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.
704 episodes transcribed#358: Where is the balance between the risks and potential returns of actively and passively investing in index funds?Where do you place your savings...
#357: Discussing advanced investing topics with me is former financial planner Joe Saul-Sehy. You may recognize him from the Ask Paula episodes, but w...
#356: How do you find balance between smart money management vs. missing out on opportunities? Should you pile money into investments or take that dre...
#355: When Jordan Grumet realized he has achieved financial independence, he fell into a deep depression. He didn’t know who he was anymore, he says,...
#354: Charlie in Cali has enough money saved to pay cash for a house, but she and her husband decided to finance their home, instead. They’d rather in...
#353: Daniel Pink joins us to discuss an unusual theory: (1) that our energy rises, falls, and then rises again; (2) that this pattern plays out acros...
#352: Anna and her husband have volatile income, but Anna thinks that having 18 months of living expenses is unnecessary. She’s torn between paying of...
#351: Geoff Woods, Vice President of The ONE Thing and host of The ONE Thing podcast, is an expert on ruthless prioritization, habit development, and...
#350: Anonymous and her husband have set themselves on the path of saving for retirement. But an old mistake haunts them: a financial planner convince...
#349: A frank and candid conversation about life, dead-lifting, and enjoying the hell out of doing meaningful work. For more information, visit the sh...
#348: Aja’s mom is 75 and has to take required minimum distributions from her IRA. She doesn’t need the money. Where should she put it? Anonymous from...
#347: Back in the 1960’s, Jack Bogle thought that actively-managed mutual funds performed better than a passive indexing strategy. He pseudonymously p...
#346: Pensions make Chad uncomfortable, to the point of quitting his job to roll his $175,000 over to an IRA. Is the 12 percent match his employer off...
#345: Let’s talk about one of the biggest expenses you might ever encounter: health care costs. When you get a hospital bill, do you understand it? Af...
#344: Russell’s job offers the option to contribute to a 457 plan. Since he’s in the highest tax bracket, should he take advantage of the tax deferral...
#343: The real estate market in 2021 has been bonkers. That’s the technical term. From 2012 to 2020, home prices nationwide rose at an annualized aver...
#342: Russell is a busy professional who’d like to invest passively in real estate. Is there data he can use to compare this approach to owning and ma...
#341: Imagine a line. Cowardice exists at one extreme end of that line. Recklessness exists at the other extreme end. And in the balanced middle, you’...
#340: Imagine this: You start a side hustle. Maybe you sell planners or lead workouts in the park. You make a few thousand dollars during your first y...
#339: Have you ever thought, “I’d like to invest in rental real estate but there are no cheap properties in my area!” “Homes in my city are too expens...
