Spend $10 on fast-food at lunch, or carry in a bag lunch to eat in at the office? Order some delivery for dinner because you're too busy, or meal prep at the beginning of the week? Small choices we choose each day turn into habits that make up the backbone of our money decisions. It's easy to say, "I'm going to spend less money this week," but it's a lot harder to actually ACT on those choices throughout the week. Turning our bad habits into good habits is key to great financial health. Today we're bringing down the guy who wrote the book on the topic...the author of Atomic Habits, James Clear.

Plus, in today's headlines, the stock market has been a little shaky lately, if you haven't noticed. Should investors be worried? We'll have a few words for people experiencing "market panic." And in our second headline, what are the best places for new retirees to live? You'll be a bit surprised at some of the places that made this year's list.

Later we'll throw the Haven Life Line to David, who is dollar-cost averaging into a Schwab S&P 500 index fund. He is already maxing out the "usual" accounts, so is a taxable fund the best place to stash the rest of his cash? And in our letter from the mailbag segment, we'll answer a question from Natalie. Natalie and her boyfriend are both debt free and are also maxing out the accounts: HSA's, Roth IRA's, and their company 401k's up to their match. They may want to buy a house in 5 years, but there's nothing else on the horizon. What should they be doing with their money they're not spending or putting away for retirement?

And don't worry... we'll still take some time for Doug's trivia.

Thanks to RXBAR for supporting Stacking Benjamins. Get 25% off your first order at RXbar.com/sb, Promo Code: SB.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.