Seven Steps for Prioritizing Money as a High Earner (from Your Next Dollar)

September 7, 2026

AI Summary

5 min read

The Blueprint for High Earners: Seven Steps to Prioritize Your Money

When Andrew Giancola and Ryan Sterling sat down to create the "Your Next Dollar Blueprint," they weren't trying to invent new financial strategies. They were trying to solve a specific problem: high earners in their 30s and 40s who aren't rich yet, drowning in conflicting advice from social media. "You go on social media today and everybody has an opinion," Sterling says. "Someone says you've got to do the mega backdoor Roth. Someone else says the HSA is the number one strategy. Someone else says the taxable brokerage account is hiding in plain sight. The truth is they're all important—but there's so much confusion."

The blueprint they built is a step-by-step priority order, designed to be tweaked for individual circumstances. Here is how it works, why the steps are ordered the way they are, and what high earners need to watch out for.

Step One: Grow Your Income Before Optimizing Anything Else

The first step has nothing to do with accounts or tax strategies. It is about earning more. "None of these accounts are going to make you wealthy," Sterling says flatly. "A Roth IRA is not going to make you rich. It's just not." The foundation of building wealth starts with the gap between income and expenses, and you can increase income infinitely while you can only cut back so much.

Continue reading the full summary in the app — free to try.

Read Full Summary →

Free • No credit card required

Listen to Audio Summary Open in App

Never miss an episode of NerdWallet's Smart Money Podcast

Get every new episode summarized in your inbox — free, ~5 minutes to read.

No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.

What you'll learn

1 (05:12) **Introducing the Your Next Dollar Blueprint** - The hosts explain why high earners need a step-by-step prioritization guide rather than one-off social media advice.
2 (07:57) **Step 1: Grow Your Income** - The foundational lever for wealth, with practical ways to increase earnings.
3 (13:30) **Step 2: Build Emergency Fund & Capture 401(k) Match** - Pairing a cash safety net with free company money.
4 (19:14) **Step 3: Max Out Your HSA and Invest It** - Unlocking the triple tax advantage of a Health Savings Account.
5 (22:11) **Step 4: Max Out Your 401(k)** - Leveraging the tax deduction and automation of a 401(k).
6 (29:42) **Step 5: Open a Taxable Brokerage Account** - Ryan's favorite account for flexibility and early retirement.
7 (36:07) **Step 6: Use the Mega Backdoor Roth (If Your Plan Allows)** - Getting the best of both worlds: tax deduction now and tax-free growth later.

+ Full timestamped outline available in the app

Guests on this episode

Andrew Giancola Ryan Sterling

Show Notes

Learn how high earners could prioritize their money across seven steps, from income growth to backdoor Roth strategies.

Your Next Dollar host Andrew Giancola and NerdWallet Wealth Partners CEO Ryan Sterling walk through the seven-step Your Next Dollar Blueprint — an order of operations high earners could follow to prioritize their savings across accounts, from growing income and building an emergency fund to maxing out an HSA, 401(k), mega backdoor Roth, and more.

Download the Your Next Dollar Blueprint at nerdwalletwealthpartners.com/blueprint

Interested in working with a financial advisor? Visit nerdwalletwealthpartners.com

NerdWallet Wealth Partners, LLC (“NWWP”) is an SEC-registered investment adviser. Registration does not imply skill or training nor does it constitute an endorsement by any securities regulator. The content presented by NWWP is for informational and educational purposes only and is not intended as personalized investment, tax, or legal advice to any person. The views, strategies and examples discussed are intended to be general in nature, may not reflect the experience of any particular client, are subject to change at any time based upon market or other conditions and may not be suitable for every individual. All investments involve risk, including potential loss of principal invested. Investment past performance is not a guarantee of future results. Before making any investment decision seek advice from a qualified investment, legal or tax professional.

Subscribe to Smart Money’s free email newsletter for bonus content and more from our hosts at https://smartmoney-nerdwallet.beehiiv.com/

To send the Nerds your money questions, call or text the Nerd hotline at 901-730-6373 or email [email protected]. Like what you hear? Please leave us a review and tell a friend.

*The show notes were created with the assistance of AI. They have been reviewed by our editorial team for accuracy and quality.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices