Money + Maternity Leave Financial Planner

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WHY THIS MATTERS

Money worry is what pulls most photographers back to work early. Seeing the real numbers, what goes out, what still comes in, and what you need saved, turns a vague fear into a clear goal.

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WHAT TO DO

List your business expenses and decide which to keep, pause or cancel. List the money you expect to receive. Enter four numbers in My Leave Money Plan and your savings goals calculate themselves.

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WHEN TO DO IT

As early as possible: 4–6 months before your due date gives you time to save. Review once a month until leave starts.

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How the planner works

Business Expenses: add every recurring cost with its monthly amount. Choose Keep, Pause, Downgrade or Cancel for your leave.
Expected Income: add outstanding invoices, final payments, print orders and anything else you expect, with when it should arrive.
My Leave Money Plan: enter your leave length in months, the personal income you need each month, how many months of emergency buffer you want, and your current savings.

Add new expenses and income from the views on this page and they'll be included in your plan automatically.

What each number means

Calculation	In plain English
Monthly business burn rate	What your business costs every month right now
Monthly burn during leave	What it costs after pausing and cancelling
Expected cash going out	(Burn during leave + personal income needed) × months of leave
Expected cash coming in	Everything in Expected Income marked During Leave
Minimum savings goal	Cash out minus cash in. The least you need to cover leave.
Ideal savings goal	Minimum goal plus your emergency buffer months
Still to save	Ideal goal minus what you've already saved

What can I pause?

Go through each and ask: will I miss this in the next 3–6 months?

[ ] Software you won't open (editing extras, design tools, stock sites)
[ ] Subscriptions (education memberships, music licensing, plugins)
[ ] Paid ads
[ ] Coworking or studio rental
[ ] Equipment or prop rentals
[ ] Directory listings and membership fees
[ ] Non-essential business spending (new gear, workshops, conferences)
[ ] Annual plans: check renewal dates that fall during leave and decide before they charge

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Keep these running: gallery hosting, website and domain, business email, the CRM your automations use, cloud backup, and business insurance (check what your policy requires). Pausing these can cost you clients or data.

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