Could The Money You Need Already Be There?

I was reflecting recently on a time when my husband and I were living our life financially blind. What do I mean by that? We didn't really have a plan for our money. Money came in and out. We were living our lives and enjoying ourselves, but we weren't really paying attention to whether the way we were spending our money was moving us toward the life we ultimately wanted. When I finally started becoming really conscious of our money behaviors, I discovered something that surprised me:

We were spending about $1,000 a month just eating out. Gosh, I loved those meals. And I'm not going to tell you that you shouldn't enjoy a great meal or spend money on things that bring you pleasure. Money allows us to enjoy our lives.

But here's what I eventually had to ask myself: What was that $1,000 keeping us from doing?

• Those meals weren't helping us build money in the bank.
• They weren't creating a financial safety net.
• They weren't building college savings.
• They weren't putting additional money toward retirement.

We were enjoying life in the moment, but we didn't have a clear plan connecting the money we were earning today with the life we wanted tomorrow.

And that was the real problem.

Where the Money Tends to Go

When I work with women today and we start looking at where their money is actually going, we often uncover similar areas where more money is leaving than they realized.

Some of the most common are:

• Eating out
• Groceries
• Subscriptions

There's nothing inherently wrong with spending money in any of these areas. The question is whether you are choosing how much you want to spend there—or whether the money is slipping through your account without you realizing how much it's adding up to.

Because that money could also be helping you:

• Change jobs
• Retire sooner
• Travel more
• Build savings
• Save for college
• Start investing
• Pay down debt
• Or simply create enough financial breathing room that you don't have to think about money all the time

It's Not About Restriction
Those are really good goals. And you don't have to stop enjoying your life today to create them. But you do need a plan. A plan allows you to look at the money you already have and decide: How much do I want to enjoy today, and how much do I want to direct toward the life I'm building for tomorrow? That is when managing money starts to feel different. It's no longer about restriction. It's about making conscious choices with your money so that it supports the life you actually want.

Your Wealth Question
Where might money be leaving your life without you consciously choosing it—and what could become possible if you redirected some of it toward a goal that really matters to you?

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