So, after making it to my late-20s without a money plan, I’ve decided to meet with a professional — a financial adviser (someone comes highly recommended from a person whose judgment I trust). I have a phone call scheduled for next week to review my financial big picture and to, hopefully, learn of any mistakes I’m making with my money.

In preparation, I’ve been searching for tips about what to do before meeting with an adviser.  Here’s some advice I’ve found:

Get the numbers
You won’t get far without hard numbers, advises David Ning from personal finance blog MoneyNing in a piece for US News & World Report. Compile statements from all your bank, investment and retirement accounts and send them to your adviser.

This was a good exercise for me. Too often, I divide up money tasks instead of concentrating on my overall financial health. For example, I’ll dedicate a Sunday to verifying transactions on my checking account. Two weeks later, I’ll pay my Roth IRA a visit. A few weeks after that, I’ll check in on my 401(k).

Knowing that a stranger will be seeing these numbers is a bit nerve-racking. Yet just like doctors need personal information, so does the person helping you become financially healthy.

Give some thought to the future
Having an open mind is important — yet so is having some long-term goals for your money, according to a guide from Hartford Investor. What are you saving for? When do you want to retire, and will you have enough money to do it?

Looking at my account histories has made me aware of the fact that I don’t have financial goals. Money from my paycheck tends to chill in my checking account until it’s spent, rather than get routed toward investments for my future.

I do automatically route some of my money each month into a savings account (and meticulously track the amount in it). Yet unfortunately, the same cannot be said for my Roth IRA. I guess car problems and vacations are immediate, pressing needs (and wants), while retirement just seems so far away.

Study up on financial basics
A working knowledge of investment terminology and products will help streamline the meeting, Ning advises. I figured I had a sufficient grasp on money matters (I do work for a personal finance website). Then I got an email from my adviser with some investment performance charts. Let’s just say I’ll be doing a bit more studying.

Next week, I’ll be blogging about some things I learned from this first meeting — and (hopefully) some of my new money goals. With turning over a new financial leaf in mind, here are some of the best money blog posts of the week:

Money Crashers has some advice for couples who want to stop fighting about money.

Fitz from Ready to be Rich shares his favorite methods for avoiding procrastination.

According to 20 Something Finance, Generation Y might be leading the frugal revolution.

Financially Poor gives readers some techniques for overcoming debt fear.

SavingAdvice describes three tell-tale signs that you’re trying too hard to “keep up with the Joneses.”

Life and My Finances is “swimming” in cash after selling an unneeded vehicle.

• Receipts: I save receipts in case I need to return things. I’m pretty sure, however, that Banana Republic isn’t going to take back that dress I bought in 2009. All 61 receipts in the box went into the shredder.
• Bank deposit slips: I had lot of these hanging around, although Martin says you can toss them as soon as the money appears in your account.
• Credit card and bank account statements: I’m ashamed to say I found a handful of bank account statements in unopened envelopes. From 2008. Martin says the expiration date of bank account statements is generally one year (although it’s a good idea to keep any that contain images of checks). As for credit card statements, you can toss them after checking them for accuracy.
• Old tax returns: Martin points out that the IRS has a period of limitations when it comes to reviewing old returns. To be on the safe side, I shredded only the returns from before 2006 — after scanning them and saving the images on two separate flash drives. The thick stacks of paper made a very satisfying noise as the shredder devoured them.
• Utility bills: I found a cache of electric and gas bills from St. Louis, which I left in 2009. It was a good idea to keep them for a few months (I had to dispute an inaccurate charge after I moved out). But three years? Into the shredder they went.

Sounds cool, right?  Rather than pulling out your wallet, you’d just waive you smart phone in front of the register.  You’d get an electronic receipt right on your phone.  This method of payment is already big in Japan. 

But don’t write off plastic just yet.  For consumers, there are issues of convenience and security.  At $200 per register, merchants may be reluctant to install new readers.  This means that the places that accept pay-by-phone may be limited.  You’ll still have to carry your card anyway.  And some experts fear that a lost or stolen cell phone could pose more of a risk than a card alone.

Personally, I don’t see the advantages of pay by phone.  Not having to carry a card? I’m still going use a wallet to carry driver’s license, cash, business cards, library cards, grocery lists, etc.  Not having to swipe? Yea, that’s huge labor savings.  Not having the theft risk of my credit card numbers exposed? I’m sure thieves have already figured out how to intercept the signal between my smart phone and the register.  Plus, do I really want to migrate my credit account every time I get a new phone or carrier?  I think I’ll keep my card and my phone separate for now.