How to Track Expenses – Methods That Work and Some I Hate

How to Track Expenses - Methods That Work and Some I Hate #personalfinance #expenses #tracking #budgeting #financialplanning

Team – Today we are fortunate enough to have another “Mailbag” post to share with you! Matt reached out a few weeks ago asking for some context about how to track expenses. I thought the question was a great one and because I had more than a few lines to write – I thought this made for a great Mailbag candidate post!   (Photo courtesy of Justin Montemarano)   I’ll let Matt set up his question about how to track expenses:     Hi Mike,     I just read your article from business insider. I related to a lot of aspects of your families story, and at the exact same spot in life. More exciting to me was the relatability of you and your wife’s approach to finances. I’ve been looking for a better way to track our families daily expenses, and I’m wondering what you use to track daily expenses?   […]

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2019 – My Goals, Dreams, and Aspirations for “The Year of Change”

2019 - My Goals, Dreams, and Aspirations for "The Year of Change" #growth #goals #2019 #personaldevelopment #dreams

2018 was busy… We moved our fledgling dental office, MikedUp Blog kinda-sorta exploded (positively), I worked 3 jobs for a while, got too stressed out, then rebounded again, we took on a ton of debt (willingly), our business grew, and (most importantly) – we found out that my wife is pregnant (with #2)!! Whew… I’m tired just from typing out that sentence. While all of those things are amazing (except for the stress – but that ended up being positive in the end), I knew that 2019 would need to be different if I plan to keep up at this pace. So in this post, I will introduce you to my goals, dreams, and aspirations for 2019 – “The Year of Change” (YOC).   Why am I branding 2019 as the Year of Change?   Well, because of a few things. Some big announcements and some smaller ones – some […]

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2018 – The Year and My Goals in Review

2018 - The Year and My Goals in Review #business #family #finance #dreams #goals #2018

Well, hot diggity… Time flies. Way back in January (2018) I was inspired by a fellow blogger’s post in which he outlined his goals for the year ahead. I had vague visions of what goals I hoped to accomplish this year, but in early January – these aspirations weren’t documented. So, in essence, they had a worse chance of becoming realized. With the winds of inspiration at my back, I set out to outline and describe my goals for 2018 (the title picture of this post is worth the click…). I even went so far as to create a spreadsheet for these goals, where I would record values, pass/fail marks, and leave notes about experiences had.   For the first 4-5 months of the year, I killed it with the goals, writing on the spreadsheet included. And over the summer, I published my mid-year recap of the 2018 goals with my […]

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How to Finally Land that Dream Job You’ve Always Wanted

How to Finally Land that Dream Job You’ve Always Wanted

Ahh, the golden goose, the ‘one day’, the… Dream Job. I think that in an honest moment, we’d all admit that we have one. I know that I do… But like most of us, you may think that dream job of yours is completely out of reach. I know that was my thought process for too long. And what’s worse – it doesn’t have to be true.   (Photo courtsey of Al Emmert)   Today I have Eliza with us to discuss the nuts and bolts of things you can do today to put you in that dream job tomorrow. Here’s a little about Eliza to get us acquainted:   Eliza used to be overweight, burned out, had a slew of health problems, no savings and in a ton of debt.  Glamorous right? She has since done a 180 on her health and is now on track to retire by […]

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I Cry Actual Tears Every Time I Shop at Aldi…

Shop at Aldi

After decades of shopping at other stores that we don’t need to mention here, about 2 years ago my wife and I decided to shop at Aldi – exclusively – and we haven’t looked back! In this post, I’ll give you all the reasons why we chose Aldi in the first place, why we stick around, and what the few things are that we would change if we could.   But before that, a little background:     There I was for THIRTY WHOLE YEARS! A sucker. Mark. Pawn. Call me what you want, but I was definitely spending so much more money on groceries every month than what was necessary.   Do you want to know the worst part…?   I didn’t even know the difference!! Aldi hadn’t entered my mental space. I was gleefully oblivious and didn’t see the lead weight forming that would eventually drag our monthly […]

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When Quitting Your Passion Might Be the Best Option

When Quitting Your Passion Might Be the Best Option #pivot #passion #quitting #goals #ballet

Quitting Your passion is a process I’ve struggled with in the past… And one I’m also wrestling with at the present (more on that… in time). But no matter what your passion or your specific situation, quitting can be so… shameful.   But I’ve recently come to know another great blogger, SC from MissFunctional Money (I know, great blog name, right??) who has also had some intimate experience with quitting something that was her life – for nearly all her life. And news flash – it wasn’t easy for her to make that decision. And because SC has been so open and honest in her post below, I think we’ve been given the fortunate opportunity to see when quitting the thing you love – may be the best thing that could’ve happened to you.    I’ll let SC take it from here:     “What are you going to be when you […]

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Why I’ll Never Consolidate Debt Again – But Why You Should

Why I’ll Never Consolidate Debt Again – But Why You Should #debtconsolidation #personalfinance #debt #networth

Have you ever considered taking an opportunity to consolidate debt that you have hanging over your head? Well, as I’ve written about extensively, we have more than a few thousand dollars in debt to our names, and consolidation is a tool we’ve considered using at multiple points on our journey.   But on the flip side, I’ve also heard more than a few horror stories about folks that consolidated their debt only to fall further into the hole they had dug for themselves… So today, I have an expert here to help educate us about the debt consolidation process – and when it may be an appropriate tool for you to pull out of that toolbox!   Joseph Hogue worked as an equity analyst and an economist before realizing being rich is no substitute for being happy. He now runs five websites and a YouTube channel on beating debt, making […]

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Can you Have Healthy Teeth without Spending a Fortune at the Dentist?

Can you Have Healthy Teeth without Spending a Fortune at the Dentist? #budget #saving #spendingless #dentalvisit #healthyteeth

I’m either the worst businessman in the world… Or there’s some other explanation why the CEO of a dental practice would be writing an entire post detailing how you can strategically and systematically save BIG money at the dentist’s office – and still have healthy teeth.   I’ll let you decide.   But as someone who runs a dental practice that prides itself on taking care of people (both customers and our staff), I saw a great opportunity here.   Our goal is to have the happiest and healthiest patients around… And last I checked, patients tend to be happier with both healthy teeth and a healthy pocketbook after visiting our office.   So, today I’m pulling back the curtain and giving you the cold hard truth about what you can do to save money at the dentist’s while maintaining your healthy teeth   The good news – you can […]

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My Wife Made Twice My Salary Last Year – So I Cut Her Pay…?

My Wife Made Twice My Salary Last Year - So I Cut Her Pay...? #income #marriage #femalebreadwinner #communication

I am a red-blooded 207 pound driven former-athlete of a man that feels the intrinsic drive to provide for his family. I am evolutionarily wired to protect, provide, and reproduce, and whether I like it or not – many of my decisions are subconsciously influenced by these long-established forces that are well beyond my control. So, when I tell you that I cut my wife’s salary by 75% last year – does any part of you think it was because my ego couldn’t handle her being the female breadwinner…?   (I’ll get back to that)   (Photo courtesy of MKulp Photography)     Before you get out the slings and arrows, let me start with some facts – then some clarification   My wife is a dentist who owns our family business – 100%. And although I currently work a day job as a forensic scientist, many of my nights […]

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Why We’re Happy Taking a Few Extra Years to Pay Off Debt

Why We're Happy Taking a Few Extra Years to Pay Off Debt #SavingGoals #financialplanning #debt #saving

Guess what – Paying off debt at an accelerated rate can be harmful to your health… More than that, you may not be making the best decision for your financial future. “Why?” You ask – Being debt free isn’t the only mark of financial success. In fact, I’d argue that your saving goals can be significantly more important than being debt free…   Depending on your specific situation.     I met with our accountant last month, and throughout the first half of the meeting, I kept reinforcing a few of our current financial goals. “By throwing an extra $X at this loan, we’ll be able to knock that loan out 2 years sooner…”   I was focused on getting rid of a few of these debts we have as fast as we possibly could. And for a half hour, I lost sight of the bigger picture.   My accountant […]

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