EP 187: How To Make the Finances Work for What You Really Want (from the archives)

If I had a dollar for every time someone said, “It must be nice to be able to afford fill-in-the-blank service, product or vacation,” I would be a very rich woman. The reason I can afford so many things is (of course, generational wealth and the privilege of being college educated and white), but also, I put my money into my personal values.

I value education, so I say no to spending hundreds at Target on cute home decor I don’t really need. Instead, I spend those funds on courses and coaching services that will improve my health, my parenting, my partnership, my organizational skills, my speaking career, my thought leadership, my writing, and my business.

I have paid out of pocket for courses and coaching in all those areas because I want to get better at all those things. It is an investment in money, time, and energy to learn all this stuff, but I gain from the teacher’s experience and expertise, and that ultimately saves me time and energy. 

I also value travel experiences, so I say no to lots of meals out, happy hour while spending those funds on plane tickets, lodging and experiences outside my region.

You get the picture, I allocate my dollars towards the things that make my heart happy.

When I am tempted to say I don’t have the time or money for things and experiences I want, I take a deeper look into where I am spending my time and money. It is from those time and money audits I can see where I can shift my spending toward what I actually want more of in my life.

In this week’s podcast, I am resharing an episode about saving and spending on what matters most. I hope you will give it a listen and share with me what spending with your personal values in mind would mean to you.

You can find all the episodes and show notes at www.tamihackbarth.com/podcast.