I mean, I used to get paid to manage project timelines and I literally do not know what month it is right now.
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I wonder if this is a case of lifestyle creep - like, real lifestyle creep and not the worrying that some of us here do over spending $ (me included, especially) on, for example, stuff that actually fits vs trying to thrift everything or just not replacing worn out things at all. (Like, spending $ on quality (eg BIFL) is not a bad thing and is not lifestyle creep IMO, if you can afford it, but driving a Porche is (LOLOLOL).) 
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OK I should really be doing something else but I wanted to post a few comments⌠a couple of numbers-related things about this episode bothered me.
They all kept throwing around this $300K annual income number. Umm, itâs only $300K when you make $25K per month! The whole reason you are on the show is it is not consistently $25K per month. Some months itâs $2K. Thatâs $24K per year. Thatâs a big difference.
So what are you ACTUALLY earning per year right now? The closest they even got to saying was near the end, she named a $10K per month figure. Which is $120K per year, which isnât nothing, but itâs not $300K.
OK, notes from the followup.
He took a higiher paying job, it sounds like it is still with his same company. I hope the pay is steadier? I was kind of surprised a job with at least a consistent base pay for him did not come up during the conversation.
Even bigger than selling the cars -
They are moving to a LCOL area! They realized that spending time with family was a priority, and visiting family was eating up a lot of money and PTO. So they are in the midst of moving, where they will have just as nice of a house for a much smaller mortgage and not have to travel with two toddlers.
Theyâve automated savings, and heâs getting involved in the finances as well.
More than most, I think this couple âgot itâ and will continue to make good decisions. I think this was a wake-up call for both of them. I think they both, but especially he, thought early retirement would just âwork outâ and fall into place, but the call made them realize it wasnât happening unless they made some big changes. I think they ended up empowered and able to make some positive changes.
And, Iâm glad @AllHat was back to provide the commentary!
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Huge quality of life change right there.
Thatâs great!
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now I am interested in coral farming
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Right? It sounds really cool.
Also there are at least a few groups that do coral farming and subsequent replanting in the wild for reef restoration!
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This one is hitting close to home for me! It sounds like we have a comparable income and expense situation, and less extreme but similar family dynamics.
We may have a paid off car, but we do have Louie, who costs as much as a Porsche payment 
We spend a lot of money on house stuff, and although weâre still in maintenance/repair mode and not pool guy mode, the numbers work out the same. We donât do Disney but we go to millions of weddings, etc.
Weâve definitely been using the variable income to smooth out our spending. This is just further reinforcing my decision to try to get a higher paying job, I donât want our future to look like this.
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Imo, Louie is much cuter than a Porsche.
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I know! Thatâs why I always tell you to buy pretty things 
and Iâm so happy youâre enjoying your money! I love seeing people enjoy things.
That could be, though I think of lifestyle creep as smaller things. Maybe itâs a bit of denial? Like it could be more morally palatable to think âmy problem is that I canât enjoy my money because Iâm so concerned about saving because of past traumaâ (i.e. her dad losing his job, listening to Dave Ramsey) rather than âI spent too much on too many luxury items at once, and I didnât plan for leaner times, so now Iâm stressedâ.
I wondered this too! I think maybe they donât know. He did mention how his income had gone up over the years and the lowest salary number he cited was $190k IIRC.
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Oh, haha, i mean, wouldnât expect someone to jump from a Honda Civic to a Porsche. But itâs not inconceivable to me to trade up and up and up (in all aspects) and suddenly leasing a Porsche and having a pool guy and planning a full on fancy Disney experience and whatever seems ânormalâ and not luxury. IDK?
I also do think though that pretty much all (or nearly all) of the people on his show have deeper issues (including past trauma) than just not being able to âmanage moneyâ or âspend moneyâ and they all need therapy or couples therapy to help them work through it. Because in most of the cases it comes across as being a symptom of a larger problem that stuff doesnât just go away if theyâve never dealt with it. That may sound harsh and judgy but I kind of think all humans need therapy to various extents (me included). And it mightâve partially how they are presented as well on the podcast (edited so that we only hear what they want us to hear).
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Would anyone be up for/ok with me posting a mini case study here and you can all channel Ramit to help me figure out what a rich life looks like?
Iâm having lots of money feels with some pretty substantial upcoming changes in income and spending and I need a place to work it out, but I canât keep a journal more than a week or two 
.
Totally fine if this channel should be kept more on topic though.
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I think thatâs a great idea!
If youâd prefer it to be more stand-alone (just to be organized) we did money diaries about 18 months ago so you could make a topic there and post the link here. But I think itâs a great idea!
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Oh, what about an IWTYTBR but OMD edition? Iâll start it so you can post whenever @Sunflower or anyone else!
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Perfect! My thoughts are still swirling a bit but I will probably take an (west coast US) afternoon work break to write things out
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Related⌠hereâs an interesting 2019 (pre pandemic!) piece about young South Koreans deciding fuck it, better enjoy things now. Feels relevant in the US too!
Loosely translated to âfuck-it expense,â the term is a compound noun combining shibal (a swearword for frustration) and biyong (expense). It first appeared in late 2016, with the earliest tweet about it referring to âan expense that I would not have spent if I werenât under stress,â such as âan impulsive food delivery or a cab ride.â The post caught on, and the term was named âneologism of the yearâ by several South Korean media outlets.
A shibal biyong is an expense that might seem unnecessary but that helps you get through a bad day. Itâs the $20 you splurge for a cab home instead of taking the subway after youâve been denied a promotion or the comforting but expensive sushi you buy after youâve been berated by your boss. The term implies that you might as well make yourself happy right now because your prospects in the long term seem bleak. Buy that nice coat, because youâll never get on the housing ladder. Eat that steak, because youâll never save up enough to retire.
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this sounds like how poor people live (and receive a lot of grief for) in the USA ⌠better spend this money now bc who knows when youâll get more?
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Yes
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I am intrigued that people like I Will Teach You To Be Rich, because the podcast descriptions sound so super boring to me. I am giving it a shot today.
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Oh, definitely the same kind of thing. I guess the main difference is the idea of big generational trends leading to more people feeling that way?
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