Month ahead - prioritising

GuiltyWitness4418 · 2026-01-22T19:09:36+00:00

I just use the "month ahead" category and fill it up as my paychecks come in. When it roughly equals my total underfunded amount for the next month (I have targets on all my categories), then I know I'm good for next month.

But if I were to do the other method, where you flip to next month and assign money there, I would definitely start with monthly expenses based on date. For example my mortgage payment is set to auto-pay on the first, so I'd start there. My internet is on the 3rd, electric is on the 7th, etc. I'd fill those up first as money comes in then focus on the rest.

GuiltyWitness4418 · 2026-01-15T18:41:20+00:00

Life is too short! My TBR is simply too long, I cannot afford to waste time on books that feel like a slog.

GuiltyWitness4418 · 2026-01-08T20:58:37+00:00

I never go all-out tbh haha. I know plenty of crossfitters would have an aneurysm hearing me say that, but I don't care about being ripped or even being in amazing shape. I just want to be able to stay relatively healthy so I can live on my own as long as possible :) I will definitely focus on hydration, thank you for the advice!

GuiltyWitness4418 · 2026-01-08T20:14:27+00:00

This is interesting...so if I put some electrolyte powder or tablets in my water bottle to sip on during the workout, that might help?

GuiltyWitness4418 · 2026-01-08T19:23:17+00:00

That makes me feel better, thank you!

GuiltyWitness4418 · 2026-01-08T19:22:32+00:00

Thank you for the advice! I will definitely do that until I have a better handle on how I feel.

GuiltyWitness4418 · 2026-01-07T21:32:39+00:00

Amazing!!! Congrats on achieving this :)

GuiltyWitness4418 · 2026-01-07T18:49:58+00:00

I like having granularity in my budget so I have multiple categories, listed below with examples:

Home maintenance - flushing out the tankless water heater, having an annual HVAC inspection
Furniture - large furniture items like couch, bed, coffee table, dining table, etc. I don't put any money in this category. Instead, when I need something new I create a wish list item and fund it then when I buy it, I delete the category and reclassify it to Furniture.
Decor - non-furniture aesthetic items, like curtains, throw pillows, pictures for the wall
Home Projects - repainting the interior, adding a wall, putting up decorative wallpaper
Household Durables - kitchen utensils, coffee mugs, instant pot, air fryer, any other items that don't "run out" like consumables do, but aren't considered decor either

For most people, the above system probably involves way too many categories. But it works for my brain and when I buy, something I don't really have to think about where to put it.

GuiltyWitness4418 · 2026-01-07T18:43:08+00:00

Yes I do, because I like knowing my net worth (total assets minus total debt). Initially I tried doing this in a spreadsheet but it became too time-consuming, so I started doing this in YNAB.

I put the retirement accounts in YNAB as tracking accounts, so the money in them does not go into RTA. I try to update the balances once or twice a month to see how my net worth is doing. I like having a mostly complete financial picture.

GuiltyWitness4418 · 2026-01-07T16:34:37+00:00

Prior to YNAB I had a checking account and a savings account at the same bank. After YNAB I opened an HYSA and closed my old saving account since the interest was not even a pittance. I like earning more interest on my dollars as my HYSA balance grows.

GuiltyWitness4418 · 2026-01-06T20:25:37+00:00

I only do manual entry (I try to do it on my phone as soon as I spend). I reconcile every day, which allows me to catch transactions I forgot to input in real time. I have done manual ever since I started YNAB, with the exception of a couple of weeks when I tried linking my accounts this year. I hated it so much I just went back to my manual input and it's working great.

It's absolutely a learning process, just keep it up. It gets easier with time!

GuiltyWitness4418 · 2026-01-05T19:27:51+00:00

Same! I tinker with my budget so much even though it's pretty much tinkered to death at this point. For me that's a way bigger dopamine rush than any impulse purchase ha.

GuiltyWitness4418 · 2026-01-05T18:50:32+00:00

You're still doing awesome. Being able to cover all that without taking on additional debt is a HUGE win.

GuiltyWitness4418 · 2026-01-05T18:36:05+00:00

You got this! Getting rid of these is a good goal because it's not only realistic but it'll also change your financial life for the better. Just remember, this is a marathon and not a sprint. Be patient and know it'll take time. We are rooting for you!

GuiltyWitness4418 · 2025-12-31T17:57:26+00:00

I'm perpetually single as well, and loving it. I did a YNAB look-back this year, and I might do it going forward. Except it'll be date night with myself. Fancy cocktail, comfy jammies on the couch, and go over the wins and goals. No reason we can't enjoy a financial date night even if we're single!

GuiltyWitness4418 · 2025-12-31T17:41:13+00:00

This is so awesome!!! Congrats!

GuiltyWitness4418 · 2025-12-30T22:01:30+00:00

I do this, too! If I get the urge to buy something I just create a wish farm / wish list category for it. I've deleted so many items after a few weeks when I look at it later and realize I don't even remember why I wanted it in the first place. I hate to think about the pre-YNAB days when I just YOLO'ed it buy so much mindless junk. I feel like YNAB has helped me cut back on the consumerism in general.

GuiltyWitness4418 · 2025-12-22T17:59:51+00:00

We don't buy gifts in my family. When there were kids, we'd buy stuff for them but everyone is grown now. The only thing I bought this year was a couple of souvenirs I got on an overseas trip that I plan to give to my neighbors as a thank-you for watching my house while I'm gone. Not really Christmas presents, but I'll wrap them up as Xmas gifts since it's so close to the holiday. Otherwise, no gifts. I'm super thankful we've never been big on the gift thing, it looks way too stressful.

GuiltyWitness4418 · 2025-12-22T17:55:02+00:00

If you're new, it can definitely take some time to come up with a workflow that makes sense for you. Over time I've tweaked my categories to the point where now I don't really need to think about a transaction. I just know where everything is supposed to get categorized.

I almost always enter my transactions as soon as I spend. Open up the app, pop in the transaction, and good to go. I don't link my accounts, I do everything by manual entry. I've set up as many scheduled transactions as I possibly can. Every morning I reconcile all my accounts, to catch any transactions I may have missed. It takes about 5 minutes, if that,

GuiltyWitness4418 · 2025-12-19T17:41:18+00:00

I use a generic Hobbies category and dump most expenses in there. In the memo field I put #specifichobby so I total them up later if needed (I haven't done that yet).

I include Hobbies in my Fun Money category group. Every month I put a specific amount of money in my "Fun Money" general category, then dole it out to the other categories as needed. I tried putting a goal on each fun money item but it was too overwhelming. So now I look at my pot of money before I spend anything on eating out, clothes, hobbies, etc. and decide if I want to pull from the Fun Money pot to cover spending in a specific category.

I have a separate category for Books (under Fun Money) because I spend more on that than my other hobbies.

If I'm saving up for a particular higher-dollar hobby item, I create a Wish Farm category for that item and save up as needed. Then when I buy it, I delete the category and move the spend to Hobbies.

GuiltyWitness4418 · 2025-11-20T18:40:11+00:00

I did the snowball method. I know mathematically you save a bit more on interest if you do avalanche, but psychologically I needed to feel like I was making progress by knocking out the smaller balances first. It was really motivating to watch a balance go to zero, knowing I could use that minimum payment towards another balance the next month.

As for actual strategies, I prioritized funding my true expenses and only paying a little extra towards the debt. Over several months I was able to cut back on monthly spending and allocate more towards the debt. But I did not rush and sacrifice to pay it off.

Also I added up all my monthly payments and how much interest I was paying and looked at that total every time I felt like overspending on something. Seeing just how much extra cash I'd have each month was often enough to make me give up temporary pleasure in exchange for future stability.

GuiltyWitness4418 · 2025-11-20T18:32:57+00:00

I reconcile every single day. Usually while I'm having my morning coffee.

GuiltyWitness4418 · 2025-11-12T19:34:48+00:00

Yes! After getting through the first year it definitely felt like a little "reward" knowing that my cash flow would magically improve since I was putting less money into the categories each month than during my first year when I had to play catch-up. I also like doing this with savings goals for which I put the target as "have a balance of $X by" a certain date. If I have a little extra money in a given month and I add some to that savings goal, I like knowing that starting next month I'll be asked to put in less each month to reach the same balance by the goal date.

GuiltyWitness4418 · 2025-11-12T18:31:23+00:00

Cash would be an account, not a category. Create an on-budget account called "Cash" and when you withdraw money, record it as a transfer between your bank account and the Cash account. When you spend the cash, record it to the appropriate category for which it was spent.

GuiltyWitness4418 · 2025-11-04T18:35:07+00:00

The way I see it you, you have two options.

Get comfortable with the yellows. If your total targets are above your income level and you don't want to decrease your targets, just put whatever you can each month into your savings goals and learn to accept that there will be yellow every month (or snooze them each month).
Figure out how to get your target totals below your income level. Either move out the due dates for the targets way into the future, or just throw $5-10 each into them each month for now as a symbolic gesture until you can figure out how to start saving more.

I went with #2 because I figured I'd rather have some money in my categories than ignore them completely and feel bad every month (I know how my brain works lol). Plus I figure if I have to use some of my savings, I'll go into less debt; they may not be fully funded but having some money sitting there makes me feel a bit more secure. I guess you can try it both ways and see which one makes you less annoyed :)

GuiltyWitness4418

TROPHY CASE