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- [00:01]
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- [00:31]
Austin
You're about to make a trade which you do you listen to. Is it get optioning those options.
- [00:38]
Robert
Or.
- [00:39]
Austin
Let'S do a little research. Learn more@finra.org TradeSmart hey everyone and welcome back to the Rich Habits Podcast brought to you by public.com these are our Thursday episodes, our question and answer episodes where you guys ask us questions on Instagram at Rich Habits podcast in our DMs. You also ask us questions via email at rich habits podcastmail.com and we also get cool questions inside of the Rich Habits Network, our community for our biggest fans. We've got seven awesome questions teed up for this episode, a ton of different topics that I think we're going to have a lot of fun with and I can't wait to dig in.
- [01:20]
Robert
Yeah, I'm excited for this episode. So many cool questions and just as always, love seeing people support the Q and A episodes because I feel like we get to dive into everyone's, you know, issues whether it's business mindset or financial. Because personal finance is personal. So let's dig in.
- [01:38]
Austin
Well Robert, before we get started, it's really important that everyone understands the reality that investing toward your financial future is the only way you will ever be able to retire. If you want to stop trading time for Money in your 9 to 5 or your hourly job, you need a nest egg that is growing for you over time.
- [01:55]
Robert
And the easiest way anyone can begin investing towards their future is is on public.com they make it incredibly simple to build a multi asset portfolio including ETFs, stocks, bonds, crypto options and more. They also offer access to industry leading yields of up to 3.8% APY for that emergency fund.
- [02:15]
Austin
And for a limited time you can earn a 1% match on all of your IRA deposits, IRA transfers and 401k rollovers. It's $1,000 of free money for every 100 grand you roll into their platform so that free 401k you haven't touched because you got the new job and you forgot to roll it over. Roll it over into public, get your free 1% match and fund your account.
- [02:35]
Robert
In 5 minutes or less by heading to public.comfront/rich habits to claim your 1% match today. Paid for by Public Investing. Full disclosures in the podcast Description so.
- [02:46]
Austin
Our first question comes from Matt on Instagram. As a reminder, if you have a question to ask, you can DM us on Instagram at Rich Habits Podcast or email us at rich habits podcastmail.com Matt says YouTube hey guys, I love the content. Quick question. My Name's Matt, I'm 30 and I need to upgrade my wife's used car to a newer used car as it's nearing its end. Should I buy something now in November and December to hopefully take advantage of some year end negotiating power and finance a portion of it or wait another four or five months to finish saving and buy that used car completely in cash? Thank you so much. Well Matt, if you haven't already, my friend, tune in to Monday's episode. Right? We just broke down the math between buying versus leasing, the real math behind, you know, your next car purchase. So Matt, I'm sure you have listened to that already because you're a loyal listener of the show and you're talking about buying a used car, which again Robert and I believe is the best way for the average American to own a vehicle, in my humble opinion. I'm not mad about doing something now assuming that you can get a screaming some sort of used car. Now the trade off to think about here, Matt, is twofold. The first one is the interest that you will be accruing while you have debt against this car. And then two will the deal you get that potential awesome deal that you're going to get because it's the end of the year and you got all these promotions going on. Is that deal going to be more advantageous than the interest you will accrue on the debt during the time of, you know, having the debt. Because it seems like in just four or five months you'll be just be able to pay this off regardless. Like you're not going to keep this payment around. So that's kind of how I think about it, right As I go around I think like okay, will I be able to save 1, 2, 3, 4, $5,000 because maybe it's December 23rd in that Toyota dealership. You know, Monty's trying to get that that nice year end bonus, needs to sell one more car and so he's ready to just give it away at invoice or Whatever's going on there. So there's a lot of different ways to think about it, but that's how I'd weigh my options. Right. Will I get such a that it will more than offset the interest I'll accrue by taking on this debt. But Robert, what's your take on Matt's situation here?
- [05:02]
Robert
Yeah, I agree with you 100%, Austin. I would look around for the deal and weigh my options. In thinking about a short term loan and paying the interest, I think it's going to be nominal on a, on a used car purchase. And there are always really good deals, incentives, sales quotas, they've got to meet, like you alluded to. But also there are lower interest rates sometimes at the end of the year because they're trying to push that old invent out. So I would start kicking some tires, going to some car dealerships, finding a car that you really like that fits what you're trying to buy and go from there. I'm doing the exact same thing right now. My lease is up in January, but I am looking at vehicles as we speak to be able to weigh my options before my lease is up on the current vehicle. So I love this. I think you should just go ahead and start the shopping now, see what deals are out there and go from there.
- [05:54]
Austin
And additionally, Matt, something else to consider here too is like, okay, what if it was not the end of the year? What if it was a random March or what if it was the beginning, whatever, right? You wouldn't get one of these deals. Then every single time it's like, yeah, like why go into high interest debt? Like, and you have the cash to save a couple more months and buy it. So knowing that we're giving you the blessing of taking on some what could be considered high interest debt at that 7, 8, 9% for a couple months because you're going to get such a screaming deal because you're purchasing this in December because not too mad about it. So our next question comes from Willie W. Willie says, I've been listening to the show since the start. Thank you all for the incredible insight. My question is I'm trying to get my fiance in the mindset of investing for our Future, getting that $100,000 base and letting it grow over the years. Can you provide some insight on how to translate the knowledge you've given to your listeners to educate a spouse? So good question, Robert. I'll kick this one off.
- [06:54]
Robert
Yeah, this is a tough one. And everyone that's thinking about getting married needs to have this question before they're married and during the marriage, because I feel like so much turbulence in a relationship happens throughout the marriage because of money more than anything else. I think there's a bunch of studies that prove this, and I think it comes from a lack of communication of what your desires are and what their desires are. Because you might have one person in a marriage that doesn't really pay attention to budgeting and the other person is really trying to build the base like Willie W. Is talking about here. So, Willie, I think you have to have the hard conversation, say, look, here's the reasoning. We have to set ourselves up for the future. I don't know how old you are, but you need to have this hundred K base at minimum set up and building for your future and making money while you sleep. And it just really starts with showing them. I would write it all down, type it all out, whatever works best to communicate with your spouse and go through it with them of why it's so important. Go into ChatGPT and show them, let's say you're 35 years old. Show that spouse, what does that 100k turn into in 25, 30 years when you're ready to retire. Once they see the real numbers and they understand the 4% rule, maybe you show them that as well and break that down. I think you'll be in a better place to get them on your side. To understand the importance of building your base and investing consistently over time.
- [08:22]
Austin
I would approach it where it is not a you thing. You need to do this. You need to figure this out. You need. This is what you should do. You, you, you. I would flip it and make it a me thing. Hey, spouse. I am so afraid of something that that means so much to me and that is retiring broke. I'm very afraid of, you know, not having enough in retirement. This is something I'm vulnerable about. This is something I really want to have conversations about. I trust you as my else. Here's what I'm doing myself right now to ensure that, you know, this big fear of mine doesn't come true. You know, maybe my parents were broke in retirement, my brother, like, whatever, right? So it's like this is something that is very near and dear to my heart and it's something that I'm working through right now. It means a lot to me. So I'm going to educate you as to why it means so much to me and what I'm doing to ensure it doesn't happen to me. And during that education process, Willie, I would imagine that your spouse would sort of have a light bulb moment of, wow, that actually makes a lot of sense that you're doing this. I really appreciate you opening up to me and sharing, you know, all these actions that you're doing with your money to ensure that, that you are retiring with dignity. What, what can I do right as your spouse, how do I support you? How do I do this for myself and ensure that we both are moving in the right direction? I think it's never, in my opinion, a good idea to tell your spouse what to do and putting them in that situation of like, you need to do this, you need this. Like, if you can put it back on you. That's always like, I am deathly scared of this thing happening and here's what I'm doing to ensure that it doesn't happen. And I'd love to be vulnerable because, you know, we're married and share with you something I'm really, really scared about. I, I really want to ensure that I retire with dignity one day and hear the four things that I'm doing right now to ensure that happens. I'd love for you to support me in this endeavor. Right. Nine times out of ten, they're going to support you. Now, on the flip side, you know the reason why Robert talked about money problems and money fights. Hey, honey, you need to save more money, you need to stop shopping, you need to stop doing this, you need to do more of this. It's like, that doesn't fly, right? Let's be adults, let's have conversations, let's talk more about, you know, why we think things are important versus just pointing fingers and telling people what to do. So that's how I would approach it.
- [10:35]
Robert
I love that and I see it every day when I do these one on one calls where the couples are not on the same page. And sometimes it could be the man's fault where he's not sharing the actual financial outlook with his spouse. And it goes both ways. But I think it's important to have that conversation. That is definitely not a you or a me thing. It's an us thing. And get on the same page so you can build for a really wonderful future.
- [11:02]
Austin
So our next question comes from Nicole. Nicole says, I want to start by saying thank you for everything you do and for all of the wonderful insight you provide through your podcast and your newsletter. I've been trying to learn more about finances for years, but haven't really known where to start, nor have I been very motivated. However, after finding your podcast, I Find myself more motivated than ever. I love your show and tell everyone about it. When people ask me what I've been up to or what I do for fun. Oh, what do you do for fun? Oh, I listen to the Rich Habits podcast. That's so funny. I appreciate that, Nicole. Thank you so much.
- [11:32]
Robert
I do too.
- [11:33]
Austin
So Nicole says, I recently had a change in employer and was given options for what to do with my existing 401k holdings. I have $50,000 in my 401. I opted to receive a paper check so I could roll it over into a traditional ira. I plan to do two separate Roth conversions into my Roth ira. One this year and one next year. I'm planning into breaking it out into two separate years here so I do not ever exceed my modified adjusted gross income, impacting my ability to contribute to my Roth IRA. I currently have that $50,000 sitting in my traditional IRA, but it not invested into anything. My question is, what should I do with this money while waiting to convert it? Do I place it into ETFs and if so, are there any that you recommend for this? I thought about putting it into VOO until I'm ready to convert it, but then I got worried about placing all of my eggs in one basket. I have a lot of analysis paralysis as you can tell, so please help. Thank you so much, Nicole. This is a cool question, Robert, so let's just like set the table a little bit. Nicole's saying, hey, I switched jobs. I've got a 401k at my employer that's got $50,000 in it. So to roll it out of that, I've opened up a new ira, which I hope you opened up on public so you can roll it over and get that free 1% match we always talk about. But because it's pre tax 401k, she has to roll it over into a pre tax traditional ira. And that pre tax traditional IRA is different from the post tax Roth ira. Now whenever you do a a conversion from a pre tax IRA into a post tax Roth ira, whatever amount that you convert from the pre tax to the post tax, right. That traditional to the Roth, you have to realize as income on your taxes because you wrote it off your taxes in the past, it's essentially Uncle Sam getting all their money back for all those deductions you've been making whenever you contribute to your 401k. So Nicole here is pretty smart. She's saying, listen, I'm not going to realize $50,000 in one calendar year because that's going to bump me above my, my modified adjusted gross income. It's going to put me in that higher tax bracket. I'll end up paying more taxes than I really need to. I'm going to break it out into two years. Right. I think that's a wonderful plan. You are 100% correct on how to do this. This was really well thought out. Nicole. You probably have spent a lot of time thinking about this, and we just want to give you that pat on the back, the double thumbs up. Like, this is really smart here. Not only are you now making it continue to contribute to your Roth IRA because you've not exceeded the income limits with your modified adjusted gross income, but you are also being strategic about your tax brackets and things like that. So one first thing I do here is make sure that that IRA that you roll your 401k into, you said you already have the funds here. Hopefully it's on public. I'd make sure it's on public. Get that 1% match. There's nothing wrong with getting a free 500 bucks, essentially, right? So do that first. Now you're over here saying, like, like, what do I put the money in until I can do this conversion? This money after it's converted is going to be in your Roth IRA. You can't touch your Roth IRA until you're 59 and a half, but people normally don't start touching it till about 63, 64, 65. I would imagine that you are probably in your 30s, maybe in your 40s, which means that you've got another 15, 20, 25 years of investing ahead of you before you can even begin to realize your profits in this retirement account. Which tells me it doesn't matter what you put it in, just invest it, right? Just get it invested in the S&P 500 via Voo or, you know, spy or whatever other variants of the S and P that you personally enjoy. We think VOO is the best. It's a very cheap way to invest. And then once that money is ready to convert and roll over, you can do that conversion. If you're up, down, left, right, and circles on your investment, it doesn't matter. After the conversion's over, just reinvest that money back into the S P and you're off into the races. Robert, why don't round off my answer talking about why the S P500 is not placing all of your eggs in one basket. Like she states.
- [15:52]
Robert
Yeah, I like this and great coverage on that because this is a really good strategy. But the cool thing about the S&P 500 is you're betting on the 500 biggest companies in the United States by market cap. So this is a really good strategy if you wanted to mix it up a little more. I suppose you could do VTI VOO and throw in some QQQ to get some NASDAQ coverage as well. But you would be totally fine just with doing voo. I don't think you should ever look at VOO or SPY as being all your eggs in one basket because you have a lot of coverage throughout these funds. So my takeaway if this were me, great strategy. I would probably mix it between two or three funds like I mentioned and Austin alluded to and that would give you more coverage. But VOO is a great start. Before we get into our next question, listen up folks. You can lock in a 6% or higher yield with a bond account on Public. But remember, your yield isn't locked in until the time of purchase, so you might want to act fast. Lock in a 6% or higher yield with a diversified portfolio of high yield and investment grade corporate bonds only@public.com rich.
- [17:03]
Austin
Habits so our next question comes from Sylvia on Instagram. Sylvia says hello Austin and Robert, thank you so much for taking the time to answer. Answer my question. I've listened to you since the beginning and I've been hooked ever since. I wish I knew these financial tips when I was younger. I'm 38 years old with one child. I bought my house in 2021 when interest rates were lower. The house was about 250,000. I was bringing home $5,600 a month. Things have changed since then. I recently lost my job so my income dropped to 3,700amonth, making it harder to pay the mortgage. Additionally, The HOA is $310 a month. I didn't know HOA dues are high for townhomes. Turns out they are. I've accrued over $100,000 of equity in this home. I've been thinking about selling my home, but the going rent seems higher than my mortgage. My mortgage is $2006. When you include that $310 HOA at a 2.9% interest rate. My son runs track at his high school, so I would prefer not to transfer him. But I also know I gotta do what I gotta do. Is it best to sell my home? Should I keep it? Your advice is very much appreciated Robert. Kick us off.
- [18:10]
Robert
Yeah, this is a tough situation, but I would definitely not sell the house. You're in a really Good position, You bought it right. You have equity, you have a great interest rate that we may never see again, at least not in the next three, four, five years. I would find a way to get a side hustle. Start a side hustle or do something to offset the $2,000 you lost in income before I would ever transfer your kids and sell the house. I think it'd be really easy for you to go out and find some side hustle. I don't know what your skill set is that you can make that $2,000 a month, stay put, stay in the house that you love, keep your equity and rock and roll moving forward because you are in a pickle because your debt to income ratio is so high now with the income loss. But it's always a better strategy, in my opinion, to find a way to replace the income than just pack up and move. Especially because with your payment being at $2006, it's probably going to be difficult, as you mentioned, to find something to rent that's going to be comparable in the school district you want at the same price. So I would stay put, get the side hustle, work some nights, work some weekends, and make up that money.
- [19:22]
Austin
Yeah, my, my head immediately goes, Robert, to you were making $5,600 a month before, and things have changed. You lost your jobs, your income dropped. What can you do to go do it again? I mean, you did it before, let's do it again, right? You have the experience, you've got the aptitude, you've got the charisma. You've got everything you need to do to make that $5,600 a month. Right. You were doing it before. What can you do now to set yourself up in 2026 to be in that new career where you're making maybe even more, maybe 6,000amonth. I'm not too sure exactly what happened behind the scenes here, but in the meantime, yes, I agree that Robert's take is the best one to start with here, which is like, just get your income up. I think keeping the house is going to be a great idea. Maybe there's a world where every Sunday you can drive Uber and make an extra 200 bucks and now you're an extra $800 a month. Maybe there's a world where you can throw boxes or you can deliver pizzas, or you can, you know, do whatever you need to do at 12, 15, 18 an hour at one of these big box retail stores or Amazon or Chipot, or one of these places where you can earn an extra thousand dollars a month, $800 a month, and you're not in this bind. But again, this is just a season of your life. I really, really want to encourage you to find that new opportunity in 2026 that's going to put your salary, your take home, like, everything where you're feeling good again, north of that $5,600 a month range that you know you can do. We know you can do this, Sylvia. We know that you are a very capable person. Right. So let's go figure out how to do that again next year. Now, worst comes to wor runs track in high school. If I was a betting man, I would bet that your son is just as smart as you. And so your son would want to go to some sort of college and, and, you know, go move on with their life once they turn 18 years old. So if you do have to sell, consider selling after your son graduates high school. So there's not that weird, you know, shift out of school, new team, new friends, new things like that, and then take that, what might be at the time, even more than 100,000 of equity and perhaps use that on a down payment of something smaller with a lesser mortgage. Maybe it's in a che your area. Like, we can figure that out later, but I really think that you've got a good situation going here. You just need to figure out the little bits and pieces around your income and how to increase it by an extra 500 to a thousand dollars a month for the time being. So our next question comes from Carter C. On Instagram. Carter says, hey, guys, great podcast. Really became a diligent listener at the start of this year, and I can't get enough. I'd like to throw a question your way that pertains to setting up growth accounts for my two daughters, age 10 and 7. While I'm focused on growing my wealth, it leaves little for me to start grow growing my children's wealth simultaneously. So my parents, who are both retired, would like to start a fund that they can contribute to monthly. So my question is, what's the best route to take? I want to avoid a set use case like education. I want to have something easily transferable to my children when we deem the time to be appropriate. And I appreciate any insights on this topic. Thank you in advance. What an awesome situation to be in. Carter, let's go. Dude, that's so cool, right? So you got two kids, 7 and 10. You want to make sure that they're in investing for their future. And your parents, their grandparents, like Listen, we got some bands we want to throw at the kids. We want to make sure they're growing their wealth over time as well. We know the power of compound interest when you start early. So let's set up that account you mentioned. You don't want restrictions around a set use case of the account which throws the 529 off the table. Right? 529 accounts are accounts that you put money into. They come with some cool tax advantages sometimes, depending on the state you live in. And all of that money has to be used for education, so that doesn't work in this situation. On the flip side, there's something called a UTMA account, a Uniform Transfers to Minors act account, which essentially is a custodial account that you open on behalf of your children, you, your grandparents, anyone else can put money into this account. They can invest, they can save, they can use it however they want. Does not have to be used for education. It is very flexible. You can, you know, use this money for anything. Doesn't really come with. With that many tax benefits, if at any. But the thing that you need to be super aware about with these UTMA accounts, the adult manages the account, the child owns the account. So you are the one that's putting money into this. Your. Your parents are putting money into this, but the child legally owns the account. Which means depending on the state you live in, once your child turns 18, they could flip y' all the bird and say, my money, do what I want. See you later. Bye. Right. That very well could be like that. That could happen. Maybe it's 21 or 25, depending on the state you live in. But, like, they can literally say, my money. I want to do what I want with it. Like, sorry, you mentioned specifically that you want to have a way to easily transfer this money to them when the time is appropriate, preferably not. 18, I'd imagine, is where your head's at here as they continue to grow older and understand the world around them. So in my opinion, I don't think a UTMA account is the right answer either. So now you essentially have, like, two options. You've got option one, which is to create a trust, or option two, just keep the money in your own brokerage account, but, like, earmark it for them in the future. So let's talk about each one of those. You've got a trust which controls when they get access, if it's 25 or 30, or maybe they get staggered inheritance or staggered access to this money. You can control how they use it if it's education, if it's housing, if it's to start a business. And you can control who manages it, you, your parents, a financial advisor. Right. You get a lot of control with the trust. That's. Those are the, the kind of breakdown of that. And I would say there's a lot of pros in your situation. A con of that is they're kind of expensive to start. Now the flip side of that is, listen, you just got a brokerage account on public and it's in your name and it's just kind of earmarked for your kids in the future. You maintain control. There's no age triggered transfers. You just kind of transfer it to them or give them the money. When you're ready, you can gift it for anything. Gift tax doesn't really kick in unless there's a lot of involved, which I'd imagine there might not be too much here. So that's another way that you can think about this personally. It sounds to me like you want to start a trust. Sounds to me like you want to either have a revocable or an irrevocable trust. Something I'll let Robert explain on here in a second. But you want to start a way for you and your parents to really set your children up for success without giving them the keys to the kingdom per se at too young of an age, which might happen if you have this in a UTMA account.
- [26:00]
Robert
Yeah, I agree with everything you said. I think a revocable trust is probably the way to go. You can avoid probate, you can have anonymity, and you don't have any levers of when they get the money. But I want to back all the way up here. I think the most important thing is, and I think you alluded to it in the question is so many people are afraid of building all this money up for their kids, especially like a UTMA account. And then at 18 years old, they all of a sudden have legal control of the money and they can just go blow it. They can do whatever they want. So if you want to set them up for life, life. I would do exactly what Austin said. I would open that public account. I wouldn't even tell them the money is there until an age you feel deemed, that is they're mature enough and they have the financial literacy enough to understand the importance of what you did for them. Because a lot of times I've seen people in the past, they build up an account, it's got 30, 40, 50, $70,000 into it for their kids. They Give them to it at 18 or 21 years old, and by the time they're 25, it's gone. You don't want that. I would do the public account. I would keep it separate, let it build. You control it, and whenever you want, you could then always migrate those funds through a trust and be able to put in the levers that you want of when they receive it. So to take a moment and discuss the general differences between a revocable trust and an irrevocable trust, number one, to me, that is the most important is flexibility. Because with a revocable trust trust, it can be modified or canceled at any time. So if you get in a situation where you feel you don't need the trust anymore or you want to make changes to it for the kids or whatever happens, you can do that at any time. But an irrevocable trust, generally, it is set in stone. You can't change the beneficiaries, you can't change any of the information inside of it without court approval. Number two, that I think is important, kind of goes along with flexibility, is control. When you have a revocable trust, you are the grantor and you maintain control. So you can make changes on when the kids get the money, when they don't get the money, and really control the assets over the lifetime of the revocable trust. Whereas in an irrevocable trust, remember era, the grantor gives up the ownership and control of the assets placed in that trust. And number three is taxation. Assets are included in the grantor's taxable asset, whereas in an irrevocable trust, assets are not part of the grantor's taxable assets. So you have to understand that difference. And I would say lastly, something people don't talk about, there is no difference between both. But a really key part of both trusts is avoiding probate. That is the number one thing people need to understand that when you have these trusts in action and they're in play, you don't have to have all these assets go through probate. It can be very expensive, very timely, where it sometimes takes over a year to get all of these assets through probate. So I prefer for this instance, the revocable trust. I think it's better suited for what you're trying to do.
- [29:06]
Austin
I appreciate the breakdown, Robert. So our final question comes from an anonymous listener. This listener says, hi, Austin and Robert, thank you for the knowledge and wisdom that you provide. I only wish someone had taught me this at the ages of 20, 30 or even 40, that said I'm 633 and I'm facing burnout at my job. The atmosphere at work has deteriorated the past three years. Management does not value input from my team and have begun to micromanage us to the nth degree. It's a real morale killer and I just don't look forward to work anymore. Many on my team feel the same way, but no one is listening to us and they think that they know better. My wife and I both started investing later in life. I have no debt of any kind, but I also do not own a home. I make 50,000 and my wife makes 45,000. My wife is 50 with 120,000 in her 400,000 401K. I have 85,000 in my traditional IRA and 57,000 in my Roth IRA. We invest into the ETFs you recommend plus a couple of single stocks. Obviously I'm in no position financially to consider retiring just yet. I'm athletic and I'm in excellent health. But at 63, it doesn't seem it would be easy to find another good paying job with benefits that would be willing to hire me. I just keep thinking I've got to thug it out at my current job for two to eight more years. Years if I work until I'm 70, for example, to build my retirement accounts as much as possible and wait until then to take Social Security. But that's sacrificing my enjoyment of life to a major degree. I would appreciate any insights you might have for me. Thank you very much, Mr. Anonymous. Robert. What a situation our anonymous friend is in right here. So he's 63, hates his job, makes 50,000 a year, wife's making 45, doesn't think people are going to hire him. I'll even you chime in here, Robert. Or someone who I'm sure has hired a lot of people in their 50s and 60s, considering your background. But here's my thing, man. You are 63 years old making $50,000 a year, which means you're making $24 an hour. $24 an hour. It's pretty good. That's a pretty good hourly wage if you ask me. But the question now becomes, would you rather be miserable making $24 an hour or. Or take two steps backward to 18 or $21 an hour with a clear path to make 24 again in the near future, but be happier than ever. That's where I'm thinking. Right, so like you said, you want to work until 70 years old anyway. You're not in a position to Retire, which I would agree with you on that one. Which tells me if you're going to work until you're 70, might as well be happy doing it, right? What's that encore career where you are waking up happy as could be to go to work every day. And that might mean making 18 bucks an hour or $21 an hour, 17, 15, I don't know. But like, you're making less, but you are so happy and you have a clear path to make what you were making before in the Next, call it 18 or 24 months, right? You're not going to make 18 or 21 or, you know, less than $24 an hour forever. But it might be for a season of your life, but you're getting back that happiness. You're getting back the spark. You're getting back the excitement every single day to go to work, provide service, make the best products, do whatever you can to be that awesome employee that your employer expects you to be and earn that wage. I think it's a wonderful idea to kind of take a step back and do something better that's going to really suit you. Now, if you were telling me, hey guys, I'm making half a million a year and I hate it, it's like, dude, thug it out. Like you said, right? Two to eight more years, make a ton of money and just like, boohoo. But at 50,000, you got a lot of flexibility here. You really do.
- [32:37]
Robert
Yeah, I would say Suck it up, Mr. Anonymous. I'm going to take a little bit different approach. I would suck it up for one year, not two to eight years, and get the money you're getting now. Stay at the job, but build a new job or find a new job while doing it. Because at the end of the day, if you're athletic at 63 years old and you're in good shape and you have a lot of energy, someone's going to hire you for a position for equal or more money. Because it is so hard to find good employees and I assume you're one of them. So I'd suck at it up. I'd immediately start working on my skill set, go out, look around, see what is available for someone, and stop worrying about the age. Because if you present well and you are energetic and a hard worker, you will be able to replace this job faster than you think. You just have to be willing to make the effort to do so. And I agree with Austin on everything else. If you have to take a step back, let's say you find a completely different role at $21 an hour. But there's a clear path in two years to $30 an hour power. That's the move. So I think you can do this. There is always. I'm a small business owner all across the country, Trust me, we're always looking for solid people that'll show up, work hard, and definitely be consistent.
- [33:55]
Austin
And you mentioned like, oh, no one's gonna hire me. Like, sure, there are, I'm sure companies out there that are looking for someone who is AI native and they grew up using a smartphone and they're very like, I get that, that don't look for those jobs. On the flip side, what about sales? What about something in person? What about something where you are some more service oriented? Maybe there's something where you can talk about your leadership skills. Something where you can talk about your project management skills. Like there's a lot of jobs. Though I would argue that someone in their 60s could excel at that. Doesn't have to have that deep background in technology and AI like I'm sure you're pretty worried about. So if I were you, I think maybe a hybrid of Robert and I's answers. The goal here though is if you are going to work until you're 70, do it in a way that makes you really happy, even if it means going backwards.
- [34:45]
Robert
I couldn't agree more, everybody.
- [34:47]
Austin
Thank you so much for tuning into this week's episode of the Rich Habits Podcast, Question and Answer Edition, brought to you by public.com if you've not yet opened a brokerage account on public.com what are you waiting for? Gotta go get some money invested over there. They got ETFs, they've got direct indexing. Actually, Robert, I just put $2,000 into their new direct indexing. I chose the S&P 100 myself. Sims has pretty comparable performance to the S&P 500. So got 2,000 rocking over there, got a bunch of other money elsewhere, of course, in public because we love using the public platform. As a reminder, if you have a question for us, DM us on Instagram at Rich Habits Podcast, email us atrich habits podcastmail.com and of course, as always, please consider joining the Rich Habits Network, our community for our biggest fans, where every Tuesday evening for two hours, Robert and I hop a Zoom call with over 200 of you, open up our portfolios, share with you the playbook, give you guys a perspective on the biggest headlines and news that are moving the markets, as well as answer your questions face to face in real time and really giving you that more exclusive access to myself and Robert, as well as eight hours of video coursework and the ability to invest alongside Robert and I into some awesome, cool privately held companies.
- [36:02]
Robert
I think that was one of the coolest things over the Thanksgiving holiday is getting so many messages from people saying that the Rich Habits Network is the coolest, best community they've ever joined on the Internet for business, finance and mindset. So I just love seeing those messages of happy people that are really learning and advancing their knowledge to build wealth because personal finance is personal. So thank you all for stopping by and showing us all the love and support over the the years.
- [36:32]
Austin
Thanks everyone and we'll see you tomorrow for our Friday episode of the Rich Habits Radar.
- [37:02]
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