The thing about money is...

I’ve overdrawn my checking account many times. I also didn’t have a retirement account until my late 20’s and I’m pretty sure I have some old stock dividends lying around somewhere. All that to say is my money situation used to be a MESS. My approach was to avoid checking it at all costs. If I didn’t know how poor I was, I wouldn’t stress out about it.

Turns out that was a lie. Well, a lie I told myself. As I started to become more and more financially “adult,” I realized I actually had some financial goals of my own. I finally started to face my finances head on when my dad retired before 55 because he could. I realized to get there I would have to come up with a plan and actually stick to it.

Since then I’ve bought a car, paid off all debt, built up a 6 month rainy day fund, and have saved aggressively for my future. I’ve learned a lot, (so much that I have an entire course just about money in the works.) But lately I found myself in the same money avoidance trap. You see I have a lot of changes coming up.

I’m closing my first business, Gather + Co (a Seattle based hair salon) to do full time business coaching. I’m also moving from the city to the mountains and downsizing significantly. Anddd my boyfriend is graduating from Engineering school this summer (hopefully). 2021? A big ol’ year of unknowns for us. And though I’m so so SO excited for it all, I also found myself overwhelmed with my financial situation. To deal with that anxiety, I knew I had to bring it back to basics. Here’s what I did.

1. I met with my accountant to figure out my 2020 q4 taxes and paid it. I always set aside a monthly % for taxes and always have a bonus at the end of the year. This year’s bonus goes to next year’s business just-in-case fund.
2. I calculated my 2021 costs for my new business. When is my website subscription due and how much is it? When do I renew my business license? How much is my Google Domain? I accounted for all of that for each month for the year moving forward. This helped me mentally prepare for how much I’ll need to bring in each month to stay ahead.
3. I added up my 2021 costs for the first 6 months and made sure I had that amount in the bank. Why? If I don’t make a single penny, I know I’ll be able to pay all of those bills no problem. I’m a huge fan of living a minimal lifestyle and investing the rest for retirement, but having a safety net relieves a lot of stress for me and knowing I have that money available is a huge help.
4. I talked it out with my boyfriend. We don’t share finances but we are a team. I’ve been the breadwinner in our relationship for 4+ years but I refuse to let his future success dictate the current success of my business. But talking it through ensured we have clear communication and the same financial goals: stay debt free, save for early retirement, save for a house, in that order.

If you find yourself feeling uneasy about “money stuff” I encourage you to do what I did: stay on top of taxes, calculate upcoming costs, save for a rainy day, and communicate your plan. The more clarity you have around your finances the better choices you’ll be able to make. And most importantly, the more progress you’ll make on your financial goals. Now go out there and make some money moves!

Happy Hustling,

Kelsey

P.S. Want to talk more about money stuff and the how of all this? Send me a DM on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/kelseymarieknutson/. Seriously. I love talking all things money and I’m happy to help however I can!