Simplifying My Wallet

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Wednesdays are simplicity days at SimpleProductivity blog.

A few years ago I ditched the traditional woman’s wallet that generally is the size of a brick and weighs about the same. I could never find what I needed, and my shoulder was painful from the weight of the purse.

I don’t necessarily think this is a female thing, as the wallet episode from Seinfeld pointed out, and my observance of my husband’s wallet confirms.

Why Simplify The Wallet?

The most pressing reason to simplify my wallet was that I was no longer able to find things. I couldn’t find change, the correct discount card, receipts or notes. At the same time, I realized that more than 90% of what I was carrying didn’t need to be carried with me at all.

I wanted to be able to put my wallet in a pocket without having to worry about it falling out or injuring me. And I wanted to be able to get to what I needed quickly.

Just because you could bring along a microwave oven for camping in the desert doesn’t necessarily mean you should. Pare down and simplify.

How To Simplify A Wallet

• Find out what is in there. First of all you need to know what’s in there. I challenge each of you, while you are reading this, to pull out your wallet and empty it out. Completely.
• Sort everything. Make piles according to what it is: currency, coins, membership cards, receipts, credit and bank cards.
• Throw away anything that is expired. Take the precaution of shredding things with personal information.
• Week out your coins. Do you really need to carry $5.00 of change with you everywhere? I doubt it.
• Purge your membership cards. Most of my membership cards are not used weekly. The exception is my library card. The rest are stored in a business card holder that I keep in the car. But here’s a secret: often you don’t need the membership cards for a discount: ask the clerk to look up your information. I find myself avoiding stores where I have to have the card on me to get the discount.
• Pare down the other cards. Do you need to carry six credit cards? (Not to mention what your credit report looks like…) Keep one or two. Lock up the rest (and close them, if possible).
• Examine receipts. Do you need to keep them? If so, put them aside. Get rid of the rest.
• Put everything back, or in a new wallet. When I did this last, I was able to get everything into a very slim wallet that fit into my back pocket.

By purging your wallet you are going to find that you have an easier time getting to things you need. In addition, you might find yourself feeling lighter and happier!

Photo by miss_rogue