Inside Out Money

Liz joins this week's podcast, and somehow, we’re deciding to smash or pass common financial rules. We explain many common financial rules around savings, investing, and buying a house and car and dig into whether we’d smash or pass on the rule and why. In addition to a lot of laughing, we hope you also learn something new. Get the full show notes, show references, and more information here: h...

Andrew joins this week's podcast, and we discuss a metric we love but think many people likely don’t track. We explain the lifetime gross savings rate (aka lifetime wealth ratio), how to calculate it, and why we like this particular metric. This is the one metric that can encapsulate your lifetime financial progress combined with the efficiency of your earnings. It’s also one of a few metrics that...

Greg joins this week's podcast, and we share how we met and how our financial and life discussions progressed to end up early retiring together in 2022. Did you know research supports that saving money is a sexy quality in a partner!? We talk about love and money more generally, and how you can keep a relationship strong without spending a lot of money to show your love for each other. Get the ful...

Liz joins this week's podcast, and we share all the things you should and shouldn’t do to leave a job the right way, whether it’s a voluntary or involuntary leave. We discuss understanding what you agreed to in your employment contract, legally getting the key information you need, being smart about your benefits, and keeping it professional so you don’t burn bridges. How you start and leave y...

Erica joins this week's podcast, and we discuss conscious consumerism and the trifecta of value it can add to your life: it’s good for the world, makes you feel food, and can save you money. We define conscious consumerism and talk through some actionable tips for how to incorporate more of it into your life. We discuss how it can improve the control and agency over your life, which can feel g...

Andrew, Liz, and Greg join this week's podcast and we deep dive into what we each spent on food, utilities, internet, and cell phones in 2023. This is part two of last week’s episode on what we spend during 2023. Get the full show notes, show references, and more information here: https://www.insideoutmoney.org/041-what-we-spent-in-2023-part-2-food-utilities-internet-and-cell-phones/

Andrew, Liz, and Greg join this week's podcast and share what we each spent during 2023. We share our top spending categories, what we feel good about, and what we want to improve in 2024. Get the full show notes, show references, and more information here: https://www.insideoutmoney.org/040-what-we-spent-in-2023-part-1/

Andrew joins this week's podcast, and we bare all and share what’s in our financial “wallet,” from our accounts to the specific index funds inside them. We talk through the different types of accounts from high-yield savings to 529s to brokerage accounts. We share which brokerage companies we use and like and dig into the specific index funds we invest in. We also discuss the value and importa...

Happy New Year! Greg joins the first podcast of 2024, and we discuss why and how improving your finances is an inside job. We discuss the mindset connection to your finances, the importance of mindfulness, how to stop letting others dictate your values and goals, and how to change your definition of success. We also discuss the concept of enough and the importance of finding wise people to emulate...

All of the Inside Out Money co-hosts join for our final episode of 2023. We’ve got Liz, Andrew, Erica, Greg, and Maggie on this week’s episode and share some of our favorites from 2023. We share our favorite books, podcasts, best and worst purchases of the year, big financial wins, and more. We might get off track now and then as we get into mustaches, bromances, and OnlyFans. A huge thank you to...

Liz joins this week's podcast, and we discuss how we’d get lean if needed for a job loss, recession, or serious emergency. We start with a reminder of why building an emergency fund and tracking your expenses is important. Then, we dive into multiple phases of what we’d cut and why. Throughout the discussion, we’re reminded that we’d be okay and happy without many of the things we spend money...

Erica joins this week's podcast, and we discuss predatory marketing and sales tactics to avoid. We share the history of advertising and public relations and delve into everything from strategic marketing to unethical marketing to predatory marketing to illegal scams. We discuss aggressive upselling, high-pressure sales tactics, bait and switch, hidden fees and fine print, misleading claims, ex...

Andrew joins this week's podcast, and we lay out a step-by-step approach to building and growing wealth. Andrew calls this the “investment walk,” we discuss the specific order we suggest and why some of the ordering is subjective. We walk through the steps of spending less than you make, building up an emergency fund, paying off all debt except your house, funding your 401K up to the employer...

Liz joins this week's podcast, and we review all the financial things you need to do before the end of the year. It’s important to take some time before the end of the year to review your 401k allocations, consider contributing to a Roth IRA or IRA, contribute to your HSA if you’re eligible, and use up your FSA or dependent care account dollars. We also discuss things like optimizing doctor ap...

This week, we have a guest discussing how to prepare for and pay less for college; Dr. Rebecca Sandidge, Vice President for Enrollment Management at Oglethorpe University, joins and shares her perspective and knowledge from an expert in college admissions and enrollment. Rebecca shares how to maximize your aid across various buckets of money available to college students and their parents. We disc...

Greg joins this week's podcast, and we discuss Mint shutting down and our review of other budgeting and expense-tracking software and tools. We tried out Tiller, Monarch, YNAB (you need a budget), and Copilot. We share our thoughts on each tool and the pros and cons. After many years of using Mint, we reveal what we’re choosing to switch to now that Mint is merging into Credit Karma. Get the f...

Erica joins this week's podcast, and we discuss the concept of simple joys and the importance and value of recognizing and appreciating simple joys in our lives. When we find glimmers of joy in our everyday lives, we’re less dependent on the dopamine hint from buying new things, and we’re better able to appreciate what we already have. We discuss the importance of mindfulness, being present, grati...

Andrew joins this week's podcast, and we discuss the pros and cons of paying off your mortgage early. We share our mortgage payoff stories and various considerations for deciding whether or not to pay off your mortgage. If you want to pay off your mortgage early, we discuss key tactics and what helped us on our pay-off journeys. Although we both paid off our mortgages early and feel very good...

Greg joins this week's podcast, and we share nine tips for navigating and mastering financial communication in a relationship. Talking about money effectively with your partner has a substantial positive impact on your relationship. We share advice for implementing and improving your financial discussions, from setting money dates to establishing shared goals to compromising and being flexible...

Liz and Erica join this week's podcast, and we discuss Happy Sexy Millionaire by Steven Bartlett. We share some of the book's central themes and our top insights and takeaways. We discuss the impact of social media, whether money buys happiness, the power of gratitude, love, the importance of hard work and patience, death, and much more. The author debunks many topics around finding your p...

Maggie’s mom joins this week's podcast and shares many financial lessons and stories from her and Maggie’s childhood. She shares how she learned the importance of saving at a young age and how credit cards and debt were not typical when she was a kid. She shared some of her financial memories, how they impacted her into adulthood, and what she taught her children. She talks about not worrying...

Andrew joins this week's podcast, and we share our biggest financial regrets and all the things we wish we had gotten right when we were younger. We hope you learn from our mistakes and realize the many benefits of tax-advantaged accounts and compound interest. And most importantly, take advantage of these things as early as possible so time is on your side. We discuss investing in index funds...

Greg joins this week's podcast, and we share how we’re both feeling 500 days into early retirement. We share some surprising truths about what’s working, what’s not working, and what we’re committed to changing for the future. We discuss the concept of value and how we’re striving to feel accomplished, and we wrap up by answering some listener questions about how early retirement is going. Get...

Liz joins this week's podcast, and we delve into the many reasons why HSAs, or Health Savings Accounts, are awesome! We explain what an HSA is, the requirement of a High-deductible health insurance plan (HDHP) to participate, and the annual limits the IRS sets. Additionally, we share four reasons why HSAs are an incredible financial tool and how to maximize their benefits. We explain the tripl...

Andrew joins this week's podcast, and we answer a common question: How much do you need to retire? The quick answer is it depends, and we discuss the various factors it depends upon. We explain the 4% rule, the Trinity study that it originated from, and some of the flaws we see in that study and rule. Maggie shares how she prepped for and planned her early retirement financials, and Andrew sha...