The Jesse Mecham Show

With the Baby Boomer generation rapidly aging into retirement, more and more Generation X and older Millennials face some tough financial questions: how do you financial support parents that need medical care, or long-term assistance, but cannot afford it? Should you support kids after college by allowing them to live at home while they get their financial feet under them? Should you save for your own retirement first, or help your parents/kids first? Jennifer Owens calls this conundrum the "sandwich generation," people facing financial pressure from supporting both parents and children at the same time. While she does not have any hard and fast answers to these questions -- it's a complex problem, with many factors to consider -- she does believe that talking about the problem and sharing the challenges helps people know they aren't alone. Jennifer has written extensively about the sandwich generation, and she is also working with a new app called Firstly which helps families manage supporting their children and parents as they navigate different stages of life. https://firstly.com/about-firstly/ https://firstly.com/articles/how-in-the-world-did-i-end-up-in-the-sandwich-generation/ Sign up for a free 34-day trial of YNAB at www.youneedabudget.com

As you might have noticed by now, the team at YNAB is diverse, eclectic, and full of passionate people with a wide range of interests. It is no surprise, then, that in the course of conducting these Behind the Scenes interviews, Jesse discovered a ton of interesting and, well, random things about the employees of YNAB! Sign up for a free 34-day trial of YNAB at www.youneedabudget.com

Talking about money isn't easy for adults, so it's no surprise that many adults struggle with how to talk about money with their kids. Stephanie Anne-Lyse Wealth, or just Anne-Lyse as she goes by in her publications, has some ideas for introducing children to the concept of money, saving, investments, and debt. Anne-Lyse is the author of Dream of Legacy, a book about building not just individual wealth but generational wealth. She also hosts The Dreamers Podcast where she interviews successful entrepreneurs about their journey building businesses and wealth. You can find these resources and more at: https://dreamoflegacy.com Sign up for a free 34-day trial of YNAB at www.youneedabudget.com

In today's installment of Behind the Scenes, YNAB team members share their insights about personal finance, whether it's overcoming the fear and confusion of investing, learning to push yourself to achieve things you never thought you could, or better understanding our conditioning around money and success. Sign up for a free 34-day trial of YNAB at www.youneedabudget.com

It's that time of the year again, when summer is winding down and children are starting the new school year. As seasons go, starting the new school year is a time of new schedules and new challenges. It's also a great time to rethink the budget, or simply get back in touch with the budget. Sign up for a free 34-day trial of YNAB at www.youneedabudget.com

Today Jesse asks the team at YNAB to share their top pieces of advice for new YNAB users... besides, you know, that you need a budget. Sign up for a free 34-day trial of YNAB at www.youneedabudget.com

Life hacker, optimizer, product director at Wealthfront... he wears many hats, but his passion is the same -- upgrading life without spending a fortune! In today's episode, Jesse chats with Chris Hutchins, who shares a handful of his seemingly endless number of life hacks. Whether it's saving money on travel, getting a few more dollars out of your car lease, or negotiating for coupons, Chris has a hack for just about everything. You can follow Chris and learn many more hacks on his podcast, All the Hacks: https://www.allthehacks.com Sign up for a free 34-day trial of YNAB at www.youneedabudget.com

In today's installment of Behind the Scenes, Jesse asks employees why they applied for a position at YNAB, what the interview process is like, and whether the company has lived up to its reputation as the best small business place to work at (no, really, that's what Fortune said, for the second year running!). YNAB gets a lot of applications, and the hiring process is fiercely competitive, but those who have made it share their thoughts and experiences. Sign up for a free 34-day trial of YNAB at www.youneedabudget.com

In today's Money Story, Jesse chats with a YNAB employee, the gifted artist and animator Tristan Henry-Wilson, whose work YNAB users may have seen on the YNAB website and the YNAB Youtube channel, among others. Tristan may be an exceptionally talented artist, but he didn't come into his art career easily. After receiving some unexpected financial aid, he attended Ringling College of Art and Design and earned a degree in illustration. Tristan had a difficult time landing paying gigs in the art world, and began working a long series of odd jobs to pay rent, eat food, and, most importantly, make payments on his $80k of student loads, which a family friend had co-signed for him. After years of grinding, building his portfolio, learning how to interview, and networking into better jobs, Tristan found salaried work in New York City, and was finally able to throw serious money at his debt. At this point, the balance had grown to about $150k, but he was undeterred. With each pay increase, Tristan put more money into the debt, eventually paying it off in full after about 15 years. Tristan's determination and perseverance was largely responsible for his success, but he also credits YNAB for helping him get smart about managing his money and finding security and peace in his financial situation. Sign up for a free 34-day trial of YNAB at www.youneedabudget.com

Experienced YNAB'ers understand that budgeting is an active, ongoing process that requires frequently engagement with your budget. Ideally, both partners in a relationship are fully engaged in the budget, but the budgeting process can take many forms. In today's Behind the Scenes episode, Jesse chats with YNAB employees about budgeting with a partner, and the many ways couples learn to navigate the routine. Sign up for a free 34-day trial of YNAB at www.youneedabudget.com