We’re taking a break from your regularly scheduled program to just have a moment to discuss what’s on our minds. Our worries, our anxieties, and our hopes.

We talk a little bit about meditation again, a little about anxiety, and a lot about how being a millennial is the reason we feel the way we do.

Check out our websitefor more information. Or we’re on twitter, instagram, and facebook!

Intro music: Happy Whistle by Scott Holmes

Outro music:  Romantic Folk Loop by Twisterium

Ever wonder how much you should share about finances with people? Or your significant other? How do you start that conversation at all?! Or what if you make more than your partner?

We answer all these and more.

Check out our website for these and other questions answered as well as links to helpful websites.

Or we’re on twitter, instagram, and facebook!

Intro music: Happy Whistle by Scott Holmes

Outro music:  Romantic Folk Loop by Twisterium

• How to get started looking at your information
  • Gather all your accounts: checking, savings, credit
  • Evaluate your finances
  • Balance your “checkbook” – know what’s going in and what’s going out
• Do Millennials need checks?
• Do Millennials need credit cards?
• How much time should I devote to money management?
  • “It’s going to take more time out of your life if you don’t just sit down and take a shot at it.”
• How do I know if I’m correctly managing my money?
  • “Looking at your finances will allow you to know what steps you can take next.”
• Summary
  • “Pour a mimosa, get it done, and show us your finance ritual!”

Mentioned Links:

Check out our website! Or we’re on twitter, instagram, and facebook!

Intro music: Happy Whistle by Scott Holmes

Outro music:  Romantic Folk Loop by Twisterium

So here are Alyssa’s idea’s for where to start if you want to learn more about investing!

Helpful Websites:

Motleyfool.com– Great for current events, stock picks, and general investing advice

Investopedia.com– Investment terminology explained along with some informative and comprehensive videos

 Books:

The Motley Fool Investment Guide– Introduces terminology and basics in a way that is not completely boring

A Random Walk Down Wall Street– Informative and helps explain markets, metrics, and investing tools, but definitely text-booky

The Intelligent Investor– Written by Warren Buffet’s mentor and even more text-booky

The Big Short– Not really helpful for investing, but explains the mortgage crisis of 2008 and is a really great read (referenced in the episode)

 Investment Apps:

Stash– Good if you want to start really small. They let you buy fractional shares, but charge $1 a month in fees. Also easy to pick ETFs or funds where you may not need to do as much research in the individual holdings.

Swell– Invests solely in Socially Responsible companies. $50 min investment and 0.75% annual fee. Another where you just invest in a themed fund based on the sector in which you want to invest.

Robinhood– My personal fave and the only one I use outside of a traditional brokerage. Plain old brokerage account, so you would need to research you own funds or stocks or whatever you are planning on investing in, but NO TRANSACTION FEES! The only catch, I have discovered, is that it takes about 2 weeks to cash out money if you end up needing to do that.

We bring Alyssa into the spotlight to talk about investments Investing since middle school, Alyssa’s background may not be formal but it’s certainly more experienced than us! Listen as the most veteran investor among us gives us tips and tricks on how we should invest and what it all really means.

Show Notes:

Would You Rather:

• pay off your debt or go on a vacation
• worry about money or worry about happiness
• buy now and pay off over 5 years or save for a year and buy cash

Getting Excited About Finances:

• What “finances” mean?
  • Definition – the management of money
  • Spending and saving
• What are some basics of finance?
  • Don’t spend more than you earn
  • 50/30/20 rule
    • 50% goes to bills – rent, water, electric, phone, etc.
    • 30% goes to wants – a sweater, a concert, your daily coffee, etc.
    • 20% goes to future goals – a house, schooling, a corgi, etc.
  • Don’t let your future-self take care of your current-self
  • Have an emergency fund
• Why should I be excited about finances?
  • If you don’t have them under control, it’s going to be a constant weight on your mind.
  • “You’re going to feel so much better about your life and your situation, but not only that it’s going to help you move forward and achieve your goals.”

Mentioned Links:

Check out our website! Or we’re on twitter, instagram, and facebook!

Intro music: Happy Whistle by Scott Holmes

Outro music:  Romantic Folk Loop by Twisterium

Would you rather intro music:

“Happy Happy Game Show” Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com)
Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0 License

FAVORITE!

• Goal Digger Podcast

Here we are, promoting a podcast that isn’t ours, but we have been OBSESSED with Jenna Kutcher’s down-to-earth and honest advice. Her blog is also full of A+ articles and resources to assist you in finding your passion and making it lucrative! Did I mention she has a quiz to help you find your “secret sauce”? I wanted to hate it, but honestly, the results gave me a jolt of inspiration.

• “Screw Finding Your Passion”

Mark Manson gives a solid dose of tough love in this article, but it might just be what you need to pinpoint your passion. He takes a lot of advice we’ve all heard before (look to your past, you already know what your passion is, just go ahead and give your passion a try!) But Mark spins it in a way that is fresh, honest, and makes sense. There’s some NSFW language, but it’s worth the short read and unique perspective.

• “Graduating and Looking for Your Passion? Just Be Patient”

Whether you’re in college, just graduated, or like us, are a few years past college, Angela Duckworth’s advice is just as relevant as ever. She gives my favorite piece of advice in this article: pinpoint your core values by writing a eulogy. Put another way, what would you like to have written on your tombstone? I promise not all of her advice is that morbid, but sometimes all it takes is some introspection with a fresh perspective, and things will fall into place.

NOT SO FAVORITE…

• The Secret to Finding Your Passion (Hint: It’s Not What You Think)

Oprah, we love you, but this article misses the mark. Maybe it’s because the target audience is older than millennials and, therefore, the concept of passion has not been thoroughly drilled into their brains, but the advice here reads more like a generic motivational article than a guide to finding your passion. This is a great article if you’re just beginning to think about your passion and have no idea where to start, but for most millennials, I’d recommend looking elsewhere.

• How to Find Your Passion

In general, I’d recommend steering clear of Lifehack. This article in particular gives advice so broad that it’s not at all useful. “Is there something you already love doing?” If there was, we wouldn’t be looking for passion advice! My personal “favorite” tip from this article is “Brainstorm.” That’s it. That’s the advice.

My advice to our readers and listeners looking for helpful passion resources, look for resources that offer specific, concrete advice with a unique perspective. This might seem a little obvious, but when you’re feeling lost or frustrated with the search for your calling, even overgeneralized advice can start to sound profound. This only ends up causing more frustration down the road when you realize you are no closer to your passion than before.

I hope this article gave you some new content to aid you in your search for passion, and I hope you can use these examples of bad advice to narrow down your search to only the very best resources!

13 Millennial Moments Shownotes

Mindful Millennial

What Other People Get Wrong About Passion

• You’re Going to Find Your Passion by Looking At Your Past
  • Maybe you haven’t been exposed to something
  • Your passions can change over time, just like you!
• Love everything you do!
  • It’s unrealistic to love everything you do
• Look at your credit card statements, books, CDs
  • Unrealistic to find a pattern if you’ve been actively searching for your passion
• Just leap and the net will appear
  • It’s irresponsible to leap without a net
• Online Passion quizzes
  • Glorified personality quizzes with no actual action plan

Interesting Quotes

“Even if I don’t find passion sometime soon I’m going to enjoy the journey.”7:04

“Looking to the future can be more helpful… than drawing on past experiences.” 17:16

“’Love everything you do” sends the absolute wrong message that if you don’t love everything you’re doing, you’re doing something wrong.” 22:02

“If you’re passion is reflected in your credit card statement, or your book collection or your magazines, or your DVDs, or your CDs, you already know your passion.” 24:38

“At the end of the day, you probably know yourself better than you think.” 32:00

Mentioned Links

Clarityonfire.com

Oprah.com

Check out our website! Or we’re on twitter, instagram, and facebook!

Intro music: Happy Whistle by Scott Holmes

Outro music:  Romantic Folk Loop by Twisterium

It is an international bestseller that really puts life, and technology, in perspective. If you were hoping to read along, sorry for the late post! If you are waiting to hear what we thought of the book before you decide to read it, then you are in luck! We will be discussing the book soon!

Have you read this book yet? Or seen the movie? Let us know what you thought of it in the comments below!

We explore what it means to have a job that is your passion with our first guest ever! We welcome Sami, the producer and audio editing/mixing of our show, into the millennial moments spotlight to talk about

• how miserable in your current position is too miserable
• what it’s like to quit your job to find your passion
• if you can have more than one passion

There’s more but we don’t want to spill all the secrets.

It’s an exciting interview full of interesting perspectives on whether you should follow passion into your career or leave it out altogether.

Millennial Moments

Links Mentioned:

Check out our website! Or we’re on twitter, instagram, and facebook!

Intro music: Happy Whistle by Scott Holmes

Outro music:  Romantic Folk Loop by Twisterium