Support us on Patreon.
We are a community of contrarians that embrace the art of "Financial Sustainability". FS is an alternative to Financial Independence Retire Early (FIRE) and focuses on a whole life approach to becoming and maintaining your financial and personal independence in a debt enslaved western world. If you are sick of always working, never getting ahead and knowing that there has to be a better way for you and your family, this is where you will get the answers and motiviation to change it all. Read our Philosophy and our Articles to get started.
If you like our articles and would like to be notified by email when a new one is posted, please enter your email address here. Don't worry - we don't spam our community. We won't sell your email address to anyone, and we only notify you when there is something you have asked to be notified about. You can opt-out at anytime as well.
The enemy to owning and deploying assets to generate rent or dividend yield is the eventual destruction of the asset itself. Per the second law of thermodynamics (Entropy) eventually everything turns to dust. Having a solid strategy for handling long term asset management is critical to Smart Income. In this episode, Myles gives you all the details on how to think about entropy in regards to your assets.
There are many thought leaders in the world that I respect, but rarely do we get the chance to sit down with them and seek their wisdom on topics that they rarely talk about. Well in today's show, we break that norm as I sit down with Lynette Zang, Chief Market Analyst at ITM Trading, and we talk a little about money, but a lot about life and her wisdom for living a rich one.
I’m sure, by now, you are over 2020. Between COVID, Climate Change and now the weirdest presidential election I’ve ever seen in my live, I think most of us just want to brush aside 2020 and move on to better days. We cry out for stability and that we can start to see things clearly, but so many obstacles stand in our way. In this article I’m going to give you some basic ideas on how to find stability for your investments in this highly chaotic world we find ourselves in, so that you can see things a bit clearer than everyone else.
If you haven't heard of DeFi yet, you will. This is the next leap forward in Fintech and extends on the brilliance of Bitcoin & Crypto currency. Whereas Bitcoin reinvented the concept of money back in 2009, DeFi reinvents the concept of Financial Services. In this episode I will show you how to generate Smart income using DeFi, giving you the double whammy of capital appreciation and cashflow dividends using crypto currency investing.
I'm releasing this out of sequence - this is a quick episode I put together after fuming over the recent New York Times release of Trump's tax returns. But this is more about out of control government spending, Federal Reserve money printing to infinity, and how all of this together represents "taxes". I'll give you my actual position in regards to Trump - it isn't positive, BTW. But I'll also give you my position in regards to government policies on unbridled spending and why you are being kept constrained because of it. Long after Trump is gone, you will unfortunately still be constrained by all of this.
In this episode, I sit down with my friend Joshua Sheats of the Radical Personal Finance podcast, and we talk about life, the universe & everything. I pose the question, "If you received $1 million dollars, what would you do with it?". You might be surprised by his answer.
Myles gives you a ton of information in this episode from his 20+ years of experience in successful landlording. Rental real estate is a key part of any smart income portfolio and it is hard to be financially sustainable without it. Know the tricks of the professionals which are laid out here for you to digest. Whether you are a landlord, thinking of becoming one, or just wanting to know what life looks like as a landlord, this show is for you.
I recently responded to a posting that someone made who had an unexpected work related injury, found themselves without work and relying on workers compensation insurance payments to survive. I realized that this unexpected disruption to income is not dissimilar to those who have lost income or a job due to COVID19. I want to do a quick debrief with you in this article, and look for what we did right and what we could all do better in case of an adverse event.
In this episode I get down into the weeds of why people can't find peace in the western world, what it takes to break free of the hypnosis and find your inner success. I will tell you exactly what the problem is, and it prepares us to embark on a future journey of discovery of where the opportunities lay and how we can uncover them.
The Internet giveth and the Internet taketh away. If you have been enjoying big salaries at your middle class or tech job, might be time to consider cashing in your chips. The remote worker revolution might not be your friend after all. Consider this a warning.
This is one of those ''if I could talk to my 20 year old self'' episodes, but this cuts to the very core of how NOT to end up constrained, burdened and without your freedoms. I would encourage anyone who is in their 20s or parents that have kids in their teenage years or 20s to take a listen. It isn't a hard listen - I'm not going to lecture anyone. I'm just going to explain to you how it is - how the world will be for you, and what you can do early on to protect yourself from your potential future.
In this week's episode, I'm going to talk about the Bitclub Network. This was one of the many scams that hit the Bitcoin community back from 2015-2019 and how it took what I believe to be a very good business model, a cooperation based system and ability to pool resources to mine and help keep the Bitcoin protocol safe, and turned that into a MLM scam, and now three of the four founders are in jail in New Jersey, and the fourth one was scooped up on an Interpol warrant in Indonesia.
In this week's episode of This week in freedom, Myles covers the waning US dollar, the surprising number of people that own crypto-currency, world resources and consumption, the state of the US medical system, Uphold, the Lightning network, California exodus and how he made $2,800 in 1 hour. Check it out! * Available only to Patreon supporters *
The growing levels of riots, looting, violence on the streets, etc. have never been more intense today than at any time over the past 30 years that I’ve lived in the USA. My first experiences of it started in about 1992 during the Los Angeles Riots in which an onlooker video taped the beating of Rodney King, causing the city to turn to violence. But that was nothing compared to the constant barrage of violence since then all over the USA. I want to talk about what I think is really driving this, and why this isn’t going to stop any time soon.
To quote a prominent psychologist, Dr. Bruce Lipton: "Yes, we’ve been programmed. The vast majority of programs are negative and dis-empowering. So yes, the vast majority of people on this planet are having that negative experience as well. So the next most important thing now is to recognize, “Well, if I’m not getting what I want is because the universe is not giving it to me?” and the answer is almost inevitably “No”, it’s because of your own program that’s invisible, operating 95% of the day, is keeping it away from you!"
Yes, it’s a blatant quote of Barbara Streisand, but the reality is that in a world where the rich get richer, the big get bigger and the small are trampled, how does someone who is trying to just get by, not create any ripples and be financially sustainable survive?
There are two types of people who try to make money - investors & speculators. Investors are looking at fundamentals, long term positioning, etc. Speculators are looking to make quick bucks on fast trading. How does Bitcoin fit into this?
Looking at the equity markets, it seems that we have reached the new age of the Nasdaq dominating the markets. Whereas regular, traditional stocks are seeing a decline in value as they are reacting more normally to the recessionary economy, the tech stocks are offsetting that with stellar earnings. What will the markets look like in 5 years time?
There are a bunch of reasons why FIRE isn’t going to work in 2020, whether you are looking to start the journey, or if you are on or through it. This article gives you the details of why it won't work, and what you can do to pivot and make regaining control of your future something that is within your grasp today.
If you are one of the 78% of people living pay check to pay check, you’ve been lied to. By your parents, your government, your friends, your teachers and your banks. I’m going to give you some tough love and some hope if you want to change things, because it CAN be changed.
Governments are, by their nature, dysfunctional. They suffer the same challenges any large organization has, except they don’t have any profit motivation to have workers go the extra mile to get things done. Case in point - the recent SBA EIDL Loans offered to US small businesses. Spoiler Alert - It’s a trap.
The guy trying to swindle you on the side of the road in Las Vegas with his ball & cup trick is your government. While they are trying to tell you that up is down, right is left, etc. you should realize that the statistics that we have been hypnotized to focus on - particularly employment numbers, are relevant only to a bygone age and do nothing to help you live a rich & meaningful life today. This is the time you should break free of employment and become unconstrained.
I’m not above admitting I was wrong. If I had put money in the stock market when it was at 18,000 on the DJIA, I would be a richer man as I watch it go to 27,000 now. And that was within about 3 months. Not a bad ROI there at all. Kudos to anyone that did that. But it just feels wrong. To quote the wisdom of one Johnny Rotten of the band The Sex Pistols, “Ever get the feeling you’ve been cheated?"
I was watching TV this morning and on Bloomberg they were showing the price of a barrel of Brent Oil at $32. About 3 months prior I had a chat with a friend of mine when oil was basically $10 a barrel, saying that this can’t last and the world has to keep the lights on, so oil will go back up. We tripled our money on the bleeding obvious. But why is it that others didn’t see this, yet lost their jobs, lost money in the stock market, etc?
I just received the $1,200 stimulus check from the US government. This is the most stupid pandering effort I’ve ever seen. But guess what... That check paid for exactly what my monthly health insurance premium was, so basically... poof! It’s gone. Meanwhile most of the western world offer health care for free, so how is this actually helping?
In this video interview, Myles Wakeham sits down with the legendary Andreas M. Antonopoulos, the guy who literally wrote the book on Bitcoin, to talk about how the banksters have taken our freedom from us an what we can all do about it.
I get a lot of flack for not showing undying love for the US stock market. The truth is that I see it more of a casino than a true market. In this article I’m going break down my reasons for my disdain at equities and why they don’t represent at all the health of the economy.
All this shall pass. Eventually this virus will become either part of our subconcious lives or a cure or vaccine will be unleashed onto the world. The 12 months or so of time will pass quickly before we are out of the woods, but what will day to day life really look like in Q3,Q4 of 2020 and beyond?
Myles is a guest on today's Q&A show of "Rethinking the Dollar" and covers how to survive and thrive in the current and coming depression by using financial sustainability & SMART Income.
The economic and COVID19 pandemic that has hit the USA has affected small businesses greater than most, as they have fewer means to combat shutdowns. Layoffs and furloughs have turned over 16 million to unemployment. Meanwhile the SMB owners thought they were going to get some govt assistance. Think again.
Business as we know it is disrupted, but not in a good way. The human natural need for socialization is being threatened as we are told to shelter in place, and the biggest immediate impact is our ability to transact. Electronic forms of transactions are strong and remain, but human to human interaction is minimized. Who is most at risk here, and how do you reduce the risk factor?
When things look pretty bad, everything is burning up around you and you are looking at the smoldering ashes of something that once was valued and pristine, chin up. It isn’t that bad. And maybe it is needed - in a good way...
The last few weeks have been living hell if you are vested in the DJIA. For those of us who chose to distance ourselves from stocks & counter party risk, we’re doing fine. But those that didn’t, came face to face with the fact that on a planet with finite resources, betting on infinite growth doesn’t end well.
If you are awake for 16 hours a day, and at least 8 of those hours, 5 days a week, are devoted to serving your boss, then you have given up a minimum of 35% of your life to your employer. More than likely it is closer to 50%. How can you look yourself in the mirror with pride doing that? Or be present for your kids or your spouse? Who's really more important here?
According to a 2016 study by the Center for Retirement Research at Boston College on the Mortality Effects of Retirement, it is clear that “There may be an increase in mortality risks when people stop work.” This mirrors my own experience with Retirement and underscores the importance of removing the word Retirement from our vocabulary.
When I was 32, I retired. It didn’t end well. This is my retirement story. Take from it what you can. Life isn't experienced in some cubicle somewhere, but the majority of people I talk to who are embracing FIRE (Financial Independence Retire Early) don't really understand what life looks like on the other side of the retirement line and why they might want to rethink their goals.
I have had my surgery in Mexico. For anyone that wants an honest accounting of the process and costs, I have laid it all out in detail here. I cover the emotional doubts, fear of surgery in a foreign land, financial truth and the outcome. You be the judge of whether this is right for you. For me, it was. Spoiler Alert: It cost me less than 1/10th of the US Price.
It can be a frightening thing - choosing to go to a foreign country to get major surgery. The vast majority of us find that a bridge too far to cross. I took the leap of faith, and I have begun the journey. This article (and hopefully the one that will follow it after my surgery is completed) will give a totally fact based account of the experience so you can see if something like this makes sense for you.
We should all take the best care of our teeth. But in the USA, costs are outrageous. Insurance doesn't cover most dental procedures and patients are often presented with $10K+ bills for basic dental work. If they realized there was a better option right on their doorstep, this could all be avoided. Welcome to medical tourism, and the border town of Los Algodones, Mexico.
In previous articles, I have stated that the concept of FI (Financial Independence) is flawed. Although the pursuit of it is admirable, the fact is that few FI followers have been able to do this through bear markets. Consequently putting yourself on that path has some dangers. I prefer to concept of "financial sustainability" and this article gives you tangible steps to take to achieve that.
There is a lot of interest in the FIRE (Financial Independence Retire Early) movement, but I am skeptical of whether those that achieve FI during a bull market have what it takes to make it through a bear market...