The Better Budgeting Podcast
The Better Budgeting Podcast is your go-to resource for mastering your finances without the stress. Hosted by Danielle Reese, this podcast breaks down budgeting, saving, and smart spending into simple, actionable steps. Whether you’re tackling debt, building wealth, or just looking to make your money work smarter, we’ve got expert insights, real-life success stories, and practical tips to help you take control of your financial future. Tune in and start making your budget work for you—without sacrificing the things you love!
The Better Budgeting Podcast
Money Buys Freedom and Choice, Which Buys Happiness
Ever been caught in a whirlwind weekend of kids' activities, juggling time and commitments? I found myself navigating just that, ensuring my daughter’s swim meet and my son’s first baseball practice didn't clash, thanks to the financial freedom that allowed me the flexibility to adapt on the fly. This personal story sets the stage for our discussion on the podcast, highlighting how financial independence empowers us to align our decisions with our family values, ensuring that even when life throws curveballs, we don’t have to compromise on what matters most.
Today, I promise you'll uncover the transformative journey towards financial independence and how it can significantly reduce daily stress. We introduce the Better Budgeting Playbook, a tool designed to shift your mindset towards a more holistic approach to money management. Moving beyond traditional budgeting, we focus on changing behaviors and beliefs about money, setting you on the path to financial wellness by 2025. Whether you're seeking one-on-one guidance or prefer a self-guided program, this episode provides insights and strategies to help you take control of your financial journey. Join me as I share practical steps and heartfelt encouragement for achieving true financial success and independence.
Danielle is a money coach helping women and couples who have been trying to figure out their finances FINALLY create a clear plan so they don’t have to worry about waiting to refill their bank account the next payday.
She is the founder of The Financial Freedom Society on Facebook and her signature money coaching program, The Better Budgeting Playbook. You can sign up for her newsletter by clicking here.
Take the first step towards financial freedom and sign up for a complimentary assessment call with me, Danielle Reese.
Grab your copy of "Let's Talk Groceries" Your Guide to Reducing Your Grocery Bill" This is an ebook with over 30 pages of tips, tricks, and guidance to help you save hundreds on your grocery bill!
Sign up for the early release of The Better Budgeting Blueprint for $99 with a $50 refund once completed. The release is scheduled for April 1st 2025.
You can connect with her on Facebook or Instagram.
Hello and welcome to the Better Budgeting Podcast. I'm your host, danielle Reese. I'm a money coach and the founder of the Better Budgeting Playbook, and this is my one-on-one coaching program for women and couples who have been trying to figure out their finances, finally create a clear plan so they don't have to worry about waiting on payday anymore. I became a money coach in 2020 after paying off over $60,000 in debt, rekindling my marriage, becoming financially free and wanting others to experience the same. If you'd like to work with me, you can check out the link in the show notes there. Also, we have the Financial Freedom Society on Facebook. It's a free Facebook community focusing on debt payoff, saving strategies, budgeting and money mindset. You can find the link to that community in the show notes as well. Welcome back to another episode.
Speaker 1:I have been waiting to record this episode all week, excited to share it with you. I love talking about money mindset and that's what it's going to be about today. It's going to be about freedom and choice, because your girl had an experience this past week. Oh boy, so my daughter. She's six, almost seven, and we are in the thick of swimming right now winter swimming. She is learning about competitive swimming right now and she does really well. I'm really really proud of her and we decided that we were going to do two meets this weekend. She had one that was with her team and then she had an optional one that is against a ton of other teams all around the area, but it was an hour and 10 minutes away.
Speaker 1:So the four of us packed up my husband, my son, my daughter, me we packed up and we hit the road, went an hour and 10 minutes and the night before I looked at the itinerary and that was my rookie mistake. The itinerary said that this event was going to run from 11 to 1230. And I was like, oh, this is great. Now this is a special swim meet. So I didn't think anything of it. I was like, oh, an hour and a half Fantastic, we're going to be back in time to take my son to baseball practice at four o'clock Perfect, great, we're all going.
Speaker 1:Okay, we get there and we're in the parking lot and I start talking to this other mom that has just pulled in. She's like, yeah, they're starting at 1115, which really screws up my entire day. And I was thinking, oh, like that's really weird, 15 minutes late, like it screws up your entire day, like that's weird. So we get inside and I start looking at the itinerary and it runs until 530. What? Until 5.30. What?
Speaker 1:Okay, so it's a rookie mistake, because everybody else knew that this is like a seven hour day anyway and I had no idea. I had no idea my daughter was in three events. The first two were going to go off pretty early, but then that last one wasn't going off until 3.47. That's what the time sheet was on the itinerary. We're an hour and 10 minutes from home. My son has to be at baseball practice at four. Oh, what are we going to do? My husband's super upset about it. He's like I thought we were only going to be here an hour and a half and I was like me too, man, I don't want to have to sit here all day with these wet swimmers. Like it's not my favorite thing either, but our daughter loves it. So after a lot of conversation between me and my husband, we decided okay, we're going to grab an Uber and my husband and my son are going to go 40 minutes South towards home and then from there they had a friend of ours pick up them and drive them the rest of the way, the other 30 minutes home because, you guys, it was like 150 to go the whole way and I wasn't, I wasn't having it. But that brings up my point.
Speaker 1:Some of you all are thinking like, danielle, you paid 70 for your son to go to baseball practice and that's the whole point of today's episode. It is about the freedom and choice of our finances. Yes, I could have said no, we're going to skip this practice First off. It was the very first practice of his spring season. This poor boy has been waiting since October to play baseball. Okay, and we had told him we're hyping him up. We're like, yep, we're going to baseball practice today. I'm excited to see you play. I'm excited, you know, and we get there and you know it's all in shambles. So obviously he's upset. He's eight, so he's not like crying like a baby, but he's definitely emotionally upset.
Speaker 1:And as parents, we also want to do things that you know. We want to keep our promises, we want to shift and change as needed, but we also want to give our kids what they want. I am not separated from that feeling, even though I'm a money coach, okay. So the thought of paying the $70 for the Uber here's, here's how it went in my brain okay, we had plans to go to the farm show this year. We live in Pennsylvania.
Speaker 1:If you live in Pennsylvania, you know about the farm show, the Pennsylvania farm show. If you're not from Pennsylvania then you probably don't know about it, but it's this huge event. I mean, the state capital, harrisburg, has an entire like building I swear it's a square mile that is dedicated for this one event. It is 10 days long, and city girls like me not that I'm actually from a city, but girls like me that don't enjoy farm life go out there and we get to see the animals and we get to learn about all kinds of stuff and they've they've got such crazy things. They had a mullet like a kid mullet contest the other day, which was really funny. I watched that one online. The other things that they have is pie contests and we have PA preferred items and you learn about all the agriculture. It's really awesome, awesome, especially for homeschooling opportunity to learn about our state, learn about different things.
Speaker 1:This event is free. However, there is some cost to it, right, like you're there all day, you're going to want to eat, you're going to want to do some of the paid things that they have as well. And I had set aside money for that and I was like, okay, well, here are the options, we forego this event so you can go to baseball. Like, are we cool with that? And the answer was, yeah, we're good. We went, I think, a year and a half ago, two years ago. We're good, it's fine, we can miss it. Honestly, it's so freaking cold. I'm okay with missing it too.
Speaker 1:Okay, but when you have the freedom of choice in your finances, you get to pick what you are doing. It is not dictated that you can't do something. Some people never grow up with this feeling. It's just stress all the time with our finances, no matter what. And I'm going to share another little story of how I kind of grew into this and decided that finances will never be the dictation of my life. I will always have freedom of choice, no matter what. And I will tell you sometimes you'll always have freedom of choice, no matter what. And I will tell you, sometimes you'll take that freedom of choice and you will go and you will get into debt. And sometimes you won't get into debt and you have even more freedom of choice. Me, I had freedom of choice. I got into debt, I was like this really sucks, because then you don't have freedom of choice. So then I got back out of debt so that I could have freedom of choice.
Speaker 1:So back when I was 16, it was before I was driving I was going on a date and my parents were taking me my mom and my stepdad and I don't know why I am like this quite yet I'm going to have to really dig into it but I have always been an independent woman. I don't want no man paying for my stuff. I want to have my own freedom of choice and I want to be able to do what I want to do, and that's something I've really, over the last I'd say, two years, maybe even three years, have been trying to change a lot, as being a Christian woman is leaning into my husband and letting him lead versus me lead. But anyway, I'm a 16 year old girl and I'm going on an estate. This kid, you know, doesn't drive. I don, I don't drive. Parents are taking us.
Speaker 1:We're going to the movies and I don't remember why, but I had a coupon or gift certificate for the movie and I gave it to him because I was like oh, like, I asked you in the state here, like you, can you know, you can have this gift card and buy your ticket, or you know whatever, I don't know guys, I and buy your ticket, or you know whatever, I don't know guys. I don't know what the heck I was thinking, because typically the boy would like take the girl out. But anyway, I went ahead and I gave him the gift certificate. And we get to the movie theater and I pull out my debit card because I'm working, I've got my own bank account Pull up my debit card and it declines. I'm like that's so weird. It's Saturday.
Speaker 1:I got paid on Friday, like what is happening? I haven't gone anywhere, I went to school. So I'm like I'm really sorry, but I don't have any other money. And he's like, oh, it's cool, like let's just use this gift card, we'll skip on the popcorn, whatever. And I said, okay, I am in sheer embarrassment, right, like my card declined and I gave this kid the gift certificate and he's got to give it back to me. I was so, so embarrassed. We get in the car and I said mom, I don't know what happened, but like my card declined and she says you've been spending too much money, I've turned your card off in front of this boy Like it's not shut, and I was like I'm sorry, what? Here's the thing. We never talked about finances other than my mom was like you need to save, you need to save, you need to save, you need to save, right. So my sheer embarrassment is times 20 because I can't pay for my ticket and my mom tells me that I've been spending too much money and then I just go ahead and turn my card off, doesn't even tell me, and I'm like okay, subconsciously, now I am never, ever going to be in a position where money is a problem for me. I will not let other people dictate my money choices. I will have full control of my finances.
Speaker 1:Some of you might have experienced something like this in your life as well. It could be something as simple as you know, you weren't allowed to buy certain things. It could be something super major where you've been declined credit access or pre-approval for a home. You've had this feeling as well. For me, it started at 16. For you, you might be 40, you might be 25, you might be 65. And if it hasn't yet, you need to figure out what's it going to take for you to decide. I'm taking control of my finances and I will no longer be told that I can't buy something, I can't have access to something. I have to be somewhere at a certain time. What is that moment for you? If it hasn't happened yet, what is it going to take for you to finally decide? This is the year. I can't take it anymore.
Speaker 1:The way that we're living, the rushing around, the two jobs, three jobs, always trying to sell things to make up extra dollars, the rising grocery prices, the rent, the trying to get a house, all of that. When are you going to decide that you are taking control? The old saying of money doesn't buy happiness is a crock of baloney. Okay, it does not buy happiness, for sure, but it does buy freedom and choices every single time. Every single time Because here's a couple of examples it gives you the freedom and choice to leave a job. You hate it. You are dreading going to that work every single day. If you had money in the bank account, you could leave that job. If you had an emergency fund, you could leave that job. Right, you have the freedom and the choice to stay home with your kids if they're sick. If there's a snow day, you need to take off early because they've got appointments, or if you just want to play hooky and go ahead and take them out for a fun day. You have options, you have freedom, you have choice.
Speaker 1:I see it all the time, especially with my clients as they come in and they're like I can't take off, I risk losing my job. I don't have any PTO. The thing that will solve that is money. Money will not buy happiness in a sense of bringing joy. It brings opportunity and freedom. That's what brings your joy, and a lot of times the thought about being financially free is how much money you'll have to buy other things. But I don't want you to think of it as buying things. I want you to think of it as buying time. If you had money in the bank, you wouldn't be in the situation that you're in. You would have freedom, you would be stressing less, you would have less arguments with your spouse, you'd be able to spend more time with your kids. You wouldn't be waking up in the middle of the night, stressing and having terrible dreams and night sweats and all these things because your finances are dictating your life.
Speaker 1:It is time to take control and here in the Better Budgeting Playbook, we do not just put numbers on a paper and say go follow it. We are digging into these stories that I have shared with you about my own life. We're digging into those and we're understanding. Why are you this way? What is the money beliefs that you have? What have they told you in the past? What beliefs are you believing? That is just such a piece of crap that you are just not living the life that you want to live. Finances are personal. That is why we call them personal finances. It is much more than numbers on a paper and that's why coaching is such a great option.
Speaker 1:If you have tried budgeting before, I will tell you you. Come into the Better Budgeting Playbook. You will have a whole new view of finances because we are putting you in your finances. If you've tried the Dave Ramsey way, okay, I started that way too, but eventually it just didn't work anymore because we weren't talking about our behavior with money. We weren't talking about our mindset about money. We weren't talking about our beliefs of money. We weren't talking about the choice of okay, do we do this or we do that, do we go on vacation or do we pay off debt. Those are really really tough choices, and if you don't have somebody in your corner to help walk you through that process, you're going to fail. You're going to fail. That's what we do in the Better Budgeting Playbook. We guide you. I say we me, I guide you through the process of making financial decisions because you don't need another budget. Honestly, I have clients that have been working with me for four months. We haven't even talked about a budget yet because we are still digging into the finances.
Speaker 1:Now, that is something that is an obsolete, that doesn't happen very often, but that just shares with you how important it is to talk about the mindset behind finances. Because if we can't change your behavior with money, those numbers on the paper will never even out. They will never equate to debt freedom, they will never equate to financial freedom. They will never equate to tons of money in the bank. It just won't happen. We have to change our behavior. And it sounds funny, but things don't change unless you change right. And remember I said you change, not the numbers on the spreadsheet. As long as you change your behavior, change, you can have financial freedom and it goes back to what is that moment for you that is going to be like. I will never, ever be in this situation ever again. I will never have someone else control my time, my money, my freedom ever again. Again, that was for me at 16 years old. For you again, it might be at a different age, it might've already happened and you're on your journey, but you just can't break through and you just can't figure out. Like, why is this just not working? Sign up for a consultation with me. Let's talk it out, let's figure out what is keeping you from breaking through. You can sign up for a consultation with me. In the show notes. There's a link there directly to the website. Go through there, read it, see if coaching is going to be a good fit for you. It probably is going to be a good fit for you.
Speaker 1:I've got two different types of programs. I've got one-on-one coaching. That it's you and me sitting in a zoom. We're hashing things out. This is like the run method, right? If you're like I can't waste any more time, I need one-on-one support. I need personalized attention right away, okay, one-on-one coaching is for you. If you're like ah, you know that's not so much for me, I need something that's a little bit more laid back, something I can do on my own work through.
Speaker 1:I have determination. I've been working on my finance for a bit. I just need some accountability and I need some tools that are going to help me get there. I've got a DIY option now. It is amazing People are getting success with that as well. So I have two different tiers of coaching, whatever fits within your budget. I also have multiple payment options on how you want to pay, because I know it's scary to invest in money coaching when money is the problem. I totally get it All right, and that is why I'm making it as easy as possible for you to work with me, making it affordable as well, so that you can get to your goals in 2025.
Speaker 1:That's what I want for you to work with me, making it affordable as well, so that you can get to your goals in 2025. That's what I want for you. I really, really want that. But again, it's not all about the budget. You've got to work on the mindset. You've got to change your behaviors, too, and both of those programs will help you with that as well. So thanks so much for listening to this week's episode. I'll see you next week, take care.