Afford Anything | Make Smart Money Choices

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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.

  1. EPISODE 703

    First Friday: Jobs Are Up. So Why Does the Economy Feel Worse?

    #703: April’s jobs report comes in much stronger than expected, with 178,000 jobs added and unemployment ticking down to 4.3 percent. That headline deserves a closer look, especially when other labor data still points to a slower, lower-hiring environment.From there, we break down what the latest Fed decision means, why mortgage rates remain elevated, and how a sudden spike in oil and gas prices could affect inflation, consumer sentiment, and the broader economy. We also cover recent market volatility and why long-term investors may want to think differently about short-term swings. In the second half: News involving Vicki Robin that has rippled through the FIRE community, proposed changes could expand what 401(k) plans can hold, and major student loan developments — including the end of the SAVE plan and what borrowers should be watching next. Vicki Robin links: Paula’s Newsletter - https://ckarchive.com/b/0vuwh9h9e4289c7mggrmzhv8qo9rqhnh50v Vicki’s Substack - https://vickirobin.substack.com/p/abusers-and-the-women-who-love-them Afforder Community - affordanything.com/community Sources:
 https://www.advisorperspectives.com/dshort/updates/2026/03/31/jolts-report-job-openings-february-2026 https://www.challengergray.com/blog/challenger-report-march-cuts-rise-25-from-february-ai-leads-reasons https://www.dol.gov/newsroom/releases/ebsa/ebsa20260330 https://myeddebt.ed.gov Timestamps: Note: Timestamps will vary on individual listening devices based on dynamic advertising segments. The provided timestamps are approximate and may be several minutes off due to changing ad lengths. (00:00) A busy start to April(01:03) Stronger than expected jobs report(06:06) A softer picture for job openings(07:13) Where layoffs are showing up(10:15) Why the Fed held rates steady(12:05) What’s keeping mortgage rates elevated(21:05) Why gas prices rose so quickly(27:28) How to think about market volatility(30:20) A proposed change for 401k plans(32:37) News from Vicki Robin(40:55) A shift in student loan management(42:37) What the end of SAVE means(45:16) Changes for Parent PLUS borrowers Share this episode with a friend, colleagues, and your airline gate agent: https://affordanything.com/episode703 Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

    41 min

  2. 4 DAYS AGO

    Q&A: Why 3 Years Is a Weird Timeline for Money

    #702: Olivia is saving for a specific three-year goal and wants to know whether a money market fund is the right place to store that cash, or if a traditional savings account would be safer. Robert is planning to retire early in the next few years and is trying to decide whether to prioritize building taxable investments or continuing to grow Roth accounts. And finally, we’ll hear from a listener with nearly 30 years of experience in social work who wants to open an adult day center in a rural area where services for disabled adults are extremely limited—but isn’t sure whether to structure it as a nonprofit or a for-profit business. We’ll tackle all of that on today’s episode. Enjoy! Share this episode with a friend, colleagues, and Conan O'Brien: https://affordanything.com/episode702 Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

    1hr 3min

  3. 27 MAR

    What Retirement Planning Gets Wrong, with Jamie Hopkins

    #701: Forget the idea that you need a magic number to retire. Jamie Hopkins is a certified financial planner, professor of taxation at the American College of Financial Services, director of the New York Life Center for Retirement Income, and Top 40 Under 40 financial services professionals from InvestmentNews. His take on retirement planning will make you rethink a few things. We start with the "no magic number" concept. Hopkins explains that fixating on a savings target - whether it's $1 million or $10 million - misses the point. What matters is what income you can generate relative to the lifestyle you want. And that lifestyle shifts. Research shows retirees often spend more than 100 percent of their pre-retirement income in the first few years, then gradually spend less as they age. From there, we get into sequence of returns risk, which Hopkins calls one of the biggest threats to any retirement plan. A market downturn in the first few years of retirement can be nearly impossible to recover from, since you're withdrawing money while your portfolio is declining. We also dig into the well-known "4 percent rule" - which Hopkins prefers to call a "4 percent finding" - and why it only holds up in certain historical contexts. The conversation also covers the topics people tend to avoid. "Silver divorce" - the spike in divorces among people over 60 - is happening at higher rates than most people realize, and it can gut a retirement plan that was built around shared costs and two incomes. We also discuss elder abuse, which Hopkins says is mostly committed by family members or trusted advisors, not strangers - and how AI-generated voice cloning is making financial scams harder to detect. Finally, we end on what Hopkins considers the most important, and most overlooked, element of a good retirement: community. He argues that retirement is actually an ideal time to intentionally rebuild your social circle, choose where you want to live, and figure out what you're retiring to - not just from. Hopkins holds a JD, MBA, LLM, CFP, RICP, CLU, and ChFC. Resources: Jamie’s Book: Your Retirement Sketchbook: 125 Retirement Planning Lessons from Financial Experts Share this episode with a friend, colleagues, and your frenemies: https://affordanything.com/episode701 Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

    1hr 31min

  4. 24 MAR

    Q&A: A $30K Promotion Near FI, Learning Put Options, and Scaling a 16-Unit Portfolio

    #700: Today we’re tackling three different financial questions from our listeners. First, we’ll hear from Melanie, who is deciding whether to pursue a promotion that would increase her salary by $30,000 but may add more stress, even though she’s already close to financial independence. Next, Ami wants to learn how options trading works and is wondering how to find legitimate training without falling into expensive or questionable courses. And later in the episode, we’ll revisit Ben who called in six years ago asking how to grow from four rental units to twenty. Today he owns sixteen units and is deciding how to scale from here. We’ll tackle all of that on today’s episode #700!!! Resources: Interview with Rose Han: affordanything.com/episode652 Jeanne_Retired on TikTok (shared by Joe): https://www.tiktok.com/@jeanne_retired/video/7615363778938408223 Ben's original question on Episode 243: affordanything.com/episode243 Share this episode with a friend, colleagues, and your bank teller: https://affordanything.com/episode700 Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

    1hr 10min

  5. 20 MAR

    Nir Eyal: The Four Questions That Can Change Any Belief

    #699: You've probably heard that mindset matters. But what does that actually mean, and is there science behind it? Nir Eyal, author of Beyond Belief, joins us to break down the research. Eyal, who writes about the intersection between psychology and technology and taught at Stanford Graduate School of Business, opens with a counterintuitive claim: Motivation has nothing to do with rewards, he says. All motivation, he argues, stems from the desire to escape discomfort. That means money management, time management, and weight management are all really just pain management. That reframe sets up a bigger argument about beliefs. Our brains can't process the roughly 11 million bits of information hitting them every second, so instead of seeing reality, we predict it - based on whatever we already believe. That's why two people can face the same circumstances and have completely different outcomes. We dig into why visualization often backfires. Research by psychologist Gabrielle Oettingen found that people who pictured their ideal outcomes became less likely to do the work to achieve them. Athletes don't visualize trophies - they visualize obstacles. Eyal calls the productive version "mental contrasting": imagining what's in your way and planning how you'll handle it. We also cover the difference between limiting beliefs and liberating ones, and walk through a four-question exercise called a "turnaround" - a technique from Byron Katie's inquiry-based stress reduction practice - that helps you examine a belief, test whether it's absolutely true, and consider alternative perspectives. On the topic of quitting versus persisting, Eyal lays out three criteria: Did you hit your checkpoint? Are you still learning? Does persistence actually change anything? If all three answers are no, quitting makes sense. We close on money prioritization. When the math can settle a financial question, run the numbers. When it can't, it becomes a values question - and Eyal defines values as "attributes of the person you want to become." Resources: Download the four question turnaround exercise developed by Byron Katie, for free, at https://affordanything.com/turnitaround Book: Beyond Belief: The Science-Backed Way to Stop Limiting Yourself and Achieve Breakthrough Results, by Nir Eyal Share this episode with a friend, colleagues, and your florist: https://affordanything.com/episode699 Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

    1hr 2min

  6. 17 MAR

    Q&A: Should You Pause Retirement to Buy a Bigger Home?

    #698: We explore financial decision-making at different stages of life: A high-earning federal couple debates whether to pause retirement contributions to accelerate a $200,000 down payment.A part-time healthcare provider seeks clarity on balancing a 401k and a traditional IRA.And a longtime listener asks a more personal question: Is there anything we’re still figuring out ourselves? We examine strategy, trade-offs, tax efficiency, housing decisions, and the long-term thinking that shapes financial outcomes. (01:36) Hannah and her husband are in their mid-30s with two young children, and are hoping to upgrade to a larger “forever home” in several years while keeping their current home as a rental. They’re deciding whether to temporarily reduce retirement contributions to speed up down payment savings and how a possible cross-country relocation might affect those plans. (37:15) Amelia is a part-time healthcare provider in New York who earns hourly income and wants to contribute to both her employer’s 401(k) and a traditional IRA. She’s trying to determine how much to contribute to the 401(k) from each paycheck while still maxing out her traditional IRA—keeping the overall approach simple and tax-efficient. (56:12) Lesley praises Paula and Joe’s thoughtful responses to callers and wonders whether they ever seek advice from their audience. After recently undergoing brain surgery that prompted deeper reflection, the listener asks if there is anything in Paula and Joe’s financial, personal, or professional lives where they would value collective wisdom from their community. Share this episode with a friend, colleagues, and your mailman: https://affordanything.com/episode698 Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

    1hr 21min

  7. 13 MAR

    Bill Gurley: The Biggest Career Regret Most People Have

    #697: Most people regret the things they never tried. Venture capitalist Bill Gurley says that pattern shows up again and again in research on end-of-life regrets — including regret about the careers people never pursued.  In this episode, Gurley joins us to talk about how people actually discover work they enjoy - and why the cliché to “follow your passion” sends people in the wrong direction. We start with a question many listeners wrestle with: what if you reach your forties or fifties and still do not know what you want to do?  Gurley explains that career changes later in life remain possible. Financial flexibility helps. People who spend every dollar they earn limit their ability to shift paths. People who control their spending keep more options open. Gurley argues that “passion” often appears only after someone spends time exploring a field. A better starting point involves fascination - the subjects that pull your attention when nobody assigns the work.  Gurley suggests paying attention to what you study in your free time. If you find yourself reading about a topic instead of watching Netflix, that curiosity may signal a possible career direction. We also discuss how most successful careers involve several stops along the way.  Gurley studied hundreds of success stories and found that many people move through two or three roles before landing their long-term path. That pattern shows up across industries. Gurley began as a computer engineer working at Compaq. Even though he enjoyed the work, his curiosity shifted toward investing and business.  He eventually left engineering, went to business school and started knocking on doors in New York until he landed a job as a Wall Street analyst. That path later led him to Silicon Valley and a 25-year career in venture capital. Throughout the conversation, we talk about continuous learning, side projects that expand career options and how curiosity often shapes a career more than long-term planning. Resources Mentioned: Runnin' Down a Dream by Bill Gurley - https://amzn.to/4loywlQ The Power of Regret by Daniel Pink - https://amzn.to/4sNwZbQ Designing Your Life by Dave Evans & Bill Burnett - https://amzn.to/47yfeov One Up on Wall Street by Peter Lynch - https://amzn.to/4ruPsIX Atomic Habits by James Clear - https://amzn.to/4bj3cjR Interview with James Clear - Afford Anything Episode #638 Interview with David Epstein - Afford Anything Episode #206 Share this episode with a friend, colleagues, and your postal person: https://affordanything.com/episode697 Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

    1hr 22min

  8. 10 MAR

    Q&A: Should Your Emergency Fund Be Invested?

    #696: (01:50) Jeremy has been a careful budgeter for years, but a surprise car repair has him tapping his emergency fund. With rates falling, he’s wondering if cash is enough or if he should try bonds or a CD ladder to keep up with inflation. (22:22) A listener in Canada has a DIY portfolio but is tempted by Dimensional Funds, which requires a pricey advisor. At the same time, she’s thinking about leaving work and returning to school, but also wants to keep financially supporting her parents. (41:27) Anonymous is navigating the tricky waters of buying a new home while still living in their current one. He is considering a bridge loan to avoid a contingent offer, but he’s worried about the strict timeline and potential financial pitfalls. Is a bridge loan a smart move, or does the risk of being stuck outweigh the convenience? Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

    59 min
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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.

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