Radical Personal Finance

Latest Episodes:

387-You Should Consider Buying a Chevy Volt as your Next Car. Here's Why! Oct 18, 2016

Show notes

From time to time we get buying opportunities that emerge from a wrinkle in the marketplace. I think I see an opportunity right now for those of you who are in the market for a new car with the 2017 Chevy Volt. Details in the show! Joshua

386-Don't Get Ripped Off: You Should Not Upgrade Your Car in Order to Get Better Gas Mileage! Oct 17, 2016

Show notes

I shudder and cringe when I hear someone who's thinking about upgrading their car because the new one gets better gas mileage.

I don't often yell, but please indulge me for a moment. YOU SHOULD NOT UPGRADE YOUR CAR IN ORDER TO GET BETTER GAS MILEAGE!

And, I'll prove it to you.

Listen to this show. And then, download the free calculator I built years ago and plug in your own numbers to see whether you should upgrade or not.

I think you'll be glad you did.

Joshua

Here's the link to my calculator. It's a simple Excel file I built many years ago: http://traffic.libsyn.com/radicalpersonalfinance/Joshuas_Fuel_Mileage_Savings_Calculator.xls
Support RPF on Patreon: www.radicalpersonalfinance.com/patron
Book a consulting call with me: www.radicalpersonalfinance.com/phonecall

Audio of Steven Harris's Family Emergency Preparedness Class Oct 14, 2016

Show notes

This is an audio file containing Steven Harris's free Family Emergency Preparedness Class.

This class contains very useful and practical information regarding emergency preparedness.

Some of the material is becoming dated.

For all of Steven's current work, visit his website www.Steven1234.com and follow the appropriate links.

Joshua

Audio of Wendy DeWitt's "Sensible Food Storage" Seminar Oct 14, 2016

Show notes

This is an audio-only version of Wendy DeWitt's "Sensible Food Storage" seminar. This is the most practical, complete seminar on home food storage I've ever been able to find.

You can view the original video version of this file here: https://youtu.be/GY5kiCzaeYc

You can also download the PDF handouts of this seminar here with these links.

This handout contains the instructions for how to do Wendy's system: http://traffic.libsyn.com/radicalpersonalfinance/Everything_Under_the_Sun_by_Wendy_DeWitt.pdf

This handout contains Wendy's sample meals with recipes and amounts calculated out for you: http://traffic.libsyn.com/radicalpersonalfinance/Everything_Made_Simple_by_Wendy_DeWitt.pdf

385-A Sensible Approach to Food Insurance, aka, Home Food Storage (2 of 2) Oct 14, 2016

Show notes

If you were unable to buy food for your family for the next couple of weeks, would you and your family be well-fed or would you be quite hungry at the end?

Today, we tackle the question of food insurance with a discussion of practical steps to take to build your own reserves.

I think it's very wise for you to make sure that you always have enough food in your house to feed your family for at least a few weeks, even better a few months, and perhaps even a year or more.

Since you can fit a year's supply of food under a twin bed, there's little reason not to plan ahead and store up some food.

But, it's tough to know how to do this.

I've divided this topic into two parts. The first show (#384) had a bit of the philosophy behind food storage and reasons for you to store up food.

Today's show (#385) has the practical advice for how to actually do it.

Enjoy!

Joshua

Wendy DeWitt's Sensible Food Storage Seminar:
- Video: https://youtu.be/GY5kiCzaeYc
- Audio: http://traffic.libsyn.com/radicalpersonalfinance/Sensible_Food_Storage_Seminar_by_Wendy_DeWitt.mp3
PDFs of Wendy's handouts:
- These are the notes from Wendy's seminar: http://traffic.libsyn.com/radicalpersonalfinance/Everything_Under_the_Sun_by_Wendy_DeWitt.pdf
- These are Wendy's personal recipes for her own food storage: http://traffic.libsyn.com/radicalpersonalfinance/Everything_Made_Simple_by_Wendy_DeWitt.pdf
Support me on Patreon: www.radicalpersonalfinance.com/patron
Book a consulting phone call with me: www.radicalpersonalfinance.com/phonecall

384-A Sensible Approach to Food Insurance, aka, Home Food Storage (1 of 2) Oct 14, 2016

Show notes

If you were unable to buy food for your family for the next couple of weeks, would you and your family be well-fed or would you be quite hungry at the end?

Today, we tackle the question of food insurance. In short, I think it's very wise for you to make sure that you always have enough food in your house to feed your family for at least a few weeks, even better a few months, and perhaps even a year or more.

Since you can fit a year's supply of food under a twin bed, there's little reason not to plan ahead and store up some food.

I've divided this topic into two parts. This show (#384) has a bit of the philosophy behind food storage and reasons for you to store up food.

The next show (#385) has the practical advice for how to actually do it.

Enjoy!

Joshua

Support me on Patreon: www.radicalpersonalfinance.com/patron
Book a consulting phone call with me: www.radicalpersonalfinance.com/phonecall

383-Budget for the Accessories Oct 12, 2016

Show notes

When I make a significant purchase, I always try to pay attention to the process of that purchase.

I analyze my psychology and desire for the item, I consider carefully the decision process, and I consider the usefulness I get from the item and how much I enjoy and utilize it.

One major lesson I've learned is to always make sure to budget for the accessories to enhance the usefulness of an item.

Many times, the accessories you purchase for an item will make a dramatic difference in your ability to enjoy and use the item.

Detailed discussion of this concept in today's show!

Joshua

Support me on Patreon! www.radicalpersonalfinance.com/patron
Book a consulting call with me: www.radicalpersonalfinance.com/phonecall

382-How to Remove Your Adult Children from Suckling at Your Financial Teat (aka, How to Get Your Boomerang Kids to Grow Up and Leave!) Oct 05, 2016

Show notes

I recently read an article from the New York Times called, "It's Official: The Boomerang Kids Won't Leave." The story is a familiar one: adult children fall on hard times after college and need to move home in order to make ends meet.

This is an experience that many parents have had.

The challenge is this: how do you get the kids to leave? What can and should you be doing in order to get them to a place of autonomy?

In today's show we tackle this subject.

We also cover some ideas for younger parents to implement in order to help your children avoid the boomerang effect in the first place.

Joshua

Support RPF on Patreon. www.radicalpersonalfinance.com/patron
Would you like to book a consulting call with me? Book here: www.radicalpersonalfinance.com/phonecall

381-Simple, Cheap, Practical Tips to Help You Prepare for a Coming Hurricane Oct 04, 2016

Show notes

As I release today's show, Hurricane Matthew is threatening the east coast of Florida and the Carolinas. (Today's show is not specific to Hurricane Matthew. The content is useful in any natural disaster or hurricane. But I wanted to get this information to you in a timely manner so that those of you in the warning cone have an opportunity to prepare.)

Today's show is very practical. I cover:

The most important need to address in advance of the storm: the ability to keep your phone and communications working without electricity.
How to think about and plan for an evacuation plan.
Simple and cheap ways to handle water and food when you have no power.
How to use your car as a generator.
And more!

Enjoy the show!

Joshua

RESOURCES:

You need to keep your phone functional and charged at all times. The easiest, simplest way to do this is by using an external backup battery. There are varying sizes available:
- I own the Kmashi 15000mAH External Battery Power Bank. It's the cheapest I've found ($14 on Amazon for the black version) and should give you 5+ charges for your phone. It has a 4-star rating on Amazon with about 7,700 reviews. I've had no problem with it. http://rpf.link/2dO4v0Y
- I also own the RAVPower 13000 mAH External Battery Power Pack. It works perfectly fine and is smaller and lighter than the Kmashi above. (This is the one that I prefer to carry in my pocket while traveling. The Kmashi above is too big to be comfortable in my pocket.) It should get you about 4 charges. But, at $27 on Amazon, it doesn't give you as much bang for the buck. http://rpf.link/2dP9SJF
Steven Harris has more information on keeping your cell phone charged at his excellent site: www.cellphone1234.com I chose to buy different batteries than he recommended because they were cheaper (but still highly rated) when I was shopping.
The Berkey water filter system that we own and use is this one: http://www.directive21.com/products/royal-berkey-system/ (This is where we bought it from--Directive 21 did a fine job with service.) There are other sizes available.
For information on how to power your house from your car, listen to Steven Harris's free class here at http://www.solar1234.com/
The Eneloop rechargeable batteries that I use in all of my flashlights, kids toys, etc. are these on Amazon: http://rpf.link/2dbuiLA I use this 8-cell Powerex charger to keep them all topped up. http://rpf.link/2dXXdHc
The car battery charger that I recommended is from CTEK. http://www.ctek.com/
For more great, simple, practical emergency preparedness tips, check out all of Steven Harris's websites here: http://www.steven1234.com/