In this Cashology Podcast, Justin welcomes back Elyse Lyons, also known as The Savvy Sagittarius, to discuss the empowering concept of "No Spend Months." Elyse shares her unique approach to these financial challenges and discusses how no-spend months have not only boosted her savings but also enriched her life by encouraging more meaningful engagements with family and friends. Throughout the episode, Elyse provides practical tips for preparing and succeeding in no-spend challenges, such as closely examining past spending habits and making bulk purchases to cut down on non-essential expenses. This episode is packed with insights on turning financial limitations into opportunities for growth, making it a must-listen for anyone looking to take control of their spending and enhance their financial wellness.
Listen here and follow @CashologybyFNBO® on YouTube for more!
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You're listening to the Cashology Podcast
by FNBO,
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a place dedicated to helping you
become more financially savvy every day.
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It's a little like school,
but your only homework is living your best
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financial life.
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I'm your host,
Justin, and class is now in session.
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Welcome back to the Cashology Podcast,
a place where we dive
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deep into personal finance
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to bring you actionable insights
and real life wisdom.
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Today we're lucky to be joined again
by Savvy Sagittarius, aka
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the inspiring Elyse Lyons.
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She is known to her tens of thousands
of followers as the Queen of the No
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Spend month, something that will be diving
into more on today's episode.
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Elyse, welcome back!
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Thank you so much for joining us again.
- Thank you so much for having me.
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Yes, before we get
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into it,
do you just want to give us, a little bit
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about yourself for those listeners
who might not be familiar with you?
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Yeah, like you said, my name is Elyse.
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I run the Savvy Sagittarius Instagram
and TikTok, website,
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and it all kind of started
because I was 22 and to pay off
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all my debt and kind of didn't have anyone
who was doing the same thing.
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So I started sharing my journey
and it led me to where I am now.
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Very cool. Wonderful.
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Well, today's episode is all about, the
No Spend Month.
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So many, including me, are intrigued
by the idea of no spend month.
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What exactly does this mean to you and
what impact has it had on you financially?
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I personally have maybe a little bit
of a different take on No Spend Months.
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But to
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me the No Spend Month is only buying gas,
only buying groceries, paying your bills,
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and then putting all of that extra money
that you might have after that
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and throwing it towards a financial goal.
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And so I think a lot of people come from,
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No Spend Month
as like a month of deprivation
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and a month of like,
I don't get to do anything.
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And it's such a like, poor me.
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Sad like, month.
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But for me, it's really a chance
of, like, changing my mindset
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and saying, like,
what can I use that I've already paid for?
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I have a closet, full board games.
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I have a basket full of craft supplies,
like what can I do?
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And how can I use those like public free
resources like parks and libraries
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to take the like,
take advantage of my time
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and really enjoy it
without spending money?
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Oh that's wonderful.
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So it's
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I like that creativity and like countering
deprivation with creativity and using,
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- Yeah,
- Yeah I really like that.
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So it seems, no spend months
go beyond simply just saving money.
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Can you talk a little bit about the deeper
personal shifts this challenge promotes?
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Yes, there's
I think it's so much deeper than this.
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Like, I don't get to spend money.
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It is, you know, how can I spend quality
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time with my friends
without going to drinks and dinner?
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Can I invite them over?
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Can I can I flex that hospitality muscle
a little bit more and invite them over?
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They can invite me over.
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Back to, like, the board games
and the hanging out.
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And just, like, really
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being a lot more mindful about what
I want to spend my money on.
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I think in tracking my
no spend months over the last few years,
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I have really said, like,
I really love spending money on
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going to do like, activities versus like,
I'm always going to dinner with friends
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or takeout is a big thing that every time
I get takeout, I feel guilty.
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And I feel frustrated
because it was usually not in the plan.
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- Yeah.
- And it's usually that like something went wrong.
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Something, you know,
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happened.
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And then I got takeout because I just
didn't want to deal with it.
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And so it created more of that,
mindful of like,
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hey, if I don't get takeout tonight,
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maybe I can do, like an activity
or something that I enjoy a lot more
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and use that money in a way that I'm not
going to feel guilty about it.
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I'm not going to feel bad,
like I'm going to enjoy that time.
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Yeah, absolutely.
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And, you know,
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kind of like what you were saying
in the beginning there,
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with my group of friends, we do
a, sometimes a weekly, sometimes it's
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biweekly.
We do, like, just a get together.
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So sometimes we do go out, right?
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And we'll, like, get takeout,
but then sometimes we'll stay the night,
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so we'll go to somebody's house,
and then we make dinner, like, as a group
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and then do, like a friend,
like a fun, let's critique
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like the meal,
what we could have done differently.
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I love that.
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Yeah, I like that creativity and kind of
just being more thoughtful about like,
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what you're doing.
So I think that's great.
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So for those inspired
to take on this challenge,
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what are the critical steps
in preparing for a no spend month?
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I think one of the things that you can do
first is to kind of look
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at those last 30 days of spending.
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This is something that I,
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I talk about over and over and over again
because I think it's so critical.
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But look at those last 30 days
of what you've spent money on
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and see what's going to trip you up,
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see if you're stopping at the gas station
to get an energy drink.
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It's almost never just an energy drink.
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You're getting that slice of pizza,
that bag of chips, that whatever.
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So it's never just the energy drink.
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But if you can buy the energy drinks in
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bulk from, like, Sam's Club
or Amazon, Costco or whatever,
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then you have that like ability
to, like, cut out
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even the extra spending
that you're spending at the gas station,
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or if you're always getting takeout
on Wednesday night
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because your kid has soccer,
then maybe you're making a bunch
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of peanut butter and jellies for the car
so at least you could make it home.
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And you're not planning that three course
meal for Wednesday night after soccer.
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When everyone is starving,
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you're you know, you're planning
the chicken nuggets in the air fryer
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the second you get home.
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And so just really looking at
where your spending is and creating a plan
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ahead of time to figure out, like,
how can, I how can I negate that spending.
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Got it.
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So is that,
if I take that and kind of, you know,
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reviewing last
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month and kind of getting a feel,
do you like and that you just like,
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is that the your introduction
to building a budget of?
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- Absolutely.
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- Got it.
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- Yes,
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That is, all of my clients
when I'm working with them,
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that's the first place to start,
because I think
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that we're spending a lot more on things
that we don't even realize.
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So I was just talking about this
on my TikTok, and I was saying that, like,
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our brain can process
the like big grocery trips, the 50,
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the $100, the $200 our brain
like recognizes that we did those.
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Our brain is usually not like,
oh yeah, but I also had that $5 trip
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and that $10 trip and that, like,
we're not adding those up.
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And so when we sit down
with our last 30 days of spending,
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we can see like,
this is actually what I spent
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and where do I start
and where do I go from there?
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I think it's really important because,
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one of the things that always sneaks up on
me and I think it's like one of the best
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and worst things that we're ever invented
was automatic payments
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of those $5 subscriptions of
I don't even know how many videos
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streaming platforms
I was enrolled in one month.
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I was like 20 of them.
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And I'm like, I only use Netflix.
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So like, why am I paying?
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And right, they just.
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Those Apple subscriptions.
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- Right?
- So I do think, yeah, reviewing
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last 30 days
and actually seeing it because for me.
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Oh, nope. Out of sight out of mind.
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Because you know I'm not physically
swiping the card kind of thing.
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Absolutely.
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So coming back to the no spend month,
do you have any tips
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for staying motivated and on track
during a no spend month?
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I have, tracker freebie on my website
that I hang in my kitchen,
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so I will like color in the different days
based on like what I spent.
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So like it's green for no spending,
purple for,
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like only essentials
and then pink for extras,
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But so I can see I've been tracking it in
my spending like that
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for the last two years,
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and so I can see all my habits of like
how I've spent money.
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But I do also have a free Facebook group
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where we share our wins,
share our struggle, share the like.
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I really just want to get coffee
and I have to drive all the way across
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town and people are like, you can do it
like, kind of that cheering you on.
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And even just like, I have a friend who
we will do a no spend challenge together
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and so we'll text each other like,
I'm not doing this, I'm not doing that.
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-Oh that's fun little,
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Yeah.
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What is it?
-That accountability is just so good.
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So I know that you're a mom.
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Which makes me wonder,
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can families, you no spend months
as a learning opportunity?
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I have a three year old.
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And so I will say that my,
my motherhood has been,
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short so far.
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So I can't speak for teenagers.
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However, I do think that with kids, it
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kind of does create this, like mindful
spending conversation.
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I read a statistic
a while back that kids develop
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their spending habits
around the age of seven.
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And so having that conversation, I'm like,
hey, we're not going to spend
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money this month
and what are we going to do instead?
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And getting them involved in
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we're going to go to the park
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you know, a bunch of times. We're going to
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maybe use
the membership to the zoo that we pay for.
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And we like,
never say we have time for it.
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We're going to make time
to do those things.
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I think that framing it in a way
that like, we have so many things,
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like last night, we set up an air mattress
in the living room
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and had popcorn and watched a movie,
and it was free.
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And and I think that it does
require a little bit more effort.
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It requires a little bit more creativity.
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But I don't think, I don't think that
parenting requires a bunch of spending.
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I think that our kids want quality
time over that spending.
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And this challenge
really highlights that to me.
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You know, I don't have kids yet.
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But I think that's so true.
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It's it's really the time spent together.
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Probably because I can even think back
your statistic of seven. Now
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I'm just like remembering the time
I would spend with my mom,
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helping balance a checkbook or
- I love that
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- or like when we would go shopping of like,
it is ingrained in me today.
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Nope, it's not on the list.
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So we should have before
we left the house, right?
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We should have put it on the list.
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Not on the list. Doesn't go in the cart.
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And so yeah, those habits
kind of build at a young age.
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And yeah, I just think back to those
and those are like fun memories.
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I don't know, it's like a
it's makes me think of my mom. So,
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when was
your last, you no spend month?
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I am currently in a no spend month
for the month of March.
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So it has been,
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the weather is like been nice
and then cold and then nice.
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And so it's
been a different challenge of like,
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okay, we're up in the winter
like no spend mindset,
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but also in the spring of going outside
and just using the outside as our free.
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so it's definitely been an interesting
like middle.
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- Sure
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Yeah.
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So obviously
weather can play an impact on how,
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you No Spend Month works
maybe gets a little bit difficult
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when it's nice out, but
when it's like raining or snowing, like
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we could get any day in Nebraska,
it's a little bit easier.
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So has there been anything else,
you know, besides weather,
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that you found yourself
reflecting on after,
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well, I guess continuing as you're
going through your, you No Spend Month?
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I think one of the big things that I've,
I've really been paying attention
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to lately is how our friendships impact
our spending and just,
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just the that like conversation of,
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like, hey, I don't want to spend money
today.
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So, like, what can we do instead? And,
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it can be a
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very tough conversation
to set that boundary with friends.
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but I have had some friends who are like,
yes, let's find all the free things.
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Let's do all the free things. And,
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so that has been a fun, like relationship
building, quality time building.
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Like we had game night on Saturday night.
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We have had so much fun with it.
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But there's also other people in my life
who are like, let's go out,
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let's go do this.
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And I'm like, hey, like I'm in a
no spend month.
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Like I'm I'm just not going to do that
this month.
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But I'll put it in the budget
for next month. Yeah.
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and yeah, so those like relationships
with other people
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definitely,
have a huge impact on our spending.
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And I don't think that
that's an conversation enough.
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Yeah. So I kind of want to drill into that
a little bit.
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You I just said that to that, so corporate
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but so like my friend groups, we're
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very like vocal or like, it's
very normal for us to talk about like,
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oh, I don't know,
that's like an expensive place to go or.
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No, I don't think
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we can do that trip to that location
because it's super expensive.
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So like, how do you like,
what do you recommend for people for like
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getting into like those conversations
or being open?
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Because sometimes I feel like, personal
finance is still like a taboo, right?
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Like I can't like, you're not.
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Right? Politics,
religion, personal finance.
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So things you can't talk
with people about.
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Absolutely.
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I like I know this a little bit beyond
no spend month, but kind of recommend
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having those conversations with friends
because yeah, they are like
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a really big part of our lives
and they can impact spending so much.
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I, I think that it depends
on your degree of friendship as well.
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And like kind of
their financial situation too.
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So there's a lot of different,
you know, different factors into this.
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but I would say that
just being kind of honest
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and saying like, hey,
I am working on some money goals.
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I, I want to pay
off debt so I can do this.
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and, you know, I don't want
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to spend as much,
but also just having that conversation of,
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and like when you have that conversation,
recognizing that,
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you might be met with resistance,
people are going to feel uncomfortable
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when you are making changes
if they are currently not.
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00:13:55,301 --> 00:13:59,839
and so having like having that mindset
when you go into the conversation
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that it might not be met
with unicorns and rainbows.
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00:14:03,943 --> 00:14:05,845
- Everybody's on their own journey.
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- Yes. And and you, you cannot change
someone else's money habits.
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Like they have to be ready
to change their own money habits.
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One of the big things that I talk about
a lot is like knowing why you want this.
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So for me, my why is that
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when my kid or if my kid has kids,
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I want to be able to be like
nanny grandma.
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00:14:28,200 --> 00:14:29,134
- Yeah.
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00:14:29,134 --> 00:14:33,739
And so like that's the far future
of, like, all of these little actions
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that I'm taking today are impacting
that circumstance in the future.
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And so knowing that is really digging
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00:14:42,181 --> 00:14:45,951
into the why
and like the motivation as some, it helps
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kind of like make those boundaries easier.
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- Yeah.
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00:14:49,421 --> 00:14:53,792
Of like saying like no I'm not willing
to give up my nanny grandma
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00:14:53,792 --> 00:14:57,930
time in the future
for this random takeout on a Friday night.
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00:14:57,930 --> 00:15:01,600
Like, okay,
so let's say somebody listening so far,
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00:15:02,201 --> 00:15:03,869
likes what they're hearing.
290
00:15:03,869 --> 00:15:08,374
but they aren't quite ready to commit
to an entire month of no spending.
291
00:15:08,574 --> 00:15:10,709
What do you say to those people?
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I always suggest starting with a week.
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00:15:13,412 --> 00:15:15,814
If you, if you're like,
I don't know if I can do
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00:15:15,814 --> 00:15:19,218
a whole month, start
with, like, a Monday through Sunday.
295
00:15:19,618 --> 00:15:23,188
And also just start
with tracking your habits
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00:15:23,188 --> 00:15:26,759
for a month
to see where you currently are.
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00:15:27,693 --> 00:15:32,064
I think that simply just tracking
your habits, you kind of get into that.
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00:15:32,264 --> 00:15:36,669
The gamification of like, I want to color
it green and I want to not spend money.
299
00:15:36,669 --> 00:15:36,936
Yeah.
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00:15:36,936 --> 00:15:40,472
And so it kind of creates
that little like, I always joke
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00:15:40,472 --> 00:15:43,709
like the dopamine of coloring it green and
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00:15:44,777 --> 00:15:47,780
so being able to just like, say like, hey,
maybe,
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00:15:48,113 --> 00:15:51,350
I'm not going to be able
to not spend money other than essentials
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00:15:51,350 --> 00:15:56,188
this whole month, but being able to say,
like, I can have 15 days
305
00:15:56,188 --> 00:15:59,391
where I don't spend any money or
I can have a certain, you know, 20 days.
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00:15:59,391 --> 00:15:59,725
Yeah.
307
00:15:59,725 --> 00:16:05,164
And giving yourself those,
those exceptions and also remembering
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00:16:05,264 --> 00:16:08,801
that every single month
is going to have a reason to spend money.
309
00:16:08,801 --> 00:16:09,234
Sure.
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00:16:09,234 --> 00:16:10,970
Like every month has a holiday
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00:16:10,970 --> 00:16:14,273
or a birthday
or a wedding or a baby shower or whatever.
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00:16:14,540 --> 00:16:19,378
And so just going into the first
of the month with a budget for that thing
313
00:16:19,712 --> 00:16:24,483
and a plan on how you're going to
maybe take it as an advantage
314
00:16:24,883 --> 00:16:28,921
to like or is an opportunity
to, hey, it's going to be easier.
315
00:16:28,921 --> 00:16:30,723
How can we do Easter on a budget?
- Yeah.
316
00:16:30,723 --> 00:16:36,328
How can we, be a little bit
more creative or thrifty with what we do?
317
00:16:36,829 --> 00:16:39,398
instead of just running to target
and filling up the cart
318
00:16:39,398 --> 00:16:42,501
with all the Easter stuff,
maybe we can thrift some items
319
00:16:42,501 --> 00:16:45,871
or we can,
you know, get a big toy or whatever.
320
00:16:45,871 --> 00:16:47,072
We can make something.
321
00:16:48,040 --> 00:16:48,874
And back to just that,
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00:16:48,874 --> 00:16:52,878
like quality time of like for kids,
it is more about the quality time
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00:16:52,878 --> 00:16:55,914
of like the traditions,
like dying the Easter eggs or whatever.
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00:16:56,749 --> 00:17:01,420
and so I think that just going into it
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00:17:01,420 --> 00:17:05,124
with an open mind and saying, like,
let's just see how this goes.
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00:17:05,157 --> 00:17:08,093
- Sure. I love that. Well,
thank you so much, Elyes.
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00:17:08,093 --> 00:17:09,428
But before we get out of here,
328
00:17:09,428 --> 00:17:12,431
do you have anything
you'd like to tell the audience about?
329
00:17:12,598 --> 00:17:16,235
Like any upcoming projects
where they can find you online, etc.?
330
00:17:16,802 --> 00:17:21,774
I am going to be hosting a No Spend April
in my Facebook group,
331
00:17:21,774 --> 00:17:25,778
so I don't know when this podcast
will release, but if you hear it
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00:17:25,778 --> 00:17:27,279
and you want to jump in the middle of it,
333
00:17:28,580 --> 00:17:32,251
go ahead
and I will be sharing it on my socials
334
00:17:32,251 --> 00:17:35,254
and in my free no Spend Facebook group.
335
00:17:36,221 --> 00:17:39,691
and all of that information is in my link
in my bio.
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00:17:39,825 --> 00:17:40,859
Perfect and wonderful.
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00:17:40,859 --> 00:17:43,362
We'll make sure we get those links as well
in the show notes.
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00:17:43,362 --> 00:17:45,130
Again,
thank you so much, Elyse, for joining us.
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00:17:45,130 --> 00:17:45,931
Thank you.
340
00:17:45,931 --> 00:17:46,465
To connect
341
00:17:46,465 --> 00:17:50,269
with Savvy Sagittarius and dive deeper
into her financial wellness insights.
342
00:17:50,436 --> 00:17:53,305
You can find her on Instagram and TikTok
343
00:17:53,305 --> 00:17:56,208
at The Savvy Sagittarius.
344
00:17:56,208 --> 00:17:59,611
For more resources,
check out FNBO.com or subscribe
345
00:17:59,611 --> 00:18:02,581
to us on YouTube
or on your favorite podcast platform.
346
00:18:02,581 --> 00:18:06,118
Consider giving us a rating and a review
as they help us get the word out.
347
00:18:06,118 --> 00:18:10,055
And remember, our discussions are designed
to inform and inspire.
348
00:18:10,255 --> 00:18:13,492
For personalized advice,
we always recommend consulting
349
00:18:13,492 --> 00:18:14,927
a financial professional.
350
00:18:14,927 --> 00:18:18,130
Until next time, keep on making smart
financial choices
351
00:18:18,130 --> 00:18:21,133
and thanks for listening to The Cashology
Podcast.
352
00:18:21,200 --> 00:18:24,803
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00:18:25,003 --> 00:18:27,906
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00:18:27,906 --> 00:18:30,008
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00:18:49,862 --> 00:18:50,929
Lastly, please note
363
00:18:50,929 --> 00:18:54,032
the Cashology Podcast is copyrighted
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00:18:54,933 --> 00:18:58,270
Wow, you're killing it, Justin! I know.