Shownotes
When Alysa Gumto was a child, her dad was diagnosed with MS and told he could no longer work.
Her family went from two incomes to one.
While this might have created a mentality of lack for many people, this moment actually helped Alysa realize that she wanted to make her own money and needed to manage it well.
In this episode, she shares how from just 12 years old, she started making her own money, saving it effectively, and how the choices and skills she learned during those years allowed her to graduate college debt-free, buy her cars with cash to avoid heavy interest rates, and buying on a house by herself by the age of 27.
She shares how she prioritizes her financial goals and why she doesn’t consider the choices she makes around her money to be sacrifices.
Tune in to hear:
02:25 — A devastating moment during childhood that defined Alysa’s relationship with money
12:43 — How what we witness in childhood about money vs. what we’re taught can differ
15:10 — Why you’re not “sacrificing” when you’re making choices that align with your specific goals
22:08 — 2 things that have allowed Alysa to save for big money goals
CONNECT WITH ALYSA GUMTO
Alysa Gumto has 5+ years of experience as a Social Media Manager. She’s also a speaker and podcaster. She loves a good strategy to impact the bottom line.
https://copyfol.io/v/alysagumto
https://www.linkedin.com/in/alysagumto/
https://www.instagram.com/tellingitlikeitiswithalysa/
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Transcripts
riverside_alysa_gumto_raw-synced-video-cfr_sydney_smyers's stu_0070: About 20 ish years ago, my
Speaker:dad was actually diagnosed with MS in the same day.
Speaker:That he got that diagnosis was also the same day that his doctor told my dad
Speaker:and my mom that he no longer could work.
Speaker:So he was like 30 ish years old, obviously a male, being told, We're sorry,
Speaker:Brian, but you need to quit your job.
Speaker:Like, you cannot work.
Speaker:So that right there was a defining moment for our entire family.
Speaker:I'm like, I need to start making money.
Speaker:So literally around like 12 or 13 years old, I started babysitting.
Speaker:Welcome to the Know Your Worth Show, where we teach you how to think about
Speaker:your money differently so that you can achieve your sexy money goals.
Speaker:I'm Sydnee your money Maven and owner of Know Your Worth.
Speaker:And I'm Kristen Sid's Dimepiece bestie team member and busy mama
Speaker:twins here to make sure that those of us without a financial degree can
Speaker:still level up with each episode.
Speaker:Let's get started on reaching your next goal.
Speaker:riverside_sydney_raw-synced-video-cfr_sydney_smyers's stu_0071: welcome to the Know Your Worth podcast.
Speaker:I'm one of your hosts, Sydney Conway.
Speaker:And I am Syd's bestie and assistant and right hand lady, Kristen.
Speaker:And today on the podcast, we have Alyssa Gumtoe.
Speaker:She is a social media manager for five and a half years.
Speaker:We're going to hear a little bit about her story today and, uh, just where
Speaker:she comes from, how she came to be where she is, and a little bit maybe
Speaker:about her love for her dog, Trudley.
Speaker:Yeah.
Speaker:So hello, Alyssa.
Speaker:Thank you for joining us.
Speaker:riverside_alysa_gumto_raw-synced-video-cfr_sydney_smyers's stu_0070: Hi, thank you for having me.
Speaker:I am super pumped to be here.
Speaker:I'm excited.
Speaker:riverside_sydney_raw-synced-video-cfr_sydney_smyers's stu_0071: Great, great.
Speaker:Thank you.
Speaker:We're gonna say thank you for bearing with us today a little bit if the volume
Speaker:is different or audio We're in a new office today new new recording studio
Speaker:So for any of the listeners, if this is a little bit different, that's why.
Speaker:So Alyssa is A friend of mine that I worked with, I was blessed to work with.
Speaker:She's my saving grace.
Speaker:And I've always admired you, Alyssa, because you are 27.
Speaker:When I met you, you were like, what, 20?
Speaker:riverside_alysa_gumto_raw-synced-video-cfr_sydney_smyers's stu_0070: 24,
Speaker:riverside_sydney_raw-synced-video-cfr_sydney_smyers's stu_0071: 24, but you still had your shit
Speaker:together when you were 24 and I feel like you've probably always had it
Speaker:together, but I always admired you because you just always seem to have
Speaker:like very clear goals and that's in life and with money and financials.
Speaker:So that's kind of what we wanted to talk to you about today.
Speaker:riverside_alysa_gumto_raw-synced-video-cfr_sydney_smyers's stu_0070: Let's do it.
Speaker:Hit me with the questions, ladies.
Speaker:Sydney and Kristen: All right.
Speaker:So let's start with like, we always talk about our values and our, like our
Speaker:value systems in our family with money.
Speaker:So how did you grow up with money?
Speaker:What were the messages you got from like your parents and your
Speaker:family members, that kind of stuff?
Speaker:riverside_alysa_gumto_raw-synced-video-cfr_sydney_smyers's stu_0070: Yeah, absolutely.
Speaker:So I have, I feel like a little bit of a unique story compared
Speaker:to the average person my age.
Speaker:So the way I grew up really is the reason why who I am today when it comes to money.
Speaker:So let's backtrack.
Speaker:So yeah, I'm 27.
Speaker:So I would say about 20 ish years ago, my dad was actually
Speaker:diagnosed with MS in the same day.
Speaker:That he got that diagnosis was also the same day that his doctor told my dad
Speaker:and my mom that he no longer could work.
Speaker:So he was like 30 ish years old, obviously a male, being told, We're sorry,
Speaker:Brian, but you need to quit your job.
Speaker:Like, you cannot work.
Speaker:So that right there was a defining moment for our entire family.
Speaker:We went from two cars to one, obviously two, um, incomes to one.
Speaker:And also too, my mom, she actually, and still to this day,
Speaker:but she runs an in home daycare.
Speaker:So growing up, that's all I saw was my parents and they gave, they truly
Speaker:gave us everything that they possibly could to have a great childhood.
Speaker:We, you know, were able to luckily get quote unquote, you know,
Speaker:what we wanted, things like that.
Speaker:But I just viewed money differently, even growing up from them and just knowing
Speaker:like, okay, like my mom was someone, she was constantly Clipping coupons, always
Speaker:looking for the best deals to like save money on like groceries so that we could,
Speaker:you know, have, you know, The UGG boots or my brother could get the new, you know,
Speaker:baseball bat, glove, whatever it was.
Speaker:So from a very young age, I realized like, oh my gosh, I need to save money, etc.
Speaker:But also too, one of the things that I heard all the time growing up,
Speaker:and it still annoys me looking back.
Speaker:And I know teachers still do this to this day.
Speaker:Cause my sister, she just graduated high school.
Speaker:And she says the same thing, has said the same thing, excuse me, is
Speaker:that I would be in class and these teachers would be like, yeah, like
Speaker:I'm still paying off my college debt.
Speaker:So growing up, I heard a lot from just teachers complaining about
Speaker:they were still paying, you know, their college debt, et cetera.
Speaker:And that also too started going in my brain.
Speaker:I was like, Oh my gosh, like, I don't want that to be me.
Speaker:I grew up in a household where my parents never really talked about
Speaker:like debt in the college perspective.
Speaker:Right?
Speaker:So I, I am having these thoughts about debt, all these things.
Speaker:I'm like, I need to start making money.
Speaker:So literally around like 12 or 13 years old, I started babysitting.
Speaker:And since then, I've really, that was like my first job was like babysitting.
Speaker:And I would be so excited when I would like come home from babysitting and I
Speaker:had like these coach wristlets and I still have these wristlets still to this
Speaker:day, as much as I want to donate them.
Speaker:There's a part of me that's like, I can't donate them.
Speaker:Like, this is how I got to where I am today.
Speaker:And I would like put all my cash in the wristlets and then I would like chunk
Speaker:them every time I reached like a $100 And then once I reached $1,000 I would
Speaker:like put it all together and then I would transport from like the one wristlet
Speaker:to the other so that I could see like how many stacks of a thousand you know,
Speaker:chunks of a thousand right, I could get.
Speaker:So that's really how it was for years, was like that, like all
Speaker:babysitting, et cetera, right?
Speaker:So now we're in high school, fast forward to like junior, senior year, obviously,
Speaker:you know, people are talking about, I'm going to the University of Arizona, I'm
Speaker:going to Florida, I'm going to Texas, like everyone's going to all these places.
Speaker:And I'm like, I don't want to do any of that because if I go to a different state,
Speaker:I'm not going to be able to like babysit.
Speaker:How am I going to be able to make money, et cetera.
Speaker:So I ended up choosing to stay at home and I went to college at La Roche.
Speaker:And for those of you that are local to that, to the area, that's literally
Speaker:10 minutes from where I grew up.
Speaker:So I was obviously a commuter student.
Speaker:And what's really nice about that school was, for the most part,
Speaker:classes were either like Mondays, Wednesdays, or Tuesdays and Thursdays.
Speaker:And I was pretty much home Monday through Thursday by like 12.
Speaker:30.
Speaker:So whenever I wasn't in school, or if a certain semester I didn't have classes
Speaker:on, you know, one of those days, etc.,
Speaker:I was babysitting.
Speaker:So what I ended up being able to do, and I can say with confidence,
Speaker:is I actually graduated debt free because of all of those years
Speaker:literally grinding and hustling, babysitting, and saving my money.
Speaker:I was someone who like, I never went outdooring, um, like high school
Speaker:I never partied, I didn't even go to prom because I chose to babysit
Speaker:instead because I was like, I want
Speaker:riverside_sydney_raw-synced-video-cfr_sydney_smyers's stu_0071: Wow, you're like extremely disciplined.
Speaker:Yeah.
Alysa Gumto:Yes!
Alysa Gumto:So, literally, that's kind of how that all started, right?
Alysa Gumto:So, graduate college, debt free, etc.
Alysa Gumto:It was like, great.
Alysa Gumto:And then at that point, it was like, okay, like, what's my first car gonna be?
Alysa Gumto:Because I was just using, like, our family car, because again,
Alysa Gumto:it worked with our schedule, etc.
Alysa Gumto:So then when I came to getting my first car, I was like, oh,
Alysa Gumto:I'm gonna get something nice.
Alysa Gumto:so my first car.
Alysa Gumto:Yeah, I like after doing all this, I'm like, I really wanted
Alysa Gumto:to shock people on Instagram.
Alysa Gumto:Have this post me posing in front of this car and be like, dang, look at Alyssa.
Alysa Gumto:You know, she's killing it, right?
Alysa Gumto:So I ended up getting a Mercedes as my first car, a white Mercedes, whatever.
Alysa Gumto:And two, I also should also add in here to my mom's dad.
Alysa Gumto:Growing up, he was very big and unfortunately he's no longer with us.
Alysa Gumto:He was big and, I'm not giving the government an extra penny.
Alysa Gumto:he's like, Liz, you don't do that either, hon.
Alysa Gumto:And I'm like, okay, Pap, what I, you know, I'll make sure I don't.
Alysa Gumto:Right.
Alysa Gumto:So that also too was in my head.
Alysa Gumto:So what do you know?
Alysa Gumto:I put down like 10, 000 in cash, still from babysitting for my first car.
Alysa Gumto:And then I ended up paying off my car.
Alysa Gumto:And I don't know, like a year and a half.
Alysa Gumto:Like, it was just like, my favorite thing to do was to go to the, um, first national
Alysa Gumto:bank on Duncan Avenue to go pay it.
Alysa Gumto:And she's like, Oh, you're back again.
Alysa Gumto:I was like, heck yeah.
Alysa Gumto:I'm like, let's pay it off today.
Alysa Gumto:She's like, are you sure?
Alysa Gumto:I was like, yes, I am.
Alysa Gumto:So I ended
Alysa Gumto:riverside_sydney_raw-synced-video-cfr_sydney_smyers's stu_0071: just, like, slide cash
Alysa Gumto:across to the cashier?
Alysa Gumto:riverside_alysa_gumto_raw-synced-video-cfr_sydney_smyers's stu_0070: Yes!
Alysa Gumto:I'm like, here you go, girl!
Alysa Gumto:Yeah!
Alysa Gumto:So, yeah, was able to do that.
Alysa Gumto:So that was obviously really exciting.
Alysa Gumto:And then, just recently now, now we can flash forward to, what year?
Alysa Gumto:2023, it was like October ish.
Alysa Gumto:My lovely Mercedes was giving me a run for my money, literally.
Alysa Gumto:Also too, my sister and I were in two different accidents
Alysa Gumto:where my fender got hit.
Alysa Gumto:It wasn't my fault and it wasn't her fault.
Alysa Gumto:So we started saying that my car really needed Jesus.
Alysa Gumto:And then one Saturday it gave us like every light possible.
Alysa Gumto:And my dad's like, Alyssa, you need to go buy a new car.
Alysa Gumto:He's like, we are going.
Alysa Gumto:And I was like, I don't want to, I don't want a car payment.
Alysa Gumto:Everyone's complaining about these interest rates.
Alysa Gumto:I'm like.
Alysa Gumto:I don't want to.
Alysa Gumto:And also too, during this time, I was like trying to look also for a house as well.
Alysa Gumto:So I'm like, okay, fine.
Alysa Gumto:Like let's go, whatever.
Alysa Gumto:So again, going into it, I was like, okay, dad, like, this is my number.
Alysa Gumto:We're not going to let the salesman, you know, try and
Alysa Gumto:like wind me over, et cetera.
Alysa Gumto:And I did like pretty good.
Alysa Gumto:I went over my ideal number a little bit, but.
Alysa Gumto:Even then, I traded in my car, wrote the check, boom, done.
Alysa Gumto:Because again, I was like, screw those interest rates,
Alysa Gumto:I'm not paying for it, right?
Alysa Gumto:So paid off my car, literally then, on that day.
Alysa Gumto:riverside_sydney_raw-synced-video-cfr_sydney_smyers's stu_0071: What kind of car did you get?
Alysa Gumto:riverside_alysa_gumto_raw-synced-video-cfr_sydney_smyers's stu_0070: um, a Hyundai, like, Palisade.
Alysa Gumto:It's like, it's a lot bigger than, like, what my Mercedes was.
Alysa Gumto:But, we should also preface this by saying, I got the
Alysa Gumto:bigger car because of Truly.
Alysa Gumto:riverside_sydney_raw-synced-video-cfr_sydney_smyers's stu_0071: She needed to ride in luxury.
Alysa Gumto:Yep,
Alysa Gumto:riverside_alysa_gumto_raw-synced-video-cfr_sydney_smyers's stu_0070: she needed, the Mercedes was like a
Alysa Gumto:compact, like, it was like an SUV ish, but it wasn't three rows, and it just, she
Alysa Gumto:was getting too big for it, quite frankly.
Alysa Gumto:So I needed a car with like three rows, and this car is like a lot
Alysa Gumto:safer, like, it's such a mom car.
Alysa Gumto:Like, I feel like people probably think when I get out of it, like, where's the
Alysa Gumto:soccer balls flying out of the doors?
Alysa Gumto:Because like, that's the vibe you get, right?
Alysa Gumto:So, this happens.
Alysa Gumto:I post the picture on Instagram of like me posing with the car again.
Alysa Gumto:And my realtor is like, Oh my God, he did not just buy a car.
Alysa Gumto:I was like, don't worry, Ashley.
Alysa Gumto:Like I wrote the check, you know, we're all good because
Alysa Gumto:that's like house buying 101.
Alysa Gumto:You should not buy a car that's, you know, you owe a lot of money
Alysa Gumto:on when you're looking for a house.
Alysa Gumto:So that happened.
Alysa Gumto:And then fast forward now to the end of 2023.
Alysa Gumto:I finally found a house because I was on a house journey for two years.
Alysa Gumto:And I ended up having my closing on January 8th, the day before
Alysa Gumto:my 27th birthday, because I was very firm with my realtor.
Alysa Gumto:I was like, Ashley, I want to close on my house before I turned 27.
Alysa Gumto:So we did a three week closing.
Alysa Gumto:I was able to put 20 percent down.
Alysa Gumto:Obviously that 20 percent was not because of babysitting.
Alysa Gumto:That was because of my full time job, but I was
Alysa Gumto:riverside_sydney_raw-synced-video-cfr_sydney_smyers's stu_0071: babysitting.
Alysa Gumto:riverside_alysa_gumto_raw-synced-video-cfr_sydney_smyers's stu_0070: Yeah, but I was able to put the
Alysa Gumto:20 percent down, not have to worry about daddy's money or anyone else's
Alysa Gumto:money, literally all on my own.
Alysa Gumto:And I've now, by the time this actually airs, it'll be my six month anniversary
Alysa Gumto:of like owning this house where I've had to put in an additional like
Alysa Gumto:20k and again, all on my own money.
Alysa Gumto:So that's kind of my story in a nutshell of like how this all came to be.
Alysa Gumto:But again, I say it all the time.
Alysa Gumto:If my dad would have never gotten diagnosed when he did, there is no
Alysa Gumto:way that I would be the person who I am today when it comes to money.
Alysa Gumto:Yeah.
Alysa Gumto:Sydney and Kristen: you up from the beginning of what you want and kind
Alysa Gumto:of like shakes you up a little bit.
Alysa Gumto:So it's good.
Alysa Gumto:It's one of the, one of the better shakeups that you can get that
Alysa Gumto:carries with you in that way of.
Alysa Gumto:Being firm with what your budget is and being really strategic.
Alysa Gumto:So that's, I mean, that's the only probably benefit that really
Alysa Gumto:came from that, but it's great.
Alysa Gumto:Good for you.
Alysa Gumto:Good for you.
Alysa Gumto:I have questions.
Alysa Gumto:So did your parents talk to you about money or you just received these
Alysa Gumto:messages from like being observant and watching what was happening?
Alysa Gumto:riverside_alysa_gumto_raw-synced-video-cfr_sydney_smyers's stu_0070: Very observant, but I also, too, like,
Alysa Gumto:I knew when my dad would get out his, like, sheets of paper, where he would,
Alysa Gumto:like, budget, and he would, like, write down, okay, like, the Verizon
Alysa Gumto:bills due, or the AT& T bills due for, like, our phones, or whatever.
Alysa Gumto:So, like, I would see him doing it, and he would show me, he would say, okay, Alyssa,
Alysa Gumto:like, This means A for like automatic.
Alysa Gumto:This means C, like I got to write the check.
Alysa Gumto:So like I knew too, like, it seems like if something were to happen,
Alysa Gumto:like, I know you will be able to like, you know, figure this out.
Alysa Gumto:And so even from then it was like very like aware of like, this is how
Alysa Gumto:it's going to be, but also too, like I said, with just like my mom, Clipping
Alysa Gumto:coupons, like looking for the best deal.
Alysa Gumto:And it was never that, you know, we couldn't, you know, buy like new clothes,
Alysa Gumto:you know, like we were still able to do what we were able to do as kids, but just
Alysa Gumto:the environment that I grew up in was like, we're not making it rain at 2810.
Alysa Gumto:We're like going to give you like the best childhood that we
Alysa Gumto:riverside_sydney_raw-synced-video-cfr_sydney_smyers's stu_0071: I love it.
Alysa Gumto:riverside_alysa_gumto_raw-synced-video-cfr_sydney_smyers's stu_0070: You know, like, we're gonna give you the
Alysa Gumto:best childhood that we financially can, and this is what we're gonna do about it.
Alysa Gumto:But even our vacations growing up, we went to Erie for a vacation growing up, and my
Alysa Gumto:brother and I, my sister was still really young at the time, but we thought that was
Alysa Gumto:like the best thing since sliced bread.
Alysa Gumto:Like, we're gonna go to Splash Lagoon, and like, that's what we
Alysa Gumto:could afford at the time, was to go to Erie for a few days, right?
Alysa Gumto:Now we, you know, go to Florida and stuff like that.
Alysa Gumto:But also too, my parents, you know, they still wanted to give us like a vacation
Alysa Gumto:of some sort, but that was like what they were able to like do for us even then too.
Alysa Gumto:riverside_sydney_raw-synced-video-cfr_sydney_smyers's stu_0071: Yeah.
Alysa Gumto:Yeah.
Alysa Gumto:I mean, it's just such a good lesson of you can still
Alysa Gumto:enjoy life within your means.
Alysa Gumto:You know, you can still, you can be creative.
Alysa Gumto:You
Alysa Gumto:can still enjoy things, but within your means and within
Alysa Gumto:your budget and absolutely.
Alysa Gumto:I mean, I, I, a lot of what you're saying resonates with me with what
Alysa Gumto:my parents were like to, you know, we had really nice things growing up.
Alysa Gumto:We did really great things, but my parents always had a budget.
Alysa Gumto:You know, they were very, They were very communi they were really good at
Alysa Gumto:communicating with each other about what the budget was and what the plan
Alysa Gumto:was and making sure that we stayed within the plan and stayed within the
Alysa Gumto:budget and we never ate out growing up and we all my mom cooked every meal.
Alysa Gumto:So it was, like, I I get where you're coming from a lot.
Alysa Gumto:That was a lot of how my parents were too.
Alysa Gumto:So, when you look back, do you feel like you sacrificed?
Alysa Gumto:Like, are you like, well, I wish I wouldn't have done this or that, or
Alysa Gumto:I wish I would have gone to my prom?
Alysa Gumto:Like, do you have any, any regrets, I guess, about the way that you did it?
Alysa Gumto:riverside_alysa_gumto_raw-synced-video-cfr_sydney_smyers's stu_0070: sometimes I do like wonder, I'm
Alysa Gumto:like, Hmm, I wonder if I would have done X, Y, and Z, but honestly, no.
Alysa Gumto:Because especially in like today's day and age with again, the housing
Alysa Gumto:market, the interest rates, like if I would have gone away to college or if
Alysa Gumto:I would have like left home or if my parents even want to charge rent, I
Alysa Gumto:would have never been able to buy my first house by myself at 26 years old.
Alysa Gumto:So I have like no regrets about any of it.
Alysa Gumto:And I also too, you know, growing up, obviously in high school, you know, people
Alysa Gumto:were like, going out, they were going to parties, they were doing things that,
Alysa Gumto:sorry, they shouldn't have, you know, shouldn't be doing in high school, right?
Alysa Gumto:I get every, people do it.
Alysa Gumto:I just didn't.
Alysa Gumto:But, I was like, why?
Alysa Gumto:Like, that, to me, does no good.
Alysa Gumto:And I, Had these families that I babysat for where it was like pretty
Alysa Gumto:much every week I knew their parents were gonna need me and it wasn't
Alysa Gumto:just like a two hour thing Like I would be getting home at like 1 00 a.
Alysa Gumto:m In the morning, you know 1 00 a.
Alysa Gumto:m in the morning So I was like making a good chunk of money and two I was like
Alysa Gumto:forming great relationships with their kids And you know, I was becoming more
Alysa Gumto:of like an older sister figure to them and stuff like that So yeah, I honestly
Alysa Gumto:don't have any regrets for it You But I also now see it with my sister.
Alysa Gumto:So my sister, she's 18.
Alysa Gumto:She has a job, and I also see her now too.
Alysa Gumto:Like when I go out shopping with her, she'll like pick up a shirt, like TJ Maxx
Alysa Gumto:or Marshalls, and she's like, mm, it's 20.
Alysa Gumto:And then she like does the calculations of how many hours she
Alysa Gumto:would need to work to pay for it.
Alysa Gumto:So now I even see it with her too.
Alysa Gumto:So she's like really smart with her money and not all of her friends are.
Alysa Gumto:She's like, yeah, Alyssa, this person has literally like 2
Alysa Gumto:in my, in her bank account.
Alysa Gumto:And I have five figures in my bank account and I'm 18.
Alysa Gumto:So it's also like definitely having a ripple effect on her, which I think
Alysa Gumto:is cool too, just to kind of see like, okay, like she actually gets this
Alysa Gumto:because again, not everyone gets it.
Alysa Gumto:And you know, if you're not brought up in an environment where, you know, you
Alysa Gumto:have parents who are very aware of their spending habits and they, you know, save
Alysa Gumto:more than they spend because let's be real, a lot of people just spend their
Alysa Gumto:paychecks and like, that's what they do.
Alysa Gumto:riverside_sydney_raw-synced-video-cfr_sydney_smyers's stu_0071: So would you say, do you have a
Alysa Gumto:budget that, like, you've created?
Alysa Gumto:Do you know what you want to spend every month on groceries
Alysa Gumto:and everything like that?
Alysa Gumto:Like, do you follow a budget?
Alysa Gumto:Yeah,
Alysa Gumto:riverside_alysa_gumto_raw-synced-video-cfr_sydney_smyers's stu_0070: I could say I do, but I
Alysa Gumto:don't, I'll be honest.
Alysa Gumto:I don't.
Alysa Gumto:And I feel like just because with this whole house situation, these past six
Alysa Gumto:months, I'm still really trying to figure out like, okay, is this going to be
Alysa Gumto:the week where I get a rug or whatever?
Alysa Gumto:So I feel like I honestly don't have like a budget.
Alysa Gumto:However, in my head, I know like, okay, this is quote unquote, what
Alysa Gumto:I want, like my fun money to be.
Alysa Gumto:And when I mean fun money, I mean, I'm like looking over here
Alysa Gumto:at my office, but it's like.
Alysa Gumto:Oh, some like new decor like for my basement.
Alysa Gumto:I really want like decor in my basement, but I'm like I don't know if this is
Alysa Gumto:gonna be the week Might have to be for like the next paycheck where I can like
Alysa Gumto:spend a little bit more And stuff like that because you both know like you guys
Alysa Gumto:are homeowners like stuff is constantly popping up When you least expect it and
Alysa Gumto:it's like oh, there's six hundred dollars there, you know another 50 there It adds
Alysa Gumto:riverside_sydney_raw-synced-video-cfr_sydney_smyers's stu_0071: now.
Alysa Gumto:I'm feeling that right now.
Alysa Gumto:We closed on our second house last week.
Alysa Gumto:And, um, it's a lot of work to be done in this one.
Alysa Gumto:We're sitting in about the one room that is.
Alysa Gumto:80% finished in this house,
Alysa Gumto:So, uh, yeah, I understand that completely.
Alysa Gumto:And, and we have a, we have a budget for what we were thinking
Alysa Gumto:renovation costs would be and what I was hoping flooring costs would be.
Alysa Gumto:And we got a quote back for the flooring, for the kitchen today, and it
Alysa Gumto:is about double what I had estimated.
Alysa Gumto:That's fun.
Alysa Gumto:So, yeah, I thought the flooring for the first floor was gonna
Alysa Gumto:be like, I think like eight.
Alysa Gumto:8, 000 or 8, 000 to 10, 000.
Alysa Gumto:And, uh, the quote came back at 19, 000.
Alysa Gumto:Beautiful.
Alysa Gumto:Is Alex going to learn how to like put floor down?
Alysa Gumto:We actually, yeah, we talked about it.
Alysa Gumto:We're going to watch some YouTube videos and see if we can do it ourselves.
Alysa Gumto:Yeah.
Alysa Gumto:Carpet.
Alysa Gumto:We're getting someone else to do the carpet.
Alysa Gumto:I know.
Alysa Gumto:I don't want to learn how to do carpet.
Alysa Gumto:No, but floors could be fun.
Alysa Gumto:Yeah, the vinyl floor.
Alysa Gumto:Yeah, exactly.
Alysa Gumto:They snap in, you know, we can, we think we can do that, but yeah.
Alysa Gumto:I mean, it's so unexpected, you know, when you have things like that.
Alysa Gumto:So.
Alysa Gumto:Um, do you have an emergency fund or anything like that when things have
Alysa Gumto:come up that have been unexpected?
Alysa Gumto:Or are you someone that utilizes, like, do you have any credit
Alysa Gumto:cards or lines of credit or things like that that you would use?
Alysa Gumto:riverside_alysa_gumto_raw-synced-video-cfr_sydney_smyers's stu_0070: So I have one credit card.
Alysa Gumto:I have a Discover card and I got that when I was like, 18.
Alysa Gumto:Because at that time, um, for like college students, if you would like submit your
Alysa Gumto:GPA, you would get like an extra 50.
Alysa Gumto:So that was always exciting when you got, you know, that 50 credit.
Alysa Gumto:So yeah, I just have one credit card.
Alysa Gumto:That is it.
Alysa Gumto:And then I do have like a savings account.
Alysa Gumto:So I have 10, 000 in my savings account and that to me That has always been my
Alysa Gumto:goal to always have like that amount in it And not even necessarily because of
Alysa Gumto:the house like even before all this more so because of the dog because again Just
Alysa Gumto:like a house, a dog is very expensive, and you never know when, you know, someone,
Alysa Gumto:she has to go to the vet or whatever.
Alysa Gumto:So, I do have that, and like, that money is, I don't, I do not touch it.
Alysa Gumto:It's there in case something happens to her, if something were to happen to
Alysa Gumto:like, my parents, and like, they would need it, or my sister, or whatever.
Alysa Gumto:That's that money, and I've been like trying over like the past few weeks to
Alysa Gumto:like get it to that goal again, because for a while it wasn't, because I needed a
Alysa Gumto:roof, I needed things painted, I needed an electrician, I needed a plumber, like all
Alysa Gumto:of that stuff added up, and like I said earlier, I literally spent an additional
Alysa Gumto:20k already in just a short amount of time, and it's just me, myself, and I.
Alysa Gumto:So, you know, my bank account, I think what the hardest thing though
Alysa Gumto:had with just owning a house in these past few months is my bank account
Alysa Gumto:doesn't look like it used to, you know, last year at this time, right?
Alysa Gumto:So that's really been a come to Jesus moment where I'm like, it's
Alysa Gumto:going to take me quite some time to get back to that number again.
Alysa Gumto:But I'm where I want to be and it's going to be okay.
Alysa Gumto:So there's been a lot of just like reassurance, even to my own self,
Alysa Gumto:that everything's going to be okay, even though you don't see the numbers
Alysa Gumto:that you're used to and what you want to see, like just focus on what's
Alysa Gumto:important, what's a priority, and then worry about the other stuff.
Alysa Gumto:So,
Alysa Gumto:riverside_sydney_raw-synced-video-cfr_sydney_smyers's stu_0071: yeah.
Alysa Gumto:that's great.
Alysa Gumto:That's great.
Alysa Gumto:So, what would you say is a tip that you would recommend to not just
Alysa Gumto:people your age, but even anybody in the process of buying a house,
Alysa Gumto:or buying a car, um, saving up?
Alysa Gumto:What would you say is like your biggest tip for other people?
Alysa Gumto:riverside_alysa_gumto_raw-synced-video-cfr_sydney_smyers's stu_0070: Yeah, so my biggest tip is actually just
Alysa Gumto:reevaluate and have a conversation with yourself and pay attention to like your
Alysa Gumto:credit card statements and really ask, see where, where's your money going?
Alysa Gumto:Because I feel like sometimes it's so easy for people to be like, here's
Alysa Gumto:my card up, another Amazon purchase.
Alysa Gumto:Oh, you're going to buy this online, going to do this, going to
Alysa Gumto:do that, going to do X, Y, and Z.
Alysa Gumto:And that's also too why I loved babysitting because
Alysa Gumto:I could just use that cash.
Alysa Gumto:And when I would go shopping, I would give myself a limit where if
Alysa Gumto:like this 100 is gone, it's gone.
Alysa Gumto:Sorry, Alyssa.
Alysa Gumto:Like, oh, well, got to wait for next time.
Alysa Gumto:Right?
Alysa Gumto:So I think having that moment of really talking to yourself or your spouse
Alysa Gumto:or whoever and saying, you know what?
Alysa Gumto:We go out to eat a lot.
Alysa Gumto:We should cut back on here.
Alysa Gumto:The Amazon purchases, they're getting a lot of little out of hand, the
Alysa Gumto:delivery drivers here every day.
Alysa Gumto:I think we can cut back on some of that stuff.
Alysa Gumto:So I think that's really important, but also to like set a goal with
Alysa Gumto:yourself for me, like I just said, with hitting that 10 K in my savings,
Alysa Gumto:that's been a goal that I've had.
Alysa Gumto:I'm like, I need to get back to that.
Alysa Gumto:And I was, I'm proud of myself for, you know, being able to get back to it.
Alysa Gumto:So I think to have a goal for yourself, but if you are someone
Alysa Gumto:who's in the process of, Looking for a car or buying a house.
Alysa Gumto:Prepare for the unexpected.
Alysa Gumto:There's always going to be unexpected expensive Expenses, excuse me, regardless
Alysa Gumto:if you want to accept it or not.
Alysa Gumto:It's just gonna happen and You kind of got to just prepare for the worst so
Alysa Gumto:that and make sure that you actually have the funds available So if something
Alysa Gumto:does happen and you have to spend over, you know, a thousand dollars or
Alysa Gumto:whatever With the electrician, you're not going to be like, holy shit.
Alysa Gumto:He just said I owe him $1,200 I thought it was only going to be
Alysa Gumto:300 because I don't know how much an electrician should be, right?
Alysa Gumto:So that would definitely be my biggest thing
Alysa Gumto:riverside_sydney_raw-synced-video-cfr_sydney_smyers's stu_0071: yeah.
Alysa Gumto:Awesome.
Alysa Gumto:No, that's great.
Alysa Gumto:That's great.
Alysa Gumto:And to kind of tie in your business and your work a little bit, how would you
Alysa Gumto:use kind of your work as a tool for that?
Alysa Gumto:Do you have any, like, goals for your business and what you do
Alysa Gumto:with your podcast for like revenue production or anything there?
Alysa Gumto:riverside_alysa_gumto_raw-synced-video-cfr_sydney_smyers's stu_0070: No, so I don't have like my own business
Alysa Gumto:necessarily since I'm a full time employee, so nothing there necessarily.
Alysa Gumto:And then for my podcast, I don't make any money off of it.
Alysa Gumto:I just love having it my space to have my own voice.
Alysa Gumto:So as someone, as a social media manager, you're like the face,
Alysa Gumto:not the face, but you're the voice pretty much of like someone else's.
Alysa Gumto:Like when you're creating their graphics and you're creating their content, like.
Alysa Gumto:You are them behind the screen little do you know other people know So for
Alysa Gumto:me having a podcast is a way just to like give my unsolicited advice to
Alysa Gumto:people And you know just go from there.
Alysa Gumto:riverside_sydney_raw-synced-video-cfr_sydney_smyers's stu_0071: yeah, and that's what I meant with your
Alysa Gumto:business, like your podcast, your like, your product that you're turning out.
Alysa Gumto:Do you have any hopes to make it revenue producing?
Alysa Gumto:Mm hmm.
Alysa Gumto:riverside_alysa_gumto_raw-synced-video-cfr_sydney_smyers's stu_0070: Um, maybe maybe one
Alysa Gumto:riverside_sydney_raw-synced-video-cfr_sydney_smyers's stu_0071: Great.
Alysa Gumto:No, I was just curious.
Alysa Gumto:Yeah, I was just curious.
Alysa Gumto:Yeah.
Alysa Gumto:riverside_alysa_gumto_raw-synced-video-cfr_sydney_smyers's stu_0070: I would say I really love speaking
Alysa Gumto:So, last year I had the honor of speaking at the Pit the, like, 100th
Alysa Gumto:anniversary for Pittsburgh Ad Week.
Alysa Gumto:And so I, like, spoke to, like, over a hundred and some people
Alysa Gumto:or whatever, so I did that.
Alysa Gumto:And then that had a ripple effect where I actually ended up speaking
Alysa Gumto:for Duquesne, Pit Point Park, and Pit.
Alysa Gumto:So I really love speaking.
Alysa Gumto:So that's definitely something on my like future vision board, um, to do like
Alysa Gumto:more of that and go down that Avenue.
Alysa Gumto:riverside_sydney_raw-synced-video-cfr_sydney_smyers's stu_0071: Yeah, that's great.
Alysa Gumto:riverside_alysa_gumto_raw-synced-video-cfr_sydney_smyers's stu_0070: thing is, you know,
Alysa Gumto:taking care of this house.
Alysa Gumto:riverside_sydney_raw-synced-video-cfr_sydney_smyers's stu_0071: Absolutely.
Alysa Gumto:Yeah.
Alysa Gumto:that's awesome.
Alysa Gumto:That's awesome.
Alysa Gumto:Good stuff.
Alysa Gumto:I have one question.
Alysa Gumto:What was your babysitting rate?
Alysa Gumto:riverside_alysa_gumto_raw-synced-video-cfr_sydney_smyers's stu_0070: What was my babysitting rate?
Alysa Gumto:Here's the thing.
Alysa Gumto:I never had a rate because I hated when parents asked.
Alysa Gumto:So they, honestly, they paid me, because my mom always told me, if
Alysa Gumto:someone asks you, you say to them whatever you feel comfortable paying.
Alysa Gumto:So, don't get me wrong, but,
Alysa Gumto:riverside_sydney_raw-synced-video-cfr_sydney_smyers's stu_0071: I know, that is stressful.
Alysa Gumto:riverside_alysa_gumto_raw-synced-video-cfr_sydney_smyers's stu_0070: don't, that's not how
Alysa Gumto:Patty does her business.
Alysa Gumto:Patty has rates for her.
Alysa Gumto:And I've had to tell her, I'm like, Mom, you gotta charge more.
Alysa Gumto:You've all of, you, she's like 10 people on a waiting list right now.
Alysa Gumto:I'm like, girl, charge more.
Alysa Gumto:Well, some families have been here for this amount.
Alysa Gumto:Some families have been here for this amount.
Alysa Gumto:Some families have three kids.
Alysa Gumto:Some families have two
Alysa Gumto:riverside_sydney_raw-synced-video-cfr_sydney_smyers's stu_0071: okay,
Alysa Gumto:riverside_alysa_gumto_raw-synced-video-cfr_sydney_smyers's stu_0070: So, it's like one of those things.
Alysa Gumto:But,
Alysa Gumto:riverside_sydney_raw-synced-video-cfr_sydney_smyers's stu_0071: a holes today here's like 300 bucks
Alysa Gumto:riverside_alysa_gumto_raw-synced-video-cfr_sydney_smyers's stu_0070: yeah, I mean, I will say there were
Alysa Gumto:some families where it didn't even matter if we had a family function.
Alysa Gumto:I'm like, Mom, I'm choosing them over this function because they pay well.
Alysa Gumto:riverside_sydney_raw-synced-video-cfr_sydney_smyers's stu_0071: Yeah, I love your discipline
Alysa Gumto:riverside_alysa_gumto_raw-synced-video-cfr_sydney_smyers's stu_0070: I was like, I'm sorry, but they pay well.
Alysa Gumto:And, you know, there were some families who I'm like, I've been watching your
Alysa Gumto:kids for five years and you still didn't give me a raise, but whatever.
Alysa Gumto:I also wanted to add this and this will probably make you laugh Sydney, but I kept
Alysa Gumto:track of like how many hours I would watch the kids for and what I would get paid.
Alysa Gumto:And then I would add it up each month and then I would have my total at
Alysa Gumto:the end of the year that I would try and challenge myself for each year.
Alysa Gumto:I'm like, Oh, am I going to like double this?
Alysa Gumto:riverside_sydney_raw-synced-video-cfr_sydney_smyers's stu_0071: Yeah, that's great.
Alysa Gumto:That's great.
Alysa Gumto:riverside_alysa_gumto_raw-synced-video-cfr_sydney_smyers's stu_0070: so that's what I did even growing up
Alysa Gumto:riverside_sydney_raw-synced-video-cfr_sydney_smyers's stu_0071: Yeah.
Alysa Gumto:riverside_alysa_gumto_raw-synced-video-cfr_sydney_smyers's stu_0070: you know, before I even had like a
Alysa Gumto:job, a full time, you know, real job.
Alysa Gumto:If we're going to call it that.
Alysa Gumto:Yeah.
Alysa Gumto:So,
Alysa Gumto:riverside_sydney_raw-synced-video-cfr_sydney_smyers's stu_0071: I mean, that's one of the biggest
Alysa Gumto:recommendations we give to the business owners that we work with it, know
Alysa Gumto:your worth, you know, that you should be tracking that setting goals for
Alysa Gumto:yourself, seeing if you can reach those goals, surpass those goals.
Alysa Gumto:But one of the biggest things that we have talked about on this podcast
Alysa Gumto:too, that I think really aligns with what you're saying is, um, and
Alysa Gumto:when you're telling everybody to check your Amazon account, make sure
Alysa Gumto:like you, you do like a gut check.
Alysa Gumto:There is, is we say to spend within your values.
Alysa Gumto:You know, is what you're spending money on actually in your value system?
Alysa Gumto:Or are you just.
Alysa Gumto:Trying to fill a hole.
Alysa Gumto:Are you, you know, it was exciting.
Alysa Gumto:It was a, you know, it was a, a trend or a fad or you just
Alysa Gumto:wanted to be a part of something.
Alysa Gumto:You know, is it really within your value system?
Alysa Gumto:You're going out, eating food, be, being with friends.
Alysa Gumto:What is in your value system?
Alysa Gumto:And if it's not in your value system, you're never going to feel good about it.
Alysa Gumto:So you're just spending that money to spend that money.
Alysa Gumto:If your value system is, you know, You know, brunch with your family on
Alysa Gumto:Sunday mornings and in sharing that moment, if your value system is hosting
Alysa Gumto:at your house, if your value system is going to church and donating there, you
Alysa Gumto:know, what's within your value system and where are you spending your money
Alysa Gumto:and being disciplined and sticking to that value system is one of the things
Alysa Gumto:we talk about a lot on the podcast.
Alysa Gumto:And that just makes it feel a lot better.
Alysa Gumto:Wow, you're super impressive, Alyssa.
Alysa Gumto:Thank you so much.
Alysa Gumto:Yeah, this is great.
Alysa Gumto:This is great.
Alysa Gumto:That was an easy way to get started back into our season two.
Alysa Gumto:I know, I know.
Alysa Gumto:It was a good one.
Alysa Gumto:Yeah, no, no big blunders either.
Alysa Gumto:You know, it was very, very easy.
Alysa Gumto:Yeah, you're on the right track, obviously.
Alysa Gumto:You know that.
Alysa Gumto:So, no, good luck with your house and, um, yeah, wish you all the best.
Alysa Gumto:Absolutely.
Alysa Gumto:We'll say we knew you when.
Alysa Gumto:Yeah.
