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Joe Saul-Sehy and Josh ‘OG’ Bannerman

Named Best Personal Finance Podcast by Bankrate.com and Kiplinger — and the only podcast the Plutus Awards retired from competition after winning twice — The Stacking Benjamins Show is personal finance that doesn’t put you to sleep.

Hosts Joe Saul-Sehy (former 16-year financial advisor, ex-WXYZ-TV “Money Man”) and Josh “OG” Bannerman, CFP (Certified Financial Planner, Bannerman Wealth) sit around the card table in Joe’s mom’s half-finished basement in Texarkana and talk money with the smartest guests in personal finance, investing, and behavioral economics. As Fast Company wrote, the show “strikes a great balance of fun and functional.”

Every Monday, Wednesday, and Friday: expert guests, real headlines, listener questions, and Doug’s trivia. Topics include investing, retirement planning, budgeting, real estate, behavioral finance, taxes, and financial independence — for anyone who wants to be smarter about money without being talked down to.

Subscribe to The 201 — the free newsletter that goes deeper than the show — at stackingbenjamins.com/201

The Stacking Benjamins Show

A new study just confirmed what most people in their 40s already feel but rarely say out loud: running out of money is scarier than death. Gen X is leading that number at 73% -- and the reasons why make a lot of sense when you look at what that generation is actually navigating. No pensions. Rising costs. Longer retirements. Markets that never seem to settle. Joe, OG, and Len Penzo dig into the data, the psychology, and the practical steps that actually move the needle.

What You'll Walk Away With

 • Why Gen X is more worried about retirement than either baby boomers or millennials -- and the pension gap that explains most of it
 • The Social Security stress test OG recommends for every retirement plan -- and why neither he nor Len think it's going away
 • Why checking your portfolio every time the market drops is one of the most expensive habits a long-term investor can have
 • The automation argument that cuts through the discipline myth -- and why your systems matter far more than your willpower
 • Why the debt normalization shift that happened sometime in the late 1970s is still costing people their retirement today
 • The three-layer retirement income framework OG and Anna walk through -- Social Security, pensions and annuities, and investment withdrawals -- and how to find your gap number
 • The 4% rule explained in plain math -- including the inflation adjustment most people skip and why it matters enormously
 • What sequence of return risk actually means in practice -- and the floor strategy that keeps you from panic-selling at exactly the wrong moment
 • Why running out of money in retirement is mostly a planning problem, not a math problem -- and what that distinction changes
 • The ongoing battle to name OG and Anna's financial basics segment -- and why "The Financial Dwarves with Happy and Grumpy" didn't make the cut

Why This Matters Now

If you're in your 40s and that 67% statistic landed somewhere uncomfortable, you're not behind -- you're paying attention. The gap between fear and a plan is smaller than most people think, and this episode maps it out in terms you can actually act on this week. The math is real, the tools exist, and the biggest obstacle for most people isn't knowledge. It's starting.

From the Basement

Joe, OG, and Len Penzo dig into a sobering Investment News study on retirement fears before OG and Anna kick off season two of their financial basics series with a full retirement income planning walkthrough -- complete with a guidebook you can download and follow along. Doug arrives with Festivus trivia that everyone over 40 finds insultingly easy. The segment naming debate continues with no resolution in sight, though The Study and The Financial Dwarves with Happy and Grumpy both made spirited cases.

Resources Mentioned

 • Len Penzo -- 
lenpenzo.com • ; book: True Money Stories on Amazon
 • JP Morgan Guide to the Markets -- search "JP Morgan Guide to the Markets" for monthly market data
SSA.gov • -- Social Security earnings history and benefit projections
 • Stacking Benjamins Basics Guide -- season one and season two workbooks free at 
stackingbenjamins.com/basicsguide • Stacking Benjamins Vault -- 
stackingbenjamins.com/vault • Stacking Benjamins Community -- 
stackingbenjamins.com/basement • FULL SHOW NOTES: 
https://stackingbenjamins.com/Why-Americans-Fear-Running-Out-of-Money-in-Retirement-More-Than-Dying-1840 • Deeper dives with curated links, topics, and discussions are in our newsletter, The 201, available at 
https://www.stackingbenjamins.com/201

See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Why 67% of Americans Fear Running Out of Money More Than Dying (And What to Do About It) SB1840

Ever spend an entire afternoon trying to save 38 cents… while completely ignoring the $10 decision sitting right in front of you?

Yeah. We’ve all been there.

In today’s roundtable, we’re diving into the money habits that actually build wealth, and the ones that just make you feel productive while your financial progress spins its wheels. From lifestyle inflation to automated savings to the tiny “money hacks” people obsess over, this episode is all about separating the moves that matter from the stuff that just wastes your time.

And trust us… the conversation goes everywhere in the best possible way.

Joe teams up with Len Penzo and the mysterious Mrs. Adventure Rich for a fast-moving discussion about:

 • Why automating your savings beats relying on “discipline”
 • The sneaky danger of lifestyle inflation after every raise
 • Whether investing spare change is brilliant… or basically pointless
 • The financial habits that create real momentum
 • Why focusing on tiny wins can sometimes cost you bigger victories
 • The retirement risks most people completely overlook
 • Inflation’s hidden effect on your future lifestyle
 • Whether the 4% rule still holds up
 • How to stay motivated when your financial goals feel far away
 • Why you should start “living retirement” now instead of waiting decades

Of course, because this is the basement:

 • Doug shows up in yoga pants and Ugg boots
 • Len reveals his long-range financial “strategic plan”
 • Joe and Len turn into old men reminiscing about dime Slurpees
 • Somebody compares grocery shopping to psychological warfare
 • And there’s at least one discussion involving sandwiches that goes completely off the rails

What makes this conversation especially interesting? About halfway through, you’ll realize this discussion originally happened years ago… and somehow every single topic still feels ripped from today’s headlines. Different year. Same money traps. Same smart moves. Same need for a financial plan that actually works in real life.

If you’ve ever wondered whether you’re spending too much energy on the wrong financial goals—or you just want smarter ways to make progress without making yourself miserable—this episode belongs in your playlist today.

See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

40 Ways to Take Control of Your Money -- Which Ones Actually Work (SB1839)

Getting to your first $25,000 saved is harder than anything that comes after it. Not because the math is complicated -- because the habits aren't built yet, the fixed expenses are already set, and the standard advice about cutting small treats completely misses where the real leverage is. Scott Trench, VP of Operations at BiggerPockets and author of Set for Life, brings a roadmap that challenges almost everything you've heard about getting started -- and it begins with a decision most people aren't willing to make.

What You'll Walk Away With

 • Why the first $25,000 is the hardest milestone -- and why cutting lattes and happy hours won't get you there
 • The three budget categories that actually matter -- and why they account for two thirds of what most people spend
 • Why saving your next $1,000 is more valuable than earning your next $1,000 -- and the tax math that proves it
 • The house hacking strategy that can eliminate your largest monthly expense entirely -- even if you never want to be a full-time landlord
 • Why stocks are less risky than bonds for long-term investors -- and the age-based argument Scott makes that most people miss
 • The counterintuitive case for spending more on fun -- once you've handled the big fixed expenses first
 • Why developing a specialty may actually be riskier than being adaptable -- and what that means for your career strategy
 • The retirement account trap that catches early savers off guard -- and when maxing out isn't the right first move
 • How to actually vet a financial advisor before handing over your money -- and why the problem is often as much the client as the advisor
 • Why international stocks belong in your portfolio even when they've underperformed -- and the rebalancing math that changes the picture

Why This Matters Now

This conversation was originally recorded years ago, but it was pulled from the vault for a reason: saving that first $25,000 feels harder today than it did then. Costs are higher, decisions feel riskier, and it's easier than ever to feel stuck before you even get started. The core framework Scott lays out hasn't changed -- and if anything, it applies more directly now than when it was first recorded.

From the Basement

Scott Trench joins Joe and OG to walk through the early chapters of Set for Life -- the ones that challenge conventional saving wisdom before getting into the real estate strategy BiggerPockets is known for. The headline segment takes on a Bloomberg piece about bad financial advisors and a lawsuit against American Funds, and OG gets considerably more animated than usual about both. Doug arrives with muni bond trivia that turns out to be exactly as straightforward as it sounds -- which is either reassuring or anticlimactic depending on your expectations.

Resources Mentioned

 • Set for Life by Scott Trench -- 
biggerpockets.com/setforlife • The Truth About Money by Ric Edelman -- referenced by Joe as a foundational personal finance read
 • FINRA BrokerCheck -- f
inra.org/brokercheck • ; referenced for vetting financial advisors
 • Stacking Benjamins Scorecard -- 
stackingbenjamins.com/scorecard • Stacking Benjamins Vault -- s
tackingbenjamins.com/vault • Stacking Benjamins Community -- 
stackingbenjamins.com/basement

See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

How to Save Your First $25,000 -- The Roadmap Most People Get Wrong (SB1838)

What if the reason your investment decisions feel so hard isn't the market -- it's how you're wired to think about outcomes? Annie Duke spent years as a professional poker player winning over $4 million in tournaments, then devoted the next chapter of her career to understanding why smart people consistently make bad decisions. The answer has nothing to do with intelligence and everything to do with how we confuse results with quality. She brings the full framework down to the basement today.

What You'll Walk Away With

 • Why certainty is the enemy of good decision making -- and the mindset shift that makes uncertainty feel like an advantage instead of a threat
 • The Pete Carroll problem: how tying the outcome of a decision to the quality of the decision is quietly wrecking how you evaluate your investments
 • Why being smarter actually makes this bias worse -- and how intelligent people spin data to confirm what they already believe more effectively than anyone else
 • The difference between wanting to be right and wanting to be accurate -- and why that single distinction changes everything about how you process new information
 • How to hold your beliefs as "works in progress" rather than positions to defend -- and why that opens you up to information that actually improves your decisions
 • Why the stock market's short-term volatility is almost never the signal investors treat it as -- and what a 40-year Berkshire Hathaway chart actually tells you
 • The poker table parallel to long-term investing -- and why you can make all the right moves and still lose, which means a bad outcome never proves a bad decision
 • What the Philly Special play reveals about how we reward boldness only when it works -- and what that tells you about how you judge your own financial choices
 • A listener question on market-cap weighted index funds -- why the s and p is built the way it is and what you'd actually need to do to weight it differently
 • The best personal finance and business books the crew is reading right now -- including picks from OG that go well beyond the usual recommendations

Why This Matters Now

For Stackers in their 40s watching a volatile market and second-guessing decisions that were perfectly sound six months ago, this episode is a direct intervention. The temptation to call a good decision bad because the market moved against you -- or to abandon a long-term strategy because of a short-term result -- is exactly the bias Annie Duke has spent her career studying. The framework she brings today doesn't just apply to poker. It applies to every financial decision you'll make for the rest of your life.

From the Basement

Annie Duke joins Joe and OG to walk through the decision-making framework behind her book Thinking in Bets -- including the Super Bowl story that reframes how most people evaluate every financial move they've ever made. The headline segment tackles parents spending six figures on kids' extracurriculars and what the trade-off actually looks like for retirement savings. Doug arrives with poker-themed trivia about the all-time tournament earnings leader, gets it mostly right, and declares victory anyway. Whether the basement poker tournament ended in anyone's favor is a matter of some dispute.

Resources Mentioned

 • Thinking in Bets by Annie Duke -- available wherever books are sold
 • Annie Duke's website and weekly newsletter -- annieduke.com
 • Annie Duke on Twitter -- @AnniedDuke
 • The Truth About Money by Ric Edelman -- recommended by Joe
 • Set for Life by Scott Trench -- recommended by Joe
 • Broke Millennial by Erin Lowry -- recommended by Joe
 • How to Be a Financial Grownup by Bobbi Rebell -- recommended by Joe
 • The Behavior Gap and The One-Page Financial Plan by Carl Richards -- recommended by OG
 • Fooling Some of the People All of the Time by David Einhorn -- recommended by OG
 • Built to Sell by John Warrillow -- recommended by OG
 • The E-Myth by Michael Gerber -- recommended by Joe
 • The Goal by Eliyahu Goldratt -- recommended by Joe
 • Stacking Benjamins Community -- stackingbenjamins.com/basement

See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Thinking in Bets: Annie Duke on Making Smarter Decisions When You Don't Have All the Facts - Greatest Hits! (SB1837)

You've seen the ads. Invest like the ultra-wealthy. Get access to what the 1% does. But what does the 1% actually do -- and how much of it should a normal person try to copy? Joe, OG, comedian and finance educator Roxanne Duckels, and Jesse Cramer run every popular "rich people investing" idea through a simple filter: steal it, scale it, or skip it. The answers will surprise you -- especially the one where OG wants to delete an entire asset class from existence.

What You'll Walk Away With

 • Why long-term thinking is the one habit the 1% has that every Stacker should steal immediately -- and the short-term execution piece most people miss when they try
 • The tax strategy obsession that the wealthy genuinely use -- and why Jesse ranks it seventh on his list of financial priorities, not first
 • What paying for advice actually means when you're smart enough to do it yourself -- and why the wealthiest people surround themselves with even smarter people anyway
 • The alternative investment marketing trap hiding inside every "invest like the rich" pitch -- and OG's case for why most people have no business touching any of it
 • Why the accredited investor designation protects almost no one -- and what the real risk is when you lock up money in illiquid investments chasing slightly better returns
 • The leverage conversation that exposes a contradiction hiding in plain sight for every real estate investor
 • Why Roxanne's path to financial independence started with filling her gas tank all the way up -- and what that tells you about long-term thinking at any income level
 • The one question that should precede any alternative investment conversation: does the expected return actually beat what publicly traded equities already offer?
 • What the trivia competition scoreboard looks like heading into the back half of the year -- and whether OG's historic lead is as safe as it looks
 • Why rich habits and "what the 1% does" are two completely different things -- and which one is actually worth chasing

Why This Matters Now

In a noisy market environment, the "invest like the wealthy" pitch gets louder every time volatility spikes. Private credit, non-traded REITs, leveraged real estate, alternative assets -- the marketing machine never stops. For Stackers in their 40s who've built something real and don't want to blow it chasing a category that mostly benefits the people selling it, this episode is a useful reset. The habits worth stealing from the 1% turn out to be remarkably unglamorous.

From the Basement

Joe, OG, Roxanne Duckels from Finance Rox, and Jesse Cramer run the "invest like the rich" playbook through a steal-it-scale-it-skip-it framework -- and nobody agrees on everything, which is exactly what makes it useful. Doug arrives with Mayday trivia about the origin of the distress call and the year it was coined, which turns into one of the cleaner trivia finishes of the season. Whether the basement scoreboard moved in OG's favor or Jesse closed the gap is a question best answered with your earbuds in.

Resources Mentioned

 • Finance Rox -- Roxanne Duckels on 
YouTube • and 
Instagram • @FinanceROX
Personal Finance for Long-Term Investors • -- Jesse Cramer's podcast, wherever you listen
 • Stacking Benjamins Newsletter (The 201) -- recent issue: brokerage vs. UTMA/UGMA vs. Trump accounts for kids; 
stackingbenjamins.com/201 • Stacking Benjamins Vault -- 
stackingbenjamins.com/vault • Stacking Benjamins Community -- 
stackingbenjamins.com/basement • Stacking Benjamins Meetups -- 
stackingbenjamins.com/bad

See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Invest Like the 1%? What to Steal, What to Scale, and What to Skip (SB1836)

Haley Sacks didn't grow up knowing what a 401k was. She was nannying for a kid named Winthrop on the Upper East Side, doing comedy at night, and getting paid cash under the table. Then she sat in an HR meeting and her eyes glazed over -- and she decided that was the last time she'd be caught unprepared with her own money. Today she's Mrs. Dow Jones, with millions of followers and a new book. The basement finally got her in the chair, and she did not hold back.

What You'll Walk Away With

 • The "future rich person" framework -- what separates people quietly building wealth from everyone else performing it
 • Why the biggest wealth trap isn't overspending -- it's the psychological pull of looking rich before you are
 • How automation is the real secret behind Haley's path to millionaire status -- and why willpower alone was never going to get her there
 • The action movie analogy that finally makes the debt-versus-investing debate make sense -- and which one you tackle first
 • Why your fixed expenses might be the actual problem -- and the two levers you can pull when the math doesn't work
 • The "money date" habit that keeps Haley on track -- and how to make it something you'll actually do every month
 • What a mise en place approach to your finances looks like -- and the four accounts every future rich person needs in place before anything else
 • Why cutting spending has a floor but earning more doesn't -- and how to think creatively about your income ceiling
 • The mortgage volatility conversation hiding in this episode -- including OG's take on where rates actually belong historically and why "date the rate" might be the most useful three words in real estate right now
 • Why comparison is derailing more financial plans than bad investments ever could

Why This Matters Now

If you're in your 40s and you still feel like the millionaire milestone belongs to someone else's story -- someone who started earlier, earned more, or just had better instincts -- this episode is a direct challenge to that belief. Hailey Sacks didn't have better instincts. She had a glazed-over HR meeting and a determination not to be caught unprepared twice. The foundation she built after that moment is exactly what she walks through today.

From the Basement

Mrs. Dow Jones herself -- Haley Sacks -- finally makes it down the stairs and does not disappoint. Joe and OG close the episode with a Wall Street Journal headline on mortgage rate volatility and what it actually means for anyone trying to buy, move, or refinance right now. OG lands what may be the cleanest take of the season: when should you borrow money? When you need to borrow money. Doug arrives with Dow Jones trivia about the longest-tenured company in the index, which turns out to have been added in 1932 and is hiding in plain sight on every household shelf. Whether the basement scoreboard had anything to do with Procter & Gamble is a question best answered with your earbuds in.

Resources Mentioned

 • Future Rich Person by Haley Sacks (Mrs. Dow Jones) -- pre-order with $700 in bonuses at 
mrsdowjones.com/book • ; releases May 12th
 • Mrs. Dow Jones on Instagram and YouTube -- @MrsDowJones
 • Mrs. Dow Jones podcast -- Financial Therapy
 • Wall Street Journal mortgage volatility article by Veronica Dagher and Ben Eisen -- linked at stackingbenjamins.com
 • Stacking Benjamins Vault -- 
stackingbenjamins.com/vault • Stacking Benjamins Meetups -- 
stackingbenjamins.com/bad • Stacking Benjamins Community -- 
stackingbenjamins.com/basement

See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Mrs. Dow Jones on How to Become a Future Rich Person (Without Giving Up Your Life) SB1835

Most investors spend their energy asking the wrong question. It's not which fund is best -- it's which combination of funds gets you to your actual goal at a cost and complexity level you'll actually maintain. Joe and OG break down the full index investing playbook: where to start, when to add complexity, what Wall Street calls indexing that really isn't, and the one number that should change how you think about your entire portfolio.

What You'll Walk Away With

 • Why the real argument for index investing isn't that nobody beats the market -- it's that you can't predict who will do it next
 • The crockpot principle of index investing -- and why the self-cleaning oven analogy might be even better
 • Why the S&P 500 and the total stock market index are closer than most people think -- and which one Joe is increasingly favoring for the long run
 • The $100,000 turning point: what changes about your investment strategy when the portfolio gets big enough to get scientific
 • The first two additions most Stackers should consider beyond their core index -- and why OG would actually add more than two
 • Why mixing index funds from different companies can quietly undermine your diversification without you ever knowing it
 • How to replace the word "index" with "list" to instantly identify whether a product is actually doing what you think it is
 • The buffered ETFs, factor ETFs, and active ETFs that call themselves indexes -- and why most Stackers should walk right past them
 • Why you're not racing against the index -- you're on a road trip -- and what that shift in framing changes about every investing decision
 • The season one recap from OG and Anna's financial planning basics series -- plus the free workbook that ties all seven episodes together

Why This Matters Now

In your 40s, the portfolio is finally big enough to matter -- and that's exactly when the temptation to complicate things gets strongest. New products, new strategies, and new buzzwords show up constantly, each promising a smarter approach. The investors who come out ahead aren't the ones who found the best fund. They're the ones who built something simple enough to maintain, scientific enough to optimize, and sturdy enough to hold through the moments when everything feels like it's falling apart.

From the Basement

Joe and OG dig into the full index investing playbook -- from the first fund a beginner should buy to the asset class combinations that actually improve long-term outcomes once the portfolio gets big enough to warrant it. OG and Anna close out their seven-week financial planning basics series with a full recap and the surprise release of a free downloadable workbook at stackingbenjamins.com/basicsguide. Doug arrives with Nolan Ryan trivia that connects strikeout records to index investing in a way that only the basement could pull off. Whether the analogy fully lands is a question best answered with your earbuds in.

Resources Mentioned

The Simple Path to Wealth by JL Collins • -- referenced as the foundational text for beginner index investors
 • Prior interviews with JL Collins: 
Interview 1 • and 
Interview 2Paul Merriman's annual asset class research • -- referenced for data on adding small cap value and international to a core S&P portfolio; 
paulmerriman.comiShares • -- referenced as an example of a consistent index fund family worth staying within
JP Morgan Guide to the Markets • -- referenced in prior episode; available at jpmorgan.com
 • Stacking Benjamins Basics Guide -- free seven-episode workbook at 
stackingbenjamins.com/basicsguide • Stacking Benjamins Newsletter (The 201) -- weekly investing hot takes from Kevin Bailey at 
stackingbenjamins.com/201 • Stacking Benjamins Vault -- 
stackingbenjamins.com/vault • Stacking Benjamins Meetups -- 
stackingbenjamins.com/bad

See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Index Investing 101: Stop Picking Funds and Start Building the Mix That Actually Works (SB1834)

Most people glance at their balance and move on. Joe Saul-Sehy, OG, Paula Pant, and Jesse Cramer argue that's exactly where the money quietly disappears. This week they go statement by statement, credit card through brokerage, and share what actually deserves your attention and what you can safely ignore.

In this episode:

The one thing on your credit card statement that trips up even careful spenders, why focusing on your 401k rate of return is the wrong move, the underinsured coverage gap most homeowners and drivers don't know they have, and the tax planning opportunities hiding inside your brokerage account.

Biggest takeaways:

Sort your credit card transactions highest to lowest. The leak with a comma in it will find you faster than you'll find it.

Your 401k contributions matter more than your returns. Contributions are within your control. Returns aren't. Check that your payroll deductions are actually landing in the account, because the IRS does not look kindly on companies that miss that.

Check your homeowner's insurance rebuild value every few years. Labor and material costs have changed dramatically. If you bought your policy when you bought your house and never revisited it, there is a good chance you are significantly underinsured.

In a taxable brokerage account, understand whether you're holding short-term or long-term gains before you make any moves. The difference in what you'll owe can be substantial.

Also in this episode:

Jesse Cramer previews an upcoming episode of Personal Finance for Long-Term Investors on why target date funds may be underperforming by more than you think.

Resources mentioned:

 • Jesse Cramer's podcast: 
Personal Finance for Long-Term Investors • 
 • Paula Pant's podcast: 
Afford Anything • 
 • The Stacking Benjamins scorecard: 
stackingbenjamins.com/scorecard • 
 • The Vault: 
stackingbenjamins.com/vault

See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

How to Find the Money Leaks Hidden in Your Financial Statements (SB1833)

Blockchain. Stablecoins. Wallets. Staking. Halvings. If you've spent the last few years nodding confidently through crypto conversations while quietly hoping nobody asks a follow-up question -- this episode is for you. Retired anesthesiologist and trading veteran Joe Duarte went from crypto skeptic to informed pragmatist, and today he brings the plain-English breakdown that most crypto content assumes you don't need. No hype. No moon talk. Just the vocabulary, the mechanics, and the honest risks.

What You'll Walk Away With

 • What blockchain actually is -- stripped of the jargon and explained in one sentence that actually sticks
 • The real difference between Bitcoin and Ethereum -- and why understanding those two unlocks everything else
 • What a stablecoin is, why it exists, and the one comparison that finally makes it click
 • The three crypto exchanges worth knowing -- and why starting with the big names isn't just convenient, it's genuinely safer
 • Hot wallets, cold wallets, and mobile wallets explained -- and which one makes the most sense if you're just getting started
 • What staking is, what mining is, and why neither one is your first move as a beginner
 • How crypto actually moves -- the liquidity connection most investors miss entirely
 • The tax trap that catches crypto beginners off guard -- and why your record keeping has to be airtight from day one
 • Why ETFs might be the smartest way for most Stackers to get crypto exposure without the operational headaches
 • The long-term care reality hiding in this episode -- and why 80% of people will eventually face a cost their current plan doesn't account for

Why This Matters Now

Whether you've been crypto-curious for years or you've actively avoided the conversation, the landscape has changed enough that staying completely uninformed carries its own risk. Regulation is arriving, major brokerages now offer access, and the vocabulary has leaked into mainstream financial planning. You don't have to become a believer -- but understanding what you're looking at puts you in a much better position to decide whether any of it belongs in your financial life.

From the Basement

Joe Duarte joins Joe and OG to translate the crypto dictionary for everyone who's been faking it at dinner parties for the last decade. In the headline segment, Joe and OG dig into a sobering new AARP report on long-term care costs -- and the conversation gets uncomfortably real about what most retirement plans are quietly missing. Doug arrives with trivia about the Bitcoin halving process, which turns out to have a name that required approximately zero creativity to invent. Whether the basement scoreboard reflects informed decision-making or something closer to Doug's personal net worth is a question best answered with your earbuds in.

Resources Mentioned

 • Cryptocurrency 101 by Joe Duarte -- available wherever books are sold, with deals currently running on Amazon
 • Coinbase -- coinbase.com, recommended starting point for US-based crypto beginners
 • Kraken -- kraken.com, noted for advanced trading tools alongside beginner access
 • Binance -- binance.com, largest global exchange; noted history with US regulators worth researching
 • NFCI Index -- Chicago Fed's National Financial Conditions Index, useful for tracking crypto-correlated liquidity at chicagofed.org
 • Genworth Cost of Care Study -- annual long-term care cost data by state at genworth.com
 • AARP Long-Term Care Report -- linked in show notes at stackingbenjamins.com
 • Stacking Benjamins Scorecard -- stackingbenjamins.com/scorecard
 • Stacking Benjamins Vault -- stackingbenjamins.com/vault
 • Stacking Benjamins Newsletter (The 201) -- stackingbenjamins.com
 • Hegemony board game -- referenced by Joe post-show; details at hegemonyproject.com

See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Bitcoin, Blockchain, and the Stuff Nobody Actually Explains (SB1832)

Most people think about investing in terms of what to buy. Joe Saul-Sehy, OG, and CFP Anna Allem argue the more important question is where you put it. This week they break down the three-bucket tax triangle that could save you thousands in retirement, plus answer listener questions on Trump accounts, UTMAs, and how to pull together a home down payment when your money is locked up in all the wrong places.

In this episode:

The difference between pre-tax, brokerage, and tax-free investing and why you need all three, what the new Trump account actually does and who it makes sense for, how to build a home down payment when your assets are tied up in retirement accounts, and why flexibility in your tax strategy matters as much as the investments themselves.

Biggest takeaways:

Draw a triangle. Label each corner pre-tax, brokerage, and tax-free. Then draw your buckets to scale based on where your money actually sits. If one bucket dwarfs the others, that's your problem to solve before you touch anything else.

The Trump account is not a traditional IRA, despite what the website implies. Money goes in after tax, grows tax deferred, and comes out taxable. For most people with a 529 and an UTMA already in place, keep going with what you have.

When your money is locked in retirement accounts and you need a down payment, the math has two sides. What does pulling it out cost you today in taxes and penalties, and what does it cost you in thirty years of lost compounding? Know both numbers before you decide.

Resources mentioned:

Episode 1808 on help eliminating hospital bills • (on navigating medical bills and hospital assistance programs) 
 • The Stacking Benjamins scorecard: 
stackingbenjamins.com/scorecard • 
 • The Vault: 
stackingbenjamins.com/vault • 
 • Submit your question: 
stackingbenjamins.com/yelldownstairs

See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

The Tax Triangle Most Investors Have Never Heard Of (SB1831)

What if earning more money in 2025 has less to do with working longer hours and more to do with becoming dangerously useful?

In this conversation, Joe Saul-Sehy and OG sit down with entrepreneur Alex Hormozi to break down how skill stacking, leverage, and better decision-making can radically change your income trajectory, whether you run a business, lead a team, or clock in for a 9-to-5.

Alex pulls back the curtain on what actually drives higher pay: choosing the right skills, focusing on work that compounds, and learning how to take smart risks without blowing up your life. Along the way, he tackles one of the hardest challenges Stackers face, how to pursue growth when well-meaning friends, family, or coworkers are urging you to play it safe.

This isn't about hustle culture or quitting your job tomorrow. It's about building a skill set that makes you indispensable, learning how to negotiate from a position of strength, and thinking long-term while others stay stuck optimizing small things.

WHAT YOU'LL TAKE AWAY:

 • Why skill stacking beats talent when it comes to earning power

 • How to identify high-leverage skills that pay off in any career

 • Ways to invest in yourself that don't require an MBA or massive risk

 • How to apply entrepreneurial thinking inside a traditional job

 • Practical negotiation insights that actually work in the real world

 • When giving away value helps you grow and when it backfires

 • How to tune out discouraging advice without burning bridges

 • Why systems and processes matter more than motivation

If you're serious about earning more in 2025 but want to do it thoughtfully, sustainably, and on your own terms, this episode gives you a blueprint worth studying.

Listen for the mindset shifts that compound quietly and the small changes that can unlock much bigger opportunities over time.

 

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Alex Hormozi on Skills That Actually Build Wealth, Part 2 (SB1785)

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