Once you make the decision to move forward in life apart from your spouse, you are compelled to make numerous other decisions that you might otherwise wish to avoid. For example, you must decide how mutual possessions will be split, whether you will continue to interact socially with mutual friends and how you will cope with the transition from a household financially defined by two people’s needs to a household defined primarily by yours.

Financial changes tend to be among the most jarring of the transitions inspired by divorce. Thankfully, you can begin preparing now in order to thrive financially in the future. The key to this goal is approaching your current situation and your divorce process generally with a forward-focused outlook.

For example, you may currently feel like gathering and organizing all the financial documents relevant to your current budget, property division settlement process and future financial goals is a task that is less appealing than jamming a spoon into your eye. Given how emotionally depleted and physically overwhelmed you likely are at the moment, this is a completely normal response to this task. But if you think about the task as critical to your future happiness and wellbeing, it may suddenly not seem like such a daunting item on your to-do list.

In addition, it is critical to think about your current budget and approach to property division settlement as future-focused processes. You need to not only survive the present moment, you need to set yourself up for future financial success. Please speak to an attorney experienced in matters of family law if you have questions about either the logic behind this approach or how to embrace it successfully.

Source: Forbes, “Perspective And Preparedness For Divorcing Women,” Jeff Landers, July 23, 2014