35 - What is Enough?
Start100K
How do you define enough I know for me this is kind of a difficult question and it's something that I wanna get into a little bit deeper this month with some of my other writing and I just think about this in terms of so many things um you know I mean is this money is it time is it lifestyle is it freedom and you know for me I think there's a little components of all of that I think that whenever it comes down to you know enough or we'll call it enoughness then you know we're we're looking at or at least I'm looking at you know there is a money component to that because there's a certain...
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34 - Money Day 2024 Was a Success!
Start100K
If you’re a money nerd like me, you’ll love creating your own little “holiday” for it – Money Day! I originally got this concept from . Our annual Money Day has evolved over the years, but it’s a great forcing function to keep us on track financially. This also serves as an excuse for me to nerd out and annoy with money talk for a day. To be clear, she plays a huge role in Money Day and our financial success – she just doesn’t like talking about money like I do.
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33 - Hunting for a New High-Yield Savings Account HYSA
Start100K
It has been years, actually, over a decade since we changed banks for our high-yield savings account (HYSA). But this is the year, I had a bad experience. I’m actually kind of embarrassed about it, but more on that later. Long story short, we were not being valued as loyal customers and I refuse to stay with a bank that treats me unfairly. Housekeeping note: I have no affiliate or partnership relationships with any of the banks mentioned. This is just my own experience and opinion. There are no referral or affiliate links in this article. A Quick Backstory and What Happened Originally,...
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32 - I'm Back! Kind of...
Start100K
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Episode 31 - The Value of Military Pay and Pensions
Start100K
Episode 31 - The Value of Military Pay and Pensions As a service member getting closer and closer to retirement myself, I like to look at and think about how to value my military pension. I recently received my last promotion I plan to get before I retire, so I’m getting a lot more serious about how this fits into our overall plan for financial security and independence. Erik has posted a few different articles that I thought were interesting and he’s also created some nifty spreadsheets (who doesn’t love a good spreadsheet?) that I felt were handy to have. In this episode, I talk with...
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Episode 30 - Let’s Talk Crack Money with Zac Spainhour
Start100K
Crack money??? Listen in as Zac Spainhour and Brandon talk about what “crack money” is and what to do about it. Hear about ideas to keep your crack money in check while still living life. Simplicity and ease of use are definitely keys to keeping your finances on track and under control. To learn more about Zac Spainhour, please follow him on LinkedIn and check out his YouTube channel! Links refenced:
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Episode 29 - Financial Wisdom of a Six-Year-Old
Start100K
My son, Owen asked to record a podcast episode with me, so here you go. Enjoy!
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Episode 28 - Be a FI Leader - Interview with Doug Nordman - MilMoneyCon 2022
Start100K
Doug Nordman has been a really positive influence and great mentor for me. He was gracious enough to share some of his thoughts about how junior leaders in the military can take care of those they lead financially. For more from Doug, please visit his website, find him on Facebook, or send him an email at [email protected]. Be sure to pick up a copy of his books too! Please share this show with someone you know. You can also pick your favorite episode and share it on social media. I’d love to hear from you, shoot me a note at [email protected]. I read every...
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Episode 27 - Grab Your Slice of Financial Independence with Monica Scudieri - MilMoneyCon Interview
Start100K
Check out the interview with Monica Scudieri! We discuss her new book: Grab Your Slice of Financial Independence. Monica’s story is really inspiring to really anyone, but especially if you’re working through struggles on your journey to become financially secure and independent. Check out her website and where you can pick up a copy at : Please share this show with someone you know. You can also pick your favorite episode and share it on social media. I’d love to hear from you, shoot me a note at . I read every email you send. Thanks for all your support! Now...
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Episode 26 - Google Forms Budgeting Experiment
Start100K
Budgeting isn’t particularly fun. We’ve recently started using a simple, homemade Google form to augment our envelopes and automation that we normally use. So far, we’ve had great success with it! Full article: https://start100k.com/google-forms-budgeting/ Even if you try and change the name to spending plan or whatever, its still a budget. It’s not fun. So I attempted to make it as simple as possible to track spending as we go. Please share this show with someone you know. You can also pick your favorite episode and share it on social media. I’d love to hear from you,...
info_outlineFood is one place we actually spend more on, but we are still pretty frugal. Here’s what I mean. We prioritize health and performance. We buy high quality meats and vegetables. We also use a lot of spices, so that adds a bit to the budget as well.
To take advantage of all these tips, you might need to work on your cooking skills a bit. However, that's a very worthwhile goal!
Here’s how we save on groceries:
Keep an Eye Out For Free Food
What's better than free? Obviously, there are some limitations and sometimes there's a good reason why its free. However, there's lot of free food to be had if you know where to look.
Buy Nothing Groups
We're a huge fan of our local Buy Nothing groups we've been a part of. This doesn't just apply to food though. We've gotten lots of great items for free and gotten rid of lots of things as well. If you like to save money and meet great people, you can't go wrong.
Volunteer at Local Food Banks
I've done this most of my life. Often once you've served everyone that comes through to get food, you can take what's left home. I like this one because it helps people in need and reduces waste. If you're military, check out your local USO. Sometimes they give away free food too.
Plan out a menu and stick to it. And cook at home.
Planning out a menu keeps us from buying a bunch of extra stuff. We know what we need to buy and don't buy a bunch of extra food we didn't plan to. This keeps us from buying too much and wasting from buying unnecessary food.
Have “Brinner” Once a Week
Egg omelets and bacon are pretty cheap for a whole meal. We started doing this because my son likes breakfast food – gets him to eat dinner. I also like a good omelette for dinner, so it's a win-win!
Cook Enough for Leftovers
We always make sure to cook enough to have leftovers for the next day. I literally split up the leftovers when we serve up food for dinner. This helps so I don’t overeat and makes sure I’ve got lunch for the next day.
Keep Cheap Frozen Meals on Hand
We keep pulled pork frozen flat in a baggie for nights when we don’t feel like cooking. This is our equivalent of keeping frozen pizza on hand. Make sure it’s pretty flat and you can just break a chunk off as needed. I cook up about 10 pounds at a time, so I only need to do this every so often. Plus, I like to barbecue.
Have a Leftovers Night.
Pretty self explanatory, but just save up extra leftovers and have that as a meal. Saves on cooking and saves you money!
Buy in Bulk
Buy in bulk and freeze up meal-sized portions. We buy in bulk at Sam’s or Costco. We currently have both because we’re trying to compare Sam’s and Costco. So far, we like Sam’s better, FYI.
Shop at ALDI
Seriously. They have surprisingly good food at generally great prices. I have no affiliation with them or get compensated in any way. We just like them.
Grow Your Own Food
Grow and can your own vegetables. We also got a ton of green beans from the food bank once and canned them all. Kept them from going to the trash and kept us fed.
Action Items
- If you’ve never had Brinner, that’s breakfast for dinner, you’re seriously missing out. It’s time to try it.
- Plan out your meals. The more intentional you are, the better.
- Learn to cook. This one skill alone is probably the most valuable skill any person can have. It’s good for your health, happiness, and wallet!
To contact me, please email [email protected].