Finance for the People

Why does money so often feel mysterious, uncomfortable, or even shameful? Paco de Leon’s Finance for the People begins with this provocative question—and her answer is disarmingly human. Money isn’t just math; it’s emotion, story, and power. She argues that to truly master money, you must first face what it represents inside you: power, control, fear, and self-worth. The book’s core argument is that becoming financially literate isn’t just about learning how budgets work—it’s about learning how you work.

De Leon contends that financial empowerment is a form of rebellion against a system designed to keep many people powerless. In her view, money is both a practical tool and a mirror—reflecting your beliefs, upbringing, and sometimes trauma. By working on your internal relationship with money, you begin to reclaim power that was taken, ignored, or outsourced to institutions and inequitable structures. The book blends behavioral economics, psychology, and real talk about systems of inequality to create what she calls a “skeleton key to a better relationship with money.”

Money as Emotional and Cultural Story

De Leon frames money as a deeply emotional tool. From her own story—starting as a broke financial planner who discovered that knowledge alone didn’t make people secure—she learned that most people’s money problems come from the gap between intention and behavior. Why do people say they want to save but never do? Why do they feel shame in talking about finances? Her answer: because money is tangled with identity. You can’t separate a spreadsheet from a sense of self.

Throughout the book, she explores how capitalism and consumer culture have manipulated our emotions through marketing—what she calls a “perfect formula for human weirdness.” Drawing on Freud and his nephew Edward Bernays, she explains how desire itself was engineered to make people spend, turning money into an emotional proxy for belonging and worth. By recognizing these manipulations, you free yourself from their grip.

Empowerment Through Structure and Reflection

While most finance books focus on numbers, Finance for the People gives you both practical tools and inner inquiry. De Leon introduces structural methods like her “Pyramid of Financial Awesomeness” and the concept of weekly finance time—a ritual where you sit down once a week just to care about your money. These actions build trust in yourself, transforming money management from guilt into growth. She borrows from James Clear’s idea of motion versus action: learning about money (motion) matters less than doing the damn thing (action).

To make self-reflection accessible, every chapter includes “Do the Work” exercises that act like therapy for your wallet. She encourages journaling about childhood memories of scarcity and shame (“Who did you have to be to be loved in your family?”), showing that healing your relationship with money also heals your relationship with yourself. This tightrope between psychology and spreadsheets forms the book’s heartbeat.

Freedom Through Acceptance and Agency

The author emphasizes realism over idealism. Life is, as she vividly puts it, “a shit show.” From pandemics to wage gaps, she acknowledges that systemic inequality shapes our opportunities. Yet within these constraints, you can still act. She teaches the “circles of control and concern” (adapted from Stephen Covey) to help you focus on what you can control—your spending, saving, and awareness—and detach from what you cannot (the economy, politicians, or celebrity wealth). This mindset reframes powerlessness into agency.

Ultimately, De Leon’s philosophy is radical optimism anchored by accountability. She’s not promising quick fixes or early retirement hacks; instead, she invites you to approach money the way you’d approach any deep relationship—with honesty, compassion, and courage. When you stop seeing money as a monster and start seeing it as a mirror, you reclaim control over your choices. The point isn’t just to get rich—it’s to get free. In that sense, Finance for the People is a blueprint for financial self-liberation that begins with awareness, grows into discipline, and matures into empowerment.

Paco de Leon begins her journey with a universal truth: we’re all weird about money. No one is immune—not the rich, not the poor, not the middle class. She discovered this while working as a debt collector in a call center, asking strangers why their car payments were late. In those conversations, she saw emotional intimacy and shame unfold. Money, she realized, is not merely economic—it’s psychological, cultural, and deeply personal.

The Psychology of Money

Our money habits are shaped by identity. People with inherited wealth can still feel guilt and self-sabotage because their privilege contradicts their values. People who grew up poor may internalize trauma, clinging to victim identities that conflict with stability. De Leon draws on Carl Jung’s concept of the shadow self to explain how we reject parts of ourselves—like the desire for abundance—because society told us they were shameful. To heal, you must confront the parts of yourself you’ve buried.

External Forces: Capitalism and the Creation of Desire

De Leon traces modern consumerism back to Freud’s nephew, Edward Bernays, who pioneered advertising that manipulated unconscious emotions. Bernays’ ‘torches of freedom’ campaign in 1929 taught women to equate smoking with equality—a historic example of desire engineering. This manipulation still echoes today through marketing and social media; it convinces people they can buy happiness. Understanding this manipulation helps you see your spending patterns as symptoms of systemic conditioning, not personal failure (similar ideas appear in The Psychology of Money by Morgan Housel).

Inequality and the Brain Under Stress

She explores how systemic inequality literally rewires the brain. Chronic economic stress reduces prefrontal cortex activity, impairing decision-making. People living under poverty make impulsive financial choices—not because they lack discipline, but because stress erodes rational capacity. Inequality becomes biological. In this light, De Leon reframes willpower discussions: shame helps no one. Instead, she advocates compassion and context. Financial advice must address trauma as much as spreadsheets.

Beliefs and Identity

Your beliefs are rules that dictate how you handle money—often inherited unconsciously. Were you taught that money is dirty, or that wanting more makes you greedy? These beliefs become self-fulfilling. De Leon recommends journaling and therapy to excavate these subconscious rules. Only when you rewrite them can you stop repeating patterns of scarcity or avoidance. As Jung warned, “Until you make the unconscious conscious, it will direct your life and you will call it fate.”

De Leon reframes budgeting entirely. She argues that traditional budgeting, built around scarcity—asking “Can I afford this?”—often fails because it reinforces shame and restriction. Instead, she proposes a spending plan, rooted in abundance and alignment. It’s not about punishment; it’s about designing a system that reflects who you are and what you value.

From Scarcity to Gratitude

The first step is emotional: escape the scarcity mindset by practicing “grateful flow,” an exercise from therapists Phil Stutz and Barry Michels. You name small things you’re thankful for—a cool breeze, a good tomato—and let gratitude rewire your brain toward abundance. Scientifically, gratitude activates neural pathways that increase serotonin and reduce stress. A mindset of gratitude makes you spend intentionally rather than reactively.

The Spending Plan Framework

Instead of dividing every dollar, organize spending into three categories: Bills & Life (your essentials like rent and food), Fun & BS (nonessentials that bring joy), and Future & Goals (savings, investments, and big expenses). This triad makes spending clearer and flexible. You still track what matters but without guilt. By reversing the logic—from “what can I spend?” to “what do I need and value?”—your decisions align with meaning, not fear.

Why It Works Better Than Budgets

Budgeting relies on constant micro-decisions and questionable self-discipline. De Leon compares it to mental gymnastics—good intentions that crumble under life’s chaos. The spending plan automates boundaries, freeing cognitive bandwidth for creativity. Couples can even maintain harmony through separate Fun & BS accounts, avoiding power struggles over personal purchases. The plan transforms money from a moral playground into a manageable system that supports freedom.

This chapter introduces “Paco’s Law”: your spending will expand to match what’s available. The cure? Physical separation. De Leon proposes the Anti-Budget System—two checking accounts, one for Bills & Life and one for Fun & BS. This safeguard works like a toddler-proof lock on your finances, protecting you from emotional spending impulses.

Mechanics of the System

When paychecks arrive, split them automatically: necessities go to your Bills account, pleasures to your Fun account, and savings to your Future account. Automation prevents decision fatigue and emotional error. Look at your Fun balance before outings—this simple act limits overspending more effectively than willpower. The method leverages constraint psychology: when boundaries are visible, behavior changes naturally.

Avoid Common Traps

She warns of overconfidence and the “hedonic treadmill”—the endless chase for pleasure that never lasts. The remedy is conscious adaptation: temporarily pause nonessential shopping or keep a “buy list” with waiting periods for each item, training delayed gratification. De Leon also urges humility: don’t fail at things that only require effort, not skill. Managing spending isn’t a talent—it’s consistency.

Perspective and Empathy

To keep perspective, she shares global data: billions live on less than $5.50 a day. Gratitude, she reminds, is a form of perspective-taking that quiets consumption anxiety. By automating good habits and compassion, you protect yourself not just financially, but emotionally.

Instead of telling you to set goals and chase them, De Leon asks a radical question: what if you have no goals? When she told a friend that her goal for the year was “to have no goals,” she wasn’t joking. She had discovered the paradox that progress comes from process, not outcomes. Goals are useful as starting points—but the obsession with arrival can paralyze you.

From Goals to Systems

Rather than fixating on saving $10,000, commit to saving 20 percent of every paycheck indefinitely. By shifting focus from destination to routine, progress compounds naturally. She cites Profit First by Mike Michalowicz as an example of systems that outperform willpower. Systems are flexible—they survive disruptions like job loss, illness, or market fluctuations, whereas rigid goals crumble.

Consistency over Intensity

De Leon calls consistency “boring but magical.” Just as cliffs are carved by waves not storms, steady effort creates wealth and habit. She encourages breaking failure down into systems analysis—don’t internalize setbacks as personal flaws; adjust the process. This turns financial planning into a feedback loop of learning.

Reverse-Engineering Failure

She invites you to imagine all the ways you could fail and design preventions. The Anti-Budget System and weekly finance rituals are examples of solving for failure upfront. By finding “new ways to win,” you stay empowered no matter the outcome. Systems thinking transforms your financial life from anxiety into agency.

At 22, De Leon was advising wealthy clients on how to grow their millions while she herself earned $36,000 a year. That dissonance sparked revelation: the real obstacle wasn’t spending—it was earning. Her central lesson: you can’t out-frugal underearning, and you can’t out-earn overspending. Income is the root variable of financial freedom.

Earning as Experiment

Making money, she says, is both science and art—a series of experiments. Try hypotheses, gather data, iterate. Negotiating a raise, starting a side business, or learning new skills are experiments that reveal your value in the marketplace. Like scientific inquiry, results require curiosity, observation, and persistence.

Process over Persona

Earning money relies on understanding how value flows. Whether you’re an employee or freelancer, you’re part of a process—creating value others exchange for money. Seeing this systemically removes ego and emotion. Companies, she explains, sell processes; individuals can too. This perspective converts fear into opportunity.

Rewriting Beliefs About Work

She challenges limiting beliefs: “If I enjoy it, I shouldn’t be paid for it.” “Making money is hard.” Each rule is a cage. To escape, use Byron Katie’s method “The Work”—question the truth of the thought, explore who you’d be without it. Through reframing, work becomes agency, not exploitation. Earning, then, is not selling out; it’s self-expression and an act of power.

De Leon turns saving money into a political and emotional act of resistance. She calls an emergency fund “a trench against the tide.” Emergencies are inevitable—the question is whether you’ll have a wall ready. Saving, she explains, doesn’t prevent crises, but it prevents them from destroying you.

The Psychology of Delayed Gratification

Using the famous Stanford Marshmallow Experiment, she shows how children’s ability to wait is conditioned by trust. If your past taught you that promises break, delaying gratification feels irrational. Thus, saving requires rebuilding trust—with yourself and stability. It’s not weakness—it’s human context.

Starting Small and Staying Consistent

She encourages starting with any amount—$5 or $50—and focusing on habit, not numbers. Consistency compounds over time. A recommended savings rate is 10–30% of take-home pay, but the priority is simply beginning. Saving becomes spiritual discipline—proof that you can delay gratification for long-term resilience.

Building a Year’s Cushion

Her benchmark has shifted after COVID-19: aim for three to twelve months of expenses. This fund breaks debt cycles, protects mental health, and empowers decision-making. Saving while in debt may feel counterintuitive, but it builds self-respect and emotional abundance—a step toward freedom.

Investing, De Leon argues, isn’t just for the rich—it’s for anyone who wants to resist inflation and create freedom. She connects finance to physics: money either decays (through inflation) or grows (through compounding). The choice is yours. Not investing is guaranteed loss.

Understanding Inflation

Inflation is the invisible erosion of buying power. A $10,000 in a savings account grows slightly, but inflation quietly eats it. She uses the burrito metaphor—if a burrito costs $5 today and $5.50 next year, your money is worth less burrito. Investing offsets this decay by letting your money work for you.

Rejecting Emotional Barriers

Common excuses—“I’ll lose money,” “Now’s not the right time”—stem from fear, not fact. She dismantles these myths with humor: waiting to invest is like refusing to start a friendship until you’re perfect. The longer you wait, the harder it gets. Compounding rewards time, not timing.

Ethical Investing and Belonging

De Leon admits investing is imperfect. Wall Street’s roots intertwine with colonization and exploitation. Yet abstaining from investing doesn’t fix injustice—it deepens personal vulnerability. She recommends socially responsible investing (SRI) and using capital to back companies that reflect your values. In this way, investing becomes both power and protest—a way of financing the world you want.

Once you’ve built assets, De Leon says, you must protect them. Insurance, she insists, is boring but revolutionary—a tool to transfer risk and confront mortality. Most people avoid it because it forces them to acknowledge vulnerability. But denial doesn’t prevent loss. Preparation does.

Understanding Risk Management

There are four ways to handle risk: avoid it, accept it, mitigate it, or transfer it. Insurance is risk transfer. Whether health, disability, renters, or life insurance, it limits financial collapse when catastrophe hits. She explains each type clearly—auto insurance protects assets against lawsuits; life insurance replaces economic support for dependents. Her humor keeps the dark topic human (“Don’t lie on your application—insurance companies are petty”).

Why It Matters

Purchasing insurance is an act of maturity and empathy. It recognizes interconnectedness—when you pay into a pool, you help others and yourself collectively. Insurance is not a scam; it’s solidarity through mathematics. Facing mortality and misfortune, you reclaim power through foresight.

Protection as Freedom

In the end, protecting what you have isn’t about paranoia—it’s about peace. With solid insurance, an emergency fund, and clear boundaries, you can live more boldly because you’ve planned for loss. The paradox of control: by accepting what you can’t control, you become free within it.