How to Spend Money Without Ruining Your Life — Morgan Housel

SPEAKER_1 (0:00)

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When you need a team that will do whatever it takes on game day, it matters where you stay. Hilton, for the stay.

SPEAKER_2 (0:30)

Have you heard that McDonald's Spicy Chicken McNuggets made with spicy tempura and a blend of aged cayenne are back? Remember to grab a few extra napkins for a limited time at participating McDonald's.

Mike Parsons (0:45)

Hello and welcome to the Moonshots Podcast. It's episode, wait for this, 296 I'm your co-host, Mike Parsons, and as always, I'm joined by the man himself, Mr. Mark Pearson Good morning, Mark.

Mark Pearson Freeland (0:59)

Good morning, Mike. Good morning, listeners. Good morning, Moonshots members. And good morning, everybody who's joining us on this synonymous 296th episode. Mike, I don't want to disturb or reveal anything from behind the scenes. I don't think we've actually figured out what number 300 is yet in our show.

Mike Parsons (1:16)

Well, at this rate, we will finish the new series we're starting at 299

So we would be in a situation to consider something big and something special. I think we want to leave it open to our listeners, our viewers and our members for their suggestions. But before we get ahead of ourselves, before we spend the money we don't have, we got work to do.

Mark Pearson Freeland (1:42)

Yeah, you're right. We are just about to begin and kick off a brand new series. This time, Mike, we are going back to a topic that's on everybody's lips and in everybody's pockets. That is the idea of money and particularly this idea of the cost of living that keeps on increasing.

The idea of growth and prosperity being a real key focus and function for all of us to chase in our careers, on our lives. But honestly, sometimes we get overwhelmed with practical ideas versus psychological ideas about money, about stress, about where we spend our time. So good news, Mike, to kick off this brand new series, a series that we haven't actually really delved into since, I think, the second quarter of 2024, or maybe it was 23, I can't remember. So a couple of years, Mike, it's about time that we got back into the financial space, is The Art of Spending Money by Morgan Housel, an absolute powerhouse when it comes to understanding the psychology behind why we make certain financial choices, providing tips and recommendations on unlocking freedom.

This seems to be a big realm within his work, this idea of financial freedom and what that means, and how it's different to each other, and ultimately finding contentment rather than that slightly depressing desire to always earn that little bit more. So Mike, I mean, The Art of Spending Money, that's a pretty attractive topic, isn't it?

SPEAKER_1 (3:09)

College football is back, so Hilton called on me, the superstition concierge, to make your fan rituals a reality. Need a room to match your lucky number? We got you. Want to make sure our team doesn't wash your lucky jersey? Oh, that smells lucky.

Hilton's unmatched hospitality can keep up with any superstition. Even a marching band wake up call at 555 in 55 seconds. Hit it! When you need a team that will do whatever it takes on game day, it matters where you stay. Hilton, for the stay.

SPEAKER_2 (3:39)

Have you heard that McDonald's Spicy Chicken McNuggets made with Spicy Tempura and a blend of Aged Cayenne are back? Remember to grab a few extra napkins for a limited time at Participating McDonald's.

Mike Parsons (3:54)

Well, I think, let's put it in context, Mark. Since COVID, cost of living has increased in Western economies on average by 30 percent. Now, do you think everybody has had a 30 percent pay increase since then?

Mark Pearson Freeland (4:11)

I can tell you now, Mike, I have not personally. I'm still waiting for that check, I guess.

Mike Parsons (4:15)

Me too, me too. And I think the point here is we also know just that a lot of people do leave paycheck to paycheck. A lot of people don't have the classic six month reserve fund that emergency fund locked away. So although it's been two and a half years since we did Morgan's first book, it is perfect time to get into his second book, because so much has happened with inflation and cost of living. But also this has such a powerful consequence for how you experience it every single day. Are you content with what you have or are you pushing for more? And are you pushing for the right things? So this idea of thinking about and perfecting how you spend your money comes with so many benefits. We know that relationships often have a tension point at money. We know a lot of businesses are cash constrained. So we really need to figure out how to spend better, more wisely and within our means. And what we have today is a show that will go from everywhere from how to think about money and how to execute better money management. So Mark, I'm fired up. Morgan Housel is back.