Your Personal Boom Bust Cycle

In the economy at large, we go through periods of expansion and contraction. This is a known and natural part of Economics 101. Few like it when the economy contracts and turns down, we all have to live in the cycle of boom-and-bust. We would love to have an economy that grew at the same rate, year in and year out, yet that is not reality. Our economic system is vast and dynamic, with many moving pieces that lead the to the boom-and-bust cycles that occur. Yet when we look over time we can see an overall economic expansion.

So if we apply this same concept to our personal finances, what do we make of it? Through meeting with a number of different professions, I have discovered that people within their own family have boom-and-bust cycles of their own. These cycles do not necessarily correlate with the broader macro-economic patterns, but they seem to have a similar psychological effect—perhaps an even more profound impact because the individual experiences it personally.

For the point of this blog let's assume that people earn money in one of two ways. 1) Regular Basis (same amount): typically these are hourly employees and salaried non-bonus employees. 2) Variable Income: where much of their income is tied directly to what they produce. They can be entrepreneurs, sales professionals, contract based employees. These folks do not get a regular paycheck every two weeks or once a month. Rather they get paid based on a contracted basis.

So what does this do for families that receive variable incomes? They live with a higher degree of variability in their earnings. That level of uncertainty creates practical challenges like managing cash flow to pay bills, and also psychological challenges as their income and ability to pay bills are directly contingent on producing.

As you look at your own family economics

1. How does income flow through your home now, does it come in a steady stream, mild waves up and down, or in big waves with potentially big breaks in between?

2. How did the family you grew up in earn their living—was it a steady paycheck or uneven cash flow?

3. What was the perceived ability of your family to create, sustain, maintain, or grow financial security?

4. What was the variance in your families’ income?

5. Where there big swings week-to-week, month-to-month, year-to-year?

6. Did your families’ income remain relatively flat, grow as you grew, or decline?

7. Where there interruptions to income producing ability—perhaps a significant career shift, disability or death?

8. What emotions come to you as you reflect on these questions?

As we become more acquainted with the patterns of income we saw from the family we grew up in and the family we currently live in, then we have the opportunity to better understand the points of stress we experience. In our married life it’s especially important to understand how our spouse experienced their family cash flow, and what that meant for them as a family—the things they got to do, the things they did not get to do.

As you think about your life horizon and the planning process that goes on, there are a number of variables to consider. There are some questions that will get answered soon, and some that will remain unknown until further along in growth and understanding.

The personal boom-and-bust cycle often plays out when there are larger variances in family income. If mom earns a big bonus check what does the family do with it—new cars, vacations, clothes, charity—what happens? Then what happens after the money is spent?

What about those families where income expands and contracts on a regular basis—are they able to set aside enough in the boom times to even out life in the bust times? This takes the ability to look into the future and anticipate the bust times to come. A family without a future orientation, may be more subject to having to expand and contract life style as income fluctuates. What stress is that placing on you? What kind of stress is that placing on your partner?

I was recently working with a couple where the husband was not concerned about the home equity line of credit and said they would get it paid off, whereas the wife was very concerned about getting it paid off. Below the surface of their argument lie deeper personal convictions and money scripts that caused them to see the situation from two very different perspectives. This family had variable income from both partners. The husband earned a small base salary with the potential for a big bonus, and the wife was a small business owner and did her own consulting work, which led to variable income. This dynamic ultimately led to a level of uncertainty in the relationship about when and how the home equity line of credit was going to be paid off.

So what's your personal boom-and-bust cycle? If you don't receive regular income for any number of reasons, what is that experience like for you, your spouse, your kids and perhaps other people that count on you to produce an income?

Where are you in the cycle?

Do you often have a steep recovery to climb out of the bust, i.e. is there debt that has to be repaid?

If the boom-and-bust cycle is wearing you out, what are those things that you can start to change that would reduce the variability in the cycle?