By Daniel Rodriguez | Dr. Budgets

What is your financial goal? Samantha’s* dream was to quit her full-time job and start a business, while eliminating her credit card debt. Could she do it? Here is her story…

Background
I was in a career that didn’t fulfill me and, although the pay was good, I was too exhausted at the end of the day to do anything for myself. One day I found a training program for a business I was passionate about, and right away I knew I had to go for it! Because the career I was in at the time was so demanding, I decided to change jobs so I would have the time and energy to complete the program. I ended up taking a pay cut with the new job and wasn’t making enough money to live on. My gas and groceries went on my credit card, and when I started to build my business, all the startup costs (webpage, business cards, networking…) went on the card too.

Deciding to Work with Dr. Budgets
I heard about Dr. Budgets from my friend Jane, and kept it in the back of my mind for several months. I was building my business, and it was great, but I was still working full-time to pay the bills – between the full-time job and working with my clients, I was working over 70 hours per week, every week! My dream was to quit my “day job” and run my business full-time, but my credit card debt was weighing on me. Then one day it was as if a light bulb went off in my head – I thought “I need to understand where I’m going and what I need to do to get there.” I knew understanding my finances was a big part of that.

Working with Dr. Budgets – Personal Finances
After my consultation with Dr. Budgets, it was clear that my money coach was going to help me tremendously! I explained that I’m very bad with numbers and I get confused, but I could tell that my money coach loved numbers and could explain them in a way I could understand. Most importantly, he wasn’t telling me his opinion on how I should spend my money – he wanted to understand what was important to me (quitting my job and paying off my debt), and how my money could get me what I wanted. I was sold!

We quickly saw that if I cut my expenses I could leave my “day job” sooner, so I focused on that. We worked together to create a budget that cut my expenses in half, but that I knew I could live with. Before Dr. Budgets, I couldn’t answer the question “can I afford this?” because I had no idea. The budget helped me prioritize what I really wanted, and now I had a framework for my spending decisions. That clarity was really helpful.

The biggest thing we did was to wean me off using my credit cards. It took a while because I had so many cards! But I focused on my goals, and before I knew it I fell into my new “normal” way of life without credit cards.

During this time, I was still working full-time and had a steady income. The way I was running my personal finances was good, but I knew I couldn’t run a business that way – so I hired Dr. Budgets for my business finances too.

Working with Dr. Budgets – Business Finances

Having a startup business can be challenging – some months I earned more money than others. Dr. Budgets helped me manage the highs and lows of my business. We were able to plan and set goals – it’s so stabilizing! When I have really high income months, I know my spending isn’t going to change. The old me would have thought “I’M RICH!!” and not have planned for potential low months.

With Dr. Budgets, I feel that I can relax because I’m working with somebody who understands my business finances and is helping me grow. Last year, I did my taxes the night before they were due and I know I missed opportunities. He referred me to a tax accountant, and now I’m tax planning and tracking mileage – this is HUGE! I understand my finances now more than ever, and it helps me stay on top of my money.

Success!
In April, I was able to quit my job and go full-time in my business! I’ve also paid off over $10,000 in credit card debt and took a much needed vacation. Working with a money coach was essential to my success. Having habits that worked for me financially was something I wasn’t doing, but my money coach helped me create those habits. Budgets can be exciting and fun because you’re spending money on what’s important to you – you’re getting what you really want!

My favorite thing about working with Dr. Budgets is that my money coach doesn’t judge me, and I never feel ashamed if I mess up. My coach helped me understand the results of my spending: if I do this, then this is the reward or consequence.

Paying down debt, going full-time in my business, and being able to enjoy life – achieving any ONE of these goals would have been sufficient, but I achieved all three! Dr. Budgets helped me set financial goals, then taught me how to make my money work for me.

If you’re thinking about hiring Dr. Budgets, do it! If you’re really sick, then you’re going to go to a doctor… if your finances are all over the place, you need to go to Dr. Budgets.

Conclusion
Thank you for sharing your success story Samantha! We’re tremendously proud of Samantha and how far she’s come… she’s living her dream! If her story resembles your own and has inspired you to act, give us a call at (619) 800-3030 to schedule your complimentary consultation.

*For client confidentiality, we changed the name of the person to “Samantha.”  Everything else is factual.