Now I need you to tell me what I missed. It’s finally here! I just finished the first version of The Rockstar Budget and I’d genuinely love your honest feedback -- nothing is precious yet 😅 Since this is an early build it means your feedback actually shapes what it becomes. Consider this an open draft. Then, let me know: 👉 Was anything confusing or unclear? 👉 What part clicked immediately for you? 👉 What felt unnecessary or overcomplicated? 👉 What’s one thing you’d want added or explained better? 👉 Would you actually use this monthly? Why or why not? 👉 If you were recommending this to a friend, how would you describe it in one sentence? Tear it apart. I can take it. 😎

I know it’s only the beginning of February, but tax season is closer than you think. Give yourself an edge this year. Save yourself the April panic spiral and start now! If you’re anything like me, there’s a small part of you that would happily be tossing tea into a harbor somewhere. I still lean hard toward the belief that taxation is theft -- or at the very least, forced participation in a system you didn’t design and never agreed to. You don’t have to love it. But you do need to understand it. You don’t win by yelling at the system... you win by knowing it better than it knows you. So, let’s prepare properly for tax season. Step 1: Get Your Documents in Order Before you think about TurboTax or a CPA, you need your paperwork straight. Create a folder right now called: TAXES 2025 Digital. Physical. Both. I don’t care. Just do it. 🧾 Most Common Documents to Collect If you’re a W-2 employee: - W-2 from your employer - 1099-INT (interest from banks) - 1099-DIV (dividends from investments) - 1099-B (investment sales) - 1098 (mortgage interest) - 1098-T (tuition payments) - Childcare statements (if applicable) - HSA contributions (Form 5498-SA) - Retirement contributions (Traditional IRA receipts) - Property tax statements - Charitable donation receipts Overlooked items people forget: - Side gig income (Venmo, PayPal, Stripe 1099-K) - Bank bonuses - Gambling winnings - Jury duty pay - State tax refunds from last year - Marketplace health insurance Form 1095-A If it hit your bank account, assume the IRS might know. Step 2: If You’re an Entrepreneur, It’s a Different Ballgame If you’re 1099 or self-employed, welcome to the big leagues. You are responsible for: - Income tax - Self-employment tax (15.3%) - Quarterly estimated payments Before filing, have: - All 1099-NEC / 1099-K forms - Full income summary (Stripe, PayPal, Square, etc.) - Profit & Loss statement - Mileage log - Business receipts - Home office square footage - Health insurance premiums - Equipment purchases - Software subscriptions - Contractor payments (and 1099s you issued)

Hey Rockstars👋 I want to share one of the tools I personally use to actually invest without needing to be a Wall Street wizard or glued to market charts all day.📈 📊 📉 I’ve been using Stash as part of my investing setup, and it’s especially great if you’re: - New to investing and want a clear starting point - Overwhelmed by too many options - Tired of your money just sitting there doing nothing The whole platform is designed to make investing approachable. It gives you guidance, simple explanations, and tools that help you understand what your money is doing and why -- not just “throw money in and hope for the best.” If you’re curious to try it, I’ve got a bonus for you:👉 When you join using my link and deposit at least $5, you’ll get $30 to invest. https://get.stash.com/r/r30c5cr90f30c011226-BNC4PP4P Free money doing the heavy lifting? Love to see it. I also understand that tools alone don’t build confidence. Understanding does. That’s why I put together a FREE course in the Classroom that walks you how to use Stash. If investing has felt intimidating, confusing, or like something “other people” do… this is your on-ramp. Start with the free course. Use the bonus if it makes sense for you. We’re not here to gamble. We’re here to build momentum, Every Day. 🎸💸

Well - I just got my annual company bonus from work and decided to use most of it to pay down majority of my credit card debt, and take $1k for savings. It feels good to get that in check but now I need to find more pockets of time to actually audit my expenses and cut out un-necessary subscriptions and other stuff on annual bill that I know is likely to hit my card in the near future. Thanks @MJ Berst for motivating me to take some financial action.

There are plenty of good tools out there to check your subscriptions and see what you're paying for each month. There are pros and cons of linking your bank to some of these apps, specifically when it comes to the security of your data, but these days everyone pretty much has all of your data anyway, so make of that what you will 😅 Recently, I did an audit of my Godaddy.com accounts, I have a few websites, only one of which is active right now, but one thing I didn't realize is that I've been paying for an email address for one of the sites that is currently not active 🫠 Now, it's only $10/month, but that's $120/year -- and this is the problem with subscriptions. We think, "Oh, it's only $xx.xx/month" but when you start to have multiple small subscriptions you are paying for each month, that starts to add up! In fact, recent research has shown that the average American is paying nearly $1,000/year in subscriptions! A few questions for you: - Do you know how many subscriptions you have? - How much are you spending per year? - Do you use an app to track your subscriptions? - Are there any subscriptions you could cancel today? Let's discuss!