I’ve always been obsessed with receipts.
Not because I want to judge anyone’s spending (been there, done that, entirely burned out on my own shame spiral).
But because receipts don’t lie.
They whisper our fears, our hopes, our guilty pleasures. Every dollar spent is a breadcrumb back to the life we’re building—or the one we’re trying to escape.
This week, I cracked open the receipts of a 36-year-old fitness trainer in Milwaukee. Let’s call her Susanna.
She’s self-employed, pulling in $109K a year from private clients, group classes, and an online program. On paper, it sounds solid. But when we zoom in on her week of spending, you can feel the emotional rollercoaster of being your own boss—and just being human with money.
Susanna’s Weekly Spending Breakdown
Housing (rent): $1,650/month → $412.50/week (thank you rent control)
Groceries: $168
Dining out: $102 (includes two $12 post-class smoothies—her ritual for decompressing after a day of back-to-back clients)
Business expenses: $356 (Zoom, Canva Pro, yoga blocks, plus a $250 studio space deposit that triggered a late-night panic spiral: “What if no one shows up for my classes?”)
Transportation: $64 (gas + parking fees)
Self-care: $48 (nails + a sauna session where she spent half the time scrolling Zillow for houses she can’t afford—yet)
Debt payments: $190 (student loan + biz credit card)
Savings: $200 auto-transfer to her Roth IRA
Miscellaneous: $88 (Amazon: a $30 weighted jump rope and a $20 gratitude journal she hasn’t opened since the breakup text that sent her spiraling two weeks ago)
Total Weekly Spend: $1,628.50
What Her Receipts Reveal
👉 Her biggest expense isn’t Starbucks—it’s her business. Over 20% of her weekly spending went right back into growing her income. (Cue: pride and panic.)
👉 She’s saving consistently, but confessed it still feels like “never enough.” Sound familiar? You’re not alone.
👉 And those Amazon purchases? Pure aspirational spending. “This is the week I wake up at 5 AM, meditate, and get my life together.” (We’ve all been there.)
Here’s the truth:
Your receipts aren’t just numbers.
They’re a diary of your values, your coping mechanisms, your dreams.
It’s easy to obsess over totals—society trained us to. But the real shift happens when you dig into the why:
💡 “I spend a lot on food because cooking makes me feel alive.”
or
💡 “I shop online when I’m hating my body, then return everything but still get stuck paying shipping fees.”
No shame. Just clarity. That’s where your power starts.
What Would Your Receipts Say?
Do they reflect the life you want to live—or the one you’re surviving through?
Stop Beating Yourself Up Over Your Receipts
If you’ve ever looked at your bank account and thought:
“WTF did I even spend my money on?”
Or felt guilty for every little “treat” (even though you’re working your ass off)…
It’s not because you’re bad with money.
It’s because no one taught you how to spend without shame.
Enter Swipe Without Shame—my 3-day money reset for people who want their bank account to stop feeling like a trapdoor.
Inside, you’ll:
✅ Stop cringing at your spending (even the Target runs)
✅ Figure out what you actually want your money to do for you
✅ Start spending (and saving) from a place of confidence—not chaos
It’s $27 until July 11. Then it jumps to $47.
💳 Snag it now → Grab Swipe Without Shame here
This isn’t a budgeting spreadsheet. It’s a rebellion.
P.S. What’s your biggest weekly splurge—and did it feel worth it? Hit reply. I’m reading every single one.
Before You Go: Let’s Talk About Reinvention
Here’s a wild money truth: studies show we’re most likely to buy aspirational items—like Susanna’s $20 gratitude journal or $30 weighted jump rope—when we’re in transition.
Why?
Because part of us believes if we can just buy the tools, we’ll become that next-level version of ourselves.
But here’s the thing… money doesn’t create that version of you.
You do.
One small, brave, messy step at a time.
That’s what this space is becoming—a place to unpack the receipts, the shame, and the stories keeping us stuck, so we can step into the lives we’re craving.
Coming soon:
💌 Deeper, members-only stories (the ones too raw for the public timeline)
📦 Tools to help you rewrite your relationship with money
🗂 Private workshops for people like us—building wealth, not war with ourselves
And next week? I’m breaking down the receipts of a 42-year-old artist in Portland whose $2,400 “splurge” on a retreat cracked open her whole relationship with money. You don’t want to miss it.
