If you or someone you know needs coaching on handling finances with godly wisdom, broken down into easy-to-understand terms, look no further than this booklet by Ron Blue.

We at Launch Leadership Development believe being a good leader means being great at self-management, which includes managing your finances wisely. This booklet is a quick read with graphics, self-assessments, and printed pdf charts to keep for handy reference.

Ron says, “All money issues are heart issues”, and that is so true, my friend! When the topic of money comes up, so do feelings! Feelings like fear, anger, stress, and shame are not uncommon.  This book sets out to relieve these negative feelings about money and provides a framework for thinking about money differently. This framework will benefit you personally and as a leader and manager.

We will explore the four areas of financial confidence:

• Heart
• Health
• Habits
• Hope

Heart: Behavior Follows Belief Your checkbook shows what you value. Ron divides the heart into four beliefs:

• Stewardship: Do you believe God owns it all?
• Contentment: Do you believe that what you have right now is enough?
• Faith: Do you demonstrate your faith through your finances?
• Wisdom: Do you believe God’s wisdom is true and available?

Health: Today’s Reality Assess where your finances are currently at. Ron uses a pie chart divided into five wedges to depict where your money goes. These wedges are:

• Live
• Give
• Owe (debt)
• Owe (taxes)
• Grow

There are no independent financial decisions. When you spend in one wedge it decreases the amount available in another wedge.

Habits: Five Biblical Principles These work for ANY income level.

• Spend less than you earn   Every financial success depends on this habit.
• Give generously Giving breaks the power of money.
• Avoid debt   It always mortgages the future.
• Plan for financial margin   The unexpected will always happen.
• Set long term goals There is always a trade off between the short-term and long-term.

Ron says to change any habit, you need a simple plan and at least one person to hold you accountable. Looking at this list, what changes do you need to make?

Hope: Tomorrow’s Promise Ron devised a “Margin Meter” to measure your ability to deal with unexpected expenses.You must increase your margin so that you are beyond stable and able to save for long term goals.

• Struggling “not able to make ends meet”
• Surviving “living paycheck to paycheck”
• Stable “Saving some and have an emergency fund”
• Secure “Saving for long term goals”
• Surplus “More than enough”

Ron says the key to moving from where you are to where you want to be is to have written goals. Without goals, people tend to put their surplus toward upgrading their lifestyle. What are your goals?

Ron has written several books that dive deeper into budgeting and goal setting, such as Master Your Money. One I plan to read is Never Enough? Three Keys to Financial Contentment.

As for this packet, I plan to order an extra set to give to my graduating friends. At $6.99 I believe this is one of the best bargains out there!

-Jan Jones

For digital and pdf financial tools from Ron Blue, check out his site!

https://ronblueinstitute.com/tools/