Over the next few months, as Christmas hits, the summer holidays cost a mint, and the cost-of-living stays sky high, you might feel like any financial progress you've made is lost. But try a different perspective, says Frances Cook. Being smart with money is about going with the ebb and flow, and not all seasons are equal.
We’ve all heard the phrase “balancing the books”, and it’s often the mindset we bring to all of our money.
Expecting things to balance, continue in an orderly fashion, that doing money “right” means always hitting the same sensible goals month after month and year after year.
Save a bit, spend a bit, invest a bit, pay down debt, and everything will hum along neatly. But anyone who’s lived a real life knows that’s not how it goes.
There are seasons where you can sprint, such as when you’ve got a new job, double income, or few obligations, and there are seasons where you’re simply getting through.
Balance is not only overrated, it can be an unrealistic expectation.
The trick isn’t to keep everything even, it’s to recognise which season you’re in and move with it instead of fighting it.
What you actually need is rhythm. Knowing when to push, when to pause, and when to pivot. That’s the secret to gaining ground on your money.
When the spreadsheet doesn’t fit real life
Take maternity leave, for example. It’s one of the biggest financial whiplashes most families experience: income drops, costs rise, and suddenly every dollar has to stretch further.
If you’re carrying the expectation that you’ll still hit the same savings goals, or keep contributing the same to KiwiSaver, you may be piling on unnecessary guilt.
That guilt shows up everywhere. People message me saying they “fell off the wagon” because they dipped into savings, or “failed” because their investing paused for a year.
But then they say it’s because they’ve lost their job, and are hunting for a new one. Or they’ve bought a house, and the mortgage repayments are at the top of their budget.
Those aren’t failures, they’re adjustments.
You’re still playing the long game, just at a different tempo.
Knowing when to refocus your goals is a skill in itself. Rather than wasting mental energy beating yourself up, refocusing means you still plan for the long-term, but in a way that matches the new situation you’re in.
The cost of chasing balance
The idea of being constantly “in balance” means you can not only feel bad about situations that are out of your control but, on the flip side, you can also miss opportunities.
You might start raiding emergency funds to stay on some imaginary schedule, or spread yourself too thin across ten competing goals.
If you’re in a tight period, you might feel like if you can’t “do it all”, you might as well do nothing. But an all-or-nothing mindset is self-sabotage in disguise. Putting what you can into savings or investments is very much still worth it, and still gets you ahead.
Meanwhile, if you do get a new job, hopefully with a shiny new salary, you might be too focused on cruising through on your past settings.
And yet, if you’re in the mindset of adapting to each new season, you’ll see the opportunity to seriously stack some cash towards long-term goals, and put a sprint effort to work.
The better move is to work in layers.
Get through the tight chapter first. Keep the lights on, protect your credit rating, keep KiwiSaver ticking at the minimum if you can. Survival mode is fine while you look for the circuit breaker that makes life easier again.
Once the money situation loosens, you ramp up again.
It’s the financial equivalent of going on a run-walk. Overall, you’re still moving faster than if you stayed home the whole time.
It keeps you in motion, even when you’re not moving at top speed.
Seasons of money
Here are some other moments where many people need to switch tactics.
Early-career years are usually growth years. You’re building income, experimenting, and taking on manageable risk.
You might not be saving much, but you’re investing into your future earning power. That’s an investment in itself, and not something to feel bad about.
Mortgage years are grind years. Especially when you’ve freshly bought your first home, you’re likely focused on paying down debt, juggling interest rates, and staying disciplined.
As inflation moves and your pay packet hopefully increases, the mortgage may become less of a struggle. But the first few year of home ownership are often tight, and that’s normal.
In the parenting years, many people shift into maintenance mode. Savings are smaller, expenses are bigger, and we’re balancing the emotional pull of other priorities.
As life settles down again, and costs ease or income steadies, you can rebalance. Investing more, catching up on investing or KiwiSaver contributions, and planning ahead for financial freedom.
On a more immediate level, some times of year (such as the one we're soon to enter) are simply more costly than others.
Knowing when to tap the brakes means you’re also ready to hit the gas when the time is right.
If you zoom out over decades, the progress is clear. It just doesn’t feel balanced month to month.
Why rhythm keeps you sane
Rhythm builds resilience. It gives you permission to adapt instead of collapse.
When interest rates spike or a pay cut lands, the goal isn’t to force normality, it’s to pivot. A short-term slowdown doesn’t erase the long-term progress.
Financial psychology tells us that our brains crave predictability, so when life veers off course, we treat it like failure. But progress is never a straight line.
The people who end up financially free aren’t the ones who kept everything balanced, they’re the ones who kept adjusting.
So if you’re in a messy chapter, whether it’s maternity leave, caregiving, or patchy income, stop expecting equal output from an unequal season.
Instead, focus your energy on surviving the now, and limiting the damage. Avoid debt, even if you can’t save.
Then make your plan for how to come back stronger once the pace picks up again. How you’ll look for opportunities to increase income, and how you’ll put that money to work once you’ve got it.
Success isn’t about perfect balance that repeats across all life situations. It’s about keeping your eye on the prize, and adapting the strategy to whatever life is currently throwing at you.
The information in this article is general in nature and should not be read as personal financial advice.
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