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ZONDERVAN
The 21-Day Financial FastCopyright © 2010, 2013 by Michelle SingletaryPreviously published under the title The Power to Prosper
This title is also available as a Zondervan ebook. Visit www.zondervan.com/ebooks.
Requests for information should be addressed to:
Zondervan, Grand Rapids, Michigan 49530
This edition: 978-0-310-33833-8
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
The power to prosper : 21 days to financial freedom / Michelle Singletary. p. cm. Includes bibliographical references. ISBN 978-0-310-32038-8 (softcover) 1. Finance, Personal — Religious aspects — Chris tian ity. 2. Finance, Personal — Biblical teaching. I. Title.HG179.S5144 2009332.024 — dc22 2009028364
All Scripture quotations, unless otherwise indicated, are taken from the Holy Bible, New Inter-national Version®, NIV®. Copyright © 2011 by Biblica, Inc.™ Used by permission of Zondervan. All rights reserved worldwide.
Scripture quotations marked NKJV are taken from the New King James Version. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson, Inc. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
Scripture quotations marked NASB are taken from the New American Standard Bible. Copyright © 1960, 1962, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission.
Scripture quotations marked KJV are taken from the King James Version of the Bible.
Any Internet addresses (websites, blogs, etc.) and telephone numbers in this book are offered as a resource. They are not intended in any way to be or imply an endorsement by Zondervan, nor does Zondervan vouch for the content of these sites and numbers for the life of this book.
All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means — electronic, mechanical, photocopy, recording, or any other — except for brief quotations in printed reviews, without the prior permission of the publisher.
The 21-Day Financial Fast is a practical guide on personal finance. There are no guarantees offered in the 21-day financial fast program. Individual results will vary. Readers are cautioned to undertake the recommendations and assignments with caution, using their own judgment or after seeking professional advice from legal or financial professionals about their individual circum-stances. Additionally, certain information such as website addresses may change.
Interior design and composition: Greg Johnson/Textbook PerfectCover design: Studio GearboxCover photography: Sade Dennis
Printed in the United States of America
13 14 15 15 16 17 18 19 20 /DCI/ 20 19 18 17 16 15 14 13 12 11 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1
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235
Appendix 1
Blank Budget Worksheet
Not
e: In
put y
our o
wn
figur
es in
to th
e bl
ank
field
s. In
the
seco
nd c
olum
n (%
of I
ncom
e fo
r Maj
or
Cat
egor
ies)
, rea
lly e
xam
ine
the
perc
enta
ge y
ou a
re sp
endi
ng in
eac
h m
ajor
are
a, w
hich
is b
ased
on
you
r Net
Spe
ndab
le In
com
e.
Cont
inue
d on
nex
t pag
e
INCO
ME
Pay
Peri
od 1
Pay
Peri
od 2
Pay
Peri
od 3
Pay
Peri
od 4
Pay
Peri
od 5
Mon
thly
To
tals
Wag
es/S
alar
y/Ti
ps $
$
$
Com
miss
ions
/Bon
uses
$
Soci
al S
ecur
ity/P
ensio
n/Re
tirem
ent
$
Alim
ony
$
Chi
ld S
uppo
rt $
Inte
rest
/Div
iden
d In
com
e $
Disa
bilit
y, VA
Ben
efits
$
Oth
er In
com
e $
Tota
l Gro
ss In
com
e $
$
$
$
$
$
Net
Inco
me
(Tak
e-ho
me
pay)
$ $
$
9780310338338_21DayFinancialFast_int_CS6.indd 2359780310338338_21DayFinancialFast_int_CS6.indd 235 11/8/13 11:16 AM11/8/13 11:16 AM
236
EXPE
NSE
SPa
y Pe
riod
1
Pay
Peri
od 2
Pa
y Pe
riod
3
Pay
Peri
od 4
Pa
y Pe
riod
5
Mon
thly
To
tals
Tota
l Gro
ss In
com
e $
$
$
$
$
$
Net
Inco
me
(Tak
e-ho
me
pay)
$
$ $
$
$
$
Tith
es (1
0% o
f Gro
ss In
com
e) $
$
$
$
$
$
Net
Spe
ndab
le In
com
e $
$
$
$
$
$
Mon
thly
Exp
ense
s $
$
$
$
$
$
Diff
eren
ce $
$ $
$
$
$
*The
info
rmat
ion
for t
his t
op b
ox (N
et S
pend
able
Inco
me
and
Mon
thly
Exp
ense
s) is
pul
led
from
the
info
rmat
ion
you’
ll in
put f
or y
our m
onth
ly e
xpen
ses.
Neg
ativ
e nu
mbe
rs (i
n pa
rent
hese
s) m
ean
you
are
spen
ding
mor
e th
an y
our n
et sp
enda
ble
inco
me.
If so
, the
n yo
u ne
ed to
redu
ce y
our e
xpen
ses,
incr
ease
you
r inc
ome,
or b
oth.
O
n th
e ot
her h
and,
if y
ou h
ave
mon
ey le
ft o
ver a
fter
pay
ing
your
exp
ense
s, us
e it
to a
ccel
erat
e pa
ying
off
debt
s and
/or t
o in
crea
se y
our s
avin
gs.
Mon
thly
Exp
ense
s Pai
d fr
om E
ach
Payc
heck
M
onth
ly
Expe
nse
Tota
l
Targ
et
Perc
enta
geA
ctua
l Pe
rcen
tage
Pay
Peri
od 1
Pa
y Pe
riod
2
Pay
Peri
od 3
Pa
y Pe
riod
4
Pay
Peri
od 5
Savi
ngs
$ $
$
$
$
$
2-10
%7%
Emer
genc
y Sa
ving
s
$
Life
Hap
pens
Sav
ings
Fun
d
$
Retir
emen
t Sav
ings
$
Col
lege
Sav
ings
$
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237
Cont
inue
d on
nex
t pag
e
Hou
sing
$ $
$
$
$
$
26
-36%
34%
Mor
tgag
e/Re
nt $
Hom
e Eq
uity
Loa
n or
Lin
e of
Cre
dit (
HEL
OC
) $
Prop
erty
Tax
$
Hom
e O
wne
rs’/C
ondo
Ass
ocia
tion
Due
s/Fe
es $
Hom
eow
ner’s
/Ren
ter’s
Insu
ranc
e $
Util
ities
$
$
$
$
$
$4-
8%14
%
Elec
tric
ity $
Nat
ural
Gas
/Oil
$
Wat
er/S
ewer
$
Phon
e (la
ndlin
e) $
Cel
l Pho
ne $
Cab
le T
V, In
tern
et se
rvic
e $
Food
$
$ $
$
$
$
12
-30%
17%
Gro
cerie
s $
Mea
ls O
ut $
Wor
kpla
ce lu
nch,
snac
ks $
Scho
ol lu
nch,
snac
ks $
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238
Fam
ily O
blig
atio
ns $
$
$
$
$
$
6-
16%
0%
Chi
ld S
uppo
rt $
Alim
ony
$
Chi
ldca
re $
Priv
ate
scho
ol tu
ition
$
Mus
ic/S
port
s Les
sons
$
Nur
sing
Hom
e/H
ealth
Aid
/Sen
ior C
are
$
Tran
spor
tatio
n $
$ $
$
$
$
6-
15%
15%
Aut
o Pa
ymen
ts $
Gas
olin
e
$
Aut
o In
sura
nce
$
Publ
ic tr
ansp
orta
tion/
park
ing
$
Insu
ranc
e (if
not
ded
ucte
d fr
om p
ay)
$
$
$
$
$
$
4%0%
Med
ical
$
Den
tal/V
ision
$
Life
$
Disa
bilit
y $
9780310338338_21DayFinancialFast_int_CS6.indd 2389780310338338_21DayFinancialFast_int_CS6.indd 238 11/8/13 11:16 AM11/8/13 11:16 AM
239
Hea
lth E
xpen
ses
$
$
$
$
$
$
4%0%
Med
ical
/den
tal c
opay
s/Ex
pens
es $
Med
icat
ions
$
Med
ical
Sup
plie
s $
Deb
t Pay
men
ts $
$
$
$
$5-
10%
10%
Cre
dit C
ards
$
Stud
ent L
oans
$
Pers
onal
/401
k Lo
ans
$
Giv
ing
$
$
$
$
$
$
0%
Cha
ritab
le G
ivin
g (re
ligio
us, p
rivat
e ch
arity
) $
Fees
$
$
$
$
$
$
0%
Bank
/Cre
dit U
nion
Acc
ount
Fee
s $
Prof
essio
nal S
ervi
ces F
ees
$
Clot
hing
$
$
$
$
$
$
4-6%
0%
Clo
thin
g (fa
mily
) $
Uni
form
s, ac
cess
orie
s for
wor
k $
Cont
inue
d on
nex
t pag
e
9780310338338_21DayFinancialFast_int_CS6.indd 2399780310338338_21DayFinancialFast_int_CS6.indd 239 11/8/13 11:16 AM11/8/13 11:16 AM
240
Ente
rtai
nmen
t/Re
crea
tion
$
$ $
$
$
$
2-8%
3%
Ente
rtai
nmen
t/A
ctiv
ities
$ $
Subs
crip
tions
/Due
s $
Fitn
ess /
Spa
$
Pets
$
$
$
$
$
$
0%
Food
, gro
omin
g, e
tc.
$
Vete
rinar
ian,
pet
insu
ranc
e $
Mis
cella
neou
s $
$
$
$
$
$
0%
Toile
trie
s/C
osm
etic
s/gr
oom
ing
$
Prof
essio
nal M
embe
rshi
p D
ues/
Fees
$
Oth
er $
Inve
stm
ents
$
$
$
$
$
$
0%
Stoc
ks, B
onds
, CD
s, M
utua
l Fun
ds $
IRA
s/Re
tirem
ent
$
Seco
nd P
rope
rty
Expe
nses
$
9780310338338_21DayFinancialFast_int_CS6.indd 2409780310338338_21DayFinancialFast_int_CS6.indd 240 11/8/13 11:16 AM11/8/13 11:16 AM
241
Appendix 2
What’s Next: Starting Your 30-Day Spending Journal
Now that the fast is over, I want you to incorporate what you have learned into your daily life. And that can begin by tracking your spending.
Get a small notebook that you can easily carry with you. For the next thirty days, write down all the money you spend and what you spent it on. Include any bills you pay (mortgage, credit card, car loan). The point of this exercise is to record every single penny that you spend. Everything gets written down, even a pack of gum or bag of chips. Copy the following columns into your notebook, or you can make a photo-copy of the chart below. Make sure to include the column identifying whether your purchase or payment was a need or a want. You can also download spending journal pages at www.michellesingletary.com.
Here’s what your journal should include:
Day/Date Expense Item Amount Spent Was this expense a need or a want?
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242 21-DAY FINANCIAL FAST
Here’s an example of what a journal entry may look like on a par-ticular day:
Day/Date Expense Item Amount Spent Was this expense a need or a want?
Mon./Sept. 10 Sausage, Egg McMuffin Meal @ McDonald’s
$5.67 It was a want because I could have eaten breakfast before I left for work.
Mon./Sept. 10 Starbucks Grande Latte $3.95 Want
Mon./Sept. 10 Lunch at Subway (turkey sandwich, drink, chips)
$6.97 Need, maybe. I didn’t pack a lunch??
Mon./Sept. 10 Snack bag of UTZ from vending machine
.75 Need/want. I don’t know. I was hungry!!!
Mon./Sept. 10 Late fee (was 5 minutes late picking up my son)
$10 Not sure. I needed to pay the fee to get my kid.
Mon./Sept. 10 Dinner from Popeye’s $24.35 Okay, a want. But I was too tired to cook.
KEEPING TRACK
You won’t start the spending journal until after you have completed the 21-day fast.
Use the spending journal to record what you spend. Don’t edit or judge yourself. This exercise works best if, for the thirty days, you simply record what you do.
After thirty days, go back and look at your spending patterns and habits. Make a note of where and when you tend to get off track con-cerning budgeted expenses.
Use the information from your spending journal to make adjust-ments to your budget (which you should have in place by now, right?). For example, if you are routinely late picking up your child from school and incur additional charges for child care, you need to build that expense into your budget. Otherwise leave work earlier, or work out an arrangement with another parent to help you pick up your child on time so you can avoid late fees.
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power of financial peace As you discover practical ways to achieve financial freedom, you’ll experience what it truly means to live a life of financial peace and prosperity.
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