

Afford Anything
Paula Pant | Cumulus Podcast Network
You can afford anything, but not everything. We make daily decisions about how to spend money, time, energy, focus and attention – and ultimately, our life.How do we make smarter decisions? How do we think from first principles?On the surface, Afford Anything seems like a podcast about money and investing.But under the hood, this is a show about how to think critically, recognize our behavioral blind spots, and make smarter choices. We’re into the psychology of money, and we love metacognition: thinking about how to think.In some episodes, we interview world-class experts: professors, researchers, scientists, authors. In other episodes, we answer your questions, talking through decision-making frameworks and mental models.Want to learn more? Download our free book, Escape, at http://affordanything.com/escape. Hosted by Paula Pant.
Episodes
Mentioned books

Nov 13, 2020 • 22min
PSA Thursday: Broadcasting Live from FinConX
Paula Pant and Andy Hill broadcast from Dallas, where they’re part of a bare-bones skeleton production crew that’s hosting the 10th annual FinCon, a conference for a community of personal finance podcasters, YouTubers and bloggers. On the evening before the event, they reflect on the importance of community, especially when it comes to learning about money management. Enjoy this behind-the-scenes glimpse. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Nov 9, 2020 • 1h 8min
The Psychology of Money, with Morgan Housel
#284: Morgan Housel is an award-winning financial journalist, and he’s a leading thinker and author in the world of investing. His new book, The Psychology of Money, highlights the influence that our behavior has on our financial success.We discuss developing self-awareness around our biases, saving like a pessimist and investing like an optimist, being critical of who we take investment advice from, diversification, expectation management, tail risks, and much more on the topic of behavioral finance.For more information, visit the show notes at https://affordanything.com/episode284 Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Nov 5, 2020 • 36min
PSA Thursday: Teaching Technology to the Elderly
Many of us have experienced disconnection from our loved ones this year, especially with older family members. It can be difficult to stay in touch when parents and grandparents aren't technologically savvy. They might not know how to text, how to use their cell phone to place a call, or how to initiate a video call. We hope that can change after you listen to this episode. To help us learn how we can stay connected with the senior citizens in our lives, we brought on Bria Sullivan. For the past six years, Bria has had a side hustle teaching seniors how to use technology. Today, she shares her best tips on how we can do the same with the elders we love. For more information, visit the show notes at https://affordanything.com/psathursday Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Nov 2, 2020 • 1h 6min
Ask Paula: Could the Stock Market Be Too Much of a Gamble?
#283: Andrea’s parents have a seemingly salesly financial advisor. He tried to get them to purchase a second life insurance policy, among other potentially pushy moves. Are her parents better off without his advice?Teresa can’t shake the feeling that the stock market is more of a gamble than an investment. Is there any advantage to holding funds for the long-run if the market drops and you lose your gains?June is curious about the best college planning strategies for families who are working toward, or close to, financial independence. How can you help your children while securing your financial future?Big Sister’s little sister rents a mobile home in an area she loves. The owner wants to sell, but her little sister might not obtain financing. Should Big Sister buy the property and sell it to her via seller financing?Managing for Mom in Massachusetts has an investment strategy that he wants to run by us. Does it make sense to shift a 50/50 stocks and bonds portfolio to 100 percent stocks, and shift back to a 50/50 split after the market returns to pre-pandemic numbers?My friend and former financial planner Joe Saul-Sehy joins me to answer these questions. Enjoy!For more information, visit the show notes at https://affordanything.com/283 Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Oct 31, 2020 • 48min
PSA Thursday - The Affordable Care Act, with Tanja Hester
With the uncertainty of the Affordable Care Act (ACA) looming before us, many are asking: How can we plan for healthcare - now and in the future? How much will I need to save to cover healthcare in retirement? What can I do if I can't afford the expensive premiums? As a community of entrepreneurs and early retirees, this is a major concern. To help us understand the healthcare landscape, Tanja Hester, author of Work Optional and the blog Our Next Life, joins us. For more information, visit the show notes at https://affordanything.com/psathursday Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Oct 30, 2020 • 1h 10min
The Smart Way to Start a Side Hustle, with Alan Donegan
#282: Alan Donegan is the cofounder of PopUp Business School.His mission is to change the way entrepreneurship is taught and to make it more accessible. If you’ve daydreamed of starting a side hustle, Alan’s simple advice and actions will give you the knowledge you need to get started now.You’ll know if your idea is viable within a month.For more information, visit the show notes at https://affordanything.com/episode282 Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Oct 15, 2020 • 11min
PSA Thursday - What’s in Store for the Rest of 2020?
After a brief hiatus, PSA Thursday is back! For this episode, we take a short break from covering current events to 1) reflect on why this show exists, and 2) give you a sneak peek of future PSA Thursday episodes. Enjoy! For more information, visit the show notes at https://affordanything.com/psathursday Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Oct 14, 2020 • 1h 15min
The Art of Decision-Making, with Annie Duke
#281: Annie Duke, best-selling author of Thinking In Bets and former world champion poker professional, discusses the decision making strategies and tools outlined in her new book, How to Decide. Learn how to make quicker decisions, overcome hindsight bias, make decisions with incomplete information, and improve your decision making skills.For more information, visit the show notes at https://affordanything.com/episode281 Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Oct 6, 2020 • 1h 21min
Ask Paula - Could This NYC Couple Contribute Only $10,000 Per Year Towards Retirement?
#280: Amy and her husband have $900,000 saved for retirement. They’re 40 years old and plan to retire at 65. Due to a job change + pay cut, they might only have $10,000 per year to save for the next 25 years. Will this be enough, given their yearly expenses of $144,000?Janie wants to get a solar power system for her house, but isn’t sure how to pay for it. Should she borrow funds from her seven-month emergency fund, or use funds from a taxable brokerage account that were earmarked for retirement?CJ and his wife netted $200,000 from the sale of their home. They aren’t sure when they’ll purchase their next home – their timeline could be as short as three years or as long as six years. Where should they keep the $200,000 to use towards a downpayment on their next home?Brandon wants to retire in the next five to ten years. He contributes 20 percent to his Roth 401k. Since he can’t withdraw those contributions early, does it make more sense to contribute up to the match of his 401k and invest the rest in an IRA with the goal of doing a Roth conversion?Anonymous “am I missing out?” wants to know the deal with tax-loss harvesting. When is it worthwhile?My friend and former financial planner Joe Saul-Sehy and I answer these questions on today’s episode. Enjoy!For more information, visit the show notes at https://affordanything.com/episode280 Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Oct 2, 2020 • 1h
How to Avoid Financial and Life Disasters, with Dr. Gleb Tsipursky
#279: You might know several decision-making principles, but do you have a step-by-step strategy that pieces those principles together?Dr. Gleb Tsipursky is an internationally-recognized thought leader on decision-making strategies. He shares two decision-making techniques for any aspect of your life in this episode.For more information, visit the show notes at https://affordanything.com/episode279 Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices