1 00:00:00,040 --> 00:00:02,360 Right now in the United States, we're going through a government 2 00:00:02,360 --> 00:00:04,440 shutdown. And so it's affecting a lot of 3 00:00:04,440 --> 00:00:09,640 people and a lot of our personal finances because if we don't 4 00:00:09,640 --> 00:00:12,440 have an emergency fund set up, if we're not prepared for things 5 00:00:12,440 --> 00:00:16,239 like this, then that's when we can make impulsive decisions and 6 00:00:16,239 --> 00:00:17,160 we can go. For. 7 00:00:17,360 --> 00:00:21,040 Payday loans and we can start getting, you know, Helocs on our 8 00:00:21,040 --> 00:00:24,320 home, equity lines of credit on our home and doing all of these, 9 00:00:24,320 --> 00:00:28,240 taking out loans on our retirement and things like that. 10 00:00:28,240 --> 00:00:31,280 And that can really start to snowball on the opposite 11 00:00:31,280 --> 00:00:33,160 direction. And that's kind of what happened 12 00:00:33,160 --> 00:00:37,880 for my family and I when we got into financial trouble and our 13 00:00:37,880 --> 00:00:40,440 paychecks weren't guaranteed. The whole point is there was 14 00:00:40,440 --> 00:00:43,080 some stuff we could control and then there was other stuff that 15 00:00:43,080 --> 00:00:44,920 we couldn't control and so. Right. 16 00:00:45,000 --> 00:00:47,040 You asked. And I'm answering. 17 00:00:47,040 --> 00:00:51,240 So today's episode is a sneak peek behind the scenes of the 18 00:00:51,240 --> 00:00:54,760 Alliance coaching program. And these are questions straight 19 00:00:54,760 --> 00:00:58,280 from members of our community who are working on their 20 00:00:58,280 --> 00:01:02,200 finances and have an opportunity to come every single month to 21 00:01:02,200 --> 00:01:05,239 office hours with myself. And I answer there's very 22 00:01:05,239 --> 00:01:07,160 specific questions based on where. 23 00:01:07,160 --> 00:01:09,160 You are in your financial journey. 24 00:01:09,160 --> 00:01:13,440 Where you are in the process of whether you need to focus on 25 00:01:13,520 --> 00:01:17,440 your creating your emergency fund or if you're working on 26 00:01:17,440 --> 00:01:19,560 your debt snowball and give. You a real. 27 00:01:19,560 --> 00:01:22,760 Practical tips wherever you are in your journey and and the 28 00:01:22,760 --> 00:01:24,520 opportunity to ask all the questions. 29 00:01:24,520 --> 00:01:28,480 So today's episode is a sneak be a sneak peek behind that. 30 00:01:28,480 --> 00:01:32,280 So I hope that this is helpful for you, but also to get a 31 00:01:32,280 --> 00:01:35,480 understanding of what it's like to be a member of the Alliance 32 00:01:35,480 --> 00:01:37,960 coaching program. And a little teaser. 33 00:01:37,960 --> 00:01:42,080 There's going to be some new updates coming very soon, so I'm 34 00:01:42,080 --> 00:01:43,880 going to be. Rolling those out. 35 00:01:43,920 --> 00:01:46,360 To my e-mail list in a couple of weeks. 36 00:01:46,360 --> 00:01:48,600 So if you're not on that list, make sure you get on. 37 00:01:48,920 --> 00:01:53,360 You can get to my website at debtrebelpodcast.com and join 38 00:01:53,360 --> 00:01:55,520 there. You can also get your free debt 39 00:01:55,520 --> 00:01:58,640 Rebel starter, Kate, and you'll be able to find out those 40 00:01:58,640 --> 00:02:01,440 updates as soon as they come. This will be the last 41 00:02:01,440 --> 00:02:05,000 opportunity that the founder pricing will be available for, 42 00:02:05,040 --> 00:02:08,479 for the membership. So if focusing on your finances 43 00:02:08,479 --> 00:02:11,840 for the coming year is something that you want to work on, I 44 00:02:11,840 --> 00:02:14,280 highly recommend you jump on that e-mail list and find out 45 00:02:14,280 --> 00:02:17,280 more about that. But today's episode, I hope it 46 00:02:17,280 --> 00:02:19,840 is encouraging for you. I hope it's a blessing for you. 47 00:02:20,360 --> 00:02:22,800 And maybe we'll. Answer a question you didn't 48 00:02:22,800 --> 00:02:26,240 know you had, so stay tuned. All right, so wasn't that 49 00:02:26,240 --> 00:02:27,960 awesome? So those questions were 50 00:02:27,960 --> 00:02:32,040 previously submitted by members of the Alliance coaching program 51 00:02:32,400 --> 00:02:36,040 and whether they had an opportunity to be there live for 52 00:02:36,040 --> 00:02:38,160 it or if they're listening to the recording, which is 53 00:02:38,160 --> 00:02:40,640 available, All the recordings are available inside the 54 00:02:40,640 --> 00:02:42,480 community. They're getting their questions 55 00:02:42,480 --> 00:02:44,280 answered. And so I've got some cool stuff 56 00:02:44,280 --> 00:02:46,440 like I alluded to the. Beginning I'm. 57 00:02:46,440 --> 00:02:50,280 Going to be rolling out for additional support within the 58 00:02:50,280 --> 00:02:52,880 alliance coaching program. And so I can't wait to share 59 00:02:52,880 --> 00:02:55,040 that with you all. So I hope that today's episode 60 00:02:55,040 --> 00:02:57,120 was helpful. And if you want to get some more 61 00:02:57,120 --> 00:03:00,000 personalized answers to your money questions every single 62 00:03:00,000 --> 00:03:02,720 month, join us inside the Alliance Coaching program. 63 00:03:02,920 --> 00:03:05,440 All right, we'll talk soon. Right now, I know there's a lot 64 00:03:05,440 --> 00:03:07,800 that we can't control, but the things that we can, and I want 65 00:03:07,800 --> 00:03:10,000 to talk a little bit more about that today, are the things that 66 00:03:10,000 --> 00:03:12,120 we can control. And that's how we spend our 67 00:03:12,120 --> 00:03:14,720 money now. And so if you're in this 68 00:03:14,720 --> 00:03:17,720 situation right now where you don't know if your next paycheck 69 00:03:17,720 --> 00:03:20,680 is coming, and I know that's a very close thing in our 70 00:03:20,680 --> 00:03:26,600 household as well, is, is how do you create a shut down or 71 00:03:26,600 --> 00:03:29,600 survival mode budget? So we talked about survival mode 72 00:03:29,600 --> 00:03:31,880 budget is like the bare bones stuff. 73 00:03:31,880 --> 00:03:34,120 And we talked about the IP taking that budgeting master 74 00:03:34,120 --> 00:03:36,200 class. We talked about that in there. 75 00:03:36,400 --> 00:03:38,760 And then we add on all the other things afterwards, like 76 00:03:38,760 --> 00:03:41,320 including our our debt elimination or debt snowball. 77 00:03:41,560 --> 00:03:43,080 And I did get some questions about that today. 78 00:03:43,080 --> 00:03:44,360 So I'm going to cover that a little bit more. 79 00:03:44,720 --> 00:03:47,400 But we want to focus in on the things that are most important 80 00:03:47,480 --> 00:03:50,240 to keep a roof over our head. Excuse. 81 00:03:50,240 --> 00:03:51,200 Me a roof. Over our head. 82 00:03:51,200 --> 00:03:53,640 Food in our belly and transportation to and from work. 83 00:03:54,120 --> 00:03:57,400 So if you are maybe you're a government employee or you know, 84 00:03:57,400 --> 00:03:59,440 someone that's a government employee and they're furloughed 85 00:03:59,440 --> 00:04:02,080 right now, then they don't have to go to work and they're still 86 00:04:02,080 --> 00:04:03,680 not getting paid. But then there are some people 87 00:04:03,680 --> 00:04:06,400 that are not getting paid and then still have to go to work. 88 00:04:06,400 --> 00:04:09,680 And so if that's you and that transportation spot, you want to 89 00:04:09,680 --> 00:04:12,480 make sure that those things that transportation to and from work 90 00:04:12,480 --> 00:04:15,160 is paid for. So if you have car payments, 91 00:04:15,160 --> 00:04:18,440 making sure that car payment is paid and you know, you have gas 92 00:04:18,440 --> 00:04:19,920 that you can get to and from work. 93 00:04:20,279 --> 00:04:24,360 So cut down on some of those extra extra trips if you can, so 94 00:04:24,360 --> 00:04:27,360 that you can conserve your money as best as possible. 95 00:04:27,440 --> 00:04:29,760 And then like I said, the roof over your head and food in your 96 00:04:29,760 --> 00:04:32,480 belly. So the tip that I give every 97 00:04:32,480 --> 00:04:37,800 single time we jump on a call is supercook.com or using ChatGPT 98 00:04:38,040 --> 00:04:40,840 to create recipes based on the food that you have on hand right 99 00:04:40,840 --> 00:04:43,200 now, because our families cannot skip meals. 100 00:04:43,200 --> 00:04:46,880 And a lot of, sorry, the TV just came on randomly. 101 00:04:46,960 --> 00:04:50,240 A lot of budgeting will tell you, you know, a lot of other 102 00:04:50,240 --> 00:04:53,640 budget gurus will tell you that take care of, you know, pay 103 00:04:53,640 --> 00:04:55,600 yourself first, do all of these things first. 104 00:04:55,600 --> 00:04:59,240 And then whatever's leftover is for gas and gas and food. 105 00:04:59,520 --> 00:05:02,840 And where you can get into a little bit of trouble with your 106 00:05:02,840 --> 00:05:06,600 budget is if you plan all of your expenses and then you leave 107 00:05:06,880 --> 00:05:09,520 that transportation, so many gas and food last. 108 00:05:09,960 --> 00:05:12,480 And that is we're going to flip that upside down. 109 00:05:12,760 --> 00:05:15,120 And so for your survival mode budget, you want to make sure 110 00:05:15,120 --> 00:05:18,360 that you're mortgages paid, your utilities are paid. 111 00:05:18,560 --> 00:05:21,480 I would also include in there making sure that your health is 112 00:05:21,480 --> 00:05:23,320 covered. And so whether that's if you 113 00:05:23,320 --> 00:05:26,560 have to pay your health premiums or if you have co-pays, don't 114 00:05:26,560 --> 00:05:29,920 skip doctor visits right now if you can, if you can help it, If 115 00:05:29,920 --> 00:05:32,440 there's some things that can be, you know, put off a little bit, 116 00:05:32,440 --> 00:05:35,360 that's that's totally up to you. But I would say do not. 117 00:05:35,360 --> 00:05:38,200 That's part of the essentials is making sure that your health is 118 00:05:38,320 --> 00:05:41,880 is managed and that you can keep a roof over your head because 119 00:05:41,880 --> 00:05:45,640 that's super important to so that you can be your best as a 120 00:05:45,640 --> 00:05:50,440 parent for your family. So a quick check in as we I like 121 00:05:50,440 --> 00:05:54,280 to do accountability check INS is just seeing how you feel like 122 00:05:54,280 --> 00:05:56,920 your spending is lining up with the plan that you had for the 123 00:05:56,920 --> 00:05:59,440 month. Okay, So if you are in a 124 00:05:59,440 --> 00:06:03,920 situation right now where your paycheck is uncertain and this 125 00:06:03,920 --> 00:06:07,760 could be a spot where we go pivot, pause, hold on, we got to 126 00:06:07,760 --> 00:06:10,120 make a new plan. And that's where I say month to 127 00:06:10,120 --> 00:06:12,720 month, your budget is going to look different because things 128 00:06:12,720 --> 00:06:16,560 happen, your priorities change. And so if you know, things were 129 00:06:16,560 --> 00:06:19,640 a little bit different last month and then all of a sudden 130 00:06:19,640 --> 00:06:22,480 we had this government shutdown and it's affecting your 131 00:06:22,480 --> 00:06:26,040 finances, then your your priorities are going to shift. 132 00:06:26,040 --> 00:06:30,200 It's going to be less about the, if you're doing your debt 133 00:06:30,200 --> 00:06:34,080 snowball and you're working on that and it's pausing that. 134 00:06:34,080 --> 00:06:36,160 So one of the questions that came from one of our alliance 135 00:06:36,160 --> 00:06:39,960 members is they're getting ready to pay off their car and has 136 00:06:39,960 --> 00:06:42,520 paused that because they're affected by the government 137 00:06:42,520 --> 00:06:44,760 shutdown. And the question was the car 138 00:06:44,760 --> 00:06:46,440 payment is paid through December. 139 00:06:46,840 --> 00:06:50,680 Does she continue to pay that every single month or hold on or 140 00:06:50,680 --> 00:06:53,920 wait until the shutdown's over to continue those payments? 141 00:06:54,400 --> 00:06:57,880 So my answer to this question is, since you're already paid 142 00:06:57,880 --> 00:07:01,000 through December is you've, you've already, you've already 143 00:07:01,000 --> 00:07:03,640 taken care of October's already paid November. 144 00:07:03,640 --> 00:07:07,160 That is absolutely great. So I would say whatever you're, 145 00:07:07,200 --> 00:07:11,800 you are planning on paying on additional payments, hold on to 146 00:07:11,800 --> 00:07:16,320 that for now because that you might have to use for food or 147 00:07:16,320 --> 00:07:19,680 transportation or you might have to use for your mortgage if your 148 00:07:19,680 --> 00:07:23,240 paycheck is going to be short or non existent for the next few 149 00:07:23,240 --> 00:07:26,520 weeks or months. So pause on that and then we 150 00:07:26,520 --> 00:07:29,640 will re evaluate when that time, when that time comes, when you 151 00:07:29,640 --> 00:07:33,360 get closer to December and you realize, OK, like that maybe we 152 00:07:33,360 --> 00:07:36,640 don't know, the shutdown's over and things are back to quote UN 153 00:07:36,640 --> 00:07:38,480 quote. Normal or. 154 00:07:39,040 --> 00:07:41,800 Maybe it's continuing on and you need to adapt and change. 155 00:07:41,800 --> 00:07:44,680 From there but. For right now, hold on to any 156 00:07:44,680 --> 00:07:48,520 extra funds that you have. So making sure that those those 157 00:07:48,520 --> 00:07:51,440 priorities are paid and then anything that's left over. 158 00:07:51,440 --> 00:07:54,320 And that's why that budget is so vitally important, especially in 159 00:07:54,320 --> 00:07:57,960 scenarios like this is whatever is leftover, you're going to 160 00:07:57,960 --> 00:08:01,520 hold on to that and save that. You could create a separate 161 00:08:01,520 --> 00:08:04,480 emergency fund or you could just add that to what you already 162 00:08:04,480 --> 00:08:06,840 have that X that $1000 that you have set aside. 163 00:08:06,880 --> 00:08:10,080 So if you are in that financial crisis mode right now, then 164 00:08:10,080 --> 00:08:13,600 maybe buying some new clothes unless it's absolutely necessary 165 00:08:13,920 --> 00:08:17,960 is a, you know, as a pause. I know for us, there's a big 166 00:08:17,960 --> 00:08:21,600 just between friends sale coming up and I have a bunch of items 167 00:08:21,600 --> 00:08:23,680 that I'm going to be selling there. 168 00:08:23,720 --> 00:08:26,800 And so that money will be able to that'll be a wash. 169 00:08:26,800 --> 00:08:30,920 So whatever I sell, I can spend. And so that's not going to come 170 00:08:30,920 --> 00:08:33,320 out of my clothing fund for my daughter. 171 00:08:33,320 --> 00:08:36,440 Get her, you know, replace some of her shoes that she's that 172 00:08:36,440 --> 00:08:38,000 she's worn out, that kind of stuff. 173 00:08:38,320 --> 00:08:41,960 So this is the, this is the time of year, not only because it's 174 00:08:41,960 --> 00:08:45,520 October and coming into the holiday season, but also because 175 00:08:45,520 --> 00:08:49,560 we're kind of in a crazy season financially with, with our 176 00:08:49,560 --> 00:08:53,000 economy and the way things are. We need to kind of be more 177 00:08:53,000 --> 00:08:56,440 conservative with our spending. And so if that's where, if 178 00:08:56,440 --> 00:08:59,720 that's where you are, this is a great spot to kind of tweak and 179 00:08:59,720 --> 00:09:05,400 work with your budget and see what things need to, what things 180 00:09:05,400 --> 00:09:08,800 need to be reduced and what things can be paused for a 181 00:09:08,800 --> 00:09:11,760 little while until you can get your financial footing again and 182 00:09:11,760 --> 00:09:13,720 know that your paycheck is going to be coming in. 183 00:09:14,040 --> 00:09:16,720 Quick pause, friend. If you're tired of feeling like 184 00:09:16,720 --> 00:09:19,040 you're doing this whole money thing alone, I want to invite 185 00:09:19,040 --> 00:09:21,720 you into the Alliance. It's my group coaching 186 00:09:21,720 --> 00:09:24,760 membership where busy parents come together to build financial 187 00:09:24,760 --> 00:09:27,040 stability. Finally, stop living paycheck to 188 00:09:27,040 --> 00:09:30,360 paycheck and start making real progress without the overwhelm 189 00:09:30,640 --> 00:09:33,200 you'll get. Monthly live coaching with me on 190 00:09:33,200 --> 00:09:34,920 demand workshops and a community. 191 00:09:34,920 --> 00:09:37,200 That actually gets. What you're going through right 192 00:09:37,200 --> 00:09:40,320 now, it's only $27.00 a month and I would love for you to join 193 00:09:40,320 --> 00:09:43,600 us at Jewels, the Budget nerd.com/membership. 194 00:09:43,880 --> 00:09:48,760 That's JEWLZ, the Budget nerd.com/membership. 195 00:09:49,080 --> 00:09:50,600 All right. Let's get back to the. 196 00:09:50,600 --> 00:09:52,720 Show this is a different question that was submitted by 197 00:09:52,720 --> 00:09:57,640 another alliance number it credit scores and the financial 198 00:09:57,640 --> 00:10:01,440 crisis right now. So this is this is a tough one 199 00:10:01,440 --> 00:10:05,000 because it depends on what your priorities are. 200 00:10:05,120 --> 00:10:09,400 What I teach and what I live is my credit score is my credit 201 00:10:09,400 --> 00:10:13,000 score is just some number that the credit reporting agencies 202 00:10:13,560 --> 00:10:17,560 and lending institutions use to determine my worthiness to pay 203 00:10:17,560 --> 00:10:20,720 back alone. My goal is to never have to use 204 00:10:20,720 --> 00:10:23,720 credit ever again. And so I don't care what my 205 00:10:23,720 --> 00:10:25,560 credit score is. I don't actually even know what 206 00:10:25,560 --> 00:10:27,880 my credit score is. And I want to remind you also, 207 00:10:27,880 --> 00:10:29,760 your credit score doesn't define who you are. 208 00:10:29,800 --> 00:10:35,040 It's just a number that says this person is worthy enough to 209 00:10:35,040 --> 00:10:38,000 take a risk on for them to pay back the money that you're going 210 00:10:38,000 --> 00:10:41,160 to lend them. And so it is just a, it's a 211 00:10:41,160 --> 00:10:42,760 number. That's all it means. 212 00:10:42,760 --> 00:10:46,520 So if this is a scenario that you find yourself in with the 213 00:10:46,520 --> 00:10:50,760 financial crisis and you're having a hard time making those 214 00:10:50,760 --> 00:10:53,960 debt payments, communicate with your creditors first and let 215 00:10:53,960 --> 00:10:57,400 them know, hey, I'm affected by the government shutdown, 216 00:10:57,400 --> 00:11:00,760 furloughs, that kind of stuff. My, my income is unstable right 217 00:11:00,760 --> 00:11:03,040 now. Let them know ahead of time and 218 00:11:03,040 --> 00:11:06,280 then take care of those survival mode budget items 1st and you'll 219 00:11:06,280 --> 00:11:10,320 notice on that, on that every dollar budget, that is the very 220 00:11:10,320 --> 00:11:12,760 last thing. And that's where it should be 221 00:11:12,800 --> 00:11:14,760 because those other things are more important. 222 00:11:14,760 --> 00:11:17,360 That is kind of those things that, you know, we need to 223 00:11:17,360 --> 00:11:18,920 address it. But there are things that are 224 00:11:18,920 --> 00:11:22,280 happening in the past and we need to address the present and 225 00:11:22,280 --> 00:11:25,680 be prepared for the future. And so when you're in crisis 226 00:11:25,680 --> 00:11:28,560 mode, we want to make sure that those basic needs are met and 227 00:11:28,560 --> 00:11:30,480 then everything else will take a backseat to that. 228 00:11:30,600 --> 00:11:34,440 So yes, if you are unable to make your credit payments right 229 00:11:34,440 --> 00:11:37,920 now and your credit score takes the takes the tank, which is 230 00:11:37,920 --> 00:11:39,640 what happened to to us, so be it. 231 00:11:39,680 --> 00:11:42,560 And I know that that's a really can be a really hard pill to 232 00:11:42,560 --> 00:11:46,400 swallow sometimes because we are taught that our credit score is 233 00:11:46,400 --> 00:11:48,480 like this number that we need to achieve. 234 00:11:48,480 --> 00:11:51,920 And once we get there, then it it's, you know, it's a sign of 235 00:11:51,920 --> 00:11:54,480 success. And I want to challenge that 236 00:11:54,480 --> 00:11:58,000 thought and that belief because for my family and I, we're much 237 00:11:58,000 --> 00:12:01,440 more successful because we have not used credit to fund 238 00:12:01,440 --> 00:12:05,040 day-to-day life and we enjoy it so much more because we don't 239 00:12:05,040 --> 00:12:07,520 have that added stress. But if you do find yourself in 240 00:12:07,520 --> 00:12:10,600 that situation, talk to your creditors and let them know that 241 00:12:10,600 --> 00:12:16,200 your income is unstable right now, and then work on a plan 242 00:12:16,200 --> 00:12:18,800 with them now. That's why that budget is so 243 00:12:18,800 --> 00:12:21,200 vitally important, because you'll know what you can commit 244 00:12:21,200 --> 00:12:23,240 to and what you can't commit to when it comes. 245 00:12:23,240 --> 00:12:25,640 To repayment. So if you know you're only going 246 00:12:25,640 --> 00:12:27,560 to have. You know, $100. 247 00:12:27,560 --> 00:12:32,240 Left after your utility, you know, food, utilities, mortgage, 248 00:12:32,240 --> 00:12:35,400 medicines, those types of things are taken care of, then I 249 00:12:35,400 --> 00:12:38,600 wouldn't commit to any kind of repayment plan yet. 250 00:12:38,600 --> 00:12:40,880 Then you know, and make sure you take notes of those 251 00:12:40,880 --> 00:12:44,680 conversations so that when, when you revisit it, because we do 252 00:12:44,680 --> 00:12:46,800 find ourselves sometimes, especially when we're stressed 253 00:12:46,800 --> 00:12:51,320 out and finances are a big part of that, that we can forget some 254 00:12:51,320 --> 00:12:53,640 of the conversation. So take some good notes so that 255 00:12:53,640 --> 00:12:56,640 when you go back to revisit it, when you're in a more 256 00:12:57,320 --> 00:13:00,760 financially stable spot and you're able to commit to that 257 00:13:00,760 --> 00:13:03,800 repayment, then you have the notes to to back that up. 258 00:13:03,880 --> 00:13:08,720 So how about, OK, emergency savings versus investing versus 259 00:13:08,720 --> 00:13:12,080 paying off your debt? Which should you do first? 260 00:13:12,080 --> 00:13:16,920 What should you do first? Now, this is a great one because 261 00:13:17,280 --> 00:13:19,200 a lot of all of these things are very important. 262 00:13:19,200 --> 00:13:21,240 They're all part of your big financial plan. 263 00:13:21,320 --> 00:13:26,600 And I would say the thing that is important right now is 1, is 264 00:13:26,600 --> 00:13:28,800 your income uncertain? And I'm going to keep talking 265 00:13:28,800 --> 00:13:30,760 about that because it's affecting a lot of people, 266 00:13:30,760 --> 00:13:32,560 especially a lot of the conversations I've been having 267 00:13:32,560 --> 00:13:35,920 with different people. Savings is absolutely the spot. 268 00:13:35,920 --> 00:13:38,400 If you have anything leftover, put it in savings. 269 00:13:38,480 --> 00:13:41,560 If you do not have $1000 emergency fund, put it there. 270 00:13:41,640 --> 00:13:46,920 Now, if you're one of the people that is not affected by by this 271 00:13:46,920 --> 00:13:49,400 right now, by the shutdown or the furloughs or anything like 272 00:13:49,400 --> 00:13:52,320 that, then you can, if you already have your $1000 273 00:13:52,320 --> 00:13:55,680 emergency fund set up, you can move into that, that debt payoff 274 00:13:55,680 --> 00:13:58,960 that debt snowball scenario and works and work through that. 275 00:13:59,160 --> 00:14:02,600 Investing is going to come after all of this because once you 276 00:14:02,600 --> 00:14:04,400 have that eliminated, you're going to have so much more left 277 00:14:04,400 --> 00:14:06,960 to invest. The caveat there is, and we 278 00:14:06,960 --> 00:14:09,080 talked about this, I believe it was on last month's office 279 00:14:09,080 --> 00:14:14,000 hours, is if you have a employer match of any kind, if your 280 00:14:14,000 --> 00:14:18,840 employer matches any kind of retirement investments, then you 281 00:14:18,840 --> 00:14:22,320 need to whatever. If it's 3%, then you give 3% 282 00:14:22,320 --> 00:14:25,800 towards that as that is free money that they're giving you. 283 00:14:25,800 --> 00:14:27,720 If you don't take it, then you're leaving money on the 284 00:14:27,720 --> 00:14:30,320 tables. If it's three percent, 10 285 00:14:30,320 --> 00:14:34,200 percent, 5%, whatever it looks like, match that and then 286 00:14:34,520 --> 00:14:37,480 whatever is leftover that you normally would have put towards 287 00:14:37,480 --> 00:14:40,840 investing is making sure that emergency funds there and then 288 00:14:40,880 --> 00:14:44,320 your debts are getting paid off. Now the reason why that is the 289 00:14:44,360 --> 00:14:47,440 order the having that emergency fund is going to keep you from 290 00:14:47,440 --> 00:14:49,360 using that credit card on a regular basis. 291 00:14:49,800 --> 00:14:54,320 And also I have found for myself and many of my clients is when 292 00:14:54,320 --> 00:14:57,640 you have that $1000 emergency fund, your emergencies look a 293 00:14:57,640 --> 00:15:00,800 little bit different than they did when you had the credit 294 00:15:00,800 --> 00:15:02,560 card. And I'll give you an example. 295 00:15:02,560 --> 00:15:06,400 We had a flat tire this week and could have been super 296 00:15:06,400 --> 00:15:12,560 frustrating but we took it to the tire shop and they fixed it 297 00:15:12,560 --> 00:15:13,120 for. Free. 298 00:15:13,520 --> 00:15:16,920 So sometimes when those things happen like that, it's not about 299 00:15:16,920 --> 00:15:18,840 necessarily having to buy a new tire. 300 00:15:19,160 --> 00:15:22,720 It is like, OK, let's pause and let's think instead of kind of 301 00:15:22,720 --> 00:15:24,800 just jumping to worst case scenario. 302 00:15:24,800 --> 00:15:26,560 We don't have, we didn't have to get all new tires. 303 00:15:26,560 --> 00:15:30,240 The thing is when we when we can, when we can pause and 304 00:15:30,240 --> 00:15:34,080 respond to things instead of react to them, then we're going 305 00:15:34,080 --> 00:15:38,440 to be able to make more conscious decisions that line up 306 00:15:38,440 --> 00:15:41,800 with our plans and our goals. And so yes, was this the flat 307 00:15:41,800 --> 00:15:43,880 tire, frustrating? Absolutely. 308 00:15:43,880 --> 00:15:47,800 But we had things in place so that if we needed to replace 309 00:15:47,800 --> 00:15:51,480 that tire, we had an emergency fund to set aside for that type 310 00:15:51,480 --> 00:15:53,640 of stuff. Thankfully, we didn't have to. 311 00:15:54,040 --> 00:15:57,600 And so when you have that, you'll really be able to decide 312 00:15:57,840 --> 00:16:01,360 is this a real, true, in fact emergency or is this something 313 00:16:01,360 --> 00:16:04,360 that can wait? And so I do want to address too, 314 00:16:04,360 --> 00:16:07,000 if you are in a spot right now where you have to dip into that 315 00:16:07,000 --> 00:16:10,600 emergency fund, do it because that's what it's there for, but 316 00:16:10,600 --> 00:16:14,040 do your very best to get it refilled as fast as possible. 317 00:16:14,040 --> 00:16:15,480 And that's where this budget comes in. 318 00:16:15,480 --> 00:16:19,920 And it's such a tool to help you organize your money, but also 319 00:16:19,920 --> 00:16:22,320 make sure all of the things that are covered that need to be, 320 00:16:22,480 --> 00:16:23,880 need to be covered in the scenario. 321 00:16:23,920 --> 00:16:27,840 So emergency $1000 emergency fund, then your debt pay off and 322 00:16:27,840 --> 00:16:30,800 then investing. Unless of course your employer 323 00:16:31,000 --> 00:16:34,360 is giving you any kind of retirement match then invest 324 00:16:34,360 --> 00:16:35,960 that. Amount and nothing. 325 00:16:35,960 --> 00:16:39,000 More and nothing less. I'm excited about what is coming 326 00:16:39,000 --> 00:16:41,760 with the Alliance. There's some some great 327 00:16:41,760 --> 00:16:43,800 workshops I'm going to be putting together like this, 328 00:16:44,160 --> 00:16:47,240 preparing your money for the holidays and reorganizing things 329 00:16:47,240 --> 00:16:50,080 so it's a lot more user friendly. 330 00:16:50,240 --> 00:16:53,720 But you can find what you want when you need to and get you the 331 00:16:53,720 --> 00:16:55,800 questions answered that you want answered. 332 00:16:55,800 --> 00:16:59,200 So that's what office hours is about is this opportunity to 333 00:16:59,200 --> 00:17:01,640 just come together and ask the questions. 334 00:17:01,680 --> 00:17:04,000 And if you, I know that the times aren't always perfect for 335 00:17:04,000 --> 00:17:06,640 everyone. And so if that is the case, 336 00:17:06,640 --> 00:17:09,440 these are all recorded. So you can listen to them or 337 00:17:09,440 --> 00:17:12,400 watch them at your leisure. And then also, if you have 338 00:17:12,400 --> 00:17:15,720 questions ahead of time that you want to submit, you can send 339 00:17:15,720 --> 00:17:20,000 those, You can drop those in the Alliance community chat, or you 340 00:17:20,000 --> 00:17:26,079 can send a voice memo to me at speakpipe.com/debt Rebel podcast 341 00:17:26,440 --> 00:17:28,560 and you can ask your question there. 342 00:17:28,840 --> 00:17:31,600 Thank you for tuning into the Debt Rebel show today. 343 00:17:31,840 --> 00:17:34,800 Ready to take your family budgeting to the next level, 344 00:17:34,880 --> 00:17:38,680 stop that paycheck to paycheck grind and start living debt 345 00:17:38,680 --> 00:17:40,840 free? Head over to my website 346 00:17:40,840 --> 00:17:49,080 debtrebelpodcast.com. That's DEBT REBEL podcast.com. 347 00:17:49,280 --> 00:17:51,920 To grab resources. Tools and tips to make it 348 00:17:51,920 --> 00:17:54,400 happen, and don't forget. Subscribe. 349 00:17:54,480 --> 00:17:57,920 Leave a review and if you know another family that will love 350 00:17:57,920 --> 00:18:01,360 hearing today's episode, it would be such a gift for both of 351 00:18:01,360 --> 00:18:02,480 us. Your friend. 352 00:18:02,600 --> 00:18:04,720 And me if you share this episode. 353 00:18:05,160 --> 00:18:08,040 And remember your debt. Free life starts with one brave 354 00:18:08,040 --> 00:18:10,680 step, and I'm cheering you on every step of the way. 355 00:18:10,840 --> 00:18:12,000 We'll talk soon. Debt Rebel.