Money date activity: your financial wheel of life (with PDF worksheet)

How satisfied do you feel with your finances on a scale of 1-10?

Certified Money Coach Karen Eley shares her favourite money date (or solo date) activity. This will help you understand the ten areas of your financial wheel of life, how that interacts with your partners and her tips on taking practical action today.

👉🏽 Click here to download the free PDF worksheet

👉🏽 Catch Part 1 of this conversation with Karen on Spotify

What are some of the common challenges couples have around money?

• argue over how money is spent/saved (the challenge in balancing enjoying today and securing the future)
• differences in risk-taking levels, one a spender – the other a saver
• one carries all of the financial responsibilities, and the other is dependent
• one partner dominating or controlling family finances – add support
• financial infidelity (keeping money secrets)

Karen’s 7 ways to start a money conversation

• Ask for a conversation and give notice – ‘hey, I’d like to chat about our cash flow/ debt situation/ super/ insurances or overall finances. When would be a good time?’
• Express your intentions: Start the conversation by sharing the reasons for wanting to discuss money, emphasizing that it’s about… ie. building a secure future, enjoying life, and making the most of the opportunities.
• Discuss shared goals: Ask about and highlight the common financial goals you both have. Whether it’s buying a home, saving for a vacation, or planning for retirement, emphasising shared objectives helps align your financial priorities.
• What are your (partner’s) greatest financial fears? Then, how can we look for other possibilities rather than focusing on the FEAR (False Evidence Appearing Real)
• If you won $10M, what would you do with the money?  The purpose of this question is to drill down to find out what is most important to them (if money weren’t an issue)
• Who in our life can you think of who manages money really well?  What about them do you admire?  Then, who do we know in our life that we think is really bad with money? What are the reasons we think this way?
• Where do you see us financially in 10 years’ time?  Taking a long-term view of money is important. We often put too much emphasis and focus on short-term money management.