The Jesse Mecham Show

Life hacker, optimizer, product director at Wealthfront... he wears many hats, but his passion is the same -- upgrading life without spending a fortune! In today's episode, Jesse chats with Chris Hutchins, who shares a handful of his seemingly endless number of life hacks. Whether it's saving money on travel, getting a few more dollars out of your car lease, or negotiating for coupons, Chris has a hack for just about everything.   You can follow Chris and learn many more hacks on his podcast, All the Hacks: https://www.allthehacks.com     Sign up for a free 34-day trial of YNAB at www.youneedabudget.com

In today's installment of Behind the Scenes, Jesse asks employees why they applied for a position at YNAB, what the interview process is like, and whether the company has lived up to its reputation as the best small business place to work at (no, really, that's what Fortune said, for the second year running!). YNAB gets a lot of applications, and the hiring process is fiercely competitive, but those who have made it share their thoughts and experiences.   Sign up for a free 34-day trial of YNAB at www.youneedabudget.com

In today's Money Story, Jesse chats with a YNAB employee, the gifted artist and animator Tristan Henry-Wilson, whose work YNAB users may have seen on the YNAB website and the YNAB Youtube channel, among others. Tristan may be an exceptionally talented artist, but he didn't come into his art career easily. After receiving some unexpected financial aid, he attended Ringling College of Art and Design and earned a degree in illustration.   Tristan had a difficult time landing paying gigs in the art world, and began working a long series of odd jobs to pay rent, eat food, and, most importantly, make payments on his $80k of student loads, which a family friend had co-signed for him. After years of grinding, building his portfolio, learning how to interview, and networking into better jobs, Tristan found salaried work in New York City, and was finally able to throw serious money at his debt. At this point, the balance had grown to about $150k, but he was undeterred. With each pay increase, Tristan put more money into the debt, eventually paying it off in full after about 15 years.   Tristan's determination and perseverance was largely responsible for his success, but he also credits YNAB for helping him get smart about managing his money and finding security and peace in his financial situation.   Sign up for a free 34-day trial of YNAB at www.youneedabudget.com

Experienced YNAB'ers understand that budgeting is an active, ongoing process that requires frequently engagement with your budget. Ideally, both partners in a relationship are fully engaged in the budget, but the budgeting process can take many forms. In today's Behind the Scenes episode, Jesse chats with YNAB employees about budgeting with a partner, and the many ways couples learn to navigate the routine.   Sign up for a free 34-day trial of YNAB at www.youneedabudget.com

Award winning author and personal finance journalist Cameron Huddleston joins the show to discuss the uncomfortable realities of managing parents' finances through end of life care and after their death. From wills, power of attorney documents, to simply knowing where your parents have all their bank accounts, Cameron offers some practical advice on what things you need to look out for when helping your older family members manage their finances.   Of course, personal finance is a, well, personal thing for many people, and parents may be reluctant to share the details of their money. Cameron offers some tips for breaking the ice on money conversations, and how to approach parents and loved ones respectfully.   You can find more about Cameron Huddleston and her book, Mom and Dad, We Need to Talk, at her website: https://cameronhuddleston.com   Carefull app: https://www.getcarefull.com/  

Jesse interviewed every employee at YNAB, asking them about a wide range of topics -- how they heard about YNAB, what they are working on in their roles, and their money struggles and successes. In today's Behind the Scenes episode, YNAB insiders answer the question: what's the budget doing for you lately?   Sign up for a free 34-day trial of YNAB at www.youneedabudget.com

Travis Hornsby is passionate about student debt, especially helping people with lots of it find smart, effective pathways to pay it off. After a career as a bond trader, he turned his attention to building a service to help college graduates with large student debt loads navigate their way through the maze of repayment options, forgiveness programs, and tax complications that come with student loans. Travis and his company, Student Loan Planner, have consulted with thousands of students on over $1.4 billion of student debt, helping them create a repayment plan that takes full advantage of all the programs out there.   You can learn more about Travis and his work at The Student Loan Planner website. He also hosts a podcast by the same name: https://www.studentloanplanner.com https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/student-loan-planner/id1446453497?mt=2&ls=1  

Jesse interviewed every employee at YNAB, asking them about a wide range of topics -- how they heard about YNAB, what they are working on in their roles, and their money struggles and successes. Today, you'll hear from a selection of YNAB employees discussing their debt struggles, how they came into debt, and how they have used the Four Rules to pay it off.   Sign up for a free 34-day trial of YNAB at www.youneedabudget.com

Jesse invites the author behind one of his favorite books, Atomic Habits, to join the podcast and talk about what he learned about setting good habits, breaking bad ones, and developing environments and systems conducive to productive habits. As James says, the things you do and accomplish in life are essentially lagged indicators of your habits. So building good habits slowly, methodically, and thoughtfully can result in big rewards down the road.   James Clear https://jamesclear.com   Atomic Habits: Tiny Changes, Remarkable Results https://jamesclear.com/atomic-habits     Sign up for a free 34-day trial of YNAB at www.youneedabudget.com

Are you a college student, or about to go to college? It's an exciting time of your life, but it can also be a very expensive time of your life too. It's possible to keep your spending under control, and have a lot of fun, but you're going to need a budget.   College students -- you can get a whole FREE YEAR of YNAB here. Sign up, take some of the free classes, and give yourself the gift of learning how to budget and take control of your financial life. https://www.youneedabudget.com/college/