Menu

Homepage

Be you with your money...

starting with your budget.

"9 Ways to Take Your Budget to the Next Level" Course

Take your budget to the next level with this email course. You’ll get 9 tips to level up your budget and clear next steps to take so you can take action today!

Where should I send the course?

As Featured On...

Why Budget First?

The Atypical Finance Tree

Budgeting is the root of your financial tree. If the roots are strong, your tree will grow strong and big.

Budget well, and you’ll know how much you can spend, save, invest, give, and put toward debt. Budget is connected to every other area of finance.

The Atypical Finance Tree
Learn More About Why Budgeting Should Be First

How
Can

How Can I Help?

Budgeting

Budgeting is the roots of the rest of your financial tree. If your roots are strong, they will be able to anchor and resource every other area of your financial life. All of these articles show you how to budget well and in a way that works for you.

Budget Like Only You Can

I
Help?

Money Advice

Everything from career and debt tips all the way to tips on spending and saving. Here are practical and impactful articles for managing your money intentionally and in a way that will work for you.

All Sorts of Money Advice

Motivation

Motivation and Mindset are a HUGE part of personal finance. If you’re not motivated, you might not even touch your finances. Here are articles to help you get motivated, stay motivated, and reach your goals faster than ever.

Get Motivated

Let me personally guide you on how to build your budget and strengthen your roots.

After we’re done, you’ll have a budget that reflects who you are, is easy to maintain, and will skyrocket you toward your life goals.

Hire Me to Guide You

This is where the store information and link will go.

Latest Blog Posts

Change What Matters

Changing What Matters: Here’s How to Make Meaningful Changes to Your Money and Life

I just got back from a very restful vacation to Disney World with my family. It was great to see my wife and kids the whole day. My mom even came with us this time, which was enjoyable. But Disney World is a double-edged sword these days for me. Note: I promise there is a point to what follows so stick with me. 🙂 I love the food, atmosphere, rides, and everything else, but the customer experience has been lacking the past few years in Disney World. They’ve changed the way things work with lines to where it has actually

Read More »

7 Unconventional Tips for Saving Money This Holiday Season (and One for Next Year)

In just a few weeks, most of us will be spending time with our families, exchanging gifts, and eating more than we should for the second time in about a month. The holidays are certainly coming up fast! Luckily, there is still time to save money on gifts. There are some normal ways you can save money, like making a list, checking it twice, and actually sticking to it. What I want to give you today are some unconventional tips that you may not have thought of for saving money during the holiday gift-giving extravaganza. Here are seven not-so-normal ways

Read More »
8 Ways to Treat Your Christmas List Like a Budget

8 Ways to Treat Your Christmas List Like a Budget

Have you ever gotten through with the holidays come January and thought, “Where did my money go?” You might have opened up your credit card bill or bank statement and thought “I spent how much on Christmas gifts?!” I’ve been there before. The first year I was married my wife and I bought Christmas gifts for everyone. It was about 20 to 25 people—and bought an ornament for everyone on top of that. Needless to say, we spent way too much money. I’ve tried quite a few tips over the years to help rein in my Christmas spending. All of them

Read More »
A Step-by-Step Guide on Determining How Much Mortgage You Can Really Afford

A Step-by-Step Guide on Determining How Much Mortgage You Can Really Afford

The first time I was approved for a mortgage, I was looking for a home around $200,000 based on my income and bills. A mortgage around there would have made things comfortable. I was approved by my lender for a mortgage up to $350,000. “What was that?” was exactly my reaction. Knowing my budget, I knew I couldn’t afford anywhere near $350,000 and still be able to eat (I like to eat). Yet they approved me for that much—and this was in 2012 after the housing bubble burst! The reason for that is because lenders look at only your current

Read More »

4 Ways to Actually Save Money on Black Friday

With the Thanksgiving this week, and Black Friday as well, I wanted to publish this post on Wednesday rather than the usual Friday publishing time. Here are some “Don’ts” to help you save some REAL money this Black Friday. Have a very happy Thanksgiving!

Read More »

9 Brilliant Ways to Save Money on Your Heating Bill This Winter

It’s that time of year again in Chicago! We’ve already had a more winter-like Autumn with a couple of days where it got down below 30 degrees at night.

This time of year, many places in the U.S. are starting to get pretty cold, which means almost everyone is trying to figure out ways to save money on their heating bill. Even places like Florida, Texas and other more southern states can get pretty cold once the winter months hit.

Read More »
Check Out the Blog

"9 Ways to Take Your Budget to the Next Level" Course

Take your budget to the next level with this email course. You’ll get 9 tips to level up your budget and clear next steps to take so you can take action today!

Where should I send the course?