Choosefi | Financial Independence Podcast For The Stealth Wealth Community

030 | In Today’s Podcast we cover: How Alan Donegan of PopUp Business School has turned starting businesses on its head similar to how FI has turned personal finance on its head and caused us to think differently How starting a business is truly one of the ‘pillars of Financial Independence’ Brad and Jonathan started up their own business with ChooseFI based on similar principles to what Alan is teaching You need to know what you’re running to in FI and not just what you’re running from with your old job Alan’s FI journey and his goal to get to FI by the age of 40 How Alan was nearly scared off from starting a business by the course he took through the British government with Business Link Started up PopUp Business School with his business partner Simon Why Alan believes you don’t need any startup capital, business plans, etc. to start a business Story of a popup café/restaurant in London and how this person didn’t spend a dollar to get started The value of networking and genuine human connection What stops y

029R | In today's Friday Roundup we discuss our key takeaways from Episode 29: The Reluctant Frugalist vs. the Aspiring Minimalist, plus feedback from the audience as well as two of our in-house experts. How Jonathan used travel rewards points to book two round-trip flights to South Africa to visit his wife’s family. Only 128,000 points! How to think through a travel rewards redemption and where to start The essential nature of the psychology when considering financial independence How to approach your spouse/significant other about FI and what to avoid – namely the word “retirement” What is Brad willing to spend significant money on? Email from Bo about a new term: A ‘Valuist’ and how this applies to Brad Feedback from our Facebook group from Christopher about a ‘false dichotomy’ Feedback from Jessica – there are no rules of being a minimalist, it’s a journey and a mindset Voicemail from Geoffrey about reducing stuff and choice with a cool challenge with your clothes How the KonMari method tidying has transf

029 | In today's podcast we go through a discussion of the mindset differences between a 'reluctant frugalist' like Jonathan and an aspiring minimalist like Brad. In Today’s Podcast we cover: The reluctant frugalist (Jonathan) vs. the mindset of the aspiring minimalist (Brad) How both these mindsets are valid and strong approaches to the concept of Financial Independence How do you talk to your spouse or significant other about financial independence? Voicemail from Royce about how he can get his wife on board with FI? You need to have a conversation with your significant other about what you want out of life and where you want to go as a team The pursuit of FI can bring you closer together as it can make you wealthier and happier Jonathan’s story about FI and his wife plus a story of the ‘addictive nature’ of buying stuff How Jonathan changed his entire life with the pursuit of FI FI as the ultimate life hack You need to see the other person’s motivation and incentives when trying to persuade them Being near

028R | In today's Friday Roundup we discuss tax-deferred accounts, the Roth IRA conversion ladder, frugal wins of the week, an 'expert answer' from the Millionaire Educator as well as the Hot Seat with community member Chad! In Today’s Podcast we cover: The Friday Roundup after Episode 28 where we discussed the order of operations for savings as well as the available ‘buckets’ Brad’s discussion of his new health targets: CrossFit and Gracie Jiu-Jitsu and how he saves money through a Gracie Garage Our preference is to fill your tax-deferred buckets as much as possible Message from Amy on the Facebook group on maxing out Roth IRAs How the FI community thinks differently in regard to Roth IRAs and investing in general Explaining the Roth IRA conversion ladder Voicemail from Stephen about the Roth IRA conversion ladder and how the calculation changes when you are making income in FI The essence is living a frugal lifestyle and everything else takes care of itself Brad’s explanation of how to mentally approach hav

028 | In today's podcast we discuss the four different "buckets" available to savers plus an in-depth look at the Roth IRA and the 'Backdoor Roth.' In Today’s Podcast we cover: The order of operations for how you should approach the different “buckets” available to you both for retirement accounts and for your taxable savings Four basic ways for your retirement and investment funds to be taxed Best case is an account similar to the HSA which is not taxed when you put the money in nor when you pull it out Option 2 is the Roth IRA which is taxed upfront but not when you pull the money out Option 3 is a traditional IRA, 401k, etc. where it is not taxed when you contribute but is taxed when you withdraw Option 4 is your regular savings/investment accounts We focus mostly on tax-deferred retirement accounts because that is the best way to lower your taxable income in the current year and reduce your tax liability. Because of advanced FI concepts such as the ‘Roth IRA conversion ladder’ there is a chance you can pu

027R | In today's podcast we highlight our takeaways from Episode 27 with Jay from Slowly Sipping Coffee, plus we discuss the 'Mount Rushmore' of FI and help debunk a lot of the misinformation surrounding the value of the mortgage interest deduction. In Today’s Podcast we cover: The Friday Roundup bringing in many aspects of our audience and community plus our thoughts on the Episode 27 with Jay from Slowly Sipping Coffee How to join the Choose FI Facebook group Looking at the great team of Mr. and Mrs. Slowly Sipping Coffee and how they gained flexibility and freedom How they made a game out of personal finance and that enabled them to save big on their credit card bills Just by being more conscious of their spending allowed them to save over 50% of their discretionary spending How ‘grazing’ by shopping at stores like Target can help fuel lifestyle inflation It’s important how we spend our time. Batch processing with intentionality is a way to fix our inefficient use of time How Jonathan can come up with a s

027 | Today we welcome Jay from Slowly Sipping Coffee to the podcast to talk about his reluctant path to FI, the amazing Mrs. SSC and a Fully Funded Lifestyle Change. In Today’s Podcast we cover: Our interview with Jay from Slowly Sipping Coffee How they came up with the name of their blog and how they’d enjoy ‘slowly sipping coffee’ in a more relaxed and free Friday morning The origin story of their Financial Independence journey: SSC googled and found Mr. Money Mustache SSC already had a spreadsheet where she tracked everything and believed they could retire at 45 before finding the concept of FI How Jay resisted the concept of financial independence because he thought living off $25,000 would be absolute deprivation The Lightbulb Moment where Jay finally saw the light and started believing in the spreadsheet They set up challenges to cut credit card spending and they reduced spending just by being intentional Eating food at restaurants was a huge portion of their prior budget that they were able to cut Cos

026R | In today's podcast we discuss our takeaways from Episode 26 with Physician on FIRE plus some exciting developments in the Financial Independence world as well as feedback, questions and comments from the ChooseFI community. In Today’s Podcast we cover: The Friday Roundup after the Physician on FIRE interview from Episode 26 Information for the high income professionals and how it’s important to give details for that aspect of our audience Does the perfect answer exist for high income professionals pursuing FI? It might not be possible to defer enough money to get them out of that high marginal tax rate “A dollar saved is two dollars earned in the 50% tax bracket.” A brilliant quote from Physician on FIRE Everything comes down to living a frugal lifestyle “Doesn’t your spouse deserve a really great lifestyle?” asked the White Coat Investor. “Well yes, and she’ll have one, but she deserves my time.” Responds PoF. The fundamental flaw in the ‘retirement calculators’ that are published online for “normal p

026 | Today we welcome the Physician on FIRE to the podcast to talk about his path to FI as well as tips and hacks for other high income and medical professionals to get on the path to Financial Independence. In Today’s Podcast we cover: Our guest on the show today is Physician on Fire, who is here to tell us his story as well as some Financial Independence hacks for doctors and other high income individuals His message is for people with high incomes who aren’t looking to live an ultra-frugal lifestyle What does a conversation look like with a fellow physician in person or on his blog? How difficult is it to delay gratification and not spend significantly when physicians get their “first big paycheck” after many years of not making much money He recommends physicians paying down their student loan debt so it isn’t hanging over your head Physician on Fire’s own personal history and path towards Financial Independence He took a “permanent” job at a hospital, which went out of business after 4 years when he los

025R | In today's Friday Roundup we discuss Episode 25 with Keith from the Wealthy Accountant, Part 4 of the case study with Paul including a look at his line-by-line expenses, plus questions and feedback from the audience. In Today’s Podcast we cover: Friday Roundup after Episode 25 with Keith from The Wealthy Accountant The firehose of information that Keith unleashed was incredible! Feedback from the audience about Keith’s episode The value of an S-corp election for small businesses How to find a top tier accountant with passion for helping you When should you form an LLC when starting a side business and are there any benefits of doing so? Danielle’s feedback about our working of “taxable savings.” She used “post-tax savings” which we really like Dominic’s feedback about reinvesting dividends Careers that help you get to FI: Nursing and feedback from the audience on why this is such a positive career on the path to Financial Independence Announcing the ChooseFI private facebook group! Discussion of Camp M

025 | In today's podcast we have Keith from The Wealthy Accountant on the show to discuss tax optimization for individuals and small businesses with plenty of tax tips for your FI tool chest. In Today’s Podcast we cover: Keith from the Wealthy Accountant presents his tax optimization strategies for individuals and small business owners Keith is the most knowledgeable accountant we have ever met. We met him in Florida at Camp Mustache and his exuberance for tax optimization was infectious Keith became the official accountant of Mr. Money Mustache after a presentation at Camp Mustache in Seattle A discussion of how to save FICA taxes by being taxed as an S-Corporation instead of as a pass through entity such as an LLC Keith’s discussion of potential tax law change based on the President’s proposal For people starting a business, where would Keith start? Business structure, getting kids and spouses involved, etc. Keith believes when you have business income over $50,000 that you should be an LLC taxed as an S-Co

024R | In today's Friday Roundup we discuss Episode 24 with Joel and Alexis from FI180 as well as some expert voicemails from Chad Carson about real estate plus Ken talking about ESPP options. In Today’s Podcast we cover: Friday Roundup after Episode 24 with Joel and Alexis from FI 180 Camp Mustache tickets for January 2018 are available for sale, so come and join us! The letter Joel wrote to his younger self and the emotional value of it The sacrifice for living an opulent lifestyle is too great in our opinion as you have finite resources and have to make the best choices Joel and Alexis had a true choice and inflection point where they chose Financial Independence They looked at FI as a game and had fun trying to gain a quicker path to FI. It made them happier and brought them closer together The 72 hour no buying rule that Liz from Frugalwoods informed us about Brad’s new favorite card game: Monopoly Deal Feedback from the audience: Austin’s email about his path to FI with a career that didn’t require a Ba

024 | Today we have Joel and Alexis from FI180.com on the podcast.   They changed their financial lives dramatically, going from spending over $100,000 per year to having an 85% savings rate and on the path to FI in just a few short years. In Today’s Podcast we cover: Joel and Alexis from FI180.com tell their story of how they went from spending over $100,000 per year to having an 85% savings rate FI can only be a few steps away and this story is the perfect example They bought new cars, a new house and didn’t track their spending at all In 2014 Alexis was in a terrible car accident and that led to the awakening that changed their financial lives. They took the $10,000 they received from the car and invested it in Vanguard The costs (financial and health) and opportunity costs of a long commute Every month they tried to make one change to improve their finances Their savings rate was only 7% at their lowest and last year it went up to 85% (since lowered to about 75%-80% to add happiness) Joel’s brother is als

023R | In today's Friday Roundup we discuss career hacking with ESI Money, Big ERN's analysis of Paul's case study, plus hear our answers to an interesting question posed by audience member Jason about the value of frugality. In Today’s Podcast we cover: Friday Roundup after Episode 23 with ESI from ESI Money Looking at compound interest on the earnings side of a career instead of just on the savings side ESI is now an author on Business Insider. Our question of how he made that connection What jumped out to us from the episode with ESI? Starting at a higher salary, managing the boss, etc. Commonalities of career paths for people pursuing FI and for Second Generation FIRE? Options for seasonal work (such as tax preparation) while pursuing FI Managing the boss: Telling your boss you want to be a high performer and how to quantify it How this sets you up to ‘win’ either in this current job or to land a better job elsewhere The power of networking for Choose FI and our growth Personal relationships matter, even

023 | ESI from ESI Money is on the podcast today talking about Career Hacking and how you can set yourself up to earn millions more over a working career with seven simple steps. In Today's Podcast We Cover: ESI from ESIMoney.com is here to discuss ways you can increase your earnings through Career Hacking ESI retired at 52 and reaching “financial independence” in his early 40s. He lives in Colorado, which is where many FI bloggers live Your career is a multi-million dollar asset and it is important to focus on maximizing your earnings There are steps you can take to increase your lifetime earnings while in the same job Start with a higher beginning pay and how to get there Start with a career that has a higher opening pay; negotiate your starting salary; increase your pay through education/degrees How we can use this knowledge and apply it to our kids for ‘second generation fire’ How to get higher than 3% raises per year and how that can lead to millions of dollars of extra income through a career Seven acti

022R | In today's Friday Roundup we discuss the True Cost of Car Ownership, how to maximize your travel rewards points plus a big announcement on a new in-house 'expert' for ChooseFI! In Today’s Podcast we cover: Episode review of our podcast Episode 22 on The True Cost of Car Ownership Your best-case scenario is buying a 5 to 10 year old gas sipping car Even a low cost car is going to cost you at least $2,000 per year Your fixed structural expenses move the needle significantly on your path to FI, and the car is the easiest one to change. Comment from Matt on how he introduced this to his algebra class on why buying a new car is a bad decision and what it amounts to when compounded Second generation Fire: Starting out right and not buying an expensive car (plus house hacking) will set people up for Financial Independence by 35 Question on Saverocity about living close or far from work and how that impacts your path to Financial Independence Is bicycling a pillar of FI or is it unrealistic for the vast majori

022 | Do you know what your car is actually costing you each year? What about over an investing lifetime? In this episode of the ChooseFI Radio Podcast we cover the True Cost of Car Ownership and you'll be absolutely amazed at the numbers. In Today’s Podcast we cover: ChooseFI: The Ultimate Guide to the True Cost of Car Ownership Your car payment is a terrible way to spend your hard earned money We’ll present two different perspectives: Brad will show the long-term compounded cost of buying/leasing new cars continually versus holding a car for 15 years while Jonathan is going to present the yearly cost of your car Brad wanted to see what it was costing someone to constantly “manage their car payments” at a set number forever by buying/leasing new cars This example is too conservative so a FI person would actually save even more money! In Brad’s example the FI person is buying a new car every 15 years. They have payments for the first 5 years and $0 car payments the final 10 years.  Person B is constantly payi

021R | In today's episode of the Friday Roundup we review our discussion of the Pillars of Financial Independence, take questions and comments from the community and go in-depth on Paul's live case study. In Today’s Podcast we cover: Review of Episode 21, the Pillars of Financial Independence What areas of financial independence did we leave out of the episode? Might have under-discussed savings rate as a pillar of FI Choose FI as one of the ‘5 people you spend the most time with’ The value of $100 savings per month after 20 years or 40 years Can Jonathan really do 50 pullups? Comment from the audience: Charlotte mentioned Geographic Arbitrage as a pillar of financial independence Comment from the audience: Mary suggests that taxes are the largest line item in your budget, not housing like we mentioned Comment from Frank: He thinks we can do an entire episode on how to educate your children on money Comment from Matt: The expense ratio on Vanguard’s VTSAX fund was just lowered to 0.04% FIRE in the News: Anti-

021 | In this episode of the Choose FI Radio Podcast we focus on the essential Pillars of Financial Independence including index investing, affordable housing, the psychology of FI, tax optimization and more. In Today’s Podcast we cover: ChooseFI Episode 21: The Pillars of Financial Independence While we intend to focus on the roughly 10 pillars of FI, we assuredly have missed some so we hope the audience sends us the ones we’ve missed Low-cost index fund investing is the way to go with investing in the stock market over decades and the best way to grow your wealth We love Vanguard and VTSAX but Schwab and Fidelity have similar funds with similar expense ratios Even the Mad Fientist realized that he couldn’t out-research the market and stuck with index funds while he pursued tax optimization strategies to grow his wealth even faster Another sub-pillar is to not try to time the stock market. You will screw it up since you need to be right on the buying and selling side Affordable housing as a pillar of Financi

020R | In today's Friday Roundup we introduce our first crowd sourced case study from a listener and we have a challenge to you:  Implement one life hack this week that will make your life easier and less stressful and send it to us at feedback@choosefi.com (or leave a voicemail on our homepage!) and we'll read it on next week's Friday roundup. In Today’s Podcast we cover: Our first Friday roundup after a non-guest episode which leaves lots of time for audience input, questions and voicemails We want the podcast to be ‘By FIRE for FIRE’ and make it truly crowdsourced Jonathan and Brad are living a normal middle class lifestyle, just smarter. We aren’t doing anything especially different – just optimizing Brad and his wife Laura had a conversation about what makes their spending different than their friends and neighbors While the fixed expenses are essential (home, cars, cell phones, cable, etc.) the discretionary expenses also make the difference between a non-FI mindset and one pursuing FI How Brad’s kids a