Welcome to reThinkable - my weekly newsletter where I share actionable insights to build a wealthy healthy life.

Here’s what we’re covering:

• 🤔 It’s Something Else

• 💭 What Is Emotional Spending?

• ⚒️ The 3-Step Spending Framework

Estimated read time: 3 minutes and 10 seconds

🤔 It’s Something Else

This email might get a little woo, but bear with me, it’s important, I promise!

I always thought I made decisions rationally.

That I would only buy something if it made “sense” to get it. 

But then, I wonder, why would I sometimes still feel guilty about a purchase — questioning whether it really made sense or if it was something else?

But it’s not just me.

Studies found that most people decide what to buy based on emotions and then justify their (emotional) spending with logical reasoning.

In today’s newsletter, we’ll explore what “emotional spending” is and a 3-Step Spending Framework to manage your money better.

PS: IT’S ALMOST HERE! I’ve been working on something HUGE the past few weeks and it’s almost ready! If all goes according to plan, I’ll make the BIG announcement next week. I hope you guys are as excited about it as I am :).

💭 What Is Emotional Spending?

Emotional spending is when you spend money in response to emotional triggers. For example, when you:

• Buy a pint of ice cream when you’re sad

• Buy a cheeseburger when you feel stressed

• Buy a round of shots for everyone when you’re happy 

The problem is, this usually results in spending on things you don't really need, and when it happens frequently, you might start sacrificing your financial goals.

But to be clear, emotional spending isn’t always bad. 

If you need some Butter Pecan ice cream after a long stressful week, or an iced Matcha Latte (my fav) when you’re feeling down, all the power to you.

I believe 90% of goals like diets fail because the more you hear, “you can't eat pineapple pizza” — the more you want pineapple pizza. When it comes to getting better with money, deprivation doesn't work.

So here’s a healthier 3-Step Spending Framework to handle your emotional spending.

⚒️ The 3-Step Spending Framework

1 . Make It (Kind Of) Untouchable

Most people get their paychecks deposited into their checking accounts. The problem is, you’re more likely to spend your paycheck if you see it there.

The trick around this is to set up financial automations so part of your paycheck automatically flows out of your checking account into another account, like a High Yield Savings Account (HYSA).  

That way, not only is part of your paycheck out of sight (and out of mind) but it also generates passive income thanks to your HYSA’s 5% interest rate. If you're looking to open a HYSA, here are some of my favorite FDIC insured ones.

P.S. If you need help setting up your HYSA, reply to this email with the word “SAVE” and I’ll send you a quick guide

I automate all my finances because it helps me take control of my money.

I’m embarrassed to admit this, but before I automated my money, I sometimes forgot to pay bills on time and wasn’t always consistent with saving money. But now that I’ve automated my finances, I’m saving more, investing more, and hitting my financial goals without even thinking about it. 

My philosophy is to simplify finances as much as possible because I know the more obstacles I have in the way, the less likely I’m going to do it. 

2. A Fun Budget

This is controversial but I believe it’s okay to emotionally spend once in a while. Like many things in life, building a healthy relationship with money is about finding a balance.

That’s why, every month, I’ll dedicate $20 as “Fun Money.” Since it’s a dedicated allowance, it’s easier to spend on things without second guessing if I should get it or not thanks to 2 principles:

1. It reminds me that it's fine to occasionally buy something based on emotion, but I’ll have to make a more conscious decision to do so.

2. Because I’m using the money exactly as intended, I don't have to worry or feel guilty about buying something that isn’t completely necessary. 

3. The Pineapple Pizza Rule

Before I make a big purchase (that isn’t pineapple pizza), I ask myself, “How many pineapple pizzas does this thing cost?” 

If the new Apple Pencil Pro costs $130 (absolutely wild price) and I know a small pineapple pizza costs $10, then the new Apple Pencil Pro costs 13 pineapple pizza dollars. I could either buy the overpriced pencil (jk), or I could get 13 pineapple pizzas. 

This simple re-framing uses something I love. It helps me see if buying that thing I don’t know if I’ll enjoy is worth giving up something I know I’ll love.

You don't need to use pineapple pizza dollars — you can use anything you love whether that’s hot dog dollars, coffee dollars or travel dollars.

🔎 reThink More

📰 Finally, some good news about the 4-day work week

📄 Some people think the 401k is a BIG mistake

🏙️ 1 in 24 people living in this city is a millionaire

❤️ Community Space

Last week, I wrote about If you want to be rich, you need THIS. 39% of you got the right answer to which of these scenarios is using leverage to maximize your wealth?: Taking out a loan to invest in a promising start-up that specializes in reversible socks.

Here are some of my favorite responses:

• I chose this answer [borrowing your friend's Netflix account to save on subscription fees] because I was guilty of doing it! 😮 but I felt bad after a while and am now legit🤣. Plus, it’s not that expensive now ☺️

• The differentiation between Type A and Type B income is something I didn't think about before. Thanks for the practical examples I can start implementing to build up my passive income

• I've just started following you and these little nuggets are great information for people like me.

Answer the bonus question in the quiz below for a chance to be featured in our next newsletter 😀.

📝 reThinkable Quiz

P.S. Here’s a good cat video