There's more than one way to measure how financially well-off you are. As a financial educator and former NFCC-certified credit counselor, I've talked to thousands of consumers and found that most people measure their financial success by looking at their annual income. If your income goes up, you assume you're doing better financially, right? Not necessarily. What if your income goes up by $10,000 a year, and your spending goes up by $15,000? Or your salary increases by $20,000, but you immediately take ...