#28 — Dave Chilton on The Rational Reminder Podcast

Oct 21, 2025

Dave Chilton, the author of The Wealthy Barber, shares timeless financial wisdom and updates from his bestselling book. He discusses advice that remains relevant today and reveals insights into future projects aimed at younger readers and immigrants. Chilton explains the balance between investing and paying off debt, emphasizing the importance of understanding individual financial situations. He also highlights common spending leaks and shares lessons from his time on Dragon's Den, unearthing the essence of success beyond mere wealth.

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INSIGHT

Core Principles Still Win

Living within your means and paying yourself first remain timeless pillars of personal finance.
New products (TFSA, FHSA, ETFs) change execution but not the core principles.

ADVICE

Buy Term And Invest The Difference

Buy term life insurance and invest the difference rather than buying cash-value insurance for most people.
Use tax-advantaged accounts to amplify the benefit of investing the difference.

INSIGHT

Picking Winners Rarely Works

Mutual fund picking and chasing past winners fails for most investors because fees and selection biases dominate.
The rise of low-cost passive products (ETFs) changes how retail investors should access markets.

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We’re doing something a little different this week! Instead of posting one of our usual episodes, we’re sharing a recent conversation Dave had on "The Rational Reminder Podcast" — one that resonated deeply with listeners.

The feedback on this episode was overwhelmingly positive, with many saying it offered timeless insights, humour and refreshingly practical advice. So, we wanted to make sure our audience didn’t miss it.

Enjoy this special replay of “The Rational Reminder Podcast” featuring Dave Chilton, and we’ll be back next week with a brand-new regular episode.

Show Notes

(00:00:00) Intro

(00:03:50) Introducing Dave Chilton

(00:06:16) What wisdom from the first print of Dave's book, The Wealthy Barber, still holds true today

(00:08:50) If someone read that first print today, the advice Dave would tell them to ignore

(00:12:10) How the success of that first book changed Dave's life

(00:17:55) The sections or topics in Dave's forthcoming book that he is most excited to share with the world

(00:21:29) How (and why) is Dave using other media like videos and podcasts to connect with his audience

(00:27:14) How often individual investors send Dave their portfolios looking for feedback

(00:34:48) How Dave thinks investors should decide between lump sum vs. dollar cost averaging when someone has a big pile of cash to invest

(00:39:50) How Dave tells people to think through whether it makes sense to invest or pay off debt

(00:41:53) The role Dave sees for financial advisors in people's lives

(00:45:28) The number of people who have shared the full details of their home purchases, ongoing costs, and eventual sales with Dave

(00:52:59) The biggest mistakes people make with respect to homeownership

(00:55:51) How Dave thinks people should approach repaying their Home Buyer’s Plan RRSP withdrawals

(01:02:18) What people can do to save more

(01:06:15) The spending categories Dave finds people are most surprised by when they tabulate their spending

(01:11:18) What “good savers” splurge on, based on Dave's experience reviewing people's budgets

(01:19:49) How people can avoid the effects of upward social comparison making them want perpetually more stuff

(01:24:31) Dave's biggest lessons learned from being a Dragon on Dragon's Den

(01:31:12) Dave defines success in his life