I give myself an unlimited budget for books. I also track basically every dollar my wife and I spend. Those two things sound like a contradiction, but they're actually the whole point.

This is how we decide what to spend on without an ounce of guilt, and what to cut without feeling deprived. Turns out "budgeting" done right feels less like punishment and more like permission.

I'm no financial advisor, just someone who loves this stuff enough to do a whole solo episode on it. This is exactly what works for us.

What you'll take away:

• The "spend ruthlessly, cut ruthlessly" rule that flips budgeting from restriction into permission
• Why you literally cannot fix your spending until you can see all of it in one place
• The forgotten subscription hiding in your statements right now (mine was $20 a month)

Chapters:

00:00 Cold open

00:30 The paycheck-to-paycheck stat that includes high earners

02:00 Monarch: putting every account in one dashboard

04:30 Spend ruthlessly on what you value (and my book budget)

06:30 Housing, childcare, and the expenses you can't change

07:30 The counterintuitive grocery move

08:00 Using AI to audit your spending

09:00 What's your biggest line item? (drop a comment)

🔗 Links mentioned:

• Monarch Money
• I Will Teach You to Be Rich by Ramit Sethi

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