The 10 Money Dials: Why you spend the way you do

Reader,

Growing up in Sacramento, there were a lot of guys who loved buying old cars and repairing them. Huh? Why would anyone spend money to create more work for themselves? I just didn’t get it.

Back then, I also used to think that people paying for first-class flights were suckers. After all, “we’re all going to the same place anyway.”

Over time, I’ve come to change the way I think about how people spend money. I’ll never buy an old car to repair, but I do fly first class … and now I understand why people do both.

It’s all about Money Dials — the 10 areas where people naturally spend money.

If you were to look at someone else’s spending for 10 minutes, you would instantly know what their Money Dial was. And if I were to look at your spending, I could tell you what yours is.

I spent years talking to people about their spending habits, and I boiled them down to 10 “Money Dials.” They’re called Money Dials because you can “tune” them up or down — just like a dial.

Here are the most common Money Dials.

Money Dial #1: Convenience
This Money Dial means spending on anything that makes your life more convenient.

Examples:

• Travel apps
• Ubers
• Extra iPhone charger
• Pre-cooked meals
• Everything delivered
• Automated bank accounts (and automation in many parts of life)

If you truly turn the dial all the way up — taking the Convenience Money Dial to its extreme — this means private chef, personal trainer, assistants, even private jets.

This is my personal Money Dial (I spend $50,000 every year on convenience). Over the last 15 years, I’ve gone all in:

• I have a personal assistant
• I have a personal chef
• I have a personal trainer
• My calendar is bulletproof and hyper-optimized
• When I travel, everything is arranged, down to the perfect seat on the perfect flight and the perfect route to the airport

To me, this sounds like heaven. I LOVE IT. But to someone else whose Money Dial is Cost, this might sound insane.

Money Dial #2: Travel
People with the Travel Money Dial spend heavily on travel.

Examples:

• On January 1st, they already know where they’re traveling this year
• They’re often masters of points/travel hacking
• They have an overflowing list of travel destinations saved, and their conversations revolve around where they’ve been and where they’re going
• They have strong opinions about the “right” suitcase, the right way to pack, and the best seats on the plane

If you turn this Money Dial all the way up, it means traveling for months every year. Joining a travel group. Splurging on high-end travel experiences like a safari, Inspirato membership, or multigenerational travel. Developing strong perspectives on travel, including which friends to invite, how much “authenticity” matters, and specific parts of the world to return to.

Money Dial #3: Cost
This is the most common Money Dial, since most people are taught frugality and nothing else. I started with this one.

Examples:

• Chooses items based on cost before anything else (e.g., “orders the menu by reading the right side of the page”)
• DIY attitude and ability to jury-rig one item to serve multiple purposes

Taken to its logical extreme, the Cost Money Dial means extreme frugality, couponing, and never experiencing premium/luxury items — but also possibly saving considerable amounts of money and setting strict boundaries on the hedonic treadmill.

Money Dials 4–10:
Read about the rest of the Money Dials on the blog.

What Money Dials mean for you
Do you know what you naturally gravitate toward spending on? Most of us don’t. We’ve never thought about it. But as Tony Robbins says, “Success leaves clues.” And spending leaves clues, too.

If I looked at your spending for 5 minutes, I could tell where you actually prioritize. I find this fascinating for several reasons:

• People go where their time and money goes. For example, fit people spend time and money to be fit. Fashionable people spend time and money reading fashion magazines and shopping.
• The most fascinating part is when we’re misaligned. For example, some people say, “Family is #1,” but if you look at their calendars and spending, family is not even in the top 10.
• Money Dials are an easy way to diagnose what you claim is important vs. what is actually important.

And there’s one other thing.

My favorite part of Money Dials is that once you understand your own Money Dial, and you accept it, you can zoom in on what you love by TURNING THE DIAL ALL THE WAY UP.

This is one superpower of mastering Advanced Personal Finance: You can unapologetically turn the dial up on any part of life — your part — just like it was a knob on a stereo.

• Value family time? One woman paid $3,200 to take her family to Disneyland with the Disneyland VIP experience. TWICE.
• Value self-care? One IWT staff member spent $300 on two 90-minute massages per month as part of her self-care.
• Value beauty? One friend loves to be surrounded by beautiful things, so she has fresh flowers delivered to her house.

That’s the power of Money Dials. They allow you to understand why people make the choices they do … and then go deeper than you ever thought possible.

Understanding Money Dials is just one aspect of making the jump from ordinary personal finance to advanced personal finance.

The most successful people I've met are all very conscious about how they spend their money. That doesn't mean they don't spend. It means they choose how to spend and are unapologetic in allocating significant resources to live a better life. And I want to share how to do that with you.

That’s why I built How to Win the Game of Advanced Personal Finance. This is the only course that shows you what millionaires know about investing, spending, risk, saving, and freedom that 99% of people don't.

If you're doing well and you've already mastered the basics of personal finance, I want to show you what comes next.

I'll give you a behind-the-scenes look at the advanced personal finance system I use to manage my money today, including who I work with, my own asset allocation, and how I protect and spend my money.

In short: “What’s next?”

When you join, you'll also learn:

• How I use a "Personal CFO" to manage all of my finances — stress-free — without losing control
• The psychological changes of managing money at advanced levels, including how I think differently about saving, investing, and spending
• Advanced tax optimizations
• 30 important life events that present opportunities to optimize taxes and take advantage of investment opportunities
• How I work with each member of my personal finance team — including my Personal CFO and accountant. Plus, real examples of building your own team of advisors
• The red flags to watch out for when hiring a CPA or other financial advisor — don't ignore these
• How much you should spend on your financial advisors (don't spend more than this!)
• The 3 most common invisible scripts that hinder Advanced Personal Finance — and your happiness
• How to “lean in” to where you want to spend more — whether it’s convenience, luxury, travel, charity, or relationships. Including detailed examples
• Why the key levers of the CEO Mindset are the keys to Advanced Personal Finance success

I want to show you what's next for you and your money.