Hello there Reader!
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​The spending plan you create today isn't necessarily going to be the same spending plan you need three to five years from now. It may not even be the plan you need six months from now because life changes, circumstances change, and what's important to you today may not be as important a few months from now.

Your kids grow up, you change jobs, you decide to go back to school, or the car you thought you'd drive for another three years decides otherwise. Maybe you've been planning for a new house, leaving your job, helping your kids through college, taking a trip, or something you've dreamed about doing for years.

That's why I don't believe your spending plan should feel legalistic or like it's poured in concrete. You're planning for the season you're in today, while also preparing for the seasons you can't see yet.

I was thinking about this recently because of a young man I've coached who also happens to be my future son-in-law. (Yes, that's my girl🩷)

When he graduated from college in 2022, he had $23,000 in student loan debt. He had a dream of going to grad school to pursue a degree for Physician Assistant. He worked in EMS, making less than $30k annually, paying his own rent, groceries, utilities and all the normal expenses that come with supporting yourself. Even with all of that, he paid off every bit of that $23,000 in 28 months.
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He pivoted in 2024 and decided that PA school just wasn't the right direction for him - I'll say, the medical community missed out!!

He spent the majority of 2025 trying to build a sales business. He joined me in a local network community where many respected and seasoned business owner began to inspirem, encourage and pour wisdom into him weekly. He went door to door, walked into small businesses and talked with owners about their business process. He built relationships, had a LOT of one-on-one conversations and worked really hard trying to make that business work.

Eventually, he realized he was fighting a battle trying to make something work that simply wasn't going to produce the income he had hoped and planned for. He could have kept doing it because he'd already put a year into it, but instead in October 2025, he changed direction. He left EMS and he stopped doing sales calls.

Today, he owns a mobile detailing business and has more clients than he has time to get to in a week. He has a waiting list of people on his calendar, and this year he's already made more income than ever before.

The interesting part is that the year he spent building the first business wasn't wasted. He thought he was building one business, but in many ways, he was building the relationships, experience and confidence he would need for the business he has today.

His plans changed, his business changed and his income changed. Now he's building a healthy emergency fund, paying cash for equipment to grow his business and making plans for a future with my daughter.

Money works a lot like that.

You may be putting money aside today because you're thinking about buying a house, and six months from now you may decide you want to go back to school. You may be saving for one thing when a completely different opportunity comes along, or life may simply change and something that wasn't important to you before becomes very important.

That doesn't mean the original plan failed. It means your life changed.

When you've been planning your money and setting some of it aside instead of spending everything you make, the money is there when the season changes. You have an opportunity to look at your life as it is now and decide what is truly important to you.

And I think that's one of the greatest things that comes from being in control of your money.

You don't have to know exactly what your life is going to look like three to five years from now. You don't have to make today's decisions and then lock yourself into them forever. You're preparing so that when life does change, you have choices.

Instead of feeling stuck, wondering if you'll ever get ahead or thinking you don't know what you're doing with money, you begin to build confidence in the decisions you're making.

Yes, you DO know what to do with money.

You're making decisions for the season you're in while preparing yourself for whatever season comes next.

I'd love to know what that looks like for you.
Hit reply and tell me what you're setting money aside for right now, even if you're not completely sure that's what you'll eventually use it for.

Melinda🩷

Helping you find calm, confidence, and margin with your money

P.S. If you're making 6-figures and still wondering why it feels tighter than it should, start with my 15-Minute Money Reset. In about 15 minutes, you'll see where your money is going, identify what's creating pressure and make one decision to begin creating more room for what matters to you.

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