The Jesse Mecham Show

If you've been doing the 34-Day Reset, you're in full sprint mode right now. And it might be tough! But the beauty of the reset is that it's just 34 days, and affords you some space to reflect on whether your money is working for you and helping you achieve your goals and values.   So stick with it, finish strong, and bask in the extra money you will have saved. You're almost there!   Take the cha...

Jesse interviews Katie about her journey after college to Hawaii, where she went through a tough breakup and financially tenuous times. She persevered through those hard times, discovered YNAB (actually re-discovered, having first encountered YNAB in college) and began to get her budget back on track in a notoriously expensive state. The hard work paid off; Katie met her husband and was able to ha...

Jesse offers three ways to stop spending money and kickstart your savings: Designate a "no spend" day. Pick a day of the week where you will deliberately spend NO money, and dutifully stick to that. Be realistic! If you usually have a date night on Friday, then pick another day. Maybe's it's a Tuesday, maybe it's a Sunday, but it should work with your schedule. Treat your savings as a purchase.  I...

Jesse talks with YNAB'er Liz about her recent conversion to the YNAB software, which she discovered through the social media network Tik Tok. In just six months with YNAB, Liz has already reversed her financial situation, paid off debt, and created financial  security for her family.   Are you ready to take the challenge? https://www.youneedabudget.com/34dayreset/

Just like weight loss, there are some people who manage to pay off their debt through a burst of willpower and concerted effort... only to fall into debt again, usually slowly. Jesse points out that often this is a failure to follow Rule Two (Embracing Your True Expenses), and discusses how you can prevent slipping into old habits in the New Year.   Are you ready for a financial reset? https://www...

YNAB is bringing back the Debt Stories... but this time we're calling it "Money Stories." In this series, Jesse interviews YNAB users about their incredible stories using YNAB to pay off debt, plan for life, build their savings, and more.   In this episode, Jesse interviews 34-year old nurse Trish. Though very hard working and driven to succeed, Trish found herself in $50,000 of debt despite worki...

Jesse issues a New Years' challenge for YNAB'ers. For the next 34 days, abide by just three rules:  Write down every single thing you spend money on. You can do this in YNAB, or on a sheet of paper, but it must include every penny spent! Purchase ONLY essentials. Essential means you must have it to live. Do not eat out, or order take-in from restaurants. No restaurant spending, full stop. It's onl...

Jesse reflects on budgeting for the Christmas season. While YNAB is all for getting your savings in order so that you can cash flow your Christmas spending without going into debt, the holiday season is about much more than presents. Recalling his childhood, Jesse can't actually remember much about the gifts he received. What he does remember is the time he spent with family, and the memories he m...

Jesse interviews his friend and realtor Terry Bickmore about Terry's introduction to YNAB and how it helped transform his business and personal life. Terry offers some advice for first-time homebuyers, based on YNAB's Four Rules.   Sign up for a free 34-day trial of YNAB at www.youneedabudget.com

Jesse reflects on learning to relax about spending money, especially on the "black box" line items -- unspecified purchases from Amazon that don't fit neatly into any other category, or purchases that he simply doesn't want to look up and re-categorize. Part of learning to relax about these expenditures is realizing that as long as you are achieving your primary goals -- funding an emergency fund,...

The end of the year is nigh, and 2020 has been one of the most stressful in recent memory. Jesse offers some advice for those dealing with fear and anxiety during these times.   During times of fear and uncertainty, Jesse draws on Stephen R. Covey's seminal book The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People.  The first habit is to be proactive and take responsibility for your reactions to events. To tha...

Jesse and Taylor Brown, YNAB's Chief Technology Officer, celebrate the company being named Fortune's #1 Best Place to Work in Small Business in 2020. Jesse and Taylor take a walk down memory lane, reminiscing about the very early days of YNAB and how they much they've grown since, both as a company and as leaders within the business. The moniker "best place to work" doesn't just happen, but rather...

Jesse sits down with acclaimed finance writer and entrepreneur Ramit Sethi for a long chat about the mindset of financial success, how to think like an entrepreneur, and why the most important question about personal finance you need to be able to answer is... "Why?".   Ramit is the author of the 2009 New York Times Best Seller, I Will Teach You to Be Rich ,  and the founder of Earnable , a commun...

Jesse interviews wellness expert, educator, and entrepreneur Robyn Conley Downs about applying her strategies for wellness to making lasting change in budgeting.   You can find Robyn here: Real Food Whole Life: https://realfoodwholelife.com/about/ IG: @realfoodwholelife   Sign up for a free 34-day trial of YNAB at www.youneedabudget.com

In the world of cost accounting, there's a concept known as contribution margin. Basically, it's how much you make on a product or service after you consider how much it cost to make that thing. The formula is revenue less the variable costs that go into making the product. Contribution margin is an important metric for businesses because it tells you whether you are making a profit on the things...

It's not a dirty word, so let's say it together -- wealth! At YNAB, we often use the words "save money," and it's a more approachable concept, something that seems achievable in the short term. Wealth can seem like such a far-off concept sometimes. But at the end of the day, that's what we're all trying to do, is to build wealth that will allow us to do more of what we want to do in life.   Sign u...

While canning tomatoes from a bumper crop, Jesse realized the process was going to take a looooooong time. His wife advised him, simply, to "just settle in." Anything that yields great results in the future takes both upfront effort and perseverance. Whether it's gardening, putting up vegetables for the winter, or budgeting, you have to settle in.   Sign up for a free 34-day trial of YNAB at www.y...

Jesse lays out a strategy for managing unknown expenses without continually dipping into your emergency fund. Traditional budgeting advice tells you to create an emergency fund for dealing with unforeseen expenses, but often people end up using their emergency funds for irregular, but foreseeable expenses -- things like new tires, new cars, A/C repair, etc. They don't happen regularly, maybe only...

Jesse tackles the defeatist attitude some people develop that they are just no good with money. As they say, comparison is the thief of joy, and we should add, it's very misleading when it comes to money! Watching what other people do with their money isn't particularly helpful or relevant to your own situation. Bottom line, being smart with your money simply means knowing what you want your money...

Recently someone asked Jesse about his thoughts on preventing lifestyle creep, a major supposed gremlin of budgeting. Jesse doesn't even like the question, and discusses why worrying about lifestyle creep is looking at budgeting in the wrong light.   Sign up for a free 34-day trial of YNAB at www.youneedabudget.com

Recently Jesse received an email from a woman who claimed YNAB was really a program about mindfulness... just using money and budgeting as the entry point. So Jesse invited this woman onto the podcast to talk about the connection between mindfulness, meditation, and money. Welcome to Kathleen Slattery-Moschkau, a mindfulness expert, yoga instructor, and filmmaker currently residing in Madison, WI...

Let's face it, it feels good to buy things. That's not necessarily a bad thing, either. Spending on hobbies or other things that bring you value -- maybe a date with your partner -- makes you feel good for a good reason.   However, from time to time we need to check the rationale behind our purchases. Maybe you intend to start a new exercise regime, so you buy new shoes and clothes and perhaps a n...

We're all familiar with the situation. A person reads a book, learns a new skill, or discovers a method, and gets REALLY INTO IT. Brimming with enthusiasm, they share it with their partner and try to get them involved, only to be met by reluctance and intransigence. The reluctant partner is a common trope, even when it comes budgeting!   The idea that your partner is dragging their feet because th...

By popular request, Jesse flips through his office bookshelves and discusses the books he's read recently... and, well, some that he hasn't but is getting around to!   This week he covers books in the "business" category, ranging from marketing, advertising, management theory, team building, and customer service. Many of these books have had an influence on the way YNAB operates and its success.  ...

By popular request, Jesse scans though his office bookshelf and discusses the books he's read recently... and, well, some that he hasn't but is getting around to!   This week he covers books in the "general" category, basically anything that isn't specifically about business. Next week he will cover the books on his business shelf.   Sign up for a free 34-day trial of YNAB at www.youneedabudget.co...