The More You Learn, The More You Earn…& Whatever Else You Wanna Call It to Feel Better

The holidays are among us, & that can be a financially taxing time for many. We get caught up in the hype & forget about the financial goals we had at the beginning of the year. Since money & I have a love-hate relationship, I’ve tried my best to learn a little more every year about making my money grow for me. Like they say, “the more you learn, the more you earn.” Since it’s Thanksgiving & I’m grateful for my readers, I’m going to give out some dope resources. Here are a few gems I’ve stumbled across…

The Budgetnista 

Tiffany Aliche, aka The Budgetnista, is the truth! I came across her during the pandemic. Back then, I really needed something to occupy my mind. Working from home made my days monotonous, & I wanted to bring some fresh things into my life. Hearing her story was enough to make me start looking a little deeper into my everyday finances.

     Long story short, The Budgetnista was able to pay off her debt in a few short years. She was transparent about how she started & wanted to share the wealth of knowledge she used to achieve this with others. She has a budgeting tool that was instrumental in helping her to reduce her debt. It makes you look at everything you spend on. And man did that open my eyes!

     I never really realized how much we were spending just from eating out & having subscriptions. Between the Mr. & I prior to me working from home, we were easily dropping $30-40 per day on breakfast & lunch during the week alone. Throw in my tradition of not cooking on Fridays & many Saturdays, & Lordt that amount made me fall out! 

     Then I added up all of the subscriptions we had in the household. We don’t think about the amounts because they usually renew automatically every month & don’t come out at the same time. I found multiple Spotify accounts husbae had & didn’t know it. We had streaming services that could’ve been combined as bundles for way less. Not to mention, we still had cable, as if we really had that much time to watch all of that stuff. We had to make some changes!

     Once I was able to break down all of our debt (& I do mean all), it was easier to see where our money was going, when it went there, & whether we really needed it. It was sacrifice time, & the cable bill was the first to get nixed. Spectrum side eyed me quickly when I said “lemme just keep the internet.” There just wasn’t a point in spending over $250 monthly for something we might have been watching 20 hours per week max. We were streaming way more than anything else, so ✌🏽Spectrum!

     Now, it’s much easier for me to keep up with my money. By using The Budgetnista’s budgeting tool, I’m able to determine which paycheck pays which bills, how much is left over, & how much our debt is reducing. I literally track every expense every month on an Excel spreadsheet, & it’s crazy how much we spend just on bills. However, we’re covering them a lot more effectively with me tracking things. 

Weed & Wealth Podcast

https://linktr.ee/weed_andwealth?utm_source=linktree_profile_share&ltsid=4279f70a-fe5e-4de1-8e27-7e617367b0c2

Normally, I probably wouldn’t have started listening to this podcast. Learning about weed isn’t high on my list of learning priorities. However, one of my social media friends started this podcast, & since I’ve followed his story of financial freedom for years, I gave it a try. When I say Jay is inspiring, he got me motivated to learn more about my money.

     Over the years, Jay has told his story of stacking his money & making it while he sleeps. He started out in his 20’s, & he talked about actually retiring last year…& my boy ain’t even in his mid 40’s yet. His wife actually retired 2 years ago & now raises their boys & is living her best life. Jay has written a cookbook, a children’s book, done a podcast, created t-shirts, & still manages to work (by choice) & travel a helluva lot. Impressive AF!

     When I listen to podcasts, it’s normally while I’m driving or at work. This one had me focusing & taking notes honey! He gives you so many tips on investing & making your money grow, & it’s not in some complicated & boring format. It’s been some time since he’s recorded an episode, but the ones he dropped were on point. I’m patiently waiting for his return to the scene because I need to be like them when I grow up! Maybe if we flood his comments he’ll consider coming back 🤔

Ramit Sethi

https://www.iwillteachyoutoberich.com

In one of our “what are we gonna watch on the porch today” quests, we came across the show “How to Get Rich” on Netflix. At first, I was barely watching (y’all know I can barely sit & do one thing without multitasking). As the people on the show got more transparent about their debts, I started paying more attention. Some of these people were spending ridiculous amounts of money & were still in debt despite having huge incomes. Ramit helped them analyze where they were & how to get to where they wanted to be.

     After watching a few episodes, I started following him on IG. From there, I realized he was an author & podcaster too. Now I haven’t read the book yet, but it’s on my list for 2024. I like to read a variety of things, so this one will be in my self-development category. I’ll also be tapping into his podcast when I get a chance to in the next couple of weeks. I’m determined to know how this mountain I have can decrease to a hill ASAP.

Earn Your Leisure

I listen to The Breakfast Club every morning while I’m working. I enjoy the nice lil combo of ratchet & knowledge. It’s a for sure way for me to get a lil morning twerk in at the desk, laugh, & learn something during their interviews. These guys were on one morning, & the info they dropped about investing perked my ears up. I love hearing people’s inspirational stories of coming up, so this one was no different.

     I’ll admit, I haven’t had much time to do anything other than follow their IG account. There’s been too much on my plate, but tapping into their wealth of knowledge on their website & podcasts is on my to-do list. Many of us are clueless about investing & making your money work for you. I know I didn’t start learning until the last couple of years, but that came with maturity. 

The Evolution of My Mindset

I’m at a place now that I want to gain more knowledge so I can pass it along to my kids. Unfortunately, my parents weren’t deep into financial concerns, so I knew the basics about credit & balancing your accounts. As technology has advanced, their knowledge has as well. Between the things they taught me & the gems I’ve come across in the last couple of years, I’m in a better position to teach my children more than I knew. 

     Our oldest had good credit before he turned 18. That was because I put him on my credit cards as an authorized user when he turned 16. He didn’t have the card, but he built the credit because I paid my bills on time. When he bought his first car 2 years ago at 19, he did it without a co-signer. That was definitely a proud mama moment!

     The youngest has a Go Henry card that teaches her about money. She still thinks I have money hand over fist, but she also has done some of the lessons on the app to learn about money. She’s been saving her allowance for a few months now because she wants to buy things in her Amazon cart that I’m not willing to spend on. No 9 year old needs a skincare routine with expensive mess she’s seen on TikTok & YouTube! Girl bye…but you can swipe YOUR card on it!

     As the year end is nearing, the goals I have for 2024 are starting to form. We’re in the process of redoing a lot in our house, so the bank accounts are screaming “girl, put that card away.” When we finish those projects, it’s grind time to build the money back up. If we can afford to spend what we’ve spent this month & bills are still being paid, then we can afford to save just as much in the future. Change your mind; change your life!