Earn & Invest

In this "10 Things Thursday" episode of the Earn and Invest podcast, host Doc G revisits themes from his book, The Purpose Code, to explore the profound impact of purpose on our lives. He structures the episode around ten core insights, aiming to demystify purpose and offer actionable advice for cultivating it without falling into common psychological traps. Doc G begins by emphasizing that purpose fundamentally matters because studies link it to better health, increased happiness, and greater longevity—acting much like a miracle pill without the side effects. He then defines the happiness equation as a combination of meaning and purpose. He clarifies that "meaning" is cognitive, relating to how we make peace with our past and the stories we tell ourselves. "Purpose," on the other hand, is entirely action-based; it is rooted in the present and future, consisting of the activities that actively light us up. A major theme of the episode is dismantling the myth that purpose is something you "find". Doc G argues that treating purpose like a hidden needle in a haystack leads to analysis paralysis and what researcher Lissa Rainey identified as "purpose anxiety"—a condition affecting up to 91% of people. This anxiety manifests as frustration, depression, and even job-hopping as people restlessly search for a singular calling. Instead of finding purpose, Doc G insists that we must actively build it by testing out activities and seeing what brings us joy. Doc G attributes much of our purpose anxiety to societal pressures from parents, social media, and advertising, which push us toward what he calls "Big P purpose". He declares that Big P purpose is "always bad" because it is strictly goal-oriented, relying on massive, scarce achievements like becoming an astronaut, running a seven-figure business, or having six-pack abs. This sets people up for failure, loss aversion, or an endless "achievement treadmill". Conversely, he heavily advocates for "Little P purpose," which is process-oriented. Little P purpose involves engaging in abundant, failure-proof activities that induce a "flow state" where you lose track of time simply because you love the process. While Big P purpose is bad, Doc G clarifies that having goals is not inherently wrong, provided they don't ruin the process. For example, aiming for a million podcast downloads is fine if you genuinely enjoy the daily work of recording and interviewing. However, if achieving that goal requires doing things you hate—like making TikTok videos—it morphs into toxic Big P purpose. Ultimately, there are no strict rules for purpose; it can be a lifelong global mission or a fleeting, selfish hobby. By focusing on the easy, joyful pursuit of Little P purpose, Doc G believes individuals will naturally attract others and create a lasting legacy that impacts generations far more effectively than striving for unattainable grandiosity. In the episode's closing community segment, Doc G reads an email from a listener named Ted N., who shares his own "10 keys" to building wealth and achieving financial independence. Ted's strategy highlights a steady path to financial independence, including consistent investing, limiting debt, earning a Master's degree to boost income, living simply, taking full advantage of a company 401(k) match over 33 years, and prioritizing experiences like family vacations over material goods. Ted also emphasizes relying on a company pension plan and, most importantly, maintaining an "attitude of gratitude". Doc G concludes the episode by encouraging listeners to share their own lists and directing them to his Substack for detailed show notes and his weekly blog posts Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In this Thursday “10 Things” episode of the Earn & Invest Podcast, Doc G shares his personal list of the ten biggest reasons he believes he successfully built wealth. Inspired by a recent conversation with financial historian Joseph Moore, Jordan begins by acknowledging the privileges that helped shape his path, including being born in the United States and growing up with professional parents. But he emphasizes that a series of specific habits and decisions—some simple and some unconventional—ultimately accelerated his financial journey. First, he credits relentless consistency. Inspired by Nick Maggiulli’s philosophy of “just keep buying,” Jordan invested throughout his entire career regardless of market conditions. Even when he made early mistakes—buying individual stocks or expensive mutual funds—the habit of consistently purchasing assets eventually led him to the simplicity and power of broad index fund investing. Second, he explains why he never relied on a traditional budget. Instead, he and his wife automated their finances by living off one income while sending the entirety of the second income directly into savings and investments. This approach allowed them to build wealth automatically while avoiding the stress of tracking every spending category. Jordan also discusses why he stopped worrying about financial minutiae. Rather than chasing small optimizations like credit card points or the highest-yield savings accounts, he focused on the big financial moves—saving large portions of income, investing consistently, and building a profitable business. Throughout the episode, he highlights several other mindset shifts that shaped his success: ignoring people who said something “couldn’t be done,” redesigning his medical practice into a low-overhead concierge model, and thinking in decades rather than weeks or months when pursuing long-term projects. He also shares the importance of embracing failure through experimentation, adopting an abundance mindset, losing interest in accumulating material possessions, and forgiving himself for inevitable financial mistakes along the way. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Every parent wants to give their kids a financial head start. But I’m not convinced that means whiteboard lessons on compound interest at age eight. In this week’s Earn & Invest, I shared 10 things I’m teaching my children about wealth. Most of them push back against the mainstream narrative. First, kids learn about money in three ways: didactic teaching, modeling, and experiential learning. The worst of these? Lectures. You can explain mortgages and index funds all day long. But until a child feels the weight of a financial decision, it won’t stick. In medicine we say, “See one, do one, teach one.” Money works the same way. So instead of lecturing, we model. My kids overheard conversations about rental properties. They watched us set up LLCs. They saw investing as something normal, not mysterious. By college, buying and renting property didn’t feel radical—it felt logical. We also replaced weekly allowance with a $500 lump sum each January. That money had to last the year. My son ran out after breaking his phone. My daughter saved so much she skipped things she wanted. Both learned something no lecture could teach: money involves trade-offs. I’m also wary of monetizing childhood. Kids don’t need Roth IRAs before they need curiosity and kindness. I didn’t start investing seriously until my thirties. Wealth can wait. Character can’t. As for inheritance, I want to teach them how to fish. The ability to generate income matters more than a trust fund. The exception? College. I’ll pay for it. Crushing debt isn’t a safe learning experiment. Above all, I want them to know money is a tool. It buys time, flexibility, dignity. It is not happiness. Some of my best memories cost $2,000. Some expensive experiences felt empty. Joy comes from connection and meaning—not the price tag. If my kids understand that, they’ll be just fine. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Jesse Cramer from The Best Interest joins us today to talk about a study that has been circulating in financial independence circles that suggests that delaying retirement can be deadly. We breakdown the data and how not to fall for misinformation in the financial space. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

There are so many reasons to spend more money today than you did five years ago. Whether gross economic inflation vs personal lifestyle inflation, it's important to keep track of your budget. On this rewind episode, Joel and Matt from ⁠How to Money⁠ join us as we delve into spending growth. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In this mailbag episode, I address some of the more controversial feedback i have gotten from some select episodes. I welcome your criticism. Write me at docg@diversefi.com. Agree or disagree, this is what our community has had to say. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices