One of my major 2025 goals involves becoming wiser with my finances. This goal is categorized under soul care because it’s actually linked to my emotional and mental health. Yes, saving and investing is not only about numbers, but about how you feel concerning those numbers.
I’ve always tried to keep an emergency fund account for when unexpected expenses arise. My issue was at times looking at that account and “borrowing” against it on wants and not needs. As we discussed last week, discipline plays a big role in reaching goals. Today we are going to look into the practical and emotional aspects of money, and how to become smarter about our finances.
Before tackling this goal, I needed to get a clear understanding of where I stand financially. This was accomplished by the 50/30/20 Budgeting Rule.

Create a Budget
Start by listing all your income and expenses for the past few months. Break those expenses into categories – simple ones like needs, wants, and saving/investing work great. A solid guideline is the 50/30/20 rule: aim to spend 50% of your income on needs, 30% on wants, and 20% on savings or investments.
Practice Mindful Spending
Don’t stress if you’re not hitting those percentages yet. The first step is figuring out where to cut back, and your wants are usually the easiest place to start. Look at both big and small purchases. Something as small as delivery fees or as big as vacations can break your budget. To fix the habit, focus on spending with purpose. When your purchases align with your goals, you’ll not only enjoy them more, but you’ll also save more to make your goals happen.
Save and Investing
Now let’s talk about the smallest but mightiest part of your budget: saving and investing. This is money you set aside for things like paying off debt, building an emergency fund, or planning for retirement. Start by looking at your goals and their timelines. If you’re saving up for a goal to hit within the next five years, we suggest keeping that money in a savings account for easy access. That’s because for short-term goals, you don’t want to risk losing your savings in a volatile stock market and not having a chance to grow it back. For goals further down the road — say 10, 20, or 30 years — investing may be your best bet. The market has historically been the best way to grow your money over time, demonstrating the upside you need to eventually buy a home or retire.
Emotional and mental health involves how you cope with the waves of life. Although one can’t predict the future on when the tides will change, we do have the ability to plan wisely concerning financial stability. Get with your accountability person or find a financial adviser when it comes to your finances in order to ensure discipline in the area of spending. Old habits can change quickly when you set your goals in front of you.
*Sections of this blog is taken from “Getting ‘Money Smart’ 101” Acorns newsletter
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