You Can't Budget Your Way Out of an Income Problem

You’ve been sold a lie.

I've watched people cancel the streaming and track every latte in a colour-coded spreadsheet, and they still came up short at the end of the month. Just more hopeless.

Cutting has a floor.

At some point there's nothing left to cut.

Earning doesn't stop like that.

My mom was a nurse. She gave up her career, and her own money, when she married my dad in 1959. When that marriage fell apart in the late 80s, she spent the rest of her life trying to make a little stretch further.

Careful budgeting was never going to fix that. She needed choices, and money is what buys them.

I decided a long time ago I was NOT going to live her life.

I found a way to make more money, and the best way I found was to start a business. Then I was blessed to find a path to monthly recurring revenue.

I still cut. I just cut what was never really me, and I earn more. You'll see both here.

So here's my starting balance. Real numbers, out loud. In September 2026, Go High Level paid me $6,176.76. It cost me $2,876.94 to live in Mexico City.

My affiliate income alone covered my life 2.15 times.

Every month from here, I'll show you what moved. The climbs and the dips. No blurred screenshots.

Why Can't You Budget Your Way Out Of An Income Problem?

Think about the money advice we get as women, and how women get charged more for the same things. We call it the pink tax.

And everything in the world goes up faster than a person's income does.

So what do you do when an unexpected expense hits? Having a business allows me to go and create more money. In my case, I can go get another client.

Having a job, you’re hooped. It puts you further and further into debt, and the cycle just gets worse.

When you constantly have to choose between food, rent and the things you really love to do, what happens to a woman is her life starts to shrink.

As a result, she starts to shrink as well.

We try to tell ourselves money isn't important. But money is everything. Money gives you a choice, so you can live the life you want and need to live, not the one your income or your ability to earn sets for you.

If more women had more money, imagine what the world would look like.

My Starting Balance: What Comes In, What It Costs, What I Keep

It's funny. I feel embarrassed to share these numbers in some of the circles I'm in, knowing women there are making millions of dollars.

But I think that's the problem.

We don't see anybody at my stage of business sharing facts.

We only see people once they're at a million. Damn Instagram algorithm.

Getting there is hard, and the journey is exactly what I'm doing right now.

If we don't understand this part of the journey (physically, mentally, spiritually, emotionally), you'll never reach the million, because nobody told you what really needs to happen between zero and there.

I'm showing you these numbers as a path. It's not THE path. It's one path. It's my path, and that's why it's so important to share it.

Let’s break down September 2026.

My affiliate income covers my life twice over.

That's the number that lets me say no to the wrong client, take a year off, and build the next thing without holding my breath.

Recurring income goes both ways, too. Go High Level paid me $5,958.43 in July, $6,482.21 in August and $6,176.76 in September.

The dips are normal. Not a story about you.

Why Would Anyone Publish Their Income?

Publishing these numbers is a little selfish.

I want to grow my business.

I want the life I dream of, not the life of my mom or of millions of other women stuck in situations they can't get out of because of a lack of resources.

They say, "Demonstrate what you do. Demonstrate the path. Demonstrate the growth and the pain and the heartache."

That's what I'm doing. It helps me, and it helps you.

It helps me because it holds me accountable.

If I report every month, what am I going to say? Can I tell the lies of how I sat all month, did nothing and bought into the shitty stories? That's not what I want for myself, so I put the numbers out. And if it benefits you, fucking bonus.

I think it helps you because of the word I love: “possibility”.

When you see someone else doing it, something that wasn't in your realm or your consciousness suddenly is. I'm an average everyday woman. If she can do this, perhaps you can too.

I had someone comment on a YouTube video that it was impossible that I was still making just under $7,000 a month when my videos barely had any views, and I'd taken a year off.

Those beliefs are what keep that person stuck. What if it wasn't true? What if there was an example?

I want to be that example for people who want to do what I do.

Nobody ever got braver reading a screenshot with the numbers blurred out.

How Long Did It Take To Get Here?

Ten years.

I've been in the client game for over 10 years.

And it has been a journey, and I will continue because I know it works.

The affiliate revenue took about 14 months before it really took hold. I was naive enough to just do it, and it kind of worked in spite of myself. Then I took a year off. No videos, no calls, no social. My affiliate income went UP 7%. I wrote the whole story in how affiliate income actually works.

You don't have to take my word for any of it. My YouTube channel is the receipt. Scroll back, and you'll see I've been doing this for years.

This second time around, I know it works. Just don’t quit.

Every video I put out, every post and every social, I get a little bit better because I know it'll work.

If you want to see the different ways to get paid with Go High Level, start with the 8 ways to make money with Go High Level.

What Actually Changes The Numbers?

The family I grew up in had a lot of trauma, and as a result, I had a lot of undoing to do.

The journey to here has been paved with the TRUTH. I had to look at things, AKA my thoughts, and determine which ones I was going to believe and run my life on. That is right in alignment with the amount of money I am making. I think now it is all about courage and being brave and fighting for myself.

I want to make $50,000 a month as a Go High Level affiliate.

That's actually why I set the goals I set today.

That young girl comes out. She gets scared when we get back out into the world. My brain kicks in like it's supposed to; I do the work to grow, and as a result, the money comes.

You'll see it reflected in the numbers. If you follow these posts every month, you'll see the difference in me. That's what I want to show you.

Because that's the whole game we're in. Sure, it's marketing. Sure, it's learning skills. But learning the skill instead of running a story that this isn't going to work, or that I can't because of me, that's the work I need to do.

Then I take what I learnt and do something with it.

No one needs a head full of knowledge and a mouth full of bullshit, right? No action behind it.

That's not what you're going to see here.

So if you take anything from this post, lean on my belief for you. That's what I've done in the past. I saw someone else do it and thought, "She can do it. I can do it too." It was just enough to get started, and then I slowly started to believe in myself.

How Do I Follow The Numbers Every Month?

The Ledger lives here now.

Starting with October, I'll post a new entry every month in the Money category: what came in, what it cost, what I kept, what worked and what didn't. Each one gets measured against this starting balance, so you can watch it move.

You can see the last 2 months on The Ledger playlist on YouTube.

If you want to start building your own, start with the basics. I made a free course, How to Master the Basics of High Level in 7 Days.

Get the basics set up so you don't waste six months.

And when you're ready to start Go High Level, use my link, and the HL Revenue Room is free.

That's me in your pocket while you build.

Disclosure: Some links in this post are affiliate links. If you sign up for Go High Level through my link, Go High Level pays me a commission. It costs you nothing extra, and I only recommend software I use and believe in.

FAQs

Is It Better To Cut Expenses Or Increase Income?

Do both.

Cut the stuff you're doing to impress other people, the stuff that isn't in alignment with who you really are.

It can be very challenging to stand in the same circles and let go of everything you've pretended was important, but that is the work.

In the end, you must be your own best friend, the one you can count on, and make your decisions around who you really are. It can be as simple as going to fucking birthday parties because you're afraid of looking bad.

Well, it's better than hating yourself at midnight.

How Much Does It Cost To Live In Mexico City?

For me, about $2,900 USD a month. It was $2,876.94 in September 2026 and $2,983.88 in August. Mexico City is a little more expensive than most of Mexico, except some of the coastal cities, but it's a beautiful place to have a better lifestyle at a lower cost of living. The experiences, the people and the culture add so much to my quality of life. More on that in what living abroad teaches you.

Is Affiliate Income Stable Month To Month?

No.

Affiliate revenue is like any revenue. It goes up and down; people quit, and people come back.

It's a big rock you push up a hill for a long time, and then it settles out, as mine has.

My last three months ranged from $5,958.43 to $6,482.21. Go High Level keeps reinventing itself and adding new features so people don't quit, and that's a big part of why it holds.

Do Most Affiliates Make This Much?

Absolutely not. Most affiliates make little or nothing.

I believe it takes about $10,000 a month in new income to get on the Go High Level affiliate leaderboard.

With thousands and thousands of affiliates, that tells you how few get there. Some make a whole lot more than I do. They're a select few: they've got the marketing down, they've got a system, and they don't quit. Just like any business owner making $1 million, they've done a tremendous amount of growth to get there.

My numbers are not a promise of yours.

Why Do You Count Client Income Separately?

They're two very different types of income. Client income is selling, and you become a very good salesperson. Affiliate income is marketing. Client income comes quick and goes quick. Affiliate revenue comes slow but stays a long time. I believe they're two different businesses. They do go hand in hand, though. Affiliates need services, and the people you do services for can become your affiliate revenue.

To Living Free,

Pamela Dale