Jesse delivers a good old fashioned rant about the evils of debt. While he may have softened his rhetoric over the past decade, Jesse is no less serious about his distaste for debt! 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 Follow YNAB on social media: Facebook: @iYNAB Instagram: @youneedabudget Twitter: @ynab Tik Tok: @ynabofficial...
Well meaning companies will bring in financial advisors to extol the virtues of investing in 401ks and matching plans, while some of their employees are still living paycheck to paycheck. With YNAB, you can take control of your money and get off the paycheck to paycheck cycle, then run to HR and take that 401k match like you stole it! 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 Follow YNAB on social media: Faceb...
Money can be chaotic, noisy, tinged with anxiety and fear. Or, with YNAB, it can be boring! At YNAB we strive for money to be boring, so that life can be rich, exciting, and full. 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 Follow YNAB on social media: Facebook: @iYNAB Instagram: @youneedabudget Twitter: @ynab Tik Tok: @ynabofficial...
As the saying goes, "stuff" happens. Life throws curveballs, sometimes several in a row, and YNAB'ers prepare for this financially by following the Four Rules: Give every dollar a job Embrace your true expenses Roll with the punches Age your money Today's episode is mostly about rule #3. When you roll with the punches, you reassign money you have saved up for other expenses in the future to cover the unexpected expense you are facing right now. After working the method for a while, you'll build ...
Those categories that you love to spend in, those categories that suck you right in. What if you could increase your spending in that category by 50%? Jesse challenges you that you can in fact do this, by honing in on the things you love, and the things you don't. Spend less on the things you don't love -- not because you are cutting! -- but so that you can spend more on the things you love. Got a question for Jesse? Send him an email: askjesse@ynab.com Sign up for a free 34-day trial of YNAB at...
According to Jesse, absolutely you can! In fact, YNAB enables you to be more spontaneous. Planning your spending with YNAB doesn't mean locking your dollars into rigid categories that cannot change. It means setting aside money ahead of time for the things you don't know you want yet. Many people who thrive on spontaneity unfortunately end up in financial trouble, because they're never sure whether they have the money to afford their spur of the moment purchases and experiences. Using YNAB, howe...
We tend to think of spending as a problem that needs to be solved, however YNAB encourages spending as a thing to be enjoyed , as long as that spending is in accordance with priorities and people understand the tradeoffs they are making when they spend. In the world of personal finance we also tend to think about people who are natural spenders, but they are natural savers as well, and YNAB can help them too! Jesse responds to a comment from a YNAB team member who identifies as a natural saver, ...
Jesse fields a question from the YNAB team about how he stays positive in light of rapidly increasing grocery prices. 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 Follow YNAB on social media: Facebook: @iYNAB Instagram: @youneedabudget Twitter: @ynab Tik Tok: @ynabofficial...
Jesse answers another round of questions from his inbox, including a number of suggestions for new books to read! 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 Follow YNAB on social media: Facebook: @iYNAB Instagram: @youneedabudget Twitter: @ynab Tik Tok: @ynabofficial...
It's not uncommon for people to remark to Jesse that they wished they would have found YNAB sooner. The four habits are such a powerful tool for bringing clarity to your money and joy to your spending. Today Jesse wants to remind you that regretting the past is no way to live! 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 Follow YNAB on social media: Facebook: @iYNAB Instagram: @youneedabudget Twitter: @ynab Tik T...
Jesse reviews the Four Rules and takes issue with those who say, "yeah must be nice to have extra money to make a plan with... everything I make is spoken for." It's true, there are some people who have a legitimate income problem. But this argument often becomes an excuse to not actually make plans for your money, to not try to follow the rules and start to get ahead on your expenses. After all, what's the alternative? Got a question for Jesse? Send him an email: askjesse@ynab.com Sign up for a...
Your biggest single expense is one you probably don't think about much... unless you're American and it's April 15th. You may think it's housing, or maybe education, or raising kids, but all those costs are dwarfed by the elephant on your income statement: taxes. We are taxed in hundreds of ways, some obvious like income taxes and sales tax, others more insidious like fuel tax, air travel tax, liquor tax, etc, etc. Jesse points this out to demonstrate something important -- you can be desensitiz...
Let's cut spending! And then... what exactly? The all too common advice that you need to "cut spending" implies that your level of consumption is simply too high. That may or may not be the case, but in Jesse's experience and the thousands upon thousands of people YNAB has helped to regain control over their money, "spending less" is rarely the problem. Most people don't have a spending too much problem, they have a spending on the wrong things problem. For that reason, you'll never hear Jesse g...
Jesse answers another round of questions from YNAB listeners. Today someone asks whether there is such a thing as "perfect YNAB" use and if good enough use is OK (yes!). Another YNAB'er is confused on how to calculate tithes for business income, and, as always, there are some questions and comments about credit card rewards. 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 Follow YNAB on social media: Facebook: @iYNA...
Jesse answers a question from a listener who argues that becuase he carries enough cash to cover his credit card spending at all times, he is not riding the float and therefore is gaming the credit card companies. Jesse quotes Charlie Munger -- "show me the incentive, and I'll show you the outcome" (he actually said outcome not behavior) -- and observes that financial institutions have big incentives to encourage more spending, because spending increases their fees. So where there's an incentive...
Jesse argues that the common refrain of a thing having "inherent value" or "intrinsic value" is not actually a thing. As Jesse explains, value is a moving target, constantly shifting along with our desires and material circumstances. To a starving man, food is worth more than gold. To that same man well-fed, it can be worth little. We see this with our own money -- as our circumstances change, the categories we prioritze shift. Rule 3, roll with the punches, acknowledges the ever-shifting nature...
Jesse is back answering another round of questions from his inbox. Today he responds to listeners asking whether the Four Rules are really rules or rather habits, what his favorite time management tools are, and how to relate to a spouse uninterested in budgeting. Getting Things Done: The Art of Stress-Free Productivity https://www.amazon.com/Getting-Things-Done-Stress-Free-Productivity/dp/0142000280 Four Thousand Weeks: Time Management for Mortals https://www.amazon.com/Four-Thousand-Weeks-Mana...
Jesse shares a story from a YNAB'er who had a major mindset shift about money. For this person, money went from a stressful topic to envisioning it as "young creatures just looking to party." Imagining your dollars as little "you's," searching for ways to improve your life and live out your values takes away the fear and anxiety around money. 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 Follow YNAB on social medi...
Mirror, mirror on the wall... which category is the truest of them all? Over the last several weeks, Jesse has explored the idea that money is more than just a tool, it's a reflection of you. Your spending is a representation of your energies and your desires, and therefore a proxy for who you are. So, if you imagined the categories in your spending plan as a mirror -- what would that mirror say about you? Do you like what's in the reflection? Got a question for Jesse? Send him an email: askjess...
One of the pervasive messages about money is that "it's just a tool," and Jesse takes issue with that! When money is reduced to a mere tool, like a wrench or a screwdriver, it invites people to be more careless with it, to use it then put it in a drawer and forget about it. Hearkening back to episode #650: It's You All the Way Down, Jesse reminds us that if a dollar is the product of your energies, then a dollar is you! You aren't just a tool -- you are a human, with desires and values which are...
Whether your bank account is looking bare and collecting dust, or flush with cash, the temptation is all the same: to run away from the money. The person in dire financial straits often wishes they had a bunch of money, because then they wouldn't have to worry about money. On the flipside, the person newly flush with cash is quick to forget about the money, because they feel like they have enough now. Inattention is a mistake, no matter how it happens! Send your question to Jesse: askjesse@ynab....
Jesse opens his inbox for another for round of Ask Jesse, where he answers emails from YNAB'ers about all things money, finance, and... well, life! In today's episode, one listener asks about how to deal with a reluctant partner who doesn't want to participate in the YNAB process. Other listeners share their successes paying off debt and gaining control of their money for the first time. Send your question to Jesse: askjesse@ynab.com Sign up for a free 34-day trial of YNAB at www.youneedabudget....
Back in October 2023, Jesse asked listeners to look at their last ten transactions on YNAB and rank them on a scale from one to three, with one being spending that sucked joy from them and three being spending that sparked joy. Then he asked listeners to share their most interesting "three," the most interesting transaction that brough joy. Today, Jesse digs through the answers and discovers an interesting commonality -- the spending that sparked the most joy was spending on other people. Have a...
A few weeks ago, Jesse put out the call to share your New Years resolutions, as well as a guiding word for 2024 -- something to help you put your resolution into action day to day. Jesse received a number of great responses, and shares a sample of them on today's podcast. Good luck working toward your goals in 2024! Have a question for Jesse? Email him at: askjesse@ynab.com Sign up for a free 34-day trial of YNAB at www.youneedabudget.com Follow YNAB on social media: Facebook: @iYNAB Instagram: ...
Jesse revisits his infamous experiment in which he essentially stopped budgeting for an entire year. The result from that experiment was that he and his family spent several thousand extra dollars that they couldn't account for, and even though the extra spending was not material to the family bottom line, it still bothered Jesse. Today, he hits on what exactly it was that bothered him. Managing money well, building a plan for spending, is virtuous , and virtue is something that you do, not some...
Anytime the word resolution comes up, there are naysayers claiming that they don't work. That goals don't work. Unfortunately a lot of people buy into that when they set a goal and fail to achieve it. Their failure leads them to believe that settings goals is a useless endeavour. Jesse offers some encouragement this year, for the goals you seek to achieve and those you fall short on. Tell Jesse about your goals for 2024! Send him an email at: askjesse@ynab.com Sign up for a free 34-day trial of ...
As we embrace the New Year, Jesse challenges you to pick some goals and set some resolutions. Even if you fail, you will certainly learn some things in the process of chasing a goal, and that experience is invaluable! Tell Jesse about your goals for 2024! Send him an email at: askjesse@ynab.com Sign up for a free 34-day trial of YNAB at www.youneedabudget.com Follow YNAB on social media: Facebook: @iYNAB Instagram: @youneedabudget Twitter: @ynab Tik Tok: @ynabofficial...
Jesse wishes everyone a Merry Christmas, full of meaning and joy. Hopefully this is a day you can enjoy without worrying about money, because you've dutifully saved up for it all year, but if not -- you can always start working on next year. After your Christmas celebrations are over, create a Christmas target for 2024 and start putting a little money away now. And as Jesse says, the Christmas bill is a joyous one! Got a question for Jesse? Send him an email: askjesse@ynab.com Sign up for a free...
Jesse ran across a quote from one of his favorite authors, Nassim Taleb. In his book Antifragile , Taleb advises "invest in preparedness, not prediction," which also neatly describes the goal of YNAB. We cannot predict the future with any certainty, so it's folly to behave as if we can with our spending habits. What we can do, however, is prepare for the future by embracing our future expenses, and even though we don't know exactly when (or how much) those future expenses will occur, we can save...
Jesse ran across a quote from author F.W. Boreham the other day that resonated strongly: "We make our decisions, and then our decisions turn around and make us." Mr. Boreham described the goal of the Four Rules in one simple and effective sentence! Working the Four Rules to create a spending plan involves making decisons -- decisions about what you value and where you want to spend your money. Those decisions stack on each other and in turn lead you to financial freedom, peace, and, ultimately, ...
