Money Matters With Wes Moss

A-list actor Matthew McConaughey is not only a beloved American talent, but an excellent speaker. His 2015 speech to University of Texas graduates is a prime and popular example, and one that Wes Moss found especially inspiring. While McConaughey's speech was targeted to fresh graduates starting their life and career journeys, Wes found much of the advice applicable to prepping for an early retirement, planning for your financial future, and being a better investor. So, in today's episode of Retire Sooner, Wes outlines the twelve insights he gleaned from this famous speech and how they can apply to your own financial life. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

If there's ever a concern about whether a partner is financially cheating or fudging the numbers on finances, you better hope Tracy Coenen is busy doing something else! Author of three books on fraud and embezzlement with more than 500 forensic accounting engagements completed, Tracy Coenen has spent more than 25 years investigating fraud. In this Retire Sooner episode, she joins Wes Moss to discuss forensic accounting and dig into signs that your spouse may be financially cheating on you. Tracy regales many examples she's seen of marital and divorce-related financial fraud and how she uses investment records, tax returns, bank statements, and even behavioral changes and social media to find the truth. She also shares her insights on how to have potentially difficult money conversations with your partner so that you both remain informed about marital finances. Tracy also shares how couples can use utilize resources such as her Red Flag Assessment and online Marriage, Divorce, and Post-Divorce Money Guides to

Do the dollars in your wallet seem to be wilting as prices increase? In this episode, Wes Moss and Retire Sooner producer Mallory Boggs discuss the worth of a dollar and price volatility at every level of purchase power. Whether you noticed price increases for a bottle of soda or a new car, we’re all experiencing the impact of rising costs. First, Wes shares insights about the most recent Consumer Price Index (CPI) numbers, though he notes that those differ from what investors should consider looking at right now. Next, he explains the US economy’s inflation, deflation, and avenues for capital once you've saved enough emergency cash. Finally, Wes and Mallory wrap up the episode with a few final thoughts and good news for investors. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Discover. Assimilate. Rewire. Expand. These are the four tenets of George Jerijan's DARE Method™ of teaching retirees to embrace passion, prosperity, and purpose. A retirement and mindset coach, Emmy award winning producer, and multi-industry author, Jerijan joins Wes Moss in this Retire Sooner episode to talk about how attracting your purpose rather than chasing the dollar can lead to a happier retirement. Based on his own experiences with health scares, semi-retiring, and surveying retirement-age concerns, Jerijan explains how he's living the life he truly desires now and aims to help retirees find their own new beginnings. Wes concludes the episode agreeing that it's not just money, but intangibles like mindset, that guides the mission of the Retire Sooner podcast to help people retire sooner. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In today's episode, Wes Moss shares his watch experience of the film Air with Retire Sooner producer, Mallory Boggs. Air is the new movie directed by and starring Ben Affleck, Matt Damon, Viola Davis, and others that depicts Nike signing Michael Jordan to one of the most lucrative shoe deals of all time in 1984. Wes and Mallory discuss the film's relation to fantasy football, Warren Buffett's concept of the American Tailwind, and how one corporate idea can create a billion-dollar company. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Do you know why you make the financial decisions you do? On today's Retire Sooner episode, associate professor of Practice and Financial Psychology at Creighton University and director of the Financial Psychology Institute®, Ted Klontz, joins Wes Moss to discuss our subconscious beliefs about money that control behavior. Klontz explains the importance and assessment of Money Scripts®, beliefs that are rooted in our childhood that ultimately shape our financial health. They go on to discuss the mindset around saving, the practice of exquisite listening, and the advantage of curiosity over judgment when it comes to your relationship with money. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Why might famed businessman and investor Warren Buffett respond, “I don’t care,” when asked about a recession? Today on Retire Sooner, Wes Moss dives into the Buffett mindset of sticking to your principles in long-term investing decisions and looking toward economic growth. In doing so, he discusses one investing planning strategy that could be essential to the journey of retiring sooner: investing in companies versus stocks. Taking Federal Reserve forecasts for 2023 into consideration, many companies can still survive, thrive, and have great returns. The episode concludes with the inspiration that having even a bit of the Buffett mindset may help you retire sooner than you think! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Today on Retire Sooner, Wes Moss sits down with the three-time winner of Atlanta’s Best Divorce Attorney, Aaron Thomas, also the founder of Prenups.com. As Aaron and Prenups.com will tell you, prenups are not just planning or anticipating for marital failure. He explains that they're more of a set of rules for how your money, kids, and assets are treated during marriage and divorce. Wes and Aaron go over the differences in prenup rules in Georgia versus other states, as well as the "first paycheck rule," the cost of divorce, how having a prenup in place can help keep it down, and how to approach a prenup conversation. This episode concludes with a few interesting marriage statistics such as: On average, the happiest Retirees On The Block spend more time discussing finances with their partners (based on research for the book “You Can Retire Sooner Thank You Think”). Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In the aftermath of two big banks collapsing, it's no surprise that some investors may feel uneasy about the state of their retirement savings. In this episode, Wes Moss gives details to explain if and how these bank failures impact your retirement journey. He provides insights into how the banking system works, walks through the history and current state of the FDIC, and the common perception that it's safer to use bigger banks versus regional or community banks. Additionally, he delves into the mismatch between interest rates and short-term US Treasury bonds and how you can invest your funds wisely to secure a respectable yield. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

What do economists and philosophers have in common? It’s not a trick question, but rather a debatable topic that Wes Moss and today’s guest, Paul Blaschko could discuss until the end of time! Paul Blaschko is the professor for the University of Notre Dame's most popular undergraduate class on philosophy. Wes and Paul dive deep into the philosophy versus theology schism and how Aristotle could be in the happy retiree camp. They also discuss Paul's "good life method" and the importance of good conversations. As this episode concludes, Paul shares some ways that people approaching retirement or later stages in life can continue improving their happiness and virtues and be comfortable with leisure for leisure's sake. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

There are seven fundamental habits that many self-made millionaires have in common, and today’s guest best-selling co-author of "The Millionaire Next Door," affluence expert and educator Dr. Bill Danko, explains. In this episode, Dr. Danko sits down with Wes to explain his research and findings on the most common traits among those who have accumulated wealth and how they did it. Dr. Danko also goes over what frugality can accomplish, the role of marketing in American consumer behavior, and occupations that may help you retire sooner. They also discuss the dynamics between being versus feeling versus looking wealthy and how happiness, giving, and gratitude fold into that idea. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

What does your digital footprint say about what you want? Data scientist, author of best-seller "Everybody Lies," and speaker Seth Stephens-Davidowitz sits down with Wes Moss to talk about how data can reveal societal and personal trends in desires, psychology, wealth building, and more. This includes when you become a sports fan, who you seek out for romantic partners and how you present yourself to them, and what activities are ranked as the happiest to do. Seth explains how he went from just reviewing data to using it to make his life decisions, and gives examples of how listening to his own data has made a difference for him. As for what data he encourages retirees to pay attention to, listen in to learn! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Purpose + passion + fun = core pursuits! When it comes to living a happy retirement, the more passions a retiree has, the better. But, on the other hand, our research shows that unhappy retirees tend to have less than two core pursuits driving their post-work life. So, how can you discover your core pursuits as part of your happy retirement plan? This episode will help you revisit ways to find core pursuits and what they can mean for you. In honor of March Madness, we've compiled a Core Pursuits Bracket to square off sixty-four "hobbies on steroids" to see what kind of core pursuit is championed for the happiest retirees on the block. Would you choose gardening versus pickleball or skydiving versus pottery? Voting is still open, so make your selections on the Retire Sooner social media pages! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The finance industry has innovated exponentially in recent decades, but are there some innovations that investors find more helpful than others? In this episode of Retire Sooner, Wes is joined by renowned economist and author of the highly influential book on investing, "A Random Walk Down Wall Street," Burton Malkiel. They dive deep into investing insights for yourself and your family's future and discuss various investment types. In addition, Wes and Burton address multiple ways to handle emotions and expectations during market volatility and how there's no one rule for how retirees should organize their finances. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In this episode, Wes and Retire Sooner producer Mallory Boggs go over Warren Buffett's "secret sauce" published in the Berkshire Hathaway 2022 Year In Review. They talk about how investing is not easy. While browsing through Buffett's rate-of-returns, Wes explains how Buffet's big numbers can equate to a more manageable scale that the average American can work with. He also assures that while Buffett is a special case of investing success, the mogul's lesson that the big wins tend to overshadow the little losses can be applicable to all who invest in stocks. The takeaway? Happy retirees aren't just savers, they're investors, too. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

If Hollywood made a movie about your life, who would they cast to play you? Today's Retire Sooner guest is Los Angeles Times columnist and four-time Pulitzer Prize finalist, Steve Lopez. In Steve's case, Iron Man himself, Robert Downey Jr., plays Steve in the film adaptation of his best-selling nonfiction book, The Soloist. Wes and Steve talk about the story behind the story, as well as how Steve fell in love with Los Angeles and the fateful accident that got Steve thinking about retirement for his latest book, Independence Day. As they dig deeper into the book and discussion around retirement, Steve addresses the importance of structure and planning in retirement, six classifications of happy retirees, and why women can be better at retirement planning than men. Steve later relates advice Mel Brooks and Norman Lear gave him about purpose and passion. Finally, Wes wraps up the episode by asking Steve about his future plans for retirement and core pursuits. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/

Can there be progress without pain? The last 50 years have been a rollercoaster in the financial world and the world at large. In this episode, Wes gives a snapshot of key events from decades passed that had a significant impact on both the financial and cultural zeitgeist, including the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic. Yet, despite every war, conflict, or struggle, Wes emphasizes the positive developments that keep him (and happy retirees) rationally optimistic. "Tomorrow" can always be somewhere good and great! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

This Valentine's Day, let's talk about something near and dear to Wes's heart: Dividends! What does it take to be wealthy in America? In this episode, Wes and Retire Sooner producer Mallory Boggs take a look at statistics from a new wealth survey showing what level of earner is considered "wealthy" in this day and age. They also discuss dividend investing, show what a balanced portfolio could look like, and the possibility of enjoying dividend returns in retirement. Wes and Mallory wrap up this episode sharing what they love about Valentine's Day! This information is provided to you as a resource for informational purposes only and is not to be viewed as investment advice or recommendations. Investing involves risk, including the possible loss of principal. There is no guarantee offered that investment return, yield, or performance will be achieved. Stock prices fluctuate, sometimes rapidly and dramatically, due to factors affecting individual companies, particular industries or sectors, or general market co

In this episode, guest Kathleen Rehl shares her expertise and experience with widowdom. Widely featured writer and author of the multi-award-winning book, Moving Forward on Your Own: A Financial Guidebook for Widows, Kathleen is a leading authority on financial challenges that widows face with over 17 years of personal finance advice. Wes and Kathleen discuss grief, growth, and grace in widowhood, including how it affects retirement, investing decisions, and getting back into the dating pool. And, in a Retire Sooner first, you can also listen to a little bit of poetry! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Find out what helps Wes sleep well at night! In this episode, Wes and Retire Sooner producer Mallory Boggs offer some of their top tips for retirement life. They discuss ideal timeframes to claim Social Security benefits, the advantages of not overspending on your kids and grandkids, a quick way to determine if your pension passes the 6% test, and it never being too late to be a rockstar (or star of whatever side hustle works for you). Aside from sharing the importance of having multiple income streams in retirement, they also address how essential it is to have core pursuits, also known as hobbies on steroids, that can help make you the happiest retiree on the block. The episode wraps up with Wes sharing his core pursuit of snowboarding, rediscovering skiing with his wife, and discussing how trying new things sooner makes having core pursuits easier. For more tips, check out the Tools page on wesmoss.com. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices