The Money Couple Minute - First Step Toward Financial Communication, the Money Dump

It can be overwhelming to think about money, especially if you and your partner have never done it before. That's why we suggest taking small steps toward healthy financial communication.

Get it all out.   Your first step should be what we call "the Money Dump" from our book, First Comes Love, Then Comes Money.The Money Dump is fairly simple, but it will make a huge impact on your financial communication. Basically, you're going to put all your finances on the table-literally.

Look at your accounts.  Checking account, credit card statements, rent or mortgage payments, car payments, and any other regular monthly expenses. Where is your money going?

Look at your income.   When you consider your income in relation to your outflow, how do things look? Are you happy with your financial situation or are there places you need to cut back or make other changes?

The Money Dump will show you the big picture of how you're doing and help you start identifying the areas where you need to work together to build a better financial future. From there, tools like the Financial Relationship Index (FRI) can help you identify specific areas where you can benefit from stronger financial communication.