When my son turned 16, I had him manage my ynab budget and set him up a budget with his allowance for gas fast food hair cut etc for the month. He also did my taxes using tax software. Eventually he was going to be on his own and didn't want him to have the debt start that I had. We also talked about insurances and investing 401k. He ended up majoring in finance minor accounting.
Shelly - when I lump stuff into one category like Car Maintenance, I make a little list in the Category Notes section with each item I expect for the year with its monthly cost, total them up and set my monthly target from that. This helps when you are wondering later where you got that target number, and if you have forgotten to budget for something. Consider it a "Note to Self". The cool thing is your note is right there when you hover over the category.
I do the same thing as Michelle and go a step further. If there are specific transactions I want to track within a category, I start using a standard Memo so that I can see how much was spent on that purpose without needing another category just to track it.
Ha on the spending freeze! I started a rule this year that I can't buy more books until I read 100 books (my TBR pile is enormous) *but* then I have $100 to spend on books. It's like a game :)
When we do major budgeting we typically Chromecast our browser to our tv screen so we can both see. If our 3 year old is present, we make it a point to describe at least the categories and why we would budget money for them as we budget. He doesn't really have a concept of numbers bigger than 15, but he at least can understand that we need to pay utilities and food, and that those are more important than fun money.
Loved the Lifestyle Creep discussion! For me, whenever I get a raise I try and continue living off the previous income until I find something I want to spend it on (like you said, being intentional) I do. When I hear the term it's what I used to do before budgeting, I get an increase in pay and I"m like "I'm going to treat myself by going out to lunch" and I would do that like... a lot of days until I didn't know where cash went. If you know where the money is going before you spend it, and you're ok with it, it's not lifestyle creep
Oh Ben....he is so cute!! Congratulations to and your wife and the whole family. Welcome back! Buying books to listen to from Audible is my "poker chips" or Video games. I have so many books that I haven't listened to yet, but I keep seeing new ones that sound really good, so I continue to buy more!!
Thanks Ben! I went from no budget to..this. I appreciate your response! . It WAS A LOT of categories but I'm glad I went through the process and THEN toned it down Cheers! 😊 Shelley 🇨🇦
Going into debt with dad is an ideal learning opportunity! I’d recommend charging interest so it’s as realistic as possible. If he’s late on a payment you can temporarily repossess the purchase. Once the debt is paid you use the interest to go out for ice cream and discuss the pros and cons of saving versus credit. Mindfullness is the key and reflection is key to mindfulness.
My kids share our YNAB account so they can see our budget at any time. Our daughters (16 & 11) both have their own budgets, we talk about our budgets all the time and there are items in OUR budget that effects them - their sports activities, their school activities, eating out, big and little adventures, and charitable giving etc. What is interesting, my 11 year is REALLY into her budget, my 16 requires more prompting!
I started YNAB close to when I started a new job, and I’ve never been able to fund all my targets. The genius of YNAB is that despite this I’ve been able to fund all the important things in any given month (including an increase to my variable rate mortgage payment, ugh) so I’m living within my means including true expenses 😊. I’ve even been able to get a month ahead on housing costs and monthly bills with the help of a tax return and third cheque month 🎉. Very calming in the midst of inflation.
My two cents on showing your kids your budget. If you don't want them to know your salary, investments, etc then set up a sample budget with realistic numbers using a different career choice as an example for salary. It is so important for them to see realistic numbers and learn how they can have some of their dreams by budgeting.
When I was younger, my parents never shared how much they exactly made, but they helped me understand money, due dates, paying on time, etc. by making me pay bills (water, electricity, etc) from their account. This really helped me understand that money isn't just for fun, but other necesaary responsibilities. They were always transparent and when I got much older, they shared their pay.
I shall never go thru the car wash again without thinking of Ben’s rolling down the windows during the drying segment! May not actually DO it, but . . . At 70 yo, I just might! Congratulations on the new baby!
I like to have a lot of categories. Everything has a target and I generally remember all the different categories. If I don’t break it out then I end up WAMming from that category too often. An example is my toiletries. I used to have one big toiletries category, but then I would have bigger ticket items that would get whammed out and I wouldn’t have enough to buy my expensive shampoo once every 2 to 3 months. So I made a separate category for my hair supplies. I could see you having a lot of categories for the car so that you can make sure you have the specific category. I also split my pet fund up into a lot of categories. I now have annual appointments emergency appointments, food, treats, toys, etc. It helps decide where I actually can WAM from.
I can totally justify lots of categories at first as it helps to put expenses and experience in context. It takes time for me to fine tune the targets enough to simplify.
Sure inflation is a bummer, but it helped us find our way to YNAB! Now I'm so impressed with the whole culture and YNAB mentality I'm anxiously awaiting more positions to open up there so I can apply! 😁
LOOVED THE FIRST QUESTION! Not an easy one to tackle but thank you for discussing it. I'm dealing with this right now and really haven't been able to figure out how much to 'restrain' myself vs. let myself get the things I've been waiting ages for. This was really helpful and encouraging.
When I stared I had a crazy amount of categories; I got super granular with the budget. Once I felt like I had a good grasp of things, I started paring down. I'll probably always have a silly amount, but it helps keep my money anxiety in check 😎💜
I set up my 11 year old daughter’s budget. This is only because she has things she would like to save for and we can see it better this way. Lol Main categories are Food Save Spend Give Birthdays Christmas . Oh and just added the wish farm category aka BEFOREPAY 😊 Now honestly we have been doing this for two months and she does not like it because she thinks she should be able to spend the whole balance of her checking account but we are sticking through it and building our budget muscles. 💪🏽
Ernie, I still believe you made an intentional purchase vs. true lifestyle creep of going to Starbucks everyday for convenience. Maybe lifestyle creep is avoiding important financial goals for instant short lasting gratification.
Here’s my question: Every show begins with a voice telling us: “It was all in your mind.” What was? My budget? The show? The introduction? What does that mean? I have to know!!!
It's whatever you want it to be, John. It's all in your mind. Oooooooooohhhhhhhhhh 👻 Honestly, I have no idea. Tristan, our graphics designer, just liked the track. ~BenB
I think the problem with lifestyle creep is that by increasing your ‚needs‘ (wich really are more wants) you are increasingly dependent on your income level and on stuff. It lessens your freedom.
