Kiersten here. It’s just me this week.

It’s been two years since my ADHD diagnosis, and in that time I’ve learned a lot. In this episode, I’m sitting down solo to unpack what this label actually changed, what it didn’t, and what I’ve had to unlearn about focus, money, and identity along the way. I’m revisiting the journey to speak directly to anyone navigating their own diagnosis (or the suspicion of one), especially while trying to manage money, relationships, and modern life.

If you ever wondered why your brain makes you avoid bills one day and build a budget for fun the next, this one’s for you.

I discuss:

• Grieving the gap between naming a problem and solving it
• When hyperfocus turns into self-surveillance
• Why most ADHD systems feel like punishment (and what to do instead)
• Habit stacking, automation, and why I stopped chasing streaks
• How a $3 snack usually does more for my brain than a $300 planner
• Hormones, sleep & the “why did my meds stop working” problem
• What movement really does for dopamine (and my money habits)
• Why dopamine placement determines my financial outcomes more than budgeting
• The octopus metaphor that finally made my brain make sense

Links: 

• Episode 172: A real conversation about ADHD, money, and relationships (or watch it instead)
• Episode 184: How to automate your savings and finally get ahead (or watch it instead) 
• My Octopus Teacher trailer
• Secrets of the Octopus 

Connect with Julien and Kiersten on our website, Instagram, Twitter, and YouTube.

Join our email list to get updates from us, opportunities for discounts, freebies and a quick rundown on the relevant financial and career news impacting your life.

Get our book Cashing Out: Win the Wealth Game by Walking Away, named 2023 best overall book about investing by Business Insider and one of the best personal finance books by Forbes

If you would like to learn more about investing, check out our newest class, Making Money Grow

We’re 30+ days into a government shutdown, SNAP benefits are disappearing, layoffs are ongoing, and a catastrophic storm just hit Jamaica. But beyond the headlines, people are privately struggling with job loss, evictions, food insecurity, and the mental toll of trying to “stay positive” when everything feels urgent.

In this week’s episode, we talk about how to be resourceful in the real, messy, "make-it-through-the-week" kind of way. Whether you're giving help or in need of it, this episode will shift how you think about support, community, and what's really essential.

And if you’re someone who feels like you're holding it all together with duct tape and prayer, this one's for you.

We cover:

• How to stop waiting for help and start solving real problems
• Why a 7-day survival plan can calm your nervous system
• Practical tips to navigate urgent vs. important tasks
• The difference between refilling needs and replacing wants
• How to tap into mutual aid, libraries, 211, and other local lifelines
• Why resourcefulness is not a character trait, it’s a learned skill

Links: 

• Ep 156: Survive & Advance | The Ultimate Guide to Financial Resilience with Lynnette Khalfani Cox
• Ep 191: Rethinking Emergency Funds for Modern Times 
• Ep 218: What to do with your money when the world feels unstable 
• Ep 220: How to give yourself a raise without changing jobs 
• Ep 226: What it takes to get through your hardest financial year 
• Ep 76: Curbing Food Insecurity 

Connect with Julien and Kiersten on our website, Instagram, Twitter, and YouTube.

Join our email list to get updates from us, opportunities for discounts, freebies and a quick rundown on the relevant financial and career news impacting your life.

Get our book Cashing Out: Win the Wealth Game by Walking Away, named 2023 best overall book about investing by Business Insider and one of the best personal finance books by Forbes

If you would like to learn more about investing, check out our newest class, Making Money Grow

It’s that time again…open enrollment season. And while we know this topic doesn’t get anyone out of bed in the morning, it SHOULD. Because buried in that HR email you ignored is a decision that could cost or save you thousands.

This week, we’re breaking down why so many people just auto-renew last year’s health plan, what rising premiums in 2026 actually mean for your wallet, and how AI can help you stop making five-figure decisions based on casual conversations with your coworkers.

We talk about:

• Why health insurance is quietly eating your raise
• How to sniff out hidden changes in your 2026 plan
• Using AI to compare plans without becoming an expert
• The power of a good prompt and what to include in yours
• Why planning for next year’s pregnancy, braces, or mental health care needs to happen right now

Connect with Julien and Kiersten on our website, Instagram, Twitter, and YouTube.

Join our email list to get updates from us, opportunities for discounts, freebies and a quick rundown on the relevant financial and career news impacting your life.

Get our book Cashing Out: Win the Wealth Game by Walking Away, named 2023 best overall book about investing by Business Insider and one of the best personal finance books by Forbes

If you would like to learn more about investing, check out our newest class, Making Money Grow

We recently teamed up with Consumer Reports on an eye-opening project that made us rethink how we evaluate, purchase, and engage with our homeowners insurance policy. This week’s episode is about what we learned.

Here’s what we unpack:

• Why homeowners insurance is way more confusing and critical than we thought
• What’s driving double-digit rate hikes (even if you’ve never filed a claim)
• How your dog, HOA, or even local crime rates affect your premiums
• One of the most overlooked parts of your policy that could actually save you
• Why checking your mail might be the most important financial task you do this week
• How to protect yourself with umbrella policies and avoid common traps

This one’s shorter than usual, because we want you to take action:
 → Read your policy.
 → Shop around.
 → Check out CR’s list of top-rated homeowners insurance companies based on actual customer satisfaction, claim handling, and renewal transparency 

Links: 

• Why are Homeowners Insurance rates going up right now?
• Homeowners Insurance & Extreme Weather: What you should know

Connect with Julien and Kiersten on our website, Instagram, Twitter, and YouTube.

Join our email list to get updates from us, opportunities for discounts, freebies and a quick rundown on the relevant financial and career news impacting your life.

Get our book Cashing Out: Win the Wealth Game by Walking Away, named 2023 best overall book about investing by Business Insider and one of the best personal finance books by Forbes

If you would like to learn more about investing, check out our newest class, Making Money Grow

Food prices are up (again), takeout is 4x more expensive than eating at home, and yet somehow..dinner still ends up on your doorstep. That’s exactly why we created Eat Better, a new video series that makes home cooking feel doable, even if you're not “a cooking person.”

In this episode, we're breaking down why so many people aren’t cooking at home, and what it really takes to change that.

Julien talks about how 20+ years of cooking at home and 7 years as a pro chef shaped our latest project, and Kiersten opens up about what’s kept her out of the kitchen. We also dig into how we think about food and money, and why this moment in time demands a better approach to nourishing yourself and your family.

Listen to hear more about:

• The launch of our new video series Eat Better
• Why your favorite restaurants might all be serving the same food 
• How people got to a point where cooking feels harder than it is
• The emotional, cultural, and economic reasons behind the takeout trap
• Why your kitchen might be working against you
• Why cooking is a critical life skill, not just a nice-to-have
• How restaurant-quality meals at home are more doable (and cheaper) than you think

Links: 

• Start here and leave your questions for Eat Better (full series HERE)
• “I tracked down the company ruining restaurants” via More Perfect Union
• Ep 158 - The secret to stress-free cooking at home | must-have kitchen tech for busy people (watch it instead) 
• Eat Better on a Budget ebook

Connect with Julien and Kiersten on our website, Instagram, Twitter, and YouTube.

Join our email list to get updates from us, opportunities for discounts, freebies and a quick rundown on the relevant financial and career news impacting your life.

Get our book Cashing Out: Win the Wealth Game by Walking Away, named 2023 best overall book about investing by Business Insider and one of the best personal finance books by Forbes

If you would like to learn more about investing, check out our newest class, Making Money Grow

If talking about credit makes you anxious, confused, or just flat-out annoyed… you're not alone. In this episode, we break down the truth about credit scores and reports: what they are, how they work, the most common myths people believe, and why it’s time we stop treating credit like a moral compass.

Whether you’re building credit for the first time, trying to bounce back from a rough patch, or just wondering why your score dipped after doing the “right” thing - we got you.

We cover:

• The biggest myths about credit (including the one a lot of folks still repeat)
• Why your score is not a moral report card
• How to check your credit and why you must 
• The rise of shady credit repair schemes
• Smart ways to build or rebuild without getting scammed
• Credit reports, analogies, and a little tough love

Links: 

• Episode 211 - Everything you were never taught about bankruptcy (or watch it HERE)
• Check your credit report for free at AnnualCreditReport.com
• National Foundation for Credit Counseling (NFCC)
• Operation HOPE – Financial counseling and education

Connect with Julien and Kiersten on our website, Instagram, Twitter, and YouTube.

Join our email list to get updates from us, opportunities for discounts, freebies and a quick rundown on the relevant financial and career news impacting your life.

Get our book Cashing Out: Win the Wealth Game by Walking Away, named 2023 best overall book about investing by Business Insider and one of the best personal finance books by Forbes

If you would like to learn more about investing, check out our newest class, Making Money Grow

This episode is sponsored by NordProtect. To save up to 59% on annual plans for NordProtect visit https://nordprotect.com/richandregular and use code RICHANDREGULAR

This week, we’re breaking down three money identities we’ve seen over and over again. None of these are “good” or “bad,” they’re more like energies, instincts, patterns we’ve all lived at some point. And just like a horoscope, you might recognize yourself in all of them.

We’ll walk you through a quick quiz so you can find out where you land, and then we’ll show you why the answer isn’t as simple as picking one lan​​e.

In this episode we: 

• Break down 3 money identities you’ll probably recognize in yourself (or your friends)
• Walk you through our quiz so you can see how they show up in real life and which energy you naturally lead with
• Talk about why sticking with just one money identity might leave you stuck

Connect with Julien and Kiersten on our website, Instagram, Twitter, and YouTube.

Join our email list to get updates from us, opportunities for discounts, freebies and a quick rundown on the relevant financial and career news impacting your life.

Get our book Cashing Out: Win the Wealth Game by Walking Away, named 2023 best overall book about investing by Business Insider and one of the best personal finance books by Forbes

If you would like to learn more about investing, check out our newest class, Making Money Grow

If budgets are supposed to keep us on track, why do so many of them make us feel stuck instead? In this episode, we talk about why the most common advice fails and what actually works when life keeps changing.

The problem with budgets isn’t discipline, it’s design. Most advice assumes your income, expenses, and goals stay the same forever. Ours doesn’t, and neither should yours.

We get into:

• Why the “stick to your budget no matter what” mantra sets you up to fail
• How to spot seasonal spending patterns and stop treating them like emergencies
• The difference between rules (non-negotiable facts of money) and richuals (flexible habits you can adapt)
• Why cash flow management matters more than month-to-month tracking
• How to stop treating budgets as a once or twice-a-month activity and start managing them in real time
• How to use non-cash choices like skills, time, creativity, community as part of your default financial strategy.
• The problem with formulas like 50/30/20, and why they were never built for everyone
• Why sticking to the wrong budget doesn’t earn you extra credit and just ruins your motivation 

Links: 

• Listen to Episode 224 - How to actually save money on groceries in 2025 or watch it here
• Listen to Episode 189 - Underconsumption Explained or watch it here
• Georgia residents - Mark your calendars for the Georgia PSC Election 

Connect with Julien and Kiersten on our website, Instagram, Twitter, and YouTube.

Join our email list to get updates from us, opportunities for discounts, freebies and a quick rundown on the relevant financial and career news impacting your life.

Get our book Cashing Out: Win the Wealth Game by Walking Away, named 2023 best overall book about investing by Business Insider and one of the best personal finance books by Forbes

If you would like to learn more about investing, check out our newest class, Making Money Grow

What if retirement wasn’t a one-time event at the end of a long career, but a rhythm you could build into your life right now?

In this episode, we're joined by the brilliant Jillian Johnsrud, whose new book Retire Often flips the script on traditional retirement. Instead of waiting 40 years to enjoy life, Jillian makes the case for taking intentional mini-retirements throughout your career by taking one month off every couple of years….not to escape your life, but to design it.

Jillian drops a 6.5% rule that reframes everything you’ve been taught about budgeting for time off. And we both realize: we’ve been doing mini-retirements, we just didn’t have the language for it.

So together, we unpack:

• Why a single month can be more transformative than you think
• What burnout actually feels like (and why most of us misread it)
• The financial math behind taking breaks without going broke
• Why your future self will thank you for planning now
• How to pitch a break to your boss and mean it

Links: 

• Get the “Retire Often” book or visit the website
• Grab her free worksheets on Planning and Negotiating your mini-retirement
• Follow Jillian on Instagram, Twitter, LinkedIn, or YouTube 

Connect with Julien and Kiersten on our website, Instagram, Twitter, and YouTube.

Join our email list to get updates from us, opportunities for discounts, freebies and a quick rundown on the relevant financial and career news impacting your life.

Get our book Cashing Out: Win the Wealth Game by Walking Away, named 2023 best overall book about investing by Business Insider and one of the best personal finance books by Forbes

If you would like to learn more about investing, check out our newest class, Making Money Grow

This week we’re celebrating our 10 year anniversary by sharing some lessons about money, partnership, and staying excited about the long game.

10 years of marriage isn’t just a milestone, it’s a record of every choice you made together, from buying a house to splitting a check to deciding who’s unloading the dishwasher. Some of those choices aged well. Others? Let’s just say they came with late fees.

In this episode, we get into:

• What to do when “my idea” needs “our money,” and how to bring and how to bring it up without sounding like you’re making a sales pitch or begging for permission
• The difference between conviction and borrowed confidence, and how to tell if you’re just hyped by somebody else’s results
• The price we’ve paid for decisions that looked fine in the moment but flopped later and how we move on without dragging it out.
• Why marriage isn’t 50/50 most of the time, and how keeping score only makes the game worse.
• The trap of calling yourself “the responsible one” or “the spender,” and how those roles mess with the way you see each other
• The metrics that matter more than net worth if you want your marriage (and your life) to feel exciting in year 20, 30, and beyond

Connect with Julien and Kiersten on our website, Instagram, Twitter, and YouTube.

Join our email list to get updates from us, opportunities for discounts, freebies and a quick rundown on the relevant financial and career news impacting your life.

Get our book Cashing Out: Win the Wealth Game by Walking Away, named 2023 best overall book about investing by Business Insider and one of the best personal finance books by Forbes

If you would like to learn more about investing, check out our newest class, Making Money Grow