From Financial Ostrich to Dream Team: How Getting on the Same Page Changed Our Lives and Our Relationship.

I used to be rubbish with money. Like, seriously bad. My finances were a disaster zone: I'd blow cash on stuff I didn't need, regularly buy magazines I barely read, and had absolutely no clue about my balance or bills. I dreaded the postman, red letters would hit the mat, my credit card debt accrued interest, and my credit score was going the wrong way. When it came to managing money, I was the classic financial ostrich, head buried firmly in the sand, ignoring reality and spending blindly.

Honestly, looking back, I'm amazed my wife stuck around. Why she married a guy who was spending like there was no tomorrow genuinely baffles me. Money consistently ranks among the top reasons couples split up, and it’s easy to see why, we argued constantly over my spending. I was stubborn, defensive, and the king of avoiding tough conversations about finances.

Admittedly, the gigs I went to during those reckless spending years were epic, tickets were cheaper then! But fun aside, it wasn’t sustainable. Every argument we had traced back to my financial chaos, my stubborn resistance, and my refusal to talk openly about money. I wish I'd realised sooner how powerful it could be to simply get on the same page financially. If I’d known how much emotionally it would bring us closer together, then I would have done something years before.

Everything changed when my wife and I finally took the leap together. Joining the Rebel Finance School course on Monday nights became a genuine game-changer, not just financially but for our entire relationship. Suddenly, we were working towards common goals, creating shared values, and seeing money as a tool for the life we wanted, not a constant source of tension.

These days, instead of avoiding conversations about money, we talk about it almost daily. Our monthly finance meetings have become a highlight, we track our spending, discuss investments, and actually enjoy planning our future together. Dreaming about how you can life in the future is fun. Knowing we both want the same thing, to retire early, travel, and live life on our terms, makes every decision simpler.

What surprised me most? The course was actually fun. Alan and Katie Donegan, the amazing duo behind Rebel Finance School, managed to make something that previously felt daunting and painful into something joyful. They're brilliant teachers, funny, and incredibly supportive. Plus, their course is completely free, no hidden catches, just genuine, life-changing advice.

I was chatting to the main man

Tony Stevens

the other night about this course and it reminded him of a question he was going to ask in his next Dad Dojo. "What do you wish your father had taught you?" Instantly, I knew, financial education. My own childhood memories around money were riddled with stress, arguments, and awkward silences based on a family argument over money. I vividly remember feeling anxious about asking my parents for the final payment to pay for a school trip to Switzerland. I knew there was financial pain, and I didn't want to add to it, and here is where the baby ostrich was born. Writing this down now, I realise how deeply those memories still affect me. That was a memory I'd forgotten. It's surprisingly cathartic to acknowledge that here.

The Rebel Finance School helped me rewrite my financial story. Week three, focusing on my money mindset, shifted everything for me. No longer was I stuck repeating my parents' flawed script. Instead, I learned to craft my own story and began thinking seriously about the financial education I want to give my children. That’s a post for another day, and put in writing what I’ve put in place to help my own kids think about money in a healthy way.

It's astonishing how much clarity and confidence I've gained, especially around investing. I'm no longer that financial ostrich, I’m proactive, informed, and on the same page with my partner. Money, once a source of endless arguments, is now something we discuss openly, comfortably, and enthusiastically.

If you’re tired of financial friction in your relationship, if you cringe at the thought of another argument about money, or if you simply want to rewrite your financial future, check out Rebel Finance School. It’s genuinely one of the best decisions we've made, both financially and relationally.

Trust me, getting financially aligned might just be the best marriage therapy out there.

If you are ready to transform your relationship and finances? Sign up here, it’s completely free, they are not trying to sell you anything, there is nothing to buy. How often can you say that.

Starts 2nd June.

Check them out on YouTube , join their facebook group and even enjoy their quirky finance-themed album on Spotify.

If you have any questions, then please drop them in the comments.