By Sue West
Certified Organizer Coach® and Certified Professional Organizer®, Space4U, LLC

You're wondering if you can afford to take that leap out of the corporate world and into self-employment. Or you're in your 50's and trying to figure out when/if/how you can retire, and what that so-called retirement looks like from a financial perspective. Or you're divorced and wondering how to handle your net worth, now that you're on your own. Great questions. And you've decided that now is the time to nail down some solid answers.

Whether you will be exploring these important questions on your own or working with a financial planner, any analysis of this sort is going to require quite a bit of reliable input to produce a reliable result. Yes, that's right: I'm talking about paperwork. Income, outflows, savings, investments, assets, liabilities... and don't forget goals, timelines, investment philosophy, and personal preferences. They all must be factored in -- but first you've got to pull them together.

So there’s work to do and it looks like a lot at first glance. And yet... you're chomping at the bit to meet and get your answers.

This article is for you if you'd like advice on quickly and easily assembling this information. Remember the point of this information gathering - so that YOU can move on to your next chapter.

Here's Your Plan of Attack

Instead of looking for papers, reframe it to be more motivating.

You're looking for and organizing the information so that...

• you can prove to yourself that you can manage your own financial situation, since you're now widowed or divorced;
• you can pass along key information to your kids, as you move into later stages of life;
• next year's taxes will be far easier and less painful to get done.

And then the practical steps:

1. Set aside time to work on this, just as you would your taxes.
2. It's up to you whether you schedule a block of time or in small steps. Given how busy we are these days, my suggestion is to break this up into small chunks of time to fit into your regular schedule.
3. Schedule an appointment (or a few) in your calendar to get this done. This is in support of that big life goal, so it deserves your focused time, doesn't it?
4. If working with a financial planner, set your date with her first; this gives you a deadline.
5. Decide who is best at finding and organizing these papers. Or, make it fun - with music, a friend, or listen to a show.
6. Find or purchase a portable product to keep your papers organized. You''ll quickly know what you have and what you don't.
7. Print each form your financial planner sends or create your own checklist. In the margin, check off the information you HAVE.
8. Keep a separate list of which documents you'll need to locate. You'll locate these later.
9. Make a chart or a list: What do I need - Where is it- Do I have to call for a new copy - Do I have to make a copy/scan it. This is useful because you can get all the copies done at once, saving time and legwork. All the phone calls in one sitting.
10. Get the easy ones done first. It's motivating to check off a lot to get yourself started.
11. If you are missing information your financial planner requests, but have most of it, ask how critical is that piece you're missing.
12. As you're looking for papers, why not use your keep/toss chart -- keeping in mind that the list may need to be modified for the particulars of your situation.

And of course, if this was a difficult or time consuming exercise, I'll suggest that you spend some time figuring out a new system to keep track of and organize these key documents, year over year. If you've tried several systems and none seems to work for how you think and work, it may be time to hire an organizing coach. Successful systems are about the products, the process and the people, or how we are wired. The way I organize my papers is different from how a friend organizes hers. Both systems are successful because we find what we need - and take us minimal time to get started - to help us move on!

Meet Sue West, Certified Organizer Coach and newly published author. Check out her book Organize for a Fresh Start: Embrace Your Next Chapter in Life, available now on Amazon!