budget Archives - Empathic Finance | Mike Pumphrey, AFC®

Do you have to track your spending forever?

Posted by Mike Pumphrey on July 1, 2024 | Featured

Some people resist the idea that they should track their spending forever. But what else gives so much benefit for a small amount of work? … Read More

Tags: budget, budgeting, spending, tracking

You need a budget, but do you need You Need A Budget?

Posted by Mike Pumphrey on February 15, 2021 | Featured

I review You Need a Budget (YNAB) after having tried it for the very first time, and offer my thoughts on the service. “What money apps do you recommend I use?” is a question I get a fair amount. It’s … Read More … Read More

Tags: budget, budgeting, product review, review, ynab, You Need A Budget

You can’t pay off your debt until you do this first

Posted by Mike Pumphrey on February 1, 2021 | Featured

If you’re trying to pay off debt without making sure that you’ve done all the necessary work first, you’ll never make any progress. Debt looms large in our financial thoughts. For example, in a list of 50 hashtags in the … Read More … Read More

Tags: budget, budgeting, debt, debt payoff, debt snowball

The ritual of the end-of-the-month budget freeze

Posted by Mike Pumphrey on December 2, 2019 | Featured

When your budget has you run low on money at the end of the month, the upside is that it feels all the better when the new month begins. Wow, this last month was tight. I pretty much spent all … Read More … Read More

Tags: budget, budgeting, ritual

Why I want you to live paycheck to paycheck

Posted by Mike Pumphrey on April 23, 2018 | Featured

“I couldn’t make ends meet. I was living paycheck to paycheck.” “78 percent of U.S. workers live paycheck to paycheck.” “Stop living paycheck to paycheck and sign up for our credit counseling service.” The phrase “paycheck to paycheck” is a … Read More … Read More

Tags: budget, budgeting

The surprise I got from spending only cash for a month

Posted by Mike Pumphrey on August 3, 2015 | Featured

For the past month, I have spent nothing but cash for all my expenses. (Bills were paid automatically.) You can read about why I did this in greater detail, but more than anything, I basically just wanted to see … Read More … Read More

Tags: budget, cash, challenge, spending

How to succeed at your first month of budgeting

Posted by Mike Pumphrey on July 13, 2015 | Featured

Let’s say you finally decided to make a change and create a budget for your finances. Perhaps you’ve become suitably inspired, or, like the parable of the burning building, the alternative had become that much worse. So what do … Read More … Read More

Tags: behavior, budget, budgeting, starting

How to combine finances when you’re non-monogamous

Posted by Mike Pumphrey on June 18, 2015 | Featured

So, if you’ve been following along, I talked about commingling finances for couples, and the importance of talking about dreams to get on board together. Then I hedged a bit and talked about how speaking solely of couples is inadequate, … Read More … Read More

Tags: budget, budgeting, couples, polyamory

The importance of a shared financial strategy for couples

Posted by Mike Pumphrey on June 11, 2015 | Featured

In my post about how couples can combine their finances, I ended by stating that if there was any wrong answer on the many ways that such commingling was possible, it was to not talk about your strategy. If … Read More … Read More

Tags: budget, budgeting, couples, dreams, goals, plans

How couples can combine their finances

Posted by Mike Pumphrey on June 8, 2015 | Featured

So, you found that special someone, and decided to take the leap, either toward cohabitation, or civil union, or marriage, or anything that merits the phrase “take the leap“. Congrats! I bet one thing you’re not thinking about in all … Read More … Read More

Tags: budget, budgeting, couples, plans

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