This paper presents an idea that will encourage American families and individuals to take charge of their own finances in a holistic manner. A change is proposed in the paradigm that the profession of family and consumer sciences (FCS) has been using to teach family and personal finances in our academic institutions, and a shift is suggested in the way we have been designing financial intervention programs. It is recognized that personal finances include an amalgamation of both the numerical aspects of money (external finances) as well as the intraemotional and inter-relational ones (internal finances). In conjunction, both the numerical and the emotional/relational components provide a platform that supports a holistic approach to further advance financial health. By understanding the multi-faceted aspects of money, and by promoting a holistic (integrative) model of behavior change, along with a strengths-based approach, particularly in the realm of finances, FCS professionals can forge the road for new leadership of research and evidence-based practices that will embrace the complexities of today's financial realities.