Tue, 30 December 2014
My guest today is Paul Merriman. I was introduced to Paul by a couple of listeners who requested I bring him on the show. I'm glad they did! Paul is an experienced financial advisor. But, he did that as a retirement hobby rather than as a wealth-building strategy. To build his wealth, Paul took over, built, and then sold a manufacturing company. After retiring in 1982, he proceeded to build Merriman, a Seattle-based investment advisory firm. He grew the firm from nothing to $1.6B of assets under management and then sold it and retired to run his financial education site: www.paulmerriman.com. Topics on this interview include:
Enjoy the show! Joshua Links:
|
Mon, 29 December 2014
Today, I bring you an interview with a dynamo: Eva from TeensGotCents.com. I met Eva in New Orleans at the FinCon conference. She was attending with her mother and I was incredibly impressed with her. Eva writes about about personal finance for a teen audience. She began at the age of 15 and she shares her own journey and also gives advice for other young people. In the interview, we weave two themes:
Both of these themes are valuable. Frankly, I'm a bit jealous of Eva's early start in writing about the topics of personal finance. I wish I'd had the foresight to begin at her age. Listen carefully to the story of her site and consider how you can help your children--or yourself--to start something similar. It's a really neat story. Other topics include:
Enjoy! Joshua Links:
|
Fri, 26 December 2014
![]() Personal finance touches every aspect of life by definition. Every aspect of our life involves finance in some way. As we make the decisions of life, we're constantly faced with cost and opportunity cost:
These are ultimately the decisions we face. Culturally, we usually separate these areas of life into different decisions. But we shouldn't. Each of them (and many thousands of additional options) impacts the other. We're far better off if we view our life as a web of integrated decisions and we should be able to flow seamlessly among our different options. My guest today does just that. Jeff and his wife are raising a young family and are working toward financial independence together. Their personal interest in sustainability and green living has naturaly integrated with their financial planning. DIY activities and home improvement have had benefits in both areas. Enjoy today's show! Joshua Links:
Direct download: RPF0126-Jeff_Sustainable_Life_Interview.mp3
Category:podcast -- posted at: 5:59am MDT |
Tue, 23 December 2014
![]() My guest today is Dr. Vern Poythress. Dr. Poythress is a mathematician and a theologian. Most important for this discussion, he and his wife, Diane, are parents to two children, both boys. Dr. Poythress authored an article entitled "How I Helped My Boys to Become Christian Men," in which he outlined his family's approach to establishing a formal rite of passage for his sons to become men at 12 or 13 years old. His formal test and qualifications for them included religious training, knowledge, and behavior, specific acts of service to others, and specific areas of wisdom needed in an adult life. Much of this conversation is built on the Judeo-Christian tradition and Dr. Poythress outlines much of his curriculum from a religious perspective. It's key to recognize, however, that most cultures have a rite of passage for young men and women; these ceremonies vary and many are cultural, not religious. For example, toward the end of the interview we discuss the tradition of the debutante ball, a "coming-out" party for young women. If this concept interests you, consider designing your own curriculum based on your family's vision and values. Certainly, anything you intentionally design will be better than the negative rites of passage we currently promulgate in our culture. Enjoy! Joshua Links: |
Mon, 22 December 2014
![]() My guest today is Ben Falk. Ben is a really incredible permaculture designer with a comprehensive focus. Ben runs a planning firm called Whole Systems Design. Through this firm, he "identifies, designs, and develops human habitats - landscape and infrastructure systems - that yield perennial abundance and enduring value. These are adaptive, resilient and secure places in a future of peak oil, climate instability, and deepening economic insolvency." They also "plan, develop, and manage land-based wealth preservation and security projects for those with the forethought to invest an abundance of present day resources to reduce their familly's vulnerability to future food, energy and other supply-chain disturbances, as well as peak-oil, climatic, economic and other events." The interview covers a variety of topics, including:
My favorite quote from the interview: "Don't fight something that's wrong. Make a new system that makes the old system obsolete." Enjoy! Joshua Links: |
Sat, 20 December 2014
![]() On Fridays, I answer your questions! I decided I didn't want to handle any of the in-depth, math-related questions today so I chose these three questions to handle.
I hope you enjoy the show! Joshua Links: |
Thu, 18 December 2014
![]() Today, we welcome Jim Rawles, Founder and Editor of SurvivalBlog.com back on the show to discuss improving your lifestyle and personal resilience by moving. We talk about optimizing your lifestyle within the United States by carefully selecting your location as well as the pros and cons of international expatriation. Topics include:
Enjoy! Joshua |
Wed, 17 December 2014
Today on the show, I've got some last-minute tax planning ideas for you. These are all ideas and tactics that you can use in the last two weeks of 2014 to lower your income tax bill. I hope you don't defer your tax planning to the end of December. The end of the year is far too late to start talking about the really good stuff. Good tax planning should begin before January 1. But, these types of ideas can still be useful for you. It's possible that you've simply been too busy to do effective planning. It's also possible you had an unexpected windfall and you need to wipe out some tax liability. I'm here to help! :) Let's start with the easy ones and move to the harder ones:
|
Tue, 16 December 2014
![]() Is education something that we buy or something that we work for? Ever thought about that? My guest today is Scott Young. I first heard of Scott when I watched his TEDx talk on "How to Get an MIT education for $2,000." This interview is filled with tidbits that will be useful to you whether you're designing your own education or whether you're helping someone else with their educational plan. Enjoy! Joshua Links: |
Mon, 15 December 2014
I love real estate investing. I think it's one of the most accessible, realistic ways for people to grow their long-term wealth at an excellent rate of return. Today, I'm thrilled to bring you an interview with John Schaub. John is widely renowned as one of the good guys. John has been investing in real estate for decades. He's also been teaching the subject for decades. He has a wealth of ideas and knowledge to share with us today. Enjoy! Joshua Links:
|
Fri, 12 December 2014
![]() Today, we have a really fun Q&A for you! I hope you enjoy! Here are the questions I answer:
Enjoy! Joshua Links: |
Thu, 11 December 2014
![]() Today, I have a really great interview on finance from a Canadian Perspective. But make sure to listen whether you're Canadian or not. My guest is Dan Bortolotti, founder of the Canadian Couch Potato website. He has a really great story where he began as a personal finance writer and blogger and later moved into the space of being a professional financial advisor. We chat about:
Enjoy! Joshua Links: |
Wed, 10 December 2014
The new year is fast upon us. Even though we're in the midst of the busy holiday season, this is a convenient time to consider the success and failures of this year and look forward to plans for next year. Even though the articles you're now seeing in your feeds on "10 End-Of-The-Year Planning Ideas" can be useful, they just don't get it done because they're not focused on the core need. The fundamental key of financial planning is to understand the process. Building wealth is a process. Achieving goals is a process. It's simple and can be readily replicated if you understand it. It starts with a clear desired outcome. A.K.A. a goal. Or objective. Then, it's a matter of laying out a strategy that is likely to work. And that strategy is connected with specific action steps. And then you simply repeat the cycle over and over and over again. Enjoy the show. I hope that it's useful for you! Joshua p.s., this might be a great show to share with others. Let me know if it's helpful. Potential Journaling Prompts: Simple Goals:
What are 10 goals you'd like to accomplish during 2015?
What I Want list
Make a list of 30 things you want to do, 30 things you want to have, and 30 things you want to be before you die.
Ideal Day
Think through what a perfect day would look like for you. Describe it (in writing) with as much detail as possible. Where are you, what does it look like, who are you with, what do you do, etc. Strategic Coach Questions
1. If we were meeting three years from today, what has to have happened during that three-year period for you to feel happy about your progress? (Personally, Professionally, Financially and any other category you want to think about.)
2. What are the biggest dangers you'll have to face and deal with in order to achieve that progress?
3. What are the biggest opportunities that you have that you would need to focus on and capture to achieve those things?
4. What strengths will you need to reinforce and maximize, and what skills and resources will you need to develop that you don't currently have in order to capture those opportunities?
Visioning Exercise (excerpted from Jack Canfield's "Success Principles" book
This is an exercise that is designed to help you clarify your vision. Although you could do this as a strictly mental exercise by just thinking about the answers and writing them down, I want to encourage you to go deeper than that. If you do, you'll get deeper answers that serve you better.
Start by putting on some relaxing music and sitting quietly in a comfortable environment where you won't be disturbed. Then, close our eyes and ask your subconscious mind to give you images of what your ideal life would look like if you could have it exactly the way you want it, in each of the following categories.
1. First, focus on the financial area of your life. What is your annual income? What does your cash flow look like? How much money do you have in savings and investments? What is your total net worth?
Next...what does your home look like? Where is it located? Does it have a view? What kind of yard and landscaping does it have? Is there a pool or a stable for horses? What color are the walls? What does the furniture look like? Are there paintings hanging in the rooms? What do they look like? Walk through your perfect house, filling in all of the details.
At this point, don't worry about how you'll get that house. Don't sabotage yourself by saying, "I can't live in Malibu because I don't make enough money." Once you give your mind’s eye the picture, your mind will solve the “not enough money” challenge.
Next visualize what kind of car you are driving and any other important possessions your finances have provided.
2. Next, visualize your ideal job or career. Where are you working? What are you doing? With whom are you working? What kind of clients or customers do you have? What is your compensation like? Is it your own business?
3. Then, focus on your free time, your recreation time. What are you doing with your family and friends in the free time you’ve created for yourself? What hobbies are you pursuing? What kinds of vacations do you take? What do you do for fun?
4. Next, what is your ideal vision of your body and your physical health? Are you free of all disease? How long do you live to? Are you open, relaxed, in an ecstatic state of bliss all day long? Are you full of vitality? Are you flexible as well as strong? Do you exercise, eat good food, and drink lots of water?
5. Then move on to your ideal vision of your relationships with your friends and family. What is your relationship with your family like? Who are your friends? What is the quality of your relationships with your friends? What do those friendships feel like? Are they loving, supportive, empowering? What kinds of things do you do together?
6. What about the personal arena of your life? Do you see yourself going back to school, getting training, attending workshops, seeking therapy for a past hurt, or growing spiritually? Do you meditate or go on spiritual retreats with your church? Do you want to learn to play and instrument or write your autobiography? Do you want to run a marathon or take an art class? Do you want to travel to other countries?
7. Finally, focus on the community you live in, the community you’ve chosen. What does it look like when it is operating perfectly? What kinds of community activities take place there? What about your charitable work? What do you do to help others and make a difference? How often do you participate in these activities? Who are you helping?
You can write down your answers as you go, or you can do the whole exercise first and then open your eyes and write them down. In either case, make sure you capture everything in writing as soon as you complete the exercise.
|
Tue, 9 December 2014
![]() Financial Planning is--and should be--fully integrated with every aspect of life. Often, there are non-financial ways of hitting financial goals that are more efficient than just simply "buying the solution." Helping your children develop their talent is one such area of focus. If you can launch a young man or woman with real, useful skills that have an economic value in the marketplace and which are aligned with their individual personality and interests, they will be far ahead of many of their peers. This early start can launch the magical cycle of compounding earlier which can have a lifetime impact. Consider the impact of an early start:
My guest is Jonathan Harris and he writes at the website www.10kToTalent.com. He is the father of 8 children and is a both a learner and an expert at developing talent in children. Enjoy the interview! Joshua Links:
|
Mon, 8 December 2014
Doug Nordman is a really neat guy who has made an incredible contribution to the Early Retirement (ER) community. Known affectionately in various forums as "Nords," he contributes a rational, learned perspective on financial topics. He and his wife both retired from the US Navy. Doug was 41 and has somehow managed to stay retired for the last decade. ;) Join us today for a really neat discussion of the history of the early retirement movement and some of the contributions from its early leaders. (It's not all fun and games...we do get into some technical details on early retirement as well!) Joshua Links:
|
Fri, 5 December 2014
![]() It's Friday! That means a Q&A show for you. Today, I answer all of these questions. Here are the questions and the time stamp for where each can be found in the episode. Enjoy! Joshua
Links:
|
Thu, 4 December 2014
In today's world, it's easy to find reasons for pessimism. And yet, we truly live in a time of greater abundance and quality of life than ever before. Join me today as I share some reasons for being thankful and grateful to be alive today. It's a good time to be alive. Joshua Links:
|
Wed, 3 December 2014
Today we have a really fun interview with Steve Maxwell. Steve is the father of eight and his three oldest sons have all purchased their houses debt-free, in their 20s, and before marriage! His younger two sons have the same vision and are on track for a similar result. How cool is that?! Steve is an electrical engineer by training. He left his engineering job however and now spends his time writing books and traveling the country speaking and encouraging others with his ministry organization, Titus 2. Enjoy! Joshua Links: |
Tue, 2 December 2014
Today, I have a really great show for you with Christopher DeLaney. Christopher and his wife have two little kids and they maintain a modern lifestyle without a car! Impressive! Christopher is gentle, unassuming, knowledgeable, and very helpful! Enjoy this interview! Joshua Links: |
Mon, 1 December 2014
Well, it took a few days longer than I planned because of the fact that its 600 incredibly dense pages, but today I share with you my review and critique of Tony Robbins' new book. This was a very challenging project for me and frankly, it simply bogged me down in research. It's really a great book. Highly recommened. But, it also has some things I'm not imporessed with and some minor and major flaws. The show is long and in depth and my comments are organized around these themes:
I hope you enjoy! Joshua Links: |