The 3-Question Test for Any Major Purchase

Makeda walks through the exact decision-making framework she used when her car died and she needed to replace it fast. This matters for service business owners because the same three-question test she uses for personal purchases applies directly to business investments: software, team hires, office space, or equipment.

In this episode:

• Why Makeda financed a brand-new Chevy Silverado with an 84-month loan despite owning a mortgage-free homestead, and how she determined it was a strategic debt decision rather than an emotional purchase
• The three non-negotiable requirements framework: how to separate actual needs from assumed categories when evaluating any major purchase, whether personal or business
• How a $8,000 repair bill on a car worth $6,500 became data instead of disaster, and why action reveals truth faster than research alone
• The math that showed a full-size truck cost less than a minivan while delivering more capacity, and how end-of-year incentives, veteran discounts, and inventory timing created the opportunity
• Why the same vehicle would have been a splurge before launching Seed & Society but became business infrastructure after, including content creation, speaking engagements, and potential revenue from equipment rental or hauling services
• The strategic debt decision tree: when to pay cash versus finance, how to negotiate no prepayment penalties, and why an 84-month term with a two-year payoff plan can make sense

Who this is for: Service business owners who need a repeatable framework for evaluating major purchases and want to understand when financing makes more strategic sense than paying cash.

Subscribe to the newsletter for tools, resources, and the free A.I. Employee Report at newsletter.seedandsociety.com.