Flip the Script. Prioritize Your Purpose. Build Peace of Mind.

You can do this at most credit unions or online banks (just make sure each account is free).

1. Income Account – where all your paychecks and income land

2. Bills Account – for fixed monthly expenses (mortgage, utilities, insurance)

3. Spending Account – for everyday purchases (groceries, gas, eating out)

4. Savings Account – for your emergency fund and future goals

5. Optional – add extra savings accounts for goals like home repairs, Christmas, or vacations

Step 2: Automate Weekly Transfers

Every week (or every payday), transfer set amounts into each account. This smooths out monthly expenses and eliminates “surprise bill” stress.

Example for $6,000 monthly take-home:

* Maybe you start with 1%. The key is to start giving and grow over time.

** If you have consumer debt, this 20% goes to debt payoff after you build a starter emergency fund ($1,000–$2,000).

Step 3: Spend Only From the Right Account

• Bills Account = automatic payments only

• Spending Account = swipe freely, guilt-free

• Savings Account = hands off unless it’s a planned goal

• Income Account = hold deposits until payday, then disperse

👉 Key insight: If your Spending Account hits $0, you didn’t fail. Your system worked — bills, savings, and giving already happened. That’s winning.

• Monarch Money – track spending and course-correct as you go

• Calendar & Reminders – set a weekly “Money Date” to move money and check in as a couple

💡 This is key: In order to win with money, you need to be intentional — together.

1. Open the bank accounts you need

2. Set up automatic transfers (weekly or on payday)

3. Start small: $50 into savings, $20 into giving — just get started

4. Stick with it for 90 days

This isn’t just a money plan — it’s a discipline plan. It’s Proverbs 21:5 in action.

Over time, it will change how you feel about money.

With every decision, you’re building peace, margin, and freedom.

Here to Serve,

Ian

Just like my zero-turn mower, money is a tool.

And just like an hour meter helps me maintain my mower, a budget helps me maintain my money.

Without a budget, you’re just guessing. And life’s too short to guess when it comes to money.

Not every budget has to look the same. The only one that matters is the one you understand and can stick with. Here are four ways to get started — three of them free.

At minimum, set up separate bank accounts to structure your goals. Here’s how it works:

• Income Account – All your money lands here.
• Spending Account – Everyday purchases.
• Bills Account (optional) – Some people prefer a dedicated account to ensure rent, mortgage, and utilities are always covered.
• Savings Account – Your emergency fund.

Then follow the 10/10/80 rule:

• 10% Give (first fruits, put others first).
• 10% Save (pay your future self).
• 80% Spend (if you’re spending more than this, life will always feel tight).

👉 Read more about the 10/10/80 plan here.

The old-school method still works. Write down:

• Your essentials (housing, food, utilities, transportation, clothing)
• Everything else

👉 [Download the free budget PDF – LINK PLACEHOLDER]

👉 [Check out the full Budget Kit (12 months) – LINK PLACEHOLDER]

👉 [Grab a free Debt Tracker – LINK PLACEHOLDER]

Simple. Clear. Visual.

Excel is really just pen and paper with formulas doing the math for you. If you like seeing numbers add up automatically, start here.

👉 [Download the Excel Budget Template – LINK PLACEHOLDER]

This is my favorite budgeting app. Why?

• It doesn’t sell your information (looking at you, Mint).
• You can invite your advisor or coach to walk alongside you.
• It’s cheap. I see it as low as $4/month.

👉 Sign up for Monarch Money here.

If you want some help building a budget — or you’ve tried everything before and nothing stuck — you don’t have to go it alone. Through The Collective and The Collective Plus, you get:

• Monthly live workshops (90 minutes, with replays available)
• A real community with guided conversations (and monitored chat so the bad info doesn’t spread)
• Free 529 management
• Paper newsletters delivered to your home (because real paper still matters)
• And more

👉 Learn more about The Collective!

My mower needs an hour meter to stay in shape.

Your money needs a budget for the same reason.

Money is a tool. A budget is how you maintain it.

Don’t just guess your way through life — use your tools, maintain them well, and leave a positive impact that outlasts you.

Here to Serve,

Ian