July 16, 2026
Hey friends,
If you’re new here: I’m Claudia, I’m 26, I work full-time, I’m building a side business, and I am very much still learning this money thing in real time. This blog isn’t me lecturing from some finished, “I’ve got it all figured out” place. It’s me sharing what I’m actually trying, what’s working, and what flopped — as I go.
This week was one of those weeks where a podcast episode, a book I’m re-reading, and a Netflix binge all somehow ended up teaching me the same lesson from three different angles. So let’s get into it.
For the longest time I thought budgeting meant logging every $4 coffee in an app and feeling guilty about it. What actually changed things for me was finally sitting down with “The Psychology of Money” by Morgan Housel — I know, I know, everyone and their mom recommends this book, but there’s a reason it’s still one of the most-cited personal finance books going into 2026. His whole point is that money success has way less to do with spreadsheets and way more to do with behavior: patience, not comparing yourself to people with a totally different financial starting point, and being okay with “enough.”
This week’s move: instead of tracking every transaction, I started asking myself one question before any purchase over $30 — “is this a decision I’ll be proud of in a week?” Simple, but it’s cut my impulse spending more than any app ever did.
I picked back up Tori Dunlap’s “Financial Feminist” podcast (new episodes every Tuesday) after a friend sent me an episode about why hitting your first $100K feels so much harder in 2026 than it did for older generations — cost of living, wage stagnation, all of it. It was genuinely validating to hear someone break down why it feels harder right now instead of just telling me to “budget better.” She also gets into money mindset stuff, like how the way you talk to yourself about money becomes a self-fulfilling pattern.
I’ve paired that with “Girls That Invest” (hosted by Simran Kaur) for my Tuesday investing deep-dives — no jargon, no pretending I already know what an expense ratio is. Between the two shows, my commute now doubles as free financial education, which feels like the ultimate life hack for someone who doesn’t have room in her budget for a course.
Ramit Sethi’s Netflix series “How to Get Rich” has been on my watchlist forever, and this time I actually paused it to write things down instead of just having it on in the background while I did laundry. His whole “money isn’t about deprivation, it’s about spending extravagantly on the things you love and cutting ruthlessly on the things you don’t” philosophy hit different at 26, when I’m trying to save for a house down payment and still want to go to my best friend’s destination wedding without stressing about it.
If you want the book version of the same philosophy, his book “I Will Teach You to Be Rich” is still one of the most practical, step-by-step reads out there for setting up accounts, automating savings, and negotiating your bills — I finally called my internet provider after reading his script and saved $15/month. Small, but it adds up.
Netflix’s “Money, Explained” docuseries (the Vox collab) has an episode specifically on credit card debt that I’d been avoiding watching because I knew it would call me out. It did. Watching how the interest math actually works laid out visually was way more motivating than any lecture from a family member. I moved my one remaining card balance to a 0% intro APR card and set an automatic payment so I actually pay it off before the promo period ends this time.
Podcast for mindset and real talk: Financial Feminist with Tori Dunlap.
Podcast for investing basics without jargon: Girls That Invest.
Book for the “why” behind money behavior: The Psychology of Money by Morgan Housel.
Book for the “how” — step-by-step setup: I Will Teach You to Be Rich by Ramit Sethi.
Watch for a mindset reset: How to Get Rich (Netflix).
Watch if you’re avoiding your debt like I was: Money, Explained (Netflix).
None of these are magic. What clicked for me this week is that all four of these sources are basically saying the same thing in different packaging: money stuff is mostly behavioral, not mathematical, and the “boring” moves — automating savings, asking why you spend the way you do, actually calling your provider to negotiate — are the ones that compound.
I’ll be back next week with an update on the house-down-payment fund and probably a rant about grocery prices. Until then — what are you reading, watching, or listening to for your own money journey? Reply and tell me, I’m always adding to my list.
Talk soon,
Claudia