The Financial Independence Show

This episode is an interview with Cody from October 2022 on the Action Academy Podcast where he explains how he reached FI at 25 and built a 7-figure business. If you enjoyed it, please share this episode with a friend! Links From the Episode Action Academy Podcast Join the Community We’d love to hear your comments and questions about this week’s episode. Here are some of the best ways to stay in touch and get involved in The FI Show community! Grab the Ultimate FI Spreadsheet Join our Facebook Group Leave us a voicemail Send an email to contact [at] TheFiShow [dot] com If you like what you hear, please subscribe and leave a rating/review! >> You can do that by clicking here << Learn More About Your Hosts CodyDBerman.com (Cody’s Blog) Saving-Sherpa (Justin’s blog)

Hopefully, you're not tired of making money with little to no effort. Today, Joseph Woodbury, Founder of Neighbor, is here to give us another way to do just that. The concept started out simple enough during college. Someone needed storage but didn't want to pay top-dollar or drive to a crummy storage facility. So what if instead, you just paid your neighbor a fraction of the amount and dropped it off down the street? That's exactly what Neighbor is. Joseph gives us the full breakdown of how they went from a Google sheet and knocking on doors, to the only storage company operating in all 50 states. You'll also hear some great stories of both huge and small-scale ways people are making passive income via Neighbor. From a spot under someone's bed in NY to large fields in rural America. Some have even gone so far as to build structures simply to put them on Neighbor. We love this concept however because no work is really needed. If you have space available that you aren't using anyway, set up your rules and rent it to a neighbor. There's rarely such a win-win. You get passive income, and they get a safer and more friendly experience at a fraction of the cost. We can't wait to hear how much you're able to make renting out that empty garage, parking spot, or yes, maybe even a spot under your bed. As always, if you enjoyed this episode, please share it with a friend! Links From the Episode Neighbor Joseph Woodbury YouTube Interview https://youtu.be/2McKZN2M3eM Join the Community We’d love to hear your comments and questions about this week’s episode. Here are some of the best ways to stay in touch and get involved in The FI Show community! Grab the Ultimate FI Spreadsheet Join our Facebook Group Leave us a voicemail Send an email to contact [at] TheFiShow [dot] com If you like what you hear, please subscribe and leave a rating/review! >> You can do that by clicking here << Learn More About Your Hosts CodyDBerman.com (Cody’s Blog) Saving-Sherpa (Justin’s blog)

It's likely you've come up with a brilliant-sounding business idea but didn't go after it. Or maybe you wanted to be your own boss but were overwhelmed by getting started. The biggest reason most people don't start or don't succeed at starting a business is money. Maybe they run out of money before the business is profitable. Maybe they just never even start because of the fear of losing the investment needed to start. But what if you didn't need any money to get started? That's exactly what Alan Donegan is teaching people across the world how to do. He created the Rebel Business School to spread his methodology and help would-be business owners get started even when they have no starting capital. Alan was raised by a successful entrepreneur who ended up bankrupt due to being overleveraged. It almost scared Alan away from being a business owner himself. Instead, he developed mindsets and methodologies to avoid ever getting into that leveraged position. He shares successful stories from businesses you'd never expect to be able to get started without money. These include an escape room and even a restaurant. We hope this episode helps get you past that last bit of fear holding you back and start that business of your dreams. If you enjoyed this episode, check out the links below for more content, and don't forget to share this podcast with a friend! Links From the Episode Alan's Website Rebel Business School Website Rebel Business School Instagram Rebel Business School YouTube YouTube Interview https://youtu.be/zn0i2QwKeq0 Join the Community We’d love to hear your comments and questions about this week’s episode. Here are some of the best ways to stay in touch and get involved in The FI Show community! Grab the Ultimate FI Spreadsheet Join our Facebook Group Leave us a voicemail Send an email to contact [at] TheFiShow [dot] com If you like what you hear, please subscribe and leave a rating/review! >> You can do that by clicking here << Learn More About Your Hosts CodyDBerman.com (Cody’s Blog) Saving-Sherpa (Justin’s blog)

Today has been a long time coming... When we started this podcast Justin's, net worth was less than $300k. His goal was to retire in 2034. Fast forward 5 years and he's blown past those metrics and goals. Justin had planned on retiring in June of 2024, once his restricted stock matured. Due to an acquisition of his company, which led to a layoff, that timeline was accelerated. It's all good news though! He still gets his pay and his stock and gets to retire that much sooner. Justin had already been Financially Independent, but now he gets to tack on the RE to the FIRE acronym. So yep... It looks like at age 33 and just over $1.5M, Justin is RETIRED!!! What will retirement look like? Well, if you know Justin, you know he's extremely transparent. So he'll be documenting exactly what he does every day for his 150 days of severance to give everyone a peek behind the curtain. In this episode, we cover: Negotiating severance (or not) The do's and don'ts of layoffs RSUs and vested company stock The WARN act What to do with your 401K Justin's future and so much more If you found this episode helpful, please share it with a friend! Links from the Episode Justin's Log of daily activities in retirement Justin's Blog -> The daily log may move here eventually Join the Community We’d love to hear your comments and questions about this week’s episode. Here are some of the best ways to stay in touch and get involved in The FI Show community! Grab the Ultimate FI Spreadsheet Join our Facebook Group Leave us a voicemail Send an email to contact [at] TheFIshow [dot] com If you like what you hear, please subscribe and leave a rating/review! >> You can do that by clicking here << Learn More About Your Hosts CodyDBerman.com (Cody’s Blog) Saving-Sherpa (Justin’s blog)

Everyone loves seeing their hard-earned money dwindle away to the tax man right? Obviously not! The most powerful techniques generally come to business owners and real estate investors. Ryan Blakke, from Learn Like a CPA, is an expert in these techniques. He's seen hundreds of returns that individuals did themselves...and only 1 who actually did it correctly. That means if you're putting all your trust in turbo-tax, you're probably leaving money on the table. Cost segregation, the Augusta rule, and resetting your cost basis when giving to charities are just some of the tips Ryan brings to this episode. As we near the end of 2023, you'll want to make sure you take action on some of these tips before it's too late. It's always a great episode when we hear about strategies we never knew existed. It no doubt brought value to our lives, and we hope you can say the same for yourself. If you enjoyed this episode, check out the links below for more content, and don't forget to share this podcast with a friend! Links From the Episode Work with Ryan Learn Like a CPA Instagram Learn Like a CPA Podcast Learn Like a CPA Twitter Learn Like a CPA YouTube YouTube Interview https://youtu.be/qqGKkMxHngU Join the Community We’d love to hear your comments and questions about this week’s episode. Here are some of the best ways to stay in touch and get involved in The FI Show community! Grab the Ultimate FI Spreadsheet Join our Facebook Group Leave us a voicemail Send an email to contact [at] TheFiShow [dot] com If you like what you hear, please subscribe and leave a rating/review! >> You can do that by clicking here << Learn More About Your Hosts CodyDBerman.com (Cody’s Blog) Saving-Sherpa (Justin’s blog)

It's Thanksgiving and we've got so much to be thankful for. We kick off the episode with some shocking stats that show just how privileged we all are to be seeking financial independence in the first place. Stats across the world such as Average income Average net worth Average daily spending How many people own a car Most of our audience makes more in a week than some of the world makes in a year. We're incredibly thankful for the opportunities we've been given to chase after. We were fortunate enough to be born into a country where we have a stable stock market, we have financing for homes, and we have countless income-generating opportunities. We also try to help the audience score some deals this holiday season...it wouldn't be a FI Show episode without some actionable tips. Check the Flipp app to see who's offering deals like a free turkey. Set up an Ibotta account for a free Thanksgiving meal. Set alerts on Slickdeals so that you don't miss out on any Black Friday opportunities. There's even a tip in the episode to avoid overeating during the big feast. We round out the episode by listing out a few things we're thankful for that felt relevant to the show. One thing Justin mentioned was being thankful for being financially prepared for any situation. This is highlighted because he may be getting laid off next week... So definitely come back for those updates. The FI Show is so thankful for everyone who has taken time out of their day to give us a listen. We hope we've helped in some little way along your journey. If so, we hope you can share this episode with a friend! Join the Community We’d love to hear your comments and questions about this week’s episode. Here are some of the best ways to stay in touch and get involved in The FI Show community! Grab the Ultimate FI Spreadsheet Join our Facebook Group Leave us a voicemail Send an email to contact [at] TheFIshow [dot] com If you like what you hear, please subscribe and leave a rating/review! >> You can do that by clicking here << Learn More About Your Hosts CodyDBerman.com (Cody’s Blog) Saving-Sherpa (Justin’s blog)

Many people feel like a lack of capital and insider information for good deals is keeping them from starting their real estate journey. But what if you could just use someone else's money? And what if you could find deals directly on the MLS? Jaren, aka Finance Cowboy, is doing just that. He's not trying to implement any complex strategies. Jaren is finding deals on the MLS that need to be rehabbed, forcing appreciation, refinancing to get his money out, and moving on to the next property. This is commonly referred to as the BRRRR strategy. Buy Rehab Rent Refinance Repeat Another cool thing about Jaren's story is that he actually still has his W-2. Even though he's a multi-millionaire and could live off rental income, he's got a great gig and doesn't plan on leaving. All too often W-2 employment gets looked down on in the personal finance community. The reality is that W-2 does come with its benefits (health insurance, 401k, steady pay, etc). Jaren has taken a career in sales and combined it with an impressive real estate portfolio to design a life that's perfect for him. We always love to bring you a realistic story that's repeatable, and Jaren embodies that perfectly. If you enjoyed this episode, check out the links below for more content, and don't forget to share this podcast with a friend! Links From the Episode Finance Cowboy Instagram Finance Cowboy Twitter Jaren's YouTube Jaren's Podcast YouTube Interview https://youtu.be/4348MylLS9s Join the Community We’d love to hear your comments and questions about this week’s episode. Here are some of the best ways to stay in touch and get involved in The FI Show community! Grab the Ultimate FI Spreadsheet Join our Facebook Group Leave us a voicemail Send an email to contact [at] TheFiShow [dot] com If you like what you hear, please subscribe and leave a rating/review! >> You can do that by clicking here << Learn More About Your Hosts CodyDBerman.com (Cody’s Blog) Saving-Sherpa (Justin’s blog)

Today, we're re-airing a fan favorite from 2019. Colin Jones was a substitute math teacher and a friend had given him a book on card counting. Once the friend was making $80/hr, Colin decided he should give it a try. To get started, he took $2k of the $6k that he and his wife had saved up. Eventually, after hundreds of hours and study and play, Colin was making $430/hr. And his team was regularly making $500k+ in a year. Now, he's more focused on teaching others the skill of card counting. If you enjoyed this episode, don't forget to share this podcast with a friend! Listen and read below to hear this incredible story. Links from the Episode Colin's Website: Blackjack Apprenticeship Colin's Book: The 21st Century Card Counter A snippet from the mentioned documentary Join the Community We’d love to hear your comments and questions about this week’s episode. Here are some of the best ways to stay in touch and get involved in The FI Show community! Grab the Ultimate FI Spreadsheet Join our Facebook Group Leave us a voicemail Send an email to contact [at] TheFiShow [dot] com If you like what you hear, please subscribe and leave a rating/review! >> You can do that by clicking here << Learn More About Your Hosts CodyDBerman.com (Cody’s Blog) Saving-Sherpa (Justin’s blog)

Real estate prices are out of control... right? In today's episode, you'll hear how Justin bought a house for just $5,000. No, that's not a typo, $5K! The craziest thing is that the place is in decent condition: Single level Concrete foundation Simplest roof possible No interior water damage This house is a big project, but Justin estimates he can finish everything for under $25,000. After running the numbers, this property should blow the 1% rule out of the water. Justin is expecting to rent from anywhere between $700-$850 depending on how nice he ends up making it and how it's rented. We'll definitely be sharing updates about this one-of-a-kind property in future podcasts. If you enjoyed this episode, please share it with a friend! Join the Community We’d love to hear your comments and questions about this week’s episode. Here are some of the best ways to stay in touch and get involved in The FI Show community! Grab the Ultimate FI Spreadsheet Join our Facebook Group Leave us a voicemail Send an email to contact [at] TheFIshow [dot] com If you like what you hear, please subscribe and leave a rating/review! >> You can do that by clicking here << Learn More About Your Hosts CodyDBerman.com (Cody’s Blog) Saving-Sherpa (Justin’s blog)

Today, we're re-airing a popular episode from 2019 on frugal vs. cheap with Jen Smith, co-host of the Frugal Friends Podcast. In the beginning, Jen and her husband find themselves in $78k of total debt. They didn’t have a ton of income, so Jen tried to add on three side hustles on top of her job. This stressed her out so much that she ended up with shingles. In totality, between all their work and side hustles, they were bringing in up to $88k. Their original goal was to be debt-free in 5 years... But in the end, it turned out to only take 23 months! In this episode, we also cover: How to be frugal "the right way" Frugality without deprivation Frugal vs. Cheap Enjoying the FI journey and so much more. If you enjoyed this episode, don't forget to share this podcast with a friend! Links from the Episode Jen's Podcast Jen's Blog Jen'snstagram Join the Community We’d love to hear your comments and questions about this week’s episode. Here are some of the best ways to stay in touch and get involved in The FI Show community! Grab the Ultimate FI Spreadsheet Join our Facebook Group Leave us a voicemail Send an email to contact [at] TheFiShow [dot] com If you like what you hear, please subscribe and leave a rating/review! >> You can do that by clicking here << Learn More About Your Hosts CodyDBerman.com (Cody’s Blog) Saving-Sherpa (Justin’s blog)