't have "years" to recoup their losses.  The sooner you look at your long-term financial plan, the better.  Do you have enough insurance coverage, including long-term care insurance and adequate health insurance?  Have you been saving for a comfortable retirement? If so, do you have a diversified investment portfolio so you are not completely devastated by such things as a stock market downturn or crash?  Are you working with a trusted financial advisor who is looking out for your best interest?

Many people have fallen into the trap of believing that they cannot afford to save right now.  A larger percent of our population plans to save when they “can afford to.”  In our Western culture, we keep raising our standard of living, so even if our income goes up, so do our expenses.  If you want to save, you must cut some expenses.  For the last two months I have been tracking where every dime goes, and it has been a real eye opener.  I have a number of small expenses that I could easily cut out and not miss. The little nickel-and-dime things can add up quickly.  I realized that when I started tracking where the money goes.   

I bet that most people could save at least $10 a day without really feeling it.  Think about the beverages, snacks and fast food that you consume on the go.  Now imagine if you invested that money over the years.  Any amount saved and compounded becomes significant over time.  For more information about this, visit Robert Kiyosaki’s site at http://www.richdad.com/.  In his book, Rich Dad, Poor Dad, he says: “My rich dad said, ‘The poor and middle class work hard for their money.  The rich have their money work hard for them.’”

For many years I have lived comfortably and have not “needed” to budget to make ends meet.  I’ve recently created a budget because I realize that if I want my money to work for me, I must plan to include investments as an automatic line item in my budget.   

No matter how much money you have, set a budget and stick to it!  You will be amazed at how much you can invest over time.

Whether you are considering your health, your home or work environment, your finances, or something else important to you, NOW is the time to deal with things, not "when I get around to it."

We don't plan to fail.  We fail to plan. 

What's your plan?