In today's episode, we are going to cover Money Success Roadmap stage three. If you haven't listened to stages one and two yet, go back and start with those. It's episode 92 and 93. Then come back to this one. So we are talking about the Money success roadmap, how to get from where you're at to where you wanna be with your finances because it can feel so overwhelming.

Before we dive into that, I do wanna let you know that this Episode is Brought to you by the Free Money Plan Bootcamp, which is my five set framework to creating a money plan that you can actually stick to. It starts next week, but you do have to sign up to join us and to get in all the giveaways and prizes and all the fun that we will be having for the next couple of weeks.

It all starts on Sunday with the welcome party on October 16th. So come join us there live, sign up@budgetsmadeeasy.com slash bootcamp. I hope to see you there. Welcome to the Money Mindset Podcast. Well, you'll find a judgment free zone to help you free yourself from overthinking and the fear of doing things the wrong way. It's time to shed yourself of the mom,

guilt, procrastination, and perfectionism so you can start doing the things that you really want to do with your money instead of just working to pay bills. I'm Ashley Patrick, ex detective turned debt free, CEO of my very own business and stay at home mom of three. Not too long ago, my dreams of staying at home with my kids seemed impossible. I thought I'd have to stay miserable in a high stress and demanding job just so I could retire someday.

After gaining the confidence in my own ability to manage my family's finances and a simple step by step plan to make it happen, I was able to pay off $45,000 in just 17 months, which then allowed me to finally quit my job, stay at home with my kids and build a debt free business. Now, my mission is to help moms like you conquer debt and free themselves from the mental load of handling their family's finances.

If you're ready to shed the guilt and shame surrounding your past money mistakes and tackle your debt, this is the place for you. Let's get started. Now, in today's episode, we are going to cover stage three. So stage three is called confident. You are, you know, starting to feel very confident in your mindset, in your spending habits and how to improve it.

Remember, you're not going to be perfect, nobody is. And also a reminder that you are not in more sta more than one stage at a time. So if you still have not completed all of the action steps in stage one or two, you go back to the stage that you have not completed. Once you complete all the action steps and milestones in one stage,

then you move to the next. Now, if you've already completed some of the next, awesome, great, you've gotta head start, complete them in that stage and then move on to the next. You are not in more than one stage at a time. Remember, we're trying to reduce overwhelm. You're focusing on one thing at a time. Also,

remember, this is the money success of roadmap that we use in implement inside of Money Success Club. So there are trainings and workbooks and we go way more in depth into what you need to do, but this is a very good overview of the roadmap in the stages for you to go ahead and take action until many Success Club is open again. So in this stage,

you know you have your plan, you're getting your confidence up your mind, you're working on your mindset and those limiting beliefs and those things that you think about yourself and about money that are holding you back and causing you to overspend. You're starting to get excited that you can save money and you can pay off debt and you are starting to have less of those financial setbacks and financially and you know the mental setbacks as well,

right? Because they kind of go together when things pop up. We get set back mentally as well as financially. At this stage, you're really working on and doing things where you won't be set so far when things come up because of course it's life things are gonna come up. So in this stage, you're really focusing on making a plan for those bigger purchases.

So do you need to do some home repairs? Do you need a higher price item, like a washer and dryer? Do you need to replace your car or do you need to start thinking about it, right? That maybe in the next two to three years you get to start planning for how you're gonna replace your car. You are wor making sure that you're paying the appropriate amount in taxes so you're not overpaying and getting a huge refund at the end of the year and you don't have enough money month to month or paycheck to paycheck.

You need that extra money. Now you're making sure that you are not underpaying your taxes either, especially if you're self-employed or you have a second job. You need to make sure that you don't end up owing money at the end of the year. Either you are checking on your insurance policies, Do you have life insurance? Do you have the proper coverage for your car and your house and,

and of course your life insurance? Do you have the right amount? Do you have the right policies? Do you have, you know, a deductible that you can actually meet so maybe you can shop around and get a lower price? All those types of things. So you're, you're thinking about the bigger picture items in this stage. See, and keep in mind that I have not started talking about saving for an emergency fund.

I haven't started talking about paying off debt. This is kind of the basic stuff. So we're taking it slow so that you can have long-term success, but you were, you know, in this stage you're getting excited, you're seeing what's possible. You're starting to make those bigger changes that are going to lead you toward that long term success. So the action items in this stage,

you're gonna make a list of higher price items that you're gonna need in the relative future. So we're talking like five years or less things that you need to start thinking about planning for how you're gonna pay for it, you know, and it doesn't have to be month to month or maybe it is, maybe you save a hundred dollars a month and then when you have that extra paycheck or if you get a bonus,

a tax refund, you sell something, then you put that money toward that higher price item if that's what you choose to do. So you're starting to really map out how you're going to pay for these things. You are checking on your insurance policy. So check with your insurance agent, see, make sure that you have the proper coverage. Make sure that you don't need anything else or that you can get rid of something.

Maybe you're over insured, you know, just kinda check on those policies. Check with your insurance agent in your state and make sure you have the proper coverage. I also want you to go to the IRS withholding calculator website. Make sure that you are on track for making sure that you are saving or you're paying the appropriate amount in taxes. And if at this point at this recording,

this is October, and so maybe you've, you're already getting a huge refund and if you keep the, you're withholdings the same for the rest of the year, it's going to be an even bigger refund. Maybe you wanna adjust it for the rest this year and then change it back in January. Of course, I am not a tax professional, so check with yours to make sure that you're paying the appropriate amount in taxes.

And now I want you to determine your savings goals. So what do you want to have saved as your, just your basic emergency fund? This isn't gonna cover all things right, but a thousand dollars minimum 500 is a good start. If you've never saved before and a thousand feels like a huge mountain to climb, start with 500, then work toward a thousand cuz that's just 500 twice,

right? If you can do 500 once, you can do it twice. If you have any major life events coming up that you need to save for a move having a child, do you expect a job loss? Are you going to be out of work for a season? Are you gonna have surgery? Do you work a seasonal job where maybe in the wintertime there's not as much work?

You need a plan for that. So starting to think about what your savings goal is going to look like. And I also want you to make sure that you're saving for medical costs. So do you have with your employer or do you have the ability to get a HSA or an FSA or both? And do you need to be saving in those? So those are pre-tax and you can save money on your taxes as well because it comes out before they take out your taxes.

So that's another way to save there. So those are your action steps, your milestones. So once you've completed all those action steps, these milestones, you get a move to stage four. So the milestones, you've saved $200 every month on your bills so that, you know, we talked about that in stage two. Finding ways to save. So in stage three you are doing it,

you're fine, you've, you have found a way and you have done it where you are saving $200 a month. You've got the proper insurance policies in place so you know what you need, you've got the coverage, you're not over-insured, you're not underinsured. You have identified your sinking funds, which are just savings funds for those needed big purchases. How you're gonna save for it,

where you're gonna save for, and kind of put that plan in place. Now in stage three we're gonna work on our one year plan with smart goals. So before I talked about, you know, stage one, it's one month, stage two, it's six months. Now in stage three we're gonna think a little bit longer. So we need to make a plan for a year.

What is your one year plan with smart goals? And now you might be thinking, I need to save $2,000 and I wanna pay off $6,000 in credit card debt in the next year. Or you know, maybe even more than that, right? So you have created a specific measurable, attainable, realistic, timely goal. So the year is timely, the specific is the number that you wanna save,

the number that you wanna pay off in debt. It's the, you know, maybe you want to in the next year save in cash for a trip that you wanna take and you need to set a specific savings goal amount for that, that specific and it's measurable and you are paying and or saving the proper amount for your income taxes. So if you're self-employed or you have a side hustle,

you're underpaying in through your regular job or maybe your second job and you've gotta save more for your taxes, you have a plan in place, you know how much you need to save and you're saving for that. And one way to think about that as well, if you do have to save, if you do normally pay in at the end of the year on your taxes,

that is not your money. Put it in a separate account. Do not even think of it as being an option to use. So that has helped me these past couple of years where I have to pay in every year. I no longer get a tax refund. So I set the money aside and then when I pay my taxes, then I give myself my own little tax refund.

But I'm not having to wait on the government to do that for me. Now that's pretty doable, right? So stage one, two, and three, you can move through that very quickly. So stage one, two, and three, I want you to have that done in less than three months. Like you can really focus on each stage and move through it relatively quickly.

I mean, realistically, if you really set down the time and focus and you're intentional with what you are doing, you can get through stage 3, 1, 2, and three. Have them done in, I mean six weeks, but I'll give you three months. I want these done within three months so that you can move on to stage four and five. And that's where you're really gonna start focusing on saving and paying off debt.

So you can get to stage six where you have that financial freedom and you have the ability to do what you want, save for what you want and you have, you have the time and money freedom to be able to do the things that you can't do right now because of the debt. And because you're not managing your day to day finances and you're moving past that overwhelm and feeling like you don't know what to do,

which leads to that confidence, which is why stage three is called confident. Because you really do need to believe in yourself and believe in your ability to do this so that you can make that progress and keep doing what you need to do to move on to the next stage. Now again, you are not more than one stage at a time. If you have not completed all the action steps and milestones for the previous stages,

you have to do that first. Now reminder, we are doing the Money Plan bootcamp. It starts next week, it starts Sunday with the Welcome Live. There are going to be prizes, live trainings. I'm gonna walk you through my five step framework for creating a money plan that you can actually stick to. You don't have to join me live every time I know that you're busy you will be able to watch the replays.

So, but you do have to sign up. So if you wanna even have the ability to watch the replays, get in for the giveaways, the prizes, all the fun stuff that we are doing as well, you do have to sign up to get in on that action. But just made easy.com/bootcamp and I hope to see you there. It's, I am really looking forward to it.

If you can't tell, I'm excited. I am so excited to spend this time with you, teaching you and getting you to create a realistic plan that's going to work for you and your family. Cuz remember it's not a one size all thing. I will talk to you guys tomorrow where I will cover stage four. We are gonna have some fun with that one.

See you.