Countless people are experiencing a tremendous amount of pressure in life, and it's closing in from all angles. Financial, work, relationships.....sometimes it can feel like too much. In today's episode, host Travis Shelton describes a common scenario so many people are facing, how all the pieces are interconnected, and what you can do to unwind them. If any of this resonates with you, just know you aren't alone and it's never too late. This is heavy stuff, but there is hope.....lots of hope!

Summer travel is upon us! We love travel, and suspect many of you do as well. The only down side: travel can cause financial stress that leaks into our everyday life. In today's episode, host Travis Shelton discusses a different way to look at and execute travel. It's a small but meaningful tweak that a could make all the difference in the world.

We received a lot of feedback from episode 124 where we talked about the importance of not letting the selfishness of others steals our generous sprit. Today's episode is dedicated to one person's feedback.

The world tells us to do anything and everything to avoid failure.  After all, failing = losing, right?  We couldn't disagree more.  Rather, we think failure is the entry price to growth and success.  If we aren't willing to fail, or to take it a step further, actually pursue failure, we put an artificial cap on how far we can go.  In today's episode, host Travis Shelton explains why this concept is so important and shares some recent examples of he and Cole's recent pursuits.  This episode is actually one such endeavor, as it's completely unedited and fully raw.  It was scary to record, and the risk of failure was ever-present, which was the goal.  What about you?  What's one area of life your fear of failure has held you back from growth and possible success?

In past episodes, we've mentioned the idea of giving anonymously. On the surface, it sounds odd. However, in practice, it's one of the most powerful and life-giving things we can do with money. In today's episode, host Travis Shelton explains the various reasons why you might want to consider giving anonymously and provides some ideas on how to execute anonymous giving (it can be tricky!). This is a much-requested topic, and we're so glad to discuss it publicly in this forum. Enjoy!

There are many obvious benefits to budgeting, but today we're going to talk about a not-so-obvious benefit. Sometimes we fail. Sometimes we make mistakes. Sometimes we do something we wish we could undo. One benefit of budgeting monthly is that somewhere between 1 and 30 days from now we'll get a clean slate. It's a beautiful part of this whole budgeting stuff, and one that can save us a lot of stress and heartbreak. In today's episode, host Travis Shelton shares some real-life examples of how this plays out in his family's life, as well as many of his clients'.

Sometimes when we're generous, we'll get taken advantage of. Host Travis Shelton recently posted a $100 Starbucks gift card on our podcast Facebook group to bless some of our listeners. In addition to hopefully bringing a few smiles to people's faces, we expected two things to happen.

Today's episode is short and simple. We're going to do a self-assessment to determine the top 10 things that add value to your life. It's an odd concept, and probably not something you've thought about much along the journey. Here's how it works. Spend some time thinking about what's really important to you. What are the 10 things that add the most value to your life. It can be anything. A product, an activity, a service, a possession.....be creative as you want. Once you inventory your top 10, determine if they line up with your financial and life decisions, or does there appear to be a gap between our values and our behavior? Also, if you're married, what does the overlap look like between you and your spouse?

Often, people perceive the idea of handling their money well as "being controlled." Being controlled by their spouse, or a budget, or by an overall lack of freedom. This idea is what can oftentimes push people away from making wise financial decisions. The reality is actually the opposite. This is far less about being controlled as it is having control. In today's episode, host Travis Shelton explains why this distinction makes all the difference in the world and why the truth behind this should be a catalyst for everyone to get control of their finances. There's a freedom that comes on the other side of gaining control, and that freedom looks absolutely nothing like being controlled!

As a continuation of some of our previous investing episodes, today we talk about the massive impact time adds to the investing mix. When we think about investing, we tend to think of it linearly. An up-and-to-the-right slope of constant progress. However, reality is a bit different. There's nothing consistent about it.....and at some point in the journey, the line skyrockets upwards. Why? Time! When investing, time is the secret sauce. In today's episode, host Travis Shelton shares an example of a young 23-year-old couple who have a golden opportunity to absolutely crush this investing stuff. Also, we discuss the power time has to reduce (and essentially eliminate) the risk we expose ourself to investing in the stock market. Hope you enjoy!

One of the most challenging and frustrating pieces of personal finance is gaining control of a variable income. For a multitude of reasons, many families have an inconsistent income that can make it difficult to manage. In today's episode, host Travis Shelton explains an odd but simple way for families with variable incomes to regain control. If implemented well, we can actually create an unprecedented level of consistency and predictability....while reducing the amount of pressure we feel from month-to-month. We hope this episode gives you some simple and tangible tools to navigate your own situation!

The stock market is having another brutal run, so it's a great opportunity for us to beat on the drum of risk, patience, and the big picture. Many people are getting anxious about what's happening to their investments. If you've listened to any of our past investing episodes, this is exactly what we've been talking about. This isn't unexpected, but rather is part of normal and healthy stock market. If we're invested patiently and broadly, we have absolutely nothing to fear. In today's episode, host Travis Shelton shares some reasons why all this mess is just part of the normal rhythm of investing. After all, in order to succeed over a long period of time, we must take the bad with the good.

Should married couples combine finances? This has become an increasingly debated topic in the personal finance world. In today's episode, host Travis Shelton explains our position (very strong position!) on the topic. In short, we believe strongly in the idea of spouses combining finances...more so than most any topic we discuss on this podcast. We explain why this has become an increasingly common question, why we think this decision matters, and the serious implications stemming from how couples elect to navigate this topic. If you're married or plan to get married soon, we hope this episode moves the needle for you. This is huge decision and we have a very strong opinion on this one.

When it comes to money, a common piece of advice you've probably heard is "live below your means." On the surface, this idea makes intuitive sense and indeed can create a debt-free life. It's practical and it's intuitive. However, as one of host Travis Shelton's friends recently explained, this mindset can lead us down a self-serving, entitled, and narcissistic path. It's a path where we continually reward ourselves with nicer cars, bigger houses, and more glamorous trips. It's the pursuit of more. Instead, she proposed an alternative mindset. For each of us to establish our base standard of living, i.e. "structure", then giving the majority of the excess. Doing so creates a life of service to others, while also maintaining margin in our life to be in a position to make life/career shifts as we're called to do so. There are three main routes we can pursue with excess: hoarding, materialism, or unhinged generosity. This is the case for the third option. Yes, we understand the counter-cultural nature of this idea. But as you know, our job isn't to tell people what to do. Rather, it's to share a different perspective, help people see this money stuff from a different angle, then make the best decision for their journey.

Sometimes we are blessed with a financial windfall.  Whether it's a one-time chunk of money coming in (tax refund, bonus, extra paycheck, etc.) or a monthly expense that goes away (which in effect creates additional income), we sometimes have moments where there will be more money coming in than prior months.  When this happens, it can be easy to let squander the opportunity or make a poor decision.  In today's episode, host Travis Shelton explains the six things we can do to ensure we're making a decision that moves us close to our goals and adds value to our journey.  

One of the most common criticisms we receive about our content is our perspectives come from a place of financial privilege.  Translation: most people can't view and handle work/money they way we discuss it.  If we're going to be fair, let's go ahead and acknowledge host Travis Shelton probably does have some level of financial privilege.  That's not under debate.  What is under debate is whether it's the chicken or the egg.  

In today's episode, host Travis Shelton sits down with Kristina Ellis, who is the newest personality at Ramsey Solutions.  Kristina has an amazing story, which includes earning $500,000 of scholarships that propelled her to attend her dream college debt-free.  This impacted her life so much she ultimately committed her career to helping others do this money and college stuff better.  She is the author of two books and has spent much of the last decade speaking to and working with young people to approach college in a better way.  We discuss our culture's toxic college-at-any-cost mindset, how student debt is crippling this entire generation, and how we as students/parents can take a better path.

We recently polled our IG followers about what topics we should cover on the podcast. Two people immediately asked about financially preparing for kids, so here we are! It's a bit of a bad news, good news situation. Bad news: yes, kids cost a lot. Good news: they cost whatever we spend on them. In other words, parents have a tremendous amount of control over what kids cost. In today's episode, host Travis Shelton discusses some of the costs needed before a child is born, the ongoing costs incurred after theta child is born, and a few other important considerations to think about along the way. Whether you're a current parent, a soon-to-be parent, or a someday parent, we hope this episode adds value to your journey.

Generosity is awesome! For us, there's nothing better. But whenever we start to think about generosity and giving, it can be easy to minimize ourselves. "I don't have enough to make a difference." "I'll just wait until I have more to give." "Giving is something those other people are able to do." Don't worry, we've done it too! In today's episode, host Travis Shelton talks about the importance of focusing on what we DO have, rather than dwelling on what we DON'T have. It sounds like splitting hairs, but it can make all the difference in the world.

Do you or someone you know struggle to keep spending under control? In today's episode, host Travis Shelton addresses a question that came in from a listener who believes they have a spending problem. Spending isn't bad (we've talked about this idea often), but an overspending problem can cause significant issues. Financial issues, relational issues, psychological/emotional issues.