We all know the catch phrase from those credit card commercials but can you actually answer the question? Do you really know what is in your wallet, ladies what about your purse? A key piece of managing your personal finances is to identify what it is you need to manage. The easiest place to start identification is where you use money the most, your wallet. Right now I want each one of you take your wallet out, our empty your purse and list out everything you have in it right now. Here is my list:
- Drivers license
- Expired Insurance Card
- Sam’s Club Card
- Staples Rewards Card
- Marriott Rewards Card
- Thrifty Rewards Card
- Drug Card (No Good, I don’t even have that insurance anymore)
- Priority Club Rewards Card
- Professional Association Membership Cards X 4
- 1 X Business Card (SuburbanMoney.com)
- 3X Debit Cards
- Personal Credit Card
- Work Travel Card
- Library Card
- Flex Spending Card
- Library Card
- Health Insurance Card
- Dental Insurance Card
- Coffee Rewards Card
- Lunch Eatery Rewards Card
- 2 X Business Cards (SuburbanMedia.com)
- Infragard Membership Card
- McDonalds Gift Card
- $3 Cash
- Food City Value Card
- ~6 Receipts
HOLY CRAP! That was a lot of shtuff in there. No wonder I am always uncomfortable sitting down. Now look at your list and of everything on it, what do you really need to carry around with you? I don’t travel as much as I used to for work so I really don’t need any of those rewards cards or my travel card in my wallet. So what made it back into my wallet?
- License
- Sam’s Club Card
- Expired Insurance Card ( I can’t find my curent one )
- 2 X Debit Cards ( I just closed one account)
- Personal Credit Card
- Coffee Rewards Card
- Lunch Rewards Card
- 4 X Business Cards (SuburbanMedia.com) hey I made room
- Health Insurance Card
- Dental Insurance Card
- McDonalds Gift Card
- $3 Cash
I was able to eliminate over half of the crap in my wallet. That is how much extra stuff I was carrying around that I didn’t need. Sure some of the stuff I took out is useful but only in specific situations so there is no reason to keep it on me all the time.
This was just the first part of this exercise. From here we can start to expand our inventory and look at the things in our homes, our cars, and our portfolios that are excess baggage we don’t need to carry around. Once you list everything out you can easily identify what is providing value to you and what is weighing you down. I had no idea I had all of that stuff in my wallet until last night when I wrote this post, I am scared and excited to start taking inventory of the rest of my life and eliminating the excess baggage.
So readers what’s in your wallet/purse? Leave a comment and let us know what you have going on.
{ 13 comments }
Kyle,
I am not going to list everything in my purse because I have TOO MUCH CRAP in my purse.
Instead, I will give you a sampling:
1. Wallet
2. Coupon wallet
3. LOTS of papers (receipts, business cards, random coupons, notes from meetings, etc.)
4. 2 blackberries – 1 work, 1 personal
5. tissues
6. lip gloss
etc.
In my wallet, I have the following:
1. amex
2. health insurance card
3. gymboree visa
4. costco membership card
5. dental insurance card
6. amazon visa
7. debit cards x 3
8. discover card
9. chase freedom visa
10. HSA debit card
11. orchardbank visa
12. Driver’s license
13. restaurant receipts x 3
14. traffic ticket – warning
15. frequent buyer punch cards x 3
16. Citibank Visa
17. CapitalOne Visa
18. Banana Republic Card
19. NY & Co card
20. Work CC
21. $199.46
22. Work extra driver’s license for special vehicles at my facility
23. Dr’s appointment card
24. aaa visa
Thanks to you, I got rid of 13, 14, and 23.
My wallet has:
1.Drivers License
2.$34
3.Insurance Card
4.Blockbuster Card
5.Taco Mac Passport Club Card
6.Kroger Card
7.Debit Card
8.Old Student ID
9.Key Card for my Apt
10.Reward Cards for Dressed, Jersey Mikes, and Rising Roll
11.3 Business Cards
Just getting rid of 4…possibly 8 and 11
I might hold onto that old student ID card if I was you. There is a lot of places that give student discounts and all they require is you having a valid student ID card. Hanging on to that may save you money down the road. They don’t actually check expiration dates most of the time.
Your tweet made me feel bad for you so here you go. 😉
1. Check book (Totally worth it because I often forget to pay rent until the last minute so having it with me at all times helps.)
2. HSBC card (Don’t ever use it. It’s off limits. But I keep it with me so it doesn’t get misplaced in a drawer like my social security cards.)
3. Papa Murphy’s free pizza card (after I buy 12 family size pizzas)
4. 2 Papa Murphy’s coupon cards
5. Debit card (Also not used)
6. $23 in cash
7. Whole lot of change that I am not counting right now. :-p
8. Driver’s license
9. Student ID
10. Library card
11. Gift card to store where we buy our movie candy
12. Lots of receipts that I need to throw away but was keeping for my blog spending report.
I feel good about that list since I’m the only woman I know who doesn’t carry a purse. I carry a wallet and a cell phone. 🙂
I’m a featherweight compared to you Kyle. My wallet has my drivers license, insurance card, personal credit card, business credit card, and about $40 in green stuff.
That’s it, very slim wallet, in the front pocket. Don’t need the back problems.
-Rob
.-= GL3 Media´s last blog ..Thesis 1.7 Preview =-.
It really is a back issue to have that thing in my back pocket. Crazy rough, although not so bad now that I have lightened the load a little. You could even go with a small money clip or other money band type deal. I will trade you my $3 for your $40.
Sometimes I think about going the money clip route. A nice sterling silver one sounds nice. Then again I dunno if a big hunk of metal is the right choice for me either.
I’ll trade my $40 for your $3, if you pay up in American Silver Eagles.
.-= Simple Llama´s last blog ..Simple Llama 2.0 =-.
I tried a money clip once, it was a bad idea.. It put a hole in ever pair of jeans I had. I still kept it in my back pocket so I would sit on it and it would scrape a hole in the pocket. Now you could go with the true minimalist route and get a “Money-Band”
Contents of wallet: (holy cow, I need to get rid of a few things)
1 CA drivers’ license,
2. Expired CA drivers’ licence
3. Expired insurance card
4. visa card for emergencies (US account)
5. Debit card for regular banking/spending (French account)
6. French Social Security card (proof of insurance here)
7. 15.73 euros in bills and change
8. receipts, business cards and expired bus tickets (what was I thinking?!?!?)
9. My Carte de Sejour (French green card)
10. My husband’s expired French ID card?!?!?!
I thought I was organized, guess not.
.-= Simple in France´s last blog ..Building blog communities the Yakezi way =-.
Wallet contents:
1. Provincial Health Card
2. Driver’s License
3. Checking account #1 card
4. Checking account #2 card
5. VISA
Moreover, I use a moneyclip, instead of a wallet.
.-= andrewbpaterson´s last blog ..Protected: QuikPic: What a G! =-.
I would be willing to bet that without looking I could probably not guess all the contents within my wallet. I think it is pretty good that others know exactly what they have.
.-= Bill Gassett´s last blog ..Massachusetts Homestead Protection Act =-.
Ok, I tagged this and am just getting to it now:
1) Bank ATM card
2) Boarders Rewards card
3) Insurance card
4) Drug Plan Card
5) Dental Plan Card
6) Fidelity 529 Mastercard
7) AMEX Open Card
8) AMEX card from employer
9) AAA card
10) Staples Rewards Card
11) Picture of my daughter I need to update
12) picture of me from 1981 when I had long hair
13) Costco Card
14) BJs Card (free 3 mo)
15) CVS card
16) CVS gift card
17) Rite Aid Gift card
18) Star Buck Card
19) Dunkin Donut card
20) $142 cash
That’s it. I swear.
Wow a lot of George Costanza wallets on here LOL
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