How to Money

Over 1,000 years ago, somehow, the Vikings were able to sail from Norway to Greenland. Without relying on any special instruments or any rudimentary technology, they were even able to reach as far as North America! Evidently they relied on the polarization of the sky, whales or birds they came into contact with, and the color of the ocean- quite remarkable. It seems unlikely that any sailors would be able to pull that off today with modern day technology. But that’s often what it feels like as you’re trying to get your financial ship pointed in the right direction. The vastness of options that lie before you feel overwhelming and the obstacles that we face are daunting, but we’re here today to help you to: a) geolocate your financial situation, and b) determine what your next steps should be. It’s important to know where you are, and where you are going. Following our Money Gears will not only allow you to reach your financial goals sooner, but it’ll be the most emotionally satisfying way to achieve that success as well. Listen as we discuss the Money Gears and how you should properly order your financial decisions.   Want more How To Money in your life? Here are some additional ways to get ahead with your personal finances: Knowing your ‘money gear’ is a crucial part of your personal finance journey. Start here.  Sign up for the weekly HTM newsletter. It’s fun, free, & practical. Join a thriving community of fellow money in the HTM Facebook group. Massively reduce your cell phone bill each month by switching to a discount provider like Mint Mobile.   During this episode we enjoyed a Vinology: Semillon by Monday Night Brewing! And please help us to spread the word by letting friends and family know about How to Money! Hit the share button, subscribe if you’re not already a regular listener, and give us a quick review in Apple Podcasts or wherever you get your podcasts. Help us to change the conversation around personal finance and get more people doing smart things with their money!   Best friends out!See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Are you ‘credit card FI’ or are you ‘sabbatical FI?’ But maybe we’re getting ahead of ourselves… First, does anyone else remember the home run obsession back in 1998? In an attempt to beat the single-season record, home runs became the only metric that anyone watching baseball seemed to care about. But what’s interesting is that most MLB games aren’t won by someone sending a 450 foot bomb to center field. It’s an all-or-nothing approach that most often leads to a strikeout and taking a seat back in the dugout. And when it comes to seeking financial freedom, one of the problems with that go big or go home approach is that it can make financial independence seem unattainable, that FI is just out of reach of the typical American and you might as well give up. And others might see it as a false dichotomy- you’re either working 80 hour weeks in order to achieve FI, or you’re sipping pina coladas on the beaches of Tahiti. But we’re here to explain how financial independence exists on a spectrum, the different levels of FI, and how you can practically begin to put your financial freedom to use.   Want more How To Money in your life? Here are some additional ways to get ahead with your personal finances: Knowing your ‘money gear’ is a crucial part of your personal finance journey. Start here.  Sign up for the weekly HTM newsletter. It’s fun, free, & practical. Join a thriving community of fellow money in the HTM Facebook group. Massively reduce your cell phone bill each month by switching to a discount provider like Mint Mobile.   During this episode we enjoyed a Hayburner IPA by Big Ditch Brewing- thanks to Liz and Tyler for sending this one our way! And please help us to spread the word by letting friends and family know about How to Money! Hit the share button, subscribe if you’re not already a regular listener, and give us a quick review in Apple Podcasts or wherever you get your podcasts. Help us to change the conversation around personal finance and get more people doing smart things with their money!   Best friends out!See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Katy Wolk-Stanley, a writer and advocate for frugal living at TheNonConsumerAdvocate.com, shares her wisdom on living sustainably and economically. She reveals powerful tips for embracing a non-consumer lifestyle, such as prioritizing lower-tech solutions and repairing household items. Katy discusses the rewarding practice of thrifting and donating for tax benefits, highlighting the joy of mindful spending. The conversation also emphasizes the importance of resourcefulness in a consumer-driven world, encouraging a mindset shift towards valuing experiences over possessions.

Do you know something that we’re all currently doing? Breathing. It’s something we rarely actively think about, but it turns out that there are ways to improve our technique- by breathing through our nose instead of our mouths, or by taking deeper slower breaths. Well we’re talking about another basic subject today: buying groceries. This elementary practice seems simple on the surface, but just like breathing there are tactics that you can implement in order to save more money at the supermarket. The cost of food has always been a big deal as it’s typically our third largest expense. But it’s a bigger deal than ever with grocery prices up nearly 12% in December compared to a year ago. Inflation is making it more expensive to eat! Listen for how much you should be spending every month, our take on meal delivery services, and many other money saving tips that you can implement in order to butcher your grocery bill today!   Want more How To Money in your life? Here are some additional ways to get ahead with your personal finances: Knowing your ‘money gear’ is a crucial part of your personal finance journey. Start here.  Sign up for the weekly HTM newsletter. It’s fun, free, & practical. Join a thriving community of fellow money in the HTM Facebook group. Find the best credit card for you with our new credit card tool! Massively reduce your cell phone bill each month by switching to a discount provider like Mint Mobile. Don’t be cheap and forego getting a life insurance policy. Compare rates with Policygenius.   During this episode we enjoyed a Darken by Upland Brewing! And please help us to spread the word by letting friends and family know about How to Money! Hit the share button, subscribe if you’re not already a regular listener, and give us a quick review in Apple Podcasts or wherever you get your podcasts. Help us to change the conversation around personal finance and get more people doing smart things with their money!   Best friends out!See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Close your eyes and think back to high school. No matter if those were the best years of your life or if you were more of a wallflower, you were likely told that you needed to get good grades- but why? Was it because you knew that you needed a particular GPA in order to get into a specific school? Maybe, but a lot of high schoolers just know that it’s generally a good idea to get high marks because it’s going to give you more options down the road (not to mention personal development, growth, yada yada). And in the same way that not all students know exactly what college they’re going to attend, not everyone has figured out what their big financial goals are going to be this year. But it’s about moving in the right direction with your finances, getting that momentum started even if the end goal is subject to change. And developing the right financial habits will help you start moving in the right direction, even if you don’t know what your ultimate destination will be. That’s what we’re talking about today- the essential habits for financial success!   Want more How To Money in your life? Here are some additional ways to get ahead with your personal finances: Knowing your ‘money gear’ is a crucial part of your personal finance journey. Start here.  Sign up for the weekly HTM newsletter. It’s fun, free, & practical. Join a thriving community of fellow money in the HTM Facebook group. Massively reduce your cell phone bill each month by switching to a discount provider like Mint Mobile. Don’t be cheap and forego getting a life insurance policy. Compare rates with Policygenius.   During this episode we enjoyed a Liquid Hop Magma by Mutation Brewing- a big thanks to Jack and our friends there at the brewery! And please help us to spread the word by letting friends and family know about How to Money! Hit the share button, subscribe if you’re not already a regular listener, and give us a quick review in Apple Podcasts or wherever you get your podcasts. Help us to change the conversation around personal finance and get more people doing smart things with their money!   Best friends out!See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

There’s more to successfully handling your money than just figuring out the financial nuts and bolts. Money has emotional and psychological components to it as well, which is at the core of what our guest today focuses on. We’re happy to be joined by Lindsay Bryan-Podvin, who happens to be the first financial therapist in the state of Michigan. She is a social worker-turned-financial therapist. She’s also the author of the book, The Financial Anxiety Solution, which is a workbook to help folks stop stressing about money by applying therapy techniques to their relationship with money. We’re excited to talk about how having more knowledge may not be the solution to your financial woes, how procrastination and perfectionism are tied at the hip, the value of understanding your financial archetype, how to have productive money conversations with a partner, & much more today!   Want more How To Money in your life? Here are some additional ways to get ahead with your personal finances: Knowing your ‘money gear’ is a crucial part of your personal finance journey. Start here.  Sign up for the weekly HTM newsletter. It’s fun, free, & practical. Join a thriving community of fellow money in the HTM Facebook group. Find the best credit card for you with our new credit card tool! Massively reduce your cell phone bill each month by switching to a discount provider like Mint Mobile. Don’t be cheap and forego getting a life insurance policy. Compare rates with Policygenius.   During this episode we enjoyed a Mexican Lager by High Cotton Brewing- thanks Ben & Rachael for donating this one to the podcast! And please help us to spread the word by letting friends and family know about How to Money! Hit the share button, subscribe if you’re not already a regular listener, and give us a quick review in Apple Podcasts or wherever you get your podcasts. Help us to change the conversation around personal finance and get more people doing smart things with their money.   Best friends out!See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Join us as we celebrate our 1000th episode with an AMA!!! We are incredibly thankful and fortunate that we’re able to create a podcast for listeners who are looking to better their lives by improving how they handle their money. Of course at the core of the show are ways to earn, save, spend, and invest more effectively… all with a little bit of Joel and Matt sprinkled in. And that will continue to be the mission of How To Money. But for this episode, we wanted to take things in a different direction, and rather than answer your personal finance questions we wanted listeners to have the chance to be able to ask questions about everything except for money. This is our episode of How To EverythingElse!   What about taking the show on the road on a nation-wide tour? If you opened a brewery, what would be the vibe/focus Favorite board games? Favorite distance to run? Favorite race in Georgia? What are some of your bucket list items? If you had zero responsibilities, what would your perfect day look like? What’s your dream vacation? Weirdest job you’ve ever had? How do you make friends as an adult? Favorite non-financial podcasts? plus lots of additional questions…   Want more How To Money in your life? Here are some additional ways to get ahead with your personal finances: Knowing your ‘money gear’ is a crucial part of your personal finance journey. Start here.  Sign up for the weekly HTM newsletter. It’s fun, free, & practical. Join a thriving community of fellow money in the HTM Facebook group. Massively reduce your cell phone bill each month by switching to a discount provider like Mint Mobile.   During this episode we enjoyed a couple beers- one of which was Dark Hedges by Hop Butcher for the World! And please help us to spread the word by letting friends and family know about How to Money! Hit the share button, subscribe if you’re not already a regular listener, and give us a quick review in Apple Podcasts or wherever you get your podcasts. Help us to change the conversation around personal finance and get more people doing smart things with their money!   Best friends out!See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Join Jillian Johnsrud, author of 'Retire Often' and a leading expert in intentional career breaks, for a thought-provoking discussion! They explore the concept of mini-retirements and how to overcome the fear of taking a break. Jillian shares insights on navigating boredom and finding meaning during time off, along with strategies for discussing your need for breaks with others. Emphasizing work-life balance, this conversation highlights the joy of pursuing passions, the importance of self-reflection, and the benefits of embracing life's fleeting moments.

Today’s guest, Doug Lynam, has lived an extraordinary life! From overcoming bankruptcy to achieving financial security, taking vows of poverty as a Benedictine monk to managing over $250 million in assets as a wealth advisor, and graduating top of his class as a Marine to spending 20 years in monastic life, Doug’s journey is as diverse as it is inspiring. We have plenty of questions about how his unique experiences shape his approach to money and life, and what we can all learn to improve our own financial outcomes. We’ll also dive into his new book, Taming Your Money Monster: Nine Paths to Money Mastery with the Enneagram, which comes out next month. Doug takes spiritual wisdom, blends it with some psychological insight, all in an effort to help folks to successfully handle their money!   Want more How To Money in your life? Here are some additional ways to get ahead with your personal finances: Knowing your ‘money gear’ is a crucial part of your personal finance journey. Start here.  Sign up for the weekly HTM newsletter. It’s fun, free, & practical. Join a thriving community of fellow money in the HTM Facebook group. Find the best credit card for you with our new credit card tool! Massively reduce your cell phone bill each month by switching to a discount provider like Mint Mobile.   During this episode we enjoyed an Elaborate Metaphor by Burlington Beer Co! And please help us to spread the word by letting friends and family know about How to Money! Hit the share button, subscribe if you’re not already a regular listener, and give us a quick review in Apple Podcasts or wherever you get your podcasts. Help us to change the conversation around personal finance and get more people doing smart things with their money!   Best friends out!See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Let’s kick off the week with some fresh listener questions we have lined up for you! And don't just stand on the sidelines- if you have a question you’d like us to answer, toss your voice memo our way. It only takes about 90 seconds to record and you can find a step by step guide over at HowToMoney.com/ask . Regardless of how random or bizarre you might think it is, we want to hear it!   1 - Is Matt planning to take his old clunker on his 2 week road trip? 2 - After getting married, what are the practical steps in combining our finances? 3 - I’m considering dropping my escrow… what are the pros and cons? 4 - Paying for daycare with a credit card now comes with an additional fee… is the juice worth the squeeze? 5 - What is the new, inflation adjusted, dollar amount for Money Gear #1?!   Want more How To Money in your life? Here are some additional ways to get ahead with your personal finances: Knowing your ‘money gear’ is a crucial part of your personal finance journey. Start here.  Sign up for the weekly HTM newsletter. It’s fun, free, & practical. Join a thriving community of fellow money in the HTM Facebook group. Find the best credit card for you with our new credit card tool! Massively reduce your cell phone bill each month by switching to a discount provider like Mint Mobile.   During this episode we enjoyed a whiteferrari by The Veil! And please help us to spread the word by letting friends and family know about How to Money! Hit the share button, subscribe if you’re not already a regular listener, and give us a quick review in Apple Podcasts or wherever you get your podcasts. Help us to change the conversation around personal finance and get more people doing smart things with their money!   Best friends out!See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.