Jesse chats with Ashley, of TikTok fame (The Organized Wallet), about her journey finding the budgeting software through a chance blogpost to finally gaining control of her money after years of struggle. One of Ashley's keys to success is mindfulness, and she has some great exercises for improving your mindfulness around money.   A few years into her marriage, Ashley had a reckoning with money. Her husband Jeremy had just landed a big job opportunity, but it required him to travel frequently. To keep things running smoothly, Ashley needed to assume management of the budget, which Jeremy had been handling up until that point. Ashley tried hard, but was overwhelmed with the spreadsheets, the sheer number of bills and accounts, and missed a payment on one of the bills. Distraught, she ran across a blog post by A Cup of Jo about a budgeting software called You Need A Budget. She jumped in, and finally found a method to help her gain control of her money.   Ashley now has a lot of wisdom to share about managing your money. She reminds us that we're all works in progress, and just because you can't budget perfectly -- especially at first -- doesn't mean it's not worth doing at all. Small efforts add up to big change with time. She also points out that clutter in our wallets (or budgets!) often means we aren't clear on our values. Decluttering our financial lives means first getting clear on what we want out of life.   Ashley on TikTok https://www.tiktok.com/@theorganizedwallet   Read more on Ashley's story: https://www.youneedabudget.com/after-struggling-to-budget-this-book-made-it-stick/   Join the More Money Challenge: https://www.youneedabudget.com/moremoneychallenge/    

Happy New Year! It's that time again -- time for planning, goal setting, and resolutions. If you're listening to this podcast, one of your New Year's resolutions might be to save more money. YNAB can help you with that!   YNAB team member Veronica is leading the way with the More Money Challenge, a 30-day challenge to help you kick start your savings in 2022. The rules are simple, but the challenge is hard. Luckily, there's a whole community of like-minded YNAB'ers that will be running the challenge together.   Join the More Money Challenge: https://www.youneedabudget.com/moremoneychallenge/   Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/p/CYFRUQYBdMV/   TikTok: ynab.com/tiktok

It's that time of year again... time to burn it all down! The budget, that is. Every year Jesse "burns down" his budget, deleting all the categories and questioning whether the family could live without them. It's a fun thought experiment, especially with the typical must-have things.   Do you really need groceries every month? Of course you do, but what if you didn't do it? How would you survive? The point is not to figure out how to live without groceries, it's to ask the question and get your brain thinking about the deeply held assumptions you have about your consumption. At the end of the day, most of your categories will probably go back in. But hopefully, you'll rethink at least one thing in your budget, and find an opportunity to bring your spending more in line with your priorities in the New Year.   Sign up for a free 34-day trial of YNAB at www.youneedabudget.com

Millions of people struggle with ADHD, and it has financial ramifications -- decision fatigue, difficulty planning future purchases, and impulsive spending habits. Jak is a coach for "ADHD'ers," as she calls them, helping people form strategies for coping with emotional highs and lows and gain control over their money. An ADHD'er herself, she found the visual aspect of YNAB highly effective in keeping her engaged with both her current spending and her long-term plans (sinking funds).   Chelsea is an intuitive eating coach, and a fellow ADHD'er who engaged Jak for coaching. Together they discovered YNAB, and joined the podcast to share its helpfulness with others suffering from ADHD.   You can find more about Jak and Chelsea here: Jak IG: @authenticallyadhd Jak email: authenticallyadhd@gmail.com YNAB and ADHD Workshop: www.authenticallyadhd.com/membership   Chelsea IG: @_chelseahester_ Chelsea website: www.chelseahester.com  

We're nearly to the end of 2021, so Jesse took a moment to celebrate all of your biggest budgeting wins this year. To all the YNAB users who accomplished your goals and improved your financial standing -- no matter how big or how small -- congratulations! Here's to another year of budgeting wins, breaking the paycheck to paycheck cycle, and reduced stress.   Sign up for a free 34-day trial of YNAB at www.youneedabudget.com

A listener asks -- what can I do to get my budget back on track after falling off the wagon?   Sign up for a free 34-day trial of YNAB at www.youneedabudget.com

Jesse chats with the Chief Hustler of side hustles, Nick Loper. Nick  has made a living out of side hustles, literally! A serial entrepreneur, Nick started a number of small businesses and side hustles before writing books about his experience and teaching others how to start their own side hustles. He is also an author, with a new book out: $1,000 100 Ways.   After helping thousands of people launch their own hustles, Nick probably has a way (or maybe 100 ways) you can start your own and bring home more money.   Side Hustle Nation Ideas https://www.sidehustlenation.com/ideas   The Side Hustle Show https://www.sidehustlenation.com/side-hustle-show/   $1,000 100 Ways by Nick Loper https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B099TQL3T7/ref=dbs_a_def_rwt_hsch_vapi_tpbk_p1_i0  

Jesse answers a reader trying to save for a surprise Christmas present for his significant other, but also trying to be faithful to his YNAB budget. Jesse shares a few tricks and some "creative accounting" within YNAB to help you save up for Christmas gifts without spoiling the surprise or the budget.   Sign up for a free 34-day trial of YNAB at www.youneedabudget.com

Watch out credit cards, a new game is in town, and it's waiting to trip up your budget during the holiday season. We're talking about payment plans: sort of like a credit card, sort of not, but definitely loaded with high interest, fees, and confusing terms designed to trip up customers. YNAB has a team dedicated to helping budgeters navigate their way through payment plans using the YNAB software, and ultimately get out of them altogether. Sofia Hergenrader, a YNAB expert on payment plans, joins the podcast to talk about the pitfalls of this new breed of financial products.   Sign up for a free 34-day trial of YNAB at www.youneedabudget.com

Jesse answers a concerned parent emailing about their son's college experience. After raising a thoughtful and budget minded son who paid for his first semester of college by working a series of jobs during high school, the parent was dismayed by the extravagant lifestyle and expenses of his classmates. Expensive vacations, clothing, electronics -- many undergraduate students aren't living like students, and it can be frustrating for people embracing a life of responsible budgeting. Nevertheless, Jesse reminds the listener that the gifts of budgeting, responsibility, and good planning pay off in the long run far more than ephemeral luxuries.   Sign up for a free 34-day trial of YNAB at www.youneedabudget.com