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The YNAB Podcast

Latest episodes

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May 1, 2023 • 4min

A Mother's Method for Living Well (Contest Announcement!)

At a recent YNAB all-hands meeting, Sarah gave a personal presentation about her "Mama's Method," rules her mother gave her for living well. Sarah told them in YNAB Four Rules style: Give every moment a job Embrace yourself and others Roll with it Age is just a number (play a lot!)   In honor of Sarah's presentation, and upcoming Mother's Day, YNAB wants to hear from you! YNAB is running a contest between now and May 11th. The contest is simple: share your mother's method to living well, in the style of the YNAB Four Rules if you can. One person will be chosen at random, and the winner will receive a $100 VISA gift card!   To enter the contest, write a post with your mother's rules to live by, told in YNAB "four rules" style, on any of YNAB's social media channels -- Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, or Tik Tok. Make sure to tag YNAB, and include the hashtag #fourrulestoliveby in your post. Winner will be announced on May 11th, 2023!   Facebook: @iYNAB Instagram: @youneedabudget Twitter: @ynab Tik Tok: @ynabofficial     Got a question for Jesse? Send him an email: askjesse@ynab.com   Sign up for a free 34-day trial of YNAB at www.youneedabudget.com
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Apr 24, 2023 • 5min

What's In Your Financial Shovel of Dirt?

Jesse shares a story about growing sweet potatoes and shoveling dirt... lots and lots of dirt. There's a metaphor here about budgeting too. It's work, and sometimes takes a long time to pay off. But steady, sustainable work day after day yields big results!   Got a question for Jesse? Send him an email: askjesse@ynab.com   Sign up for a free 34-day trial of YNAB at www.youneedabudget.com
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Apr 17, 2023 • 7min

Giving Future You A Bit More Negotiation Ammo

Jesse shares a trick for improving your Rule Two planning (Embrace Your True Expenses), and better prepare for the next unexpected expense.   Jesse suggests pulling your last six months of bank statements, and quickly scanning them for large expenditures. Look at the number of digits, and flag the transactions that have a large number of digits (to you). This should only take a few minutes. Note the payee. This exercise is the first place to look when planning for future unexpected expenses. Did you get in a fender bender and end up with a $1,000 bill from the body shop? Did you hire a plumber to fix some leaking pipes in your basement? These are possible future expenses you can use Rule Two to plan for.   Now, hopefully you won't be getting into fender benders on a regular basis! But that auto shop expense might trigger you to think about upcoming regular car maintenance that you haven't yet budgeted for. Likewise, owning a house means regular maintenance, so at some point you're probably going to call a plumber out again. Time to assign money in your budget and plan for that!   This is a good, easy strategy for improving your Rule Two thinking, and put future you in a better financial position.   Got a question for Jesse? Send him an email: askjesse@ynab.com   Sign up for a free 34-day trial of YNAB at www.youneedabudget.com
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Apr 10, 2023 • 7min

Paid In Full, But Always in Debt

Jesse continues his rant about exploration of credit card use, observing that "paid in full" users are, technically, always in debt. Paid in full users are people who have the cash at any moment to pay off their credit card balance in full, but choose to pay off the balance before the next billing cycle. While they do pay off the balance regularly (monthly, or weekly, maybe even daily), and thus never incur interest, they are in debt until the moment they pay off the balance. And of course, after they have paid off the balance, they are again in debt as soon as they charge the next expense on their credit card.   Does the distinction matter though? Jesse ponders the question, and gives an update on his own experiment of only using a debit card for expenses in 2023.   Got a question for Jesse? Send him an email: askjesse@ynab.com   Sign up for a free 34-day trial of YNAB at www.youneedabudget.com
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Apr 3, 2023 • 34min

Jesse Chats with a Guy Who Has Never Used a Credit Card

Jesse talks with a man who has never used a credit card -- YNAB's own Ben Barlowe, who you may also recognize from the Budget Nerds podcast. Ben is 34 years old, has four children, a house (purchase with a mortgage), and a busy life! Believe it or not, he has been able to navigate life without ever having used a credit card.   Ben discusses the reasoning behind his personal decision to not use credit cards, how he obtained a mortgage with no credit score, and how he manages day to day expenses such as renting cars without a credit card.   Credit cards are ubiquitous these days, but that doesn't mean you HAVE to use one. Ben demonstrates that it's possible to have a robust, well-planned financial life without credit!   Got a question for Jesse? Send him an email: askjesse@ynab.com   Sign up for a free 34-day trial of YNAB at www.youneedabudget.com
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Mar 27, 2023 • 11min

Ask Jesse: Talk Slower, Pay Down Debt Faster

It's time for another round of Ask Jesse! Jesse fields questions from podcast listeners about how to manage multiple bank accounts, negative budgeting, and whether he can slow down his speech pattern (sorry Leslie!)   Find a YNAB Certified Coach: https://www.ynab.com/coaching-directory/   Got a question for Jesse? Send him an email: askjesse@ynab.com   Sign up for a free 34-day trial of YNAB at www.youneedabudget.com
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Mar 20, 2023 • 4min

Rule One and the Pursuit of Nothing

Jesse challenges the idea of constantly pursuing something financially. For many of us in the modern world, our default is to always be chasing something -- more things, more experiences, more retirement funds, more debt paid down. Some of these things are a net good, some... maybe not. Jesse reminds us that our financial life doesn't always have to be in pursuit of something. It's ok to just let your money support your life, and nothing more. Can you do that, just for a little while?   Got a question for Jesse? Send him an email: askjesse@ynab.com   Sign up for a free 34-day trial of YNAB at www.youneedabudget.com
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Mar 13, 2023 • 3min

Expensive Is a Lazy Word

When people say "that's too expensive," what do they mean really? That they can't afford it, that it costs too much for a certain group of people, that it costs too much on principle? Jesse relates Rule One to the word "expensive" and concludes that its meaning is too slippery to be a useful term for people following the Four Rules.   Got a question for Jesse? Send him an email: askjesse@ynab.com   Sign up for a free 34-day trial of YNAB at www.youneedabudget.com
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Mar 6, 2023 • 14min

Ask Jesse: Travel Hacking, Credit Cards, and YNAB'er Experiences

In this installment of Ask Jesse, Jesse answers questions from podcast listeners about travel hacking and credit card and debit card fraud protection. He also reads an experience from one YNAB'er who switched from using credit cards to debit cards.   Got a question for Jesse? Send him an email: askjesse@ynab.com   Sign up for a free 34-day trial of YNAB at www.youneedabudget.com
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Feb 27, 2023 • 4min

Rule One and DIY FTW

Jesse analyzes a recent situation in which he was planning to build something in his wood shop, when a friend remarked that he could buy the same thing a lot cheaper. While we talk about money all the time in YNAB, and frequently equate money with time, and discuss the tradeoffs of buying this thing versus that thing -- Jesse reminds us that we don't have to think of everything in terms of economic decisions. Sometimes you give dollars a job (Rule One) which is for sheer enjoyment.   Got a question for Jesse? Send him an email: askjesse@ynab.com   Sign up for a free 34-day trial of YNAB at www.youneedabudget.com

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