Life in the suburbs can look like a cliché to some. But Greg has managed to avoid the “McMansion” lifestyle and learned from an early age that investing in experiences is a better path than spending on the flashier things in life. His podcast, Suburban Folk, touches on all things suburbia, from parenting, to home improvements, to personal finance. In this episode, we dig into his story and identify a number of ways to help save you money and optimize your life.

Podcast

Lifestyle and background

Dave Ramsey

Financial Independence

Paying off your home early

General advice

Travel goals

Follow Greg

People tend to want to fit in. To be accepted. To be normal. I've spent much of my life in pursuit of this. But I've finally realized the downside of trying to be like everyone else. Following the path others have laid out can have negative consequences, both personally and financially.

From accumulating debt, to adopting unhealthy lifestyle habits, it's easy to fall into the same patterns as everyone else. It feels normal, so it seems acceptable. But you have the ability to determine what's valuable in your life and to make your own decisions.

I outline several areas where I've tried to adjust my habits in order to improve my financial situation as well as my personal life.

See full show notes

What is normal?

Why do people want to be normal?

Downside

Debt

Buying and leasing new cars

Updating your house

Eating low quality food

Watching too much television

Getting married and having kids

Being on your phone constantly

Takeaways

Facing a mountain of debt may seem overwhelming, but with the right plan of attack, that debt can be cleared more quickly than you think. Derek Sall from Life and My Finances was able to become debt-free (multiple times) through tremendous focus and hard work. His journey is one of highs and lows, but he has stayed determined over the years and is now well on his way to being financially independent.

Derek's story:

Relationship challenges:

Getting back out of debt:

On the path to FI:

Benefits of hosting a blog:

Advice for late starters:

Where to follow Derek:

Website: https://lifeandmyfinances.com/

Twitter: https://twitter.com/lamfinances

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/LifeAndMyFinances/

Achieving a lofty financial goal requires a good understanding of why you’re working towards it. For Ted and Claire, retiring early was an important achievement that allowed them to spend more time together, enjoy travel experiences and opened the door to them helping others. As early retirees who have embraced the FIRE movement, their passion is guiding people towards reaching retirement goals through financial independence. Their podcast, Later 2 FIRE, has a focus on guiding those who are starting their journey to FI later in life. They have an amazing story to tell that is full of advice and inspiration. In this episode, we discuss the core principles of pursuing FIRE.

Expanded show notes

Back story

Advice for couples navigating their finances

Philosophy on FIRE and the benefits of retiring

Core Principles of FIRE

Where to follow Ted and Claire

Twitter: @retirehoppy

Website: https://firewalkers.co/

Podcast: https://firewalkers.co/podcasts/

Episode 15: For anyone who has struggled with money, I pulled together a list of core rules that will help get your finances on track. While I don't claim to be a financial expert, I am part of a broader community of people who are all focused on living a financially responsible lifestyle. So these bits of wisdom are pulled from that pool of people.

A recent Twitter thread started with a simple question: What are your top 3 money rules? I highlight ten of these responses and add my thoughts.

Blog post: 51 eye-opening money rules to live by

The four key points I make in that piece are commitments I make to myself and to my audience.

Blog post: The FI After 40 Manifesto

There are obvious financial benefits gained through pursuing financial independence. But don't overlook the intangible benefits to your life, both personally and professionally. I speak to Maggie and Mike from the Friends on FIRE Podcast to hear their perspectives on how their work in corporate America has both allowed them to achieve financial independence, and also how their path to FI has improved their confidence and performance in their careers.

Mike and Maggie’s background stories

Mike

Maggie

Frugality – is it a learned behavior?

Joining forces to start the Friends on FIRE Podcast

Working in corporate America

Advice for others

Podcast website: https://friendsonfire.org/

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/friends.onfire/

Blake and Allanah moved across the globe to pursue their next adventure in life. But when a family emergency forced the family of four to travel from Canada back to Australia, their financial problems became crystal clear. They were in debt, with no savings and needed to borrow money to travel. That's when they decided to educate themselves and get their finances on track. Now, they have a solid net worth, a savings rate approaching 50% and a full emergency fund saved. They have since launched the blog FIRE with a Family and Blake joined me for this week's episode to discuss their story.

This episode is brought to you by WalletHacks.com.

Family background

Childhood

Turning point

Their relationship

Started to learn about net worth

Savings rate focus

Budget changes

Frugal vs cheap

Advice to people starting the path late

Follow Blake and Allanah

FIRE with a Family blog: https://www.firewithafamily.com/

Instagram: @firewithafamily

If you’ve ever considered real estate as a way to increase your wealth but never knew where to start, this episode will provide actionable strategies that you can implement to super charge your path to financial independence. We feature an interview with Andrew Kerr from the blog FI by REI and host of The House Hacking Podcast. Andrew outlines six options you should consider in order to leverage the “house hacking” approach to real estate investing. As an expert on real estate and someone who is pursuing financial freedom along with his wife, Andrew provides a range of options that will make this strategy work for you, no matter your age.

Show intro: Email from fellow blogger Steven from https://www.frugalwander.com/

Andrew's background: 

Started career in mortgage banking industry and purchased his first home at 20

Was making good money but wasn’t happy in his career, shifted over to non-profit sector but made less money

Identified REI (real estate investing) as a wealth building tool and got to “Lean FIRE” at a young age

Experienced a wide range of REI options and landed on “buy and hold” as the preferred method, rather than flipping houses

Found that he was able to keep his job in non-profit while making cash flow from real estate

Has set aggressive goals for his own life:

Basics of house hacking:

Six house hacking styles:

Resources to learn more about REI:

Website: https://fibyrei.com/

Podcast: https://fibyrei.com/the-house-hacking-podcast/

Instagram: @fibyrei and @thehousehackingpodcast

This episode features a great conversation with Tom, a teacher who hosts the blog What the FI. Tom shares his story and explains how he has more than doubled his net worth in the last few years, through better budgeting, increased savings rate, and investing in real estate. Despite not starting his path to FI until after turning 40, Tom has his family on a trajectory to hit several lofty personal and financial goals in the next ten years. 

Lives in the Chicago area, got into the teaching profession based on his family

Followed the American Dream – go to college, get a job, get married, have kids

Was doing okay financially, but had no clear goals and started to accumulate debt

Found themselves living paycheck to paycheck, not tracking their spending

By the time he got to his 40s realized retirement wasn’t far off and felt trapped in his job

Wife recognized he was unhappy but he wasn’t ready to listen to advice

Eventually started reading more and listening to podcasts and began to turn the corner

Heard interview with Jemal King, https://www.instagram.com/9to5millionaire/, and that was an inflection point to pursue passive income

Books/audio books have been a significant source of education (50+ books)

These have helped with mindset shifts as well as learning about investing and real estate

Much more educated now with how to invest in index funds

Discusses the importance of getting on the same page with your partner

Started to find savings in their monthly budget, increased savings rate from 5% to 50% in a few years

Increased net worth from $150k to $315k

Has outlined long term goals: to become financially independent, getting his time back, own 12 rentals, give back to the community, have $1 million in retirement savings

Has become comfortable with setting lofty goals and not settling

Real Estate Investing:

Need to forgive yourself for past mistakes, starting at 40 or older is not too late

You can make up a lot of ground by changing your habits

Blog: https://whatthefi.com/

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/whatthefiguy/

Today we have Jessica from The Fioneers. She’s a co-founder of https://thefioneers.com/ along with her husband Corey. Their financial independence blog was a 2019 Plutus Award Winner for Best New Personal Finance Blog. We discuss a wide range of topics, including an overview of the Slow FI concept she developed with her husband. We also dive into how she overcame several limiting beliefs in order to become an entrepreneur and launch a new business. Finally, Jessica shares why Slow FI is an ideal option for people pursuing financial freedom later in life.

Seven Limiting Beliefs blog post: https://thefioneers.com/limiting-beliefs-entrepreneur/

How imposter syndrome holds people back

Advice for people starting to pursue FI later in life: slow FI makes a lot of sense for people in their 40s

Where to follow The Fioneers: