The one main thing I learned at #FinCon18

It's 9am on Sunday morning and one of the biggest and most well-attended conferences for personal finance bloggers just wrapped up last night. Or, perhaps I should say earlier this morning.

Everyone is tired. Some of us hungover. Many are motivated to keep pushing. Others are coming away from this whole shindig with ideas of things to try and new avenues to pursue.

That's all great.

But, my #FinCon18 wrap up is going to be a little different. Instead of giving a play-by-play of exactly what happened every step of the way, I'm cutting straight to what's most important.

Unedited. Stream of consciousness. I'm writing this and then hitting publish before we leave the hotel for the plane.

The one thing I learned at #FinCon18

Okay, here it is: The "Finance" part of this whole blogging adventure represents such a small part of why we're all doing this.

Why we're here literally yelling at one another in crowded hotel reception rooms. Why we jump on 6am flights and travel cross-country for things like this.

It's such a tiny part of the bigger picture that it's almost not worth writing about. Of course, don't get me wrong - money is important.

But now more than ever, I'm understanding so very clearly that it's also just a tool. It's what we use to get there. Where ever "there" is for you, money is like one of the wheels on the car. Maybe two.

Wheels are important elements, but they also aren't everything. Some of us "retire" with less than a million in the bank. Others prefer closer to $2 million. Maybe some want or need more than that.

It's fine -  truthfully, that stuff doesn't matter.

What matters most is why we're getting up in the morning and the things that make us tick. Fundamentally, that's it.

The sessions that I enjoyed the most at #FinCon18 were also the ones that had absolutely nothing to do with money.

Instead, it's people's stories that gave me the feels.

And really, that's all that should matter.

This experience is about people. You first. Everybody else shortly thereafter. Happiness is what counts. Money is the hammer we can use to get there.

Boom - that's it. Stream of consciousness complete. Money really is second. People come first.

And now, I leave you with a couple of my favorite photos from the #FinCon18 experience.