Budgeting and financial freedom with Kendall Berry

We couldn’t be more excited to launch Girlfunds, a show where we give you our two cents on money. They say money talks, so why can’t we? We love to talk with our girlfriends about everything — except our finances. We’re here to bring money back into the conversation with our sisters — and that includes you. For this week’s episode, we sat down with Kendall Berry, a certified financial educator and money coach. 

Kendall Berry’s passion for personal finance is rooted in her own journey, when she realized her lack of financial education was keeping her from achieving her financial goals. She details the ways she educated herself and what she learned by paying off more than $50,000 in consumer debt that she now shares with others.

During the episode, we discuss some of the foundational elements to financial empowerment and practical steps consumers can take no matter where they are starting from. Berry shares what has worked so well for her and others, including how to create a plan that is truly sustainable. 

Girlfunds takeaway tip from Kendall Berry: 

#1 Why do you think people struggle with budgeting and how can you stick to it?

It sounds really easy when I talk about it right there, but so many people, even when they get this information, don’t stick with it. I think what it really comes down to is the same reason that people don’t stick with other healthy habits – either they haven’t given it enough time to become an ingrained habit or they don’t have a big enough “why.” 

When it comes to taking enough time for it to become an ingrained habit, I like to suggest to people, “Let’s take the next three to six months and make this your thing.” Just like you would if you’re trying to get into a workout routine, or something else. Make this your thing. Set a reminder every day and make sure that you’re in the budget and in your financial situation often, so that it becomes second nature to you. Once it becomes one of those ingrained habits, it’s not as difficult. It’s not as time consuming. It’s just something that you’re checking up on. That comes really easily. 

But then, of course, not having a big enough why, that can really stop people from staying motivated with their budget. I like to help people dig deep. What’s the real reason this is important to you? Do you have children that you want to create a better life for? Do you want to have children? That was my why that was really motivating. And it’s usually not the first thing that people say. It’s like, okay, but why? But why? And it’s way down there. So once people have to dig deep and understand why they’re doing this, that can really help them stay motivated.

Join the two best friends who met as financial journalists at HousingWire, Brena Nath, a twenty-something forever renter with her husband and pup, and Sarah Wheeler, an empty nester on her third home, every week for our girls night focused on everything from affording your best friend’s wedding to how to turn your side hustle into your main hustle. Each week, Girlfunds will have a special guest join us as we intertwine finance and friendship. And don’t worry, you don’t have to have your finances all together to join our girls nights. We’re all in this together to learn – women supporting women – and in the words of our producer, so we can all be #confidentqueens.