How Much Is Your Clutter Costing You?

I met Kate Grayson through the Female Founder Collective, a network of businesses led by women and supporting women, founded by Rebecca Minkoff and Polina Veksler and Alexandra Waldman of Universal Standard. Wow, do Kate and I have a lot to talk about! We quickly realized there’s a lot of common ground between my approach to home organizing and her approach to personal finance.

Hi! I’m Kate Grayson, Founder and Money Coach at Beyond Money. We help folks maximize their personal financial lives, in order to access their ideal lifestyle and future. I’m really excited to be here with you today, because if there’s one thing I’m sure of, it’s that money stress does not stay isolated in the financial world. It bleeds over into every other aspect of your life, including (you guessed it!)  your home.

When we get overwhelmed in life, it’s hard to know where to start. Your closet’s a mess, you don’t know how your credit card bill is so high, your groceries keep going bad in the fridge. I get it! We’ve all been there. When you’re over-stressed and under-organized in one area of life, it usually shows up in others too.

If you’re over-spending, it will probably show up in your closet (or garage! Or living room!). Most of us think that we like to spend on “experiences,” and that’s probably true! But when you’re over spending -- spending more than we make or can afford in a certain area -- it usually shows up in your house, because a lot of that surplus spending shows up as...less than necessary purchases that can clutter up your house. And for the record, this can show up at any income level! If we’re determined to spend, we can always find a way to live beyond our means, regardless of how much we make.

Now since you’re on Lucy’s blog, I’m assuming you’re interested in organizing and decluttering your home. As you begin to work your way through your rooms and possessions, I encourage you to stop and ask yourself: how much did these items cost? Really, make an actual list. Start with one drawer in your dresser and as you’re deciding what to keep and what to donate, write down each item. What did it cost? Where did I buy it? When did I buy it? How many uses did I get out of it? Would I buy this again? Is this how I choose to spend my money?

What none of us want is for these patterns to repeat themselves...it’s no good to clean your house of clutter only to re-buy everything next year. And it’s no good to pay off your credit card debt, only to have it build up again. Exiting cycles requires digging into your underlying behaviours. You have to understand what’s causing you to act a certain way -- what you’re trying to achieve and run from -- and how it’s related to other aspects of your life.

So maybe you’re choosing to tackle your shopping through working on organization with Lucy, or maybe you want to address it from the financial angle with me. But either way: they’re related! The good news is that when you conquer one, the other will naturally fall into place. Because who wants to clutter up their house again, when they’ve just put all that effort into becoming debt free?

Interested in learning more about how money coaching could help you? Schedule a time to chat here. I’m looking forward to meeting you!!

Thank you, Kate! Be sure to follow Kate on Instagram at @beyondmoney.co.