Radical Personal Finance

Today, I bring you an interview with a dynamo: Eva from TeensGotCents.com. I met Eva in New Orleans at the FinCon conference. She was attending with her mother and I was incredibly impressed with her. Eva writes about about personal finance for a teen audience. She began at the age of 15 and she shares her own journey and also gives advice for other young people. In the interview, we weave two themes: Eva's advice for teens Eva's own experience/example as a financial blogger Both of these themes are valuable. Frankly, I'm a bit jealous of Eva's early start in writing about the topics of personal finance. I wish I'd had the foresight to begin at her age. Listen carefully to the story of her site and consider how you can help your children--or yourself--to start something similar. It's a really neat story. Other topics include: Budgeting basics for teens The envelope system The value of attending professional conferences--especially for young people How to teach teens to get jobs Enjoy! Joshua Links: Eva's blog: Teens Got Cents Spoken Word Performance #1: I Will Not Let An Exam Result Decide My Fate Spoken Word Performance #2: Why I Hate School But Love Education

Personal finance touches every aspect of life by definition. Every aspect of our life involves finance in some way. As we make the decisions of life, we're constantly faced with cost and opportunity cost: Is it wise of me to allocate this $100 to a memorable evening's entertainment with my family or to set it aside toward a larger vacation fund? Should I use some extra money to upgrade the look and style of my wardrobe or purchase some extra books or classes to advance my knowledge? Am I better served by investing my money into ownership of publicly traded securities through my 401(k) account or will I get a higher return on my investment by improving the insulation of my house and upgrading my windows to an energy efficient version. These are ultimately the decisions we face. Culturally, we usually separate these areas of life into different decisions. But we shouldn't. Each of them (and many thousands of additional options) impacts the other. We're far better off if we view our life as a web of integrated decisions and we should be able to flow seamlessly among our different options. My guest today does just that. Jeff and his wife are raising a young family and are working toward financial independence together. Their personal interest in sustainability and green living has naturaly integrated with their financial planning. DIY activities and home improvement have had benefits in both areas. Enjoy today's show! Joshua Links: Sustainable Life Blog

My guest today is Dr. Vern Poythress. Dr. Poythress is a mathematician and a theologian. Most important for this discussion, he and his wife, Diane, are parents to two children, both boys. Dr. Poythress authored an article entitled "How I Helped My Boys to Become Christian Men," in which he outlined his family's approach to establishing a formal rite of passage for his sons to become men at 12 or 13 years old. His formal test and qualifications for them included religious training, knowledge, and behavior, specific acts of service to others, and specific areas of wisdom needed in an adult life. Much of this conversation is built on the Judeo-Christian tradition and Dr. Poythress outlines much of his curriculum from a religious perspective. It's key to recognize, however, that most cultures have a rite of passage for young men and women; these ceremonies vary and many are cultural, not religious. For example, toward the end of the interview we discuss the tradition of the debutante ball, a "coming-out" party for young women. If this concept interests you, consider designing your own curriculum based on your family's vision and values. Certainly, anything you intentionally design will be better than the negative rites of passage we currently promulgate in our culture. Enjoy! Joshua Links: Dr. Poythress's website Dr. Poythress's bibliography "How I Helped My Boys to Become Christian Men

My guest today is Ben Falk. Ben is a really incredible permaculture designer with a comprehensive focus. Ben runs a planning firm called Whole Systems Design. Through this firm, he "identifies, designs, and develops human habitats - landscape and infrastructure systems - that yield perennial abundance and enduring value. These are adaptive, resilient and secure places in a future of peak oil, climate instability, and deepening economic insolvency." They also "plan, develop, and manage land-based wealth preservation and security projects for those with the forethought to invest an abundance of present day resources to reduce their familly's vulnerability to future food, energy and other supply-chain disturbances, as well as peak-oil, climatic, economic and other events." The interview covers a variety of topics, including: Ben's path from architecture to comprehensive design. How to approach personal lifestyle design from a systems mindset. How to prioritize needs and investment. How he heats his house, heats his water, cooks his food, and dries his clothes in Vermont with a very small amount of wood. How he grows 80 to 90% of his food intake. My favorite quote from the interview: "Don't fight something that's wrong. Make a new system that makes the old system obsolete." Enjoy! Joshua Links: Whole Systems Design The Resilient Farm and Homestead: An Innovative Permaculture and Whole Systems Design Approach by Ben Falk

On Fridays, I answer your questions! I decided I didn't want to handle any of the in-depth, math-related questions today so I chose these three questions to handle. 1:41 - What can I do to prepare for being the executor of someone's estate? 16:49 - How can I reconcile the idea of being a specialist in my field with the advantages of being a generalist? 48:09 - What can I do to ensure a smoothe transition to a single-income household? I hope you enjoy the show! Joshua Links: NOLO: The Executor's Guide for Settling a Loved One's Estate or Trust

Today, we welcome Jim Rawles, Founder and Editor of SurvivalBlog.com back on the show to discuss improving your lifestyle and personal resilience by moving. We talk about optimizing your lifestyle within the United States by carefully selecting your location as well as the pros and cons of international expatriation. Topics include: Ideas for playing the "State Line Jumping Game" (living in a no-income-tax state and shopping next door in no-sales-tax state). Brief mention of the "Five Flags Theory." In essence, the idea is that you can arrange your affairs over five different countries: Flag 1: Business Base-These are places where you make your money. They must be different from your personal fiscal domicile, the place where you legally reside. Flag 2: Passport & Citizenship-These should be from a country unconcerned about offshore citizens and what they do outside its borders. Flag 3: Domicile-This should be a tax haven with good communications. A place where wealthy, productive people can be creative, live, relax, prosper and enjoy themselves. Such a place should not be threatened by war or revolution and preferably should enjoy good levels of banking secrecy. Flag 4: Asset Repository-This should be a place from which assets, securities and business affairs can be managed anonymously by proxy. Flag 5: Playgrounds-These are places where you would actually physically spend your time. Jim's idea for "The American Redoubt" The Free State Project and Free State Wyoming Estimate your own tax savings with SaveTaxesByMoving.com Considerations for international expatriation: taxation, language skills, friendly to foreigners, strength of the economy, crime rate, climate and lifestyle, gun laws, homeschooling laws. etc/ Discussion of Finland, the Philippines, Swizerland, New Zealand, Belize, Costa Rica, Panama, Chile, Argentina, Paraguay, Uraguay For more information check out the Sovereign Society and International Living For a Second Passport opportunity, consider St. Kitts and Nevitts Check out Jim's novel: Expatriates Enjoy! Joshua

Get last-minute tax planning ideas to save money! Learn about maximizing retirement account contributions, IRAs, Keogh plans, SEP IRAs, tax deductions, charitable contributions, and optimizing tax benefits for dependents. Explore IRS expenses, political issues, new tax strategies, controversies, and navigating the tax system maze for financial optimization.

Is education something that we buy or something that we work for? Ever thought about that? My guest today is Scott Young. I first heard of Scott when I watched his TEDx talk on "How to Get an MIT education for $2,000." This interview is filled with tidbits that will be useful to you whether you're designing your own education or whether you're helping someone else with their educational plan. Enjoy! Joshua Links: ScottHYoung.com

I love real estate investing. I think it's one of the most accessible, realistic ways for people to grow their long-term wealth at an excellent rate of return. Today, I'm thrilled to bring you an interview with John Schaub. John is widely renowned as one of the good guys. John has been investing in real estate for decades. He's also been teaching the subject for decades. He has a wealth of ideas and knowledge to share with us today. Enjoy! Joshua Links: JohnSchaub.com John's Seminars John's recommended authors: Bill Nickerson, Jay Decima, Zuckerman (?), Al Lowry, Donald Trump, Robert Allen, Robert Bruss

Today, we have a really fun Q&A for you! I hope you enjoy! Here are the questions I answer: 2:25 If I have the cash, should I pay cash for a house or invest it? 17:13 Should I use my Coverdell ESA to speculate on early-stage biotech stocks? 28:05 Should a physician try to continue a private practice with a partial ownership interest or take a full-time hospital job? 40:38 How can I account for the business deductions in my side business? 49:40 Is multi-family, multi-generational living a good idea? 1:03:40 What do I need to know about disability income insurance? 1:26:03 Which college expenses can I pay for out of my 529 account? 1:33:27 Why do I use different inflation rates on calculations? 1:39:26 What kind of account can I use to gift money to my nephew? Enjoy! Joshua Links: Lower Your Taxes Big Time! by Sandy Botkin