2011: Anthony O'Neal on Breaking Free from Debt and Building Real Wealth

**Farnoosh Torabi** (0:00)
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**SPEAKER_2** (0:38)
You're listening to So Money with award-winning money guru Farnoosh Torabi. Each day, get a 30-minute dose of financial inspiration from the world's top business minds, authors, influencers, and from Farnoosh yourself.
Looking for ways to save on gas or double your double coupons? Sorry, you're in the wrong place. Seeking profound ways to live a richer, happier life? Welcome to So Money.

**Anthony O'Neal** (1:04)
This is why I teach financial freedom. If you have financial freedom, if you can get to zero, and then on top of zero, we start investing and saving. I think one of the biggest ingredients to miss building wealth is not being in position at the right time to take advantage of the wealth opportunity.
And so that's what I see a lot of. A lot of people have a lot of good ideas, but they're drowning in debt, so they couldn't jump on this opportunity. Or they have no debt, but they didn't have any savings or no capital to take advantage of this opportunity. And that's the same thing with stocks. You know, a lot of people get scared when a stock market goes down, but Farnoosh, I actually love it. Like I'm like, wait, hold on, wait a minute. I've been saving for this. Let me go buy some more stocks. Let me go buy some, it's on a discount. So I think for me, my book and my brand and even yourself, we want to help people not just give the financial freedom, but how do we put you in a position to where when the right opportunity comes, you can take advantage of that opportunity and it will shoot your wealth potential even higher and quicker because you were ready and in position.

**Farnoosh Torabi** (2:14)
Welcome to So Money, everyone. I'm Farnoosh Torabi. You know that moment when you call your bank or you're online with your bank and you check your balance and you discover a balance so low it stops you cold. That happened to me in college at least once. I remember trying to buy something in a store with my debit card and it wouldn't go through. It kept getting denied. I was so confused because I was working so hard that summer. I was actually making some money, but I was also spending as fast as I was earning and not keeping an eye on my balance until it's too late. I got back to my apartment and lo and behold, my balance online was in the negative. And our guest today, Anthony O'Neal, can relate.
He had just $6 to his name on a Wednesday night. He needed gas. He was hungry. He ended up cutting two McDonald's cheeseburgers in half. That was his food for the next two days. He diluted his sweet tea with water to stretch it. And in that moment, eating a cold half burger in his apartment, something shifted in him. He thought, there has to be a better way.
Fast forward to his 40th birthday. Anthony's on a private yacht off the coast of Italy. The chef comes out mid-dinner, not just to ask how the fish is, but to offer to catch that same fish again for him tomorrow. And Anthony thought back to that Wednesday night, that half burger, that $6, and he realized he had found the better way.
Anthony O'Neal is back on the show today. He is a best-selling author, speaker, and host of The Table with AO. His new book, Stop Living Paycheck to Paycheck, The Proven Path to Break Free From Debt, Build Real Wealth and Live Free on Any Income is out soon. I gotta tell you, this is not a money book. Anthony will be the first to tell you it's a book about freedom. Here we go. Here's Anthony O'Neal.
Anthony O'Neal, my friend, welcome back to So Money.

**Anthony O'Neal** (4:11)
Man, my sister, man, how are you doing? Man, I've been looking forward to this one. My team said, hey, you're going back on. I say, let's go.

**Farnoosh Torabi** (4:19)
Same, when I got the email that you had a book coming out and you want to do more press, I was like, anytime. Anthony, you're welcome here anytime.