During college, I spent a summer working in a laboratory at the University of Chicago where my biochemistry mentor did his PhD. The lab studied prostate cancer and was the legacy of Charlie Huggins, a surgeon who won the Nobel prize for discovering the testosterone dependence of most prostate cancers.

The guy who took over that lab was his protege Shutsung Liao who did some trailblazing work of his own. He was brilliant and for a young biochemistry geek like me was fascinating to be around. He thought differently than most. His thoughts were original.

And that’s what he demanded of people in his lab. In fact, one of the particularly unusual philosophies he had for his postdocs was “do not read too much”.

He felt that reading others work had a role in learning what was known but also could be detrimental in that it could unduly influence the direction of one’s own thoughts. In other words, he didn’t want his postdocs to simply follow and expand on the ideas that others were proposing. He wanted them to have their own ideas.

That idea has always stuck with me and I was reminded of it the other day when a fellow podcaster asked me which podcasts I listen to. He, of course, assumed that I listened to a bunch of other personal finance shows.

I listed my top shows for him which included Purple Daily (Minnesota Vikings Football) and The Drive with Peter Attia which is about health and longevity.

The truth is, I don’t listen to any other investing shows. I used to, but I realized it was a little bit of an echo chamber in the alternative investing podcast ecosystem. And just like Dr. Liao warned about in that cancer lab, I started just saying and believing what other podcasters were saying.

I’m fortunate enough to be interviewing economists and other smart people every week so I’d rather formulate my own ideas based on what I learn from them. One thing is clear, they don’t agree with each other!

For those of you who listen to me, I highly encourage you to listen to others—especially those who do not agree with me. It’s important to hear the ideas of multiple sources when it comes to something that you want to know about.

Economics is not a hard science. It is a social science based on theory. Similarly, personal finance is…personal. So it’s best to learn many different perspectives and philosophies out there and see what resonates with you.

And sometimes, it’s good to get together with others and compare notes. And that is exactly what I’m going to do on this week’s episode of Wealth Formula Podcast. I am going to sit down with another well-known financial podcaster and see what he’s been hearing on his end.

Exposure to different thoughts is critically important when you make important decisions in your life, like what to do with your money. So make sure to listen in to this week’s interview with MC Laubscher aka The Cashflow Ninja and see what he has to say.

Show Notes:

00:09:34:09 Where are we in the economy?

00:19:56:18 What to look for as indicators of how the economy is doing?

00:24:51:06 Permanent life insurance in volatile times

00:32:16:16 Don’t let losing make you too scared to invest

00:37:05:09 Changes in tax code 

00:47:02:06 Diligence in the cashflow world