Through the years, I have interviewed hundreds of millionaires with the goal of learning from their experiences and knowledge. I’ve published these as Millionaire Interviews, featuring my specific questions and their responses. After a few hundred interviews, I realized that there was phenomenal wisdom in several of the questions I asked, especially when the responses from different interviewees are read one after another.  I’ve decided to publish these here on ESI Money in my Millionaire […]

In January, I was honored to speak at a CampFI event in Florida.  I spoke about The Bucket Strategy, and today I’ll be sharing a portion of my presentation on “How To Refill Your Buckets in Retirement,” based on my experience through 8 years of retirement.  As proof, here’s a photo of me presenting one of the slides you’ll read about in today’s article: “Professor Fritz” teaching The Bucket Strategy at CampFI This is the […]

The Short Version: Saving preserves capital. Investing grows it. Confusing the two can cost you decades of wealth-building potential. A savings account earning 4% while inflation runs at 3.5% means you’re barely treading water — and most years, you’re actually falling behind. The risk of not investing is just as real as the risk of investing. It’s just less visible. Every year you wait is a year of compounding you’ll never get back. A lot of people think they’re investing when they’re really just saving. They’ve got money in a high-yield savings account earning 4%, maybe some cash sitting in a money market fund, and they feel like they’re being responsible with their finances.Saving is holding onto money. Investing is putting money to work. One preserves capital. The other grows it. Confusing the two can cost you decades of wealth building potential. What Saving Actually Does Saving is essential. Everyone needs an emergency fund. Everyone needs cash reserves for short-term expenses. Having 3-6 months of living expenses sitting somewhere safe and accessible is basic financial hygiene. But saving doesn’t grow your wealth. At best, it maintains your purchasing power. More often, it slowly erodes it. Let’s say you’ve got $50,000 in a savings account earning 4% interest. But if inflation is running at 3.5%, your real return is 0.5% which means you’re barely treading water. And that’s a “good” scenario. For most of the last two decades, savings account rates were closer to 0.5% while inflation averaged 2-3%. Savers were LOSING purchasing power every single year without realizing it. That’s the cost of saving instead of investing. Your balance goes up slightly, so it feels like progress. But the things you want to buy with that money (a house, retirement, financial freedom) keep getting more expensive faster than your savings grow. Robert Kiyosaki puts it bluntly: “Savers are losers.” It sounds harsh, but the math backs him up. If you’re ONLY saving… you’re falling behind. What Investing Actually Does Investing is fundamentally different. When you invest, you’re buying assets that have the potential to grow in value or generate income over time. Stocks represent ownership in companies that (ideally) become more valuable as they grow earnings. Bonds pay interest in exchange for lending your capital. Real estate generates rental income and appreciates over time. Each of these puts your money to work in ways that a savings account simply can’t. The historical numbers tell the story. The S&P 500 has returned roughly 10% annually over the long term. Real estate has delivered similar returns when you factor in cash flow, appreciation, and tax benefits. Compare that to the 0.5-4% you might get from a savings account, and the gap becomes obvious. But the real magic lies in compounding. Albert Einstein allegedly called compound interest the 8th wonder of the world. And for good reason… $50,000 invested at 8% annually… In 10 years, it becomes roughly $108,000In 20 years, it’s

When a friend is in crisis, sometimes the best thing you can do for them is create a meal train. Meals are often the last thing on someone’s mind when they are dealing with a difficult time or major life event. From the death of a family member to recovery from surgery or cancer treatmentsKeep Reading 13 Best Meal Train Ideas for Families {& How to Easily Set One Up!} was originally published on WhatMommyDoes.com

I got the following email from Chase yesterday: Important: Cash Back Redemption Options Dear Joseph Hendrix: Beginning 3/27/26, you will no longer be able to redeem for a cash back deposit from your Chase Freedom®, Chase Sapphire®, or Chase Ink® credit card(s) to an account held by a financial institution other than Chase. You can continue to redeem for a cash back deposit to an eligible U.S. Chase account or redeem your rewards as an […]

With summer just around the corner get ahead of the game and prepare for your summer time parties with these amazing food recipes! These food ideas are the perfect healthy options that will leave everyone going back for seconds. Give our summer party food recipes for a crowd a try! Low Carb Party Food Ideas for Summer Deep Dish Pizza Casserole GET THE RECIPE → Lemon Garlic Salmon GET THE RECIPE → Lemon Pepper Chicken Wings GET THE RECIPE → Tomato Garlic Pasta

You’re not manifesting what you want because you’re trying to build abundance from a feeling that’s anything but that. Fear, desperation, and scarcity are actually repelling the money you say you want. Let that sit for a second. It’s not your vision board or your affirmations. It’s not that you “don’t believe hard enough.” It’s your emotional frequency. And most manifestation experts don’t explain this properly. This is what we’re diving into on this week’s Money is Emotional episode, “Why You’re Not Manifesting What You Want.”  Why You’re Not Manifesting What You Want You are a manifesting machine, and so am I. We cannot not manifest. We always attract what aligns with the majority of our thoughts, emotions, and energy. If you are operating from: Panic Proving Subtle shame Financial tension Quiet resentment That is the frequency shaping your financial results. This isn’t mystical fluff. It’s physics. Everything carries energy. Your thoughts do. Your words do. Your emotions absolutely do. You don’t build financial peace from internal chaos. You don’t build abundance from contraction. The Hidden Threshold No One Talks About There’s a tipping point in human emotion, and it is courage. Psychiatrist Dr. David Hawkins mapped human emotions on a vibrational scale, from shame and fear at the bottom to courage, and eventually to peace, love, and joy. Below courage, you’re in survival. Above courage, you’re in growth. Courage is the pivot point. Below courage? Survival. Above courage? Expansion. You cannot manifest abundance while emotionally rehearsing disaster. Most people I know are incredibly capable… and quietly operating below the line of courage when it comes to money. They might look successful, give generously, and show up for their families. But internally? Money still feels tight. Expansion feels stressful, and growth feels like pressure. That’s not a strategy problem. That’s an emotional state problem. Stop Using Delulu Affirmations You’ve likely been told to use positive affirmations to help with manifesting what you want. Here’s the only problem with that: If your finances feel shaky and you’re telling yourself, “I am wealthy.” Or, “Money flows to me easily,” your nervous system rolls its eyes. Your body knows when something feels false. But you don’t need to ditch mantras and affirmations. They need a subtle tweak that shifts you from negative to neutral. I call them bridge mantras: I am safe. I am supported. I will get through this. Things are improving. You don’t slam a car from reverse into drive at 70 mph. You slow down and shift to neutral. Then you move forward. Manifestation works the same way. Manifest From Peace, Not Panic Yes, you can manifest from hustle. But you’ll manifest more hustle. You can manifest from proving energy. But you’ll attract clients and situations that require more proving. You can manifest from anxiety, but it will cost you your peace of mind. When I went through two of the toughest years in my business in 2018 and 2019. I undercharged for my services

Bank of America has a press release that their “Preferred Rewards” program is changing to “BofA Rewards” on May 27, 2026 (hat tip Bogleheads). Notable changes include the tier names, their required balances, and higher requirements for credit card rewards boosts. Here is a comparison of the old and new tiers. Preferred Rewards Tiers (OLD; Current) Gold – $20,000 to < $50,000 combined balance Platinum – $50,000 to < $100,000 combined balance Platinum Honors – […]