Since the day I met her, Mrs. Grumpus has insisted that men cannot multi-task effectively, unlike women.  My typical Confucian-like retort used to be something along the lines of, “the woman who splits her attention among multiple tasks does none of them well”.  These days though I believe I’ve harnessed my inner woman enough to master the art of listening to podcasts while doing other more menial tasks. Work and family demands mean time is too precious to let self-improvement opportunities slip by while commuting, cutting the lawn, gardening, cleaning the garage, driving the Grumpus Minimi (pronounced min-nee-my) to swim lessons, or listening to Mrs. Grumpus talk (just kidding honey!).

Confucius had nothing on me

In fact not only do I double-up on tasks, I now triple-up by commuting on my bike with a pair of earbuds.  For you math challenged out there: commuting, exercising, and listening are the three tasks.

Wonder what she is listening to?

I discovered the value of podcasts while stationed in Europe.  I was cut off from my standard commuting radio selection of NPR, NPR, and more NPR. 

Someone who likes NPR more than me

My morning and evening commute via train, bus, subway, and foot  (throw a plane in there and you had yourself a good John Candy and Steve Martin movie) contained a lot of time to multi-task. So in an attempt to restore  balance in the Force (two movie references in two sentences!), this self-proclaimed Luddite began to use his mobile phone for more than just texting.  During my search for shows like Marketplace, I soon discovered a much broader world of personal finance and economic podcasts. (**Grumpus Maximus is an Amazon affiliate.  See Disclosures for more details.**)

Between reading personal finance books and blogs; podcasts created the third leg of my now often mentioned “three-legged stool of financial knowledge”.  That three-legged stool continues to provide the platform on which I’ve built my plan for Financial Independence (FI).  And even though I’ve returned to the US, the first part of my morning routine still involves loading the latest podcasts onto my phone for my bike ride.  You never stop learning, right?   

Not a Grumpus Maximus approved method of multi-tasking

Which leads us to the topic of my five favorite podcasts. “Why five?,” you ask?  Well, five is two more than the biblical three and since you are never supposed to talk about sex, religion, or politics on a financial blog; I felt it best to avoid the number three all together. “Really?,” you ask?  No.  Not really.  There is no guide to FI blogging, and if there were I doubt you’d find a list of off-limit topics.  However, I read an FI blog post recently that touched upon a few of these supposed off limit topics; during a discussion on health insurance no less.  Risque.   

Where were we?  Oh yes, my five favorite podcasts from my unintentional (and obviously meandering) journey to FI are below without all the segues or commentary from above.  Enjoy.

•  Jill On Money / Better Off Podcast. Just starting your financial literacy initiative?  Have a basic, intermediate, or advanced financial issue you would like to solve?  Looking for free financial advice?  Then this show is for you.  Jill Schlesinger is a fairly well-known financial journalist and Certified Financial Planner (CFP) who works for CBS.  She appears on TV, runs a radio show, writes a blog, airs a separate weekly podcast, and now airs a show on YouTube (which I have not watched).  Her radio show called “Jill on Money” has aired weekly for several years now on CBS affiliate radio stations.  She also makes it available via podcast.
  • The format used to be an hour of call-in and email questions about financial issues; followed by a second-hour interview.  I’ve actually conducted two phone-ins with her over the past two years.  She doesn’t require your real name and will withhold certain details if you tell her to. What you get in return is the type of advice you would expect from a fiduciary CFP without having to pay hundreds to thousands of dollars for it. Also since she has no monetary compensation riding on you as a client, her advice comes conflict of interest-free.  Even if you are not comfortable with interviews, you can still email her your questions.  The more detail the better.  Alternatively, you could just listen along as other people ask their questions.  A situation or question similar to yours is bound to come up at some point in her next few shows.  In fact, your situation has probably already come up; so check out the “Jill on Money” archives.  She is on her 325th episode.
  • Just a few notes worth considering. Jill recently split the interview portion from the “Jill on Money” podcast, and turned it into a separate podcast called “Better Off”.  “Better Off” also incorporates one bonus call of the week in a short podcast format.  It appears the split in formats only occurred for the podcasts, and that the “Jill on Money” radio show may still host both hours under one title.  There was obviously some financial incentive for Jill to make this split in podcast land since “Better Off” picked up a show sponsor (The robo advisor firm Betterment); whereas “Jill on Money” in podcast form never had commercials or sponsors.
  • In any case, I always listen to the phone call/email portion of Jill on Money, and occasionally listen to the interviews in Better Off, depending on who it is. Jill’s advice is mainstream.  You won’t hear references to the Financial Independence (FI) movement, but you will see a lot of crossover of topics like the logic of using low-cost index funds for most of your investments.  She covers a broad range of topics from avoiding annuities, to maximizing social security, rolling over 401Ks, choosing the correct form of IRAs, picking a robo advisor, and deciphering pensions.  She routinely advocates for people to run their own investments; but if they are not comfortable with the idea she often refers them to low-cost robo advisors (like her sponsor Betterment) or fee only (pay as you go) CFPs.  Candid and wide-ranging advice like this is what attracted me in the first place to her show.
  • One would think that Jill’s candor would have led to a split between her and the majority of the Financial Planning Community, but she was recently named the Senior CFP Board Ambassador for the Certified Financial Planner Board of Standards. I guess her advocacy for fee-only CFPs and outspoken support of the fiduciary standard has landed her on the right side of her community’s largest professional association.  They, like me, must believe that time spent listening to Jill is time well spent; which is why I continue to listen each week.  Jill’s podcasts are available via most major podcast applications.

• The Money Guy Show. Brian Preston and Bo Hanson co-host “The Money Guy Show” podcast and broadcast every other week. These guys are two CFPs from Tennessee that own their own financial planning business.  They are fee-
  

  This may be the same stock photo used on their website

  only planners, just the type that Jill Schlesinger recommends.  I’ve listened to their podcast for over two years and they advocate extremely reasonable approaches to managing money.  They are also big on lowering costs as much as possible – in fact, they run something called the “Tightwad Nation” which they often refer to during the show.  They write for major publications; are well respected in the financial industry; and seemingly friendly guys.

  • Like Jill Schlesinger, Brian and Bo are mostly mainstream with their advice, although they have referred to the FI movement before. Unlike Jill Schlesinger, Brian and Bo do not offer specific financial advice based on caller’s questions or emails.  They offer more general financial education via vignettes that match a different theme they choose for each podcast.  So if you are looking for education on specific financial topics, their archive is a great place to start.  If you do not know the difference between a stock or a bond, they will break it down.  If you get confused between the different types of retirement accounts, they will explain them and then go on to strategize which might be the better account to fund given certain circumstances.
  • Another thing worth noting about Brian and Bo is that they are motivational. I mean like Tony Robbins motivational, but without the hard up-sell for expensive conferences, books, or DVDs.  If you feel like you just don’t have the time, energy, or know-how to start saving, eliminate debt, or start a business; then these guys will light a FIre (get it?) within you.  I used to ride the train, subway, and bus in Europe listening to their folksy southern accents and stories in my ear buds.
    

    No is allowed to smile while commuting

    You could not have dreamed up a larger dichotomy of visual sights vs. motivational soundtrack.  I would stare at the pale, drab, and damp faces of my fellow commuters with a big smile on my face like some simpleton while listening to Brian and Bo’s motivational speeches

    

    Yep, exactly how I imagined I looked

    and segues.  I probably looked a lot like Forrest Gump sitting on that park bench.  In any case, I would recommend you listen to a few of their recent podcasts and read their blog posts to see if you like what they have to say as much as I do.   “How to Know If Your Financial Advisor is Working Against You” and “How to Avoid Becoming a Miserable Financial Miser” are both great episodes to start with. Much like Jill on Money, The Money Guy Show is available via most major podcast applications.

OK, so up to this point I have recommended 2 podcasts that are distinctly set apart from what many people might consider the FI movement.  I did so for two purposes.  First, they are good podcasts that will help to build your baseline knowledge on financial issues.  More importantly, I believe the FI community often overlook those of us who find themselves in a Golden Albatross situation — i.e. able to retire (early) due to the assistance of a defined benefit retirement plan (i.e. pension).  The above two podcasts on the other hand often address situations where pensions are in play.  Therefore I feel it’s important to cast the net wider than just the FI community when considering resources to build your knowledge.  With that said, the following three podcasts are straight from the FI side of the spectrum but they too are worth your time.   In combination with the above two podcasts, the three podcasts below offer a holistic education in achieving FI …especially for those of us seeking to attain FI through our defined benefit retirement plans. 

• Optimal Finance Daily (OFD). This podcast combines the best of two worlds by reading FI related blog posts to its audience.  It sounds kind of weird at first, “a podcast where people read to you”.  However, if you’ve ever listened to an audio book, it is a lot like that, but in 8 to 10-minute bursts.  The format is literally meant for those of us who do not have the time to sit and comb blogs (probably because we are commuting) but do have the ability to take a podcast with us.  OFD is actually part of a network of shows which originated from the Optimal Living Daily (OLD) website.  The host of the OLD website, Justin Malik, selects 5 financial posts a week from the likes of Mr. Money Mustache, Early Retirement Extreme, Budgets are Sexy, Money Boss, and Mr. Money Mustache’s arch rival blog site I will Teach You to Be Rich.  The narrator is a guy named Dan who does a fairly good job of capturing the essence of these posts.  They have hundreds of podcasts already in their archive, which I recommend you check out.  They have probably covered the topic you are most interested in multiple times at this point.  You can find OFD via all major podcast services.

• The Scott Alan Turner Show. I always try to include one fun show, book or blog on my list.  This is the fun show for this post.  Not to say that its financial content is light because it isn’t.  However, Scott usually presents his information in such an interesting way that I forget I am listening to a financially serious podcast.  Scott bills himself as The Financial Rockstar,
  

  I probably look something like this while listening to Scott on my morning ride

  probably because he did not make it as a real rock star despite having played in numerous bands throughout the years.  He also bills himself as a former money moron, which means he started in a place of ignorance, like the majority of us, when it came to money.  As a self-taught FI overachiever and early retiree, he accepts no advertising on his podcast or website in order to avoid conflict of interest.  If the above podcasts do not appeal to you because they are too staid or “normal”, yet you are still interested in achieving FI, I highly recommend that you give this one a try.  This podcast, like most the others, comes with a large backlog in the archives and is available via all major podcast applications.

• Choose FI Radio Podcast. This is the newest and “youngest” podcast to make my list.  The two hosts of this Show, Brad and Jonathan, only started podcasting in early January 2017.  Their current format includes an in-depth topic or interview on Tuesday and a “review” of what they learned from that topic or interview on Friday.  Brad is an early retiree CPA who used the FI principles of frugality and cheap investing to get there.  Jonathan is a pharmacist who only just started on the road to FI after clawing his way out of $168,000 of student debt.  Don’t let the “youth” of this podcast fool you.  These guys must have had a meticulous plan because they are already producing a highly polished podcast.  They obviously parlayed some serious connections within the FI community into show content as well because they’ve already bagged a series of interviews with a “who’s who” of the FI community.  Yet, I actually find the Friday wrap-ups more useful than the interviews because on Friday they talk about applying what they learned on the Tuesday episode.  Brad and Jonathan also spend a serious amount of time talking about travel hacking (i.e. traveling for pennies on the dollars using credit card rewards and miles).  I’ve seen travel hacking discussed extensively on blogs, but not so much via podcast.  So if you like the idea of financing your vacations cheaply through the use of credit card rewards, you should give those episodes a listen.  Just remember to pay off those credit cards in full each month.  I’ve never seen a case of FI where someone was carrying commercial debt.  Choose FI Radio is available via all major podcast apps.

So that is all I got for this post.  I was thinking of listing a few “also-rans” but given the length already, I might just make a second post at some point in the future. Let me know via the comments section or feedback form what you think of the above podcasts, and if you listen to any podcasts that you think are worth the listen when I am biking!    — Grumpus Maximus