A 67-year-old American expat shares thier journey from retiring in Nicaragua to settling in Costa Rica, revealing the realities of expat life, cost of living, and the importance of flexibility abroad.

Aly is a retired Californian who relocated to Nicaragua in 2016 before moving to Costa Rica in 2021 due to political unrest. A seasoned traveler with roots in Europe and Central America, Ally now lives in the mountains near San José, embracing a slower pace of life and community-driven living.

• Cost of living in Costa Rica vs. Nicaragua
• Expat community dynamics
• Health care access and medical emergencies abroad
• U.S. Social Security and Medicare considerations for expats
• Property ownership risks in Central America
• Cultural adaptation, language learning, and safety
• Pros and cons of long-term retirement outside the U.S.

• "If I wanted to be stressed, I would've stayed in the States."
• "You can live on $1,200 a month—but you might not want to."
• "You have to be flexible. It's not the United States. And that's kind of the point."

🎙 The Pod is hosted by Jesse Wright
💬 For guest suggestions, questions, or media inquiries, reach out at https://elpodcast.media/
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Bankrate journalist Jeff Ostrowski breaks down the real estate commission lawsuit, what changes starting July 2025, and what it all means for homebuyers, agents, and the future of U.S. housing.

Jeff Ostrowski is a senior journalist at Bankrate with over 20 years of experience covering real estate, business, and the economy. He serves on the board of the National Association of Real Estate Editors and is widely recognized for his clear-eyed reporting on housing trends, policy, and industry dynamics.

• Overview of the real estate commission lawsuit and settlement
• Key changes to buyer agent commissions starting July 2025
• Impact on home prices, buyer behavior, and agent income
• Potential winners and losers: consumers, agents, brokerages, attorneys
• Industry overreaction, media narratives, and long-term uncertainty
• The value (and decline) of buyer agents in the Zillow era
• VA loan challenges, possible financing of commissions
• Institutional buyers and the myth of "cheaper home prices"
• Whether real estate needs structural reform
• The role of hobbyist agents and the real barriers to entry

• “If you start going to an attorney to save money, that tells you just how strange this system is.”
• “I don’t think anyone really knows how this will play out—dramatic predictions are probably the most likely to be wrong.”
• “This 100-year-old commission structure wasn’t designed for the digital world—it’s been patched, not rebuilt.”
   

🎙 The Pod is hosted by Jesse Wright
💬 For guest suggestions, questions, or media inquiries, reach out at https://elpodcast.media/
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Terry and Clyde share how they reinvented their lives—losing half their body weight, retiring early to Panama, house-sitting across the globe, and ultimately settling in Portugal—on a modest budget and a spirit of saying “yes.”

Terry and Clyde are a retired American couple who transformed their lives through dramatic weight loss, early retirement, and international house-sitting. Terry is the author of Rescued and Transformed, a memoir about leaving behind a conventional American life to embrace global travel and minimalist living. Together, they’ve lived in Panama, house-sat across Asia, Africa, and Europe, and now reside in Portugal.

• How they left unhappy marriages and started over in their 50s
• Dramatic weight loss journeys and Terry’s gastric bypass
• Living in Panama on $2,000/month and discovering international house-sitting
• Navigating foreign healthcare, language, and residency systems
• Comparing Portugal vs. Panama for expats
• Lessons from 35+ house sits around the world (Kenya, Egypt, Paris, Vienna)
• The psychological shift of downsizing and debt-free living
• Expat taxes, healthcare, and social integration
• Why retiring abroad isn’t just for the rich
• Their philosophy of “say yes” and building a new life at any age

• “You don’t have to be rich to travel—you just have to be brave enough to say yes.”
• “We saved each other by walking away from everything and starting over with nothing but love and curiosity.”

🎙 The Pod is hosted by Jesse Wright
💬 For guest suggestions, questions, or media inquiries, reach out at https://elpodcast.media/
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Dr. William Blau, emeritus professor and author of Our Genetic Future, explores how modern medicine and environmental changes may be weakening natural selection, with profound consequences for human genetics and future health.

Guest Bio:
Dr. William Blau is an emeritus professor in the Department of Anesthesiology at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. With a background in evolutionary biology and a medical career focused on pain management, Dr. Blau now researches the intersection of genetics, evolution, and public health. He is the author of Our Genetic Future: The Unintended Consequences of Overcoming Natural Selection.

Topics Discussed:

• How modern medicine and technology interrupt natural selection
• Genetic accumulation of harmful mutations in the human population
• Rising rates of disorders like autism, obesity, chronic pain, and declining fertility
• The concept of fitness vs. health in evolutionary biology
• Dysgenic trends and declining intelligence
• Ethical dilemmas around genetic screening and reproductive technologies
• Risks of societal overdependence on medical and technological systems
• Advice for healthy aging and the importance of purpose in later life

Top 3 Quotes:

• “What is good for a single individual’s health may not necessarily be good for society or humankind in the long term.”
• “We have become so out of touch with our own nature as human beings because we currently live in environments so dramatically different than those in which we evolved.”
• “The only real way to correct the situation is to allow natural selection to come back—and no one is seriously suggesting that, for obvious ethical reasons.”

🎙 The Pod is hosted by Jesse Wright
💬 For guest suggestions, questions, or media inquiries, reach out at https://elpodcast.media/
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Darrell Bricker, co-author of Empty Planet, explains why global population decline—not overpopulation—is the defining issue of the 21st century and what it means for cities, economies, and politics.

Guest Bio:
Dr. Darrell Bricker is the Global CEO of Ipsos Public Affairs, a leading public opinion research firm, and co-author of Empty Planet: The Shock of Global Population Decline. A seasoned demographer and political analyst, Bricker has traveled the world studying population trends and their cultural, economic, and political consequences.

Topics Discussed:

• The global fertility decline and future population collapse
• Why overpopulation fears are outdated and misleading
• Cultural vs. economic drivers of fertility decisions
• Challenges facing aging societies (Japan, China, Russia)
• Urban planning misaligned with demographic reality
• The economic risks of fewer consumers and tax contributors
• The failure of pro-natalist policies
• Geopolitical implications of shrinking, aging populations
• How cities, businesses, and investors should adapt

Top 3 Quotes:

• “Robots don’t buy cars.”
• “The real issue we’re dealing with here is culture—not just money.”
• “Take a look at your own family—how many kids did your grandparents have? How many do your kids plan to have? That’s the story.”

🎙 The Pod is hosted by Jesse Wright
💬 For guest suggestions, questions, or media inquiries, reach out at https://elpodcast.media/
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Real estate investor Scott Shindelar explains how Millennials can achieve financial freedom through leveraged rental property investing, tax strategy, and smart long-term planning.

Guest Bio:
Scott Shindelar is a former geologist turned full-time real estate investor and entrepreneur. By age 30, he had amassed over 100 residential units, co-founded a real estate coworking space and property management company, and authored The Millennial Map to Millions in Real Estate, a practical guide to building wealth through rental property investing.

Topics Discussed:

• How Scott started with a fourplex at 23 and scaled to 100+ units
• The power of leverage and the “buy, borrow, die” wealth strategy
• Comparing single-family homes vs. multifamily units
• Real estate tax advantages and asset protection via LLCs
• Managing properties vs. hiring property managers
• Airbnb, inflation, and market trends
• Financial independence, family life, and unconventional living
• Practical advice for people starting with $10K or less

Top 3 quote

• “Real estate isn’t just about profit—it’s about control, cash flow, and living life on your terms.”

🎙 The Pod is hosted by Jesse Wright
💬 For guest suggestions, questions, or media inquiries, reach out at https://elpodcast.media/
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Sports scientist and high-performance coach Dr. Fergus Connolly shares insights on what elite athletes, special forces, and top organizations have in common—and why simplicity, trust, and human factors matter most.

Guest Bio:
Dr. Fergus Connolly is one of the world’s leading experts in high performance, with a career spanning elite sports, military units, and corporate consulting. He is the author of Game Changer: The Art of Sports Science and 59 Lessons: Working with the World's Greatest Coaches, Athletes, and Special Forces. Fergus is the only coach to have worked full-time in every major professional sports league, including the NFL, NBA, NCAA, and professional rugby, and he now advises top-tier organizations on leadership, resilience, and team dynamics.

Topics Discussed:

• How performance coaching principles apply across sports, business, and military
• The limits of analytics and the need to understand context
• Why modern athletes may be overtrained and under-recovered
• The dangers of overstaffing and inconsistent messaging in professional sports
• What makes effective teams: alignment, honesty, and simplicity
• Why NIL and brand-building are transforming college sports
• Managing off-the-field stressors for peak on-the-field performance
• How sleep, environment, and mental clarity drive success
• The problem with “best” hires vs. “right” hires

Top 3 Quotes:

• “Techniques are many, but the principles are few—and they transfer among all high performers.”
• “80% of your job is knowing what not to do.”
• “Don’t hire the best person—hire the right person for your team and your culture.”

🎙 The Pod is hosted by Jesse Wright
💬 For guest suggestions, questions, or media inquiries, reach out at https://elpodcast.media/
📬 Never miss an episode – subscribe and follow wherever you get your podcasts.
⭐️ If you enjoyed this episode, please rate and review the show. It helps others find us.
 

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AI scientist Erik J. Larson explains why today's large language models, including ChatGPT, may impress but still fall far short of true artificial intelligence—and how that misunderstanding threatens culture, knowledge, and innovation.

Guest Bio: Dr. Erik J. Larson is an AI scientist, tech entrepreneur, and author of The Myth of Artificial Intelligence, known for his critical insights into generative models and their cultural impact, shared through his Substack Colligo.

Topics Discussed:

• Why ChatGPT doesn’t invalidate The Myth of AI
• The illusion of intelligence in generative models
• Limits of AI progress due to compute, data, and physics
• Dangers of AI bias and epistemological collapse
• Sam Altman’s techno-utopian vision vs. reality
• Deepfakes, misinformation, and the fragility of truth
• Decline of human-centered innovation and education
• Why the path to AGI may be a dead end

Top 3 Quotes:

• “It’s actually easier to screw the world up with this tech than it is to stop it.”
• “We're walking into a trap as we think we're innovating.”
• “Calling it ‘intelligence’ was one of the first really bad ideas.”

🎙 The Pod is hosted by Jesse Wright
💬 For guest suggestions, questions, or media inquiries, reach out at https://elpodcast.media/
📬 Never miss an episode – subscribe and follow wherever you get your podcasts.
⭐️ If you enjoyed this episode, please rate and review the show. It helps others find us.
 

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Why modern philanthropy reinforces inequality—and how to fix it. Author and former fundraising consultant Dr. Amy Schiller joins the show to discuss her new book The Price of Humanity, examining how elite-driven giving has lost its moral purpose and how we might restore a more democratic, dignifying vision of philanthropy.

👤 Guest
Dr. Amy Schiller – Author, political theorist, and former philanthropic strategist; author of The Price of Humanity: How Philanthropy Went Wrong and How to Fix It (2023).

🧠 Topics Discussed

• The commodification of giving and rise of “donor ego”
• Tax loopholes, donor-advised funds, and LLC "charities"
• Effective altruism, longtermism, and the Sam Bankman-Fried saga
• Philanthropy as power vs. philanthropy as public good
• Reform ideas: giving wage, payout rules, and rebuilding legitimacy
• Why LeBron James—not Bill Gates—is the ideal modern philanthropist

💬 Top 3 Quotes

“What makes something a gift is giving it without the expectation of something in return.”
“Existing humans are depreciating assets—at least to effective altruists.”
“Philanthropy literally means love of humanity. Let’s do it in a way that actually validates the fullest definition of humanity.”

🎙 The Pod is hosted by Jesse Wright
💬 For guest suggestions, questions, or media inquiries, reach out at https://elpodcast.media/
📬 Never miss an episode – subscribe and follow wherever you get your podcasts.
⭐️ If you enjoyed this episode, please rate and review the show. It helps others find us.
 

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Economist and retirement expert Dr. Wade Pfau explains how to avoid the most common retirement mistakes and make smarter Social Security, Medicare, tax, and income decisions that can add six figures to your financial future.

Guest Bio: Dr. Wade D. Pfau is a Ph.D. economist from Princeton, founder of RetirementResearcher.com, and Professor of Practice at the American College of Financial Services. A leading authority on retirement income planning, he is the author of Retirement Planning Guidebook: Navigating Important Decisions for Retirement Success, widely considered one of the most comprehensive resources on the subject.

Topics Discussed:

• The Four L's of Retirement: Longevity, Lifestyle, Liquidity, Legacy
• Social Security: optimal claiming strategies and common misconceptions
• The 80/20 rule in retirement planning
• Medicare costs, IRMAA surcharges, and long-term care planning
• Roth conversions and avoiding the "tax torpedo"
• Relocation, housing, and the role of reverse mortgages
• Choosing between investment-based and safety-first retirement income styles
• Annuities: when they make sense and why they’re misunderstood
• Windfall Elimination Provision and public sector pensions
• The psychological and lifestyle side of retirement

Top 3 Quotes:

• “For most Americans, Social Security is their biggest retirement asset—it can be worth over a million dollars across a lifetime.”
• “You don’t retire from something—you retire to something. Purpose and passion matter just as much as financial planning.”
• “Delaying Social Security from 62 to 70 gives you a 76% increase in inflation-adjusted income for life—that’s a Bernie Madoff return, but real.”

🎙 The Pod is hosted by Jesse Wright
💬 For guest suggestions, questions, or media inquiries, reach out at https://elpodcast.media/
📬 Never miss an episode – subscribe and follow wherever you get your podcasts.
⭐️ If you enjoyed this episode, please rate and review the show. It helps others find us.
 

Thanks for listening!