Brennan Schlagbaum, founder of Budgetdog and a licensed CPA, joined Kevin Hills on ROI TV’s Coffee with Kevin Hills for his monthly segment focused on personal finance fundamentals. The episode is part of an ongoing series built around Brennan’s three core pillars: track your money, grow your money, and protect your money.
This particular segment focused on the first pillar – tracking your money – and walked viewers through a practical, low-friction approach to budgeting that most people can implement in about 30 minutes a month.
You can watch the full segment here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XU_bAjYHATw
The Core Message: Budgeting Doesn’t Have to Be Complicated
One of the most common reasons people avoid budgeting is the assumption that it requires constant attention, rigid restrictions, or a complicated spreadsheet they will never keep up with. Brennan’s segment pushes back directly on that assumption.
His position is straightforward: done correctly, budgeting is not restrictive or time-consuming. It is a simple monthly habit that takes about 30 minutes once the system is set up properly. The goal is not to control every dollar in real time – it is to make intentional decisions at the beginning of each month and then follow the plan.
That framing removes most of the resistance people have to budgeting before they even get started.
Six Parts of a Zero-Based Budget
The segment breaks a budget into six clear components. Zero-based budgeting means every dollar of income gets assigned a specific job before the month begins – so the math at the end equals zero. Nothing is unaccounted for. Nothing is left to chance.
This system is not new, but Brennan’s approach makes it accessible for people who have never budgeted before and practical for people who have tried other methods and given up. The structure gives every dollar a purpose without requiring daily tracking or complicated financial software.
Using Sinking Funds to Eliminate Surprise Expenses
One of the most practical tools Brennan covers in the segment is sinking funds – dedicated savings buckets for expenses that are predictable but irregular. Car registration, annual subscriptions, holiday gifts, and home maintenance costs are all examples of expenses that catch people off guard even though they were never really surprises.
A sinking fund eliminates that problem by spreading the cost across the months leading up to the expense. Instead of scrambling when a large bill arrives, you have already set aside the money. The result is a budget that handles real life without breaking.
This is one of the tools Budgetdog Academy students use from the start, and it consistently ranks as one of the most immediately useful concepts in the program.
Starting With a 3-Month Look-Back
Before building a budget, Brennan recommends a specific starting point: look at the last three months of actual spending. Most people have a rough sense of where their money goes – but the actual numbers are almost always different from what they expect.
A three-month look-back removes the guesswork. It gives you real data to build from rather than an idealized version of your spending that may have no connection to what you actually do. That honest starting point is what makes the budget realistic enough to stick to.
This approach also reveals patterns that are hard to see in the moment – recurring charges that were forgotten, seasonal spending spikes, or categories that consistently run over what felt like a reasonable estimate.
Why This Segment Reflects Budgetdog’s Broader Mission
The ROI TV segment is a natural extension of what Budgetdog has always been about. Brennan built his platform on the idea that financial education should be clear, practical, and accessible – not intimidating or filled with jargon that makes people feel like they need an advanced degree to get started.
His appearance on Coffee with Kevin Hills brings that same approach to a broader audience. The segment covers the same zero-based budgeting framework that Budgetdog Academy students use in their first weeks of the program, presented in a format that anyone can apply immediately.
Additionally, the monthly segment format allows Brennan to build on each episode over time – moving through all three pillars in a way that gives viewers a complete financial education rather than a single isolated tip.
The Connection to Real Student Results
The system Brennan explains on ROI TV is not theoretical. Budgetdog Academy students apply this exact framework and produce real, measurable outcomes. Students have used zero-based budgeting to pay off significant debt, build emergency funds from scratch, and create the financial margin to invest and plan for the future.
The 30-minute monthly budget is not a promise of ease – it is a reflection of what happens when a system is designed well. Done correctly, budgeting should not feel like a burden. It should feel like clarity.
That is the message Brennan brings to every platform he appears on, and Coffee with Kevin Hills is another opportunity to bring it to people who need it.