Money can seem complicated. Sure, in theory you can give some pretty simple advice:
“Make more than you spend.”
…but in reality, personal finance can get pretty hairy.
Even with a simple statement like, “make more than you spend,” questions start popping up.
How do you make more money? How can you spend less? Beyond that, more specific things come up:
- Staying out of debt
- How to build up credit
- Learning how to invest
- Budgeting without dying of boredom
There’s no disputing how important learning how to manage your money is, but as you can see, there can be a lot to it.
For that reason, I wanted to find a great personal finance resource when I was creating my list of recommended educational podcasts. The show I found was Listen Money Matters, and I’ve been a huge fan ever since.
Matt Giovanisci and Andrew Fiebert, the show’s hosts, each come from different backgrounds and have lots of great perspective to offer. Their show delves into all the topics I mentioned above and more – all while retaining a very fun, down-to-earth feel that I find missing from other personal finance shows.
Since I’m a huge fan of their show, I reached out and asked them to come onto the CIG podcast!
In this episode, you’ll hear about both guys’ background and journeys to becoming more financially literate. You’ll also learn how we manage our money and which tools we use most often.
Things mentioned in this episode:
- The Listen Money Matters podcast
- Mint.com – my favorite money-management tool
- Mastering Mint – Matt and Andrew’s book on using Mint to the fullest (if you’re interested in it, you can use the coupon code collegeinfogeek to get $5 off)
- Betterment – managed investments with super-low fees
- Vanguard – my mutual fund company of choice
- VITA – volunteers do your taxes for you, free!
A couple great quotes from our conversation:
“You need to know where your money goes before you can start to cut back and actually save it.” | Tweet This
“When you graduate and get a job, keep living like a college kid for just 2 years.” | Tweet This
“I can beam quarters out of my eyes now”
What you should do right after listening:
- Start using Mint, or find a way you like to keep informed about your financial situation.
- Figure out what questions you still have about your finances, and start learning the answers. Feel free to contact me with questions if you like!
If you enjoyed this episode, give the CIG podcast a review on iTunes!