Planning Your 2025 Financial Journey: A Multi-Scale Approach to Money

As I write this, I'm sitting in my home, watching the winter sun set earlier each day. Lily, now approaching her second birthday, is exploring our living room with the determined focus only toddlers possess. Her approach to learning reminds me of how we should think about personal finance: taking small, steady steps forward, celebrating each milestone, and not being afraid to stumble sometimes.

The Journey Begins With a Single Step

Before we dive into planning, I want to share something important: if you're feeling overwhelmed about money, you're not alone. When I first started my financial journey, spreadsheets and investment terms felt like a foreign language. Today, as I manage our family's NISA investments and plan for international school tuition, I'm grateful for those early, uncertain steps.

Remember: every financial expert started as a beginner. Every investor made their first investment. Every saver opened their first savings account. Your journey starts exactly where you are today.

Reframing Money: From Limitation to Liberation

Recently, during a product planning session at work, I found myself drawing parallels between how we approach feature development and personal finance. Both can feel overwhelming when viewed as one massive challenge. However, just as we break down product development into sprints and milestones, we can approach our financial journey in manageable, meaningful chunks.

Money often feels like a constraint – I know this feeling well, especially when balancing our mortgage payments with plans for international schooling. But I've learned to view money differently: not as a limitation, but as a tool for translating our life vision into reality.

Cal Newport's Time-Block Planning: A Financial Perspective

I've found tremendous value in Cal Newport's planning methodology, which I've adapted for financial planning. Newport's approach centers on three key principles that work beautifully for money management:

1. Time Horizons: The Three-Layer Planning System

Newport suggests viewing life through three distinct timeframes. Let's apply this to finances:

The Daily and Weekly Layer (Tactical) This is where we track our spending, make conscious purchasing decisions, and maintain awareness of our money flow. For me, this means:

• Using a simple spending tracking app

• Making mindful decisions about daily purchases

• Checking account balances weekly

The Quarterly Layer (Strategic) This is where we set and review concrete financial goals. Think of it as your personal financial sprint planning. In my current quarter, I focus on:

• Monthly investment reviews

• Expense pattern analysis

• Adjusting savings rates based on life changes

The Yearly Layer (Long-term Vision) This is where we connect our money choices to our life's bigger picture. My 2025 vision includes:

• Building our children's education fund

• Strengthening our investment portfolio

• Working toward career growth goals

2. Deep Work Applied to Finances

Newport's concept of "deep work" – focused, undistracted effort – applies perfectly to financial planning. Instead of constantly worrying about money, set aside dedicated time for financial deep work:

• A weekly 15-minute review of spending

• A monthly hour for investment checking

• A quarterly deep dive into goals and progress

3. Fixed-Schedule Productivity

Just as Newport advocates for setting firm boundaries around work time, we can create fixed schedules for financial tasks. This prevents money management from becoming an endless source of stress.

Making Your 2025 Plan Actionable: A Multi-Scale Approach

Let's break this down into practical timeframes that align with both Newport's methodology and real-life financial planning:

Quarterly Horizons (The Next 90 Days)

Think of this as your immediate financial sprint. For my family, our Q1 2025 focus includes:

• Adjusting our monthly NISA contributions

• Setting up Lily's education fund

• Reviewing our mortgage payment optimization

Annual Objectives (2025)

These are your medium-term milestones. Our 2025 map includes:

• Maintaining my ¥35,000 monthly NISA investment split across Nasdaq 100, S&P 100, and Global Stocks

• Building our emergency fund to cover 6 months of international school fees

Five-Year Vision (2025-2030)

This is your strategic horizon. For us, it includes:

• Advancing in my product management career

• Building our investment portfolio for both children's education

Getting Started: Your First 30 Days of Financial Clarity

Let's break down your first steps into small, manageable pieces. Think of this as your financial "couch to 5K" training plan:

Week 1: Gentle Observation

Just watch your money this week. No judgments, no changes:

• Download your bank's app

• Look at your last month's statements

• Notice when money comes in and goes out

Week 2: Understanding Your Story

Start connecting money to meaning:

• Write down three things you'd love to do in the next five years

• Estimate rough costs for each dream

• Think about what financial security means to you personally

Week 3: Creating Simple Systems

Begin building helpful habits:

• Set up a basic savings account if you don't have one

• Choose one regular expense to track (like coffee or lunch)

• Set a phone reminder for a weekly 5-minute money check-in

Week 4: Your First Financial Moves

Take small but significant actions:

• Set up an automatic transfer of ¥1,000 to savings (yes, even this small amount matters!)

• List your regular monthly bills

• Choose one bill to optimize (like your phone plan)

Understanding Your Financial Snapshot

Before diving deeper into 2025 planning, let's create clarity about where you stand. Here's a simple framework I use:

Understanding Your Inflow

Map out your regular income sources. For me, this includes:

• Base salary

• Performance bonuses

• RSU

Tracking Your Outflow

List your regular expenses, categorized by:

• Fixed costs (mortgage, utilities)

• Variable necessities (groceries, transportation)

• Investments (NISA, iDeCo)

• Discretionary spending

Identifying Your Life Anchors

These are the big goals that give meaning to your financial planning. Mine include:

• Providing international education for our children

• Building generational wealth through consistent investing

• Creating a stable financial foundation for our growing family

The Power of Tiny Starts

When I first opened my NISA account, I started with just ¥5,000 monthly – about the cost of a nice dinner out. It felt almost too small to matter. But here's what I've learned: those small beginnings create momentum. They build confidence. They prove to yourself that you can do this.

Today, as I plan for two children's education and our family's future, I'm grateful for those modest first steps. They gave me the confidence to gradually increase our investments, to learn about different investment vehicles, and to take control of our family's financial future.

Finding Joy in the Journey

Money management isn't about deprivation – it's about possibility. Each yen saved or invested is a vote for your future dreams. Whether you're saving for a trip to visit family abroad, planning a wedding, or dreaming of starting a business, your financial journey is deeply personal and meaningful.

Just as I watch Lily explore our home with curiosity and joy, I encourage you to approach your financial journey with the same spirit of discovery. There will be stumbles, yes, but also moments of profound satisfaction as you build toward your dreams.

Think of your early financial steps like Lily's first attempts at walking – each wobble forward is progress, each stumble is learning, and every small victory deserves celebration. Remember, the goal isn't perfection; it's progress.

What small step will you take this week toward your financial future? Share your thoughts by hitting reply – I read and respond to every message, and I especially love hearing from those just starting their journey.

Building wealth together,

Jason from Money Daruma

P.S. What aspects of day-to-day money management would you like me to cover?