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We've all had a few questionable relationships. Some were romantic, some were professional, and some involved a credit card, an abandoned gym membership and a business idea that cost thousands of dollars and produced approximately three customers.

But what if your financial history has a few more skeletons in the closet than you realize?

In this episode of Naked Money Meetings, Erin Skye Kelly introduces a rather unconventional concept: your financial body count. It's a look at all the financial relationships, decisions, accounts and commitments you've accumulated over the years, including the ones you've completely forgotten about.

And here's the interesting part: some of those old financial relationships might actually owe you money.

From forgotten retirement accounts and unclaimed government cheques to abandoned subscriptions and money you lent your ex, Erin and Keri are going on a financial scavenger hunt. It's time to clean out the financial cobwebs and see what's still hiding in your past.

What Is Your Financial Body Count?

Your financial body count isn't about how many financial mistakes you've made. It's about looking at the financial decisions and relationships you've accumulated throughout your life.

Think about it:

• The credit card you promised yourself you'd pay off immediately.

• The gym membership you stopped using but continued paying for.

• The investment account you opened during your brief stock market era.

• The business venture that seemed brilliant at the time.

• The money you lent someone who mysteriously disappeared.

Sound familiar?

Erin explains that the number itself isn't nearly as important as identifying the patterns behind those decisions.

Are you repeatedly spending money when you're bored? Lending money to people who don't pay it back? Signing up for subscriptions because future you is apparently going to become a completely different person?

Understanding those patterns can help prevent the same financial mistakes from following you into the future.

Why Your Financial Mistakes Tell a Story

Here's something Erin emphasizes: financial mistakes don't automatically mean you've failed.

Sometimes an expensive decision teaches you something valuable. Other times, it teaches you to actually read the fine print before signing up for something that sounds too good to be true.

Erin knows this firsthand. Her own journey included $2.1 million in debt, and her experience transforming her financial life is what led to her bestselling book, Get the Hell Out of Debt.

The goal isn't to shame yourself for past decisions. It's to understand what happened, what it cost, what you learned and whether there's anything left to recover.

And trust us, there may be more than you think.

How to Find Forgotten Money and Old Accounts

This is where things get interesting.

Erin introduces the Financial Body Count Scavenger Hunt, a practical exercise to help uncover forgotten money and financial accounts.

Some of the first places to investigate include:

Old bank accounts and retirement plans: Check previous checking and savings accounts, credit unions, RRSPs, pensions and employer-matched retirement plans.

Forgotten investment accounts: Look for old brokerage accounts, small investments and cryptocurrency wallets.

Unclaimed money: Search government unclaimed-property databases for forgotten cheques, refunds, insurance proceeds, deposits and inheritances.

Payment platforms: Check PayPal, Interac e-Transfers and other payment apps for balances that never made it back into your bank account.

Old insurance policies: Look for forgotten policies, cash values and coverage you may no longer need.

You might even discover money from a previous employer or an old government payment that you never collected.

Keri has a particularly good example involving an uncashed government cheque worth approximately $115. The only problem? She still hasn't completed the paperwork to claim it.

Erin, naturally, has opinions about that.

What Financial Subscriptions and Debts Are You Still Carrying?

Forgotten money isn't the only thing worth investigating. Sometimes the bigger problem is money quietly leaving your accounts.

Erin recommends reviewing:

• Old credit cards and recurring charges.

• Buy now, pay later accounts.

• Student loans and their actual interest rates.

• Personal loans and lines of credit.

• Gym memberships and unused subscriptions.

• Professional memberships and business software.

• Old business bank accounts and credit cards.

• Storage units and timeshares.

• Unused airline credits, gift cards and store credits.

Pay particular attention to old business ventures. Domains, website hosting, software subscriptions and unused inventory can continue costing money long after the business itself has disappeared.

And if you've ever paid for a gym membership you barely used, Erin and Keri would like you to know you're not alone.

How to Start Your Financial Cleanup

You don't need to tackle your entire financial history in one afternoon.

Start by reviewing your email. Erin suggests searching terms such as:

• Refund

• Balance

• Credit

• Payment

• Renewal

• Investment

• Account

• Deposit

• Subscription

• Pension

• Retirement

• Insurance

Then look through old bank statements, tax returns, credit reports, filing cabinets, password managers and financial apps on your phone.

Even consider asking your parents about that box of important paperwork they might still have tucked away from when you moved out.

Finally, make a timeline of where you've worked, lived, banked and invested. Think about businesses you've started, money you've lent and financial commitments you may have forgotten.

The point is to understand your financial history so you can make better decisions moving forward.

As Erin and Keri remind us, you can't change your financial past, but you certainly don't have to keep paying for it.

And who knows? You might discover that your financial graveyard is actually hiding a little treasure.

Key Takeaways

• Your financial body count is about recognizing patterns, not judging past mistakes.

• Forgotten bank accounts, retirement plans and investments may still hold money belonging to you.

• Search government unclaimed-money databases for old cheques, refunds and dormant accounts.

• Review recurring subscriptions, gym memberships and unused business expenses.

• Check outstanding loans, student debt and money you've lent to other people.

• Search your email, old paperwork and phone apps for forgotten financial accounts.

• Ask yourself three questions about past financial decisions: What did it cost? What did I learn? Can I recover anything?

   

  Listen to this full episode of Naked Money Meetings now

  There's a lot more to this financial scavenger hunt, and Erin and Keri have plenty of stories, laughs and questionable financial decisions to share along the way.

  Could you have forgotten money sitting somewhere? Listen to the full conversation and do your own financial body count.

  Listen on Apple Podcasts: Your Financial Body Count - Apple Podcasts

  Erin's Books

  • •  Get the Hell Out of Debt
    •  Naked Money Meetings 

  Financial Resources Mentioned in This Episode

  For Canadian listeners:

  • Bank of Canada Unclaimed Properties Office  - Search for forgotten bank balances, eligible government bonds and other unclaimed funds.

  • Government of Canada: Unclaimed Bank Balances 

  • Government of Canada: How to Get Your Free Credit Report 

   

  Listeners outside Canada should search their own government's official unclaimed property or unclaimed money database.

  To continue the conversation, join us online:

  https://www.facebook.com/groups/nakedmoneymeetingspodcast 

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  2. Your Money Changes When You Do - Apple Podcasts 

  3. Being Nice Is Expensive - Apple Podcasts