The three things that actually move the needle

Small financial decisions feel productive. You control them. You see results straight away. Cancel a subscription, save $15 a month. Make coffee at home, save $100. These things are tangible so in your head you think your making progress.

But here’s the maths, and I want you to actually run it for your own situation: saving $100 a month gets you $1,200 a year. Great, it’s useful but certainly not life-changing.

Now compare that to the big three: where you live, what you drive, and how you grow your income. If you neglect asking yourself serious questions about these, you can track every dollar till the cows come home without making real progress. 

Get them right, and the small stuff barely matters. So why aren’t more people asking the harder questions?

Decision 1: Where you live

The roof over your head is likely swallowing up 40% of your take-home pay. For most Kiwis, it’s the single biggest line item in their budget. Which means it’s also the biggest opportunity. So why do we treat it like it’s fixed?

“It’s just expensive here.” “I need to live close to work.” “This is just what places cost.”

Maybe. Or maybe you’re paying a $800/month premium for a suburb reputation you don’t actually value. Or choosing a 10-minute commute when a 25-minute commute would save you $600 a month. Or renting 3 bedrooms plus garaging that if you seriously looked at is essentially a very expensive storage unit. I’m often blown away when out walking the dogs at the number of homes I see where the garage is so full of stuff, the cars stay on the drive.

I’ve worked with people earning who feel constantly broke and stressed because they’re paying $800 a week for a one-bedroom in a sought-after area. And people earning the same money who feel genuinely comfortable and confident they can hit the goals they set themselves because they’re paying $600 for the same size home twenty minutes further out. 

That’s around $10,000 a year, you won’t save that by cancelling your Netflix subscription.

Do the maths on your own situation. What’s the gap between what you pay now and what you could realistically pay if you made a different choice? Multiply it by 12. That number might surprise you.

The question worth asking yourself: Am I paying for what I actually value, or what I think I should value? If you stripped away the suburb reputation and the proximity to things you rarely visit, would you genuinely choose this place at this price?

Decision 2: What you drive

A $500 car loan payment doesn’t feel that big on an $80k salary. Totally manageable, right? But keep in mind this noose around your neck isn’t going away in a few months.

And it’s not just $500. There’s insurance, petrol, WOFs and servicing, replacing tyres  plus the depreciation you don’t feel until you try to sell. All in, you’re likely spending $700–$900 a month on that car.

That’s $8,000 to $11,000 a year for a car that by the time you finish paying off will be worth peanuts compared to what you paid. 

So ask yourself honestly. What is that car actually doing for you? If you need it for work, if you’re driving clients around, if it’s genuinely tied to how you earn then that’s an investment. But if you bought it because it felt like the right car for someone at your level, you’re spending $10k+ a year on image.

I’ve seen people trade a financed $35k car for a paid-off $15k car and suddenly find an extra $600 a month appearing in their account. No discipline required. No budgeting squeeze. Just one decision about what they actually needed versus what looked right.

Here’s a question worth doing the maths on. What’s the full annual cost of your vehicle right now, not just the finance payment? Add it up. Then ask whether that number reflects a choice you’d make again today.

The question worth asking yourself: If nobody could see what you drove, would you still choose this car at this cost? Or are you paying a premium for the signal it sends?

Decision 3: How you grow your income

This is the one that genuinely changes everything. You can optimise your spending all day long. But if your income stays flat, you will become so restrictive on yourself financially it’s just a matter of time before you give up on any attempt to get ahead financially. It will all just seem too far out of reach.

Most people treat their income like it’s fixed. They got hired at a salary, they work hard and hope for a pay rise. Maybe 3% if they’re lucky. On an $80k salary, that’s $2,400 more a year ($46 a week). Better than nothing but inflation will most likely eat it up and you’ll never see it anyway..

Meanwhile, the data on job-switching is pretty consistent. Moving to a new employer can often earn you a 10–20% jump. On $80k, that’s $8,000 to $16,000 more a year. Building a high-value skill that makes you promotable gets you even more. Developing genuine leverage in your field so you’re negotiating from strength rather than hoping someone notices changes the whole picture.

But most people don’t focus here. They focus on cancelling subscriptions and avoiding flat whites because that feels easier than having an uncomfortable conversation with their manager, or putting themselves out there for something new.

So here’s a question that might be uncomfortable. When did you last genuinely test what you’re worth in the current market? Not what you were offered when you started 5 years ago but what you’d be offered if you applied for your role today, with everything you now know?

Here's another question you need to ask yourself. When did you last seriously evaluate your market value and whether you’re being paid it?

What this doesn’t mean

This isn’t about living like you’re broke when you’re not. It’s not about moving to the cheapest suburb possible, driving a rust bucket, or job-hopping every six months. It’s about making intentional choices with the things that matter most, rather than letting them happen to you by default.

Maybe you love your place and it’s worth every dollar. Great, then own that as a conscious choice, and stop trying to save $20 a month on groceries when the real money is tied up in rent you’ve already decided is worth it.

Maybe you genuinely need the car. Fine. But if you don’t, and you’re paying for it anyway, that’s $600 a month going somewhere that isn’t serving you.

The action plan

Stop optimising subscriptions for a month. Instead, sit down and honestly answer three questions and I mean actually do the maths, not just nod along:

•    Housing: Is your housing cost aligned with your actual priorities? Or are you paying for location, status, or space you don’t really value? What would moving 15 minutes further out actually save you per year?
What about something radical like house sitting for a year, sure it’s a bit nomadic but think how much you could save towards your house deposit

•    Vehicle: Is your car serving your life, or your image? Add up the real annual cost. Finance, insurance, WOF, petrol, servicing. How much would a paid-off alternative free up?

•    Income: Are you being paid what you’re worth in the current market? When’s the last time you had a real conversation about that, or tested it externally?
Answer those questions honestly. Then decide what, if anything, you’re going to do about them.
The small stuff matters. It really does. But not as much as the big three. Focus on these first and watch how much easier everything else becomes.

Curious to know a little more about how the right coaching can help accelarate your success?

Schedule yourself a Free 30-minute discovery can and together we can explore your opportunities and options.

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