It may have been over a year since I last put together a podcast episode, but I’m back today to talk with Consumerism Commentary Podcast guest Carl Richards. Carl is here to talk about his new book, The One-Page Financial Plan: A Simple Way to Be Smart About Your Money. The author will also be the keynote speaker at the upcoming FinCon Expo. In today’s podcast, Carl and I discuss why reducing a complex financial plan to one page can be key for living the fulfilled life you envision and how...

Today’s guest on the Consumerism Commentary is author Zac Bissonnette. Zac last appeared on the show four years ago, and he’s back today to talk about his new book, Good Advice from Bad People: Selected Wisdom from Murderers, Stock Swindlers, and Lance Armstrong. The study of hypocrisy seems to be infinite, but it is particularly evident in the self-help and motivational genres — and you don’t have to look far from personal finance advice to find some of the most egregious examples of...

This interview should be required listening for women — and men — who are in a relationship, particularly a marriage, in which the woman earns more than the man. This is precisely the situation in which author Farnoosh Torabi has found herself, and as a popular financial columnists, she discovered she wasn’t alone. Based on her own experiences, questions from her readers, she began researching relationships for her latest book, When She Makes More: 10 Rules for Breadwinning Women. The book...

Although I was tracking my net worth closely, I can’t pinpoint the exact moment my total net worth would have crossed into seven figures and someone might consider me a millionaire. It was something I wasn’t thinking about for a variety of reasons, but because I was an entrepreneur, I was the owner of a business that was increasing in value. It was difficult to assign a specific value to that business, but because I ended up selling that business — this website — the buyer and I both had to...

I’m a reluctant entrepreneur, but I’ve learned to be less self-conscious about the fact that this is the designation society has given to me as someone who started his own business. While many people after, but also before, the recession have started side businesses to improve their financial security, for me, a hobby turned into a profitable and enjoyable way to spend my time. But entrepreneur was always a dirty word to me, even after I came to the realization that I was, in fact, an...

I haven’t been running the Consumerism Commentary Podcast on a regular basis. Instead of a weekly podcast, my intention is to share occasional interviews to discuss topics that go beyond product updates and general personal finance information. Jeff Rose is a successful financial blogger, founder of Good Financial Cents. His new book, Soldier of Finance: Take Charge of Your Money and Invest in Your Future, is available today at all major book retailers today. I wanted to speak with Jeff about...

The Consumerism Commentary Podcast is no longer on a regular schedule, but I plan to produce new episodes throughout the year as the opportunities arise. Today’s guest on the podcast is Helaine Olen, author of Pound Foolish: Exposing the Dark Side of the Personal Finance Industry. Helaine is a New York-based journalist, contributing to Forbes, and notably wrote and edited the “Money Makeover” feature for the Los Angeles Times. You can find Pound Foolish, available in book form as well as for...

The Consumerism Commentary Podcast has been on hiatus this summer, but Tom and Jay are returning soon with monthly podcasts featuring interviews with authors, industry experts, and CEOs. In the interim, I will be featuring a few Podcast Special Editions, hosted by myself, also featuring a number of great interviews. The first of these Special Edition podcasts features the most-read personal finance columnist on the internet, Liz Weston. Liz recently published a new book in electronic format,...

Today on the Consumerism Commentary Podcast, Tom Dziubek talks with Ellyn Spragins, speaker, author, and editor of the Letters To My Younger Self series of books. Ellyn talks to Tom about how women differ from men in regards to success, especially regarding finding and developing their inner talents. They also discuss her “Letters to My Younger Self” series of books, including what inspired her, the celebrities who contributed, as well as one of her favorite letters. Consumerism Commentary...

Today on the Consumerism Commentary Podcast, Tom Dziubek talks with Gregg Wind, CPA at the accounting firm of Wind & Stern, about income taxes related to children’s summer jobs. First, Gregg and Tom talk about tax advantages for parents who have a business and are thinking about hiring their children as employees. Afterward, they discuss summer jobs for kids in general and things that they should consider doing for their income taxes. Consumerism Commentary Podcast Income Taxes and Your...

Today on the Consumerism Commentary Podcast, Jay talks with John Ulzheimer about credit scores and managing your credit history. They also discuss the deceptive marketing of pre-paid debit cards, how a FICO score is built and the unfortunate history of credit repair firms. Consumerism Commentary Podcast Credit Scoring and Management: S07E09 / 165 jQuery(document).ready(function($) { $('#wp_mep_7').mediaelementplayer({ m:1 ,features:...

Today on the Consumerism Commentary Podcast, Jay talks with Shannon Nutter-Wiersbitzky about My Classroom Economy, a model classroom curriculum designed by Vanguard. Shannon is the Director of Market Research at The Vanguard Group. They discuss many aspects of bringing a real world economy model into the classroom, where students earn salaries and have to pay rent, and the temptations of spending versus saving and earning even more. Consumerism Commentary Podcast Vanguard’s My Classroom...

Today on the Consumerism Commentary Podcast, Tom Dziubek and Flexo speak with J.D. Roth, founder of the personal finance website Get Rich Slowly about the topic of personal transformation. J.D. discusses many of the changes he’s gone through recently including what inspired him to transform himself and what he did to prepare himself for the changes. He also discusses his future with Get Rich Slowly and projects that he is currently working on. Consumerism Commentary Podcast Personal...

Today on the Consumerism Commentary Podcast, Tom Dziubek speaks with Aloysa, founder of the personal finance website My Broken Coin about how her mother came to America by becoming a mail order bride. She talks about the decision to find an overseas husband, what the search process was like, the risks involved and how the decision turned out. Aloysa also talks about how she came to America and how the transition from the former Soviet Union affected her spending habits. Consumerism...

Today on the Consumerism Commentary Podcast, Jay Frosting and Luke Landes talk with Tavis Smiley, host of Tavis Smiley on PBS. With Dr. Cornel West, Tavis Smiley is the co-author of The Rich and the Rest of Us: A Poverty Manifesto. The interview in today’s podcast was scheduled to include Cornel West as well, but a court appearance prevented him from participating. They discuss the causes and possible solutions of the growing problem of poverty in America, which Tavis says is a threat to...

Today on the Consumerism Commentary Podcast, Jay Frosting speaks with John Graves, author of The 7% Solution: You Can Afford a Comfortable Retirement. They discuss the unique challenges baby boomers face when planning for retirement. Consumerism Commentary Podcast The 7% Solution: S07E03 / 159 jQuery(document).ready(function($) { $('#wp_mep_12').mediaelementplayer({ m:1 ,features:...

Today on the Consumerism Commentary Podcast, Jay Frosting and Luke Landes talk with Kim Palmer, author of Generation Earn and creator of Palmer’s Planners. Consumerism Commentary discussed Palmer’s Planners recently. In the interview, Jay, Luke, and Kim discuss household financial planning for right-brained thinkers and money issues for young people and women. Consumerism Commentary Podcast Palmer’s Planners: S07E02 / 158...

Today on the Consumerism Commentary Podcast, Jay Frosting and Flexo talk with Matt Schulz, Vice President of Content for InvestingAnswers.com. They discuss the implications of a recent legal ruling that excludes credit card application fees from the limit on fees that credit card issuers can charge within the first year. Consumerism Commentary Podcast Credit Card Application Fees: S07E01 / 157 jQuery(document).ready(function($)...

Today on the Consumerism Commentary Podcast, Jay Frosting speaks to Joe Knight, co-author of Financial Intelligence: An Illustrated Guide to Knowing What the Numbers Really Mean. They discuss why and how employees in non-financial roles should learn to read financial statements, largely because accounting relies on a lot of educated guesses and biases. Consumerism Commentary Podcast Financial Intelligence: S06E25 / 156...

Today on the Consumerism Commentary Podcast, Jay Frosting talks with Julie Clow, author of The Work Revolution. They talk about differing energy cycles, ditching time cards & meetings, and measuring impact instead of employee activities. Consumerism Commentary Podcast The Work Revolution: S06E25 / 155 jQuery(document).ready(function($) { $('#wp_mep_16').mediaelementplayer({ m:1 ,features:...

Today on the Consumerism Commentary Podcast, Bryan J Busch talks with Dr. Charles Richards, author of The Psychology of Wealth. They discuss many aspects of the brain’s conscious and unconscious affects on spending and saving. Consumerism Commentary Podcast The Psychology of Wealth: S06E24 / 154 jQuery(document).ready(function($) { $('#wp_mep_17').mediaelementplayer({ m:1 ,features:...

Today on the Consumerism Commentary Podcast, Bryan J Busch talks with Mitch Weiss, author of Life Happens: A Practical Guide to Personal Finance from College to Career (available from Amazon.com on the Kindle). They discuss many of the topics young people need to know in order to avoid the pitfalls of personal finance. Consumerism Commentary Podcast Life Happens: S06E23 / 153 jQuery(document).ready(function($)...

Today on the Consumerism Commentary Podcast, Bryan J Busch talks with Ainslie Simmonds, Chief Marketing Officer of LearnVest. They discuss the free and paid features of LearnVest, how people are using the service and what sets it apart from other methods of financial planning. Consumerism Commentary Podcast LearnVest: S06E21 / 176 jQuery(document).ready(function($) { $('#wp_mep_19').mediaelementplayer({ m:1 ,features:...

Today on the Consumerism Commentary Podcast, Bryan J Busch talks with Patrick van der Voorst, founder of ValueMyStuff, and Tom Dziubek speaks with Ralph Pinto from Chase about their participation in the Drive to End Hunger campaign. Consumerism Commentary Podcast ValueMyStuff / Chase Double the Difference: S06E21 / 178 and 168 jQuery(document).ready(function($) { $('#wp_mep_20').mediaelementplayer({ m:1 ,features:...

Today on the Consumerism Commentary Podcast, Bryan J Busch talks with Erin Botsford, author of The Big Retirement Risk. They discuss myths that Wall Street perpetuates about itself and Erin’s plan for a more sensible retirement portfolio. Consumerism Commentary Podcast The Big Retirement Risk: S06E20 / 150 jQuery(document).ready(function($) { $('#wp_mep_21').mediaelementplayer({ m:1 ,features:...