Ep 52 | Why You Don’t Know What You Can Afford
Most people aren’t stressed about money because they’re irresponsible, they’re stressed because they don’t actually know what they can afford. In this episode, Priya breaks down why traditional budgeting fails in real life and introduces a simpler, more human approach: one number that brings instant clarity to your spending. No spreadsheets. No guilt. Just a framework that lets you enjoy your money and build wealth at the same time as you head into 2026.
Takeaways:
Budgeting fails because it asks you to predict real life and real life doesn’t cooperate.
Financial anxiety usually isn’t about income. It’s about how much lifestyle your income can afford.
When your future is automated, you can spend what’s left guilt-free and finally stop second-guessing every purchase.
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Transcription
Hey guys, welcome to the F word. Today's episode is short and sweet on purpose. I'm going to teach you how to get to 1 simple number that is going to eliminate any anxiety or uncertainty that you feel around your money that simply comes from not understanding how much lifestyle you can actually afford. No complicated spreadsheets, no surprise budgeting. You barely need a calculator. This one number is going to give you complete clarity and total freedom so that you're set up to take control of your money in 2026. Let's get into it.
Who the fuck am I to tell you what to do with your money? My name is Priya Malani, currently managing millions of hard working dollars. Enough for play, let's talk. Welcome to the F word smart money.
So about this number, this story starts about 10 years ago when I was helping high earners get their financial shit together. This will come as a surprise to some of you who know us now, but we were actually helping people budget. I'd build them these elaborate budgets so that they could stop living paycheck to paycheck and so they could get ahead instead of feeling like you're always falling behind.
I remember 1 client in particular and she was convinced that she was going to die broke. Now keep in mind she was in her early 30s making $146,000 a year but living paycheck to paycheck in New York City and never able to stick to her budget. I told her something that changed her perspective. I said whether you're making 140,000 or 400,000, pretty much everyone's living paycheck to paycheck. So the only logical conclusion, It's not about your income. You will not feel freer if you just keep your money and mow the same no matter how much you make.
And that's where this one number, what I call your magic number, was born. Here's what I realized. I would never want to be on the budget. It's restrictive. It requires mental energy. You're very vulnerable. Time, usually when we're in line checking out. Frankly, I think budgeting is way too much to ask of people. Once we switched from budgeting to the magic #1 number, everything changed for us as a business, but also for our clients.
The Magic Number: Your Antidote to Budgeting Stress
So what the hell is the magic number? Today I'm going to teach you how to find your magic number. In simplest terms, it's my antidote to budgeting. It's the number you can spend guilt free every single month. Comes from the system that we use at Stashwell that every single one of our clients operates on. Here's why it works when budgeting doesn't. Budgeting requires you to predict the future, asks you what to estimate on. You'll spend on groceries or gas or entertainment or random shit that comes up.
How are you supposed to know? And then it makes you feel like a failure when your real life doesn't match your predictions. Yes, it is more like it, but there's a deeper problem budgeting. Some things you can predict, like your fixed costs, but everything else you're totally guessing and you're approaching it from this more restricted place. Like, you know, I'd love to spend $600.00 on clothing, but I guess I'll lower it to 400 to be responsible and have a better budget. That's not how life actually works. We're not out shopping thinking. Does this fit within the prediction I made three weeks ago about how much I'd spend on clothing?
We just buy it and deal with the consequences later. The magic number flips this thinking completely. Instead of trying to control every dollar, we're going to figure out the maximum you can spend without derailing your financial future and your future goals. Everything else, All your important financial priorities get handled automatically before you even see the money. You don't have to worry about being responsible with your money anymore. That's the pressure that so many of us feel constantly. With the magic number, you can be reckless.
Responsibly reckless. TN. It's a term I've coined for exactly this. When your future is handled, your financial priorities are handled. You get to be reckless with whatever's left over.
How to Calculate Your Personal Magic Number
OK, to the good stuff. How to calculate your magic number. Here's how we do this. Grab your phone, open up the calculator app and follow along. Step one, Start with your monthly take home pay. This is what actually hits your bank on after taxes, retirement contributions, health insurance, all of it. If you're paid bi weekly, meaning you get paid every two weeks, I want you to multiply whatever hits your checking account like 26 and then divide that number by 12. If you're paid twice a month, much easier. Just look at what deposits in your account every single month.
Or take one of those and multiply it by. That'd be 24. Step 2 Subtract your fixed costs. Fixed costs are the things that don't change month to month. So your rent, your mortgage, your car insurance, car payment, student loan payment, phone bill, Netflix, Spotify, any subscriptions that are on auto charge. Don't include things like gas, groceries, or dining out. Yet we're only talking about fixed recurring expenses that are the same every single month. Step 3. Subtract your automated savings and investments. This. That's critical because this is about your future. Before we figure out what you can spend guilt free, we need to make sure your future is handled. How much are you putting towards your emergency fund? Any additional retirement savings beyond your 4-O1K? Saving for a house? You know I do. Travel gifts, Doorman tips?
Maybe you have investment account contributions. If you're not automating any of this yet, not the end of the world, but we are going to fix For now, just write down what you should be saving based on your goals. So if you wish you were saving towards travel or you wish you were saving a little bit more towards retirement, write that down. If you haven't done goal setting yet, highly recommend. Go back and listen to episode 20 for some inspiration and what you might want to be planning for. A good starting point if you're not going to get into the detail around your goals would be 20% of your gross income going towards savings and investments.
But this number can vary based on your age and your goals. Now here's what happens when people get to this step. They immediately think that there's going to be nothing leftover. I hear all the time, but there always is. Time and time again, every single time I do this exercise with someone. I can't fully explain why, but all I can tell you is after a decade of doing this, there's always money leftover and it's always worth the exercise. So stay with me. Step 4. What's leftover is your magic number.
Take home pay minus fixed costs minus automated savings equals your magic number. That's it. This is the amount you can spend every single month on everything else. Groceries, gas, restaurants, shopping, travel, random Target runs, all of it without even thinking about it. I have one client who prefers to break down her magic number weekly. So for her, her magic number is $2900 a month, which makes it about $715 per week. I do think a weekly number makes it a little easier to track. So it's $715 per week she's looking to stay at or under $100 per day. Whatever works best for you.
Unlock Financial Freedom: The Power of Your Magic Number
Next, there are a couple things that make the magic number so powerful and want to go through them one by one. First, this is the best news. You never have to budget ever again. As long as you stay at or under your magic number for variable spending, you're golden. You're saving enough, you're covering your bills, and you can actually start enjoying the money you work hard for guilt free.
Second, it eliminates decision fatigue. You're not standing in line at Cezanne doing mental math about whether you should put back that third sweater. You know your number. You know approximately where you are during the month. You make the call and move on with your life. 3rd, and this one's so, so important. This is what we all want. Makes increasing your, well, stupid simple. Want to save more? You really only have three levers. Increase your income, decrease your fixed costs, or lower your magic number. The least fun one? That's it. For that client I mentioned earlier making $146,000.
Her magic number ended up being pretty great. It was $3200 a month. When she realized she could spend over 3 grand a month on whatever she wanted and still be saving 25% of her income, it was like magic. She definitely wasn't resigned to dying broke anymore. She was building well while enjoying her money, except this time without the guilt always in the back of our mind.
Now, the key to making this whole system work is automation, and I say it all the time. That's the name of the your savings and investments need to leave your account automatically the day after you get paid. That's what I prefer. You can do it once a month, but you just want to get it out of there before you can spend it. Your fixed costs also need to actually be fixed. If you've got a bunch of variable expenses that you're calling fixed, the system is going to fall apart. So be honest with yourself.
Some of you are going to calculate this and realize your magic number is negative or way lower than what you're currently spending. That's actually great information. Now you know exactly why you feel anxious and now you know exactly what needs to change. Remember those 3 levers?
Take Control: Your Magic Number and Next Steps
So there it is, your magic number. The one number that tells you exactly what kind of lifestyle you can afford while still building the future that you want calculated today. Automate your savings this week and watch how much more you enjoy spending your money and how much smarter you feel than everyone else who's still winging it. At least now you know what kind of lifestyle you can actually afford. Before we go, I always leave you with my best bite. This week I'm talking about a vegetarian dish, which is going to surprise a lot of people who know I'm a meat lover. It's from a restaurant called the Tiger on Lafayette in Chinatown, and they have an appetizer.
It's a turmeric and coconut crepe with chili and charred oyster mushrooms. It is divine. I was there last week and I ordered as my meal. I ate the whole thing. It's a crispy crepe topped with a ton of very flavorful vegetables. So many herbs going on, and then they top it with some sort of sauce that is just divine. I absolutely love it. Highly recommend if you're in the area. OK, I really hope this episode has shown you how easy it is to get in the driver's seat with your money. Knowing what kind of lifestyle you can afford is the step that comes before making informed decisions with your money.
So if you feel like you're winging it, you probably need to calculate your magic number. And if you know someone who's still thinks money is way too complicated to master, I really hope you share this episode with them. And as always, if you'd rather work with someone to find your magic number, talk through your goals and develop a comprehensive plan to accomplish them, you know where to find us. Please like and follow. Leave us a review comment. I'm grateful for your support. It's how we keep the show growing and reach more people. All right, see you next time.
Thanks for listening to the F word with Priya Malani if you like what you heard. Hit subscribe wherever you're listening and leave us a review while you're at it. Or approval junkies. Don't forget you can find a ton of great resources, content, courses, and other freebies at stashwealth.com. Now for the capital F stuff, our lawyers want us to say Stash Wealth is a registered investment advisor. Content presented is for informational and educational purposes only and is not intended to make an offer or solicitation for any specific security product Service For strategy, consult with a qualified investment advisor. That's us before implementing any strategy. Investing involves risk, including the loss of principal. Past performance does not guarantee future results. There we set it.
THE STUFF OUR LAWYERS WANT US TO SAY: Stash Wealth is a Registered Investment Advisor. Content presented is for informational and educational purposes only and is not intended to make an offer or solicitation for any specific securities product, service, or strategy. Consult with a qualified investment adviser (that's us) before implementing any strategy. Investing involves risk, including the loss of principal. Past performance does not guarantee future results. There…we said it.
