We had the good fortune of connecting with Jill Emanuel and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Jill, do you have a budget? how do you think about personal finances?
Budgeting is my life! Truly. I live, breath, and sleep budgeting. In all the best ways! To me, budgeting is fun. It is freedom and it is the tool that allows myself, my family and my clients to live the lives they love. I wasn’t born naturally gifted with money and made plenty of mistakes along the way. It took some of those mistakes to finally reach the point that I, myself, knew I needed to find outside help to teach me a better way. After my husband and I paid off over $85,000 in debt and completely transformed our own lives, I KNEW this was what I was meant to help others with. Personal finance has become my life’s passion. I have learned the beautiful dance of maintaining balance between spending and saving. My husband and I have become experts at having financial discussions and planning ahead for the things we want in life. I cannot remember the last time our finances caused us to argue or feel stressed (beyond, perhaps, the yearning for wanting to make a home renovation before we had the funds available to do so!). We have a budget that has become very predictable and it is perfectly designed to honor our own values and priorities in life. It allows us to have the things we want most, even if it means sometimes we need to be patient. I always tell my clients “Money should be BORING. LIFE is where we want to feel that roller coaster. Our money should just be the tool that makes that excitement possible.” My overall thoughts around budgeting is that it doesn’t have to be a four letter word. It can be (and is!) FUN…once you learn a better way. Learning how to manage money is a skill we all should be taught, but unfortunately so many of us aren’t. If what you are doing now isn’t working, there is no shame in asking for help, because it CAN be different and better!

Can you open up a bit about your work and career? We’re big fans and we’d love for our community to learn more about your work.
At Fiscal Fitness Phoenix we are experts at helping people to stop winging it financially. We help our clients get a plan, get ahead and spend with confidence on the things they love! Many people have the idea that talking to a financial coach means they will be told they can’t spend their money on the things they want. They fear judgement, or that they will be made to feel ashamed for their past financial mistakes. They worry that budgeting will be too rigid or that talking about money will be boring or complicated and therefore they hesitate to reach out. I believe one thing that truly sets us apart from other financial coaches is that we are fun and creative! We don’t believe that one size fits all and we work with our clients to create a plan for their money that gets them excited too! We pride ourselves on being open-minded and experimental. We know that what works well for one person, may not work for the next and therefore our coaching allows us to adapt a plan that works for each client. Last, but not least we are a team of highly passionate coaches. We truly love what we do. Coaching people to improve their financial lives is exciting for us and we bring that energy and passion to everything that we do. That energy is infectious and our clients begin to feel it too. Suddenly a topic that they dreaded becomes one that excites them too!

Any places to eat or things to do that you can share with our readers? If they have a friend visiting town, what are some spots they could take them to?
I love to be active and get outdoors and Phoenix is full of opportunities to do so! Top places to visit would have to include some hikes. Camelback Mountain for the thrill of the challenge and a great view of the city. Piestewa Peak, Go John Trail, Peralta Trail and more would be calling our name! Next we would have to visit downtown Gilbert. I love the Farmer’s Market and there are so many great places to eat and drink. We would have to hit OHSO, The White Rabbit and maybe even sneak in some country dancing at Whiskey Row. I also love all of the great resorts around the valley, which makes it so easy to have a great staycation getaway. Top of my list would be a stay at the Royal Palms. There is something truly magical about the property and it suddenly feels like you are in a whole different world! Honestly, there are so many good choices that the biggest challenge would be narrowing it down to what we could fit inside of one week!

Who else deserves some credit and recognition?
My shoutout goes Kelsa Dickey, without whom I never would have known that financial coaching was a “thing”. Kelsa inspires me and everyone who knows her to strive to be a better person. She is a living example of humble leadership and impacts change thru her courageous and compassionate communication. Thank you for being one of my favorite people and my ultimate partner in crime. One person at a time, we are changing the way people feel about their money! I am incredibly grateful and blessed to have you in my life.

Website: www.fiscalfitnessphx.com
Instagram: @jill_fiscalandfit
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/fiscalfitnessphx
Yelp: https://www.yelp.com/biz/fiscal-fitness-phoenix-gilbert
Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLbYlDOL5fwdDOyEMc3O-SPG48uQ0mgkJz

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