#219: Stella is working toward FIRE and wants to know: how can she create passive income in her retirement years? Is a portfolio with stocks and bonds enough, or should she invest in real estate? Travis and his wife are also on the FIRE path, and are comparing their investment options. Travis is concerned about the inefficiency of reinvesting returns in real estate. How can you factor this into your decision when buying a property? Stephanie and her husband are also interested in FIRE (hooray!) and they have $20,000 to invest. How can they best use this money to help them FIRE sooner? Cade, a 24-year-old listener, wants to FIRE by age 30 (we’re on a roll!). He’s saving $4,000/month and wants to know how to invest these savings. Anonymous and their partner are taking a mini-retirement and have questions surrounding the logistics of healthcare. What options should they consider? On a different note, Amanda works in academia. After listening to Episode 12, she’s looking for tips on managing long-term, complex collaborative projects now that she’s in a leadership position. Steve’s question brings us to the topic of building an online business and social media following. Should he have one brand for all of his interests, or divide these interests into separate channels? I tackle these questions in today’s episode of the show. Enjoy! For more information, visit the show notes at https://affordanything.com/episode219 Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Kristen Berman, Co-founder of Irrational Labs, discusses why people behave irrationally with money. She highlights the importance of one-time decisions, simplifying decision-making, and pre-committing to financial goals. Kristen also explains the value of measuring process over outcomes and using accountability partners. She introduces the Three Bs - Behavior, Barriers, and Benefits, for better financial habits. The podcast explores strategies to automate behavior change, decrease friction in spending behavior, and finding the balance between simplifying and optimizing.

#217: It’s September! If you’ve been listening to the show for the past few months, then you know that I’m on what I’ve dubbed my September Sabbatical, in which I’m taking a break from podcast production and traveling the globe. In light of that, we’re digging through the archives and airing some of my favorite interviews on the show, in between airing interviews I’ve done on other podcasts. Earlier this year, Cody and Justin from The FI Show interviewed me and asked some excellent questions about my journey to financial independence, entrepreneurship and passion, and minding the gap between your income and expenses. We talk about the importance of side hustling and how to create a well-paying job from your skills. We touch on real estate and why I chose this strategy to reach FI. We also discuss the bone I have to pick with the financial independence movement. Finally, we chat about what financial independence is really about, because it’s not about sipping margaritas on a beach. It’s about having the freedom to use your time in whatever way you want. I hope you enjoy it as much as I did! Thank you to Cody and Justin for giving us permission to air this interview. P.S. - Starting with the next episode, we’ll return to our usual routine of brand new interviews and Ask Paula episodes. :) For more information, visit the show notes at https://affordanything.com/episode217 Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

#216: It’s September! If you’ve been listening to the show for the past few months, then you know that I’m on what I’ve dubbed my September Sabbatical, in which I’m taking a break from podcast production and traveling the globe. In light of that, we’re digging through the archives and airing some of my favorite interviews on the show, in between airing interviews I’ve done on other podcasts.  Welcome to another episode from our archives! This one was recorded in March 2018, and Dr. Wade Pfau had a ton of insight into the four percent rule that so many of us are concerned with. First, here’s a brief history of how the four percent rule came to be.  In 1994, William Bengen decided to look at 30-year timespans throughout U.S. History, beginning with the year 1926.  He worked under the assumption that a retiree held 50 percent stocks (in the form of S&P 500 Index), and 50 percent bonds (intermediate-term government bonds).  He looked at two things: the worst-case scenario, and how much an investor could sustainably withdraw from their portfolio under that worst-case scenario.  The year 1966 ended up being one of the worst to retire during, and an investor could withdraw 4.15 percent during the first year, and 4.15 percent, adjusted for inflation, every subsequent year.  That is how the 4 percent rule came to be.  Dr. Wade Pfau, a Professor of Retirement Income at The American College of Financial Services, argues that the 4 percent rule may not be the end-all-be-all we think it is. He voices his hesitations and explains how you can determine how much you can afford to spend in retirement on this episode.  Enjoy! P.S. - We’ll return to our regular podcast production schedule in October!  For more information, visit the show notes at http://affordanything.com/216  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

#215: We are really digging into the archives with today's episode. This originally aired back in 2016! Besides being another fun and fascinating interview, this is one of our most popular episodes. Which isn't surprising, given the topic we're exploring. :-) Financial independence means many things to many different people, which might be why we find it challenging to settle on a definition that everyone can agree on. Regardless of what your personal definition is, Joshua Sheats, a financial planner and host of the well-known Radical Personal Finance podcast, says that financial independence can be separated into seven stages. We explore these seven stages of FI in this episode, and we also talk about how to enjoy the journey no matter what stage you're at. Enjoy! For details, visit the show notes at https://affordanything.com/stages-financial-independence-joshua-sheats/ Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

#214: It’s September! If you’ve been listening to the show for the past few months, then you know that I’m on what I’ve dubbed my September Sabbatical, in which I’m taking a break from podcast production and traveling the globe. In light of that, we’re digging through the archives and airing some of my favorite interviews on the show, in between airing interviews I’ve done on other podcasts. I’m super excited to share an interview I did with Brad and Jonathan of ChooseFI back in December 2018. It was fun to have the tables turned, and Brad and Jonathan left no stone unturned in their interview with me. If you ever wanted to know my origin story, including where my love for travel comes from, where my desire for freedom came from, and how I combined both, then give this interview a listen. We talk about everything from: How travel wasn’t a big part of my life until college How I prefer to travel Why the idea of mini-retirements is so important Making the transition from freelancing to having my own business and giving up that business in favor of focusing on Afford Anything Dealing with imposter syndrome Overcoming and working with a scarcity mindset What financial independence means to me The importance of self-care Brad and Jonathan are two of the most thorough interviewers I’ve ever recorded with, and this interview was a lot of fun. If you want to learn more about them, I returned the favor by interviewing them on this show on this episode https://www.choosefi.com/105-you-can-afford-anything-but-not-everything-paula-pant Thanks to Brad and Jonathan and ChooseFI for giving us permission to air this interview! P.S. - We’ll return to our regular podcast production schedule in October! For more information, visit the show notes at https://affordanything.com/episode214 Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

#213: It’s September! If you’ve been listening to the show for the past few months, then you know that I’m on what I’ve dubbed my September Sabbatical, in which I’m taking a break from podcast production and traveling the globe. In light of that, we’re digging through the archives and airing some of my favorite interviews on the show, in between airing interviews I’ve done on other podcasts. If you missed the last episode, you might want to listen to it before diving into this one, as Andrew and I go into the finer points of investing here. Seriously. This is one of the most in-the-weeds shows I’ve done to date. If you’re playing catch up: Andrew Hallam is a teacher who became a millionaire in his 30s and reached FIRE in his 40s. His starting salary was $28,000 - net. If you want to know how he did it, and what his first three rules of building wealth are, then listen to episode 212. Otherwise, tune into this episode, where we review his six other rules that can turn middle-class people into millionaires: Understand your inner psychology. Conquer the enemy in the mirror. Learn how to build a balanced, responsible portfolio. Create an indexed account, no matter where you live. Don’t resign yourself to taking this journey alone. Inoculate yourself against slick sales rhetoric. If it sounds too good to be true, it probably is.a While these rules sound simple on the surface, Andrew and I go way beyond that, talking about hedge funds, human psychology, and casinos. This was a favorite among listeners back in 2017 and it’s one of the most enjoyable interviews I did. I hope you enjoy! P.S. - We’ll return to our regular podcast production schedule in October! For more information, visit the show notes at http://affordanything.com/episode213  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

#212: It’s September!! If you’ve been listening to the show for the past few months, then you know that I’m on what I’ve dubbed my September Sabbatical, in which I’m taking a break from podcast production and traveling the globe. In light of that, we’re digging through the archives and airing some of my favorite interviews on the show, in between airing interviews I’ve done on other podcasts. First up is a two-part interview with Andrew Hallam, a teacher who became a millionaire in his 30s and reached FI in his 40s. How? Beyond investing small sums (we’re talking less than $100 per month) throughout college, he also saved half of his starting salary of $28,000. This episode is for anyone who thinks it’s impossible to reach FIRE on a low salary. I originally interviewed Andrew in January 2017, and we could not stop talking. Which is why our three-hour interview was divided into two parts. In this first part, Andrew shares his story - how he became a millionaire, and why he wanted to achieve FIRE in the first place. He also shares three principles from his book, Millionaire Teacher: Nine Rules of Wealth You Should Have Learned in School: Rule 1: Spend like you want to grow rich. (Don’t waste money on junk.) Rule 2: Use the greatest financial ally you have. (Time.) Rule 3: Small percentages pack big punches. (Avoid high-fee funds.) As for the other six, they’re coming up in Part 2. :) Enjoy! P.S. - We’ll return to our regular podcast production schedule in October!   For more information, visit the show notes at https://affordanything.com/episode212 Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

#211: Hey there! I’m writing this from Croatia, where I’m beginning five weeks of travel that I’m calling my September Sabbatical. From now through September 23rd, I’ll be exploring the globe and enjoying a one-month break. Today, I’m kicking things off with a community-based episode. Here’s the backstory behind today’s show: There’s an event called CampFI, which is a 3-4 day gathering for people who are interested in financial independence. CampFI holds around half a dozen events per year in various locations; I spoke at one in Colorado Springs this past July. While I was there, two other podcasters and I decided to interview the participants to find out their “why of FI.” What motivates them to build financial independence? These interviews and stories from the community are today’s episode. Enjoy! For more information, visit the show notes at http://affordanything.com/episode211 Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

#210: We live in a fascinating era: huge sections of society are more prosperous, advanced and safe than at any other point in human history, yet depression and anxiety are at record highs. It’s a paradox of progress: the richer the nation, the more likely its citizens are to suffer from mental health issues and report feeling crushing isolation and unhappiness. What gives? At the individual level, pursuing financial independence and early retirement (FIRE) often fills people with enthusiasm, purpose and meaning. Yet once people reach FIRE, they often report feeling purposeless or rudderless. It’s a paradox of hope: nothing kills a dream like achieving it. And in the absence of anything else for which to hope, a person becomes, by definition, hopeless. Ouch. When we’ve taken care of the bottom of the Maslow Pyramid, how do we find hope and meaning? How can we create purpose in a vast world? This week, I invited one of my favorite writers, megabestselling author Mark Manson, to join me on the Afford Anything podcast to discuss these critical issues. Mark Manson is the author of The Subtle Art of Not Giving A F*ck, which sold six million copies and became the #1 bestseller in 13 countries. His latest book, Everything is F*cked: A Book About Hope, lays a framework for finding hope and happiness in a confusing world. For more information, visit the show notes at http://affordanything.com/episode210 Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices