Quick reference for the key terms you'll use in this workbook. The full glossary lives in the ebook.
Work through each milestone tab in order. The exercises build on each other — Milestone 4's calculator uses your numbers from Milestones 1 and 2. Your inputs save automatically while this browser tab is open. Hit 🖨️ Print at any time to print the whole thing as a paper workbook.
Find your most recent pay stub. Enter the actual numbers below. The fields will calculate net pay automatically — you'll use this number throughout the rest of the workbook.
Enter the numbers from one pay period (one paycheck — usually two weeks).
Tell us how often you're paid to project your annual figures. (You'll use these in later milestones.)
Was the gap between gross and net bigger or smaller than you expected? Which deduction was the biggest? What does this change about how you think about a salary number?
Decide how to allocate every dollar of your take-home pay. The percentages must add to 100. There's no universally correct split — but having one is the difference between allocating money and just spending it.
Enter the percentage of take-home pay you want to put in each bucket. The dollar amounts auto-calculate from your Milestone 1 take-home number.
If a friend asked you to defend your split, what would you say? What's the strongest argument against the way you've allocated?
Decide which retirement account(s) to use, in what order, and why. Reference the comparison table from the ebook if you need a refresher on Roth IRA vs Traditional IRA vs 401(k).
For most first-job earners: (1) capture any 401(k) match first, (2) build a small emergency fund in regular savings, (3) contribute to a Roth IRA. Almost no first-job earner should be using a Traditional IRA — the tax math doesn't favor it at low brackets.
Plug in your own salary and savings rate to see what 47 years of working life could look like. The table below recalculates as you change inputs. All dollar amounts are in today's purchasing power (the 7% return is the historical real return after inflation).
| Spender | Late Saver | Roth Saver | 401(k) Saver | Stacker | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Years saving | 0 | 36 | 49 | 49 | 49 |
| Employee contributions | $0 | — | — | — | — |
| Employer match (free) | $0 | $0 | $0 | — | — |
| Account balance at 65 | $0 | — | — | — | — |
| Tax owed at withdrawal | — | $0 | $0 | — | — |
| Usable in retirement | $0 | — | — | — | — |
| Lifetime giving | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | — |
Numbers are estimates rounded to thousands. Actual outcomes depend on market returns, tax rates, contribution timing, and many other factors. The point is the relative size of the gaps, not the precise dollar values. Dollar figures are in today's purchasing power.
Note: This calculator uses a single steady-state salary, while the ebook's example used a salary that ramps up from $7,200 at 17 to $50,000 by 25. That's why your numbers won't exactly match the table in Milestone 4 — the calculator is the simpler, more flexible version. Plug in your actual projected mid-career salary to see your personal version.
If you imagine yourself at 65, which column would you most want to be? What's stopping you from being the Stacker right now?
The artifact for this milestone is a real (or custodial) Roth IRA, opened, funded, and invested. Use this checklist to walk through it.
Check off each item as you complete it. The artifact for this milestone is a screenshot of the confirmation showing your first contribution and first investment purchase.
Plan your giving on purpose. Pick an amount you can sustain, a cause you care about, and a cadence that fits your life.
If possible, make your first gift before completing this milestone. Even $20 to a cause you actually care about. The first gift is the hardest — every one after gets easier.
This is the capstone artifact of the book. A one-page personal policy for what happens to every paycheck before you have a chance to think about it. Sign it, date it, save it somewhere you'll see it again.
Written in advance. Reviewed annually. Applied automatically. That's the whole machine. A rule you wrote at 17 and reviewed at 25 and 35 will keep working long after you stop thinking about it.
Check off each milestone as you finish its artifact. The bar fills up as you go.
The whole point of the book in your own words. After working through every milestone, write your answer to the central question.
What did you learn? What will you do differently? What advice would you give a friend who just got their first job?
Print this page when you're done. Re-read it in five years.