I Didn't Write a Book About Budgeting

When I first decided to write a book, people naturally asked what it was about. The answer seemed obvious at first. After all, I'd spent years working in banking, finance and business. But the more I thought about it, the more I realised the book wasn't really about money at all, at least not in the way most people expect.

So what is Where Did All the Money Go? really about?

I have spent most of my working life around money. I've helped people buy homes, restructure debt and make all sorts of importan financial decisions. Across those years, I've met people at almost every stage of their financial lives. And there is one question that keeps appearing:

Where did all the money go?

Sometimes it's asked jokingly. Sometimes with frustration. Sometimes with genuine disbelief. What fascinated me was that it wasn't always asked by people who struggled to earn money. I've heard versions of it from business owners, professionals and people with very good incomes. Intelligent people who understood numbers perfectly well. They earned good money. They weren't extravagant. Yet they would eventually look at what they had accumulated and wonder why there wasn't more.

That question became the title of my book. But I didn't write a book about budgeting.

There are already countless books, apps, spreadsheets and calculators that explain how money works. Most of us know the basics. Spend less than you earn. Save something. Avoid expensive debt. Invest for the future. The more interesting question is this:

If we already know what to do, why don't we always do it?

That is the territory I wanted to explore in Where Did All the Money Go?

Despite the title, money doesn't actually disappear. It goes somewhere.

It pays mortgages, groceries, school fees and holidays. It buys convenience, experiences and peace of mind. Sometimes it builds wealth. Sometimes it leaks away through hundreds of decisions that individually seem too small to matter. Money is always flowing somewhere.

The question is whether we have consciously decided where we want it to flow.

That's because our financial lives are shaped less by a handful of major decisions and more by ordinary decisions repeated over time. Those decisions are influenced by habits, emotions, expectations, convenience and the stories we tell ourselves.

I'll start saving next month. It's only $30.

When I earn more, I'll get serious about money.

None of those thoughts make us irresponsible. They make us human.

One thing I was determined not to write was a book that made people feel guilty about money. There is already enough judgement in personal finance. We are constantly told what we should have done differently.I don't think guilt is a particularly useful financial strategy. Awareness is far more powerful.

Before we can change a pattern, we have to be able to see it. Sometimes the most important financial question isn't:

What should I do?

It's:

Why do I keep doing this?

I've also learned that intelligence and income don't automatically translate into financial confidence. In fact, higher incomes can sometimes hide financial habits that would be more obvious at lower income levels. A person can earn considerably more than they did ten years ago and still wonder why they don't feel considerably wealthier. Their income increased. Their lifestyle expanded to meet it. That's why financial wellbeing isn't simply about earning more money. Income matters, but what happens to that income matters too.

What I hope is that readers recognise themselves somewhere in the book. Perhaps they notice a habit they've never questioned. Perhaps they finally understand why increased income hasn't produced the progress they expected. Perhaps they make one small change that nudges their finances in a better direction.

Small decisions become systems. Systems become habits. Habits repeated over time create outcomes. Looking back, I think the title contains a bigger idea than I originally realised.

The question Where did all the money go? often comes at the end of a journey, when we're looking back and trying to understand the results we've created. The real transformation occurs when we begin making decisions with a clearer sense of purpose and direction.

Where do I want my money to go from here?

That is what Where Did All the Money Go? is really about. Not budgets. Not deprivation.

And certainly not feeling guilty about enjoying the money you've worked hard to earn.

It's about becoming more aware of the choices you're already making, understanding the behaviours behind them, and giving your money enough direction that it starts taking you where you actually want to go.

Maybe the best outcome I could hope for is that one day a reader looks at their financial life and no longer needs to ask: Where did all the money go? Because they're no longer looking back and wondering. They're looking ahead and deciding.

Ready to change the way you think about money?

Sound financial strategies matter. But lasting change happens when you understand the behaviours, beliefs and habits driving your decisions. For less than the cost of a takeaway dinner, Where Did All the Money Go?  offers practical insights into the psychology of money and the behaviours that shape your financial outcomes.