Budgets do not fail on normal months. They fail when life throws a surprise.
Jamie's envelopes are already set from a good month. Run the month, and when the curveball lands, you decide where the money comes from.
Budgets $2,000 of take-home a month. Last month every envelope worked. This month the car has other plans.
Rent paid. Groceries on track. So far, a normal month.
Notice what made this stressful: nothing was set aside for surprises. An emergency fund exists so a curveball is boring.
Jamie can start an emergency envelope: $50 a month, every month, that exists only for surprises.
Currently off. Jamie keeps the same envelopes as this month.
Flip it or leave it. Then run six months forward and see what the next curveball feels like.
Same kind of surprise. Different month.
You covered a $400 surprise by hand, felt what each envelope gave up, and saw what changes when the surprise has its own money.
Next time life swings, the plan already knows where the money comes from.