Your Money Story
Before numbers, there are stories. Every financial decision you make is shaped by what you learnt about money growing up — often without realising it. This chapter is about getting honest with where your beliefs began.
When you can name the feeling behind a purchase, you get a split second to choose a different response. That split second is worth thousands.
Your Money Beliefs
Most financial advice ignores the psychology. But how you think and feel about money shapes every decision you make. Identifying your money personality isn't about labelling yourself — it's about understanding your patterns so you can work with them, not against them.
You're not lazy — you're overwhelmed. Avoidance is actually an intelligent coping mechanism. If you don't look at the problem, you don't have to sit in the anxiety that comes with it. The trouble is, not looking doesn't make it go away. It just means interest rates, debt and time are making your financial decisions for you.
You probably: don't open bank statements, spend by feeling rather than a plan, carry debt without knowing the exact amount, feel a wave of dread when money comes up in conversation.
What changes everything for you: clarity. The anxiety you feel is almost always worse than the reality. Once you see the actual numbers — even if they're uncomfortable — most Avoiders feel immediate relief. It's the not-knowing that's the most stressful part.
Your next step: don't try to fix everything at once. Just look. Open the app. Check the balance. That single act of looking is your version of bravery.
You use spending as a reward system — and honestly, it makes sense. Life is stressful, you're under pressure, and buying something feels good fast. The problem isn't that you spend. It's that the spending is driven by how you feel in the moment, not by where you want to go. The relief is real. It's also temporary. And the bill stays.
You probably: buy things after a hard day or week, find your spending goes up when life gets harder, experience boom-and-bust saving patterns, have items you've bought and barely used.
What changes everything for you: noticing the emotional pattern before the spend, not after. When you can name the feeling — stress, boredom, comparison, exhaustion — you get a split second to choose a different response.
Your next step: before your next unplanned purchase, pause and ask: what am I actually feeling right now? You don't have to stop spending — you have to start spending with intention.
You're actually the most financially literate of the three types. You've done the research. You know what an ISA is, you follow the right accounts, you've bookmarked the articles. The problem isn't knowledge — it's paralysis. The fear of making the wrong move keeps you from making any move at all. Which, ironically, keeps you exactly where you are.
You probably: consume a lot of financial content without acting on it, check your accounts compulsively, feel behind compared to others, stay permanently in "planning mode" waiting for the right moment.
What changes everything for you: imperfect action. A slightly flawed plan you actually follow will always beat the perfect plan you never start. You don't need more information. You need a decision.
Your next step: pick one financial action — just one — and do it today. Not perfectly. Just done.
A slightly flawed plan you actually follow will always beat the perfect plan you never start.
Credit Score Check
Your credit score affects your mortgage rate, your loan offers, your rental applications — and most people haven't checked it in years. The good news: checking it is free, it takes 10 minutes, and it doesn't affect your score.
Go to Experian.com (free, no card needed) and check your current score. Come back here to log it.
| Score Range | Rating | What It Means |
|---|---|---|
| 1,121 – 1,250 | Excellent | Best rates available — maintain and protect |
| 1,001 – 1,120 | Very Good | Broad access to products at good rates |
| 861 – 1,000 | Good | Wide options — pay down balances, register to vote |
| 641 – 860 | Fair | Reduce utilisation below 25%, pause new applications |
| 0 – 640 | Low | Use a credit-builder card, pay in full each month |
Pension Audit
Women in the UK retire with an average of 40% less pension than men. Starting contributions at 30 instead of 40 — with the same monthly amount — creates a gap of over £112,000 by retirement. Time is your most powerful financial asset. This chapter helps you use it.
This chapter uses UK examples (workplace pensions, SIPPs, State Pension) since that's where this course originates. The principles are universal — know what you have, know what the state gives you, build your own pot on top — but the products and providers are different everywhere. Roughly: UK = workplace pension + State Pension + SIPP. US = 401(k) + IRA/Roth IRA + Social Security. Canada = RRSP + CPP. Australia = Superannuation. Wherever you are, swap in your own country's version and search "[your country] + pension/retirement" or ask a local financial advisor if you're not sure what applies to you.
If you're not contributing enough to get your full employer match, you're leaving free money on the table every single month. Check the threshold with HR.
You can still contribute up to £2,880/year to a SIPP and HMRC tops it up to £3,600 automatically — even with no earnings. It's one of the few ways to save into a pension without a job. (This top-up is UK-specific; check your own country's rules for equivalents.)
Recommended UK SIPP providers:
Recommended US IRA / Solo 401(k) providers:
UK: if you run a limited company, your company can pay directly into your SIPP as an employer contribution — reducing corporation tax and bypassing income tax entirely. US: a SEP-IRA or Solo 401(k) lets a business owner contribute a much larger amount pre-tax than a standard IRA. Speak to your accountant about setting either up.
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Fill in the fields above (including Exercise 4.6)
Finances Audit
This is the chapter most people skip — which is exactly why most people stay stuck. Knowing your numbers removes the power they hold over you. Fill in this tracker honestly. The net cash flow figure at the bottom is the one number that tells you if your financial life is moving forward or backwards.
| Income Source | Monthly (£) | Annual (£) | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Salary (take-home) | £0 | ||
| Side hustle / freelance | £0 | ||
| Other income | £0 | ||
| Total Monthly Income | £0 | £0 |
| Expense | Monthly (£) | Annual (£) | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 🏠 Living Costs → Needs | |||
| Rent / Mortgage | £0 | ||
| Food & groceries | £0 | ||
| Utilities (gas/electric/water) | £0 | ||
| Phone | £0 | ||
| Council tax | £0 | ||
| Insurance (home/life/health) | £0 | ||
| £0 | |||
| £0 | |||
| £0 | |||
| 🚗 Travel → Needs | |||
| Car insurance / finance | £0 | ||
| Petrol / transport | £0 | ||
| £0 | |||
| £0 | |||
| £0 | |||
| ✨ Personal → Wants | |||
| Eating out / takeaways | £0 | ||
| Clothing & beauty | £0 | ||
| Subscriptions | £0 | ||
| Entertainment & social | £0 | ||
| £0 | |||
| 💸 Debt Payments → Needs | |||
| Credit card payments | £0 | ||
| Loan repayments | £0 | ||
| Other debt payments | £0 | ||
| 🏦 Savings → Savings | |||
| Emergency fund | £0 | ||
| Savings goal 1 | £0 | ||
| Savings goal 2 | £0 | ||
| Total Monthly Expenses | £0 | £0 | |
| Net Cash Flow | £0 | £0 | |
| Subscription | Monthly (£) | Do I use it? | Annual cost | Decision |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Netflix | £0 | |||
| Spotify / Apple Music | £0 | |||
| Amazon Prime | £0 | |||
| Disney+ / Apple TV+ | £0 | |||
| Gym membership | £0 | |||
| Beauty / clothing box | £0 | |||
| News / magazines | £0 | |||
| Software / apps | £0 | |||
| £0 | ||||
| £0 | ||||
| £0 | ||||
| £0 | ||||
| £0 | ||||
| £0 | ||||
| £0 | ||||
| Total Subscriptions | £0 | £0 |
Your numbers are pulled automatically from Exercise 5.2 as you fill it in. Finance experts classify them this way:
Your 50/30/20 ratio is healthy. Most people never get here. The work now is to keep it consistent — automate your savings, protect your lifestyle spending, and let compounding do the rest. The next chapters will help you put that savings to work.
Your income is there — but too much is going on lifestyle spending before savings get a look-in. This is a budgeting issue, not an income issue. Here are three things to do this week:
- 1Pay yourself first. Set up a standing order to savings on payday — before you can spend it. Even £50 a month is a start. Automate it and you'll never miss it.
- 2Set a weekly wants budget. Divide your 30% wants allowance by 4. That's your weekly limit for non-essentials. Put it in a separate account if that helps.
- 3Cancel what you marked as "barely / never" in your subscription audit. Do it today — not tomorrow. One cancelled subscription won't change your life, but the habit of cutting what you don't use will.
Your essential costs (needs) are taking up too much of your income — which means there's almost nothing left over for savings no matter how carefully you budget. You're not overspending on luxuries, you're underpaying yourself relative to your life's cost.
There are two levers to pull: reduce fixed costs (renegotiate your bills, move somewhere cheaper, switch tariffs) and increase your income. For most people, the income lever has more power — and that's exactly what Chapter 11 is built for.
Jump to Chapter 11: Let's Make Some Money →Your wants spending is high and your income isn't leaving enough room for savings. The good news: both are fixable. Start with the budget steps below to free up some breathing room — then head to Chapter 11 to work on growing your income.
- 1Audit this month's "wants" spending. Find one category — eating out, clothes, subscriptions — and cut it by half for 30 days. Just one.
- 2Cancel at least one subscription you marked as "barely / never". Then redirect that money to savings.
- 3Start Chapter 11 before you finish this reset. Your income growth and your spending habits need to move at the same time.
Your essential costs and lifestyle spending are both well within your income. That's a genuine strength. But unallocated money tends to evaporate — small spends, impulse buys, forgotten outgoings. Money without a job doesn't stay money for long.
- 1Put your money to work. Split your surplus between what matters most right now: top up your emergency fund if it's under 3 months' expenses, hit an active savings goal, or add to your pension/investments. Decide the split before you close this page.
- 2Automate on payday. Set up standing orders that move your surplus to savings the day you get paid. What you don't see, you don't miss — and it compounds.
Your essential costs are manageable and you're not blowing the budget on lifestyle. But savings are still coming up short. This is usually a sequencing issue: savings is last in the queue, after everything else has had its slice. The fix is a habit shift, not a sacrifice.
- 1Flip the order. Set savings to leave your account the same day your income arrives — before anything else. Even £50 a month to start. Automate it and you won't miss it.
- 2Check for small leaks. It's rarely one big spend — it's £20 extra here, £30 there, across several categories. Compare your actual spend to your 50/30/20 targets line by line.
- 3Increase gradually. Once the habit is in place, raise your savings amount by £25–£50 every month. Most people barely notice the difference — and the balance grows fast.
Emergency Fund
Without an emergency fund, every other plan you build is just one bad month away from falling apart. A boiler break. A car repair. A job loss. The buffer isn't just about money — it's about staying in control when life happens.
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Savings Goals
"I want to save more" is not a goal — it's a wish. A goal has a number, a date, and a plan. This chapter turns the vague intention into a specific, automated action that starts the moment you finish this exercise.
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Let's Talk Debt
No judgement here. Most people have debt. Most people are only making minimum payments. And most people have no idea how much those minimum payments are actually costing them in interest. This chapter changes that.
| Debt Type | Balance (£) | APR (%) | Min. Payment (£) | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
❄️ The Avalanche
Pay the highest APR debt first. Minimum payments on everything else. Mathematically cheapest. Best for those motivated by numbers and total savings.
⛄ The Snowball
Pay the smallest balance first. Win the small battles, build momentum. Better for motivation-led people — which is most of us.
💳 0% Balance Transfer
Move high-APR (20%+) credit card debt to a 0% promotional card. One-off fee (2–3%) but saves on interest. Critical: don't add new spending to the card.
🔗 Consolidation Loan
Combine multiple debts into one lower-APR loan. Simpler, cheaper — if the underlying spending pattern changes too.
Your Net Worth
Your net worth is one number: total assets minus total liabilities. It has nothing to do with your salary, your lifestyle, or your value as a person. It is simply the most honest measure of your financial progress — and most people have never calculated it.
| Asset | Current Value (£) | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| 💰 Cash & Savings | ||
| Current account(s) | ||
| Savings accounts | ||
| Emergency fund | ||
| 📈 Investments & Pension | ||
| Stocks & Shares ISA | ||
| Pension (current value) | ||
| LISA / other investments | ||
| 🏠 Property & Physical | ||
| Property (estimated value) | ||
| Vehicle (estimated value) | ||
| Total Assets | £0 | |
| Liability | Outstanding Balance (£) | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Mortgage balance | ||
| Credit cards total | ||
| Personal loans | ||
| Car finance | ||
| Student loans | ||
| Other liabilities | ||
| Total Liabilities | £0 |
It's likely you've got some student loans, car finance, credit card debt and overdrafts that are pushing you into negative territory very easily — and it's far more common than you'd think. The focus here isn't building wealth yet, it's clearing debts. High-interest debt should come first, always, because every month it's building interest and working against you.
This is what I call the tipping point. Where small, consistent moves have the biggest impact. An emergency fund of three to six months' expenses is the priority here, because without a buffer, any unexpected cost goes straight back onto a card and erases your progress.
This is how you know you're truly building — and the biggest mistake at this stage is getting comfortable. This is where most people plateau. The question to ask is whether your money is actually working for you: is it sitting in a low-interest account, or is it in an ISA, a pension, an investment that's compounding over time?
If you have a net worth above £100k, first of all — congratulations. I had many years of working before I hit this milestone myself. For you, the conversation shifts to diversification and tax efficiency. Property, pensions, and investments all pulling in the same direction is what this stage looks like.
Your Financial Future
Generic goals fail because they're not personal enough to matter. This chapter is about getting specific about the life you're actually building — not an Instagram version of wealth, but your version. The one that keeps you going on the hard days.
Let's Make Some Money
Savings have a ceiling. Earnings don't. This chapter covers the full picture: finding your income opportunity, building and validating your offer, pricing it properly, marketing it, and — if you're employed — negotiating the salary you actually deserve. One action from this chapter, taken this week, can change your financial trajectory.
What do you love?
What makes you lose track of time? What would you talk about even if no one paid you?
What are you good at?
What do people come to you for? What do you do that feels natural but impresses others?
What does the world need?
What problems frustrate you? What gaps do you see that nobody's filling well?
What can you get paid for?
What services or knowledge are people already paying for — even in a basic form?
Skill/Service selling — fastest start, no product needed. Marketers, coaches, designers, consultants: £50–200/hr is realistic.
Knowledge selling — courses, guides, templates. Average side hustler earns £508/month in 2026. Knowledge products frequently exceed this.
Physical products — Vinted, Etsy, Depop. Lower margin, great for initial cash flow.
Who do you help?
Be specific — not "women" but "women in their 30s who earn well but can't seem to save"
What's their core problem?
The thing keeping them up at night — not a category, a feeling
What transformation do you give them?
The specific result — before → after. What does their life look like after working with you?
What's the format?
1:1 coaching, course, template, retainer, done-for-you service, physical product?
1. What does this problem cost your client right now (in money, time, or stress)? Your price should be a fraction of that cost.
2. What do others charge for something similar? You don't have to match it — but you need to know.
3. What does your price communicate? Too low signals low quality. Price with confidence.
Starter Price
Your first 3–5 clients while you build confidence and testimonials. Lower than market rate — but not free. Never free.
Aspiration Price
Where you'll be in 6 months, once you have 3 testimonials and proven results. This is your real rate.
Education — teach something useful for free. Builds trust before they ever buy.
Social proof — share results, testimonials, before/after. People buy what other people have already bought.
Behind the scenes — show your process. People buy from people they feel they know.
Never negotiate based on what you need — negotiate based on what you're worth. "I need this because my rent went up" is a reason for your landlord, not your employer. "Based on market data and my contributions, the rate for this role is £X" is a negotiation.
"I've really valued my time here and I'm committed to [your role / team / goals]. I've done some research into the market rate for this position, and based on that — alongside [your key achievement] and [your key contribution] — I'd like to discuss bringing my salary to [your target]. Is that something we can explore?"
Week 1 — Identify
Complete your Ikigai Audit. Write your one-sentence offer.
Week 2 — Validate
Talk to 3 real people (not surveys). Ask: "Would you pay for this? What's it worth?"
Week 3 — Package
Decide format, set a price, set up a simple way to book or buy (Calendly, PayPal invoice, DM).
Week 4 — Launch
Tell your network. Your first client almost always comes from someone you already know.