Radical Personal Finance

We've hit a huge milestone in Radical Personal Finance history! We've reached 201 patrons and $2,001.50 of monthly support for Radical Personal Finance! This is super, super thrilling and I thank each and every one of you for your support. I'm going to be changing the format of the show a bit going forward. I'll be doing fewer long-format shows so that the long-format shows I do release are much d...

My guest today is Steve Stewart. Steve's story to me is very interesting because in many ways he was the archetypal American financial story. A normal guy with a normal financial life. However, inspired by Dave Ramsey's influence, he decided to get serious about getting out of debt. Tune in to the interview to hear the incredible impact of that decision on his life! What most intrigues me about St...

There are many ways to budget. All of us need to find a solution that is effective for us. And that solution will probably change as our situation changes. Today, I want to share some advice on budgeting for people who are in a financial emergency.  Here is a very simple method of budgeting. It requires only: a checkbook register a notebook and pencil a stack of all your bills a calculator Details...

My guest today is Joan Sotkin.  Joan has a fascinating story of avoiding money, then embracing business and earning massively, then losing it all, then rebuilding again. In today's interview she shares her perspective and insights on: The meaning of money Rich vs. poor The development of the money coaching industry Life satisfaction Enjoy the show! Joshua Joan's website:  http://www.joansotkin.com...

I love audiobooks. I find them to be an incredibly efficient way to learn and an incredibly productive way to use my time. In today's show I share with you my pro-tips for how to effectively integrate audiobooks into your educational plan. I also share with you my analysis of the audiobook marketplace and how you can get the best deals for yourself.  I analyze: Your library YouTube Overdrive Hoopl...

I'm thrilled to share with you an interview with JB Glossinger, the Morning Coach. I met JB at a Podcast South Florida meetup event and immediately invited him on the show. JB has a really unique background. After building a career in the corporate world and finishing his MBA and PhD he realized that he was in the wrong field to fulfill his personal happiness. He pivoted and established MorningCoa...

I used to think that everyone knew how to make decisions. Since starting Radical Personal Finance I've come to learn that some people don't have a clear decision-making framework. Today, I share with you a dirt-simple framework of costs vs. benefits, plusses and minusses. In sales, it's called the Ben Franklin close. Use it. Write it down. Joshua Support Radical Personal Finance on Patreon!  http:...

Much of our life is lived on autopilot. We generally handle most things by habit. One powerful way to improve the likelihood of achieving your goals is to focus on establishing some simple little habits that will automatically help them to happen! Enjoy. Joshua Support Radical Personal Finance on Patreon!  http://radicalpersonalfinance.com/patron

I spend a lot of time talking to people about their goals. But I notice that many times people confuse their goals and the means to the goals.  This could be a serious setback to your plans. You might spend years chasing a goal that really isn't the true goal.  Get clear! Joshua Support Radical Personal Finance on Patreon!  http://radicalpersonalfinance.com/patron

Student loans are a way of life for much of the US American population. Often considered to be "good debt" because the college degree can lead to higher earnings, they are, nevertheless, still debt. And they're debt that must be dealt with! My guest today is Jay Fleischman. Jay is a bankruptcy attorney who specializes in handling student loan issues. He's a world-class expert in this space. You're...

Today I'm pleased to share with you an interview with Lauren Bowling from LBeeAndTheMoneyTree.com ! Lauren has a really interesting story surrounding personal finance: After getting her degree in theater, and racking up thousands of dollars in credit card debt in college, she moved to New York City with $300 in her pocket. While there she landed a sweet job on Wall Street which sparked her interes...

Hey Radicals! Just a quick announcement show for you--our little baby girl was born early Friday morning. Baby and momma are both doing great and we are enjoying transitioning to our larger family! We're super thankful and beyond excited that she is here. I also thought it would be fun to invite my wife to chat a little bit about her childbirth experience. This isn't related to personal finance--i...

One of the most fundamental transformations of our modern time is taking place in the field of communication. Although it might feel like we're far into this change, we're really not. It's only just begun One of the most important effects of this change is that very small businesses--like financial advisors--can effectively market to the broader market at a very low cost. My guest today is an expe...

Our value and contribution in this world will be directly impacted by the level of our education. It's impossible to create more value without more education. (Yes, there are many kinds of education. I'm using the word inclusively.) But, under what system and whose goals have we been educated? Unfortunately, many of us have been educated under a system that promotes someone else's goals over our o...

Today, I welcome Doug Nordman back to the show! Doug is an early retiree (he retired at 41) and his hobby is helping other military personnel improve their financial lives. One of the more interesting aspects of Doug's financial life is his involvement in private business as an angel investor. He's not only involved with the community of investors near him in Hawaii, he's also committed a substant...

Many people would like to earn more money. But, few people know how to actually look at their situation to assess their opportunities to actually do so. In today's show I share with you the framework that I use to think about money. It's simple but effective. And, most importantly, it's exclusively focused on the things you can actually do and change. It's practical and immediately actionable. Lis...

Hey amigos! Today is my 30th birthday! I'm having an incredible day celebrating with my family and friends. 30 is a big milestone for me. I've been reflecting deeply on the last decade and looking forward to the next decade. I thought about creating a "30 Lessons Learned from 30 Years of Living" for you, but I decided to simply share one of my favorite messages with you instead. This audio is a sh...

Hey Radicals! Just a quick announcement episode to share that the show will be taking a quick summer break for a few days. I have some show-related work to handle and I can't get it done and still continue producing content this week. Also, please expect the shows to be slighly more sporadic during the month of June...details in the audio! Joshua Support Radical Personal Finance on Patreon:  http:...

Q&A today and I handle these four questions! Does tax-loss harvesting really offer the kind of benefit that companies like Wealthfront, Betterment, Personal Capital, et al claim? And can a person do it on their own without relying on a firm to do it for them? Thought you should know something I recently found out. California child labor laws no longer apply once you have graduated from high school...

One of my goals for Radical Personal Finance is to bring more transparency to the world of professional finance. Today, I'm glad to shine the light on the life insurance industry. I've invited a friend of mine onto the show to discuss his 30-year career as a life insurance broker. Todd Simpson CLU®, ChFC® is a veteran of the life insurance business. His specialty is high-risk underwriting, so he b...

Many of find ourselves in a situation where we are concerned about the financial well-being of our parents. Obviously, we'd like to help, if possible. But, this is rarely easy. There are many, many challenges that can emerge. In essence, to truly answer these questions you'd not only have to have all of the skills of a financial planner, but also the background of a relationship counselor, a life...

My guest today is a author named Matthew Bracken. Matthew is a sailor, writer, and former Navy Seal . He's the author of four novels (all of which I've thoroughly enjoyed.) Most importantly for our purposes, he is an expert on the topic of achieving a lifestyle of freedom through sailing. He wrote an excellent essay called " Get Yourself a 30-Footer and Go! " which advocates a quick entry into the...

Q&A show today and I answer these two questions for you: Joshua, My parents just moved to Florida last year and got wooed by an advisor that bought them dinner, gave them a free round of golf, etc. and now they're in an annuity and I can't figure out how badly they are getting screwed (not because there's anything inherently wrong with annuities but because the advisor is sadly not a fee-only advi...

From time to time, I receive questions from listeners about the equipment that I use to produce my show. I also get questions about the mistakes I've made and what I would do differently if I were to do it over again. Today, I share the workflow that I use to create my show and some of the lessons I've learned in 200 episodes of podcasting. This show does not contain any specific financial plannin...

Today, we continue the life insurance series with the valuable background of whole life insurance. Exciting stuff! This show is an introduction to the various product features and design ideas. We cover: Ordinary life insurance Limited pay life insurance Cash values Policy loans Nonforfeiture or Surrender Options: Surrender for cash value Reduced amount of paid-up whole life Paid-up term Annuity o...