The Bill That Keeps Me Going to Work
Every month, I pay dozens of bills.
Groceries.
Insurance.
Electricity.
Gas.
Internet.
But one bill is bigger than all the others.
My mortgage.
It's about $3,200 a month, and it's the first bill I pay every month. We need a roof over our heads before anything else.
For a long time, every time I paid it I had the same thought:
"I need my paycheck."
Not because I love my job.
Not because I can't imagine doing something else.
Because I have a mortgage.
Because I have four kids.
Because life is expensive.
It wasn't really the mortgage that scared me.
It was what the mortgage represented.
Obligation.
Responsibility.
Pressure.
After my salary was cut, I started looking at my budget differently.
I wasn't asking,
"How much am I spending?"
I already knew that.
Instead, I started asking a different question.
"How much of these bills still depend on my paycheck?"
That turned out to be a much more interesting number.
If I paid off a car...
The pressure went down.
If I removed PMI...
The pressure went down.
If my rental property earned another $100...
The pressure went down.
If my wife and I cut back on unnecessary spending...
The pressure went down.
Little by little, I realized I wasn't just improving my budget.
I was reducing the amount of my life that depended on my next paycheck.
That's the number I now call...
Monthly Financial Pressure.
🛡️ FREEDOM NUMBER #2
Monthly Financial Pressure
Definition
The amount of my monthly spending that still depends on my paycheck.
Why It Matters
This tells me how much of my life still relies on my primary job. The lower this number gets, the more breathing room my family has.
Long Term Goal
Reduce this number every year.
