"I'm a dad who traded my career as a top-ranked financial advisor to raise my kids, but my passion for finance never stopped growing. After 27 years of studying money management, I'm here to make it simple and fun for your family. After all, your destination is decided by the journey you begin today. Let me help you walk it, one month at a time."
The Bottom Line Up Front: That refund hitting your bank account isn’t a windfall. It’s your own money coming back to you. And what you do with it in the next 72 hours will tell you everything about whether you’re still the old financial you, or the new one climbing toward the summit.
Let me guess what’s happening right now.
You filed your taxes. You’re getting a refund. And you’re already thinking about what to buy with it.
Maybe it’s that thing you’ve been eyeing for months. Maybe it’s a weekend trip. Maybe it’s just “treating yourself” because you feel like you earned it.
I’m not here to judge. But I am here to ask you one question:
Are you buying freedom, or are you consuming?
Because here’s the truth most people don’t want to hear: your tax refund isn’t bonus money. It’s not a gift from the government. It’s money you overpaid all year that’s finally coming back to where it belonged all along—in your hands.
And what you do with it in the next few days will show you exactly who you are financially.
The Consumption Trap
I’ve watched this pattern play out hundreds of times.
Someone gets a $2,000 refund. They’re excited. They feel like they just won something.
And within two weeks, it’s gone.
New TV. Night out. Online shopping spree. Upgrade the phone. Book a flight.
All consumption. Nothing invested in the climb ahead.
And here’s what happens next: three months later, that same person is stressed about money again. The emergency fund is still empty. The debt is still there. The financial anxiety is still crushing them.
Because they consumed the refund instead of using it to buy freedom.
What It Means to Buy Freedom
Freedom isn’t a vacation. Freedom isn’t a new purchase.
Freedom is waking up and knowing you have options.
It’s having one month of cash reserves so you’re not living paycheck to paycheck anymore.
It’s paying off that credit card so you stop hemorrhaging interest every month.
It’s maxing out your Roth IRA contribution so your future self doesn’t have to scramble.
Freedom is what you buy when you use money to reduce stress instead of create temporary pleasure.
And your tax refund—if you’re getting one—is the single best opportunity you’ll have all year to buy a significant amount of freedom all at once.
The Test of Who You’re Becoming
Last week we talked about emptying your financial backpack to see what you’ve been carrying.
This week, you’re making a choice about what to put back in.
The old financial you puts consumption back in. Stuff. Experiences that don’t build anything. Short-term pleasure that disappears.
The new financial you—the one who’s ascending this mountain—puts tools back in. Things that make the climb easier. Things that reduce the weight you’re carrying.
Your refund is the test.
Are you still the person who consumes windfalls? Or are you becoming the person who deploys them strategically?
Where Your Refund Should Actually Go
Here’s the honest answer: I don’t know where your refund should go.
Because I don’t know what your greatest financial weakness is right now.
But you do.
If you have no emergency fund: Your refund just became the foundation of your safety net. Put every dollar toward building that first month of cash reserves. That’s buying freedom from paycheck-to-paycheck panic.
If you’re carrying high-interest debt: Your refund just became a debt destroyer. Attack the highest-interest debt first. Every dollar you put there is buying freedom from interest payments draining your account every month.
If your foundation is solid but you’re not investing: Your refund just became your future. Max out your Roth IRA contribution for the year. That’s buying freedom for future you.
If you’re already doing all of those things: Then yes, enjoy some of it. But even then, consider using most of it to accelerate your climb. Freedom compounds. Consumption doesn’t.
The answer isn’t the same for everyone. But the question is: where do you need freedom most?
What to Do Right Now
If you’re expecting a refund, here’s your action step before it even hits your account:
Decide where it’s going before you have it.
Not “I’ll figure it out when I get it.”
Not “I’ll see how I feel.”
Right now. Today. Decide.
Is it going to your emergency fund?
Is it going to debt?
Is it going to your Roth IRA?
Is it going to finally fix that financial weakness you’ve been avoiding?
Write it down. Make the decision now, while you’re thinking clearly, before the money is sitting there tempting you.
Because once it hits your account, the consumption voice gets louder. The rationalizations start. The “just this once” thoughts creep in.
Make the decision now. Lock it in.
The New Financial You
You’re not the same person you were in January.
You’ve been tracking your spending. You’ve been building your safety net. You’ve been emptying your financial backpack and examining what you’re carrying.
The Bottom Line Up Front: Every experienced hiker knows you can’t climb efficiently with a backpack full of unnecessary weight. Tax season is when you empty that pack, examine every single item you’ve been carrying, and decide what actually needs to come with you. Here’s what three days of tax season reminded me about financial organization and the weight most people don’t realize they’re carrying..
I’m sitting at my desk at 5am on a Friday, three days deep into tax preparation, and I’ve just finished my second cup of coffee.
Spreadsheets are open. Documents are scattered across my desk. My digital files look like someone detonated a bomb in a filing cabinet.
And as I sort through another year of financial activity, I’m reminded of something every serious hiker learns the hard way:
You have no idea how heavy your pack is until you empty it out and look at every single thing you’ve been carrying.
That’s exactly what tax season is. It’s the mandatory moment every year when you dump out your financial backpack, spread everything on the ground, and confront the reality of what you’ve been hauling up the mountain.
And for most people, that moment is sobering.
The Backpack You Didn’t Know You Were Carrying
Here’s what I’m finding as I go through my own taxes this week—the same patterns I saw working with hundreds of clients as a financial advisor:
People are carrying subscriptions they forgot existed. As I comb through my credit card statements for deductible expenses, I found one monthly subscription I’d forgotten about and a couple of annual subscriptions I no longer need. None of them feel heavy on their own. But add them up over a year? That’s weight you don’t need to carry.
People are carrying tax bills they could have avoided. I’m watching people around me scramble because they owe money they didn’t budget for. Not because they did anything wrong. But because they didn’t look in their backpack throughout the year to see what they were actually carrying.
Tax season doesn’t add weight to your pack. It just forces you to see the weight that was already there.
And more importantly, tax season is when you reorganize your financial backpack—deciding what stays, what goes, and how to pack it better for the climb ahead.
Why Tax Season Matters More Than You Think
I know most of you would rather do literally anything else than think about taxes right now.
I get it. I’m a former financial advisor, and I still hate this part.
But here’s the truth: tax season is the one time every year when you’re forced to see your complete financial picture.
Every dollar you earned. Every deduction you took or missed. Every account you have. Every financial decision you made for the past twelve months.
It’s all right there in front of you, whether you want to see it or not.
And that clarity—as uncomfortable as it is—shows you exactly what’s been weighing you down.
What I’m Learning From My Own Financial Backpack
Three days into this, here’s what sorting through my financial backpack is teaching me:
When you’re married, you’re climbing together—and filing together. This morning I was going through credit card statements looking for deductible expenses, and I found several charitable donations my wife made that weren’t in my donation folder. If I hadn’t been thorough with the credit card review, we would have missed claiming those deductions entirely. When you file jointly, you’re carrying one combined backpack. You need to know what’s in it from both sides.
Organization doesn’t mean the work is easy—it means the work is thorough. Yes, my donation receipts are in the right place. Yes, my accounts are organized. But matching receipts to credit card statements and verifying every deduction still takes real time and attention. There’s no five-minute shortcut to doing this right.
I’ve been carrying subscriptions I don’t need. That monthly subscription I forgot about and those couple of annual renewals I no longer use? That’s money leaving my account every month that could have been going toward my safety net instead. Tax season is when you catch these things.
Every single one of these things is weight I didn’t need to carry. And I only found them because tax season forced me to empty the pack.
The Questions You Need to Ask When Reviewing Your Financial Backpack
As you prepare your taxes this month—and you need to be preparing them, not avoiding them—here are the questions you should be asking:
What am I carrying that I don’t need?
Look at every subscription charge. Every account. Every recurring payment. If you’re not actively using it, why is it still in your pack?
I guarantee you’re paying for something right now that you forgot you had. Tax prep is when you find it.
What deductions am I missing?
If you’re itemizing, you need to comb through your credit card statements with a fine-tooth comb. Charitable donations. Business expenses. Medical costs. Property taxes.
The people who get the most deductions aren’t the ones who spend the most. They’re the ones who keep the receipts and do the work to claim what’s theirs.
Where are my documents actually going?
Do you have a system for tax documents, or are you scrambling every March to find things?
I’ve watched people waste hours looking for a single W-2 or 1099 that got buried in email. That’s weight. Set up a folder—digital or physical—and put everything there the moment it arrives.
Am I giving the government a free loan?
If you’re getting a big refund, congratulations—you overpaid all year. That’s your money the government has been holding interest-free.
Adjust your withholding. Take that money home in every paycheck instead and put it to work building your safety net, paying down debt, or investing. Don’t let it sit in the government’s backpack when it should be in yours.
Why do I want to look broke by December 31st?
Here’s advisor language most people don’t know: you want to maximize your deductions by year-end. Make charitable donations in December, not January. Max out your retirement contributions before the calendar flips. Prepay property taxes if it makes sense.
The government doesn’t care what you earn. They care what you earned minus what you can legally deduct. The lower that number, the less you carry in taxes.
The System You Need to Build Right Now
Here’s what I’m doing differently this year, and what you should do too:
Create a tax folder today. Every W-2, every 1099, every receipt, every statement goes in one place the moment you get it. No exceptions. No “I’ll file it later.”
Review your withholding if you’re getting a refund. Use the IRS withholding calculator. Adjust your W-4 with your employer. Get your money in your paycheck, not in April.
Track deductible expenses as they happen. Don’t wait until March to figure out what’s deductible. If you make a charitable donation, file the receipt immediately. If you have a business expense, categorize it the same day. And if you’re married, make sure you’re both putting receipts in the same place so nothing gets missed when you file jointly.
Set a reminder for December 15th. That’s when you review what you can do before year-end to reduce next year’s tax bill. Max out retirement contributions. Make charitable donations. Harvest tax losses if you’re investing.
You can’t fix December in April. But you can fix next December right now by building the system.
What This Has to Do With Your Financial Journey
You might be wondering why we’re talking about taxes when we’ve been focused on emergency funds.
Because you can’t climb efficiently with unnecessary weight in your pack.
And taxes—how you handle them, how you organize them, how much you overpay or underpay—are weight.
If you owe money in April you didn’t budget for, that’s weight that crushes your emergency fund progress.
If you’re getting a huge refund, that’s money that should have been building your safety net all year instead of sitting uselessly with the IRS.
If your financial life is so disorganized that tax season causes you three weeks of stress, that’s mental and emotional weight you’re hauling up the mountain.
Tax season is showing you what’s in your pack. What you do with that information determines how efficiently you climb.
Your Action Steps This Week
File your taxes properly and on time. No extensions unless absolutely necessary. Do it right, do it thoroughly, and get it done.
As you prepare, track three things:
What surprised you (subscriptions, accounts, expenses you forgot)
What you wish you’d tracked better throughout the year
What weight you’re carrying that you don’t actually need
If you’re getting a refund: Adjust your withholding and redirect that money monthly.
If you owe money: Figure out why and set up quarterly estimated payments if needed.
Start your tax folder for next year today. Every document that arrives from here forward goes in one place. No exceptions.
Tax season isn’t punishment. It’s the moment you empty your financial backpack, see what you’ve been carrying, and decide what actually needs to come with you on the rest of the climb.
In January, we built our basecamp. We mapped out the year, set our financial intentions, and committed to the climb. In February, we focused on building our safety net — the cash reserves that catch us when life, as it always does, throws something unexpected in our path.
But here’s something every experienced climber knows that the guidebooks don’t always tell you. The mountain will break you if you never stop to breathe. If you put your head down and grind every single day without a moment to look up and take in the view, you won’t make it to the top. Not because the mountain beat you, but because you forgot why you started climbing in the first place.
That’s what this week is about. Fun Money.
Why Fun Money Is Not Optional
I want to be direct with you. Fun Money is not a reward for when you’ve “made it.” It’s not something you allow yourself after you’ve checked every financial box. Fun Money is a required line item in your budget — as essential as your rent, your groceries, and your emergency fund.
Here’s why. One of the most common reasons people abandon their financial climb isn’t because they lack discipline or intelligence. It’s because the journey feels like punishment. Every dollar is accounted for, every purchase is scrutinized, every impulse is denied. That works for about three weeks before human nature wins and the budget gets thrown out the window entirely.
The most successful financial plans I’ve ever seen — and after nearly three decades of living, studying, and advising on personal finance, I’ve seen a lot of them — are the ones that build enjoyment into the system from the beginning. Not as an afterthought. Not as a cheat day. As a planned, intentional, guilt-free category in the budget.
At Monthly Money, we’re not just about reaching the top. We’re about enjoying the climb. Because what’s the point of summiting a mountain you hated every step of?
Where This Idea Comes From
I’ll be honest with you about something personal. I grew up in a home where money was a constant source of tension. I watched my parents argue about finances more times than I can count, and eventually that financial stress contributed to their divorce. I was eleven years old when our family split apart, and I made a promise to myself that day — I would learn everything I could about money so I would never feel that powerless again.
But I also made a quieter promise. That when I built my own family, money would not be the thing that tore us apart.
My wife and I have been together for a long time, and I won’t pretend we’ve never had financial disagreements. Every couple does. But one of the systems that has genuinely protected our marriage — not just our budget — is Fun Money. We built it into our financial plan from the beginning, and it has diffused more potential arguments than I can count.
How the System Actually Works
Here’s the practical framework my wife and I use, and that I recommend as a starting point for any couple.
We set aside 3% of our combined net income — that’s take home pay after taxes — every single month. That 3% gets split in half. Half goes into her individual savings account. Half goes into mine. It happens automatically through a scheduled transfer so we never have to think about it or negotiate it in the moment.
That money is earmarked for one purpose only — to spend on whatever each of us finds meaningful, no questions asked and no justification required. If she wants to buy a piece of art for the living room or a pair of earrings I’d never understand the appeal of, that comes from her Fun Money. If I want to book a fly fishing trip or a river rafting adventure, that comes from mine. We don’t debate it. We don’t negotiate it. We simply say “it’s Fun Money” and move on.
I cannot overstate how many arguments that three word phrase has ended before they ever started.
Now, 3% is a baseline and a starting point — not a rule carved in stone. The best percentage is the one that two spouses can genuinely agree on and actually afford. If 3% of your net income works out to $100 a month, that’s $50 each. That might not sound like much, but here’s the beauty of the system — you don’t have to spend it every month.
I am a natural saver. There have been stretches of six months or more where I didn’t touch my Fun Money account at all, just letting it accumulate quietly while I focused on other things. And then one day I’d look at that balance and book something that genuinely filled my soul — a day of fly fishing in a mountain river, a challenging hiking expedition, an outdoor experience that reminded me why I work as hard as I do. I don’t place much value on material possessions. What I value is experience, adventure, and time in the wild. My Fun Money account makes that possible without a single dollar coming out of our family budget or a single conversation that starts with “do we really need to spend money on that?”
My wife has her version of that same freedom. And because we both have it, we’ve never had to fight over it.
This is my Fun Money in action — a trip to a mountain river that I saved up for month by month. Worth every penny.
What This Looks Like in Your Budget
If you’re single, Fun Money still belongs in your budget — it just looks a little different. It’s the category that gives you permission to spend on what brings you joy without derailing everything else you’re building. It’s the concert ticket, the weekend trip, the dinner out with friends that doesn’t send you into a guilt spiral afterward.
The Monthly Money Method is built around capturing the difference between what comes in and what goes out, then deploying that difference strategically. Fun Money is a strategic deployment. It’s not waste. It’s not weakness. It’s the investment you make in your own sustainability as a person who is playing a very long financial game.
The climbers who make it to the top are not the ones who never rest. They’re the ones who know when to rest, how long to rest, and how to use those moments to come back stronger for the next section of the climb.
Your Assignment This Month
Look at your current budget and find Fun Money. If it’s not there, add it. Start with 3% of your monthly net income and divide it equally if you have a spouse or partner. Set up an automatic transfer to a separate savings account on the same day every month — payday works well. Name the account something that makes you smile. And then give yourself genuine permission to spend it on whatever matters most to you, without guilt and without explanation.
The climb is long. The view along the way is part of the reward.
Last year, I was hiking in Oregon with my family. I was leading the group — map in hand, eyes down, mentally calculating how far we had left before we lost the light. I was so locked in on our destination that I stopped paying attention to where I was actually stepping.
Then I tripped over a rock. Nothing serious — a small cut on my knee, a bruised ego, and a lesson I won’t forget.
I was so focused on where we were going that I forgot to focus on where I was.
Your financial journey works exactly the same way.
The Trail Is Never Perfect
By now, you’ve done the math. You know what your safety net needs to look like. You’ve set your goals — maybe it’s one month of expenses, maybe you’re pushing toward three. That destination is clear.
But here’s what every experienced hiker knows and what every seasoned financial advisor has seen firsthand: the trail is never as clean as the map makes it look.
Something will break down. The car. The furnace. A appliance that quits on a Tuesday with no warning. Someone loses a job. A medical bill arrives that you didn’t see coming. These aren’t worst-case scenarios — they’re just life. The only thing unpredictable about the unexpected is the timing.
This is exactly why your cash reserve exists. Not as a punishment for spending. Not as money you’re hiding from yourself. It’s your trail cushion — the thing that keeps one stumble from becoming a serious fall.
Look Around You
Take a honest look at your life right now. Is it just you? A partner? Kids? A house, a car, maybe two? A pet that just became very expensive?
Here’s the reality: the more responsibilities you carry, the more surface area you have for the unexpected to find you. That’s not pessimism — that’s math. More moving parts means more chances for something to need attention, and attention usually costs money.
This doesn’t mean you live in fear of what might happen. It means you respect the trail enough to be prepared for it.
The Mindset Shift That Changes Everything
Most people treat saving as something they’ll do more of when things get easier — when they earn a little more, when the bills slow down, when life settles. It never settles. The Ascenders who build real financial security don’t wait for perfect conditions. They decide that saving is non-negotiable first, and they build their spending around what’s left.
That means paying yourself first — a minimum of 15% toward your future, whether that’s your emergency fund right now or your retirement account once your safety net is solid. It means automating what you can so the decision is already made before temptation shows up. And it means accepting that some wants get delayed so that your future self has options.
This week isn’t about exact numbers. It’s about adopting a money mindset — one that expects the trail to get rough and plans accordingly.
Focus on the Journey
The hardest part of any long hike isn’t the elevation. It’s the mental discipline of staying present when you’re tired, when the destination feels far away, and when the path isn’t what you expected.
I learned that lesson on a trail in Oregon with a cut on my knee. The destination hadn’t changed. But I’d stopped respecting the journey that was going to get me there.
Set your goals. Know your destination. Then put your eyes back on the trail.
The Bottom Line Up Front: AI is disrupting markets, industries, and jobs at a pace nobody predicted. While the world scrambles to react, the smartest financial move you can make right now isn’t buying AI stocks or panic-selling your portfolio. It’s building cash. Here’s why.
I want to tell you about a client I’ll never forget.
He was a financial advisor’s dream. Successful, motivated, and genuinely excited about investing. Over many years together, we built a diversified portfolio that any advisor would be proud of. Stocks, bonds, real estate, international holdings—the whole trail mapped out perfectly.
Then one day, during a bull market that seemed like it would never end, he called me.
“What’s your next best idea?” he asked.
I thought about it carefully. I looked at his portfolio. I looked at the market. And then I said something I don’t say very often:
“I know exactly what you need right now. And it’s not another investment. You need more cash.”
He went quiet for a moment.
“Cash?” he said. “Why cash?”
“Because when this bull market finally stumbles—and it will stumble—you’re going to want to keep your powder dry. You’re going to want the ability to scoop up quality assets at prices nobody believed were possible. And you can’t do that if everything you have is already deployed.”
He took my advice. And two months later, in September 2008, the market began to crumble. The real estate crisis exploded. The Great Recession had begun—a collapse that nearly brought our entire financial system to its knees.
My client didn’t predict it. He didn’t see it coming.
But he was ready. While others were scrambling to survive, he had cash. While others were forced to sell assets at devastating losses, he was quietly buying quality investments at prices that hadn’t been seen in decades.
Preparation didn’t require prediction. It just required building the base before the storm arrived.
I’m giving you the same advice today.
What’s Happening Right Now
Today, February 12th, 2026, the market had one of its worst days in months.
The Dow dropped 669 points. The Nasdaq fell nearly 2%. Software companies that were market darlings just weeks ago lost billions in value in a single session.
The culprit? Artificial intelligence.
Not because AI isn’t powerful. It is. But because markets are finally waking up to something the rest of us have been feeling for a while: AI isn’t just disrupting technology. It’s disrupting everything.
Jobs that existed for decades are disappearing. Industries built over generations are being rebuilt from scratch. Companies that looked untouchable six months ago are suddenly fighting for survival.
AppLovin—a company that just reported record profits—lost nearly 20% of its value today. Not because it did anything wrong. But because investors are asking a simple, terrifying question: what happens to your business when AI renders it obsolete?
That question is being asked across every industry right now. And nobody has a complete answer.
This is the AI Avalanche. It started as a rumble. It’s becoming a roar.
Why the Avalanche Matters to Your Financial Journey
You might be thinking: “I don’t own tech stocks. What does this have to do with building my emergency fund?”
Everything.
Here’s what history teaches us about periods of massive technological disruption:
They create winners and losers at a speed nobody expects.
The winners are the people who prepared. The ones who had financial stability when chaos hit. The ones who had cash reserves when others were scrambling. The ones who could make clear, rational decisions instead of panic-driven ones.
The losers are the people who were already stretched thin. One job disruption, one industry shift, one unexpected expense away from financial crisis.
Right now, AI is accelerating the pace of disruption faster than any technology in history. Jobs that seemed stable are being automated. Industries are consolidating. The economic ground beneath us is shifting.
This isn’t doom. It’s reality. And reality rewards preparation.
The Strategic Power of Cash Nobody Talks About
Here’s what Wall Street understands that most people don’t:
Cash isn’t just savings. Cash is a weapon.
When markets fall—and today is a reminder that they do fall—cash gives you options that nobody else has.
The wealthy don’t panic when markets drop. They go shopping.
When quality assets fall to prices that reflect fear rather than value, the people with cash reserves step in and buy. They acquire real estate when prices dip. They purchase stocks of solid companies at discounted prices. They invest in opportunities that only appear during periods of uncertainty.
The people without cash? They’re forced to sell at the worst possible time to cover expenses. They watch opportunities disappear because they have nothing to deploy. They make fear-based decisions instead of strategic ones.
My client understood this. That’s why “you need more cash” was the best advice I ever gave him.
It’s the best advice I can give you right now too.
Fortify Your Base Before You Climb Higher
Here’s the mountain climbing truth about where we are right now:
When conditions get unpredictable—when the weather changes and the trail becomes unstable—the smartest thing a hiker can do isn’t push harder toward the summit. It’s strengthen the basecamp.
Make sure your shelter is solid. Check your supplies. Ensure you have what you need to weather whatever comes next.
That’s exactly what building your cash reserve is doing right now.
I know some of you are reading this thinking about investing. About putting money into the market. About not “letting cash sit idle.”
I understand that instinct. But consider this:
If AI disruption continues to shake markets over the next 6-12 months, quality assets could get significantly cheaper. If you have cash reserves, you’ll be positioned to take advantage of those lower prices.
If you have no cash—if everything is already deployed and your emergency fund is empty—a disruption that hits your industry or your job puts you in survival mode, not opportunity mode.
Survival mode and opportunity mode are not the same place.
What This Means for Your February Mission
We’ve spent February building Safety Net #1: one month of cash reserves.
I want you to look at that mission differently now.
You’re not just building an emergency fund. You’re building strategic positioning.
Every $100 you add to your safety net is:
Protection against the job disruption that AI is accelerating across every industry
Stability that lets you make rational decisions when markets get volatile
Ammunition that positions you to take advantage of opportunities when they appear
Freedom from the panic that financial fragility creates
The people who will thrive through the AI avalanche aren’t necessarily the ones who understand AI best. They’re the ones who have the financial stability to adapt, pivot, and act when others can’t.
The Basecamp Principle
In hiking, you never abandon your basecamp until it’s solid.
You don’t push toward the summit with a leaky tent, insufficient supplies, and no safety rope. You prepare. You fortify. You make sure your foundation can support the climb ahead.
That’s what we’re doing right now in February.
The market is volatile. AI is reshaping the economic landscape faster than anyone expected. Industries are being disrupted. Jobs are changing.
This isn’t the moment to sprint toward the summit.
This is the moment to make sure your basecamp can handle whatever weather comes next.
Build your cash reserve. Strengthen your safety net. Fortify your financial base.
Because when the avalanche settles—and it will settle—the climbers who prepared will be the ones who reach the summit.
Your Action Step This Week
The market dropped today. AI anxiety is real. Economic uncertainty is real.
Here’s what you’re going to do about it:
Add to your safety net this week. Whatever amount you can. $50, $100, $200.
Not because you’re scared. Because you’re strategic.
You’re building the financial foundation that gives you options when others have none. You’re preparing your basecamp for whatever conditions lie ahead on this trail.
The AI avalanche is coming. Maybe it’s already here.
The question isn’t whether it will affect you. It will affect all of us in some way.
The Bottom Line Up Front: Building your first $500 doesn’t require huge sacrifices or perfect planning. It requires understanding that small amounts—$50, $100, $200—compound faster than you think. Here’s why thinking smaller might be the key to saving bigger.
If you’re reading this, I need you to pay attention—especially if you haven’t been watching economic conditions closely.
For those who have been paying attention, you already know: a storm is brewing.
Just like any mountain journey, your financial climb won’t always happen under clear skies. Sometimes the sun shines. Sometimes the trail is perfect. And sometimes—like right now—clouds gather on the horizon.
Unemployment is ticking up. Inflation is climbing. Market volatility is increasing. I could list a dozen other warning signs, but I won’t. There are enough news outlets drowning you in doom. That’s not my job.
My job as your guide is simple: inform you, educate you, and help you prepare.
And right now, preparation means one thing: building your cash reserve.
February’s focus on emergency savings wasn’t random. It wasn’t just another financial planning exercise. It was strategic. Because when storms hit—and they always do eventually—the climbers who survive are the ones who prepared while the sun was still shining.
Even when conditions are unstable, even when the news is bad, even when it feels like the worst time to be thinking about money—that’s exactly when you need to be working on your safety net.
You can’t control the economy. You can’t control inflation or unemployment or market crashes.
But you can control whether you have one month of cash when the storm arrives.
That’s what we’re building. Not because the sky is falling. Because the weather changes, and smart climbers prepare for it.
The Lesson I Taught My Son About Becoming a Millionaire
A few years ago, my son asked me how people become millionaires.
He was thinking about lottery winners and tech founders and inherited wealth—all the dramatic stories you see on TV.
I told him something simpler: “You want to know how to become a millionaire? Save or earn $1,000. Then do it a thousand times.”
He looked at me like I was oversimplifying.
But I wasn’t.
A million dollars isn’t one impossible number. It’s a thousand achievable numbers stacked on top of each other.
Getting to $1,000? Most people can figure that out. It might take a month, or three months, or six months depending on where you’re starting. But $1,000 is tangible. You can see it. You can plan for it. You can reach it.
And if you can do it once, you can do it again.
Do it a thousand times over your lifetime—through saving, earning, investing—and suddenly you’re a millionaire.
The impossible becomes possible when you break it into pieces small enough to actually accomplish.
That’s the lesson I taught him. And it’s the same lesson I’m teaching you about your emergency fund.
Your Safety Net Works the Same Way
Most people look at “one month of emergency savings” and see an intimidating number.
$2,000. $3,000. Maybe more.
That feels impossible when you’re starting with zero. So they don’t start at all.
But here’s the truth: you don’t build $2,000 all at once. You build it $100 at a time.
Your goal this month isn’t $2,000. It’s $100.
Then do it again. And again. And again.
$100 twenty times = $2,000.
Suddenly, the math doesn’t feel so impossible.
Why $100 Matters More Than You Think
Let me show you what happens when you focus on $100 at a time instead of the full amount.
Scenario 1: Thinking Big
You set a goal: “Save $2,500 for my one-month emergency fund.”
Week 1: You save $75. You look at your balance: $75. You’re 3% of the way there. It feels pointless.
Week 2: You save another $80. Balance: $155. Still only 6% there. You’re discouraged.
Week 3: Life happens. Car needs gas. You skip saving this week.
Week 4: You look at your $155 and think, “This is taking forever. What’s the point?”
You quit.
Scenario 2: Thinking Small
You set a goal: “Save $100 this month.”
Week 1: You save $75. You’re 75% of the way there. That feels real.
Week 2: You save $25. You hit $100. Goal complete. You celebrate.
Next month: New goal. Save another $100.
Week 1: You save $80. You’re 80% there again.
Week 2: You save $20. Goal #2 complete. You now have $200.
See the difference?
Same amount of money. Same timeline. Completely different psychology.
When you break the goal into $100 chunks, you win early and often. And winning creates momentum.
The Math of Small Wins
Here’s the simple truth: three $100 wins feel better than one incomplete $300 goal.
Most people don’t stop at $100 once they start. They hit $100 and keep going because they’ve built momentum.
You aim for $100 in Month 1. You hit $140. You aim for $100 in Month 2. You hit $120. You aim for $100 in Month 3. You hit $150.
You targeted $300 over three months. You actually saved $410.
That’s the power of thinking smaller to achieve bigger.
The First $500 Changes Everything
I’ve watched this pattern play out hundreds of times with clients.
The hardest part of building an emergency fund isn’t getting from $500 to $1,000. It’s getting from $0 to $500.
Because $0 to $500 is where you prove to yourself that you can do this.
It’s where the mental shift happens from “I’m trying to save” to “I’m someone who saves.”
And once you hit $500, something psychological shifts.
At $0: An unexpected $300 expense is a crisis. You panic. You reach for a credit card.
At $500: An unexpected $300 expense is still annoying, but it’s not a crisis. You have options. You can cover it and rebuild.
$500 isn’t financial independence. But it’s financial breathing room.
It’s the difference between panic and problem-solving.
And you get there $100 at a time.
Your Focus This Week: Hit Your Next $100
Forget about the full amount for a second.
What’s your next $100 milestone?
If you’re at $0, your goal is $100.
If you’re at $150, your goal is $250.
If you’re at $320, your goal is $400.
Pick the next hundred-dollar milestone and focus everything on hitting it.
Here’s how:
Option 1: Find it in your spending Look at this week’s expenses. Where’s $25? Can you skip two restaurant meals? Cancel one thing? Buy generic instead of brand name at the grocery store?
Do that four times = $100.
Option 2: Earn it Can you pick up one extra shift? Sell something you don’t use? Do one freelance job? Babysit one weekend?
One small gig = $100.
Option 3: Capture it Got a birthday coming up? Tax refund? Work bonus? Unexpected cash?
Any windfall = straight to the safety net until you hit your next $100.
The method doesn’t matter. What matters is hitting that next $100.
What Progress Actually Looks Like
Real progress isn’t a straight line. Here’s what it actually looks like:
Weeks 1-2: Save $125 total. Week 3: Emergency drains $40. Back to $85. Weeks 4-6: Rebuild to $300. Week 7: Skip saving (family expenses). Still at $300. Week 8: Save $80. Now at $380.
It’s messy. There are setbacks. But the trend is up.
By Week 8, you’re almost at $400—even with an emergency and a skipped week.
That’s $100 at a time adding up.
The Storm Makes This Even More Important
Remember what I said at the beginning: a storm is brewing.
When economic conditions get rough, the people who survive aren’t the ones with the highest incomes or the fanciest investment portfolios.
They’re the ones with cash reserves.
$500 in the bank doesn’t sound like much when times are good. But when unemployment rises, when hours get cut, when unexpected expenses pile up—$500 is the difference between weathering the storm and going under.
You can’t control what’s happening in the economy.
But you can control whether you have your next $100 saved before the storm hits.
Your Action Step This Week
This week, I want you to do one thing:
Hit your next $100 milestone.
Not your full emergency fund goal. Just the next $100.
If you’re at $0, get to $100. If you’re at $200, get to $300. If you’re at $450, get to $500.
One hundred dollars. That’s it.
Find it, earn it, or capture it. But get to that next hundred.
Because here’s what I know from watching hundreds of people build their safety nets:
The ones who succeed aren’t the ones who save the most at once.
They’re the ones who keep hitting the next small goal, over and over again, until the small goals turn into something substantial.
The Bottom Line Up Front: Before you invest, before you pay extra on debt, before you do anything else—build one month of cash reserves. Not $1,000. Not three months. One month. Here’s why it matters and how to do it.
If you’ve been following along with Monthly Money since January, you’ve spent the last month tracking your spending, identifying your leaks, and building systems that work when motivation fades.
Now comes February’s mission: building your first safety net.
In my years as a financial advisor, I used a simple visual to help clients understand cash reserves. I’d draw layers of safety nets—each one positioned to catch you before you fall to the next level down. Think of a mountain climber with multiple protection systems. If one fails, the next one catches you.
Most people want to build the highest net first. That’s a mistake.
Today, I’m going to show you how to build your first safety net—one month of cash reserves—and why it’s the most important financial decision you’ll make this year.
The Safety Nets: Your Layers of Financial Protection
Here’s how the safety net layers work when you’re climbing your financial mountain:
Safety Net #1: One Month of Essential Expenses ← You build this first What you need to survive for 30 days: rent, food, utilities, minimum debt payments
Safety Net #2: Three Months of Essential Expenses Same as Net #1, but 90 days of coverage
Safety Net #3: Six Months of Total Expenses All your expenses, including the non-essentials, for half a year
Safety Net #4: Investment Reserve Extra cash beyond six months that allows you to take calculated financial risks
Most people skip Safety Net #1 and try to build Net #3 immediately. They set a goal of “save $10,000” or “build a six-month emergency fund” and then get overwhelmed and quit.
Don’t do that.
Your only job in February is to build Safety Net #1: one month of essential expenses in cash.
Why One Month Changes Everything
When I worked with clients, the single biggest transformation I saw wasn’t when they hit six months of savings. It was when they hit one month.
Here’s what changes:
You stop living paycheck to paycheck. If your paycheck is late or there’s a processing delay, you’re not panicking. You have 30 days of runway.
You can handle small emergencies without debt. Car repair? Unexpected medical bill? You pull from your safety net instead of your credit card.
You gain decision-making power. When you have one month of cash, you’re not desperate. You can negotiate. You can say no. You can think clearly instead of reactively.
You break the panic cycle. Financial stress isn’t just about the amount you have—it’s about the fear of falling. One month of cash means you won’t fall all the way to zero if something goes wrong.
One month isn’t enough to quit your job or survive a long unemployment. But it’s enough to breathe. And breathing room is what most people are desperately missing.
How to Calculate Your One-Month Safety Net Goal
This is simpler than you think.
Pull up your tracking from January (you’ve been tracking, right?). Add up only your essential expenses for one month:
Essential Expenses
Your Amount
Rent/Mortgage
$_______
Utilities (electric, water, gas, internet)
$_______
Groceries (not eating out)
$_______
Transportation (gas, car payment, insurance)
$_______
Minimum debt payments
$_______
Insurance (health, life, etc.)
$_______
TOTAL = Your One-Month Goal
$_______
Notice what’s NOT on that list:
Streaming subscriptions
Eating out
Shopping
Entertainment
Gym memberships
Anything you could cut in an emergency
Your goal isn’t “one month of your current lifestyle.” It’s “one month of survival expenses.”
For most people, this number is $1,500-3,000. Not $10,000. Not six months. Just one month of the bare essentials.
Write that number down. That’s your February summit.
The Three Ways to Build It (Pick One)
You don’t need to be creative here. There are three ways to build your first safety net. Pick the one that fits your situation:
Method 1: The Leak Redirect
Remember those financial leaks you identified in January? The subscriptions, the convenience spending, the “just this once” purchases?
Redirect that money to your safety net instead.
If you found $300/month in leaks, that’s your safety net fuel. In one month, you’ll have $300. In two months, $600. You get the idea.
Set it up: Create an automatic transfer for the amount you’re saving from cutting leaks. Make it happen the day after your paycheck hits.
Method 2: The Paycheck Split
Every time you get paid, automatically move a percentage to your safety net account before you pay anything else.
Start with 10-15% of each paycheck. If you’re paid bi-weekly, that’s 10-15% of 26 paychecks this year.
Set it up: Schedule automatic transfers in your banking app. Treat it like a bill that must be paid—because it is. You’re paying your future self. Your paying for a safety net.
Method 3: The Windfall Capture
Got a tax refund coming? Bonus? Birthday money? Side hustle income?
Every dollar that isn’t from your regular paycheck goes straight to the safety net until you hit your one-month goal.
No debate. No “I’ll save half and spend half.” 100% to the safety net.
The fastest route: Combine all three methods. Redirect your leaks, split your paycheck, and capture windfalls. You’ll hit one month of cash in 6-12 weeks instead of 6-12 months.
Where to Keep Your Safety Net
This money needs to be:
Liquid (you can access it immediately)
Safe (not invested in stocks or crypto)
Separate (not sitting in your checking account tempting you)
Best option: A high-yield savings account (HYSA) at a different bank than your checking account.
As of early 2025, HYSAs are paying 3-5% interest. That means your safety net actually grows while it sits there. Compare that to a regular savings account paying 0.01%.
Good HYSAs to research:
Marcus by Goldman Sachs
Ally Bank
Barclays Online Savings
Openbank by Santander
Don’t overthink this. Pick one, open the account this week, and set up your automatic transfer.
What Happens After You Hit One Month?
Once you’ve built your first safety net, you don’t stop. You build the next layer of protection.
But that’s not February’s job. February’s job is Safety Net #1.
Here’s the path forward:
✅ February-April: Build one month of essential expenses (Safety Net #1) → May-August: Build to three months of essential expenses (Safety Net #2) → September-December: Build to six months of total expenses (Safety Net #3)
By the end of 2026, you’ll have multiple layers of protection and genuine financial security.
But it starts with one month. Right now. In February.
Your February Action Plan
Here’s what you’re doing this week:
1. Calculate your one-month essential expenses (use the table above)
2. Choose your funding method (leak redirect, paycheck split, or windfall capture)
3. Open a high-yield savings account (if you don’t already have one separate from checking)
4. Set up automatic transfers (schedule them for the day after payday)
5. Name your account (seriously—nickname it “Safety Net” or “Do Not Touch” so you remember its purpose)
That’s it. Five steps. All doable this week.
Then you let the system run. Every paycheck, money automatically moves to your safety net. You don’t think about it. You don’t decide about it. It just happens.
And by the end of February, you’ll have taken your first real step toward financial security.
The Real Reason This Matters
I’ve watched hundreds of people try to build wealth without a safety net.
They invest in the stock market and then have to sell at a loss when their car breaks down.
They pay extra on debt and then go deeper into debt when they lose their job.
They follow all the “right” advice and still feel financially fragile because they have no buffer.
You can’t climb a mountain without a safety rope.
Your first month of cash reserves? That’s your first net. It’s what keeps you from falling all the way back to zero when something goes wrong—and something always goes wrong.
It’s Week 4 of January. If you’ve been following along since the beginning of the month, you’ve been tracking your spending, analyzing your data, identifying your leaks, and making commitments for February.
And if you’re being honest with yourself, you’re probably feeling one of these things right now:
“I was so motivated three weeks ago. What happened?”
“I fell off the wagon already. I missed a few days of tracking and now I feel like I failed.”
“This felt exciting at first, but now it just feels like work.”
“I’m not sure I can keep this up for a whole year.”
If any of that sounds familiar, good. You’re right on schedule.
Let me tell you something I learned watching hundreds of people attempt to change their financial lives: the ones who succeeded weren’t the most motivated—they were the ones who knew what to do when motivation disappeared.
Because motivation always disappears. Always. It’s not a character flaw. It’s not weakness. It’s biology.
And today, I’m going to show you how to keep climbing even when you don’t feel like it anymore.
The Motivation Myth Nobody Tells You
Here’s what most personal finance advice gets wrong: it assumes motivation is a permanent state.
“Just stay focused on your goals!”
“Remember your why!”
“Keep yourself inspired!”
That’s terrible advice. And it’s why most people quit.
Motivation isn’t a permanent state. It’s a spark. It gets you started, but it doesn’t sustain you. Thinking you need to stay motivated for twelve months is like thinking you need to stay excited about brushing your teeth every single day for the rest of your life.
You don’t brush your teeth because you wake up each morning excited about dental hygiene. You brush your teeth because it’s a habit, a system, a non-negotiable part of your routine.
Your financial climb works the same way.
The people I worked with who actually reached their financial summits didn’t rely on motivation. They built systems that worked even when they felt like giving up. Especially when they felt like giving up.
So if your January fire is burning out, that’s not a problem. That’s just the signal that it’s time to switch from inspiration to infrastructure.
The Four Walls You Need When Motivation Crumbles
When motivation fades—and it will fade, over and over again throughout 2026—you need walls to hold you up. Not inspiration. Not willpower. Walls.
These are the four walls that keep climbers moving when they don’t feel like climbing anymore:
Wall #1: Automation
The Principle: If it requires a decision every time, you’ll eventually decide not to do it.
Remember those three commitments you made for February? The ones about saving money, cutting subscriptions, redirecting spending?
If executing those commitments requires you to manually remember and act every single time, you’ll fail. Not because you’re weak, but because decision fatigue is real.
What to do instead:
Set up automatic systems this week—right now, today—before motivation fades completely:
Employer retirement contributions (THE BIG ONE): If your employer offers a 401(k) or 403(b) match and you’re not contributing enough to get it, you’re literally leaving free money on the table. Set your contribution to at least the match percentage. This happens automatically from every paycheck, and it’s the single most valuable automatic system most people have access to. If you’re not sure what your match is, check with HR this week.
Automatic savings transfers: Schedule them for the day after your paycheck hits. You never see the money, so you never miss it.
Automatic bill payments: Every bill that can be autopaid should be autopaid. One less decision to make.
Automatic subscription cancellations: If you committed to canceling subscriptions, do it right now. Don’t wait until “later this week.” Later becomes never.
Automatic tracking syncs: If you’re using an app, make sure it’s syncing automatically. If you’re using a spreadsheet, set a daily phone reminder.
The goal is to remove yourself from the equation. Your motivated self makes the decision once. Your unmotivated self just benefits from it on autopilot.
I’ve watched this play out hundreds of times. The clients who automated everything in January were still saving in December. The ones who relied on “remembering to transfer money” weren’t.
Wall #2: Accountability
The Principle: You’re more likely to follow through when someone else knows what you committed to.
This doesn’t mean hiring a financial advisor (though you can if you want). It means telling one person—just one—what you’re doing and asking them to check in on you.
Who to tell:
A friend who’s also working on financial goals
Your spouse or partner (if you have one)
A family member who won’t judge you
An online community of people on the same journey (like the Monthly Money Ascenders)
What to tell them:
“I’m working on [specific goal] this year. Can you check in with me once a month and ask how it’s going? I don’t need advice, I just need someone to know I’m doing this.”
That’s it. You’re not asking for coaching. You’re not asking them to fix your problems. You’re just creating a forcing function—a scheduled moment where you have to look someone in the eye (or screen) and report on your progress.
When I worked with clients, the ones who succeeded almost always had some form of external accountability. The ones who tried to do it completely alone? They usually didn’t make it past March.
Not because they weren’t capable, but because humans are wired to care more about social commitments than private ones.
Wall #3: Friction
The Principle: Make the bad behavior harder and the good behavior easier.
When motivation is high, we can resist temptation through sheer willpower. When motivation is low, willpower doesn’t work. You need to change the environment.
Examples of adding friction to bad financial behavior:
Delete shopping apps from your phone (if impulse buying is your leak)
Remove saved credit card info from online stores
Freeze your credit cards in a bowl of water (seriously—you can still use them, but you have to wait for them to thaw)
Unsubscribe from promotional emails that tempt you to spend
Block certain websites during work hours if online shopping is a procrastination habit
Leave your wallet at home when going for a walk (so you can’t impulse buy at convenience stores)
Examples of removing friction from good financial behavior:
Keep your budget spreadsheet bookmarked and open in a tab
Put a whiteboard with your financial goal somewhere you see it daily
Set your savings account as the default transfer destination in your banking app
Have your meal prep containers washed and ready every Sunday (if eating out is your leak)
Keep your tracking method in the most accessible place possible
The easier it is to do the right thing and the harder it is to do the wrong thing, the less motivation you need.
Wall #4: Micro-Commitments
The Principle: When you can’t climb the whole mountain, just take the next step.
This is the wall that saves people when everything else fails.
When you’re tired, overwhelmed, or just done with the whole financial journey, you don’t need to recommit to the entire year. You just need to recommit to today. Or this week. Or this one small action.
How to use micro-commitments:
Instead of: “I’m going to track my spending perfectly for the rest of 2026”
Try: “I’m going to log today’s expenses before I go to bed tonight”
Instead of: “I’m going to stick to my budget no matter what”
Try: “I’m going to meal prep this Sunday so I don’t eat out next week”
Instead of: “I will save $10,000 this year”
Try: “I will transfer $200 to savings when my paycheck hits on Friday”
You shrink the commitment down to something so small it feels stupid to not do it. And then you do just that thing. And then tomorrow, you do the next small thing.
This is how every summit is reached—one small commitment at a time, even when you can’t see the top anymore.
The Two-Minute Rule for Bad Days
Let me give you a tool that saved more people than I can count.
It’s called the Two-Minute Rule, and here’s how it works:
On days when you absolutely do not want to engage with your finances, commit to just two minutes.
That’s it. Two minutes.
Two minutes to open your tracking spreadsheet and log one transaction
Two minutes to check your bank balance
Two minutes to review yesterday’s spending
Two minutes to transfer $10 to savings (even if you planned to transfer more)
Two minutes is not enough to make progress, right?
Wrong.
Two minutes does three things:
It keeps the habit alive. The hardest part isn’t doing the work—it’s starting. Once you’re in motion, you usually keep going. Many times, the “two minutes” turns into ten or twenty because you realize it’s not as hard as you thought.
It prevents the shame spiral. When you skip a day, it’s easy to skip two days. Then three. Then you feel like you’ve already failed, so why bother? Two minutes means you never fully stop.
It proves to your brain that this isn’t optional. Even on bad days, even when you’re tired, even when you don’t care—you still show up. That builds identity. You become someone who does this, not someone who tries to do this.
I’ve watched people maintain their financial progress through job changes, family emergencies, health crises, and burnout—all because they had the Two-Minute Rule in their back pocket.
You don’t need to be perfect. You just need to not quit.
What I Learned Watching People Quit (And What Separated the Ones Who Didn’t)
I’m going to be honest with you about something.
Most people who sat in my office and made financial plans didn’t follow through. Not because the plans were bad. Not because they didn’t want it. But because they expected motivation to last, and when it didn’t, they thought they’d failed.
The ones who succeeded? They all had one thing in common: they expected to struggle, and they had a plan for what to do when they did.
They didn’t think “I’ll never feel like quitting.”
They thought “When I feel like quitting, here’s what I’ll do.”
That’s the difference. They planned for the hard days before the hard days came.
So here’s what I want you to do right now:
Your Week 4 Assignment: Build Your Struggle Plan
This week, you’re not learning new information. You’re building your safety net for the weeks and months when everything feels hard.
Step 1: Identify Your Most Likely Breaking Point
Think about past attempts to change your financial habits. When did you quit? What triggered it?
Common breaking points:
Something unexpected comes up (car repair, medical bill, etc.)
You have one “bad” spending day and feel like you failed
You get bored or tired of tracking
Life gets busy and this feels like one more thing on your plate
You don’t see results fast enough
Write down your most likely breaking point: _______________
Step 2: Create Your “When This Happens” Plan
Now, create a specific if-then plan:
“When [my breaking point happens], I will [specific action].”
Examples:
“When I have an unexpected expense, I will log it in my tracking, adjust next week’s budget, and keep going—not treat it as failure.”
“When I miss two days of tracking, I will use the Two-Minute Rule: spend two minutes catching up on just those two days, nothing more.”
“When I feel overwhelmed, I will text [accountability person] and ask them to remind me why I started.”
Write your if-then plan: _______________
Step 3: Set Up At Least One Automation This Week
Pick the lowest-hanging fruit from Wall #1:
Schedule automatic savings transfers
Cancel one subscription you committed to cutting
Set up automatic bill pay for one recurring expense
Schedule a recurring calendar reminder to track spending
Do one. Just one. Right now, before motivation fades even more.
Step 4: Tell One Person
Text, call, or message one person this week and tell them what you’re working on. Ask them to check in on you in February.
Just one person. It takes five minutes.
The Truth About February (And Why This Week Matters)
Next week, we’re moving from January’s basecamp mission (tracking and analysis) to February’s mission: building your emergency fund.
But here’s the thing: if you don’t have systems in place before February starts, you won’t build the fund. You’ll have good intentions, and you’ll think about it, but you won’t actually do it.
This week—Week 4, the week when motivation starts to fade—this is the most important week of the entire month.
Because this is the week where you decide: Am I going to rely on feelings, or am I going to rely on systems?
The climbers who reach the summit aren’t the ones who feel motivated every day. They’re the ones who built a system that works even when they don’t feel like climbing.
So build your walls this week. Set up your automation. Tell your person. Write your struggle plan.
Because motivation will fail you. But your systems won’t.
A Final Word: You’re Not Behind
If you’ve already missed days, skipped tracking, broken a commitment, or feel like you’re failing—you’re not behind.
You’re exactly where most people are at Week 4. The only difference between people who quit and people who succeed is what they do next.
Quitters think: “I already messed up, so what’s the point?”
Climbers think: “I stumbled. Now I take the next step.”
That’s it. That’s the whole difference.
You don’t need to be perfect. You don’t need to be motivated. You just need to take the next step.
And then the one after that.
See you next week when we start building your emergency fund. I’ll be there. Will you?
If you’ve been following along, you’ve spent the last two weeks doing something most people never do: tracking every single dollar you spend.
And if you’re like most people, you’re probably sitting there looking at your numbers thinking one of two things:
“Well, that’s not as bad as I thought.”
Or…
“Holy crap, where did all my money go?”
Both reactions are completely normal. But here’s what matters: you now have something incredibly powerful that most people don’t have—the truth.
You know where your money is actually going. Not where you think it’s going, not where you wish it was going, but where it’s really going.
Now comes the part that separates people who track their spending from people who actually change their lives: doing something about it.
This week, we’re going to take that data you’ve collected and turn it into decisions. Real ones. The kind that will set you up to crush February’s mission and keep climbing toward your 2026 summit.
Let’s go.
The Three Questions That Change Everything
Before we dive into the numbers, I want you to grab whatever you’ve been tracking with—your app, your spreadsheet, your notebook, your envelopes—and answer these three questions honestly:
Question 1: What surprised you most?
When I worked with clients as a financial advisor, this question always revealed the biggest blind spots. Someone would say, “I had no idea I was spending $400 a month eating out” or “I didn’t realize that gym membership I never use costs me $720 a year.”
The surprises aren’t about judgment. They’re about awareness. Write down what surprised you. That’s where your money has been disappearing without your permission.
Question 2: What would you change if you could do this month over?
Not everything. Don’t make a list of 47 things you’d do differently. Just pick the top 3-5 expenses that, looking back, you wish you hadn’t made. Not because they were “bad,” but because they didn’t add real value to your life.
Maybe it’s the subscription you forgot you had. Maybe it’s the impulse Amazon order. Maybe it’s the takeout on a night when you had food in the fridge but were too tired to cook.
Write those down. These are your action items for February.
Question 3: What brought you real value, joy, or necessity?
This one’s important because cutting spending isn’t about deprivation. It’s about alignment.
Some of your spending is working for you. The coffee shop where you meet a friend every week? That’s relationship maintenance. The gym membership you actually use three times a week? That’s health. The quality groceries that make you feel good? That’s taking care of yourself.
Write down what’s worth keeping. These are your anchors—the spending that stays because it genuinely improves your life.
Now you’ve got clarity. Let’s use it.
Your Financial Leaks: Where the Ship Is Taking On Water
Remember last week when I mentioned that every financial ship has leaks? Now it’s time to find yours.
Pull out your spending data and look for these five common leak patterns:
Leak #1: The Subscription Graveyard
This is the easiest leak to spot and the most satisfying to fix.
Go through your statements and highlight every recurring charge—streaming services, apps, memberships, subscription boxes, software, anything that auto-renews.
Now ask yourself: Did I use this in the last 30 days?
If the answer is no, cancel it. Today. Right now. Don’t wait until “later” because later never comes.
I’ve seen clients spending $200-500 a month on subscriptions they barely remember signing up for. That’s $2,400-6,000 a year just… gone. For nothing.
Cancel the dead weight. You can always resubscribe later if you actually miss it. (Spoiler: you won’t.)
Leak #2: The Convenience Tax
This leak is sneakier. It’s all those small purchases that feel insignificant in the moment but add up to shocking totals over a month.
Gas station snacks. Vending machine drinks. Coffee shop stops when you have coffee at home. DoorDash fees when you could have picked it up. Paying for express shipping when standard would’ve been fine.
Look at your tracking data and add up all the purchases under $10 that you made for pure convenience, not genuine need or joy.
I’m not saying never buy convenience. I’m saying be conscious about it. Because $5 here and $8 there turns into $300-400 a month real fast.
Leak #3: The Weekend Bleed
Most people’s spending looks reasonable Monday through Friday, then explodes on weekends.
Add up just your Friday, Saturday, and Sunday spending for the month. For a lot of people, weekends account for 40-50% of their total spending despite being only 28% of the days.
This isn’t about not having fun on weekends. It’s about realizing that your “normal” spending and your weekend spending are two completely different patterns, and the weekend pattern is probably the one sinking your ship.
Leak #4: The Emotional Spending Spiral
Look at your biggest impulse purchases this month—the ones that weren’t planned, weren’t necessary, and honestly, you could’ve done without.
Now ask yourself: What was I feeling right before I bought this?
Stressed about work? Bored? Sad? Celebrating? Avoiding something?
In my years as an advisor, I saw emotional spending patterns constantly. One client would “reward” herself after stressful work days by shopping online—$300-400 a month she didn’t even remember spending. Another would hit the grocery store when he was anxious and come home with $200 of food that went bad in the fridge. Someone else bought things late at night when she couldn’t sleep, racking up purchases she’d forgotten about by morning.
Identifying your emotional spending pattern is like finding the source of the leak. Once you see it, you can patch it.
Leak #5: The “Just This Once” Lie
Go through your tracking and look for expenses you justified with “just this once.”
Eating out “just this once” because you had a long day. Buying something “just this once” because it was on sale. Upgrading to the nicer option “just this once” because you deserved it.
Now count how many times “just this once” actually happened this month.
If “just this once” happened six times, it’s not once. It’s a pattern. And patterns are leaks.
The Reality Check: Your Big Three Numbers
Alright, time for the moment of truth.
Pull out your calculator (or just use your phone) and let’s calculate your Big Three numbers. These three numbers are your financial GPS—they tell you exactly where you are and exactly what you need to do next.
Number 1: Monthly Take-Home Income
This is what actually hits your bank account after taxes, retirement contributions, health insurance, and any other deductions.
Don’t use your salary. Use what you actually receive. If you get paid every two weeks, multiply one paycheck by 26 and divide by 12. If you get paid twice a month, multiply by 2.
Write this number down: $_______
Number 2: Total Monthly Expenses
Add up everything you spent this month. And I mean everything—rent, groceries, gas, subscriptions, eating out, shopping, debt payments, the random $3.47 you spent at a convenience store, all of it.
This number might hurt to see. Write it down anyway: $_______
Number 3: The Gap
Take Number 1 minus Number 2.
If this number is positive, congratulations—you have a surplus. This is your fuel for climbing. This is what you’ll use to build your emergency fund in February, pay off debt, and reach your summit.
If this number is negative, you’re spending more than you make. This is not a moral judgment, it’s just math. And math can be fixed.
Write down your gap: $_______
Now you know exactly where you stand.
The Decision Matrix: What Stays, What Goes
Here’s where we turn awareness into action.
You’ve identified your leaks. You’ve calculated your Big Three. Now you need to make actual decisions about what changes starting February 1st.
But here’s the key: you can’t fix everything at once.
When I worked with clients who tried to overhaul their entire financial life overnight, they’d last about two weeks before everything fell apart. Too much change, too fast, creates too much resistance.
Instead, we’re going to use what I call the Decision Matrix. It’s simple:
Draw two lines to make four boxes. Label them:
Keep (High Value): Expenses that genuinely improve your life
Cut (No Value): Expenses you don’t care about and won’t miss
Reduce (Some Value): Expenses you want to keep but could scale back
Replace (Better Option): Expenses where there’s a cheaper alternative that gives you the same benefit
Now go through your spending and sort everything into these boxes.
Examples:
Keep: Gym membership you use 3x/week, quality groceries, coffee meetups with friends, therapy, car insurance
Cut: Subscriptions you don’t use, apps you forgot about, memberships to places you never go, things you bought on impulse and don’t care about
Reduce: Eating out 12x/month → 6x/month, Premium streaming plans → Basic plans, Brand name everything → Generic for some items
Replace: Eating out for lunch daily → Meal prep Sundays, Buying coffee out → Making it at home except for friend meetups, Cable → Streaming (if you haven’t already)
The goal isn’t to cut everything. The goal is to be intentional about everything.
What I Learned Watching People Make (and Break) This Moment
Here’s the thing about having financial data: it only matters if you actually do something with it.
Over the years as an advisor, I watched hundreds of people sit in my office, look at their numbers, nod seriously, and say “I’m definitely going to fix this.”
Some did. Most didn’t.
The ones who succeeded had something in common: they made specific commitments before they left my office.
Not vague promises like “I’ll spend less eating out.” Specific decisions like “I’m canceling Netflix tonight, meal prepping on Sundays starting this week, and limiting restaurant meals to twice a month.”
The ones who failed? They left with good intentions and no plan.
Don’t be that person.
Right now, before you close this article, you’re going to make three specific commitments for February. Not ten. Three.
Your Three Commitments for February
Look at your Decision Matrix. Look at your leaks. Look at your gap.
Now write down three specific changes you’re committing to starting February 1st.
My Three February Commitments:
Make them specific. Make them measurable. Make them realistic.
Bad commitment: “Spend less money eating out”
Good commitment: “Meal prep every Sunday, eat out maximum 2x per week, budget $100/month for restaurants”
Bad commitment: “Cancel some subscriptions”
Good commitment: “Cancel Netflix ($15), Spotify Premium ($11), and that app I don’t use ($5) by February 5th = $31/month savings”
Bad commitment: “Save more money”
Good commitment: “Automatically transfer $200 from checking to savings on the 1st and 15th of every month”
See the difference? Specific commitments give you a clear target. Vague intentions give you an excuse to do nothing.
Setting Up Your February Mission: The Emergency Fund
Here’s why all of this matters.
In last week’s map, February’s mission is building your emergency fund. But you can’t build an emergency fund if you don’t know where the money is going to come from.
That’s what this exercise was about.
Your three commitments? Those are creating the breathing room in your budget. Those cut subscriptions? That reduced eating out? That replaced expensive habit with a cheaper alternative? That’s your emergency fund fuel.
Let’s do some quick math:
If you found three leaks that each save you $50/month, that’s $150/month.
Over the course of 2026, that’s $1,800 that was disappearing into nothing but is now working for you.
In February alone, that $150 either gets you halfway to your first $500 emergency fund milestone, or it adds a month of expenses to your existing fund.
This is how you climb. Not with dramatic sacrifices or miserable deprivation, but with conscious decisions about where your money goes.
The Week 3 Assignment: Lock It In
You’ve done the analysis. You’ve made the commitments. Now you need to lock them in before motivation fades and old habits creep back.
Here’s your assignment for this week:
1. Execute your cuts immediately
If you committed to canceling subscriptions, do it today. Don’t wait until “later this week.” Go to the websites right now and cancel. Set a 10-minute timer if you need to—it doesn’t take long.
2. Set up your automation
If you committed to automatic savings transfers, log into your bank right now and schedule them. If you’re going to meal prep on Sundays, put it on your calendar as a recurring event.
Systems beat willpower every time.
3. Calculate your projected February surplus
Based on your three commitments, how much more breathing room will you have in your budget next month? Write that number down. That’s what you’re aiming at for your emergency fund.
4. Check in here next Friday
I’ll be back next week with Week 4: What to Do When Your January Motivation Starts Fading. Because it will. And that’s okay. We’re going to be ready for it.
The Real Point of All This
Let me be straight with you.
The point of tracking your spending wasn’t to make you feel bad about where your money went. The point wasn’t even really about the money.
The point was to wake you up.
Right now, you’re awake. You can see clearly. You know where the leaks are. You know what needs to change. You have a plan.
This feeling—this clarity, this sense of “okay, I can do this”—this is the feeling you need to act on.
Because here’s what I’ve learned after watching thousands of people work through this process: the clarity doesn’t last.
A week from now, when you’re tired and stressed and someone suggests getting takeout, your brain is going to whisper “just this once.”
A month from now, when you see something you want on sale, your brain is going to rationalize “but it’s such a good deal.”
That’s normal. That’s human. That’s why most people never make it past basecamp.
But you’re not most people. You’re an Ascender. And Ascenders don’t quit when motivation fades—they rely on the systems they built when motivation was high.
So lock in your three commitments. Set up your automation. Make the cuts while you still have the clarity to do it.
Your February self will thank you.
Next Week: What to Do When Your January Motivation Starts Fading (Spoiler: It’s not about willpower)
Last week, I handed you the map for 2026—all 12 months laid out, one clear mission per month, a complete trail to your financial summit.
And if you’re here this week, that means you’re serious. You didn’t just read it and move on. You’re actually doing this.
So let’s talk about January’s basecamp mission: tracking your spending.
I know, I know. It sounds about as exciting as watching paint dry. But here’s the truth—this one boring task is the difference between people who make real financial progress and people who spin their wheels for years wondering why nothing ever changes.
You can’t reach a summit you can’t see. And right now, if you don’t know where your money is actually going, you’re climbing in the fog.
Let’s clear that fog.
Why Tracking Feels Impossible (And Why You’re Going to Do It Anyway)
Let me guess what you’re thinking:
“I already know where my money goes. Rent, groceries, bills. I don’t need to write it all down.”
Or maybe it’s this:
“I tried tracking once. I lasted three days, forgot to log something, felt like a failure, and gave up.”
Or this one:
“I’m barely keeping my head above water as it is. Now I have to add homework?”
I get it. I’ve heard every excuse because I’ve heard it from hundreds of clients over the years.
But here’s what I learned watching people finally commit to tracking for 30 days: Most people are spectacularly wrong about where their money actually goes.
They think they’re spending $200 a month eating out. It’s $487.
They think their “miscellaneous” spending is insignificant. It’s $340.
They think they have their finances under control. They don’t. They’re just really good at staying unconscious.
Tracking doesn’t show you you’re bad with money. It shows you where you’ve been blind with money. And you can’t fix what you can’t see.
So yeah, tracking is annoying. It’s tedious. It requires you to pay attention.
But it’s also the single most powerful financial tool you have. And you’re going to do it for 31 days, because that’s what Ascenders do.
The Four Ways to Track (Pick the One That Won’t Make You Quit)
There’s no “right” way to track spending. There’s only the way that YOU will actually stick with for a full month.
Here are your four options. Read them all, pick one, and commit.
Method 1: The Spreadsheet (My Personal Method)
How It Works: Create a simple spreadsheet with columns for Date, Description, Category, and Amount. Every time you spend money—and I mean every time—you log it. End of month, you add it up by category.
This is what I use. Always have, probably always will. There’s something about manually entering each transaction that makes you stay conscious of your spending in a way automation doesn’t.
How to Set It Up: Open Google Sheets (free) or Excel. Create these column headers:
Date
What I Bought
Category (Rent, Groceries, Eating Out, Gas, etc.)
Amount
That’s it. Don’t overcomplicate it.
Pros:
Total control over categories
No account linking required
Works for cash, cards, everything
You can customize it however you want
The manual entry keeps you aware of every purchase
Cons:
Requires discipline to log everything manually
Takes more time than apps
Easy to forget if you don’t make it a daily habit
Who This Is For: You like control, you don’t trust apps with your bank info, or you want to stay actively engaged with every dollar you spend.
Method 2: The App (Best for Multiple Accounts)
How It Works: Download a spending tracker app, link your bank accounts and credit cards, and let the app automatically categorize your transactions. You just review and correct categories as needed.
I’ve tested one of these. If you use multiple credit cards or bank accounts, an app like Monarch Money does a solid job of pulling everything together in one place so you’re not juggling spreadsheets.
Other Popular Options:
YNAB (You Need A Budget) (paid, but powerful if you want to budget too)
PocketGuard (free version available)
Copilot (paid, designed for Apple users)
Research which one fits your needs—features and pricing vary.
Pros:
Mostly automatic once you set it up
Creates charts and reports for you
Great if you have multiple accounts to track
Harder to “forget” to track since it syncs daily
Cons:
Requires linking bank accounts (some people aren’t comfortable with this)
Cash transactions still need manual entry
Can be overwhelming with too many features
Who This Is For: You’re comfortable with technology, you use multiple cards or accounts, and you want automation to do the heavy lifting.
Method 3: The Notebook (Best for People Who Hate Screens)
How It Works: Carry a small notebook in your pocket or purse. Every time you spend money, write it down immediately. Date, what you bought, how much. At the end of the month, add it up by category.
Pros:
No technology required
Forces you to be present with every purchase
Surprisingly effective because the physical act of writing makes spending feel more “real”
Can’t be hacked or glitch out
Cons:
You have to carry a notebook everywhere
Easy to lose or forget
Requires manual adding at the end
Harder to create reports or analyze trends
Who This Is For: You’re a pen-and-paper person, you want to feel every dollar you spend, or you’re trying to reduce screen time.
Method 4: The Envelope System (Best for Cash-Heavy Spenders)
How It Works: Withdraw your monthly spending money in cash. Divide it into envelopes labeled by category (Groceries, Gas, Fun Money, etc.). Spend only what’s in each envelope. When it’s gone, it’s gone.
How to Track It: Keep receipts in each envelope, or just write on the envelope every time you take money out. At the end of the month, you’ll know exactly what you spent because the envelopes will tell you.
Pros:
Impossible to overspend in a category
Makes spending tangible and “hurt” a little (in a good way)
Great for people who struggle with card overspending
Cons:
Doesn’t work well if you pay most bills online
Carrying cash everywhere isn’t always practical or safe
Harder to track non-cash transactions
Who This Is For: You overspend with cards because money doesn’t feel “real,” or you want a built-in spending limit that’s impossible to cheat.
The Non-Negotiable Rule: Track EVERYTHING for 31 Days
Here’s where most people mess up: they track for a week, think they’ve got the picture, and stop.
Don’t do that.
You need a full month. Here’s why:
Week 1 – You’re hyper-aware and probably spending less than normal because you’re being watched (by yourself).
Week 2 – You start to forget. You miss a transaction here and there. This is where most people quit.
Week 3 – You’re back in real life. This is where the truth shows up—the impulse Target run, the forgotten subscription that auto-renewed, the “just this once” takeout that happens three times.
Week 4 – You see patterns. You realize your “one coffee a day” is actually costing you $120/month. You notice you overspend every weekend. You start to understand your money personality.
One week gives you a snapshot. One month gives you the truth.
So commit to 31 days. Put it on your calendar. Set a daily reminder on your phone. Make it non-negotiable.
What to Do With Your Data (The Part That Actually Matters)
Okay, you’ve tracked for a month. You’ve got numbers. Now what?
Step 1: Add It All Up by Category
Whether you used an app, spreadsheet, notebook, or envelopes, organize your spending into categories:
Food (groceries AND eating out—track these separately)
Debt payments
Subscriptions
Entertainment
Shopping
Miscellaneous (the junk drawer of spending)
Step 2: Calculate Your Big Three Numbers
Remember these from the map? Now you can actually calculate them:
Monthly Take-Home Income – What actually hits your bank account after taxes
Total Monthly Expenses – Add up everything you spent
The Gap – Income minus expenses (this is your surplus or deficit)
Write these down. These three numbers are your financial GPS coordinates.
Step 3: Ask Yourself the Hard Questions
Now comes the part that separates Ascenders from people who just collect data and do nothing with it.
Look at your numbers and ask:
Where did I think I was spending money vs. where I actually spent it? (The gap between perception and reality is where your money disappears.)
What purchases brought me real value, joy, or necessity? (These are your anchors—the spending that aligns with your life.)
What purchases do I barely remember? (This is the spending that’s robbing you. It’s not making your life better; it’s just making you broke.)
If I could do this month over, what would I change? (This is your roadmap for February.)
Step 4: Find Your Leaks
Every financial ship has leaks—places where money drains out without you realizing it. Common ones:
Subscriptions you don’t use ($10 here, $15 there adds up to $200/month you forgot about)
Eating out more than you thought ($50/week = $2,600/year)
Convenience purchases (gas station snacks, vending machines, impulse buys)
“Just this once” spending that happens weekly
You’re not looking to judge yourself. You’re looking to see clearly.
What I Learned Watching Thousands of People Avoid This (A Former Financial Advisor’s Observation)
Here’s what I saw over and over when I was a financial advisor:
Successful people—doctors, lawyers, small business owners making six figures—would sit across from me, and I’d ask them to tell me where their money was going.
They’d confidently rattle off the big stuff: mortgage, car payment, maybe some retirement contributions.
Then I’d ask them to track everything for 30 days and come back.
And they’d be shocked. Nearly every single one discovered they were spending $400-800/month on things they couldn’t even remember buying. Subscriptions they’d forgotten about. Eating out “just this once” that happened twelve times. Amazon orders that showed up like surprise packages because they’d already forgotten ordering them.
It wasn’t that they were bad with money. They were just unconscious with it.
Me? I’ve been tracking since I was that kid counting money on my bedroom floor. When you grow up without much, every dollar has a name and a purpose. I couldn’t afford NOT to know where my money was going.
But I learned something powerful working with clients: you don’t have to grow up broke to benefit from tracking. You just have to be willing to turn the lights on and see clearly.
Your Assignment for Week 2
You’ve got the map. Now let’s take the first real step on the trail:
1. Choose your tracking method (app, spreadsheet, notebook, or envelopes) by Sunday.
2. Track every single dollar you spend for the rest of January. Not most dollars. Every dollar.
3. Set a daily reminder on your phone for 8pm: “Did I log my spending today?”
4. Don’t judge yourself. This month is about gathering data, not being perfect. If you spent $80 on takeout this week, write it down. If you bought something ridiculous on Amazon at 2am, write it down. The truth is the only thing that helps you climb.
5. Check in next Friday. I’ll be back with the next step—how to take this data and actually do something with it.
The Real Reason This Matters
Here’s what tracking really does: it wakes you up.
Right now, money is slipping through your hands like water, and you don’t even notice. You work hard, you earn a paycheck, and somehow it’s gone by the end of the month and you’re not sure where it went.
Tracking turns the lights on. You start to see every dollar as a choice, not just as money that disappears.
And when you see your choices clearly, you get your power back.
That’s what this month is about—not guilt, not shame, not restriction. It’s about awareness. It’s about taking back control of something that’s been controlling you.
You’re not just tracking spending, Ascenders. You’re setting your basecamp. You’re getting honest about where you are so you can figure out how to get where you’re going.
This is the work. This is the climb.
Let’s do it together.
Next Week: What to do with all this data (and how to start making real changes in February)
