Fia-Lynn Crandall knew the basics of managing her money, but she struggled to keep her spending in line. Because she owned her own business, increasing her paycheck to make up for overspending was a quick fix. But she when she spent too much, she had less to pour into her business. After hearing Dr. Tony speak, she joined Financially Fit Bootcamp. Now she’s found the Freedom and clarity to live within her means. Just by setting up her Perfect Account Structure!
Fia-Lynn said, “Before I would spend money really carelessly but I understand now that I was taking it from my business… There’s endless things to spend money on that I don’t really appreciate that much. Now I feel so much clearer and more empowered to take care of myself and my business and to not just be flying by the seat of my pants with my finances. I’m a lot more deliberate now.”
Now she rarely spends more than she earns.
“I have this picture in my head of actually living more simply and keeping more of what I make and devoting more money that I make toward freedom instead of just spending it on some lifestyle.” Fia-Lynn said.
Who is Fia-Lynn?
Fia-Lynn Crandall started her career as a mechanical engineer. After graduating, she quickly realized the job wasn’t for her. There was so much more she could do with her life, she felt. She wanted to live a life full of meaning, to make a difference.
She started her own business, Fearless Faith Inc., to help business owners reach their full potential. While she now felt fulfilled in a career she loved, she realized that to truly succeed, she needed a better game plan for her own Financial Freedom.
The power of the Perfect Account Structure
Fia-Lynn was already handling her money right in many ways. She had parts of her financial game plan automated and used an account structure similar to the one in Financially Fit Bootcamp. To augment her partially-automated system, she used a spreadsheet that she updated monthly to keep track of her spending.
Before Financially Fit Bootcamp, Fia-Lynn easily spent $1,000 to $2,000 more than her monthly income. She was thrown off by surprise expenses that should have been predictable— like a gift for a family member’s birthday.
She realized even earning more money wouldn’t solve her financial problems. One year her business earned $100,000 more in revenue, but because she struggled to control her spending, she was no better off financially. It was at that point she said to herself, “Whoa, I gotta figure this out.”
Weekly paychecks
Hearing Dr. Tony Pennells, founding director of MindShift.money, speak was a game changer for Fia-Lynn. She felt comfortable, because the account structure was similar to what she was already using. But she finally had the little bit of extra knowledge that made all the difference. She was missing a crucial “secret sauce” to her account structure.
She already an Income Account, with no debit card attached, automatically depositing set amounts into an Everyday Account. She used this to pay for her monthly expenses, like groceries, gas and entertainment.
But she only deposited money into her Everyday Account once a month. The Financially Fit Bootcamp approach is to deposit money each week. Changing this one step was revolutionary for her. Since she started paying herself weekly, she knows she is only ever seven days away from her next “paycheck” into her everyday account. Since she put this piece in place, she hasn’t spent more than her paycheck.
The amount that automatically deposits into her everyday account each week is so accurate now,she doesn’t even need to update her monthly spreadsheet like she did regularly in the past. Goodbye spreadsheets and budgets!
The results
Since Fia-Lynn finished Financially Fit Bootcamp, she’s closer than ever to Financial Freedom. She pays her future self first automatically every month, covers her monthly personal expenses and has profit left in her business to reinvest.
In addition, when surprise expenses pop up, Fia-Lynn has the money set aside already. And she has a separate account for future planned expenses.
Ultimately, she said, her values have shifted. She lives more modestly and doesn’t put off taking care of her future self. She lives more simply and devotes more to her Financial Freedom.
“I value taking care of my future self,” Fia-Lynn said, “where before it was just this thing that I would finally get to one day. Now it’s more top of mind, it’s a priority, it’s what I’m building my business to do, and, of course, being able to do it sooner, rather than later”
To learn more about Fia-Lynn, visit our Specialist Panel.
Makaylah Rogers is the co-founder of MindShift.money. She is a Thought Leader for her generation, teaching people how to rewrite their “money rules.” With an extensive background in wealth building and personal development, Makaylah’s path has taken her into executive roles in various fields including launching startups, real estate sales and motivational keynote speaking.