I am one of those people who loves checklists.
Especially when I want to make progress in a particular area but don’t exactly know what steps to take.
They tend to help me see the big picture a little bit clearer.
Below is my personal financial checklist that I have been following.
It covers many of the steps I have taken over the last decade that have helped me move from being a financial mess to having at least a little bit of an idea of what’s going on with my money.
Some of the listed items are bigger and will take a long time, and some of them are simple tasks that you can accomplish in a day.
Some will be relevant to your situation and some will not – that is why it is called “personal” finance – everyone’s situation is unique.
But, if you are just starting out and are trying to get yourself into a better position financially, I would suggest spending the next couple months checking off as many things on this list as possible.
If you do that you will be on your way to financial freedom!
Want to print this financial checklist?
You can download this checklist as a PDF and print it for your own use if you’d like.
NOTE: This is not a chronological step-by-step process, but like the title suggests it is just a checklist.
Some of the items can be done simultaneously, while others will require another item to be checked off first.
Hope it helps!
My Personal Checklist to Financial Freedom
✅ Begin tracking your AUM
This is commonly referred to as your Net Worth, but we stopped using that term and prefer the term AUM because we believe it is all His and we are just stewards managing what we have been trusted with. And that it is pretty insulting to define your total worth by a number.
But, all that said, tracking this number is the best way to measure your financial progress. So do it now if you haven’t yet. It might only take 10 minutes. Here is a quick video showing how.
✅ Start giving a percentage
Something. Anything. If you don’t have a dollar to your name, give your time. Just get the sowing and reaping process started.
Genesis 8:22 says as long as the earth remains there will always be seedtime and harvest and you can’t reap what you don’t sow. So just like a farmer wouldn’t expect crops without planting seed, we too must start sowing in the area that we want to reap.
Though it seems counter-intuitive (like many Biblical principles), giving is one of the best things you can do for your finances.
✅ Make a lifelong promise to yourself to spend less money than you earn
We could end this checklist right here and it would suffice.
Just about everything listed below falls into this category. Spending less than you earn is the key to wealth-building, and is the most important lesson when it comes to personal finance. You can do everything else right, but if you spend more money than you earn you will not be in a good financial position.
This is the simple rule that allows families living on a $40,000/year salary to retire with millions and that causes millionaires to go bankrupt. You have to commit and decide that you will not spend more money than you earn.
✅ Begin learning what the Bible has to say about money
The Bible really has a lot to say about our money. I wrote an article called 5 Bible Verses about Money that Every Christian Should Know and if that isn’t enough, here are 250 Bible Verses about Money to get a deeper dive.
✅ Find a budget you can stick with
Creating a budget can be as simple or as difficult as you make it. I love having a budget in place – contrary to what I thought before I tried it, it doesn’t feel like we are in handcuffs, but rather that we are more free to spend money in the areas we want to.
We have a bunch of free free budgeting spreadsheets for excel you can download, but if you really want the best budgeting solution I have found, take our quick course to learn the Real Money Method. It is by far the quickest and easiest to stick with approach I have ever seen.
Once we found this method that we could actually stick with, it instantly improved our marriage, has saved us thousands of dollars, and given us so much more peace with our money.
✅ Negotiate a better rate with credit card companies
While I was working to pay down my debt, I spent some time on the phone negotiating with my credit card companies to get a better interest rate.
It isn’t a guarantee, but I consistently would get off the phone with a better interest rate than when I called.
✅ Pay off all credit cards
Proverbs 22:7 says that the borrower is slave to the lender.
Having been both a slave and a free man in this area, I much prefer being free. A wonderful second benefit is that you can build wealth faster when you are out of debt.
Here is a 23-page guide I wrote on how to pay off credit card debt.
For paying off debts, I recommend the Debt Snowball Method. Te speed the process up I also transferred all my CC balances to get 0% on all my cards.
✅ Get the employer match on your 401(k) or 403(b)
If your employer has a matching program in your 401(k) or 403(b) (many of them do), you should try to take advantage of that if at all possible.
My former employer had a 100% matching program. So if I put in $500, they put in $500. That is a 100% return on my investment. It is free money and you don’t want to pass this up if at all possible.
✅ Build an emergency fund of $1,000 – $3,000
This was another thing that we did to give us a lot more peace with our finances.
It can be expected that unexpected things will happen. Creating an emergency fund is just proof that you are expecting them.
We have since used our emergency fund to save us even more money.
✅ Sell your junk and make it a habit
Way too many of us have way too much stuff. I recently read that the average U.S. household has over $7,000 worth of stuff that could be sold on Ebay or Facebook Marketplace. Not sure if it is true or not, but I have found from personal experience that we have a lot more than we realized.
In this article I show exactly how we made $2,145 in one month selling a bunch of our stuff from around the house.
A lot of it would never be missed if we got rid of it. Here is step-by-step instruction on how to sell on eBay if you have never done it before.
✅ Pay off car loans
I am convinced that the one of the biggest things that keeps the middle class Americans in the middle class is their insistence on spending way too much of their income on cars. And it doesn’t have to be that way.
You don’t always have a car payment. You can still drive fairly nice (and extremely reliable) cars without having a car payment.
Once we paid off the first one, we just kept “making the payment” to our savings account and watched the savings grow. Once we had enough saved we bought the next car with cash, and we have been doing it that way ever since.
For more inspiration read How Cars Affect Your Financial Freedom.
✅ Create a FLOP for your loved ones
Since I handle the finances in our family, I know a little more about what’s going on than Linda does.
I created this file, which I call our Financial Life on One Page (FLOP), as something that she could go to if I died prematurely. I combined it with our balance sheet (or AUM tracker) to make it one file that covers all the financial details that she would need if I were gone.
✅ Start giving 10% (if you aren’t already)
Giving 10% of your income (or tithing) is an important milestone. God was the original giver and we were created by Him to be givers as well.
We have witnessed so many miracles in our life in the area of giving and it also happens to be the only place in the Bible where God says it is okay to test him – see Malachi 3:10.
✅ Better organize your bank accounts
I discovered that having more than one checking account allowed us to manage our money much cleaner and with more efficiency.
Here is a little on how we used to organize our bank accounts. To see how we do it today, check out the Real Money Method course.
✅ Spend more on what you love by cutting spending on things you don’t
One of the things that most people fail to realize is that by cutting out the things you don’t really care about, you can free up more money to spend on what you love.
This requires you to question expenses, re-evaluate current mindsets, and possibly break bad habits, but it is worth it. I wrote about 25 ways to save money by not being “normal” which will get you started.
✅ Simplify your bill-paying process
I tend to be obsessed with efficiency. And I hate wasting time. So I created a simple system for paying my bills each month to make it fast as possible all while virtually guaranteeing that I never accidentally miss a payment. It made my life a lot easier and eliminated a lot of stress.
✅ Pay off student loans
Paying off our credit cards felt good, but man, getting those student loans off our back after all those years was such a relief.
For many of us it is a long hard road, but invite God in on our journey, and I believe you will see things move a lot quicker. Once you do read this article about how to get your student loans paid off faster and how you might be able to get your loans forgiven!
✅ Start investing in low-cost index funds in a Roth IRA
A financial mentor of mine told me that the “Roth IRA is a legal loophole that is too good to last.” He is convinced the government is going to shut it down at some point, but in the meantime, we have the ability to take advantage of it.
Here are some ideas of how you can get started investing today or if you want a step-by-step instruction (down to the buttons to press) we created our 10x Investing course just for you.
✅ Calculate your true hourly wage
This is a fantastic exercise to help you more accurately know what your time is worth and whether or not that job you have is worth it. Most people are blown away at home much they actually earn after factoring all the expenses that come with a normal job.
Try it here: How much are you really getting paid?
✅ Prayerfully set career goals
Following up on the previous task, is the current job worth it? It is going to help you reach your career goals?
If you continue doing what you are doing, where will you be in 5 years – or 20 years? Are you doing what you love?
If not, find someone doing what you want to do, take them out to lunch, and ask them how they did it.
✅ Create (or update) your will
Save your loved ones a headache and just do it. We have an article about how you can create a will in about 10 minutes and for free.
Just mark it on your calendar for this weekend and be done with it.
✅ Get life insurance
For most people I recommend buying term life insurance over whole life.
There are some cases where whole life can make sense, but generally term life insurance seems to be a better purchase for most people.
When I recently got another term policy I used Zander to get a term life insurance quote and was happy with the process. You can read more in my Zander Term Life Insurance Review.
✅ Pay off your house early
As part of getting out of debt, I want to live without a mortgage as well. Here are some ways to pay off your house early.
Just imagine your electric bill being the most expensive bill each month!
✅ Give beyond 10% (if you aren’t already)
The more I understand stewardship, the more I realize that every dollar that is in my bank account isn’t mine – it is all God’s.
A big part of being a good steward is understanding this and never letting money get a hold on us. I am convinced that the most fulfilled people in the world are those who are always looking for ways to give more of themselves.
Time, energy, or money – it is in our DNA to be givers and like the parable of the talents teaches us, if we are faithful with small amounts we will be entrusted with more.
God has led us on a journey of giving our age as a percentage of our income (currently 40%) which has stretched us, but the amazing blessings, miracles, and provision that we have seen since we began has been mindblowing.
We have found that R.G. LeTourneau’s words are true: “I shovel it out and God shovels it back. But God has a bigger shovel.”
The financial checklist
So this has been the checklist that we have followed to this point. Hopefully it serves as inspiration or a guide for you on your financial journey.
Please leave a comment below to say hi!
In Him,
Wow, what a check-list. I can see this being over-whelming if one thought it was a “todo” list, instead of something to work on over time.
I love how the first two items are the only really important ones, and all of the following ones are just subsets of those first two. It really amazes me how many people don’t understand the concept of “spend less than you earn.”
@Adventure-Some
Good point – for me it has been something a decade in the making – so maybe it can be a to-do list with a 5-10 year time-frame…
Wow, this is such a comprehensive list! Definitely getting bookmarked and referred to often.
Great list. I’m definitely incorporate sme of it into my life. I like the idea of the FLOP. That’s a great idea to make it easier on everyone.
Thanks for sharing these tips! I really like the idea of Flops. The part about cars affecting our financial freedom is very true! Our car is paid for but whenever I think about trading it I’m for something newer, I think about what else I could buy. For example, the $40,000 SUV would be wonderful, but that same $40,000 could buy my family 8 trips to Hawaii!!
Great list Bob. Seems like you learned a lot of this the hard way. Hopefully this spares us some time by learning from your wisdom.
At this point, I’m seeing more and more of the stuff and junk I’ve accumulated over the years. It’s stuff that I no longer use and should start selling away to free my life of clutter.
I totally agree with not always having a car payment.I bought a 1995 toyota camry in 1996 for 12K(took 4 yrs to pay it off) drove it till 2009 with just routine maintence(oil changes/belts/tires) always ran like a top and no worries! My darling hubby is a fan of leasing- I am not so finally I have been able to get him to see why always having a car payment is not the answer.We are currently finishing paying off a 2007 Honda Element that we started out leasing and I adored so much,had put the down payment on that I convinced him to see a paid off vehicle was so much more economical by showing him the math…numbers never lie ! I could still be driving that toyota camry if I had not folded to pressure but alas I did so I did donate the toyota to a good home and now I have Winnie Mini Cooper adopted 2nd hand 2002 new to me! I will take good care of both of these vehicles so they last for many many years.Lesson learned…..Again
Hello sir
Your blog has consistently enriched me to stewardship. Bravo,keep it up.
I am from Africa – Kenya.21 yrs old. There is a greater need for your wise education to reach many here. I have a thought how we can achieve this.
I look toward joining campus this year, though have obstacles on the way to this. Kindly get back to me, I have much I wish to share with you.
Every Blessing.
I was so grateful to know God’s principle on giving. Thanks for sharing this useful tips on how a person could be able to have financial freedom. Actually, I’ve been saving also for my kid’s college. I used to make more templates on my personal finances to be more organized.
You created names for some of the documents I came up with through trial and error (FLOP/Balance Sheet). Nice.
I also recommend creating a central spot (fireproof safe for $150?) where you keep a paper and digital copy of these documents.
Make believe you are your spouse/child, opening that folder when you die. Put an index, and put the most important things up front. Top it off by writing your own obituary and selecting your funeral music, so they don’t have to mess with those things at the worst possible time.
I wrote “What to do when I die” on the file. My wife cries each time we do our annual review, but it’s a good cry. She leaves with peace of mind that we have a viable plan, and when I go, she and the kids will not be eating cat food.
Wow, great comprehensive list. It include biblical, principles and tactics. I will use this as a model for myself and others.
This morning while writing in my journal, I asked God to teach me how to work with money. No worries He says. And here I find myself on your site. It’s really amazing.
Praise God! I have found a HOME PAGE that helps me fight through tough times and Biblical principals together. Just last week we figured out the car thing! I sold a 2007 Jeep for $2000 profit, lost a payment and now we can payoff a debt that hangs over us! God will supply! An awesome God we serve! Thanks Bob for following His call.
My wife and I became debt free this year after taking a Dave Ramsey course because of some of these same principles. This is a fantastic website! We have shared your website Bob with family and friends. I actually found this website a few weeks back while searching for “Ways to Save Money.” We praise God for your ministry Bob!
We have taken a lot of the advice that you mentioned here. We have committed to spending less than we make. I have updated my 401k to fully take advantage of my companies matching policies. We completed this month our emergency fund with 3 months pay. We are still working towards a fully funded emergency fund of 6 months. We have cut several expenses and plan to cut more including our Netflix account. We are giving more! Amazing how much you can give when debt free! Praise God! We have re-organized our bank accounts to better suit our savings goals for a new car, vacations, newborn, etc. A great website for keeping track of expenses is http://www.mint.com
Thanks again Bob! This website is a great resource for everything from budgeting to saving money to what the Bible says about money. Keep up the good work. You are encouraging more people than you know!
great checklist and I’ll certainly start implementing some of your suggestions…. especially the one about starting to save for your child’s college education NOW, since it is certainly going to take a while…..
I love your website. I am currently researching building my own website. I am a single mother on government assistance. I have an anxiety disorder which makes going out and working feel almost impossible. I am a hard worker and have many traits that would make having a website a really positive source of income for my family. As far as God and the Bible go and the information you have on your website about reaping what you sow – I could not agree more. My children and I have received adopt-a-family gifts at Christmas, food hampers from local churches on difficult months when our car has broken down and our grocery money has had to go to car repairs, there are some times I have receive gift cards with the food hampers to buy meat and produce and half the gift card is spent on gas to afford to get them to school. All of the people out there who donate to their churches and make these things possible are truly helping families and hopefully they are feeling God touching their lives as well. Helping their families to feel balanced, happy, secure and blessed. I am looking so forward to giving back as a way to show God how thankful I am that my children and I have made it through this very difficult time in our lives. Also, people have no idea that when they adopt-a-family at Christmas the true heartfelt joy these children get to feel. Anyhow, I love your website you have incredibly good information and a really great set up with very practical, honest and straight-forward information. God Bless you.
Incredible Checklist! Many of these have a check next to them, some are a ‘work in progress’ and some I’d never even heard of! – Josh
Been trying to pay off the house early. I couldn’t believe how much money it will save in the long run. Every new couple should have this advice. Thanks for this great list.
The part about living within your means is very true. The word of God is very clear when it says “Owe no man anything but to love one another”. I do understand the importance of paying tithes and through obedience in this area, I have experienced great blessings in my life. You can never out give God. The law of sowing and reaping is a reality and the sooner we understand this and act accordingly, the sooner we can experience the change that we desire.
Good Morning Bob:
This is a great list for everyone! Not all of us have made the commitment to figuring how best to manage not only our finances but lives as well.
As an older parent out of debt but still working and no written budget the “List” is right on target. We attempt to prepare our children for their futures’ and are rewarded with mixed successes. One an artist with son who now has a nice house with equity but not much income is finally selling art work nationally, and the other a successful businessman has a nice house and family and more expenses than he anticipated even with a business degree. Both could use the the Christian PF approach and I have recommended they do so.
I would like to make a comment to you about life insurance. It is all well and good to make a blanket recommendation to by term and invest the difference. It usually does not work out as planned. Having bought both the investing the difference makes the car payment not a savings.
My personal recommendation is to buy as much term as you can afford, but demand convertibility to whole life. If you have term and experience a life threatening health issue and the term runs out you are now uninsurable. My case allowed me to convert to whole life after a heart condition and have the coverage needed at the time. After a long career in industrial sales and now retired from this I did get an insurance license, but didn’t understand the situation as described. Could have made a difference in my short insurance practice.
Please accept my apology for the length on this response and hope it helps someone in some small way.
Sincerely,
Art
Excellent advice. Thank you so much. I ‘ve been in a rut for so long, I need a way out. Your advice is so bibilical, we need Christians like you to speak the truth.
What a great list! I just re-wrote it on a word document then I highlighted the ones I have already taken care of. I now, am going to work towards the others. Well done for this great list. Thank you as it is a plan that I work towards
Please email me vital info re saving for retirement and getting on the ball to go back to school really need your help..I am disastrous right now..Will be living off cat food if I do not get my act together ASAP…Need help now…Can you help me.
Awesome and bookmarked
Wow! Nice checklist. I would also add “learn how to invest properly and start investing”.
I like the fact that you have put “give to others” in your list. We sometimes fail to remind that we are blessed to have been born in America. Not everybody on this planet has had the dame chance.
Thank you
I have just recently discovered your site, via pintrest. I have been looking for something like this to gain a much wanted financial education. So, I give you thanks for your time and effort that you have put in to this.
I have a house that I desperately need to sell! Do you have any suggestions on getting it sell quickly? We have done as much renovating as we could afford and have it listed low. It was originally purchased as a rental property…
Thanks,
Rachel
Great article and great content. I shared it on FaceBook. I’m looking forward to reading more of your blog posts! Be Blessed!
I was excited to get going with the spreadsheet and geared for action, however I have a couple of points to make;
First – your spreadsheet is not editable? I cant put my own values and change it to pounds. You need a password to edit.
Secondly, even though I have already subscribed I cant click on any other link without another subscribe box, that is time wasting. And now it says I have already said this comment – which is not true this is my first comment.
Thank you
Hey C, it isn’t a spreadsheet unfortunately – it is a PDF, so you are right it is not editable –
Good checklist that is actionable. I think I do about half to two-this of this now.
Great article and great content. I’m looking forward to reading more of your blog posts! Thanks! 🙂
this was interesting. I was looking for biblical principles about co-signing and your information came up. My finances are in a shambles. Living paycheck to paycheck, overdraft protection, and credit cards. Problem is I’m 64 years old which I had this about 30 years ago.