The Jesse Mecham Show

Latest Episodes:

EP02 Money Stories: Liz Finds Financial Freedom through Tik Tok Jan 07, 2021

Show notes

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/

This Is Why You Can't Get Out of Debt Jan 04, 2021

Show notes

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.youneedabudget.com/34dayreset/

EP01 Money Stories: Trish Answers - How Far Would You Go to Pay Off Debt? Dec 31, 2020

Show notes

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 working multiple jobs. Her unusual work arrangement meant that she went long periods of time between paychecks -- sometimes receiving multiple paychecks at once, months apart -- during which time she began relying on credit cards to ensure she had enough money to cover emergencies and unexpected expenses.

The credit card balance continued to climb, however, and, when combined with her car note and student loans, the monthly payments began eating up a large portion of her cashflow. Fed up, Trish decided to make some changes.

Focusing her energy and work ethic on her money, Trish decided to make drastic moves to pay down her debt for good. She began by selling nearly everything she could in her flat on Facebook, netting nearly $3,000. In addition to her two or three regular jobs (besides nursing, she teaches at a university and works as a technician for a pottery studio), she took small jobs whenever she could: transcribing, dog walking, etc. It was an intense experience, and she knew she could not sustain it long term, but harnessing her energy in these bursts jumpstarted her savings.

Are you ready to take the challenge? https://www.youneedabudget.com/34dayreset/

Join Me In a 34-Day Reset Dec 28, 2020

Show notes

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 only 34 days, you can do it!

YNAB's data and experience has shown that people often find hundreds, even a thousand, extra dollars in their budget by doing these three things. In particular, eating out has proven to be the number one most common drain on the budget.

Remember, this is only for a short time! It's a small amount of hardship to endure, that can provide a major boost your savings and financial health to start the New Year.

Start the reset today: https://www.youneedabudget.com/34dayreset/

Remembering What We Remember Dec 21, 2020

Show notes

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 made with them.

Terry Bickmore: Advice for the First-Time Homebuyer Dec 14, 2020

Show notes

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.

Big Goals The End (re-broadcast) Dec 07, 2020

Show notes

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, saving for retirement, saving for a house perhaps -- then it doesn't really matter what happens to the rest of your money. It's another way of looking at the big picture.

Tackling Fear Nov 30, 2020

Show notes

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 that end, Covey asks readers to consider their circle of influence -- What do you control? Where do you not have control? Drawing a very clear picture of your circle of influence, and defining what you don't control, can help with realizing what things you ought to be fear and what things are outside your influence, and thus should be outside your concern (or at least unworthy of spending mental bandwidth on). When people start budgeting, they often can't control what they make, but they can control some of things they spend on. So focusing on spending, giving their money a job, and following the four steps brings their attention to concrete, actionable things within their circle of influence.

Secondly, Jesse recommends learning more about the things you are fearful of. What information could you gather about a topic that would help you better understand it? If you are fearful about money, how about understanding how much you have in your checking account right now? Then take another step. What does that money need to do between now and the next time you get paid? Gathering data points and information about the things causing you fear and anxiety can help make them seem more manageable.

YNAB Named Fortune's 2020 "Best Small Workplace" with Taylor Brown, CTO Nov 23, 2020

Show notes

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 is a consequence of Jesse and Taylor's work in defining their company and employee values and consistently acting on those principles over the years.

Of course winning this honor is due to the work of everyone at YNAB, especially the operations team (lead by COO Chance Gurr) whose responsibility is making sure YNAB is a rewarding place to work. So, Jesse and Taylor wish to thank everyone at YNAB for their hard work and for embodying the company's values every day.

Think Like An Entrepreneur: An Interview with Ramit Sethi (I Will Teach You to Be Rich) Nov 16, 2020

Show notes

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 community of entrepreneurs in which he coaches people how to think like entrepreneurs, develop viable business ventures, and market effectively to grow their business.

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