Money for Life with Eric Roberge, CFP

37: Let's go beyond the basics to look at how you can optimize your savings, get strategic with debt, and level up how you invest to grow wealth. There's no shortage of podcasts or blogs that cover simple pieces of advice and the same basic money moves to make: pay down debt, save up cash, invest for the future, and so on. So today, we want to kick it up a notch and help you see how you can go fro...

36: There's a lot of fear and uncertainty in the air right now — which means, if you're following Warren Buffett's advice, it's a good time to get greedy in the stock market. In this episode of the show, we discuss the opportunity you might want to capitalize on and at the very least, why you should NOT stop making your regular contributions to the market. Most importantly, we also lay out our arg...

Here's what you need to know to determine how much cash you actually need on hand — and what to do with extra funds if you have them. Most people think you can't have too much cash on hand or in the bank. Cash is king, right? Cash is safe! The reality is holding too much cash comes with its own set of risks, and you might actually be losing money because of it. Today on the podcast, we explain: Th...

34: We share a few ideas for better dealing with the coronavirus scare and the current market volatility before diving into this episode that is all about handling these exact kinds of issues that can cause you to lose sight of the forest for the trees. Most people make short-term and limited decisions without considering how these choices impact things to the right, when only looking left. In thi...

33: When it comes to making financial decisions, most of us want to get things exactly RIGHT. It's your money, after all, and you probably don't want to screw it up! But aiming for perfection can actually hamstring your progress—and even lead you AWAY from the best financial choices for your goals and the life you would most enjoy experiencing. In this episode, we talk through what's truly importa...

32: What if the pursuit of financial freedom actually leaves you with fewer options and feeling more stuck than ever before? The idea of financial independence sounds nice, but it comes with a lot of potential pitfalls that big fans of the "FIRE" movement don't like to talk about. Today, we're explaining the downsides of financial freedom — and proposing a different strategy that will help you enj...

31: It's extremely simple in theory — but could require a lifetime of experience to answer: What is enough? The biggest challenge in financial planning lies in striking a balance between living well today (and using your money to accomplish that aim) and planning responsibly for tomorrow (which means saving your money to ensure future financial security). If you know what "enough" is, then you kno...

30: The most common thing that stops people from achieving their highest financial potential? Themselves. "Learned helplessness" is a phenomenon that can stop you from making the progress you're capable of, and it happens when you experience struggle or suffering that you feel is out of your control — and if you practice this subconscious habit, it can prevent you from seeing, and acting on, what...

29: In this replay of our very first podcast episode, we revisit what it means to be able to freely enjoy your money today — while still taking the necessary steps to build your wealth and plan responsibly for the future. Tune in to learn: How you can spend better to fully experience life now What you should set aside for future financial security Why you can save TOO much, and how to avoid it The...

28: In this episode, we share 6 major considerations you can use to help guide your year-end financial planning — along with a few suggestions for what to focus on in 2020 to make it a financially successful year. We dive into the importance of the following year-end planning topics, and explain exactly how to execute on each one: Reflect on the progress you've made in the last 12 months Make plan...

27: You've heard renting is throwing money away and a house is always a good investment. But is it true? The answer is it depends -- and today, we're giving you what you need to get to a solid recommendation on what's best for your personal situation. Forget general rules of thumb; forget what you feel pressured to do; forget what you've heard about buying always being better or renting never bein...

26: An HSA is one of our favorite tools for growing wealth — but the problem is, most people have no idea how beneficial they are OR how to leverage them for maximum financial advantage. We're changing that with this episode of the show, and explaining everything you need to know about HSAs, why they're so powerful, how they can help you pay less in taxes, and what you need to do to turn this litt...

25: Do you know how much money you save right now? How much is enough to save and invest for the long term?  Your savings rate is one of the most important metrics you can track as you manage and measure your progress toward financial success — because if you have big, ambitious goals, you need to make sure you're doing what it takes to achieve them. In this episode, we share how we save 50 percen...

24: Most of us have much more than just one thing we want to do, have, enjoy, or accomplish. But we all have limited resources (time, money, and energy) to use toward achieving our multiple goals. How can you start managing competing priorities so that you can improve your chances of successfully doing what you want with your money and your life? By following the 4-step process we lay out in this...

23: Conversations about budgeting and saving money don't have to translate as "here's what you have to give up." We want to make sure we can enjoy life now AND plan responsibly for tomorrow, and in this episode, we talk through three (stupidly simple) ideas for actually making that possible to do. These tips will give you easy-to-implement ways to create wiggle room in your budget so you can enjoy...

22: Life can get complicated when you hit 30. You might be in the middle of countless transitions, like moving up in your career, starting a business, buying a home, getting married, growing your family — and a whole lot more. And oh yeah, now is the PRIME TIME to get your finances right if you want to create and build your own wealth. No pressure. To help you stay successful and maybe even get ri...

Ep 21: Find out exactly what to do in the face of a downturn, learn why market timing is a loser's game, and pick up our tips on how to recession-proof your life . There has been a lot of talk and media coverage around the question of, "is this the next recession?" There's a lot of implication that it's this big, looming thing that's about to happen -- and we're all totally screwed when it does. B...

20: After 12 years, 130,000 miles, and many seasons sitting out on the streets of Boston being pelted by salt trucks and/or really bad parallel parking jobs, it was time to trade in our old Mazda and upgrade. So we bought a new car! But first, we had to figure out how to do it and not spend This process brought up a WHOLE lot of questions for us, like: How do you determine when you really need a n...

19: You don't have to be born into money to have money now. Today, we lay out a few different paths to explore if you want to become a self-made millionaire. We cover: -- Becoming a high-income earner with a company or employer -- Starting a business or freelancing -- The importance of investing (and multiple ways to do it). We'll tell you which path we're on, discuss the pros/cons of each, and pr...

18: In Part II of our series on student loan debt, we look beyond the topic of general student loan forgiveness and explore what you can do right NOW to better manage the burden of the student debt you have to carry. In this episode, we cover: -- How to make a debt repayment plan (and implement it) -- What makes up a customized plan, including looking at your complete financial situation, evaluati...

17: Total student loan forgiveness is a hot topic right now and everyone has an opinion about whether it's good or bad. But what should you actually DO about it -- and the loans you have right now? In PART ONE of this two-part episode series on student loans, we talk about: The current headlines and what people are chatting about What student loan forgiveness already exist and are available for yo...

16: What you only think you know can definitely hurt you -- and cause you to lose a lot of money in the market. The reality is most of us do not consistently make excellent financial choices on our own, in a vacuum. Part of the problem is that we're plagued by misconceptions around money and the market, and we act on faulty information. Start to solve this problem by educating yourself on the real...

15: Most people make short-term and limited decisions without considering how these choices impact things to the right when you're only looking left. Here's how to solve that problem If we could compare life to walking through a forest, we could say that you pass a lot of trees along the way. And most people tend to obsess over the  nearest  tree. It's just human nature: you focus on the tree near...

14: You asked us about student loans, credit cards, IPOs, retirement savings, and budgeting. Here are our answers. A few podcast episodes ago, we asked for you to send us some of your money questions that you wanted our perspective on -- now we're answering! We cover the following questions in this first "ask me anything" styled show: How much do I need to save for retirement? What's the best cred...

13: Ever wondered how much most people spend on housing, travel, restaurants, and more? And have you ever wondered how YOU compare?  We dive into some of these numbers in this episode, sharing what the average person spends, what we think you need to save, and how to fit YOUR spending around these data points.  We also talk about how to set up a budget in a way that feels freeing, not restrictive,...