Sara, 35F, Prenzlauer Berg
If you asked 10 people how to manage your money, you would get at least 10 different answers. Berlin is no different. Some people track every euro, others don’t really care. Some save aggressively, others prioritise experiences. With this new series we want to offer an insight on how Berliners handle their finances.
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Today’s guest is Sara, a 35-year-old entrepreneur who left her €72k Product Operations role to build her own business, now earning €1k monthly while her partner covers rent—tracking every euro with YNAB as she executes her “1000 day rule” towards €48k revenue.
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Personal snapshot
Age & gender:
35, female.
Relationship status:
In a relationship.
Kids? Pets?
No kids, no pets.
Where do you live and since when?
Prenzlauer Berg, since 2021.
Describe your housing situation—own/rent, size, and monthly cost.
65m2, 2 rooms, €1,125/month. My partner is generously paying our whole rent for a year, to help me in the first year of running my own business.
What did you study or train in?
I studied Business and Economics at university and got into management consulting for my first job. I taught myself Product Marketing, Operations Management, People Management, Product Management, and everything else around tech, which is where I spent 10 of my 13-year career.
Income and work
Job title, annual salary and monthly net income:
Before starting my own business, I was a Senior Product Operations Manager earning €72k gross annual (€3.7k net monthly).
Afterwards, I received €2k monthly unemployment benefits (ALG1) from February to August 2025 before stopping them to focus on my business, which was already earning me money.
In my first full year of business, I earned €12,300 gross while experimenting with different offers. In the last quarter, I’ve stabilised my core offer and now earn €1.7k monthly (€1.1k recurring).
Additional monthly income (if any):
No.
Total household monthly net income:
€7k net (€6k from my partner, €1k from me).
How did your salary evolve throughout your career?
There are 5 phases:
- Phase 1 (2012-2013): $12k gross annual at a US-based management consulting firm in the Philippines (most peers earned around $6k).
- Phase 2 (2013-2016): $0 to $1k gross monthly. I wanted to be a ‘digital nomad’, and tried self-employment. At the beginning, I accumulated some debt through expensive courses and credit card spending. I later pivoted to tech startups in the Philippines. Financially, those were the poorest but most formative years of my career.
- Phase 3 (2017-2019): $36k gross annual at a US-based tech startup in the Philippines. I negotiated a 100% raise mid-contract (for comparison, most peers earned around $18k annually). I was saving at least $2k per month while spending mindlessly. I saved my first million in Philippine pesos, a milestone for me at the time.
- Phase 4 (2019-2024): around €65k gross annual after moving to Germany. Higher taxes and a higher cost of living meant lower savings than in Phase 3. The trade-off was was worth it; I was ready for a new adventure, outside Southeast Asia.
- Phase 5 (2025 to present): €12k annual from my business.
Do you negotiate salary? How do you prepare for it?
I did it once, in 2018, and it was life-changing: $1.5k -> $3k per month.
It was due to three circumstances:
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First, I was living in the Philippines, working for a US-based company.
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Second, I performed well enough that the CEO promoted me to replace a New York-based person. This let me negotiate beyond top-of-market Philippines rates while remaining “cheap” by NYC standards.
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Third, my mentor insisted I negotiate via email instead of a phone call, where I’d lose confidence. I delivered an ultimatum: “I’ve proven I outperform the NYC-based person. This salary is fair and probably 50% less than you paid her. Take it or leave it” (see the example of the email).
After that, I focused on becoming an entrepreneur rather than chasing salary growth.
Remote, hybrid, or office?
When I was last employed, hybrid, 2 days week in the office.
What was your best career move? Your worst?
Best: Quitting my job at 23 to become self-employed. It was the most formative year of my life: I learned how to sell, market, and network.
Worst: I wish I were more mindful and not spend all my savings when I moved to Germany. For example, I flew in and out of Germany three times within a 6-month period.
Daily life and spending
BVG monthly ticket, Deutschlandticket, bike, car, or something else?
Deutschland ticket.
Do you cook regularly? How many times a week do you eat out?
We eat out 2-4 meals a week, mostly on weekends. To save on eating out, I stopped meeting people for “networking” over lunch or dinner; instead, I always go for coffee.
What’s your threshold for an “expensive” restaurant meal (incl. drinks)?
€30 per person.
Which subscriptions do you have? (Netflix, Spotify, gym, etc.)
As a self-employed person, my biggest recurring expense is health insurance at €250/month. Beyond that, recurring costs total €180/month, the largest being paying for my mom’s two health insurance policies (€120), my web hosting (€20), and my own life insurance (€25).
Do you have a cleaner?
No.
What’s worth every cent you spend on it?
The task manager TickTick ($36 per year). I finally figured out how to make my task manager, time blocking, and calendar work extremely well together.
What do you spend on that you wish you could quit?
My life insurance, which my mom got tricked into when my dad passed away.
Money mindset
How do you manage money: disciplined tracking, intuition, or something in between?
I use the app YNAB (“you need a budget”) to budget and track all my expenses, and subscribe to their philosophy of “giving every dollar a job”.
Is there a tool or book, essay or anything similar about money, you would recommend?
YNAB - The app and the founder’s podcast called “The Jesse Mecham Show”. They also have a book.
Dave Ramsey’s book “Total Money Makeover*” was also really helpful for me when I got into debt.
How comfortable do you feel about your financial situation right now?
Very comfortable, despite the low income. It took me about a year to adjust from my tech salary to accepting that I will be making a lower income for three years (“1000 days rule” - a principle suggesting that it takes approximately three years, or 1000 days, of intense, focused effort to achieve significant success, profitability, or mastery in a new business, career, or skill).
Two necessary but difficult adjustments were: 1) accepting my partner’s offer to pay the full rent, and 2) telling my mom I couldn’t contribute financially for one year.
The numbers
Checking account balance (accessible today).
€6k.
Monthly savings amount.
€300.
Do you invest? (stocks, savings plans, other)
I used to. I have €18k in ETFs. I decided to stop investing until my self-employment income stabilises and catches up.
Private or public health insurance?
Public.
How many times per year do you leave Berlin/Germany?
Before, roughly four times a year. For 2026, we “only” have three trips planned.
Your current net worth
€30k cash (€21k of which is the insurance money from when my dad passed away) + €18k in ETFs.
Financial setup
Bank(s)
Personal
N26. I use their mid-tier ‘You’ plan, which includes more ‘Spaces’ than their basic account. Those sub-accounts help me manage finances more intentionally, including expenses with my partner.
Business
Accountable*. I find it helpful for bookkeeping.
Finom. It’s very user-friendly and reliable.
Broker (for investing)
Trade Republic. I started investing during Covid and this was the best option for me at the time.
Insurance
Personal Liability with Gatesafe.
Legal Insurance with Getsafe. The policy is held by my partner but covers us both.
We chose Getsafe because it’s convenient for English speakers.
Tax (advisor or software)
Accountable*. It streamlines managing taxes without the help of an accountant.
International money transfer
Wise. It’s convenient, fast, and not very expensive.
Looking forward
What’s your biggest financial goal right now?
Short-term goal: Earn €48k in revenue from my business.
Mid-term goal: Reach €200k in annual gross revenue within 3 years.
Long-term goal: Save €1 million by 2035.
If you got a 20% raise tomorrow, what would change?
I’ll start paying my share of the rent again.
What money advice would you give your younger self?
In theory, I would tell 2019 me not to spend all her savings on the move to Germany, and 2022 to 2024 me to travel less. But in reality, I don’t know if I would have declined the trips to Patagonia, India, New Zealand, etc.!
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