30-Day Plan That Can Change Your Relationship With Money
A 30-Day Plan That Can Change Your Relationship With Money
This is a simple but powerful 30-day plan that can completely transform how you think, feel, and behave with money. The plan is divided into four weeks, each focusing on a different aspect of personal finance. Every day requires only 10–15 minutes. But if you follow it consistently for 30 days, I can confidently say: it will change your relationship with money.
Week 1: Money Awareness & Clean-Up
Day 1: List Everything
Make a complete list of all your bank accounts. Every single one. Then list all your UPI IDs and every app you use to send or receive money. The goal is simple: full visibility.
Day 2: Analyze the Last 30 Days
Download bank statements for the last 30 days from all your accounts. Note where and how much money was spent. You can use Excel, pivot tables, or even AI tools to analyze this data. Don’t fix anything yet. This step is only about awareness.
Day 3: Cancel the Waste
You’ll likely discover expenses you didn’t even know existed: unused subscriptions, unnecessary payments, or random charges. Cancel subscriptions you don’t need and stop all unnecessary payments. Make sure no money is leaking without purpose.
Day 4: Clean Your Digital Triggers
Search your email inbox for the word “unsubscribe” and create filters to automatically archive or send marketing emails to spam. On Instagram and other platforms, unfollow accounts that push you to spend, make you feel inadequate, or manipulate you into buying products.
Day 5: Review Bank & Credit Card Fees
Check if you are paying annual fees, minimum balance penalties, or late charges—especially on cards or accounts you rarely use. Identify all such fees and eliminate them wherever possible.
Day 6: Secure Your Accounts
Review all banking passwords. Ensure they are not the same. Activate two-factor authentication (2FA) wherever available. This step protects you from fraud and financial stress.
Day 7: Rest & Reflect
Take a break. Celebrate completing Week 1. You now know where your money goes, have stopped wasteful spending, cleaned digital triggers, secured your accounts, and eliminated unnecessary fees.
Week 2: HOT Money Method – Foundation
HOT Money means money that truly serves your life. This week is about aligning your money with what actually matters to you.
Day 8: Define Your Rich Life
Define what a “rich life” means to you—not society, not family, not friends. How do you want to spend your days? What do you want to spend money on, and what do you want to avoid? Focus on where you are today, not some distant future fantasy.
Day 9: Break It Into Buckets
List everything that makes up your rich life and divide it into four buckets: Needs (essential monthly expenses), Joy (things that make you happy), Goals (future-oriented savings), and Leaks (expenses that add little or no value).
Day 10: Choose a Spending Tracker
Download a daily expense tracking app (Walnut, ET Money, INDmoney, etc.) or simply use a notebook. Don’t start tracking yet—just choose your tool.
Day 11: Create Your Budget
Design a realistic budget. A helpful framework is: 50% for needs, 20–30% for joy, 20% for goals, and 10% as a buffer. If the buffer isn’t used, it can be added to joy.
Day 12: Fix the Big Leaks
Compare your past spending with your new budget. Identify major leak areas like food delivery or impulse shopping. Don’t eliminate them entirely—cap them with a clear limit. Be practical, not extreme.
Day 13: Set Money Habits
Decide when you’ll check balances, pay bills, review budgets, and invest. Put these habits on your calendar. These become your non-negotiable money rules.
Day 14: Weekly Break
Rest. Reflect on the patterns you’ve built. Consistency matters more than perfection.
Week 3: Loans, Credit & Cash Flow
Day 15: List All Loans
Write down every loan—bank loans, credit cards, app-based loans, and even money borrowed from friends or family. Include EMI amount and remaining EMIs.
Day 16: Repayment Strategy
Use extra monthly cash to pay additional EMIs, starting with the smallest loans. This creates psychological momentum and faster freedom from debt.
Day 17: Automate Payments
Set standing instructions or auto-debits for all EMIs. Automation removes emotion and prevents late fees.
Day 18: Check Your Credit Score
Find your credit score (CIBIL, Experian, etc.). A score above 750 is excellent. Even a small interest rate difference can cost lakhs over time.
Day 19: Negotiate Interest Rates
If you’ve borrowed from non-bank lenders, ask for a lower interest rate. Don’t ask to delay payment—ask to reduce interest.
Day 20: Brainstorm Extra Income
Think of side gigs or income boosters—freelancing, teaching a skill, consulting, or asking for a raise. The goal is to increase cash inflow.
Day 21: Reflect & Rest
Take pride in the progress you’ve made. Only one week left.
Week 4: Wealth Building & Energy Shift
Day 22: Emergency Fund
If you have an emergency fund, move it to a low-risk debt mutual fund. If not, start allocating 10–15% of your investment budget toward it.
Day 23: Investment Strategy
Build a strategy based on age and risk appetite: Large-cap for stability, mid/flexi-cap for balance, and small-cap for growth (with higher risk).
Day 24: Automate Investments
Decide SIP amounts and dates. Automation ensures consistency and removes hesitation.
Final Thought
This 30-day plan is not about becoming rich overnight. It’s about building clarity, control, and confidence with money. Small daily actions, done consistently, create massive long-term change.
