Make Your Money Count — Connecting Your Resources to What Matters Most

Discover how to build a financial plan rooted in purpose instead of products. In this episode, we unpack The Blueprint for Financial Success — a process-centric guide to designing and building a financial plan that truly reflects your most meaningful priorities.

00:00 – 02:00 — Welcome Back to Stephen F. Austin State Park

1. Setting the scene and slowing the pace
2. Re-centering around reflection, purpose, and intention
3. Framing the core question: What's Important About Money-To You?

02:00 – 10:00 — Introducing The Blueprint for Financial Success

1. Why a Blueprint—not products, tactics, or performance reports
2. Financial planning as a process, not a pitch
3. Purpose as the organizing principle for every goal and every decision

10:00 – 13:50 — Story: Becoming a CFP® Professional as a State Farm Agent

1. Early career lessons from a product-driven environment
2. Recognizing the limits of transactional advice
3. Leaning into fiduciary-first financial planning

13:50 – 15:00 — Story: FPA Residency

1. Learning how real financial planning is done
2. A better way for Discovery and Plan Design
3. Focusing on What Matters Most

15:00 – 17:00 — Story: Bill Bachrach’s Financial Roadmap

1. The WIA$TY Question
2. Mastery of The Sales Process
3. From Roadmap to Blueprint

17:00 – 28:00 — Story: Doug Carter and the Mt. Shasta Summit

1. How I met a lifelong Mentor
2. The Question behind the Question
3. The Mt. Shasta Summit

28:00 – 35:00 — The Blueprint vs. the Roadmap

1. Why the Blueprint is works for me
2. A Powerful Discovery Tool
3. Building a better financial plan based on What Matters Most

35:00 – 39:36 — The Financial Planning Process (FREETIC)

1. Overview of the full planning framework

Your first memories of money shape how you think, feel, and act with money today. In this reflective episode, CFP® professional Jim Munchbach explores how early money messages—around security, scarcity, or generosity—impact your financial life and how to rewrite that story with purpose.

00:00:00 – Opening from Stephen F. Austin State Park Jim and the crew kick off the episode from Stephen F. Austin State Park, setting the stage for this heartfelt conversation about money memories and intentions.

00:04:47 – Apple Home School Lesson: Text Replacement A quick tech tip on how Apple’s Text Replacement can simplify daily communication. A great productivity tool for families, students, and professionals alike.

00:05:34 – Michigan Trip: Hawke Island & Caleb’s First Snowball A sweet, family-centered moment from a Michigan trip reminds us that money is not just numbers—it’s about creating and protecting life’s meaningful experiences.

00:08:40 – Three More Financial Planning Checklists Explore three practical tools designed for 2026 to bring clarity to your financial planning:

1. Issues to Consider in a Client Annual Review Meeting
2. A yearly reset tool to help you notice what has changed, what is drifting, and what needs attention before small issues become big ones.
3. Issues to Consider as a New Client A starting-point checklist that helps you organize your full financial picture—numbers, life events, responsibilities, and concerns—before you try to make important decisions.
4. Important Milestones A simple age-based guide that shows which financial decisions tend to show up next, so fewer things catch you off guard as life and responsibilities grow.

00:14:51 – Your First Memories of Money Jim dives into the heart of the episode—how early childhood money experiences continue to shape your decisions and mindset as an adult.

00:17:18 – Uncle Hank’s First Memories of Money Hear a powerful story from Uncle Hank about how early lessons formed his lifelong money attitudes. A prompt for you to consider what beliefs you’ve carried forward.

00:27:57 – From Make Your Money Count – “First Memories of Money” A short excerpt from Jim’s book, Make Your Money Count, illustrating the power of awareness in changing your money story.

00:30:00 – Blue Book Spiritual Reflection Faith: Day 2 reflection. Jim connects trust and provision to personal finance, inviting listeners to root financial choices in faith, not fear.

00:43:00 – Close Final thoughts and takeaways—an invitation to reflect intentionally on your money journey and plan for a mission-driven financial life.

1. Your first memories of money still influence how you spend, save,...

Faith - Finances - What Matters Most

Episode Chapters

00:00:00 Opening & Purpose

Welcome to the Missional Money Podcast. Jim sets the tone for the episode, explains the relaunch, and outlines how faith, finance, and purpose come together.

00:02:10 Faith and Finance Storytime

A real-life story connecting everyday financial decisions with deeper questions of faith, stewardship, and trust.

00:04:10 Financial Planning Resources (3 Checklists)

An overview of three practical tools designed to bring clarity and confidence:

1. Important Numbers — Annual limits & key planning figures
2. Important Dates — Tax, retirement & planning deadlines
3. Master List of Goals — Clarifying what matters most

00:13:25 Apple Home School Feature (Apple Podcasts Notes & Timestamps)

How to use Apple Podcasts show notes and timestamps to get more value from each episode and access shared resources.

00:22:40 Make Your Money Count Excerpt

A focused excerpt highlighting how starting with what matters most creates a stronger foundation for financial decisions.

00:35:15 Blue Book Spiritual Reflection & Close

A closing spiritual reflection tying together mission, money, and meaning, followed by final thoughts and next steps.Featured tools in this episode:

00:13:25 – Apple Home School Feature A short, practical Apple productivity lesson inspired by the Apple Home School journey with Caleb and Maddie—simple tools to build confidence and clarity with your Apple devices.

00:22:40 – Make Your Money Count Excerpt A featured concept from Make Your Money Count: Connecting Your Resources to What Matters Most, exploring how financial decisions can reflect faith and purpose.

00:35:15 – Blue Book Spiritual Reflection & Close A closing reflection designed to slow things down and re-center through Scripture, biblical wisdom, insights from Christian thinkers, and moments for gratitude and perspective.

Episode Description

Welcome to the relaunch of the Missional Money Podcast, recorded live from Stephen F. Austin State Park—a place that invites reflection, clarity, and perspective.

In this episode, host Jim Munchbach, CFP®, reintroduces the heart of the show and outlines what’s ahead in this new season: weekly conversations about aligning your money with what matters most, with faith and purpose at the center.

What to Expect Each Week

Each episode of Missional Money follows four core segments:

1. Financial Planning Resource or Investment...