Personal Finance for Lawyers | How to Budget, Get Out of Debt, Save Money, Manage Money, Build Wealth, Financial Freedom

I find that when lawyers are running into issues like rising credit card balances or overdrafting their accounts, it's typically because they're not balancing how they're using their money. There are always three buckets that are competing for your money--your needs, wants, and goals. Often the needs and wants buckets get the bulk of the money, leaving little to nothing for the goals bucket. In this episode, let's talk about your buckets and how to think about your money to make sure that you're funding all three. Head to https://www.rhothomas.com/135 for the full episode show notes. Make sure you're on the waitlist to work with me at https://www.rhothomas.com/waitlist.

My client Ashley found herself in a position where she was making good money but not really paying attention to her finances. She was in a state of passivity, as she calls it. During our work together, she got out of passivity and started taking big action to turn her finances around. She paid off all her credit cards and has implemented a plan with her husband to build their savings and start investing. In this episode, Ashley and I talk about our work together, including her thoughts on the importance of taking action. Head to https://www.rhothomas.com/134 for the full episode show notes. Take the first step to work with me at https://www.rhothomas.com/waitlist.

Listen in as I reflect on 2022. I'm really proud of the work I did and the things my clients accomplished in the past year. And I'm just getting started. In this episode, let's talk about viewing each thing you do as just the beginning of what you're going to do and the importance of lawyers learning to manage their money better. Head to https://www.rhothomas.com/133 for the full episode show notes. Get on the waitlist to work with me at https://www.rhothomas.com/waitlist.

One of my favorite ways to motivate myself when working on a goal is to look at examples of other people who have done what I want to do. Because someone else has done the thing, I know it's possible for me, too. We often want to pick out all the parts of other people's situations that are different from our own and point to those as reasons why they can achieve the thing and we can't. But there's magic in being able to direct yourself to finding the pieces of other people's stories that are similar to yours and drawing inspiration from those pieces. In this episode, let's talk about using other people's achievements to motivate yourself and look at the things some of my clients have been able to accomplish. Head to https://www.rhothomas.com/132 for the full episode show notes. Get on the waitlist to work with me at https://www.rhothomas.com/waitlist.

"I'm just not good with money." So many lawyers believe this or similar statements about their abilities with money. But all of them stem from the mistaken belief that some people are inherently good with money. That some people have the "X factor" and others don't. It's not true, and if you keep believing that, it will keep you from taking the necessary steps to make the progress you want to make with your money. In this episode, let's talk about the truth about people who are good with money and how believing there's an X factor is hindering you in your finances. Head to https://www.rhothomas.com/131 for the full episode show notes. Get on the waitlist to work with me at https://www.rhothomas.com/waitlist.

We unintentionally prioritize things in our lives when we're not being thoughtful about our choices or the tradeoffs that come along with them. I see it happen all the time in personal finance. When you don't have a plan for your money or don't follow the plan you DO have, it often leads to not being able to achieve your financial goals. When you don't achieve your goals, all the things you spend on end up effectively being prioritized over your goals. In this episode, let's talk about how unintentional priorities show up in your finances, some real-life examples of unintentional priorities from my clients, and how to manage your finances to make sure your money goes where you want it to. Head to https://www.rhothomas.com/130 for the full episode show notes. Get on the waitlist to work with me at https://www.rhothomas.com/waitlist.

One of the questions I ask all of my clients is, "What is your compelling reason for doing the work to improve your finances?" You'll inevitably experience setbacks and challenges on this road to manage your finances better. Having a compelling reason behind your efforts will mean the difference between giving up and continuing to move forward to achieve your goals. In this episode, let's talk about the compelling reasons that drive me in my finances and my business and how having a compelling reason impacts the way you approach your goals. Head to https://www.rhothomas.com/129 for the full episode show notes. Get on the waitlist to work with me at https://www.rhothomas.com/waitlist.

We put so much focus on the numbers of money that we sometimes forget about the importance of the way we feel about money. Having negative feelings about your finances drains your energy and impacts your day-to-day experience of life. The value of feeling better about your money can't be overstated. In this episode, let's talk about one of my clients' experiences with feeling better about her money and why feeling better about your money is so important. Head to https://www.rhothomas.com/128 for the full episode show notes. Get on the waitlist to work with me at https://www.rhothomas.com/waitlist.

My client Liz had saved a significant amount of money but didn't feel like she had a good handle on her finances. She had a system for tracking her money but wasn't getting useful data to help her manage it better going forward and felt like her savings wasn't enough. During our work together, Liz completely shifted her view of money and developed a simpler system to manage her money that works for her. As a result she feels more at peace and confident with her finances. In this episode, Liz and I chat about our work together, including how her view of money has shifted and why she thinks simplicity in your finances is so important. Head to https://www.rhothomas.com/127 for the full episode show notes. Take the first step to work with me at https://www.rhothomas.com/waitlist.

Lawyers tend to look for things that could go wrong or that aren't working, whether because of our predisposition, training, or both. This is a great skill to have in your legal practice—not so great when you're learning to manage your money better. In this episode, let's talk about why it's important to look for and acknowledge everything that you're doing well with your finances, especially when you're first starting out, and the impact that finding success everywhere will have on your financial progress. Head to https://www.rhothomas.com/126 for the full episode show notes. Take the first step to work with me at https://www.rhothomas.com/call.