Avoiding meaningless purchases

We're still surprised people did this but... 50+ founders worth $10M to $4B reveal their personal finances. Here it is: https://joinhampton.com/mw-wr

Why do we do this? Because if you're an aspirational person or someone who runs a business and is making money, it's incredibly challenging to figure out what to do. Information is impossible to find — and that's what we put together: the net worth reveal and why we do this podcast, Moneywise.

A $3 billion founder's money advice: keep driving the Chevrolet. Here's why the richest guests all say the same five things.

After 100+ episodes of Moneywise, the same five spending refusals kept showing up — from a $3B founder who's never sold a company, a guy who lost 95% of his net worth and won't buy his own socks, and Bryan Johnson, who spends $2M a year on his body and almost nothing on anything else. None of them read the research. There's 50 years of it, and they all landed in the same place anyway.

This episode covers all five: first class, new cars, meaningless stuff, angel checks, and kids' comfort — plus the study behind each one (lottery winners, the MIT Celtics auction, the marshmallow test follow-up). Then Anne Mahlum, who sold SolidCore for nearly $100M and forces herself to spend $200K/month, tears the whole list apart. The episode ends with a 10-minute exercise using two questions that decide what stays on your card statement.

Also, this podcast is made by Hampton, which is a community for founders doing on average $20 million a year in revenue. We saw a lot of these money conversations happening privately behind closed doors and we thought, "What the heck, let's make it public." If you are a founder, apply here: http://joinhampton.com/mw

Episodes Mentioned:
How Rich Is 'Rich Enough' to Fly Private? — https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5ZyTo6gppPw
"I'm worth about $3 billion": What Happens When You DON'T Sell Your Business — https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uZM0K9eqzx0
What It's Like to Lose 95% of Your Net Worth Overnight (the socks guy) — https://youtu.be/fW-F3MKwevI
Bryan Johnson: I Probably Won't Actually Live Forever — https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=icWHq_xjhac
How to Not Ruin Your Kids with Your Wealth ft. Dr. Becky — https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uB1SmMA-nLk

Timestamps:
0:00 — Cold open: the $3B founder, the socks guy, and Bryan Johnson's $2M body budget
0:28 — 100 episodes in, the same five patterns kept repeating — and 50 years of research explains them
1:05 — Why guests reveal their real numbers on Moneywise
1:50 — #1: First class. "I still fly coach unless it's international" — his "poor kid habit"
2:27 — Hedonic adaptation, and the lottery winners who scored lower on enjoying breakfast
3:52 — #2: New cars. The $3B founder's advice: don't buy the Ferrari, drive the Chevrolet
4:14 — The Millionaire Next Door data (most popular millionaire car: Ford F-150), "big hat, no cattle"
4:40 — The commute study: zero relationship between car value and happiness
5:35 — #3: Stuff. The socks guy's filter: "Does this dollar come back to me or is it gone?"
6:03 — Stanford brain scans: every purchase is want vs. hurt
6:28 — The MIT Celtics auction — credit card bidders paid double
7:26 — #4: Angel checks. Bryan Johnson writes none — half of deals lose money, 7% produce 75% of returns
8:41 — Opportunity cost neglect and attention residue: every check is an open tab in your head
10:15 — #5: Kids' comfort. Parents who could buy any seat, flying the family in coach on purpose
11:06 — The marshmallow test follow-up wealthy parents actually care about
12:11 — 70% of family money gone by generation two, 90% by generation three
13:17 — The counterargument: Anne Mahlum ($115M, spends $200K/month) — "I hate when people don't spend on principle"
14:19 — The 2023 rerun of the $75K happiness study, and buying back time
15:55 — The 10-minute exercise: two questions to run against last month's card statement
16:33 — If you run a $3M+ company: Hampton

Sponsors: Daily Body Coach - achieve your dream body with https://moneywise.dailybodycoach.com

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