Invest In Your Life

I'm excited about this episode with Adam Day. We are going to break down how to do a midyear review. We'll talk about what this entails and why it's important to do it. We also go through the super important things that you'll want to include in your financial review. Midyear is a good time to get out of the heat and review your financial plan. Adam is a senior wealth advisor at Wealthquest. In 2021, he opened and established the Naples, Florida Wealthquest office. Now he and his family can enjoy the active outdoor lifestyle they've always dreamed of. Adam and his wife are also involved in charities such as animal rescue and Back2Back Ministries. Episode Highlights: [03:18] Adam shares analogies between Spartan races, financial planning, and life. Knowing you can do hard things and complete them feels good. [04:59] A financial review is just a check-in to all things related to finances and financial planning. It helps bring more awareness to your plan and your finances in different areas. [06:54] Adam talks about who is involved in a financial review. It's good to get the family involved, especially with estate planning. [08:39] We learn how Adam is open with his kids about money. [09:33] The biggest thing to audit is to have a family values check-in. How have you applied your values to your budget and spending? [10:28] What are your expenses? Awareness helps you know if you are spending on your values. Also check those subscriptions that you forgot about. [11:34] Savings? Do you have an emergency fund with enough money? Are you saving for retirement? Look at your pay stubs and see if you need to increase or decrease your contributions. [12:20] It's also a good time to look at your investment account allocations. [13:19] Pull up your credit report and check your credit score. Be conscious of cybersecurity and check on your passwords and make sure everything's up to date. [14:53] Adam talks about evaluating your spending plan. Purposely spend towards your values and be aware of what you don't want to spend money on. [16:58] One of the biggest things a professional can help you with is how much you should save. [18:40] Your emergency fund needs to be liquid, but you can be creative with where you put it. [19:44] Look at what your returns have been on investments and decide if you need to rebalance or not. [21:32] A company like Wealthquest can help you with a lot of different services and really make your check-in go smoothly. Just schedule the review and check-in. Resources & Links Related to this Episode Wealthquest Get Started Living a Rich Life: The No-Regrets Guide to Building and Spending Wealth

A practical checklist for deciding when to hire financial help. Short exercises to gauge your time, desire, and life complexity. Key questions to ask about fiduciary duty, how advisors get paid, fees, and services. Tips on checking certifications, how relationships and team coordination work, and spotting whether someone will be candid and listen.

Sam interviews Michael Riney about insurance. Michael is a financial planner with Wealthquest. Prior to Wealthquest, he worked for a large insurance company. They begin with the basics of insurance from what it is to the different types available. They also talk about the different insurance needs for people in different seasons of life. They talk about life insurance, long-term disability insurance, and long-term care insurance. Because needs in life change, planning is a continuous process. A fee only advisor can help find the best options for an individual or family's needs. Episode Highlights: [01:56] Insurance differs depending on your stage of life. For young couples, it's about protecting income and protecting the family. Including life insurance. [02:22] Long-term disability insurance is a policy that continues to pay an income if you're unable to work due to disability or an illness. [03:19] Insurance 101. You pay a premium in order to protect something that's valuable to you. You can ensure almost anything. The three most common types of insurance are life insurance, long-term disability insurance, and long-term care. [03:42] There's also home insurance, auto insurance, business insurance, etc. [05:28] Most employers offer some type of life insurance and long-term disability insurance, but most people will need additional coverage. [06:50] Insurance transfers risk and provides peace of mind. [07:30] It's important to have a trusted advisor help you find the right type of insurance. A fee only advisor will provide advice without an added incentive of selling. [08:39] At Wealthquest, the team walks through a financial plan and recommends appropriate insurance coverage. [09:36] Insurance is the foundational piece of financial planning. It protects the clients from anything bad that could happen in their plan. [09:56] On the estate planning side, a lot of the planning revolves around life insurance. [10:32] Insurance and investments are more efficient when they're separate. Some type of insurance investment vehicle may make sense when your net worth is over 12 million dollars. [11:15] Michael discusses insurance requirements in different seasons of life. [12:10] Life insurance becomes much more prevalent, once there's a family dynamic in play. Long-term disability insurance is always prevalent. [13:10] Once financial independence is reached, life insurance and long-term disability insurance is no longer needed. This is where long-term care insurance becomes a bigger conversation. Resources & Links Related to this Episode Wealthquest Get Started Living a Rich Life: The No-Regrets Guide to Building and Spending Wealth Michael Riney Michael Riney LinkedIn

It's transition time. James is moving on to take a pastoral role in his church and The Rich Life Podcast is becoming the Invest In Your Life podcast. Certified Financial Planner Sam Martinez is taking over as the new host of the Invest In Your Life podcast. James is also here to introduce Sam and share what's happening with the show. Sam and James have a conversation about where this podcast came from, what it's turned into, and where it's going. The podcast is going to look at what it truly is to have a meaningful life. Money is more than math and figures. It's about emotion, relationships, dreams, and fears. James talks about how important it is to have a different conversation about money and what that would like. They stress the importance of investing in our lives and not just the stock market. We hope you love the new show. Episode Highlights: [01:55] James introduces us to Sam Martinez who is going to be the host of an even better podcast from Wealthquest. It's better because we are going to do a deep dive into what it looks like to truly invest in a meaningful life. [02:24] James is transitioning from Wealthquest to a pastoral role at his church. He'll still be around. He's on the board and will be a guest on the podcast. [02:55] Sam is a certified financial planner, a husband, and an all-around great guy. He's passionate about many of the same things as James. [04:09] James shares his original vision when beginning the podcast. He didn't want the conversation about money to only be about math, facts & figures, and tax laws. Money is hard because it's emotional and relational. It's where our dreams and fears collide. [04:43] The original intent was to get the client used to the industry talking differently. [05:10] Clients want to talk about the things that matter more and that are closer to their heart and that they understand. [06:26] Sam is excited to continue the conversation. He loves being a part of client stories. [07:22] He also loves telling the Wealthquest story. [07:54] It's important to get serious on how to invest in our lives, not just investing in the stock market. [08:53] The podcast is going to continue to tell stories and help people do the research to simplify their financial lives. [09:08] Wealthquest has many smart people on the team who are going to come on the podcast and have a conversation with Sam. [11:10] How the Wealthquest model allows people to invest in their life. [13:55] Wealth takes time. Don't get in money's way and let it do what it does. [16:35] James shares a story about a couple who decided to invest in their child's fertility journey. [17:14] Another client took an epic trip with her kids and their spouses to Iceland. [18:30] James and his family are in an adventure season, and they're going on massive hikes. They also discuss finances as a family and help others. [21:29] James will be back on the podcast. Resources & Links Related to this Episode Wealthquest Get Started Living a Rich Life: The No-Regrets Guide to Building and Spending Wealth Sam Martinez

James is going to talk about the three things you need in order to live a financially successful life. There is so much complication when it comes to money, but we can really simplify it down to boundaries, balance, and accountability. Boundaries can feel like a limitation, but they can actually be deeply freeing if done correctly. We need a financial balance. Over emphasizing one thing and neglecting everything else will create an unbalanced financial life. We need accountability and conversations with others to create boundaries and balance. Episode Highlights: [02:23] Boundaries: In order to have a financially successful life we need to have boundaries. These boundaries are dependent on your situation in the state you live in. There aren't really hard and fast rules. [03:08] Ideally you give yourself a boundary and draw your lifestyle cap, and then the rest of the money can go into savings and investing. [04:26] Creating a frame around us allows us to be safe and have the confidence to enjoy what we have. [06:54] Balance: Don't overemphasize any one thing. Spending all of your resources in one direction can leave you in a situation where you're unprepared, or you haven't saved enough. [08:11] Don't be overfocused on one thing like debt reduction and neglect other things like your 401K or other sensible financial actions. [08:57] All of our goals are saved simultaneously even though they occur sequentially. This creates a challenge when balancing our finances. [10:39] Accountability: It can't happen in a vacuum. When establishing boundaries you need accountability. [12:05] Begin your journey of accountability by having conversations with your spouse or even checking in with your kids. [14:07] The most valuable piece of your financial community is having a financial advisor to help you create and keep a plan to do what you need to win financially. Resources & Links Related to this Episode Wealthquest Get Started Living a Rich Life: The No-Regrets Guide to Building and Spending Wealth Episode 19 Build Your Money Community

Losing your sense of taste and smell actually leads to craving. This also applies to how we relate to our stuff. James is recovering from COVID and has lost his sense of taste and smell. In spite of this, his brain is still craving comfort food that he can't taste. If there was ever a time for him to be pounding kale, this is it. Once we get the things we think we want, we lose the sensitivity to those things and crave more to bring back the joy that these things once brought us. We crave what we used to experience when we can't experience it anymore. James dives into how we lose the sensitivity to things we have and crave more. Episode Highlights: [03:01] With the loss of taste and smell, the things that James has been craving are still comfort foods. His brain feels comfort in comfort foods. This would be the best time for him to eat salad without dressing. [04:22] He has a theory that the lessening of sensitivity makes you crave more of something. He's been under pressure to eat things that taste good even though he can't taste them. [05:03] In life we experience things the same way. We lose sensitivity to the joy that those things once brought us, and we crave more. [06:32] We have stuff, and we've lost our sensitivity to having stuff. Keep getting more and eventually you'll be able to taste that little bit of flavor. [07:36] What are we doing with our resources that makes us crave more? What are we chasing in hopes of experiencing a sensation that was there at some point? [08:38] Is this craving motivated by a reduction in sensitivity? [10:44] We keep buying the new thing, but it feels almost the same as the old thing. [12:03] People are wanting the next step up expecting it to be some type of revolutionary experience, but then they find it to feel a lot like the thing they had before. [13:02] What is the sensation that you actually have a craving for? Try to understand what that sensation is and ask yourself how you can experience it again. [14:07] What can I purge that is only going to perpetuate this craving for upgrades? [16:19] If you don't want to rediscover the things you have, it's probably a clue that it's time to start purging those things. Resources & Links Related to this Episode Wealthquest Get Started Living a Rich Life: The No-Regrets Guide to Building and Spending Wealth

Have you ever had someone give you the helpful advice that you should just slow down and rest? That's great advice, but when you have a million things swirling in your head when you lay down at night, it's just not all that helpful. James dives into an article about how to rest when you are too tired and busy to rest. He talks about how trying to rest just adds another thing that we are failing at when we have so much going on. We know we need to rest, but do we really know how? This episode explores the thoughts and psychology behind getting much needed rest. Episode Highlights: [02:53] Even when we try to rest, all of the things that we need to be doing or could be doing are still swimming around in our minds. [03:29] The need to rest is self-evident. Statistics say that 27% of adults are so stressed out that they can't function. [04:16] Part of the problem of not getting enough rest is thinking that it's such a massive thing that we have to shut down everything. Rest doesn't have to be long large swaths of inactivity. [05:10] Make a list of what works with no constraints. What feels like rest to you? When was the last time you did something that left you more refreshed than when you started? [06:09] Consider passive and active forms of rest. Rest can be active like playing a sport or doing another activity. [06:59] Hold space for rest and take the opportunity to try different activities that might be restorative. [07:49] Consider micro versus macro rest. You have time for micro rest. Make time for small spaces of rest. Micro rest is like a snack. [09:45] Think about rest as a matrix and what works and where it falls in terms of active, passive, micro, and macro. [10:10] Active and micro could be quick immersion like a 7-minute workout. Passive micro could be breathing exercises. [10:57] Journeys are active and macro areas like long commitment hobbies. Passive macro is hibernation or withdrawal and shutdown like an extended vacation. [13:52] We need a balance of micro, macro, passive, and active to create a more balanced version of rest. [14:12] Which of these concepts do you need to add? Do you need to think of rest as a priority? Resources & Links Related to this Episode Wealthquest Get Started Living a Rich Life: The No-Regrets Guide to Building and Spending Wealth How to Rest When You Are Too Tired and Busy to Rest

Negativity schema is a pattern of negative thinking that assumes failure and prevents people from trying. Experiencing negative schema is having a negative, self-defeating attitude. This type of thinking can be incredibly destructive when it comes to money. Negative thinking is powerful and hurts progress and success. Our brains are wired to look for threats and even biased toward bad outcomes. This can lead to paralysis and prevent us from taking positive action. James talks about how negativity schema can affect us and how to inject optimism and happiness in our thoughts to have better outcomes financially and in life. Episode Highlights: [02:21] We don't talk about negativity much on this podcast, so this is going to be a tough one. [02:57] Negativity can be so powerful because our brain is already wired to look for threats. Our brains can be biased towards bad outcomes in order to protect ourselves. [04:08] The final end result of negativity often is paralysis. This can force you into a trap of being stuck and just staying where you are. [05:03] Every positive thing we want to do requires action and a sense of hope. We need to think that we can do it, yet negativity will tell us that's not true. [06:02] You can talk yourself out of everything that it takes to make progress with a negative attitude. Talking yourself out of not making progress leads to no progress, and your brain can justify your original negative thoughts. [07:54] The only way to fix this problem of negativity is to change the way that we view the world. We need to intentionally inject optimism and happiness into the story that we are telling ourselves. [09:15] If happiness buys money, we need to start with happiness. [09:44] Ways to change negative thinking. Understand your history and tell yourself a story of how you got here that shows you the positive. [10:51] Our thoughts really do have all the power. Do a cost-benefit analysis of the thoughts that you're thinking. [12:25] Accept failure as a necessary step towards success. Failure is actually part of the steps to success. [14:11] Happiness, joy, delight and positive emotion are things that come from us. [16:06] This is the key that unlocks all of the behaviors that lead to sustainable disciplines that create wealth. Resources & Links Related to this Episode Wealthquest Get Started Living a Rich Life: The No-Regrets Guide to Building and Spending Wealth Episode 205 Happiness + Financial Success Overcoming Negative Self-Thinking

Is there a correlation between happiness and money? We've talked about how having money does make people happy, at least up to a certain threshold. Once all of our needs are met, the happiness brought by money begins to diminish. More and more money does not necessarily bring more and more happiness, but could more happiness bring more money? James talks about a recent study that shows that people who are happier do make more money. Positive emotions support and create the behaviors necessary for people to succeed financially. This is something that James has suspected for a long time and has seen evidence of with his clients. We explore how positive emotions and happiness can lead to more money. Episode Highlights: [03:38] Positive emotions actually support and create the behaviors necessary for people to succeed in their financial life. Positive emotions have a causal relationship with wealth creation. [04:49] Most of our negative decisions about finances are rooted in negative emotion. The study says that the opposite is true. Happiness does buy money. [05:14] People in a positive emotional state make better financial decisions. [05:37] Financial decisions that lead to positive outcomes are rooted with positive emotion. [06:39] We need to foster healthy positive emotionally stable lives. As a result, we'll accumulate wealth. [07:41] This is exciting work, because it's really flipping the source of financial success on its head. [08:20] Do the work on your relationships and how you spend your time to create meaningfulness and delight in your life. Accumulating money comes out of a happy healthy balanced life. [10:38] James has been saying that we need to prioritize meaning, purpose, joy, and light. This study says the exact same thing. He's observed this connection between money and happiness in his client base. [11:02] It's the happiness that makes us wealthy. [12:27] Be aware of your mindset. Are you bringing happiness and optimism with you? Resources & Links Related to this Episode Wealthquest Get Started Living a Rich Life: The No-Regrets Guide to Building and Spending Wealth Episode 195 Money And Happiness Episode 176 Key To Happiness, Pt. 1: Free Time Episode 177 Key To Happiness, Pt. 2: Autonomy Individual Differences In Personality And Positive Emotion For Wealth Creation Nurturing Positive Emotions Leads to Financial Success

James recently read an article about millionaires spending their time differently, which made them happier. It's not the money that makes them happier. It's how they spend their time. James has noticed that clients who aren't millionaires and spend their time the same way also seem happier. These three things might surprise you. James talks about what they are and how you can spend your time in a way that might make you happier and more prone to possibly earning more in the process. We all have the same 24 hours in a day. We might as well make those hours work for us in a way that brings us joy and contentment. Episode Highlights: [02:17] Being a millionaire and being happy doesn't always go together. Money doesn't make people happy in itself. [03:09] The article that talks about what makes millionaires happy isn't about wealth, it's about how they spend their time differently. [03:24] There's no magic formula. We all have the same 24 hours in a day. [04:04] Millionaires spend more time exercising and volunteering. I've seen successful people be very diligent about exercise. It makes sense that people who take care of their bodies are more able to grow wealth. [05:03] They're not just getting up and getting after it so they can accumulate more, they are also getting up and getting after it so that they can help others. [05:24] Millionaires spend a significant amount of time in active leisure such as exercising, socializing, praying, meditating, hobbies, and volunteering. [06:08] They have intentional active leisure not just vegging out on the couch. [07:22] They spend substantially less time in non-active leisure like watching TV, napping, resting, relaxing, and doing nothing. [08:51] Happy people waste their time less. [10:05] Millionaires have more control at work. There was no difference between the hours spent at work. The difference was the autonomy or control they had. [12:45] Autonomy and control is extremely important for happiness at work. [14:02] The three key differences that emerged were spending more time on exercising and volunteering, watching less TV and less sitting around, and enjoying work more through having more control. [14:21] These are all modifications that you don't have to be a millionaire to make. Find ways to be active in your leisure. Take your health seriously. Have your free time focused on active leisure. [15:21] Create authority and autonomy when you show up to work. Resources & Links Related to this Episode Wealthquest Get Started Living a Rich Life: The No-Regrets Guide to Building and Spending Wealth How to Spend Your Time Like a Millionaire and Become Happier