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How to Structure Your Monthly Money Check In
“We want money to be a tool and reason why couples stay together, not why they break apart.”
Talking about money with your partner every single month sounds like a chore. And it can be if you and your spouse go into it unprepared. That’s why our hosts, Natalie and Dan Slagle, built a framework to make it less painful!
First, start with feelings before figures. Ask your partner how they're feeling about money right now, whether anything financial has been causing stress, and what they're proud of.
These aren't warm-up questions. They're the whole point. Couples sitting down to review the same income and expenses can walk away with completely different emotional experiences of that reality.
From there, move into the numbers: income changes, expense surprises, subscriptions that deserve a second look. But the key is to focus on patterns rather than purchases.
Dan and Natalie learned this firsthand when their miscellaneous spending category quietly ballooned (mostly Amazon orders) until the category-level view made the trend impossible to ignore.
In other words, zooming out turned a potential blame game into a values conversation!
For the Slagles, adaptability matters more than perfection. They embrace David Attenborough’s quote, "to adapt is to live," as their own. For instance, if a goal no longer excites you, don’t look at that as failure, but as growth.
As a rule of thumb, couples should ask themselves these two questions. Did anything feel unfair or unbalanced this month? And what's one small win we can aim for next?
Key Topics:
- Why Monthly Money Check-Ins? (06:40)
- The First Rule: Start With Cash Flow, Not a Budget Interrogation (10:25)
- Why These Three Questions Set the Tone (14:55)
- Reviewing the Numbers: Income and Expenses (16:34)
- Did Anything Surprise Us Financially? (24:41)
- Identifying Spending Patterns vs. Policing Purchases (27:26)
- Checking In on Short- and Long-Term Goals (31:07)
- "To Adapt Is to Live": When Goals Need to Change (34:21)
- Did Anything Feel Unfair or Unbalanced? (36:24)
- Looking Ahead: Preparing for the Next 30 Days (40:49)
Resources:
- MONTHLY MONEY CHECK-IN
Natalie Slagle, CFP® and Dan Slagle, CFP® are the founding partners and lead financial planners at Fyooz Financial Planning — an independent firm dedicated to helping high-earning couples in their 30s and 40s confidently navigate the complexities of managing money together.
At Fyooz, they specialize in turning financial stress into strategy, guiding couples through everything from cash flow and investing to aligning money with shared goals.
Disclaimer: For updated disclosures, please visit fyoozfinancial.com.
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By Natalie Slagle and Dan Slagle“We want money to be a tool and reason why couples stay together, not why they break apart.”
Talking about money with your partner every single month sounds like a chore. And it can be if you and your spouse go into it unprepared. That’s why our hosts, Natalie and Dan Slagle, built a framework to make it less painful!
First, start with feelings before figures. Ask your partner how they're feeling about money right now, whether anything financial has been causing stress, and what they're proud of.
These aren't warm-up questions. They're the whole point. Couples sitting down to review the same income and expenses can walk away with completely different emotional experiences of that reality.
From there, move into the numbers: income changes, expense surprises, subscriptions that deserve a second look. But the key is to focus on patterns rather than purchases.
Dan and Natalie learned this firsthand when their miscellaneous spending category quietly ballooned (mostly Amazon orders) until the category-level view made the trend impossible to ignore.
In other words, zooming out turned a potential blame game into a values conversation!
For the Slagles, adaptability matters more than perfection. They embrace David Attenborough’s quote, "to adapt is to live," as their own. For instance, if a goal no longer excites you, don’t look at that as failure, but as growth.
As a rule of thumb, couples should ask themselves these two questions. Did anything feel unfair or unbalanced this month? And what's one small win we can aim for next?
Key Topics:
- Why Monthly Money Check-Ins? (06:40)
- The First Rule: Start With Cash Flow, Not a Budget Interrogation (10:25)
- Why These Three Questions Set the Tone (14:55)
- Reviewing the Numbers: Income and Expenses (16:34)
- Did Anything Surprise Us Financially? (24:41)
- Identifying Spending Patterns vs. Policing Purchases (27:26)
- Checking In on Short- and Long-Term Goals (31:07)
- "To Adapt Is to Live": When Goals Need to Change (34:21)
- Did Anything Feel Unfair or Unbalanced? (36:24)
- Looking Ahead: Preparing for the Next 30 Days (40:49)
Resources:
- MONTHLY MONEY CHECK-IN
Natalie Slagle, CFP® and Dan Slagle, CFP® are the founding partners and lead financial planners at Fyooz Financial Planning — an independent firm dedicated to helping high-earning couples in their 30s and 40s confidently navigate the complexities of managing money together.
At Fyooz, they specialize in turning financial stress into strategy, guiding couples through everything from cash flow and investing to aligning money with shared goals.
Disclaimer: For updated disclosures, please visit fyoozfinancial.com.