Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)

This page and the pages it links to contain help for doing each of the nine-steps in this program.

Please Note: The questions and answers presented here are based on the personal experiences of a wide variety of people doing this program.  There may be more than one answer to a question. You may find or have a different answer than the ones shown below. These questions and answers are NOT intended to be the "right" or "only" way to work through a problem. They are only suggestions to help you along the path to financial intelligence, integrity and independence. In the end, you will have to find the solution that works best for you in your unique setting and situation.

General Questions

• Do I have to do all the steps?

Step 1: Making Peace With The Past

• How do I find out how much I have earned in my life?

Step 2: Being In The Present -- Tracking Your Life Energy

• How do I calculate my real hourly wage if I have more than one job?
• How relevant is the program if I am retired?
• What if I am semi-retired and living quite frugally already?
• How do I calculate my real hourly wage if I am semi-retired?
• What if a large portion of my income is from investments?
• If I do couseling work fro 5-10 hours a week and have investment income, how do I compute my real hourly wage?
• How do I combine two sources of income?
• Should I calculate based on net or gross?
• What if I like the job that I am doing and I would do it (or part of it) for free?
• What if I love what I'm doing?
• How do we calculate life energy if one person has a paid job and the other person works in the home?
• When should I enter a credit card bill?
• If I do not pay my credit card in full each month, is there any relationship I can show for interest paid on items bought earlier or overdraws?
• Which books have tracking systems?

Step 3: Monthly Tabulation

• Should I include taxes?
• If I calculate life energy based on net, will the hours total more than I have in my life?

Step 4: Three Questions That Will Transform Your Life

• Should I ask the questions about taxes?
• If I bought it, did I make the decision that I got enough fulfillment?
• If I made a purchase, is it in alignment with who I am?
• What does an up arrow or plus sign mean in the alignment column? (That I want to spend more in that place? Maybe I am happy about it but do not want to spend more!)

• How do we ask the questions when we're a couple sharing money?

Step 5: Making Life Energy Visible

• How do I create a wall chart?
• Should mortgages and life insurance policies be counted as expenses or investments?
• What other wall chart options are there?
• How do I track debt?
• Should I report my total income on the chart if I have savings taken out of it in advance?
• How do I handle quarterly payments to the government for taxes without having enormous quarterly spike

Step 6: Valuing Your Life Energy - Minimizing Spending

• What should I ask myself before making a purchase?

Step 7: Valuing Your Life Energy

• What is the purpose of paid employment?
• If I didn't need the income, would I still do what I now do for money? If not, what would I do with my time?

•  Should I send in more than the minimum monthly payment on credit cards?

Step 9: Managing Your Finances

• How do I learn more about buying Treasury bonds?

Strategies For Becoming FI In Families With Children

• How did the Varney family do it?
• How did the Miller family do it?
• How do you raise kids with the FI program?