Journey To Launch

Author, podcaster and entrepreneur, Charlie Gilkey, joins the podcast to shed light on what it really means to make the most out of your time and hone in on what you should focus your attention on.

Charlie is founder of Productive Flourishing, a website that helps creatives, leaders, and entrepreneurs start finishing the stuff that matters. He's written several books, including an award-winning book, "Start Finishing: How to Go From Idea to Done," and has been featured in Time, the Washington Post, the New York Times and more.

We talk about the four different blocks of time, the reality and advantages of not doing "it all," how to manage time as a neurodivergent identifying person, getting back control over our priorities and rebelling against rigid schedules.

In this episode, we discuss:

• Why attention is actually more valuable than time
• The difference between freedom from and freedom to
• How to implement the rule "No more than five active projects per time perspective."
• Acceptable loss, honoring your priorities, headtrash + centering yourself
• Avoiding the slippery slope of putting too much time, energy and attention on the economic and career projects in our lives + more

Other related blog posts/links mentioned in this episode:

• Check out my new personal website here.
• Join The Weekly Newsletter List
• Leave me a voicemail– Leave me a question on the Journey To Launch voicemail and have it answered on the podcast!
• Watch me on News12 Watch my latest segments on News12
• YNAB – Start managing your money and budgeting so that you can reach your financial dreams. Sign up for a free 34 days trial of YNAB, my go-to budgeting app by using my referral link.
• What stage of the financial journey are you on? Are you working on financial stability or work flexibility? Find out with this free assessment and get a curated list of the 10 next best episodes for you to listen to depending on your stage. Check it out here!

Connect with Charlie:

• Website
• Twitter:@CharlieGilkey

Connect with me:

• Instagram: @Journeytolaunch
• Twitter: @JourneyToLaunch
• Facebook: @Journey To Launch
• Join the Private Facebook Group
• Join the Waitlist for My FI Course
• Get The Free Jumpstart Guide

From homeless to bartending at Coyote Ugly, today's guest has gone through it all when it comes to working the service industry. Barbara Sloan is author of "Tipped: The Life Changing Guide to Financial Freedom For Waitresses, Bartenders, Strippers and All Other Service Industry Professionals," and a personal finance expert.

She's spent two decades working in every imaginable position in the service industry, in addition to owning and running a woman-owned construction company in Manhattan. Now, she helps other service industry professionals map their way to financial independence.

We talk about the unique challenges that face over 4 million service industry professionals, how these workers can use the system to their benefit and all of the mistakes Barbara made on her own way to financial literacy.

In this episode, we discuss:

• What a service industry professional is + their unique career and financial opportunities + challenges
• How to budget with an inconsistent or fluctuating income + how to build in buffers during seasonal work
• Advice on how service industry professionals can increase their income + begin to invest
• The transition from being hired at a construction company to owning it + more

Other related blog posts/links mentioned in this episode:

• Listen to Episode 86
• Check out my new personal website here.
• Join The Weekly Newsletter List
• Leave me a voicemail– Leave me a question on the Journey To Launch voicemail and have it answered on the podcast!
• Watch me on News12 Watch my latest segments on News12
• YNAB – Start managing your money and budgeting so that you can reach your financial dreams. Sign up for a free 34 days trial of YNAB, my go-to budgeting app by using my referral link.
• What stage of the financial journey are you on? Are you working on financial stability or work flexibility? Find out with this free assessment and get a curated list of the 10 next best episodes for you to listen to depending on your stage. Check it out here!

Connect with Barbara:

• Website
• Facebook
• Instagram:@TippedFinance
• Twitter:@TippedFinance

Connect with me:

• Instagram: @Journeytolaunch
• Twitter: @JourneyToLaunch
• Facebook: @Journey To Launch
• Join the Private Facebook Group
• Join the Waitlist for My FI Course
• Get The Free Jumpstart Guide

Chad Sanders, author of Black Magic: What Black Leaders Learned From Trauma And Triumph, and writer on HBO Max's new show, Rap Sh!t, joins the Journey To Launch podcast to discuss his experience leaving Google and the tech industry, how to deliberately develop your creative skills in the real world and Black money and wealth.

We chat about his new project, Direct Deposit, a podcast through Audible Originals, where he talks about being on the brink of wealth and what Black wealth looks like when you start earning money and more!

Chad's writing has appeared in The New York Times, SLAM magazine, Teen Vogue and more– but he isn't only a writer and author. Since his time in tech, Chad has also directed and acted on TV series and feature films with collaborators Spike Lee, Morgan Freeman, Issa Rae and Will Packer.

In this episode, we discuss:

• Being scrappy with money, opportunity cost and his new financial podcast Direct Deposit
• The pull to choose what is safe vs. what you love and deciding to follow your passions
• Why it takes so much courage to leave corporate America or a stable career
• Code switching, pivoting from the tech industry to the creative space, making it in Hollywood + more

Other related blog posts/links mentioned in this episode:

• Listen to Chad on the Direct Deposit Podcast
• Check out my new personal website here.
• Join The Weekly Newsletter List
• Leave me a voicemail– Leave me a question on the Journey To Launch voicemail and have it answered on the podcast!
• Watch me on News12 Watch my latest segments on News12
• YNAB – Start managing your money and budgeting so that you can reach your financial dreams. Sign up for a free 34 days trial of YNAB, my go-to budgeting app by using my referral link.
• What stage of the financial journey are you on? Are you working on financial stability or work flexibility? Find out with this free assessment and get a curated list of the 10 next best episodes for you to listen to depending on your stage. Check it out here!

Connect with Chad:

• Instagram:@ChadSand
• Twitter:@Chad_Sand

Connect with me:

• Instagram: @Journeytolaunch
• Twitter: @JourneyToLaunch
• Facebook: @Journey To Launch
• Join the Private Facebook Group
• Join the Waitlist for My FI Course
• Get The Free Jumpstart Guide

Ben Nemtin, number one New York Times bestselling author and the star and co-creator of MTV's, The Buried Life, joins the podcast to discuss his new book which includes his philosophy of radical possibility and waking people up from sleepwalking their lives away.

We chat about using accountability to fuel your goals, surrounding yourself with people that energize you instead of drain you, facing the fear and doing it anyway and being true to yourself no matter what.

Ben has been featured on The Today Show, The Oprah Show, CNN, Fox News, NBC News, you name it– and President Obama even called Ben and The Buried Life inspiration for a new generation.

In this episode, we discuss:

• What Ben did when he realized he was struggling with depression and anxiety
• Why surrounding yourself with inspiring people is important + necessary to living your best life and achieving your goals
• How to get back to what you truly want when day-to-day responsibilities and distractions take over
• The 10 categories of life to consider when writing your dream and/or bucket list
• The power of physically writing down your dream and/or bucket list + more

Other related blog posts/links mentioned in this episode:

• The Top Five Regrets of the Dying
• The Ideal Road Not Taken
• The Bucket List Journal
• Check out my new personal website here.
• Join The Weekly Newsletter List
• Leave me a voicemail– Leave me a question on the Journey To Launch voicemail and have it answered on the podcast!
• Watch me on News12 Watch my latest segments on News12
• YNAB – Start managing your money and budgeting so that you can reach your financial dreams. Sign up for a free 34 days trial of YNAB, my go-to budgeting app by using my referral link.
• What stage of the financial journey are you on? Are you working on financial stability or work flexibility? Find out with this free assessment and get a curated list of the 10 next best episodes for you to listen to depending on your stage. Check it out here!

Connect with Ben:

• Website
• Instagram:@BenNemtin
• Twitter:@BenNemtin
• Facebook:@Nemtin

Connect with me:

• Instagram: @Journeytolaunch
• Twitter: @JourneyToLaunch
• Facebook: @Journey To Launch
• Join the Private Facebook Group
• Join the Waitlist for My FI Course
• Get The Free Jumpstart Guide

Once blogger Tracy Levesque released her article titled, "What I learned from binge-listening to the entire Journey to Launch podcast," I knew that I had to have her on as a guest. She joins us after paying off $170k worth of debt and jumping on the financial independence, retire early movement.

We chat about the growth mindset her mom passed down to her, her entrepreneurship journey, how true wealth is providing education, curiosity, and the understanding of the value of experiences over material possessions, and why we need to have more LGBTQIA+ voices in the FIRE community.

In this episode, we discuss:

• What sparked Tracy's curiosity about the FIRE movement (Financial Independence, Retire Early)
• Building a business without a roadmap, hustling as an entrepreneur in the computer world + getting into real estate
• The steps Tracy and her wife took to pay off $170,000 of debt in 10 years using the debt avalanche method + zero-balance transfers
• Blind spots in the FIRE movement, using privilege for good + the call for more queer voices in the personal finance space
• How Tracy's mom taught herself about the stock market and became a successful investor + more

Other related blog posts/links mentioned in this episode:

• https://www.thetracyl.com/what-learned-from-binge-listening-to-the-entire-journey-to-launch-podcast/
• https://www.suzeorman.com/products/Suze-Ormans-9-Steps-to-Financial-Freedom
• https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/do-you-love-it-or-just-want-it-how-to-stop-stress-spending/id1461493560?i=1000492325693
• https://getgoodwithmoney.com/
• https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/financial-freedom-with-jamila-souffrant-part-1/id1535490511?i=1000536122027
• https://www.thetracyl.com/how-we-paid-off-170000-of-debt-in-10-years/
• https://journeytolaunch.com/episode229/
• https://journeytolaunch.com/episode39/
• https://journeytolaunch.com/episode285/
• https://www.amazon.com/Your-Money-Life-Transforming-Relationship/dp/0143115766
• https://journeytolaunch.com/episode289/
• https://www.thinkiba.com/
• https://journeytolaunch.com/episode40/
• Journeytolaunch.com/mystage
• Check out my new personal website here.
• Join The Weekly Newsletter List
• Leave me a voicemail– Leave me a question on the Journey To Launch voicemail and have it answered on the podcast!
• Watch me on News12 Watch my latest segments on News12
• YNAB – Start managing your money and budgeting so that you can reach your financial dreams. Sign up for a free 34 days trial of YNAB, my go-to budgeting app by using my referral link.
• What stage of the financial journey are you on? Are you working on financial stability or work flexibility? Find out with this free assessment and get a curated list of the 10 next best episodes for you to listen to depending on your stage. Check it out here!

Connect with Tracy:

• Website
• Instagram:@LilJimmi
• Twitter:@LilJimmi
• Facebook:@LilJimmi

Connect with me:

• Instagram: @Journeytolaunch
• Twitter: @JourneyToLaunch
• Facebook: @Journey To Launch
• Join the Private Facebook Group
• Join the Waitlist for My FI Course
• Get The Free Jumpstart Guide

Cindy Zuniga-Sanchez, Esq., founder of Zero-Based Budget and new author of "Overcoming Debt, Achieving Financial Freedom Book: 8 Pillars to Build Wealth," joins the Journey To Launch podcast to discuss her upcoming book and quitting law to pursue entrepreneurship.

We talk about how she was able to achieve Coast FIRE (Financial Independence Retire Early), leave her law firm to run her business full-time, and the importance of being transparent about your money and your vision with those you love and value.

In this episode, we discuss:

• How Cindy took a balanced approach when paying off her $200k law school degree in 4 years
• The difficult decision Cindy had to make between practicing law and running her business + money transparency when choosing to be self-employed
• Why you need "back up" funds to mitigate risk + take worst case scenarios into consideration if you're deciding to leave a secure job
• Budgeting strategies and techniques you can use to transform your finances (even if you don't like budgeting)
• What a career-shift conversation needs to look like with your partner and loved ones + more

Other related blog posts/links mentioned in this episode:

• Overcoming Debt, Achieving Financial Freedom: 8 Pillars to Build Wealth
• Listen to Cindy's previous episode on the Journey to Launch Podcast- Episode 159- How Cindy Zuniga Paid Off $215,000 Of Debt In 48 Months
• Journeytolaunch.com/mystage
• Check out my new personal website here.
• Join The Weekly Newsletter List
• Leave me a voicemail– Leave me a question on the Journey To Launch voicemail and have it answered on the podcast!
• Watch me on News12 Watch my latest segments on News12
• YNAB – Start managing your money and budgeting so that you can reach your financial dreams. Sign up for a free 34 days trial of YNAB, my go-to budgeting app by using my referral link.
• What stage of the financial journey are you on? Are you working on financial stability or work flexibility? Find out with this free assessment and get a curated list of the 10 next best episodes for you to listen to depending on your stage. Check it out here!

Connect with Cindy:

• Website
• Instagram:@ZeroBasedBudget
• Twitter: @ZeroBasedBudget

Connect with me:

• Instagram: @Journeytolaunch
• Twitter: @JourneyToLaunch
• Facebook: @Journey To Launch
• Join the Private Facebook Group
• Join the Waitlist for My FI Course
• Get The Free Jumpstart Guide

Ariana Rodriguez joins the Journey To Launch podcast to talk about her experience on the new Netflix documentary, "Get Smart With Money" and how she was able to turn her finances around.

We chat about how she used her skills to begin a side hustle, that eventually allowed her to quit her job, the power of forgiving yourself of past money mistakes, automating your money and more.

In this episode, we discuss:

• The internal struggle and mindset that plays a role in the cycle of debt and debt repayment
• How Arianna pivoted from an education career to tech project management in order to increase her income
• Leveraging skills for side hustles to speed up the debt payment process
• What the "should lifestyle" is and why it keeps people stuck in the debt system
• Why financial freedom is possible and attainable at any level + more

Other related blog posts/links mentioned in this episode:

• https://www.youneedabudget.com/
• https://journeytolaunch.com/episode243/
• https://arianarodriguez.co/
• Journeytolaunch.com/mystage
• Check out my new personal website here.
• Join The Weekly Newsletter List
• Leave me a voicemail– Leave me a question on the Journey To Launch voicemail and have it answered on the podcast!
• Watch me on News12 Watch my latest segments on News12
• YNAB – Start managing your money and budgeting so that you can reach your financial dreams. Sign up for a free 34 days trial of YNAB, my go-to budgeting app by using my referral link.
• What stage of the financial journey are you on? Are you working on financial stability or work flexibility? Find out with this free assessment and get a curated list of the 10 next best episodes for you to listen to depending on your stage. Check it out here!

Connect with Ariana:

• Website
• Instagram:@Ariana_Rodriguez

Connect with me:

• Instagram: @Journeytolaunch
• Twitter: @JourneyToLaunch
• Facebook: @Journey To Launch
• Join the Private Facebook Group
• Join the Waitlist for My FI Course
• Get The Free Jumpstart Guide

Dan Sheeks, owner and founder of Sheeks Freaks, an online community helping young people live their best lives by making smart money decisions, joins the Journey To Launch podcast to talk about his passion for helping teenagers get on the path to become millionaires.

Achieving early financial independence is an option most people don't know even exist, which is why Dan spends his career making financial freedom education available to Gen Z and High Schoolers.

We chat about his new book, "First to a Million: A Teenager's Guide to Achieving Early Financial Independence", how to convince teens to care about money (hint: you can't), and why the American Dream needs a perspective shift.

In this episode, we discuss:

• Dan's definition of financial independence and financial freedom
• The power of learning about financial independence early and showing the next generation that it's possible
• Roth IRAs, 401ks, taxable investments, and the best option for just getting started in the world of investing
• Convincing Gen Z to care about their financial future, a case study in early financial independence, + "planting the seed"
• The four mechanisms of early financial independence + more

Other related blog posts/links mentioned in this episode:

• Check out Dan's book First to a Million.
• Journeytolaunch.com/mystage
• Check out my new personal website here.
• Join The Weekly Newsletter List
• Leave me a voicemail– Leave me a question on the Journey To Launch voicemail and have it answered on the podcast!
• Watch me on News12 Watch my latest segments on News12
• YNAB – Start managing your money and budgeting so that you can reach your financial dreams. Sign up for a free 34 days trial of YNAB, my go-to budgeting app by using my referral link.
• What stage of the financial journey are you on? Are you working on financial stability or work flexibility? Find out with this free assessment and get a curated list of the 10 next best episodes for you to listen to depending on your stage. Check it out here!

Connect with Dan Sheeks:

• Website
• Instagram:@SheeksFreaks
• Instagram:@DSheeks

Connect with me:

• Instagram: @Journeytolaunch
• Twitter: @JourneyToLaunch
• Facebook: @Journey To Launch
• Join the Private Facebook Group
• Join the Waitlist for My FI Course
• Get The Free Jumpstart Guide

Pat Flynn, entrepreneur, author and podcaster founder of Smart Passive Income (SPI) , and Matt Gartland, COO of SPI join the Journey To Launch podcast to discuss all things entrepreneurship, building a community, and how to be a successful business owner.

In 2008 Pat Flynn was laid off from his dream job. Turns out, that was the best thing that could have ever happened to him. Now, he hosts a podcast with over 80M downloads, has published multiple books, is an angel investor, and has teamed up with Matt Gartland, tech industry and startup venture veteran, to scale and grow his entrepreneurial empire.

We chat about scaling and growing a business, building personal wealth after entrepreneurial success, adopting a four-day workweek, and more.

In this episode, we discuss:

• The decision to remain a company of one or scale your business and hire a team
• Why it's important to "date" your potential business partner before you combine forces
• Balancing being a visionary and working with an integrator in your business
• How to make money with your zone of genius + identifying as a "community company"
• Traits and characteristics that make a successful entrepreneur & what you need to focus on when starting out + more

Other related blog posts/links mentioned in this episode:

• Check out Company Of One: Why Staying Small Is the Next Big Thing for Business
• Check out the Rocket Fuel: The One Essential Combination That Will Get You More of What You Want from Your Business
• https://www.smartpassiveincome.com/community/
• Journeytolaunch.com/mystage
• Check out my new personal website here.
• Join The Weekly Newsletter List
• Leave me a voicemail– Leave me a question on the Journey To Launch voicemail and have it answered on the podcast!
• Watch me on News12 Watch my latest segments on News12
• YNAB – Start managing your money and budgeting so that you can reach your financial dreams. Sign up for a free 34 days trial of YNAB, my go-to budgeting app by using my referral link.
• What stage of the financial journey are you on? Are you working on financial stability or work flexibility? Find out with this free assessment and get a curated list of the 10 next best episodes for you to listen to depending on your stage. Check it out here!

Connect with Pat & Matt:

• Website
• Instagram:@PatFlynn
• Twitter:@PatFlynn
• Twitter:@TeamSPI

Connect with me:

• Instagram: @Journeytolaunch
• Twitter: @JourneyToLaunch
• Facebook: @Journey To Launch
• Join the Private Facebook Group
• Join the Waitlist for My FI Course
• Get The Free Jumpstart Guide

Sam Dogen, creator behind the popular blog, The Financial Samurai joins the Journey To Launch podcast to talk about his new book, "Buy This Not That: How To Spend Your Way To Wealth And Freedom". Sam and I chat about using money in a way that maximizes your ability to build wealth and live life on your own terms to achieve Financial Freedom & Independence.

In this episode, we discuss:

• The 70/30 decision making framework philosophy
• The difference between good debt & bad debt
• How to build wealth in the offensive position
• How to negotiate a severance package and leveraging loyalty + more

Enter for your chance to win a copy of Buy This Not That: How To Spend Your Way To Wealth And Freedom. The giveaway will be open from October 12th 2022- October 17th 2022. Five winners will be announced on October 18th! (must be 18+ & a US resident to enter). Go to journeytolaunch.com/win to enter.

Other related blog posts/links mentioned in this episode:

• https://financialsamurai.com/news
• https://financialsamurai.com/btnt
• Journeytolaunch.com/mystage
• Check out my new personal website here.
• Join The Weekly Newsletter List
• Leave me a voicemail– Leave me a question on the Journey To Launch voicemail and have it answered on the podcast!
• Watch me on News12 Watch my latest segments on News12
• YNAB – Start managing your money and budgeting so that you can reach your financial dreams. Sign up for a free 34 days trial of YNAB, my go-to budgeting app by using my referral link.
• What stage of the financial journey are you on? Are you working on financial stability or work flexibility? Find out with this free assessment and get a curated list of the 10 next best episodes for you to listen to depending on your stage. Check it out here!

Connect with Sam:

• Website
• Facebook: @FinancialSamurai
• Twitter: @FinancialSamura

Connect with me:

• Instagram: @Journeytolaunch
• Twitter: @JourneyToLaunch
• Facebook: @Journey To Launch
• Join the Private Facebook Group
• Join the Waitlist for My FI Course
• Get The Free Jumpstart Guide