These 5 Habits Rewired My Relationship With Money
Stop Overspending, Start Healing
This month hit me hard.
As a family, our expenses exceeded our income. Plain and simple.
It wasn’t because we splurged on luxuries or went wild with impulse buys. It was because life happened. Unexpected bills, kid-related surprises, and some tough financial decisions that had to be made on the fly.
Being able to manage despite this setback was a blessing in disguise. It forced me to confront our financial reality. No fluff, no sugar-coating. Just the facts and some uncomfortable truths.
That’s when I realized: this one practice, taking time once a month to do a full financial review has quietly become our family’s superpower.
Because without this monthly ritual, we’d be reacting to financial stress instead of staying ahead of it.
If you’re serious about taking control of your money, there’s no getting around it. One solid financial check-in per month can save you from chaos and set you up for long-term peace of mind.
To maintain control of our financial future, I’ve developed 5 critical habits that keep us ahead of the game, even when life throws unexpected challenges our way.
1. Evaluate Ruthlessly
Here’s the truth: I track our cash flow daily. Not weekly, not “when I have time,” but daily.
Whether it’s asking my wife about an expense or scanning our accounts dashboard before bed, keeping tabs on money movement has become non-negotiable.
And because of this, when the month-end hits, I’m not scrambling to figure out what happened. I already know. I can feel which categories are tight and which have room. I know if we can afford an extra family dinner out or if it’s time to scale back.
Financial awareness isn't about obsessing, it's about knowing. Knowing gives you confidence. Knowing gives you options.
So when you sit down at the end of the month, evaluate with honesty. Where did your money actually go? Were those choices aligned with your goals, or driven by stress, convenience, or emotion?
2. Identify Patterns
We all have spending patterns and they’re often invisible until we shine a light on them. That’s why I take time to monitor every expense. You don’t need a fancy app, although those can help. Even a simple spreadsheet does the job.
My credit card accounts breaks our spending into categories: food, bills, medical, child, transportation, subscriptions, etc. Then I ask the hard questions.
What categories are slowly ballooning?
Are there recurring charges we forgot about?
Are we spending emotionally?
These numbers don’t lie. They tell stories. Sometimes, uncomfortable stories. And that’s okay. Honesty with yourself is how you grow.
By identifying patterns, you stop financial blind spots from sneaking up and stealing your progress.
3. Brainstorm Strategically
When your expenses outpace your income, as happened to us this month, you need to shift from reacting to strategizing.
That means sitting down, maybe with a cup of tea and a notebook, and asking: “What can we do differently next month?”
Do we need to eat out less? Cut back on subscriptions? Delay a big purchase?
Every dollar spent beyond your income pushes your goals further away. But the good news? Every intentional change brings them closer again.
This isn’t about punishment, it’s about creativity. We’ve discovered some of our most effective savings hacks during these monthly reviews.
Even minor adjustments like switching grocery stores, batching errands, or meal prepping can create major ripple effects.
4. Plan for Disruption
In our defense, a few big-ticket expenses came out of nowhere this month—car maintenance, private school fees, and medical costs. We chose not to dip into our emergency savings, but it was close.
That decision was only possible because we had that cushion in the first place.
Honestly, disruption is not a matter of “if”—it’s when. So part of our monthly ritual involves checking our emergency fund, reviewing insurance coverage, and asking, “If the unexpected happened next month… are we ready?”
You don’t need to obsess over every disaster scenario. But you do need to plan for unpredictability.
Because if you don’t, the unexpected won’t just rattle your nerves, it’ll wreck your finances.
5. Move Forward Deliberately
The hardest part of any monthly financial check-in? Facing the truth.
Yes, we overspent. Yes, some expenses were necessary. Yes, we could’ve done better.
But here’s the thing: you can’t rewrite the month. The expenses are what they are. The past is fixed.
What matters most now is how you move forward.
When life throws you curveballs, you adapt. You plan more meticulously, prepare more thoroughly, and perform more intentionally.
That’s what we’re doing right now. We’re tweaking the budget, communicating more as a family, and getting crystal clear on what matters most financially this next month.
We’re choosing progress over perfection.
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The Power of the Monthly Financial Review
I’ll say it again: this month hit me hard.
And yet, I’m more financially grounded than I’ve ever been. Not because everything went smoothly, but because I paid attention.
The monthly financial review isn’t just a good habit. It’s a lifeline. It’s the difference between surrendering to financial chaos and taking ownership of your financial future.
If you want to get ahead, you don’t need 100 new tools. You just need to commit to showing up once a month, checking in, and being radically honest.
Do this, and your money will start working for you, not against you.
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Cervante Burrell, M.Ed., CFEI®, is the founder of Money Tips Money Hacks, a financial wellness educator, husband, and proud father dedicated to helping others thrive financially from the inside out.
If there's a large expense that you wanna save for but the span of time until you reach that goal is gonna be longer than you originally thought, how can you still make meaningful progress to this goal each month without depriving yourself of fun experiences?
Such practical, powerful shifts. Small habits, big impact!