Break the Taboo

Week 1 | Day 5 | GB 101: Budget Bootcamp

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Hi there! Welcome to another day of Budget Bootcamp. Today’s homework might take a little bit longer than some of the days so far, but it’s a partner assignment that’s worth the time.

At Goodbudget, we love to break the taboo of talking about money. Talking with people we trust about budgeting helps us stay accountable to the goals we set. And it can also deepen our relationships, especially if we’re working towards the same goals.

We asked Lisa if she involved others when she was creating her first budget, and here’s what she said:

“My husband and I talked about [our budget] together. My sisters and I talked about it [too] and often compared notes. We’d say things like: ‘How are you doing on your food budget? I just don’t think this amount is realistic. How are you making yours work?’”

We bet that those conversations with her husband and sisters encouraged her, motivated her, and gave her helpful perspective!

Today’s Assignment

  1. If you’re budgeting solo, think about who you’d like to have partner with you on this budgeting journey, and then ask them if they’re willing to be a listening ear for you. Give them a call or have coffee together! Brief them on what you’ve done so far and how they can help you succeed with your budget. Maybe they’ll even join you too!
  2. If you’re budgeting as a couple, your significant other is your teammate. When budgeting as a team, it’s helpful to talk about expectations early on. What kind of spending requires first consulting each other? What kind of spending is okay without that step? Will you each have your own Envelopes for things like Fun? Or will it all be shared? Talking through things like these now will save you from headaches later on.
  3. How did these conversations go? What did you talk about? Were you nervous? Excited? Tell the community in the comments below.

Happy budgeting,
-The Goodbudget Team

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120 thoughts on “Break the Taboo”

  1. I talked to my dad about budgeting. He told me about what he does and how I should budget. I’m getting a job soon so we talked about budgeting with a consistent income. I don’t think I will be sharing budgeting with anyone soon

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  2. I talked with my mom about budgeting and we discussed some of her tips and how she does it. This helped me to think about how I should budget and what I should budget

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  3. I talked to my dad about budgeting and he is very smart about that I was not nervous and he helped me understand some of the hidden expensis

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  4. I talked to my mom about how she manages budgeting and gave me tips on how to spend wisely. It made me realize that I shouldn’t stress money way to much.

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  5. I talked to my dad about budgeting and he gave me some good tips on how to budget my money in order to be successful. I will not be budgeting with someone else anytime in the near future.

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  6. I talked to my mom about budgeting and she gave me tips on how to not overspend. She also said she will help me see how much money is really being spent every month and how we can support that cost.

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  7. I talked to my mom about budgeting. She said she can best give me assistance on investments, and she will do so as it becomes more urgent.

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  8. I talk to my dad a lot about budgeting and he tell me what is good exspents and bad ones and show me how to make good decisions now with my money that will help me in the future .

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  9. I talked to my mother about how I can save money but also have fun with friends and what to look for to save money. It was a nice and informative conversation.

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  10. I talked to my mom about budgeting, she is really good with managing her money and saving it for important things. she told me that since I am working now I need to save my money smartly and not overspend so that I don’t run out of it and for when I am older and living on my own.

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  11. I talked to my dad about budgeting he told me what he does when he is paying the bills and budgeting. It helped me because it gave me ideas of what I could do too.

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  12. I would want to consult my mom on budgeting because she normally handles that kind of stuff in the house. she gave me some pointers like how to check how much money I have in my savings account.

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  13. I would want to consult my mom on budgeting because she normally handles that kind of stuff in the house. She gave me some pointers like how to check how much money I have in my savings account and such.

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  14. I talked to my mom about my income and budgeting my money. I wasn’t nervous to talk to her about it but I was interested in what she had to say and I told her that I am nervous for having to pay for all of the expenses that I will need to pay for later on. We also talked about what type of job I will get after football and basketball and how I will handle my money then.

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  15. I talked about my dad about budgeting and he gave me tips on how to save better because I just spontaneously spend and I don’t think about my money. I wasn’t nervous to talk about it.

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  16. i talked to my dad about budgeting and he made me realize that i need to prioritize my money and not spend it on things i dont need because later i might want to go do stuff but i cant because i already spent my money on something i didn’t need. i wasn’t nervous at all because he is very smart with these things

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  17. My mom knows a lot about budgeting because she owns many businesses, she told me general knowledge over budgeting, the tip she gave me was to always a margin for unexpected expenses.

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  18. I talked to both of my parents about budgeting and what to do and what not to do. It was very helpful and makes me think about some of the things I may or may not buy or do.

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  19. Currently, I don’t have a budget partner. I tried getting my partner on board, but…….However, I do consult him on financial decisions. I still have to find my buddy.

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  20. I budget alone in my relationship I try to talk but he leaves all the thinking and decisions to me. (He weaponizes his inexperience) I stress about budgeting for my bills , the joint bills and where the money is going to come from for the joint bills. Talking about plans is stressful when the other partner has no interest and the pressure to do it well is all on me.

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  21. My husband and I have been budgeting together for many years. I do the bulk of the work, making sure the bills are paid, there is money for food and extras. He is happy to just follow along and only spend what I say. I do wish we shared the work more but I think him just paying attention to his spending is as good as it is going to get. We have some close friends that we are comfortable talking money too and I use their ideas and experiences to help when I get stuck on a big spend vs save situation.

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  22. I’m nervous to talk about my budget. I’m so bad with money, it’s embarrassing. I don’t have anyone that would really lift me up. They just make me feel silly for trying and then failing because, well, that’s what I am best at. I am going to have to go it alone and prove everyone else wrong.

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  23. My mom has always encouraged me about budgeting . This time , I took the intimating and decided the route of abundance is for me . Staring by being conscious of my financial habits and improving it . So we talked about what I want vs. what I really need . And set up realistic priorities and we do it with joy

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  24. I have asked my mom long time ago about how she plan for spending and recently sharing with a friend also. They both gave simple principle: we spent less than earnings, so there will be money left.
    I believe that’s generally true for most people I know, which is good. However, I still like to continue learning and consulting my best friends how to plan for the big expense(which will probably come in the future) and spend smartly on daily life and “fun”;)

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  25. i talk to my sister she shows me where i am not being realistic and encourages me to keep going that no one is perfect but its that i keep trying that matters and will eventually yield results.

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  26. I have a counselor that I can talk to about this. At this point I don’t have anyone else that I feel like I could really work with. I may talk to a couple friends about the app and how I’m using it just to open the conversation and see where it goes from there.

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  27. My husband and I gave separate accounts cause that is what works with us so we don’t fight over money. He is really good with his money… I am not… yet. So I have talked to him about me budgeting money and he is glad I’m taking the step. He has been telling me for years to do it… but I’m hardheaded at time.

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  28. I talked to my boyfriend about my budgeting, I am doing this on my own since I am the one that spends unnecessarily. This is a learning process for me to do better with money, and learn the word NO, when it comes to my kids asking for junk.

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  29. My wife and I talked about budgeting, and it was hard and scary! We were way over spending and we didn’t want to look at our money because it means we have to be disciplined. These are some really hard tasks but, we’re hoping this will be well worth our time.

    Reply
  30. My daughter has always been my budget buddy and she’s strict. If I say I “need” something, her response is usually “do you really need it or do you just want it?” She’s very frugal and doesn’t let me get away with anything. It can be annoying being chastised for your spending by your child, but thank God for her.

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  31. my family is bad about talking about money and in being very judgemental and critical about money
    with my own son age 24, i am wanting to be very transparant and unemotional about money
    and just give him the basics that i missed
    and am still actually learning
    i have a lot of negative emotions about money that get in my way
    if i’m being honest

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  32. I showed my partner what I’ve been working on and I asked him his opinion on what to do with un-allocated money so that I don’t see it as just “fun” money… and then have to use the credit card when a car repair comes around. I decided to create a few more envelopes for car repair/emergency.

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  33. Sometime before starting this budgeting journey, I talked about it with my cousin. I still talk about it with him. He tends to bring up stuff I never really thought about. It’s really helpful to have someone to talk to. You never know what you may be missing. They do say that two heads are better than one 🙂

    Reply

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