How cool is that?!? Their stuff is simple, their message is consistent, their authenticity is palpable, and it all actually works. What they seem to want most in the world is to simply reduce suffering by helping people manage their money. They teach the techniques and lots of other personal money tips for free. It's especially great for students because it builds great habits without making them feel deprived. It definitely works for people who already have their act together, but it really shines when you are living paycheck-to-paycheck and can't figure out how to get ahead. Since then I've told everyone who'd listen about YNAB. For the first time, I saw the light at the end of the tunnel, and it didn't look like a train. In just six months I was paying all my bills on time and bought my first car by myself, with the downpayment that had been quietly gathering in my account, safely reserved by YNAB in my 'new car' goal category.

I had gotten a one-time work bonus, and I assigned it the same way as the rest of the paycheck instead of just blowing it on something fun. I felt better that first week, and when next payday showed up, I repeated the process, but this time I had a little more money to use. I took what money I had RIGHT NOW, assigned it to what was most desperate before next payday, and made the tough choices when I didn't have enough for everything. I finished reading the YNAB Four Rules, sat down on the steps in my small apartment, and tried Rule One. I had also been optimistically planning for future expenses with future income, which found me months down the road with my world having changed and that money mysteriously gone.

I had been looking in the rearview mirror and categorizing things I'd already spent, which is not helpful because it's already gone. Simple, right? Yet it made me realize I had been budgeting all wrong.

Take only the money you have right now, and assign it to the most important things you need it to do before you get paid again. When you get more money, repeat. On 3/13/15, I discovered YNAB, read Rule One, and it IMMEDIATELY made sense. I mean, why else would I not be able to get ahead? Any small savings I managed to squirrel away was always gone within a month or two, and I was right back to the same place. I was convinced that I was just no good at managing my money, and that I didn't earn enough to even bother trying. Most of them were about investment tools and interest rates and net worth, with a basic section that read something like 'make a budget, and then stick to it!' I was always behind, getting hit with late fees and overdrafts, asking family for money, and feeling pretty hopeless. I tried lots of different finance software, classes, and books. I had been paycheck-to-paycheck (or worse) my whole life. I can't really overstate the effect the YNAB budget software and philosophy has had on my life.

Ynab budgeting a month ahead