2. Reach 2020 Goals with a Spending Plan and a Yearly Theme

<p><span style="font-weight: 400;">Michael kicks us off on a serious note by discussing opportunity cost, how to create a spending plan, and various tools like eMoney, Quicken and Mint to help you track your expenses. It’s time to take the word “budget” out of your vocabulary and replace it with “spending plan” to help you focus on what’s important to you and spend accordingly. It allows you to be aware of your financial health and keep you on track with your goals.</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">From there, Alisa shares that she’s been loving on</span> <a href= "https://www.instagram.com/foodandwine"><span style= "font-weight: 400;">Food and Wine's Instagram</span></a> <span style="font-weight: 400;">(How to Cut an Onion).</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">Additionally, Alisa’s new guilty pleasure on Netflix is</span> <a href= "https://www.netflix.com/title/80240027"><span style= "font-weight: 400;">Virgin River</span></a><span style= "font-weight: 400;">, which has a very slow start but gets good at the end (and is renewing for season 2 in 2020!). Very different from Michael’s affinity for Cheers and Frasier.</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">Seriously though, Michael dives a little deeper into the financial planning process and the importance of setting multiple financial goals and aligning them. He’s often asked, “Should I pay down debt or save for the future?” Spoiler alert: the answer is BOTH. Your financial plan should be the direction you take to achieve your short- and long term goals.</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">Speaking of goals, Alisa discusses the importance of having a yearly theme. This is the time to reflect on the past year by asking yourself what worked, what didn’t, what do you want to leave behind in 2020, and what do you want to take with you. You use your yearly theme as a guidepost to keep your actions aligned with your goals and desires.</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">She’s a huge fan of</span> <a href= "https://inkand