Personality-based budgeting with budget coach Erin Britt / 86

Some people color-code their budgets, reconcile every transaction, and genuinely enjoy a spreadsheet. Others would rather do just about anything else. If you've ever looked at someone else's budgeting system and thought, There's no way I could keep up with that, you’ll want to hear this conversation.

In this episode, we chat with budget strategy coach and host of The Budget Effect, Erin Britt, to unpack one big question: does your personality determine whether you'll be good at budgeting? We explore the strengths that both type A and type B personalities bring to money management, why flexibility matters more than perfection, and how to build a budgeting system that actually fits your life instead of forcing you into someone else's.

✨ Episode Highlights ✨

• [00:00] Why personality type has more to do with budgeting than you might think.
• [02:00] Can type B personalities actually budget? Why everyone needs a money system, even if you hate structure.
• [06:00] Breaking down the common traits of type A and type B personalities, plus how each one influences money habits.
• [09:30] Why traditional budgeting advice often feels designed for type A personalities — and what type B budgeters need instead.
• [11:30] The freedom of giving yourself permission to change your budget every month as your life changes.
• [16:30] Why personalizing your budget categories can make budgeting feel more motivating and aligned with your values.
• [19:00] Budget "rules" you can let go of, and why flexibility doesn't mean giving up financial boundaries.
• [23:30] How different budgeting styles — from detailed categories to broad spending buckets — can all be successful.
• [26:30] How to tell whether a budgeting method simply needs more practice or genuinely isn't the right fit for you.
• [32:00] What type A and type B personalities can learn from each other, and why comparison rarely helps your financial journey.

✨ Resources ✨

• Listen to Erin's podcast, The Budget Effect
• Visit The Budget Effect website: https://thebudgeteffect.com

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Transcript

SPEAKER_00 0:00

Hey girlies, welcome back to another episode. Today we have a guest named Erin Britt. She is a budget strategy coach and host of the podcast, The Budget Effect. Erin helps moms build a system for their household money that can make their dollars stretch and go further. And in this episode, we talk about whether you can actually budget as a type B person or if you're just doomed to fly by the seat of your pants forever.

SPEAKER_01 0:20

We love the emphasis Aaron puts on finding what works for you. And she's clear that everyone, regardless of personality type, needs to find a way to manage their household finances. But we also love how much creativity and customization she encourages and how you actually do that. So whether you classify yourself as type A like Cassidy or type B like me, you will get some helpful budgeting tips from this conversation.

SPEAKER_00 0:43

Do you want a chance to hang out with other finance girlies in a warm and welcoming community? We're launching our very first Finance Girlies book club in August, and we would love to have your cute little face join us. We're kicking off with The Simple Path to Wealth by JL Collins, which just so happens to be the book that convinced us to start investing now instead of holding it off for a hundred more years. The book club is totally free to join and we'll meet twice throughout the month to discuss and make new friends. Sign up now at the FinanceGirlies.com slash book club. Links in the show notes.

SPEAKER_01 1:17

Welcome to the Finance Girlies, a podcast for millennial and Gen Z women who are curious about money but have never quite felt at home in traditional finance spaces.

SPEAKER_00 1:26

We are Emily Backdorf and Cassidy Horton, podcast hosts, longtime friends, and finance writers for brands like AOL and Yahoo Finance.

SPEAKER_01 1:34

Rather than giving you prescriptive advice, we talk about money the way friends actually do. Stories, questions, and a lot of figuring it out in real time. Okay, so uh when we first were talking about recording this episode, Cassidy mentioned something about both of us being type A. And I was like, I don't really think I'm type A, but it's funny you think that. So we uh like took a couple online quizzes real quick. Sure enough, I'm type B. So this question is is personal for me. If you're someone who's classically type B, maybe you hate spreadsheets, you love spontaneity, which actually that doesn't track for me, and you tend to go with the flow. Can budgeting work for you?

SPEAKER_02 2:16

Well, of course, the answer is yes, right? Otherwise, we wouldn't be doing this episode. But I think that type B people really need to still budget because you can't just say, I'm not organized, I don't do well with structure, I'm not good at spreadsheets, so I'm not gonna budget. You wouldn't say, like, I'm not tidy, I'm not organized, so I'm never gonna clean my home, right? You find a way to do it with your personality because it's something we need to do, right? Managing our money is something we all need to do. So I think people who are maybe having that question really need to change their mindset around it, like, oh, I'm not good at this because I'm not an organized person or I'm not good with spreadsheets. Like, okay, then we need to find a way that works for your personality because managing your household money is something that you need to do. So, yes, budgeting can absolutely work for type B people. Absolutely. So I have a question, Cassidy. What made you think Emily was type A?

SPEAKER_00 3:16

It honestly shocked me to find out that Emily was type B after we took a few quizzes. And I think it's because I am type A and the quizzes that I took did reaffirm that. And Emily and I budget in a lot of the same ways. So I just assumed like if she and I have worked out the same way to budget, then it must be because she is type A just like me. And she also seems very organized and on top of things. Like even as we do our podcast stuff together, I feel like behind the scenes she keeps us way more organized than I would keep us. And so I was like, Emily must be even more type A than I am. So, Emily, what made you type B? What traits did you have?

SPEAKER_01 3:54

Well, I think it's like what Cassidy sees outwardly is misaligned. I'm glad that's what comes off, but like inside it's just crazy. I really struggle to have systems for like keeping things organized. Budgeting, I guess, would be an exception to that. And I there are some exceptions. And that might be in part because it's something I do with my husband and like his brain works differently. So I have that, like, if it were solely up to me, I very well could be using a different strategy. So yeah, I guess the big thing that makes me feel like, oh, I'm definitely not type A is I struggle with systems and I am not always striving for perfection, I guess. Right.

SPEAKER_02 4:40

I would say that I am type B, definitely. And look at me, like I actually love my budget spreadsheet, and I I love creating a system. Like my friends always tell me, you're so creative, but I don't feel creative artistically. Like I'm not good at decorating my house. Nothing looks nice. Where my creativity comes in is like kind of creating that system. So, like I have this problem or this constraint. What creative way can I come up with to do it? Like with working out and cleaning. I don't like to do these things. I'm not good at systemizing it. I'm not a tidy person. But one system I did was like, okay, I'm gonna pick the amount of songs I need to clean this room. And if I go over those amount of songs, every song I go over, I'm gonna do 10 push-ups. So like I really do weird things like that. I have like weird systems, and that keeps me, I guess, interested. So yeah, I would say I'm very type B, but I I find my creativity in creating those systems. Also, it's kind of like a continuum, right? It's kind of a spectrum. Like you can be mostly type B and still have some type A qualities.

SPEAKER_00 5:52

All right. So, how would you define if people were unsure about like type A versus type B, how would you define each?

SPEAKER_02 5:59

Okay, so like I said, this is nothing scientific. I think this is more like culturally how we define it. And I do have a list here from Google that I'm gonna read. So type A traits, highly organized, goal-oriented, detail-focused, loves structure, routines, lists, plans things in advance, gets stressed when things feel out of control, has perfectionist tendencies, a high achiever, they thrive on productivity. They're often very time conscious. They they know the time limits, and they like things to be just right. Some, I would say, maybe negative qualities with this is they can be stubborn, easily angered or frustrated and intolerant. And then type B traits, typically they're more laid back, easygoing. They like more spontaneity, like we said, instead of structure. They focus on the big picture instead of all the little steps or little details along the way. Um, they're more comfortable with flexibility and change. They don't get flustered by unpredictability. They're known to like procrastinate or just go with the flow. They like creativity and freedom over rules, and they may resist those routines and resist control. Um, they're more reflective, creative, dreamy. And some of their negative thing traits that can go along with this are they might be impatient, easily bored, kind of self-indulgent. And when we're talking about budgeting, like these are the people who might have more trouble with impulse spending.

SPEAKER_00 7:36

No, those are really great. And as you're reading all the type A traits, I was like, yep, that's me. That's me, that's me. So whenever it comes to money management specifically, like which of those type A traits are advantageous? Like which of those traits are actually good to have for money management?

SPEAKER_02 7:55

Right. Like I think definitely like the detail focused, they like structure, planning in advance, having the rules and the high achiever, right? I think those are some qualities that would all be really good for a type A person managing their money. Um, what about for like a type B person? Okay. The biggest thing I think is helpful for type B people is that they are more flexible. Okay. So when things don't go as planned, they don't get as stressed. They're able to go with the flow more and adjust their budget. They're also creative. Like, yeah, type A people like that structure, so they have a structure, but type B people have more of a creative, like, oh, this didn't work. Let me try this. And they have that capability to be creative in their budgets.

SPEAKER_00 8:40

I see that even in myself, I think. Like if I I do feel very easily frustrated if something doesn't go my like how I expected it to, and I know that. So like as soon as I'm frustrated, I'm like, it's okay. Like this thing, this type of thing happens. Like we can roll with the punches, it's fine. So I like I feel like I'm able to move through it more quickly. But I've also always felt like I struggle to think outside of the box in those situations. So I could see how being more typey, it's like okay. You're able to roll with those punches kind of more easily and come up with an alternative solution without feeling it so much, I think. Right.

SPEAKER_01 9:14

Yeah. So a lot of traditional budgeting advice feels like it's geared toward type A people. So keeping that advice in mind, like what parts of traditional budgeting are hard for type B people and why?

SPEAKER_02 9:27

I feel like type B people in general kind of resist the control, resist the structure. Like, don't put me in this box. Don't make me do the same thing every day. Don't make me plan something a month in advance or even more than that in advance. I'm like that. I don't like when people ask me my plans two weeks from now. Like, what how am I supposed to know how I'm gonna feel on that day? Right. So I think that's really what type B people resist. And at the same time, I think that type, like if you're type B and you like to go with the flow and you like spontaneity and just to get up and go somewhere, then you need some structures in place to help you. If you're a type B person and you're not gonna sit down and do your like budget every Saturday morning at the same time, then you need to have some automations in place so that you don't miss your bills, right? I used to just miss my bill payments because I didn't have it written down that I should do it. I would just miss deadlines and things like that. So I needed like a budget, a spreadsheet actually helps me a lot as a type beat person. It gives me that underlying structure so that I know while I'm out living my life, I know that I have this structure in place that is supporting me. So I don't have to stress about like, oh, am I overspending money? I don't know. Do I have enough? I have no idea. Nope. I have I know exactly. And if I choose to go over, I I know I'm gonna be able to adjust things because I'm just so aware of my finances, even if a lot of it is in my head for a lot of the month. And then I finally sit down and like put it all on paper at one point. So yeah, I think type B people, even though they resist that structure, they can still set up a structure that works for them.

SPEAKER_00 11:17

I also know that so many people in general, like the biggest struggle, regardless of your personality type, is just trying to find a budgeting system that is sustainable. And I know for a lot of people, like that takes some experimentation, especially in the beginning. But what do you think the key is for type B people specifically to create a budget that's sustainable? How can they do that?

SPEAKER_02 11:40

I think the key is for them to know that once you create your budget, that does not have to be the same thing for month after month after month. You can create a different budget every single month. In the beginning of my when I started budgeting, I created a new budget every single month. Now, part of that was because money was really tight. I had debt to pay off. I never had budgeted before. So part of it was that. And so I'm like, okay, well, I'm not gonna give money to my home category. You know, I have different categories in my budget, like, change it up. Yeah, I have them all planned out so that I have exactly the amount of money I want, but type B people, give yourself permission to change your mind at any time. It's not set in stone.

SPEAKER_00 12:45

Yeah, that feels like really freeing advice. I also think that that applies, like, even though I feel very type A, just Emily and I are both freelance riders. So I feel like our income fluctuates from month to month. And that's something that I have had to come to accept is just that, like, however much money I can give myself in each of my budgeting categories will look different month to month based on what my income was from the previous month. And that's something that I had to, I think, do a lot of mindset work around and let go of because as a type A person, I wanted to be like, I'm always, every single month, gonna do X amount. Like, this is a system that I've built and this is what it's gonna be, and I'm not gonna have to think about it. So I think in that way, too, like I have had to force myself into more flexibility than I would typically have as a type A person.

SPEAKER_02 13:36

So maybe budgeting is really better for type B people because you have to be more flexible when you budget, and it's not always gonna go as you plan. Maybe we're all mistaken. Maybe it's more for type B people. Right. Right.

SPEAKER_01 13:49

Mm-hmm. Yeah. I am someone who changes my budget around pretty often, but there's always a little bit of like, should I be doing this? You know, because it just feels like I set this plan, I should stick to it. But you're right that things change all the time. So why shouldn't your budget change to reflect that? So that's a really good reminder.

SPEAKER_02 14:09

I think it's good though to question it because yeah, you shouldn't just be changing on a whim every time something doesn't quite go the way, oh, I'll just change it. I'll just change like I think it is good that you still question it.

SPEAKER_01 14:21

Yeah, yeah, that's a good point too. And then of course at the end, you know, all the the numbers have to work too, right? They have to balance. So it's not like there are limits to how much you can change, of course. Right. But sometimes, you know, the the balance, the proportions need to be adjusted a little bit.

SPEAKER_00 14:40

Mm-hmm. I I have a question for the type B folks in the room. All right, whenever you change your budget month to month, are you actually changing the categories too, or is it primarily just the amounts? Like your categories are pretty set in stone. Do you want to go first, Emily?

SPEAKER_02 14:54

Mine are pretty set in stone. I think Yeah, mine are pretty set in stone. I think that mine are more set in stone now. When I was first beginning my budgeting and I had less of a like a smaller income, I definitely changed the categories. Also, I am always, I am constantly like it's just kind of who who I am as a person, like reflecting on my goals, my values, like like my core values. I'm one of those people, like I know my three words, my core values, and I'm reflecting on that, like around my birthday, around the new year, or whenever I'm feeling kind of ble, I go back to like, well, what do I want? What's most important? So then sometimes my categories do change, or even if it's like the same category, I'll give it a different name. I'll give it like, like I give to money to my church, right? But then I change that to giving and then I change it to generosity. And I think that's part of it too. Like just my budget, and I think this is why it works for me as a type B person, it's like part of my like living an aligned life. Spending my money on what's most important to me, it's it's part of living an aligned life. And so I'm constantly just making sure it aligns with my life.

SPEAKER_01 16:10

That reminds me of Cassidy when you revamped your budget about a year ago. If I recall, you like you were very intentional about how you named each of your budgeting categories, and I loved how you did that.

SPEAKER_00 16:24

That inspired me to update some of ours too. Yes, I made them much more uh personable. I think whenever you initially create a budget, you're just like, I don't know, rent, groceries, food, food. Right. But I'm like clothes with four S's on the end and a smiley face. And you know, I'm like coffee shops with an exclamation point and a smiley face. And then like my home decor category, it's like cozy home things because I feel like that's part of it. Like I'm trying to almost like nest in a way and make my home super cozy, especially if that's also where you work from. Like, I just want I want to be like, I love my home so much. So, you know, it's like cozy home things is my home category. So I did do a lot of reflecting. I my like I I feel like everyone has a catch-all category in their budget too, for the most part. And for many years, mine was just called like not budgeted for, you know, it's just like the catch-all of oh, I didn't budget for these things, but I renamed it to whoopsies, which felt kind of fun to be like, whoops, forgot to wash her house.

SPEAKER_02 17:29

That's fine. Right. I like that. Yeah. I mean, that is another strategy I would give to type B people, even though you're type A, Cassidy. That is a strategy that I would give to type B people. I'm kinda well, this is a whole nother episode, but I'm kind of against the catch-all categories. But I'm okay with like keep some money unbudgeted. And especially if you're type B, if that's something that helps you, keep some money unbudgeted. But I always say, like, don't just name it miscellaneous or something like that. I like your whoopsie though. But like eventually then take money out of there and add it to your coffee shops or add it to your clothes or add it somewhere. I I'm just kind of against the catch-all category. But again, that's a whole nother episode, maybe. Yeah.

SPEAKER_00 18:17

Yeah. I actually do find myself doing that. Like a lot of times I will throw like maybe a hundred dollars in my whoopsie category. But what I find whenever I'm kind of like balancing my budget throughout the month is that if I do go over and like dining out and I need to cover it, I will pull that money from the whoopsie category. Or if I spend, I don't know, just a little more anywhere. Like I find myself pulling money from that and not necessarily like assigning a transaction to the whoopsie category. Right, right. So like overflow.

SPEAKER_01 18:48

Mm-hmm. Mm-hmm. Yeah.

SPEAKER_00 18:50

Yeah, like an overflow kind of thing.

SPEAKER_01 18:51

Okay. What is one classic budgeting rule that type B folks should have permission to let go of?

SPEAKER_02 18:57

Well, I do think that the biggest thing was to not think it has to stay the same every month. Like you can change your budget. And then another thing is type B people seem to reject the structure, right? If you give them a structure, they'll automatically just want to go up against it. So I would say, like, yes, we need to have boundaries. You can't overspend your income. You can't spend more money than you have. But it's okay if you put this much in your food category and now you're spending more money than that, that's okay. You can adjust it. The habit to build then is to track your spending and adjust your spending throughout the month so that you can change your mind in those ways. But yeah, I think the the budget is there as your boundary, as your structure. But the budgeting rule to let go of is you can change it. It can be a rubber band boundary. Go out, come back. As long as you're not, like you said, as long as you're not overspending your actual money that you have.

SPEAKER_00 19:58

I kind of do like the idea of sitting down like the first of every month or something and being like, this is how much money that I have. What do I want to do with this money for this month? And only think of it in that container. And that could be like, Real I know that I'm gonna take this day trip this month. And if it's gonna take up this much money, then maybe I try to spend like a little bit less on dining out or groceries, like trying to almost like a puzzle, like trying to, based on whatever you want to do that month, kind of fit all of the puzzle pieces together to where you're still staying within budget, but you're like totally customizing it and only thinking about it through the lens of that one month and like what you need to do and what you want to do. That that feels very fun.

SPEAKER_02 20:43

See, you like those puzzles because you're a type A. You like the puzzle of it, right? So, but type B, so type A, so there's the mindset. It's all about the mindset, right? When you go over your budget or something doesn't work out, or you're just planning. Type A people, your mindset can be like, okay, how can I make this work in my spreadsheet? This is a puzzle. How can I figure this out? And type B people, you can be more like, how can I be creative to solve this problem? So it's it's kind of the same thing. It's just coming at it with a different approach depending on who you are as a person.

SPEAKER_00 21:18

Yeah, that that's so funny that you pointed that out. That makes sense. What types of budgeting methods have you seen work well for each personality type? Whether it's like pen and paper spreadsheet, app, like what are you seeing work?

SPEAKER_02 21:33

I teach people to do basically the same method, no matter who you are, but it's a very foundational framework, right? Figure out what's the most important to you and then create a zero balance budget. I think you guys do zero balance budgeting as well, if I heard right. And then track your spending, adjust your budget as you need to, and then always close out at the end of the month and move money. I always tell people like, move your money. Can move it at the beginning of the month too, but also at the end of the month, kind of when you're adjusting your whole budget. So, like that is the basic foundation that I teach. So that's the method every single time. And then what works differently for different personalities is like some people like to have it planned out. They need they want to have more sinking funds. They want to put the same amount of their money in a closed fund, a home fund. They want to put the same amount away every time and keep like a pot of that money in their savings. So they are always moving that extra. And then some people are like, I just want to do it month to month. So they're not as far planned ahead, or they're just not that together in their budgeting journey. You know, I also think it depends on how long you've been budgeting and how much practice you have with it that you can kind of get better at those things as you go. Um, we mentioned the different categories. So, like some people might want a broader, like, I'm gonna have all my bills and then I'm gonna have like the rest of my money to spend. They might want a very broad category left. And some people want it very orderly. I want to spend it on this, this, this, and this. So, within this method that we use, I think your categories have a huge play in your personality. I think categories are underestimated so much because that that like makes your budget personal and that's your why, that's your motivation. And no matter what personality you are, you set up your categories to fit you. That's like within that method, I would say how much you want to plan ahead, your different categories that you pick, and then also like how you move money. So some people like to move. I'm always gonna put this much in my investments, I'm always gonna put this much in my savings, this much for like, and I'm gonna move that all at the beginning of the month. Some people, I've seen success where like people set really high goals. Like, yeah, they could move 200 at the beginning of the month, but they have a goal to set to move 300. So they'll put 300 in their budget, but they won't move it till the end of the month in case they really don't reach that goal. So they can kind of take some money away from it and then move it at the end of the month. Or that would drive some people crazy. Like, no, I want to move this much every month, but some people need the extra push, like, but I just want to try to get this, you know.

SPEAKER_01 24:20

One thing this reminds me of, especially with the categories, is we interviewed uh Jillian Johns Roode almost a year ago, probably. She is a mini retirement expert, so she helps people plan anywhere from like a month to a year off of work. And when she does the like financial planning piece of that, I remember she gave an example of like instead of budgeting for like food during your retirement, like say you're going to spend a month in Mexico, set money aside and label it tacos in Mexico or whatever it is. And so I think if you are someone who struggles to like plan for the future, maybe you're a type B and that's doesn't come naturally to you. Like little tricks like that can kind of help you stay motivated, I guess.

SPEAKER_02 25:04

Talking about motivation, also, again, it comes down to your mindset, right? Like, say you're in a very low spend era in your life, right? For type A people, just like tracking that and meeting your goal every day or every week, that might be enough motivation for you because you like the numbers. You could even track it with like visually people do. I feel like people fill in little sheets and stuff. That might be great for type A people. I say type B people, you're those big thinkers. You're those like futuristic, dreamy people. So when you're in this low spend, I say like, think of it as your story. Like, this is your story that you're gonna tell somebody someday. I went through this period, this era where I only spent this much money on groceries per week. Can you believe that? I rode my bike instead of drove three times a week because I was saving money on gas. Like, make it your story instead of I'm in a low spend month. This is boring. I need to track it every day. I'm trying to stick within this budget, this rule. Like, that's that's not gonna work for type B people. Type B people make it your story, make it your adventure.

SPEAKER_01 26:14

Yeah, I love that advice. Yeah, that's really beautiful. Okay. How can you tell the difference between a budgeting system that just doesn't fit your personality and what I think is like the normal discomfort of just like learning how to budget? So, like, how do you know when something is like when to give up on something? Do you know what I mean?

SPEAKER_00 26:34

Like something's hard because it's new versus it's hard because it's not working.

SPEAKER_02 26:38

Right. I mean, this is such a good question. I think, see, this is my type B coming out. Instead of giving up, how can I just tweak this a little bit to make it work for me? Like, get to the bottom of what's not working. You know, you journal. I'm a journaler. I don't know if you guys journal, but like where you just keep asking yourself why? This is how I feel today. Why, why? And you keep answering your question and then asking yourself why, why, why? That will answer that question for you. So is this just a hard habit or is this not working for you? And you need to find a different way to do it. Like I said in the beginning of this episode, we all need to manage our household money. So make it your mission to figure out a way to manage your household money that works for you. And I mean, you could also like I listened to an Andrew Huberman podcast. I don't know if you guys are familiar with Andrew Huberman, but he had a really good episode on habit building. And he said in there, this is according to scientific research, he said, some habits, depending on how hard they are, for you, it's your personal, like how hard is this for you? They could take 20 days to build all the way up to, I think the number was like 253 days, according to research. Like people had to do something for 253 days in a row before it was established as a habit. So keep that in mind that everybody is different. What some people catch on to and establish as a habit in 30 days, the 30-day challenge, other people need longer. If you are very resistant to something, you're gonna need longer. But then there are things that you can do, like do it in the morning. Like, so do the habit-building things that are good, according to research. Do it in the morning. Don't do do a couple things each day, lessen it. Like if you're doing too much, if tracking your spending every week is too much for you, break it into steps, you know. And that's very type A. Break it into steps instead of seeing it in the big picture, but just smaller chunks. Okay, so to kind of consolidate what I just said. If something seems hard, journal it out, ask why it's hard, get to the bottom of it, and then focus on those habits, things that are good, habit building, habit stacking. And if it's that's still not working, then maybe then yes, change it. But the point is you've gotta still find a way to manage your household money.

SPEAKER_00 29:00

Yeah. That's really good advice. I it also reminds me of the book Atomic Habits by is it by James Clear? And I felt like I started doing a lot of habit stacking or just like habit association after that book with things that I kept forgetting to do. So like I always take the medication that I need to take at night, like when I'm washing my face and brushing my teeth, because like I never forget to wash my face and brush my teeth, but I was forgetting to take my medication sometimes. So it's like I now associate all of those things as like this is what you do before bed. Just like little little things like that, figuring out what you can anchor. Maybe it's like habit anchoring, like what you what what habit you want to start building, like anchor it to something that you already do and just make it a part of that process can also be really helpful. Right.

SPEAKER_01 29:47

So this also reminds me sometimes I listen to Rumi Sati's podcast, Money for Couples, and occasionally he'll have people come on who are like in this bad financial situation, and like, you know, everyone has things working against them. Like, for example, there was a couple, they both had ADHD, and he was like, I'm really sorry about that. Like, I I don't know much about it, but at the end of the day, you're gonna have to figure out like money habits and strategies that like work for you with your ADHD, just like you're saying, Aaron. Just because your brain doesn't work this way doesn't mean you know, you don't have to manage your money. Or like you said, just because you're not naturally a tidy person doesn't mean you want your house to like fill up with clutter and garbage. Like you need you need to find this the solutions that work for you. Right, exactly.

SPEAKER_00 30:40

That is a good reminder though. Like there there are infinite ways to do something. And if like the primary ways that you keep hearing about just like don't work for you, that doesn't mean that there's not a solution out there. And the fact that you may have to work a little bit harder to find out what solution is right for you kind of sucks. Like it would be nice if the first thing you tried was the thing that stuck, and also like there is some solution out there. So yeah, it's just a matter of finding it. That's a good way.

SPEAKER_02 31:03

I like how you said it. Right. And so don't be afraid to just keep going and like looking for that solution. Another t one I do with tidiness. This is so dumb. When my kitchen is messy, I break it into three zones, okay? And I pick up five things in this zone, five things in this zone, five things in this zone, and I keep going around in a circle. And it's like the most inefficient way to clean, but it keeps me going and I get it done. And so, like, no matter what weird way you come up to do it with, just figure it out. Figure out what works for you.

SPEAKER_01 31:39

Yeah. Yeah.

SPEAKER_00 31:40

We might need to have you on for a cleaning tips episode. I love that. Okay. In conclusion, I I don't think like I I think it's very common in our society to be like, oh, type A is like the preferred way because you're so organized and you're so whatever. And I think the truth of the matter is, no, like they're both excellent personality types and both have pros and cons. So what do you think that we can learn from each other whenever it comes to managing money? Like what can type A and type B people take away from each other?

SPEAKER_02 32:10

Yeah, I definitely like I'm jealous of type A people. Type A people, I I'm always jealous. Like you you have everything planned out. You have you you never forget anything. I'm sure that's not true, but that's what it seems like to me. And so yeah. Well, just before I answer that, type A people, are you ever jealous of type B people? Or are you like, I am so glad that I am not type B.

SPEAKER_00 32:33

Well, one thing you said at the beginning is that it does kind of exist on a spectrum. And so there are parts of the type B personality type where I'm like, yeah, I feel like I have that a little bit too. Like, I do feel like I'm such a perfectionist. And also I will cut a corner if it means getting to the final product faster. And a lot of times in my work, because I don't have, I don't have any employees, I don't have a boss, I don't have a supervisor, it's just me. A lot of my cutting corners looks like being completely disorganized in the background because I have no one, like I'm not held accountable to anyone else. So I'm like, just get the product out the door. It doesn't matter what all of your systems look like behind the scenes. Like you can work on those later. In the name of like being super productive and being a perfectionist about the final product, you know, all of those things. But I do think for me personally, I I look I look across and I see type B personalities, and I do love like that you're able to go with the flow more and that you're able to, it seems almost like think more on the spot. Like sometimes I feel like I I can't function or I don't know what to do until I've like built a system in place. And I feel like that can take more time than it needs to a lot of times. And so there definitely are type B personality traits where I'm like, I I wish that I could channel more of that and like not feel so like rigid or locked in or just like frustrated about what to do if like the plan in place doesn't work out because a lot, I mean, life is unpredictable and you can plan your budget to a T and it's still unpredictable. And so I think a lot of times you have to be flexible in ways that you can really struggle to be flexible with if you're a type A person. Okay.

SPEAKER_02 34:11

Well, to get back to your question about what can we learn from each other, I would say that just like anything, if we see something that the other that well, you're so organized. Our thought cannot be right away, she's type A. I'm just not like that. I'm never gonna be like that. Instead, it can be like, I notice that you do this. Can you walk me through how you do that? Can you explain what you do? Like, what is your method or what is your mindset behind that? And then listen and take away the parts that actually feel relatable to you that you feel can work for you both ways. Like when you see somebody doing something, I think that's just it. Like we're so we we live in a society where we just compare ourselves so much and then immediately dejected because oh, I'm never gonna be like that. But just stop, slow down, and get to the bottom of how are you doing this, and then take that piece away for what you can have for your life.

SPEAKER_01 35:12

This is making me think of like when I started freelancing, and part of me I think up front was like, is this ever gonna work? Because like I'm not like so-and-so successful entrepreneur. That is like my vision of success. But I think, and this applies to budgeting too, is like find someone who shares traits with you who also has made it work, has found success, and like that is someone you can use as an example and as like a reference.

SPEAKER_00 35:41

Yeah, it also reminds me one saying that I heard years ago from one of our mentors, and that I like always come back to almost on a daily basis, it feels like, is the concept of our triggers are our teachers. So it's like if you see someone doing something and you catch yourself saying, like, oh, it must be so nice to like be that organized, or it must be so nice to insert fill in the blank here. That anytime I catch myself doing that, I'm like, okay, what like what does this person have, or like what are they doing that like maybe you want that thing too? And you like think that you can't have it. You can't think that you're an organized person because you've made all these assumptions about who you are and what you're capable of based on what personality type you are, or whatever it is, you know, but just recognizing that and getting curious about it and then being like, okay, if if I feel a little bit envious of the fact that like they do seem so organized on the surface, how can I create, like, what can I do for myself to also be a little bit more organized, even if like the the way in which I go about it looks a little bit different, but like how can I also have more of that finished thing? Like, how can I invite more of that into my life? And so I'm I'm constantly kind of scanning of like what do I feel triggered? And triggers can be like good, good feelings or bad feelings, you know, but it's just like what what is this trigger trying to tell me and what can I what can I do to bring more of that into my own life, essentially?

SPEAKER_02 37:05

I love that. So, like question it if that doesn't work, getting back to like the habits of what don't doesn't work for you, but just figure out then how it does work for you.

SPEAKER_01 37:15

Yeah. I think our listeners are gonna walk away feeling confident that there is a version of budgeting out there that works for them, even if they haven't found it yet. So thank you so much for this conversation, Erin. And where can people find you online if they want to learn more from you about budgeting?

SPEAKER_02 37:32

The name of my podcast is The Budget Effect. So if you go to the budget effect.com, you'll see me there. Amazing. Thank you so much. Thank you very much for having me. I enjoyed our conversation.

SPEAKER_01 37:43

Have you ever picked up a personal finance book with great intentions, only to give up before chapter two? Or maybe you finish the book, but we're left with a bunch of questions and no one to answer them. If learning about personal finance is something you care about, or but you're craving a welcoming, fun, and community-oriented approach, join us for the Finance Girlies Book Club. We're kicking off in August with A Simple Path to Wealth by JL Collins. It's the book that encouraged both of us to start investing, and we can't wait to read it with you. Book Club is totally free. Just sign up using the link in the show notes or head to thefinance girlies.com slash book club. That's a wrap on another episode of the Finance Girlies Podcast. Nothing in this episode is meant to be taken as financial advice.

SPEAKER_00 38:24

So please do your own research and talk to a professional if you need advice. If you like this episode, consider leaving a review. Better yet, send the show to a friend who might enjoy it too. Love ya. Bye. Nailed it.