$pent Millennial

Dear Reader,

It’s time I put my money where my mouth is.

Since I first started budgeting — and realized how freeing it actually is, not restricting — I’ve been encouraging others to do the same. What I found wasn’t limitation; it was permission. Permission to spend intentionally, to plan ahead without guilt, and to stop feeling at the mercy of my bank balance. That’s the sense of control and calm I want others to experience too.

Yet, one of the most common challenges that comes up is what to do when your paycheck isn’t consistent. Whether you’re hourly, commission-based, or just working through seasonal shifts, it can feel impossible to plan ahead when every payday looks different — especially now, when costs are up and stability feels harder to come by.

What I’ve often encouraged (and practiced myself when income was less predictable) are three steps:

1. Find your baseline.  Look at several months of pay and figure out what your “average” or lowest regular paycheck tends to be.

2. Create a buffer account. Whenever a check comes in above that baseline — whether from overtime, extra shifts, or side work — set that extra aside in a dedicated “income smoothing” or sinking fund. Preferably, this should be in a High-Yield Savings account to maximize interest growth. 

3. Leave it alone. Do not touch the funds in the account until they are needed. When a smaller paycheck hits due to fewer hours, holidays, or slower business, use that buffer to fill the gap as needed. 

The goal is to eventually build that account to cover a full month of expenses — a cushion that’s separate from your emergency fund, if you’re in a place to have one. 

If you don’t have a standing emergency fund, and you find yourself unable to build up a separate emergency fund at the time, this fund is your emergency starter — your first step toward breathing room. Once this account is stable with a month’s worth of expenses, you should prioritize building up a more robust emergency fund with any extra you bring in. 

This brings me to another common question I hear: 

“How am I supposed to save or invest when I can barely cover my expenses?”

This one is real. And I know it well. My first budgets were discouraging — expenses outweighed income, and I had to rework the numbers again and again just to break even. At that stage, saving wasn’t about dollar amounts; it was about habits.

Even small amounts matter. If you can consistently set aside anything — $3 here, $10 there, $25 from a larger paycheck — it builds two habits that matter more than the money itself:

1. The habit of saving something
2. The habit of sticking to your budget when the extra shows up

Because it’s so easy to let that extra $25 turn into a “treat yourself” moment (and you do deserve nice things!) — but intentionality is the difference between progress and plateau.

I’ve been through this before. When I was paying off debt and earning less, 

But, as my expenses stabilized thanks to debt payoff, and my income grew,  I sometimes worried that I was preaching from comfort rather than practice. It is easy to preach saving and investing when the cash flow is flowing and your needs and wants are all covered in comfort. 

Now, as I find myself in a time of career and income transition, life’s reminded me what it feels like to have to plan around every hour and every dollar once again.

This month, I’m working off a new budget based on anticipated hours and rates, factoring in taxes and the upcoming Thanksgiving holiday — which means a few unpaid days off and no PTO to cover them. 

Thankfully, I picked up some extra hours earlier in the month, which should help balance things out. When that check hits, I’ll be putting my own advice into action: setting aside the surplus to start rebuilding my buffer fund for upcoming smaller checks. 

So, if you’re in a season of unpredictable income — whether it’s an unexpected dip in hours, a slower sales stretch, or just the challenge of keeping up with ever-rising costs — know that you’re not alone in it. These shifts can be discouraging, but they’re also opportunities to build resilience and practice intentionality. Even the smallest, most imperfect steps add up.

I’ll keep you posted on how it goes — the wins, the wobbles, and the real-life numbers that make up both.

Until next week- take care, 

Everett