Afford Anything
You can afford anything, but not everything. We make daily decisions about how to spend money, time, energy, focus and attention – and ultimately, our life.
How do we make smarter decisions? How do we think from first principles?
On the surface, Afford Anything seems like a podcast about money and investing.
But under the hood, this is a show about how to think critically, recognize our behavioral blind spots, and make smarter choices. We’re into the psychology of money, and we love metacognition: thinking about how to think.
In some episodes, we interview world-class experts: professors, researchers, scientists, authors. In other episodes, we answer your questions, talking through decision-making frameworks and mental models.
Want to learn more? Download our free book, Escape, at http://affordanything.com/escape. Hosted by Paula Pant.
476
The Next Millionaire Next Door, with Dr. Sarah ...
#190: More than 20 years ago, affluence researchers Dr. Thomas Stanley and Dr. William Danko surveyed a vast number of millionaire households in the United States. What they discovered was groundbreaking at the time. The average U.S. millionaire, they...
70 min
477
Ask Paula: How Does My Net Worth Compare to Oth...
#189: Julie, age 27, calculated her expected net worth based on the formula taught in the classic personal finance book The Millionaire Next Door. She’s concerned. Her current net worth is significantly lower than the number that the formula...
74 min
478
The Scientific Secrets of Perfect Timing, with ...
#188: In May 1915, a renowned 58-year-old sea captain, Captain William Thomas Turner, made a series of questionable decisions. He was the captain of the Lusitania, a ship with 1,959 passengers, sailing from Manhattan to London. The first World War was...
81 min
479
Ask Paula - The Real Estate Episode
#187: Sarah needs $36,000 per year in rental income to reach FIRE (Financial Independence, Retire Early). She owns several rentals. When can she comfortably consider herself FIRE? AyV wants to rent out his primary residence. Should he renovate?...
74 min
480
How Mike and Lauren Retired at 30 with an Avera...
#186: Mike and Lauren have run a cleaning company, started and sold a biodiesel company, repaired and resold motorcycles, opened a coffeeshop, owned a DVD rental box, sold e-cigarettes, bought a storage warehouse, launched a YouTube channel with...
71 min
481
Ask Paula: How Do I Talk to Friends who Ridicul...
#185: Hello from Austin, Texas! I’m living in an Airbnb here for the next 5 weeks. Listen to the end of today’s episode to find out why … and discover how these next 5 weeks, for me, exemplify the “why” of financial independence. In the...
79 min
482
The Alter Ego Effect, with Todd Herman
#184: In 2003, Beyonce Knowles-Carter felt shy about performing sultry lyrics and dance routines on stage. She needed a tactic to overcome her nerves and stage fright. So she created an alter ego, Sasha Fierce, to bring out her more assertive side....
69 min
483
Ask Paula: Should I Sell My Rental Property to ...
#183: Should a newlywed couple with two cash flowing rental properties sell one to pay off $92,000 of student loan debt? What percentage of your portfolio should you have in rental properties? What's the smartest way to approach rental property...
52 min
484
Thirteen Dumb Mistakes Smart People Make with T...
#182: Millions of smart, educated and successful people make dumb mistakes with their money ... and they don't realize it. I'm not talking about obvious dumb mistakes, like spending 85 percent of your income on a fleet of Ultra-Luxe-Fancymobiles for...
73 min
485
Ask Paula: How Should I Plan a Mini-Retirement?
#181: Imagine that you’re going to take a 6-month to 9-month mini-retirement. How should you plan? What should you do? Sure, you’ll need to have enough savings to cover your expenses. You might want to find some part-time work. You may need to...
66 min
486
The Million-Dollar, One-Person Business, with E...
#180: Nearly two decades ago, Stacy Berman, a personal trainer, launched a fitness bootcamp in New York City. She called it Stacy’s Bootcamp. She invited her clients to join her for 5:30 am outdoor workout classes in Central Park. At first, only...
74 min
487
Ask Paula: We Want to Start Househacking in a D...
#179: Should a couple in New Orleans sell their single-family home and use the sale proceeds to househack into a duplex? What do you think about turnkey investments? What tax consequences will someone face if they transfer their property to their...
57 min
488
How to Make Work Optional, with Tanja Hester
#178: Tanja Hester retired at age 38. She had a negative net worth until her late 20's, thanks to a combination of student loans, buying expensive cocktails and clothes, living far beyond her means, and not paying attention to her money. If you were...
68 min
489
Ask Paula: Should I Buy a House or Catch Up on ...
#177: Imagine that your job is extremely well-paying, but you don’t enjoy it. You’d like to switch employers, even though this will probably require a paycut. But before you make the switch, you want to accomplish two goals: buy a home and catch...
64 min
490
Digital Minimalism - with Dr. Cal Newport
#176: Cal Newport created a philosophy called digital minimalism, which is idea of reducing your digital life down to only the most important core essentials. Remove the apps from your phone, then slowly re-introduce only the ones that are the most...
82 min
491
Three Percent is the New Four Percent - with La...
#175: Larry Swedroe is one of the most respected investment thinkers and writers of our time. He's published 8 books on investing, including one of the first books to explain the science of investing to a layperson audience. He recently wrote an...
78 min
492
Ask Paula: I'm 48 and Retiring Next Year. Shoul...
#174: Should a 48-year-old New Yorker who’s retiring next year buy more rental properties? Should a Michigan-based first-time homebuyer use an FHA loan to buy a duplex for $135,000 that rents for $1,800 per month? Should a 40-year-old music...
73 min
493
When a Child of Financial Chaos Stumbles into A...
#173: Paulette Perhach is a journalist who has been published in The New York Times, Slate, ELLE, Marie Claire, and Cosmo. But we’re not going to talk about that today. We’re going to talk about the fact that she’s made every decision by putting...
86 min
494
Ask Paula: Should I Buy a Nice Car or Save My M...
#172: Should a 25-year-old homeowner with healthy savings and no debt (other than his mortgage) upgrade his car? Should he make this choice if his current car is fine, and upgrading puts him into new debt? Should a couple without access to an...
72 min
495
The biggest study of everyday millionaires in 2...
#171: Chris Hogan surveyed 10,000 millionaires in the United States. Here's what he discovered: - 89 percent of millionaires have a net worth between $1 million to $5 million dollars - 62 percent graduated from public state schools - 9 percent didn't...
91 min
496
Ask Paula - When Should I NOT Use the One Perce...
#170: When should you NOT use the one percent rule for rental property investing? In today’s episode, I encourage two callers to violate the One Percent Rule for real estate that they already own. WHAAATTTT? Why would I say that? Especially given...
58 min
497
One Tweak a Week in 2019 -- Easy Improvements t...
#169: Happy New Years! To kickoff 2019, we've created a free book called One Tweak a Week, outlining 26 easy, actionable ways that you can improve your financial life. Today's podcast episode covers these 26 tweaks, so you can listen in audio format,...
66 min
498
How to Optimize Your Time and Energy -- with Mi...
#168: You can do anything, but not everything ... and definitely not everything at the same time. How can you optimize your time and energy? How do you choose what's worthwhile and what's a waste of time? How can you eliminate small decisions so that...
63 min
499
Ask Paula: Should I Pay Off Student Loans While...
#167: Angelisa is a college senior with $30,000 in student loans. She has a part-time job, from which she’s saved $2,500. Should she keep saving money, or should she get a headstart on paying down her student loans while she’s in school? Mackenzie...
80 min
500
Everything I Learned About Money Came from My G...
#166: Michelle Singletary learned everything she knows about money from her grandmother. Well, okay, I shouldn't say "everything" that she knows. After all, Michelle also has an MBA from Johns Hopkins University. She writes about personal finance for...
68 min