Showing posts with label money. Show all posts
Showing posts with label money. Show all posts
YNAB - You Need a Budget
What does YNAB stand for? You Need A Budget! I had heard about this app a little while ago and had actually downloaded it but had never taken the time to fully look it over and put it to use properly so when they contacted us and asked us to do a sponsored review I jumped at the chance. We have tried a few different budgeting systems in the nearly ten years that we've been married but had not found one that we loved enough to stick with. We did the cash/envelope system a couple of years ago and although we found the overall principles to be extremely beneficial for us and it definitely helped us fine tune some areas, it wasn't a good long term budgeting system for us because it was cumbersome and kind of a pain. Although we stopped using that system after several months we did continue to apply those principles but then this summer decided it was time to go back to a real budgeting system.
We decided to go ahead and give YNAB a try and I can't begin to say how thrilled we have been with it! I filled out the information needed online and then we both downloaded the app. Jon was skeptical at first, but now is a huge fan. This has easily been the best and by far the easiest budgeting plan we've ever tried. It's so easy for both of us to just plug in whatever we spend right as we are checking out into the right category in the app and that's it! And we've been able to see such a difference already in how we think about our money. We are excited about it and excited to let you know if you scroll to the bottom we have a link where you can get three months free!
YNAB teaches Four Basic Rules that can help you get out of debt and save money faster.
- Rule One- Give every dollar a job.
- Rule Two- Embrace your true expenses.
- Rule Three- Roll with the punches.
- Rule Four- Age your money.
With YNAB the key is that budgeting isn't about restriction. It's about helping you find how to do more of the things that matter most to you and having total control over your money. Budgeting is flexible. Life can throw you a curveball, your plans can change, and sometimes you just change your mind. Your budget can help you get out of debt and YNAB can teach you how to live differently. For me the "aging your money" part was such a great visual for me and I love being able to see it in the app now that I understand it. YNAB considers their education and support resources as most valuable! They offer free daily online classes and YNAB is free for all students!
I did the initial part on my computer and I read all of the educational tools and tips and advice on my computer as well, but all of our day to day transactions Jon and I just immediately type in right when we do them by clicking the "add transaction" button. Like when I am checking out at the grocery store in the five to ten seconds it takes waiting for the receipt to print I just quickly type it into the app. I can't emphasize how nice and easy it is to be able to do it right in the moment and avoid having all the budgeting things and input adding up over time so that it becomes something you dread doing. And Jon and I can both be doing it at the same time each on our own phones and so we are both constantly up-to-date which we love.
So go ahead and give it a try! For students it's free and they also have a free 34 day trial that does not require any credit card info to sign up with! I think that is one of the best parts! So it truly is free and you don't get stuck paying for it the following month if it doesn't work out for you. But honestly I think if you are seriously looking for a budgeting tool you will fall in love with it like we did! And after your free 34 days it's just $5 a month after that or $50 for a year. On average YNAB users save over $200 their first month and over $3300 in the first nine months! So it can't hurt to give it a try, and I can honestly say it has not only been so helpful for us but it's been fun too!
And guess what? For our readers you can click here to get three months free! (P.S. No credit card required!)
* This post is sponsored by YNAB but all thoughts and opinions are completely our own. We absolutely love this program!
A Look At The History Of Money And Its Relation To War
A far cry from the Federal Reserve. (Reuters)
What The Islamic State’s Currency Tells Us About The Bloody Origins Of Money -- Matt Phillips, Quartz
The propaganda war from ISIL, the Sunni jihadist group controlling swaths of northern Iraq and Syria, took a somewhat expected turn last week. The black-clad fighters best known for their months-long jag of mass killings and filmed beheadings suddenly wanted to talk about monetary policy.
On Thursday, the group’s heretofore unknown finance ministry announced vague plans to mint a series of gold, silver, and copper coins for its own currency, to be called Islamic dinars. Accord to a translation from Site Intelligence, a group that tracks jihadist activity, the shadowy leader of ISIL (a.k.a. the Islamic State or ISIS) had ordered such coins to be minted as “it is far removed from the tyrannical monetary system that was imposed on the Muslims and was a reason for their enslavement and impoverishment.”
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My Comment: Some intriguing info on the history of money and war in this short article.
The Search For The Wealth Of Fallen Arab Dictators Is Now Facing Obstacles
Obstacles Mar Quest For Arab Dictators’ Assets -- New York TimesTRIPOLI, Libya — Soon after the revolt against Col. Muammar el-Qaddafi began in Libya last year, foreign banks and governments began freezing billions of dollars in assets held by his family and government, just as they had frozen accounts of the toppled governments in Tunisia and Egypt.
But the dictators and their inner circles had spent decades amassing and hiding vast fortunes, and much of the wealth was not easy to find. Libyan investigators say they have identified tens of billions of dollars in Swiss banks alone that was never frozen — all of it skimmed from Libya’s vast oil wealth and disguised under innocuous names. In Tunisia and Egypt, the new governments are pursuing foreign real estate, yachts and bank accounts that are also said to be worth billions.
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My Comment: I assume that much of this wealth will ultimately be retrieved ... but it is probably going to take a long time.