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StitcherSociety has shifted so much that even earning more doesn’t always feel like enough. This isn’t a personal failure but a pressure baked into the system. Jen and Jill walk through the psychology behind feeling broke and share practical ways to move forward with clarity and grace.
Your reference point — not your reality — determines how healthy your finances feel.
Why You Feel Broke
Jen and Jill explore the psychological layer that magnifies our reality, warping our perception and leading to short-term thinking, poorer money decisions, reduced optimism, and more financial strain.
They point to social comparison, with social media putting other people’s lifestyles front and center, making it easier to compare, spend more, and feel behind even when income hasn’t changed. They also introduce the idea of money dysmorphia, which blurs the line between how we perceive our income and the financial reality underneath.
How to Move Forward
Once you realize that perception doesn’t always match reality, you can see your finances more clearly. Jen and Jill encourage tracking your income with the same attention you give your spending. And, instead of a simple needs-versus-wants system, they suggest organizing spending around what you truly value. Like a 90-day transaction review to help reveal what’s missing, what you love, and what doesn’t matter as much—so your money supports the life you actually want, not just things you’ll forget about later.
What are you doing to not feel broke?
Jen is studying for the CFP to be more skilled and even more credible in the industry. Meanwhile, Jill fills her everyday with simple luxury.
Bill of The Week
Thanks Debby for sharing your bill about riding a camel named Bill
Thanks so Much for Listening!
Thanks so much for listening. We love love love reading your kind reviews of our book Buy What You Love Without Going Broke and we especially loved this one from:
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Not your average financial book
I did NOT get an advanced copy. I found Jen and Jill through their media blitz for the book on another personal finance podcast I listen to. So many financial books are about saving for your future. This book helped me get excited about spending in the present. And not just spending for spendings' sake, but spending to help me cherish the life I have today.
The focus on psychology is right up my alley, and made me think critically about how and why I spend money. I have already become more intentional about my spending, did a no spend month in January (influenced by their podcast before the book came out), and saved 2.5k to put towards the family car we want to purchase this year. Turns out I care way more about a car that fits our family than I do about daily take-out and Amazon purchases.
It's also the first time I truly thought about my environmental impact (only took me 32 years...eek). This is not your average financial book. I plan to read it again and continue to listen to their podcast to be inspired on how to be a better steward of my money, my time, my relationships, and our earth. Amazing work, Jen & Jill!
If you want to check out our monthly challenge community head to frugalfriendspodcast.com/club to see what challenge we have coming up next.
Keep leaving us reviews on iTunes or Stitcher, and sending the screenshot to reviews@frugalfriendspodcast.com. And don’t forget to share your favorite quote from the episode by using the hashtag #FrugalFriendsNote. 😉