By Paula Pant
Welcome to the last First Friday episode of the year. Today, we’ll dive into an unprecedented moment in the U.S. economy: a missing jobs report, a divided Federal Reserve, a sluggish labor market, and a holiday shopping season shaped by AI, bargain hunters, and low consumer confidence.
In this episode, we […]
By Paula Pant
If you’ve ever stared at an insurance quote and wondered, “Is this really worth it?”, you’re not alone. Liability and umbrella policies can feel like an expensive mystery, especially when your net worth is growing and your risks are shifting.
In today’s episode, we dig into a listener’s dilemma about soaring liability and umbrella insurance […]
By Paula Pant
Today’s episode is a special rerun from the Afford Anything “greatest hits” vault, one that’s especially timely as we move through peak shopping season.
Originally aired in January 2020, this conversation with behavioral economist Jeff Kreisler digs into the hidden psychology behind sales, discounts, so-called “free shipping,” and all the subtle […]
By Paula Pant
We’re living through the first era in which an investor can ask a machine to read a decade of SEC filings in seconds. That sounds powerful, but also a little terrifying. Can we trust it? And how do we use it without falling for hallucinations or built-in optimism?
In this episode, we dig into the […]
By Paula Pant
Most teams hire for skills. The best teams hire for wiring.
What if the reason someone accelerates your organization, or quietly derails it, has more to do with their response time, processing style, or sense of mission than their résumé?
This episode dives into the hidden patterns that shape how people work, make decisions, and […]
By Paula Pant
When your income drops, debt spikes, and a rental property starts bleeding cash, it can feel like your entire financial foundation is cracking beneath you. Veronica, our first caller, is navigating all of it at once, from a near-foreclosure to a luxury car payment that’s strangling her budget. Her question is simple but enormous, how […]
By Paula Pant
Caring for an aging parent can morph into a second full-time job, and even the most financially savvy adults get blindsided. Bank accounts freeze, home sales stall, and family savings disappear faster than anyone expects.
In this episode, we dig into what really happens when you take over a parent’s financial life, from the first […]
By Paula Pant
Disruption is no longer a buzzword, it’s the new baseline. In this episode, bestselling author James Patterson and Vanderbilt professor Patrick Leddin explore how disruption reshapes careers, industries, and even personal identity. They share a framework for becoming a positive disruptor, someone who turns upheaval into opportunity.
From reinventing the publishing industry to navigating AI […]
By Paula Pant
An unusual First Friday episode because we don’t have a jobs report.
However, we do know that in October, U.S. companies announced more job cuts in a single month than they have over any single month of the last 20 years. In other words, October was peak job cut month.
By contrast, private payrolls, as […]
By Paula Pant
This week, Paula and Joe dig into a listener’s question about ETFs that track the stock trades of U.S. politicians — including the Democratic “NANC” fund and its Republican counterpart “KRUZ.” They explore whether this strategy is smart investing or just expensive entertainment.
Then, they shift gears to home ownership headaches. Another listener asks how […]
