How to Money

We’re kicking off the week by answering your listener questions! And if you have a question that you’d like for us to answer on the show, we’d love for you to submit your own via HowToMoney.com/ask , send us your voice memo. Regardless of how random or bizarre you might think it is, we want to hear it!

1 - Student loans: what can I do to avoid being in student loans for the rest of my life?!

2 - Lower income, higher net worth: should I be nervous that our monthly spending is more than what we’re bringing in?

3 - Self employed: if I would like to save more should I invest more dollars into my brokerage account or is there a better option?

4 - Amazon: can I still use my Fire TV if I cancel my Amazon Prime membership?

5 - Small business: what are the best business savings accounts available today?

Want more How To Money in your life? Here are some additional ways to get ahead with your personal finances:

• Credit card perks: Check out our favorite credit cards that we use to maximize rewards and optimize our spending.
• Other money nerds: Find a thriving community of fellow money nerds by joining the HTM Facebook group!
• Newsletter: Sign up for the weekly HTM newsletter. It’s fun, free, & practical.
• Money Gears: knowing what to do with your money is crucial to your personal finance journey.
• MG7: and maybe you’re well on your way to financial independence but you’re looking for some financial reassurance, that’s when heading over to HowToMoney.com/Advisor and getting matched with a highly vetted financial advisor makes sense.

During this episode we enjoyed a Porter by Incendiary Brewing - a huge thanks to Brandon for donating this one to the show! And please help us to spread the word by letting friends and family know about How to Money! Hit the share button, subscribe if you’re not already a regular listener, and give us a quick review in Apple Podcasts or wherever you get your podcasts. Help us to change the conversation around personal finance and get more people doing smart things with their money!

Best friends out!

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Time for a Friday Flight- our little sampling of the week’s best financial news and what it means for your personal finances. There are a lot of headlines out there, but we boil them down to specific takeaways that will allow you to kick off the weekend informed and help you to get ahead with your money. In this episode we explain some relevant and helpful stories like:

• 401k mullets and quarter-zips
• Don’t sleep on the solo 401k
• Crappy coffee
• Surveillance pricing
• 1.3 trillion in credit card debt
• High income earners are delinquent too
• Collections dos and don’ts
• Pets are family
• The going babysitting hourly rate
• Gray-shaped economy
• Gamble on anything and everything
• Bitcoin bashing

Want more How To Money in your life? Here are some additional ways to get ahead with your personal finances:

• Credit card perks: Check out our favorite credit cards that we use to maximize rewards and optimize our spending.
• Other money nerds: Find a thriving community of fellow money nerds by joining the HTM Facebook group!
• Newsletter: Sign up for the weekly HTM newsletter. It’s fun, free, & practical.
• Money Gears: knowing what to do with your money is crucial to your personal finance journey.
• MG7: and maybe you’re well on your way to financial independence but you’re looking for some financial reassurance, that’s when heading over to HowToMoney.com/Advisor and getting matched with a highly vetted financial advisor makes sense.

And please help us to spread the word by letting friends and family know about How to Money! Hit the share button, subscribe if you’re not already a regular listener, and give us a quick review in Apple Podcasts or wherever you get your podcasts. Help us to change the conversation around personal finance and get more people doing smart things with their money!

Best friends out!

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

How often do you stop to consider that your hormones might be the ones clicking "Add to Cart"? We like to pretend money is just logic and spreadsheets, but let’s be real: it’s emotional, it’s messy, and it’s never just about the numbers. If you’re tired of carrying the weight of old financial mistakes or wondering why you’re stuck in the same self-sabotaging loops, this episode is your manual for a reset. Today, we’re joined by Shannah Game, a CFP and Money Therapist who bridges the gap between your brain and your bank account. Get ready to ditch the shame, kill the stress, and finally build a relationship with money that actually feels good. Today we discuss: 

• How even successful folks feel stressed about their money
• Importance of communication with your parter
• Understanding and enjoying the financial journey in addition to goals
• Identifying ‘enough’
• Recognizing the ways you’re crushing it
• Financial growth accompanied by emotional growth
• Impact of your finances on your overall well-being
• And much more!

Want more How To Money in your life? Here are some additional ways to get ahead with your personal finances:

• Shannah: Find everything “Shannah” at her site, HeyShannah.com, including her book Unraveling Your Relationship With Money.
• Credit card perks: Check out our favorite credit cards that we use to maximize rewards and optimize our spending.
• Money Gears: Knowing what to do with your money is crucial to your personal finance journey.
• Newsletter: Sign up for the weekly HTM newsletter. It’s fun, free, & practical.
• Other money nerds: Find a thriving community of fellow money nerds by joining the HTM Facebook group!

And please help us to spread the word by letting friends and family know about How to Money! Hit the share button, subscribe if you’re not already a regular listener, and give us a quick review in Apple Podcasts or wherever you get your podcasts. Help us to change the conversation around personal finance and get more people doing smart things with their money!

Best friends out!

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

We’re kicking off the week by answering your listener questions! And if you have a question that you’d like for us to answer on the show, we’d love for you to submit your own via HowToMoney.com/ask , send us your voice memo. Regardless of how random or bizarre you might think it is, we want to hear it!

1 - Collections: Is waiting for my unexpected medical bill to head to collections a good or great strategy?

2 - Student loans: What should I do while my student loans are in administrative forbearance?

3 - HSA: Will I be able to reimburse myself for kid medical expenses off in the future when they have their own insurance?

4 - Preggo: After Money Gear 7, what should be our next top priority since we’re now expecting a baby this summer?

5 - Infidelity: What do I do about the secret debt my wife racked up over the holidays?

Want more How To Money in your life? Here are some additional ways to get ahead with your personal finances:

• Credit card perks: Check out our favorite credit cards that we use to maximize rewards and optimize our spending.
• Other money nerds: Find a thriving community of fellow money nerds by joining the HTM Facebook group!
• Newsletter: Sign up for the weekly HTM newsletter. It’s fun, free, & practical.
• Money Gears: knowing what to do with your money is crucial to your personal finance journey.
• MG7: and maybe you’re well on your way to financial independence but you’re looking for some financial reassurance, that’s when heading over to HowToMoney.com/Advisor and getting matched with a highly vetted financial advisor makes sense.

During this episode we enjoyed a Vienna Lager by Incendiary Brewing - a huge thanks to Brandon for donating this one to the show! And please help us to spread the word by letting friends and family know about How to Money! Hit the share button, subscribe if you’re not already a regular listener, and give us a quick review in Apple Podcasts or wherever you get your podcasts. Help us to change the conversation around personal finance and get more people doing smart things with their money!

Best friends out!

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Time for a Friday Flight- our little sampling of the week’s best financial news and what it means for your personal finances. There are a lot of headlines out there, but we boil them down to specific takeaways that will allow you to kick off the weekend informed and help you to get ahead with your money. In this episode we explain some relevant and helpful stories like:

• Hidden skimp-flation
• Plunging prices
• Full coverage premiums on the decline
• Costco bests Aldi
• DoorDash dependency
• Headhunters turned breadhunters
• Ghost jobs
• Sourdough baking in the cash
• Day-trading Doris
• Volunteering to better health and life satisfaction
• Unretiring
• Drugs on TrumpRx
• WTD about home prices
• Buying a house with a friend
• No minimum credit scores for mortgages
• False Identity Theft Reporting… is a crime

Want more How To Money in your life? Here are some additional ways to get ahead with your personal finances:

• Credit score: No shortcuts but actual ways to boost your credit score.
• Credit card perks: Check out our favorite credit cards that we use to maximize rewards and optimize our spending.
• Other money nerds: Find a thriving community of fellow money nerds by joining the HTM Facebook group!
• Newsletter: Sign up for the weekly HTM newsletter. It’s fun, free, & practical.
• Money Gears: knowing what to do with your money is crucial to your personal finance journey.
• MG7: and maybe you’re well on your way to financial independence but you’re looking for some financial reassurance, that’s when heading over to HowToMoney.com/Advisor and getting matched with a highly vetted financial advisor makes sense.

And please help us to spread the word by letting friends and family know about How to Money! Hit the share button, subscribe if you’re not already a regular listener, and give us a quick review in Apple Podcasts or wherever you get your podcasts. Help us to change the conversation around personal finance and get more people doing smart things with their money!

Best friends out!

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Money fights are one of the most common, and most damaging, sources of tension in a relationship. Whether it’s spending, debt, or mismatched financial goals, those arguments can quietly erode trust and connection over time. But here’s the good news: money doesn’t have to be the thing that drives couples apart. When partners develop healthy financial habits and learn how to communicate about money, it can actually strengthen their relationship. Which is why we’re excited to welcome Dr. Sonya Lutter to the show today. She’s both a marriage therapist and a financial planner, and she leads the Financial Health & Wellness program at Texas Tech. She brings a rare, research-backed perspective on how couples can keep money from becoming a stumbling block and instead make it a source of teamwork. Today we discuss: 

• How financial therapy combines finance and emotional support
• Perception of financial wellness often differs from reality
• Financial stress impacts decision-making abilities
• Biological responses to stress affect financial decisions
• Regular financial conversations can prevent conflicts
• The most common relational dynamic that leads to money fights
• How financial infidelity can be as damaging as sexual infidelity
• And much more!

Want more How To Money in your life? Here are some additional ways to get ahead with your personal finances:

• Sonya: All things Sonya over at her website, SonyaLutter.com
• Credit card perks: Check out our favorite credit cards that we use to maximize rewards and optimize our spending.
• Money Gears: knowing what to do with your money is crucial to your personal finance journey.
• Newsletter: Sign up for the weekly HTM newsletter. It’s fun, free, & practical.
• Other money nerds: Find a thriving community of fellow money nerds by joining the HTM Facebook group!

And please help us to spread the word by letting friends and family know about How to Money! Hit the share button, subscribe if you’re not already a regular listener, and give us a quick review in Apple Podcasts or wherever you get your podcasts. Help us to change the conversation around personal finance and get more people doing smart things with their money!

Best friends out!

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

We’re kicking off the week by answering your listener questions! And if you have a question that you’d like for us to answer on the show, we’d love for you to submit your own via HowToMoney.com/ask , send us your voice memo. Regardless of how random or bizarre you might think it is, we want to hear it!

1 - iBonds: What is the actual rate that I’m earning and should I dump them to fund an ADU (Accessory Dwelling Unit)?

2 - Trusts: Should I implement a trust in order to protect my sizeable investments in my taxable brokerage account?

3 - Roth conversion: Do I need to let my Roth conversion sit for 5 years before I’m able to tap it?

4 - Precious metals: Is now the time to sell the silver I invested in years ago?

5 - Down payments: To what extent is it illegal to tap a HELOC to fund my next home purchase?

Want more How To Money in your life? Here are some additional ways to get ahead with your personal finances:

• Credit card perks: Check out our favorite credit cards that we use to maximize rewards and optimize our spending.
• Other money nerds: Find a thriving community of fellow money nerds by joining the HTM Facebook group!
• Newsletter: Sign up for the weekly HTM newsletter. It’s fun, free, & practical.
• Money Gears: knowing what to do with your money is crucial to your personal finance journey.
• MG7: and maybe you’re well on your way to financial independence but you’re looking for some financial reassurance, that’s when heading over to HowToMoney.com/Advisor and getting matched with a highly vetted financial advisor makes sense.

During this episode we enjoyed a Cerberus Nocturne Vanilla Porter by Incendiary Brewing - a huge thanks to Brandon for donating this one to the show! And please help us to spread the word by letting friends and family know about How to Money! Hit the share button, subscribe if you’re not already a regular listener, and give us a quick review in Apple Podcasts or wherever you get your podcasts. Help us to change the conversation around personal finance and get more people doing smart things with their money!

Best friends out!

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Time for a Friday Flight- our little sampling of the week’s best financial news and what it means for your personal finances. There are a lot of headlines out there, but we boil them down to specific takeaways that will allow you to kick off the weekend informed and help you to get ahead with your money. In this episode we explain some relevant and helpful stories like:

• Mr. Beast meme coin
• The Lipstick Effect
• Non-negotiable travel
• Travel as a work perk
• Stretching your dollar with Goodwill
• Vanguard making your investments more affordable
• You’re now taking on nondiversification risk
• Gold and silver tanks
• In-car advertisements
• Less Model X more Optimus
• Affordable car insurance for FSD
• Moving to lower COL states
• DIY solar

Want more How To Money in your life? Here are some additional ways to get ahead with your personal finances:

• Credit card perks: Check out our favorite credit cards that we use to maximize rewards and optimize our spending.
• Other money nerds: Find a thriving community of fellow money nerds by joining the HTM Facebook group!
• Newsletter: Sign up for the weekly HTM newsletter. It’s fun, free, & practical.
• Money Gears: knowing what to do with your money is crucial to your personal finance journey.
• MG7: and maybe you’re well on your way to financial independence but you’re looking for some financial reassurance, that’s when heading over to HowToMoney.com/Advisor and getting matched with a highly vetted financial advisor makes sense.

And please help us to spread the word by letting friends and family know about How to Money! Hit the share button, subscribe if you’re not already a regular listener, and give us a quick review in Apple Podcasts or wherever you get your podcasts. Help us to change the conversation around personal finance and get more people doing smart things with their money!

Best friends out!

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Jumbo shrimp. Open secret. Bittersweet. We call these oxymorons - ideas that shouldn't work together, yet somehow do. Most people put 'frugality' and 'hedonism' in that same category, assuming you can't have a blast while saving a buck. But our guest today, Annie Raser-Rowland, is here to shatter that myth. An Australian horticulturalist and author, Annie argues that true pleasure isn't bought, instead it’s found in the more sensual and free moments we overlook when we're too busy working to pay for things we don't need. Today, we’re exploring how to live an excellent, joy-filled life that doesn't require a massive income or a single dreaded coupon. We specifically touch on:

• Spending a quarter of the typical person
• Why Annie believes that experiences provide more joy than material possessions
• How community and interdependence enrich our lives
• Setting long-term goals can motivate frugal habits
• Literary figures and role models can inspire us to live more fulfilling lives
• Advertising influences our spending habits negatively
• And plenty more!

Want more How To Money in your life? Here are some additional ways to get ahead with your personal finances:

• Annie: The Art of Frugal Hedonism is the book, and learn more about Annie and what she’s up to at her site.
• Credit card perks: Check out our favorite credit cards that we use to maximize rewards and optimize our spending.
• Money Gears: knowing what to do with your money is crucial to your personal finance journey.
• Newsletter: Sign up for the weekly HTM newsletter. It’s fun, free, & practical.
• Other money nerds: Find a thriving community of fellow money nerds by joining the HTM Facebook group!

And please help us to spread the word by letting friends and family know about How to Money! Hit the share button, subscribe if you’re not already a regular listener, and give us a quick review in Apple Podcasts or wherever you get your podcasts. Help us to change the conversation around personal finance and get more people doing smart things with their money!

Best friends out!

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

We’re kicking off the week by answering your listener questions! And if you have a question that you’d like for us to answer on the show, we’d love for you to submit your own via HowToMoney.com/ask , send us your voice memo. Regardless of how random or bizarre you might think it is, we want to hear it!

1 - Money Gears: I’m confused… why do you recommend getting a 401k match before paying off high interest credit card debt?

2 - Cash windfall: What should I do with the rest of my inheritance?

3 - 403b: Should I opt for the new Roth version, stick with the traditional, or maybe it’s possible to do both?

4 - Greenland: With all the political upheaval we’re seeing, should shift all my investments to gold?

5 - Credit report: Where should I go to get my actual free credit report?

Want more How To Money in your life? Here are some additional ways to get ahead with your personal finances:

• Credit card perks: Check out our favorite credit cards that we use to maximize rewards and optimize our spending.
• Other money nerds: Find a thriving community of fellow money nerds by joining the HTM Facebook group!
• Newsletter: Sign up for the weekly HTM newsletter. It’s fun, free, & practical.
• Money Gears: knowing what to do with your money is crucial to your personal finance journey.
• MG7: and maybe you’re well on your way to financial independence but you’re looking for some financial reassurance, that’s when heading over to HowToMoney.com/Advisor and getting matched with a highly vetted financial advisor makes sense.

During this episode we enjoyed a Bourbon Barrel Aged Wee Heavy w/Coconut Maple and Macaroons by Incendiary Brewing - a huge thanks to Brandon for donating this one to the show! And please help us to spread the word by letting friends and family know about How to Money! Hit the share button, subscribe if you’re not already a regular listener, and give us a quick review in Apple Podcasts or wherever you get your podcasts. Help us to change the conversation around personal finance and get more people doing smart things with their money!

Best friends out!

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.