My Money
Perspective

I believe ownership is one of the most powerful ways to strengthen your financial position and build wealth.

Owning a home, business, investment, or other asset means having something of value in your name. It gives you greater control over your financial resources, creates the opportunity to build equity, and allows what you own to become part of your long-term financial foundation.

Whenever possible, I believe your money should help you build ownership. Renting may meet a need, but it does not create ownership or equity for you. Ownership gives you something in your name, something that can hold value, grow in value, and become part of your financial foundation.

For me, ownership is not simply a financial strategy. It is a cornerstone of building wealth.

I believe savings are essential to building financial stability. It gives you greater control, helps you prepare for unexpected expenses, and creates room to make financial decisions without immediately relying on credit.

Saving twenty percent of your net income is the goal I encourage, but that does not mean everyone can begin there. Start with an amount you can consistently save and build from there. As your income increases or your financial position improves, increase the amount you save.

The goal is not perfection. The goal is to establish the habit, strengthen it over time, and continue working toward a savings rate that gives you greater financial security.

Saving and investing serve different purposes, and I believe both are necessary.

Emergency savings provide protection. They give you money to draw from when something unexpected happens without immediately disrupting the rest of your financial life.

Once you have established the emergency savings amount you need, I believe additional long-term dollars should begin working for you through investing. Keeping every available dollar in savings may provide security, but investing creates the opportunity for your money to grow over time.

Build the safety net first. Then begin building wealth.

I believe budgeting should make your financial life clearer, not more complicated. That is why I use the equation I – E = ME.

Your income comes in. Your expenses go out. What remains is your ME Money.

ME Money is the portion of your income that gives you choices. It can be used to save, invest, work toward financial goals, enjoy life, and fund the things that matter to you.

A budget is not about restrictive spending. It is about knowing where your money is going so you can make intentional decisions about what remains.

The clearer you are about your numbers, the more control you have over your money.

I believe one of the strongest ways to improve your financial position is to widen the gap between what you earn and what you spend.

Managing expenses matters, but there is only so much you can cut. Income has the ability to expand. Increasing your earning potential while keeping expenses under control can give you more money to save, invest, build ownership, pursue financial goals, and support the lifestyle you want.

This is why I do not believe financial progress should focus only on spending less. There is also tremendous value in earning more.

Increasing your income strengthens your ability to save, invest, build ownership, and create wealth, especially when your expenses remain in check.