How does your money feel about how you carry it? Is money feeling well cared for in a lovely home that has room for all of it? I’m talking about your wallet.

Money is very important in your life, whether you want this to be the case or not. You spend about 40 hours of your life every week working for it! You have many, many places that you need and want to spend it. So does your wallet reflect something as important as this?

I often ask new money coaching clients if I can see their wallet. Many sheepishly drag out something they are not super proud of. It is crammed full of “stuff”, or it is almost empty because it’s what they grabbed that morning.

One issue I find is that people feel very financially scattered, and this carries over into their wallet habits. They carry their debit card in one place and their cash in another. (Is your cash stashed in nooks and crannies of pockets or loose in your purse?) They keep receipts here and there, and somewhere is their checkbook.

If this is the case for you too, then your money is feeling fractured. If you want to honor money, carry it all together. Carry your card in the same place as where you keep your cash and your receipts.

Certainly heading out to a night club may be an exception. Perhaps you only take your license, lipstick and cash. But generally speaking, use the same wallet every day. You may change your purse, but don’t change your wallet. It helps you keep your money life together.

I have a beautiful brown leather wallet. It is just the perfect size—for me. It has room for receipts in one place and cash in another. It carries my cards, and my checks. When I sit down to work on my money, all my receipts are in one place, along with my checks. I’m never hunting for my debit card and nothing ever gets lost. It is very easy.

Your wallet is the literal and figurative home for your money. If you want to honor money (and money is likely to stick around and increase if it feels honored) then consider its current- and most personal- home.

Consider a “wallet makeover” if:

* Your cash is crammed in your pockets or side of your purse
* You’re not sure where all your cash is
* Your debit card roves around
* You carry your checkbook in different places
* Your checkbook get’s rumpled and sometimes torn because it moves around
* Your wallet is not large enough to carry your cash, receipts and card (and checkbook if you write checks)
* You don’t like your wallet and are embarrassed to take it out

I tell clients that one of our first jobs is to help them get their arms around their money and come out of the “money fog”. If you want to get your arms around your own money, then a great place to start is cleaning out your wallet and carrying the same one with you all the time. Money will thank you.

Challenge: Is it time to buy a wallet you truly love? Or is it time to stop playing wallet roulette? Share your thoughts!