Seeing People Change Their Money Lives

Any time I "talk money" with individuals or groups, I have in the back of my mind the amazing results I've witnessed in clients' lives. They inspire and excite me, especially because I've seen the same results across all income levels and for those with varying life circumstances.

It's a truth that when you change your money, you truly change your life. And if I ever come across as...ah...enthusiastic about budgeting and changing money views and habits, it's only because I want the same for everyone!

What are those results, you ask? Please allow me to share what I have seen in clients who get on-purpose with their money:

Happy Results

1. A shift from scattered or stuck to focused. 

Many of the clients I work with are trying to do several things at once. Save, invest, pay extra on all debts, plan elaborate vacations. Guess how much headway they're making on any one of those goals? Ding ding ding! You're right! Not much.

In addition to the tangible effects a lack of progress engenders, being stuck simply doesn't feel very good. Progress is what feels good, and whether you are scattered or stuck, the resulting feeling is the same.

One client had had plenty of money, but dealt with a lot of stress trying to keep track of their robust spending and had no idea how much they really needed to live on.

She therefore didn't know if she was being irresponsible (irresponsible = jeopardizing her future) each time she arbitrarily decided how much they should transfer in from business income.

As she became more focus with her money and spending, she grew calm around money and all the parts of life influenced by money. She had the information she needed to make decisions and organize their spending and income needs.

Money has this way of touching all of life, so when you bring more calm to it, all of life becomes more calm.   

2. Empowered to make decisions. 

I've seen multiple clients paralyzed about making decisions because they don't know what they can afford. They don't know what they will jeopardize by making a wrong decision. So they either put off decisions or take a Hail Mary approach, hoping they didn't just spend the mortgage payment on the summer trip to Disneyland.

The Hail Mary purchases are usually made on a credit card, leaving a future version of you to deal with the aftermath. I know this well, considering it's the financial approach I perfected in my 20's. Accepting the real costs of life, and the limits of income, and making planned-out decisions has only upsides for your present and future!

3. Same page in marriage, better balance. 

It gives couples a shared place to organize their money and talk about priorities. Both voices are essential in this conversation. a conversation that happens as you plan your spending. That's all budgeting is, planning how you will allocate/spend your money.

In some couples, one has been shouldering the weight for years while the other rides passively along, stressed by the unknowns and potentially resentful. When they get organized with money, they can start driving the bus to mutually desirable locations.

Getting on-purpose with money, together, reduces resentment for the unmet expectations that haven't been fulfilled. The latter is what happens when one person isn't showing up to their household money conversations to advocate for their expectations.

4. Things feel possible that formerly didn't. 

This one is so exciting to be part of. To see people who have been reconciled to status quo—whether they like it or not—lift their heads up and see that they actually could be debt-free in 24 months, or go through grad school debt-free, or pay cash for the home remodel project they've been dreaming of, or {fill in the blank} is beyond exciting.

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So, what's in it for you?

Which of these results could you stand to experience? All of them? Oh yes.

You will have your own spin on each of them, and perhaps discover some not listed above. For example, one client said she slept better, literally and not figuratively. I'm excited for what can be ahead for you if you choose to let 2022 be your year of doing money different.