Money Moves - 2026 New Year, New Money Moves

The calendar flips, the credit card bill lands, and most of us wonder where the money actually went. We’re bringing calm to that chaos with simple, practical moves that turn clutter into capital, goals into plans, and stress into breathing room. We also share big news: our rebrand to Elevate Life Wealth Management, a name that reflects our mission to align your money with the life you want.

We start with the easiest raise you’ll ever get: selling what you don’t use. Old electronics, extra kitchen gear, tools, and furniture can fund your first wins without interest or credit checks. Then we lay the foundation—an emergency fund of three to six months of living expenses—by separating fixed costs from variables and giving every dollar a job. Preparation beats panic, and your spreadsheet is the scoreboard that keeps you honest.

From there, we make goals real. Forget vague hopes; write down specific targets like “save $5,000 by December” and “pay off the card by month nine,” with milestones and deadlines. One of our favorite moves this month is a Christmas sinking fund: if you spent $1,200 last year, automate $100 a month now to arrive at December in control. We tackle margin too—the financial version of breathing room—so a surprise bill doesn’t topple your plan. A clear needs vs wants test helps free cash fast for the priorities that matter.

We wrap with upcoming event dates in Richardson and Little Elm and how to connect with us for personalized planning. Ready to start small, stay consistent, and elevate your life? Subscribe, share this with a friend who still thinks their garage is organized, and leave a review with your first money move of the year.

To contact John for a free consultation, call 972-288-2888 or email John at john@elevatelifewealth.com. For more information on Elevate Life Wealth Management, go to www.elevatelifewealth.com

Chapters

• 0:00 New Name, New Direction
• 3:21 Cash Without Debt: The Garage Sale
• 5:15 Preparation Beats Panic
• 6:20 Emergency Funds And Budgets
• 7:42 Goals You Can Measure
• 9:00 Plan Christmas Now
• 10:20 Build Margin And Cut Wants
• 12:05 Events, Contact, And Next Steps

Transcript

Steven Killfoil: 0:31

Cross Roads Podcast welcomes you to Money Moves. For those who want to be in the know. Good morning, Cross Roads. Welcome back to Cross Roads Podcast Money Moves. I'm Steven Killfoil.

John Ezell: 1:08

And I'm John Ezell, and happy new year.

Steven Killfoil: 1:12

Ah, yes, that magical time of the year when the gym is packed, the salad section is empty, and your credit card statement shows what actually happened in December.

John Ezell: 1:24

You know, if your bank app gives you the side eye when you open it, then this episode's for you. Yeah.

Steven Killfoil: 1:33

Today we're talking about fresh starts, smarter money habits, and how to make 2026 financially smoother without eating ramen for the next six months. Well, before we jump into money tips, we've got some exciting news. John?

John Ezell: 1:55

  I do. Officially, we are announcing the new name of our company, a new branding, Elevate Life Wealth Management. So prior CPR wealth management, but we're doing the rebranding. Elevate Life Wealth Management.

Steven Killfoil: 2:10

That sounds like uh fewer panic attacks and uh more vacations already.

John Ezell: 2:16

That's the goal. Elevate Life Wealth Management is really all about helping people align their money with their life goals and not just spreadsheets and stress.

Steven Killfoil: 2:30

Yes, and we'll be adding that official uh website, which is elevate lifemanagement.com right here in the uh audio portion at the bottom of the description. That information will be available and it'll be available on a PDF and the YouTube channel.

John Ezell: 2:51

You'll also be able to reach me directly at John with an H J-O-H-N @elevate lifewealth.com. Or you're welcome to call 972-288-2888.

Steven Killfoil: 3:09

That's not a hard number to remember. That's really good. We'll drop all of that in the show notes once it's live, so no carrier pigeons are going to be required. Right. Well, let's talk about something wildly underrated. Raising capital without debt.

John Ezell: 3:29

Ah, yes, this might be a little simpler than you would think. The garage sale.

Steven Killfoil: 3:36

Also known as why do we own seven waffle irons?

John Ezell: 3:42

Exactly. Most people are sitting on a fair amount of cash and they don't even know it. It just has to be converted from those waffle irons or old electronics or tools or clothes or furniture. And all of that can add up very fast.

Steven Killfoil: 4:01

Yeah, and the best part no interest, no credit check, no regret.

John Ezell: 4:10

And we recommend using that garage sale money for the following: start with your emergency fund, begin paying off small debts, and then jump start a savings goal.

Steven Killfoil: 4:24

Yeah, a little pro tip. If you haven't used it in a year, it's auditioning for your garage sale.

John Ezell: 4:32

You know, I always think of preparation uh being one of the most important things in life in general, but also it by preparing properly, you're separating the financial stress from financial confidence. The famous UCLA coach John Wooden used to say when it's game time, it's too late to get prepared.

Steven Killfoil: 4:57

Translation uh planning beats panic every time. And another football legend, A.L. Williams, also said, people don't plan to fail, they fail to plan.

John Ezell: 5:10

Well, here's some basics for 2026, Steve. So I touched on these a minute ago, but let's expand. An emergency fund. What is that? Emergency fund is going to be three to six months of your living expenses. You want to have a clear understanding of your fixed costs and those that change or your variable costs in your household budget. In other words, you're trying to determine exactly where your money is going. Each dollar should have a name.

Steven Killfoil: 5:50

And no, I I I think it's going somewhere, uh, but it's not a budget.

John Ezell: 5:57

Well, preparation effectively gives you options, and uh everybody likes choices or options, and it it lends to the equivalent of some freedom.

Steven Killfoil: 6:10

Yeah, let's let's talk some goals. Uh not the fluffy kind, the the real ones.

John Ezell: 6:16

Well, the first thing I would say is for it to be a goal, it needs to be in writing because if you don't write it down, if you don't have a plan, it's really not anything more than a wish.

Steven Killfoil: 6:27

Yeah, and instead of saying I want to be better with money, try to say, I want to save five thousand dollars this year, I want to be debt-free by December, and I want Christmas paid for before December.

John Ezell: 6:49

So to summarize, I would say write it down. Uh there's a scripture verse that says write it down and make it plain. Put a quantity or timeline or numbers in general to it, and then give it a deadline.

Steven Killfoil: 7:09

Yes, dreams are great, but spreadsheets make them happen. That's why I love Excel so much. I never stop learning how to use it to our benefit. The best part is that numbers do not lie, they show you exactly where you stand.

John Ezell: 7:31

So, one of the smartest money moves you can make in January, what do you think, Steve?

Steven Killfoil: 7:37

Let me see. Start your Christmas savings funds now.

John Ezell: 7:43

If you spend or you just spent $1,200 for $1,200 for Christmas, then, and by the way, if that's all you spent for Christmas, I'd like to swap places with you. I agree. So that would equate to, for this example, you need to be saving a hundred dollars a month. If you want to boil it down more simply, if you get paid more often, twenty-five dollars a week, and then sacrifice that weekly Starbucks coffee and snack, save it instead if it's a struggle to come up with those resources.

Steven Killfoil: 8:21

Absolutely. Which feels way better than January regret and February payments.

John Ezell: 8:30

We also recommend building margin into your budget.

Steven Killfoil: 8:35

Well, margin is the financial version of breathing room, right?

John Ezell: 8:40

Absolutely. Life happens. You might have a car repair, you might have medical bills, kids growing out of shoes overnight.

Steven Killfoil: 8:50

My mother uh happened to her a lot when I was growing up. I I'd go from a five to a six to an eight to a nine. Finally, I stopped at size 13. Wow. Yeah. But uh she used to joke and say, Man, we have to kill a cow to put you in shoes. Well, if your budget has zero margin, it's not a plan. It it's it's a tightrope now. So New Year's rule separate your needs from your wants.

John Ezell: 9:29

So let me give you an example. You need to keep the lights on. Um you want to keep Amazon in business. So those are two different things, right? Lights on for needs, and you want to keep Amazon in business, that's a want.

Steven Killfoil: 9:48

Absolutely. You might want that thing that you can get on Amazon and have it delivered the next day or even as early as the same day, which is pretty cool. But bottom line is you gotta have uh your lights on because you gotta see what the heck you're doing. So you gotta ask yourself, what do I need in the next 90 days? And uh what can wait? Let's say six months, or or what can be eliminated completely? And this is actually easier than it looks, a bit painful, but easier.

John Ezell: 10:33

Well, when we clarify here what frees up cash and does so fast, investing it in the right area gives you a greater likelihood to win and makes it work better for you.

Steven Killfoil: 10:46

Absolutely. So we have a new year, new money moves, no guilt, just better choices.

John Ezell: 10:56

And remember, Elevate Life Wealth Management's here to help and build a plan that fits your life. So, for example, uh our next four event evenings are gonna be January 26th. Wednesday, January 28th. Those will both be in Richardson. And then after that, in February, we currently have scheduled February 9th, which is a Monday, and February 11th, which is a Wednesday, those two evenings we will be in Little Elm. So if you have an interest in learning more about the time, the content, uh, the commitment in terms of how long the program is, give us a call at 972-288-2888, or feel free to email me at John with an H G-O-H-N at elevate lifewealth.com. Absolutely. Yeah. So basically, in summary, you want to start small, in other words, give yourself the opportunity to win on that first step out, stay consistent, and of course, elevate your life.

Steven Killfoil: 12:14

Definitely. And we will have elevate lifewealth.com, John's email, it's John J O H N at elevate lifewealth.com, and the phone number 972-288-2888 on a PDF. It'll be available attached on the YouTube video, and I will have this included into the comments section on the website for the audio portion of this podcast. So meeting John is really simple, folks. You just call that number and remember seats are kind of limited in some of these venues, so it's very important that you call and let him know you're coming so that they can have a seat for you when you arrive. But it'll be the best decision you ever made. That's it for money moves. If this episode helped you, share it with someone who still thinks their garage is organized.

John Ezell: 13:20

And we'll see you next time.

Steven Killfoil: 13:22

Yeah, see you next time. You guys have a great day.