Ep.11 - I've Become More Money Savvy Because of This Podcast

Quick disclosure: I am NOT sponsored by the podcast I am about to discuss. As a matter of fact, the host/owner is not yet aware of my writing on it. 

WHAT IS THIS PODCAST ABOUT?

Money for the Rest of Us is a weekly finance/investing podcast hosted by David Stein. For close to two decades, David Stein worked as an investment advisor and asset manager for institution and high net-worth clients. Now he's retired and he produces a 30-minute podcast every Wednesday. In the past three years, he's consistently produced over 150 episodes, ranging from why investment won't make you rich, to how much you need to save.

As a matter of fact, I've listened to every single episode he's produced. I think his content is great, because it's provided me a few general rules/philosophy on how to manage money.

WHAT ARE THESE GENERAL RULES I LEARNED?

1) Rule #1: Investment won't make you rich. I learned this from episode 119. A lot of people dream about quitting their day jobs, then living off of day trading or investment income. It's just not a wise thing to do, because no one knows what's going to happen, and you WILL make mistakes in investments. The best way to get rich needs to be done with the real economy, where goods or services are produced. If investment does not make me rich, what's the purpose of investment then? It is to preserve, specifically preserve from inflation. 

2) Rule #2: We know less than we think. I learned this from episode 152. When it comes to money, no matter how knowledgeable I think I am, I should not be overconfident, because I may not actually know all the details. In fact, when I think I know everything, I may actually only know a high-level concept. It is an important rule for me when it comes to investments, because I've learned to force myself to do my due-diligence, no matter how much of an expert I think I am.

3) Rule #3: Buying things does not make us happy: I learned this from episode 146. We often buy things because we believe they will make us happy. Stein argues, "often buying things that we think will make us happy makes us feel just as empty and unhappy as before we bought them." I can't agree more. I've never been the person who buys the latest iPhone. But I've bought a lot of things that have proven to be nothing but a waste.

IF YOU ARE NEW, TRY THESE EPISODES FIRST

Start with episode 94 "How Money is Created and Destroyed".  It is the most mind-blowing one for me, because it completely changed what I had believed was the truth, possibly to the same extent when people found out that Earth is actually not flat.

If you are investing your savings, check out episode 80 "Investing Means Getting Lost".  David preaches keeping investment simple. Episode 80 really does a good job talking about the emotional side of investing, in particular fear and overconfidence.

If you recently changed your job or you are looking for a new job, check out episode 156 "Your Job or Half Your Business Could be Gone Tomorrow". I completely agree with him, that we, millennials, need to constantly develop ourselves, in order to keep an edge in the workforce, because job competition is no longer just within the borders, but global.

THE PODCAST IS AD-SPONSORED, BUT IT DOES NOT BOTHER ME

Recently, David started inserting ads into his podcasts in an interesting way. He does not announce it in the traditional way of an ad break. Instead, he tries to insert it seamlessly with his content.

It does not bother me at all, as I understand, along with membership, that's part of his monetization strategy. As a listener, it's good to be aware that his recommendation in the ad segment is actually being paid for by someone else. I still think his content is highly valuable.

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