In 2017 the Mecham family decided to live in Manhattan for three months to experience the city, soak up the food and culture, and just have fun doing something different. While they were there they chose to maximize their opportunity to eat out -- Jesse went back and counted over 140 different establishments during that 90 day stay!

After that experiment, Jesse and the family decided to try the complete opposite. No eating out for 90 days. The result? They didn't really care about it much, and now the family rarely eats out. What the experience in Manhattan taught them was that, for them, eating out is about the experience. They like big, "journal worthy" meals. Day to day eating out at average restaurants just doesn't hold much appeal.

They only know this because they have examined their priorities and tested things out. Jesse encourages you to do the same -- question why you do what you do, and try to live differently for a little while. You may find, like many, many YNAB'ers before you, that eating out is not as much of a priority as you were making it!

Watch The Jesse Mecham Show on YouTube:

https://www.youtube.com/@jessemechamshow

Got a question for Jesse? Send him an email:

askjesse@ynab.com

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It seems obvious that you should save money. It's the right thing to do, after all! But even the words that we use talk about saving money have problems -- should, ought -- loaded with moral baggage. Jesse reminds us that even money earmarked for savings is still spending, just spending that has been deferred to a later date, retirement for example. That money still needs to have a job, however. Saving for what in retirement? Utility bills? Travel? Presents for the grandkids?

Money for the future has a job just like money for the present, and when you view money through the lens of giving every dollar a job, you begin to see that money is only meant to be spent. There is no savings, only spending!

Watch The Jesse Mecham Show on YouTube:

https://www.youtube.com/@jessemechamshow

Got a question for Jesse? Send him an email:

askjesse@ynab.com

Sign up for a free 34-day trial of YNAB at www.youneedabudget.com

Follow YNAB on social media:

Facebook: @ynabofficial

Instagram: @ynab.official

Twitter/X: @ynab

Tik Tok: @ynabofficial

When you really want to buy something, what do you do? Do you wait for 48 hours to cool off a bit and think it over? Or perhaps do you create a category for it in YNAB and fund it with a few dollars, just to see how it feels? Having the urge to buy something is not a bad or shameful thing, but there should be a process for weighing that purchase against your other priorities. That's what YNAB does -- it makes money more real by giving you a framework to evaluate your spending against your priorities. That way when you buy something, you can feel really good about it -- no shame, no guilt, just joy!

Watch The Jesse Mecham Show on YouTube:

https://www.youtube.com/@jessemechamshow

Got a question for Jesse? Send him an email:

askjesse@ynab.com

Sign up for a free 34-day trial of YNAB at www.youneedabudget.com

Follow YNAB on social media:

Facebook: @ynabofficial

Instagram: @ynab.official

Twitter/X: @ynab

Tik Tok: @ynabofficial

Tickets to YNAB Fan Fest 2025 are on sale now! Coming to Minneapolis and NYC:

YNAB.com/events