We answer top personal finance questions submitted by college students. We share our advice on everything from explaining how taxes work to how to start investing to how to deal with credit cards. And we are again joined by our college summer intern Mia.

We share our top 10 tips and advice on how to save money in college. Students are returning to school in the upcoming weeks, so it’s the perfect time to think ahead on how to save money and not break the bank while you’re in college. We share advice on how to save money on everything from housing to books to food. And best of all, on this episode we are joined by Mia, our summer college intern - Go Auburn Tigers!

Maggie shares that she’s considering buying a new car, and Mike shares all of the reasons why she should not buy a new car. This is part debate, part intervention, and part friendly podcast discussion amongst two friends. Maggie unpacks all of the reasons why she wants this specific new car, and Mike debates all of her reasons and gives her new rationale to consider. Mike had a slight advantage in that he had Maggie’s reasons for buying a new car in advance, and then he surprised Maggie on the spot during the recording with all of the reasons he thinks she shouldn’t buy a new car.

We talk with Ben from FIafter40 about the financial impact of divorce and more broadly relationships and money. We dig into Ben’s childhood and how his family talked about money, what Ben’s first marriage was like and how they treated and talked about money, and how Ben discusses money in his current relationship. In many ways Ben’s divorce was the moment that prompted him to take a closer look at his financial reality. It’s a vulnerable and enlightening discussion where we all discuss how money and relationships work together, and our learnings from what can happen if you avoid talking about money.

We discuss if credit monitoring is really worth the expense or if it’s throwing your money away. Do you really need credit monitoring? We discuss what credit monitoring actually covers and provides, how you can do a DIY version of credit monitoring by freezing your credit, and other tips and considerations. We also talk briefly about what you can do if your credit is stolen.

We have a fun discussion with Jen + Jill from the Frugal Friends podcast where we discuss values-based spending and how to avoid extremes with your money and find your own radical middle. We dig into a wide-range of other topics like the value of budgeting, time vs. money, paying off debt, being intentional and connected to your spending decisions, not treating frugality as a race to the bottom, the state of Pennsylvania, and so much more!

We discuss how to stay motivated during quarantine with a 2020 mid-year goals check-in. We revisit why it’s important to set goals, how to set them, and how to measure them. We talk about the importance of setting SMART goals (Specific, Measurable, Attainable/Assignable, Relevant/Realistic, Time-Bound) and the importance of tracking against your goals to make progress. We then share our progress on our personal and financial goals for 2020.

We discuss Greg McKeown’s book Essentialism: The Disciplined Pursuit of Less and how it relates into money. Essentialism is about focusing your time and energy on only the most important things, AKA the most “essential” for your personal happiness, your personal success, for your job, etc. We would add money to the list; essentialism should be about focusing your time, energy, and money on only the most essential things. Non-Essentialism would be doing everything, buying everything because it’s all worthwhile and shouldn’t be missed. FOMO, YOLO, etc. But that leads to financial struggle and stress. Listen for ideas and encouragement on how to leverage essentialism principles with how you spend your money.

In this episode we discuss what a credit score is, how it’s calculated, and most importantly if it really even matters. As we delve into the concept of credit scores, Mike shares why he’s passionately angry about the business of credit scores while Maggie’s more in the ambivalent camp. Credit scores may not be the most exciting topic to many people, but it’s one of many things you should understand so you can proactively manage your personal finances.

In this episode we talk about how you should know and use the various benefits your credit cards offer to you. Credit cards offer tons of great benefits, and most people don’t use them! And on top of not using them, many people are actually paying for duplicative services through other companies. Some of the many credit card benefits available include: Global Entry or TSA Pre Fee Credit, Baggage Delay Insurance, Lost Luggage Reimbursement, Trip Cancellation / Trip Interruption Insurance, Extended Warranty Protection, Purchase Protection, Travel Accident Insurance, Car Rental Insurance, and more!