Paychecks & Balances | Personal Finance & Career Advice for Millennials

Today on the show we welcome Damien Peters! He’s the founder and Chief Product Officer of Wealth Noir and Victoriam Consulting Group. Damien is a former Facebook product manager, MIT alum, MBA, and self-proclaimed “personal finance nerd.” At Wealth Noir, Damien strives to work with you to generate wealth and presents information from the African-American perspective, teaching about the importance of financial freedom and generational wealth. Damien is also on the Board of Advisors for /dev/color, a non-profit focused on transforming black software engineers into industry leaders. He currently lives in Valencia, Spain with his wife and son, “managing all endeavors remotely while drinking plenty of sangria.”   In this episode, you’ll hear Damien talk about his time at Facebook, how he got started in investing and why the “buy and hold” approach in real estate will earn you the most cash for the future.     Highlights: Damien’s past jobs Being able to afford taking a year off! Investment properties and building your net worth Lifestyle creep, the appearance of wealth, and hanging onto your money long-term The “Silent” Millionaire Understanding your Net Worth Owning a Home vs Investing in Real Estate Damien’s experience during the housing crash Buy and Hold: Forced appreciation approach to Damien’s real estate strategy The importance of CREDIT Building wealth for the future generations of your family   Key Takeaway: The way you build wealth is by first building a financial mindset   Paychecks & Balances Website:  

Dr. Eric Patrick joins the Paychecks & Balances family today. Dr. Patrick a pharmacist turned investor and Entrepreneur. He’s the founder of “The Black Market Exchange”, which he developed because of the lack of people of color in the investing space. The BMEX is an educational platform that teaches investing and stock trading, that’s rooted in hip-hop and pop culture. The company has grown to over 50,000 loyal members, which includes subscribers to Dr. Patrick’s daily stock market newsletter “PAPERTRAIL”. PAPERTRAIL covers the latest stock market news with funny commentary and even has a “bangin’ playlist that’s for the culture each weekday to help you secure the bag”. In this episode, you’ll hear about Dr. Patrick’s journey out of his 9 to 5 Pharmacy job, how he stayed true to his roots while starting his business, his entry into the cannabis space and how some people prefer working a day job, and that’s ok.   Highlights: Being a pharmacist “in charge” How shifts in company culture can affect you and your mental health The transition out of your 9-5 job can take a long time, be patient “It’s not a rat race if you truly enjoy your job” Entrepreneur shame The process and hustle of putting out a daily newsletter Staying true to who you are and where you come from when creating a vision for your business Starting a social media agency Helping cannabis entrepreneurs through “Green Tree”   The Takeaway: Don’t try and be somebody you’re not with your business. When you show up authentically in the world, people will be drawn to you and your ideas.   Paychecks & Balances Websites:                                        

Today its’ just Marcus and Rich on the podcast. They’re doing a 2019-year in review and checking in with each other to get some feedback on where they’re both at in their business and personal lives. They’re both highlighting some changes in their mindsets and uncovering some things they’ve learned about using their time more effectively and being more deliberate with their goals.   In this episode they discuss why your time is more valuable then you think, the importance of taking new opportunities, learning new skills at your job, and taking charge of your investments. Perhaps the most important thing they’ve learned in 2019 is that you have to enjoy the process of self-improvement and that your mental health is at the root of all your successes. If you don’t get your mental health right, it’s hard for the other things to fall into place.   Highlights:   Marcus getting a new job and moving to a new city Starting a new job and having to learn new processes and procedures Dealing with imposter syndrome “Don’t be afraid to go after a new opportunity for 6- 8 months, it doesn’t have to be permanent” “Where you’re at today is the culmination of the past 10-15 years” Declaring side hustle income goals SEP IRA’s for business owners Making moves on your own, within your investment accounts Determining the hourly rate for your life Hiring help for the tasks that take up too much of your time Continuing Therapy and taking advantage of your companies “Employee Assistance Program”   Key Takeaway: It’s important to reflect back on your year and take note of your wins and loses. You can’t change what you don’t track, so write down those goals and improvement areas of your life, and crush them in 2020.   Paychecks & Balances Website:    

Today we welcome the host of “The Side Hustle Show”, Nick Loper. The Side Hustle Show is a weekly podcast that has been running since 2013. It explores creative ideas on how to make money outside of your day job. Nick is a side hustle enthusiast and many years ago he created a comparison-shopping website for footwear, that allowed him to quit his full time corporate job. Since then he’s had dozens of other side hustle successes and failures.   Nick is a believer that with hard work, the right niche and some patience, everyone can have some success with a side hustle, and use the extra cash to save more money, pay off debt, learn new skills or try and escape the rat race. Nick is also the founder of  

Today we welcome the host of “How to be Awesome at Your Job”, Pete Mockaitis to the show. Each week, Pete grills thought-leaders and results-getters to discover specific, actionable insights that boost work performance. He also runs an Enhanced Thinking & Collaboration (ETC) Training Program, which aims to improve businesses, foster collaboration and reduce wasted time. He’s provided 1-on-1 coaching to 700+ professionals from elite organizations such as Google, the UN, Amazon, Goldman Sachs, FedEx, McKinsey, Apple and more, across 50 countries and all Ivy League schools. In this episode, you’ll hear Pete talk about consulting, starting his own business, and how to channel deep focus for difficult tasks.   Highlights: What’s sexy about consulting? The challenges of consulting Pete’s love for transforming people and making a move towards entrepreneurship What is my offering? Who are my customers? How do I acquire my audience? 400 days’ worth of savings before starting a business House Hacking Happiness is the key to being awesome at your job The 80/20 Rule Scheduling uninterrupted-deep-work time Stay in touch with your network (“Build the well before you’re thirsty.”) Syncing up with your manager   Key Takeaway: When you’re trying to achieve your dreams, you must set yourself up for success. Define what success looks like, have a substantial savings to float you for a time, and create a strategy for your potential customers.   Paychecks & Balances Website: