To celebrate the release of JL Collins' new book, Pathfinders, I collected all the best advice from his Financial Independence Podcast interviews!   Jim has been on the show three times:  

• First, back in 2012 (he was my second guest ever!)
• Second, when his hit book, The Simple Path to Wealth, was released
• Third, during the depths of the Coronavirus crash

  That last interview may be my proudest moment as the Mad Fientist (I explain why during the show).   Hope you enjoy this jam-packed episode!

Highlights

• The power of FU Money and why it may be less money than you think
• Jim’s biggest investing mistake and what he learned from it
• Why index investing is superior to active investing
• Are REITs and international funds necessary
• Why your house may not be a good investment
• Thoughts on stock picking and actively-managed funds
• What makes Vanguard unique and why it’s best for investors
• The three keys to becoming wealthy
• Lessons learned from Black Monday
• How to prepare for the next market crash

Health is similar to finances in that there are many overly-complex things people say you need to do, but there are just a few simple things that actually matter.

What is the "spend less than you earn, invest in a diversified/low-fee portfolio, and leave it to grow/compound" of the health world?

That's what today's episode is about!

Parker Hewes wrote a book called Lifelong Youth: The Simple Path to a Long and Youthful Life, and today he shares the eight health behaviors that will do the most for your longterm health and wellbeing!

On today’s episode of the Financial Independence Podcast, I welcome back Chad Carson from CoachCarson.com!

Chad just released a new book, The Small and Mighty Real Estate Investor, and I wanted to get him back on the show to talk about it.

I’m not a real-estate investor myself though. So rather than interview him myself, my real-estate-investor friend, Jillian Johnsrud, did the interview for me!

You may know Jillian from Montana Money Adventures, or her new podcast – Retire Often.

She did a fantastic job, so I hope you enjoy their conversation as much as I did!

On today’s episode of the Financial Independence Podcast, I welcome back Ramit Sethi from I Will Teach You to Be Rich!

I needed someone to come on the show to provide some tough love and Ramit was the only person for the job.

As Ramit mentioned during our last interview, FIRE people are great at knowing what NOT to spend on but we’re not good at knowing what to spend on.

Spending is going to be a big focus on the Mad Fientist this year and I can’t think of a better way to kick off this discussion than by getting yelled at by Ramit so hope you enjoy it!

Highlights

• Why we doubled our annual spending (and was it worth it)
• What Ramit did to make me get all clammy and uncomfortable
• Why pay less when you can pay more
• How to imagine your own rich life
• Why you should start wasting some money at a certain point

Over the last few years, I interviewed members of my family to find out two things:

1. How I became the Mad Fientist (i.e. where did I get my extreme ideas about money)
2. What advice they'd give to parents hoping to raise money-smart children

This is a short but sweet holiday episode to end the year and I hope you enjoy it!

Cody Berman and Justin Taylor, hosts of the FI Show, have both achieved financial independence but they've taken drastically different paths to get there.

Listen to this Podcast Takeover episode to hear the similarities and differences between an employee's path to FI (Justin's) and an entrepreneur's journey to FIRE (Cody's)!

Highlights

• Live-in flip vs. house hacking
• Sweet spot for buying used cars
• Why focusing on fixed expenses is important
• How to 5x your corporate income
• The unlimited upside of entrepreneurship
• How to get started investing if you're scared/nervous
• Nest-egging vs. cash-flowing your way to financial independence
• The benefits of a Solo-401(k) for entrepreneurs
• Why the corporate world is great for certain types of people
• Benefits and downsides of entrepreneurship
• Why it's important to not keep up with the FI Joneses either

Show Links

• The FI Show - https://thefishow.com
• The FI Show's Mega Backdoor Roth Episode - https://thefishow.com/mega-backdoor-roth-solo-401k-explained/
• The Mad Fientist's Mega Backdoor Roth Article - https://www.madfientist.com/after-tax-contributions/

 

Life has completely changed.

And because of this major change, I'm even more grateful for the freedom, flexibility, and time that financial independence and early retirement provide.

In this short episode, I fill you in on what's been happening and I discuss the reasons for my newfound appreciation of FI.

Welcome to another podcast-takeover episode of the Financial Independence podcast!

This time, Mathias from the Financial Independence Europe podcast takes over the show to talk to Luke Freeman (from Giving What We Can) and Rebecca Herbst (from Yield and Spread) about Effective Altruism!

Highlights

• What is Effective Altruism
• How to give efficiently and effectively
• Benefits of joining the effective altruism community
• How giving is evolving
• Differences between the US and Europe with regards to philanthropy
• How to give to charity while pursuing FI

Show Links

• Financial Independence Europe - https://financial-independence.eu/
• Yield and Spread - http://yieldandspread.com
• Give What We Can - https://www.givingwhatwecan.org
• Give Well - https://www.givewell.org
• Original Show Link - https://financial-independence.eu/uncategorized/episode-147-how-to-give-effectively-luke-freeman-and-rebecca-herbst/

Exactly 10 years ago, I released the first episode of the Financial Independence Podcast!

To celebrate this big birthday, I’ve collected all the best advice from my interviews with my very first podcast guest – Mr. Money Mustache!

Highlights

• Mr. Money Mustache’s investing strategy
• Thoughts on real-estate investing vs. stock-market investing
• How to invest in a raging bull market
• The benefits of hitting FI before having kids
• Why you’ll likely make money after retiring early
• Mr. Money Mustache’s biggest splurge
• How to decide whether to pay off your mortgage early
• The best part of financial independence
• How to find meaning after early retirement
• Most challenging part of post-FI life
• The impact of financial independence on personal relationships

On today’s episode of the Financial Independence Podcast, I speak to Patrick Aime from Aime to Invest!

Patrick’s journey to FI is an incredible one. He…

• Moved from his home in Rwanda to attend high school in Europe and college in America
• Stayed in America after college and started working in the feast-or-famine world of sales
• Started his own company and grew it to $5 million in revenue in four years
• Used his success in business to invest in rental properties and live a lavish lifestyle
• Lost everything during the 2008 global financial crisis and had to declare bankruptcy
• Found FIRE and drastically reduced his expenses and started saving for the long term
• Rebuilt a smaller business and started investing in short-term rental properties in Mexico
• Utilized geographic arbitrage to lower his expenses even further
• Hit FI 8 years after declaring bankruptcy and became a millionaire 2 years after FI

Patrick shares everything he learned during his rollercoaster financial journey so hope you enjoy the interview!

I'm excited to share with you the first Podcast Takeover episode of the Financial Independence Podcast!

Carl and Doug from the Mile High FI podcast take over the Financial Independence Podcast to talk about their early retirement successes and failures.

Enjoy!

Highlights

• Test drive early retirement by going part-time or taking a sabbatical
• Why finding a community is even more important for early retirees
• How to give yourself permission to slow down and be inefficient/unoptimized
• Why you can (and should!) reinvent yourself after you leave your job
• How to stop worrying about running out of money
• Why meaningful work is still the key to happiness after FI

Show Links

• Mile High FI - https://milehighfi.com
• My interview on the Mile High FI podcast - https://milehighfi.com/podcast/048-mad-fientist/