Budgeting with Feelings: How FOMO Blew Up My Budget

Welcome to No Se Habla Taxes, the podcast where I—a CPA and fractional controller—do my own bookkeeping and confess my way through the chaos so you don’t have to feel alone in yours. 

In this episode, I get very real about budgeting—specifically, the emotional kind. Not the kind that lives in a pristine spreadsheet, but the one that has to account for things like impulse buys, last-minute trips, and yes, a serious case of professional FOMO. 

Here’s what you’ll hear: 

💸 The story of how I budgeted for one conference… and ended up attending two 

 📉 Why the problem wasn’t the money—but the scramble afterward 

 🧠 How emotional spending shows up in business (hello, “treat yourself” tax write-offs) 

 🛠️ My 3-step approach to building a solopreneur-friendly budget that actually works 

 💰 Why every founder needs a “FOMO Fund”—and how to set one up 

👥 Plus, in our new segment From My Network, I’m shouting out the brilliant Lori Young—offer strategist and holistic business coach. Don’t miss her Offer Confidence Toolkit! 

🎁 Freebie Alert: Want a solopreneur-friendly budget template? Grab my Budgeting Starter Kit via the link in the show notes. 

📣 CTA: 

 If this episode made you feel seen, hit subscribe, share it with a fellow business owner, and leave a review. And remember—budgeting isn’t about being perfect. It’s about being honest. Future You will thank you. 

🎧 Subscribe to No Se Habla Taxes wherever you listen. 

🔗 Budgeting Starter Kit 

The Offer Confidence Toolkit is your go-to gut check for your offer…with a major upgrade. Now featuring an AI-powered tool + downloadable checklist, this dynamic duo walks you through 10 intentional questions to uncover whether your offer is truly aligned, marketable, and ready to sell, or where it needs a quick tune-up. https://www.onamissionbrands.com/offer-checklist
 

Let's connect!

LI: https://www.linkedin.com/in/armstrongmelissacpa/

Website: https://steadyhandaccounting.com/

Coaching Program Waitlist: https://steadyhandaccounting.myflodesk.com/ofgzp2o7tc

Transcript

0:10

Welcome to No Se Habla Taxes, the podcast where I a CPA, do my own bookkeeping and sometimes wonder why I didn't just open a card. Rescue instead. I'm Melissa Armstrong, a fractional controller solo practice owner. And your favorite financial translator for when numbers feel more like judgment than data. And today. Huh? We're talking about budgeting, but not the spreadsheet kind, the emotional, real life kind. The kind where you plan to go to one conference and then end up at two because feelings. Okay, so here's the thing. At the start of the year, I had one conference in my budget Peak, the Colorado Accounting and Finance Summit. It's local right here in Denver, zero flights, minimal costs, and a perfect chance to rack up some CPE credits before the 1231 deadline. It absolutely made sense, but then July rolled around and suddenly bridging the gap. Another accounting conference was happening and they were hosting it in Denver this year. It was also full of CPE opportunities, but most importantly, it was full of friends from my online circle who were gonna be there, colleagues I have known for a while through virtual masterminds and Zoom calls. And guess what? I had major fomo, so I bought the ticket, I booked the days off, and just like that. I doubled my conference spending for the year. No bueno no, guys. So now you might be thinking, okay, but you're still going to the conference. It's business, right? So now you might be thinking, okay, but you're still going to a conference. It's business, right? Sure. But this isn't about whether a trip is deductible or not. It's about being intentional with your money because the truth is budgeting doesn't have to be complicated, but it does have to be intentional. You don't need a 17 tab Excel workbook, although some of my clients do. What you really need is clarity. Clarity on your goals. Clarity on your cash flow, and most importantly, you want to understand and own your decision making triggers. For me, yeah, it's fomo, but for you it might be scarcity or impulse or treating yourself. When a client finally pays whatever it is, budgeting is the antidote, but only if you use it. Before I share some quick budgeting tips, I wanna introduce you to a new capsule section called From My Network. This section is meant to highlight professionals in my circle who have shown up to support me. They're doing brave pool things, and I think you should meet them too. This episode's edition of From My Network goes to Lori Young. Lori is like the trusted friend next door. She's warm, relatable, and refreshingly down to earth. As an offer strategist and holistic business coach for coaches, wellness experts and soulful entrepreneurs, she offers straight talk on how to turn passion and expertise into aligned, profitable offer ecosystems. Lori's approach is practical, yet deeply human blending strategy with soul to help her clients stand out, scale with integrity, and lead with purpose. When she's not guiding clients through powerful offer breakthroughs, you can find her hosting the popular podcast, the Offer Mojo Show building Lego sets, or mastering the impossible game of golf. Lori brings to you the Offer Confidence Toolkit, your go-to gut check for your offer with a major upgrade now featuring an AI powered tool plus a downloadable checklist. This dynamic duo walks you through 10 intentional questions designed to uncover whether your offer is truly aligned, marketable, and ready to sell. Or where it needs a quick tuneup, go to www.onamissionbrands.com/offer-checklist and check it out. I love Lori, her sense of humor and her beautiful energy, and I know you will love her too. Now back to budgeting. Let's break it down. If you wanna build a budget that works, especially as a solopreneur, you have to start with these simple moves. Number one, make a realistic spending plan, not an aspirational budget. An actual real one, include your monthly expenses and the big stuff, software, renewals, taxes, travel, even celebratory dinners with your team. Uhhuh. Yes, I see you. And then step two, add a FOMO fund. Seriously, if you are prone to last minute business purchases. Like me, be it conferences, coaching programs, or that Canva Pro subscription, you forgot to cancel. Set aside a line item for that and name it. Impulse slash opportunity fund. No shame. This is something that's important to you and you know it's gonna happen, so it's best to just plan for it. Number three. Check before you swipe. Every time you make a spending decision, ask yourself, is this aligned with my plan or am I making this choice from emotion? If it's emotion, take a pause, sleep on it, ask your business bestie, and then make a decision. Budgeting, honestly, it's not just math. It is a mindset, and one you have to. Exercise and test over and over again. So bottom line, I don't regret going to bridging the gap. It was incredible. I connected with people in real life that I had only ever seen in little rectangles on my laptop screen. It was professionally nourishing and personally energizing. But I do wish that I had planned for it because the stress didn't come from the event itself. It came from the scramble, the feeling of, can I really afford this? That came after the fact. That is what a budget is meant to help prevent. It doesn't have to be fancy, but it does have to be honest. So take a moment today. Look at your calendar, what's coming up that you might say yes to, even if you haven't planned for it. Give yourself a little FOMO fund. I know that I will now for this new year, for your future self and mine. Thank.. And if you want a solopreneur friendly budget template, or you just want to hear more behind the scenes stories like this one. Subscribe to No Se Habla Taxes and head to the link in the show notes to grab my budgeting starter kit. Until next time, plan with purpose. Budget for those feelings and keep all of your receipts.