Muse

Ep. 020 - Succeeding in College and Life with Daniel Lerner and Alan Schlechter

It's officially that time of year when college grads throw their caps high into the air and prepare to enter the real world. Just a few short years ago, these graduates were among the four million students who began their journeys at the nation's colleges and universities.

It’s officially that time of year when college grads throw their caps high into the air and prepare to enter the real world. Just a few short years ago, these graduates were among the four million students who began their journeys at the nation’s colleges and universities.

While those four years are supposed to be the best years of your life, for many, they turn out to be the most stressful they’ll experience. They can be so stressful that, by the end of freshman year, 30% of students drop out.

That’s where today’s guests enter the picture. Dan Lerner and Alan Schlechter team-teach a course at New York University called The Science of Happiness. From this wildly successful class, they recently released the book, “U Thrive: How to Succeed in College (and Life).”

Let me stress that last part of the title…”and life.” This is not a book just for students—it’s for everyone. Using fascinating science and real-life stories, Dan and Alan bring a similar focus to the Better Off podcast: They try to help you better your life.

Whether it’s for yourself, you have a kid starting college or one that is graduating right now, this book will provide tips for building positive habits that will last a lifetime.

“Better Off” is sponsored by Betterment.

Have a finance related question? Email us here or call 855-411-JILL.

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"Better Off" theme music is by Joel Goodman, www.joelgoodman.com.

Ep. 019 - Life Insurance Made Simple with Yaron Ben-Zvi

Technology has made our financial lives better and simpler. From banking and investing to shopping and planning a vacation, many of our daily necessities are just a click away. Thanks to Haven Life, you can now add life insurance to the mix. If you've ever applied for life insurance coverage, you know that it can be painful.

Technology has made our financial lives better and simpler. From banking and investing to shopping and planning a vacation, many of our daily necessities are just a click away.

Thanks to Haven Life, you can now add life insurance to the mix. If you’ve ever applied for life insurance coverage, you know that it can be painful. From the multi-page applications to medical exams and records, it used to take weeks, if you were lucky.

Founded by our guest, Yaron Ben-Zvi, Haven Life is leveraging technology in order to disrupt the life insurance process and experience. Mark, our producer here at “Better Off,” recently became a customer and couldn’t believe how easy and painless the process was: “I just calculated how much coverage I needed and was covered in about 20 minutes. No joke!”

Yaron says that the company’s goal is to provide an easier, faster, just plain better way to provide coverage of up to $1 million, by offering:

  • Simple online application process
  • No medical exam for qualified, healthy applicants
  • Easy price and policy comparisons
  • An immediate decision with InstantTerm
  • Backing of MassMutual, a 160-year-old life insurer
  • A plain language no commission policy

Just enter the basics, like gender, age, health condition, city, etc. and you’re on your way. Check out Haven Life’s calculators and see what makes sense for you.

“Better Off” is sponsored by Betterment.

Have a finance related question? Email us here or call 855-411-JILL.

We love feedback so please subscribe and leave us a rating or review in iTunes!

Connect with me at these places for all my content:

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http://betteroffpodcast.com/

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"Better Off" theme music is by Joel Goodman, www.joelgoodman.com.

Ep. 018 - Global Economics with Mohamed El-Erian (Part Two)

I never take it for granted how fortunate I am to have my job. Let's be honest, it's not really a job when you're doing what you love. And that's what I get to do as a journalist covering personal finance and economics.

I never take it for granted how fortunate I am to have my job. Let’s be honest, it’s not really a job when you’re doing what you love. And that’s what I get to do as a journalist covering personal finance and economics.

With the “job” comes the opportunity to meet many smart, interesting and influential people, some of whom are legit heavyweights within their specific industries and in the world at large. Today’s Better Off guest, the esteemed Dr. Mohamed El-Erian, falls into that category. Of all of the economists and financial services executives that I have been privileged to interview, Mohamed is one of the few who can distill and communicate complicated ideas in a way that all of us can understand. That’s why we’re keeping him around for two episodes…there’s just too much knowledge in his brain to squeeze into one show.

While you may have seen or read Dr. El-Erian before—as a guest on CNBC, a LinkedIn Influencer, a columnist for “Bloomberg View,” a contributing editor to the “Financial Times,” and the chief economic advisor for Allianz—our conversations on “Better Off” are rare opportunities where he can delve into a myriad of big picture economic topics for more than the three minutes usually allotted to his appearances.

Mohamed’s bestselling book, “The Only Game in Town: Central Banks, Instability, and Avoiding the Next Collapse,” will be released in paperback next month. I encourage everyone to read it, because it was one of my top picks for economics/business books last year.

In part two of the interview we talk to Mohamed about the financial concerns keeping him up at night. We also continue our discussion on Brexit and the ongoing crisis in Greece and why that country faces the risk of a lost generation.

But it’s not all doom and gloom. Before leaving us, Mohamed touched on the three reasons why he continues to remain optimistic about the global economy.

“Better Off” is sponsored by Betterment.

Have a finance related question? Email us here or call 855-411-JILL.

We love feedback so please subscribe and leave us a rating or review in iTunes!

Connect with me at these places for all my content:

https://twitter.com/jillonmoney

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https://www.instagram.com/jillonmoney/

https://www.linkedin.com/in/jillonmoney/ 

http://www.stitcher.com/podcast/jill-... 

http://betteroffpodcast.com/

https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/b...

"Better Off" theme music is by Joel Goodman, www.joelgoodman.com.

Ep. 017 - Global Economics with Mohamed El-Erian (Part One)

I never take it for granted how fortunate I am to have my job. Let's be honest, it's not really a job when you're doing what you love. And that's what I get to do as a journalist covering personal finance and economics.

I never take it for granted how fortunate I am to have my job. Let’s be honest, it’s not really a job when you’re doing what you love. And that’s what I get to do as a journalist covering personal finance and economics.

With the “job” comes the opportunity to meet many smart, interesting and influential people, some of whom are legit heavyweights within their specific industries and in the world at large. Today’s Better Off guest, the esteemed Dr. Mohamed El-Erian, falls into that category. Of all of the economists and financial services executives that I have been privileged to interview, Mohamed is one of the few who can distill and communicate complicated ideas in a way that all of us can understand. That’s why we’re keeping him around for two episodes…there’s just too much knowledge in his brain to squeeze into one show.

While you may have seen or read Dr. El-Erian before—as a guest on CNBC, a LinkedIn Influencer, a columnist for “Bloomberg View,” a contributing editor to the “Financial Times,” and the chief economic advisor for Allianz—our conversations on “Better Off” are rare opportunities where he can delve into a myriad of big picture economic topics for more than the three minutes usually allotted to his appearances.

Mohamed’s bestselling book, “The Only Game in Town: Central Banks, Instability, and Avoiding the Next Collapse,” will be released in paperback next month. I encourage everyone to read it, because it was one of my top picks for economics/business books last year.

In part one of the interview Mohamed touches on the three things he believes every investor needs to be a successful:

  • An understanding of fundamentals
  • An understanding of mathematics and discounted cash flows
  • A solid gut instinct

If you only possess one of these attributes—gut instinct—don’t worry! We also discuss passive investing as an alternative to stock picking.

As the new administration and Congress roll out various fiscal policies, it was a treat to hear what’s on Mohamed’s wish list. There are measures that the government can take to foster a more inclusive U.S. economy, help boost wage growth and improve the current tax system. And of course, we wouldn’t let him go before getting this UK-educated economist’s view of Brexit!

“Better Off” is sponsored by Betterment.

Have a finance related question? Email us here or call 855-411-JILL.

We love feedback so please subscribe and leave us a rating or review in iTunes!

Connect with me at these places for all my content:

https://twitter.com/jillonmoney

https://www.facebook.com/JillonMoney

https://www.instagram.com/jillonmoney/

https://www.linkedin.com/in/jillonmoney/ 

http://www.stitcher.com/podcast/jill-... 

http://betteroffpodcast.com/

https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/b...

"Better Off" theme music is by Joel Goodman, www.joelgoodman.com.

Ep. 016 - Navigating Your Career with Alexandra Cavoulacos and Kathryn Minshew

Human Capital: It's more valuable than any other investment you have and that's why we often discuss career development and management on Better Off. If you're one of the lucky ones like me, then you're doing what you want to do, but it took me some time to get here...

Human Capital: It’s more valuable than any other investment you have and that’s why we often discuss career development and management on Better Off.  If you’re one of the lucky ones like me, then you’re doing what you want to do, but it took me some time to get here…

Many of you may want to change careers and do something that’s more in line with your passions. There are those who have been laid off, often after spending several years at the same company, and now suddenly have to launch a job search process.

Thankfully we live in a day and age where there’s plenty of career finder and guidance websites available to assist. Enter The Muse, founded in 2011 by Alexandra Cavoulacos and Kathryn Minshew. Alex and Kathryn, both millennials, decided to launch the site after working together in the consulting world and realizing it wasn’t what they wanted out of life.

Fast forward to present day — 50 million people visit The Muse each year to determine what they want to do with their lives. The success and popularity of the site encouraged Alex and Kathryn to write a guidebook for the modern workplace. “The New Rules of Work: The Modern Playbook for Navigating Your Career” is designed to help, whether you are starting out in your career, looking to advance, navigating a mid-career shift or anywhere in between.

Through exercises and tips, you will learn:

  • The New Rules for finding the right path: Sift through, and narrow today’s ever-growing menu of job and career options, using the simple step-by-step Muse Method
  • The New Rules for landing the perfect job: Build your personal brand, and communicate exactly how you can contribute and why your experience is valuable in a way that is sure to get the attention of your dream employer. Then ace every step of the interview process, from getting a foot in the door to negotiating your offer.
  • The New Rules for growing and advancing in your career: Mastering first impressions, the art of communication, networking, managing up and other “soft” skills.

Regardless of where you’re at on your career trajectory, you’re bound to find some tips in this book that will help you navigate your professional journey.

“Better Off” is sponsored by Betterment.

Have a finance related question? Email us here or call 855-411-JILL.

We love feedback so please subscribe and leave us a rating or review in iTunes!

Connect with me at these places for all my content:

https://twitter.com/jillonmoney

https://www.facebook.com/JillonMoney

https://www.instagram.com/jillonmoney/

https://www.linkedin.com/in/jillonmoney/ 

http://www.stitcher.com/podcast/jill-... 

http://betteroffpodcast.com/

https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/b...

"Better Off" theme music is by Joel Goodman, www.joelgoodman.com.