How to use this. Three pages. Page 1 covers the four allocator questions and the four layers of capital. Page 2 has the Protect Your Time leverage list and the Due Diligence Checklist. Page 3 is Structural Protections and the architecture metrics. Tip: in your browser's print dialog, choose Portrait and 100% scale.
Get In to Get Out · Exercise 10 · Page 1 of 3
Capital Architecture
The four questions of a capital allocator. The four layers of a financial life.
Income announces itself with every closing. Capital is quiet. It works in the background and only becomes visible after enough time has passed for compounding to show up.
Step 1 The four questions of a capital allocator
Question 1
How much did I keep?
$
Question 2
How much did I deploy?
$
Question 3
How much is working for me, without me?
$
Question 4
What return for what risk?
The rule of 22
Jon and Brittany have lived on less than 22% of their income for over a decade (today closer to 18%) and deployed the rest. That single decision is the difference between building income and building wealth.
Step 2 The Four Layers of Capital
Layer
What it is
Your current status
Layer 1Operating Capital
Your liquidity. The buffer that lets you decide from strength, not urgency. Minimum 3 months in the bank, always.
Layer 2Investment Capital
Your growth engine. Surplus deployed into assets that produce without your daily presence. Rentals, lending, equity positions, dividend funds.
Layer 3Protection Capital
Your risk management. LLCs, trusts, estate planning, umbrella policies, governance. The structure that keeps gaps from collapsing what you built.
Layer 4Legacy Capital
Your transfer plan. The frameworks, principles, and assets that outlive you. What your children should inherit before they inherit the assets.
Get In to Get Out
movewithmomentum.com/freedom · Page 1 of 3
Get In to Get Out · Exercise 10 · Page 2 of 3
Capital Architecture — Time & Discipline
What your margin should buy before it buys luxury. What every commitment should pass through.
The "I can do it all myself" approach is not an asset. It is a liability dressed as a virtue.
Step 3 Protect your time
Check what you have already leveraged. Anything unchecked is eligible.
House cleaningWeekly or biweekly. The hours you reclaim show up immediately.
Yard work and exterior maintenanceLawn, landscaping, pressure washing, gutters.
Grocery deliveryRecurring orders, not last-minute runs.
Meal prep or part-time cookEven twice a month sets up weekday dinners.
Pet care (pooper scooper, dog walking)Yes, this is on Jon and Brittany's actual list.
Personal admin (calendar, errands, returns)An assistant for life logistics, not just business.
Be specific. The thing you keep doing because it feels responsible to do yourself.
Step 4 Due diligence before investing
Run every commitment through this list before signing anything. Due diligence is not the step before the real work. It IS the work.
I have read and understood the operating agreementNot skimmed. Read. Including distributions, dilution, transfer restrictions, exit triggers.
I know my rights as an investor or partnerVoting, info access, removal of GP/manager, buyout triggers, default consequences.
I have modeled the downside before getting excited about the upsideWorst-case cash flow, capital call, exit. If you cannot survive the downside, the upside does not matter.
I have asked the questions that make the other party uncomfortableThe answers to those are almost always more valuable than the answers to the easy ones.
Name the deal. Name the four items above against this opportunity. What's unknown?
Get In to Get Out
movewithmomentum.com/freedom · Page 2 of 3
Get In to Get Out · Exercise 10 · Page 3 of 3
Capital Architecture — Structure & Metrics
The structure that keeps gaps from collapsing what you built. The numbers that tell the truth.
The cost of building good legal and tax architecture is high. The cost of not having it is far higher.
Step 5 Structural protections
Tax strategy in place with a CPA who proactively reduces what I oweNot a tax preparer in April. A tax strategist year-round.
Legal architecture (LLCs, trusts) separating personal liability from business riskReal estate in its own LLC. Operating business in its own LLC. Residence held appropriately.
Estate plan (will, trust, healthcare directives) that transfers assets according to my intentionsUpdated within last 3 years. Beneficiaries current. Successor trustee named.
Umbrella liability policy with coverage at least equal to my net worthThe cheapest insurance you will ever buy relative to what it protects.
Step 6 Your current architecture
Target: 50% until reinvestment shows diminishing returns.
%
If income stopped today, months you could carry. Min 3, comfortable 6+.
months
% of income spent on lifestyle. The rule of 22.
%
Step 7 Next deployment
Be explicit. Layer 1 reserves, Layer 2 income-producing assets, Layer 3 entity/insurance, or Layer 4 framework documentation.
The hours you reclaim are the only ones you cannot get back later.
Real wealth is when production becomes optional, not required. Assets can be spent. Thinking compounds.