Hello and welcome to episode 24! Where is your money going?! Ouch.
I know, it’s a personal question. That’s why we’re here. To get personal about your growth and development as a woman and a High Achiever in Direct Sales. So let’s get to it.
Do Your Current Spending Habits Align with Your Personal Goals as a High Achiever in Direct Sales?
The message today isn’t about judgment or limiting spending. It is about awareness and ensuring your money is going in directions that align with your values and priorities.
After all, you work hard for it. It’s well earned. You’ve created a business with systems that allow for a spending plan. Let’s make sure it’s aligned with both what’s important to you now and what you want for your future.
Why Knowing Where Your Money Goes is Important Even for High Achievers in Direct Sales.
The tricky part is when you’re not living beyond your means, and hopefully, you’re not, and you earn a very comfortable living, this can feel unnecessary. Or we can feel, I’m ok, I know day to day where my money is going for the most part and we’re fine. I spend where I want and responsibly and I don’t feel the need to take a closer look. Ok. Great.
But it’s not only about that. It’s about being as intentional as you can be, respecting the time, energy, sacrifice, and hard work you put into building the business that you have. Really take a fresh look and let yourself get excited by all the opportunities that are right there. It’s possible you haven’t seen it because you haven’t taken a detailed look in a while.
It could also be about doing this for yourself so if you have kiddos, you can teach them to do the same. Ah-ha!
My husband and I recently started tracking our every expense. We’ve done this in the past at various times. It’s a great check-in. It’s important to actually know, literally, where the money is going. We’re both fairly independent with day-to-day, smaller expenses. But as we all know, these can add up.
I worked with a client that didn’t even know her and her husband’s coffee spending was over $500/month; this was both single beverages on the go as well as brewed from home beans. They were coffee connoisseurs for sure.
I’ll admit, when my husband first suggested tracking our every expense most recently, my eyes probably got a little bigger. I felt an initial hesitation…like okay, but why? Eek, um, alright, lights do it.
Maybe I responded this way because I’m usually the one to suggest we do this. But it was also likely because I didn’t truly know where every expense was going. I’m not exactly sure what the totals at month-end look like. Is it on track with where we want to be? I know we don’t live beyond our means. But are my spending habits aligned with my priorities and goals?
I think so. But to truly know, it requires taking a measurable look.
I know, this doesn’t initially sound like fun. Money is a big topic with lots of emotion behind it. Especially when it comes to our relationships. So let’s keep it light and fun for now.
The fun with this increased awareness is that I guarantee there is an opportunity for you to re-direct your income. You first have to be aware and second follow through with taking advantage of the opportunities you discover.
If you are in a relationship, shared accounts or not, maybe it’s a good time to simply do this for yourself first. You don’t have to do it together to start out. But give yourself the gift of revealing the opportunities behind your spending habits and the powerful knowledge this awareness gives you. Deal?
Five Steps to Awareness Around Your Money as a High Achiever in Direct Sales
I have 5 steps I recommend taking.
Ok, first things first, you have to start. You do not have to start on the first of the month. I know for some of you this is hard to get past. Seriously, if you have 30 days of tracking, you’ll typically cover everything. It doesn’t matter when those 30 days begin. So don’t wait until the first of the month. Simply start.
Second, choose a simple tracking system. Make sure it’s simple. I literally created a basic excel spreadsheet. If excel makes you shudder, that’s not your simple system.
If you’re ok with excel, I promise this is the easiest. And if you do choose to do this along with your partner, you can create a shared document in google drive. This makes tracking for both of you super simple and all in one place.
I created 3 columns. One for the date. One for the amount. And one for the merchant. I will sometimes add a note to the cell with the merchant entry so I can note things like gift, or any other details that will help me categorize expenses at the end of the month.
You can get much more detailed, with additional columns, if you wish, but for me, I need it simple so I keep up with it day to day and week to week.
If excel is not for you and you’re doing this for yourself only, you can use a simple word document or pen to paper.
If technology is your thing, there are many apps out there that make this easy. Every Dollar I believe is the one by Dave Ramsey. I’ve used this before. The key is to use one that works for you. I don’t particularly like the ones where I have to connect all of my bank accounts.
I prefer data entry. I take receipts from email, I look at my accounts when I do use a card and I also sit down weekly to grab those auto payments that happen monthly. It literally takes 5 minutes or less because I keep up with it.
Here are the benefits of entering expenses myself. It gives me a level of heightened awareness and accountability that I won’t get when I keep using cards and just let the app pull in the info. Or if you use apple pay or something similar.
If that method works for you to get the data, great! Use it. The important point is to have the data after 30 days. That’s where you’ll find the awareness and where your opportunities lie.
The benefit of having the awareness of tracking myself is that from day one, I already felt more accountable. I was already using a new filter of decision-making when spending money. And it felt really good. If you’ve ever kept a food journal, it’s the same idea. As soon as you start capturing what you’re eating, you’re already more mindful of your choices.
Third, after 30 days of tracking, you’ll sit down and categorize where your money is being spent. This will break down however it breaks down. Gas, groceries, that coffee or smoothie spend, or whatever it is for you, and so many more areas. Even if there is only one expense that makes up its own category, still create that category. Maybe it reflects an annual rhythm.
Fourth, Look at these categories and totals against your values and priorities. If your values are health, wellness, family, personal development, and travel, for example, is there necessary or unnecessary money going to these? If not, where are the areas it is going and how can you re-direct it?
For example, do you have multiple fitness expenses per month? Did you stop using the in-person membership and you’re now paying for virtual? Do you need both? Can you make a change here?
Are you Justifying Your Spending Habits as a High Achiever in Direct Sales?
It’s also important to look at what you might be justifying in these categories and what directly aligns with your values. New workout clothes? Do you really need new? Or do you have an abundance of options already? Is there another category that you could re-direct money towards that is better aligned with values, goals, dreams, and desires?
There can be a lot of expenses day to day that feels justifiable. We also want to be planning and allotting for those future dreams and desires. From summer camps to home remodel projects, holiday and birthday gifts to vacations. It’s those longer-term expenses that don’t always occur monthly, but we always have them on the horizon.
When we true things up from month to month we have much more freedom to be intentional with where our hard-earned money is being directed. This I personally find motivating, exciting, and keeps this fun! It’s like a game for me.
I always like to see where we can redirect funds and/or save in areas that really aren’t that important. Over time, have simply become a habit. I love to find creative ways to save and redirect funds. When we end up spending them on other areas that are inclusive and fun for our whole family, it makes it that much more motivating to keep at it, at least for me.
Last and final step #5, make a new plan. What areas will increase and what areas will decrease or maybe be eliminated? What category do you need to add?
I’ll use the $500/month coffee expense. My client decided to take a closer look at this because not only was she surprised, but alarmed.
Her goal was certainly not to give up coffee. Gasp. But could she brew more at home? Could she grab a single beverage less often? Were there perk programs she wasn’t using to get a free bag of beans here and there? Or could she find the same beans at her grocery store and save vs purchasing at the coffee shop? You get the idea.
It’s about taking a closer look and finding opportunities. She didn’t have to sacrifice her love for coffee. But even saving $100/month adds up to $1200 per year. I can think of 1200 different things I could put toward future dreams and desires! How about you?
Let’s review the 5 steps to truing up your awareness and opportunity around where your money is going and where you want it to go.
One, start. Pick a day. Just start. Don’t wait for the first of the month.
Two, choose a simple tracking system.
Three, after 30 days sit down and categorize where the money went and the total in each category.
Four, look at the categories against your values, priorities, and long-term dreams and goals. What matches, what doesn’t, and do you need to look closer at a category where you might be justifying spending?
Five, make a new plan. Where do you want to increase, or decrease? What categorize do you want to add or eliminate?
The best is yet to come! Always.
