Holiday episode, Paul Sating, creator of multiple podcasts, shares his financial journey. He has retired from the military, has a full-time job, real estate income, and shares highs and lows through it all.

We discuss:

• His wealth-building mentality & the mentors who walked him through the mechanics of finances.
• The power of a 15-minute conversation to help his financial foundation.
• The most important principle for him with finances is simply debt management.
• Looking at debt can be overwhelming.
• When it comes to debt: "Mitigate then Eliminate."
• Learning the value of hard work in a farming community. His first job at $3 per hour, then working 3 jobs when he was 16.
• How you make a goal about your finances so that you can live the life you really desire.
• How you have to define happiness for you.
• The sleeplessness that comes through having debt.
• He owns 3 homes and is earning income from most of them.
• When you are moving regularly, consider purchasing a home in each area. The housing market conditions can work for you or against you.
• The housing decisions that have to be made as you move regularly, such as: Buy or rent? School zones to be considered? On base housing or off base?
• Re-financing helped him survive to ride out the housing market ups and downs.
• How he chose a quality property manager? Customer service. Prompt responses Meeting his needs as a homeowner.
• Serving in the military, he had a steady income consistently. After working overseas, he had a young family and hit a very low point financially.
• How he was able to pull himself out of the low point to make ends meet financially.
• The consolidation loan helped him pull out of the financial mess.
• Minimalism: He was a minimalist when he had to be.
• The focus to make it through the financial struggle.
• Money is important but is second to the relationships in his life.
• How divorce turned his life & finances upside down.
• How he struggled to put his children through a safe school.
• "I did all the right things...and here I was, back at square one. I had to get up, brush myself off, and start up again."
• "Sometimes the best step is to just start and go with it."
• "Stay focused on the end of the tunnel."
• He would rather have the life moments than driving the nice ride.
• He test drives the Infinity regularly.
• Money & marriage: how it works for them. She is carefree and he is disciplined.
• His daily tracker/ and every penny how they counted the money.
• The budget was on the fridge even in front of the kids' artwork.
• The validation moments: to see each one of the sections on the bar chart to remind yourself how much you've accomplished.
• The happy medium they have found as a couple in their financial journey.
• The question that woke him up to enjoy life: "How much do you need to save before you are good?"
• Podcast Washington, so much creativity and
• Why he loves to podcast. It's his medium. "I can listen to who I want to, when I want to."
• The Q. His podcast on Positive Humanism. "Sometimes the questions are more important than the answers."
• His podcast is helping him be accountable to himself by focusing on the positive.
• Atheist Apocalypse: a fictional comedy, an audio drama, talking about the end...
• All the work that goes into making a podcast.
• Enjoying the journey of creating.
• No matter where you are: the student loan debt, or credit card debt, this is temporary. Stay disciplined, stay focused and keep at it.
• Make sure you have a reward periodically. Something to keep you on track.

Resources mentioned in this episode:

• The Q Podcast (explicit)
• Theqpodcast on Twitter
• The Atheist Apocalypse (PG-13)
• AApodcastshow on Twitter
• Think Enriched Virtual Tip Jar

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