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Stuff About Money They Didn't Teach You In School

Stuff About Money They Didn't Teach You In School

Erik Garcia, CFP® & Xavier Angel, CFP® 137 Episodes Aug 11, 2026

Hosts Erik Garcia and Xavier Angel, both CERTIFIED FINANCIAL PLANNER™ professionals, tackle the personal finance topics that traditional schooling overlooks. Each episode aims to fill the gaps in money education, offering practical guidance on building wealth and making smarter financial decisions. With a back-to-school spirit, the podcast makes complex money concepts accessible to listeners at any stage of their financial journey.

Episodes

Is Financial Control an Illusion?
Is Financial Control an Illusion? Aug 11, 2026 1001 How much control do we really have over our financial future? In this episode, Erik Garcia, CFP®, ChFC®, BFA™ and Dr. Matt Morris, LMFT explore the tension between external circumstances and personal responsibility. While economic conditions, inflation, taxes, and unexpected crises are outside anyone’s control, the conversation highlights the many financial choices that still remain firmly within
Love, Trust, and Money
Love, Trust, and Money Jul 28, 2026 1086 Money is rarely just about numbers inside a relationship. In this episode, Erik Garcia, CFP®, ChFC®, BFA™ and Dr. Matt Morris, LMFT unpack why financial conflict in marriages and partnerships is often rooted in deeper emotional needs like trust, security, control, communication, and vulnerability. Drawing from years of counseling couples and advising families, they discuss financial infidelity, p
Your Past Financial Mistakes Are Not Your Identity
Your Past Financial Mistakes Are Not Your Identity Jul 14, 2026 947 Everyone has financial regrets. In this episode, Erik and Dr. Matt tackle the emotional weight people carry from past financial decisions — debt, overspending, failed investments, divorce, financial scams, and seasons of instability. The real danger, they explain, isn’t the mistake itself; it’s allowing the mistake to become an identity. Dr. Matt introduces the difference between guilt and shame:
Motivation Won’t Build Wealth. Habits Will
Motivation Won’t Build Wealth. Habits Will Jun 30, 2026 1422 Most people believe financial transformation starts with motivation. Erik Garcia, CFP®, ChFC®, BFA™ and Dr. Matt Morris, LMFT argue the opposite: motivation fades, but habits compound. In this episode, they explain why relying on bursts of inspiration or willpower almost always leads to inconsistency — especially when it comes to money. Using stories from fitness, personal finance, and everyday
Emotions Are Signals, Not Instructions
Emotions Are Signals, Not Instructions Jun 16, 2026 1236 Money is emotional — and in this episode, Erik Garcia, CFP®, ChFC®, BFA™ and Dr. Matt Morris, LMFT explore why emotions have such a powerful influence on financial behavior. From market volatility and economic uncertainty to comparison, insecurity, and fear of failure, people rarely make purely rational financial decisions. Instead, emotions often drive reactions that conflict with long-term goals
Mindset: Your Financial Beliefs Driving Your Financial Decisions
Mindset: Your Financial Beliefs Driving Your Financial Decisions Jun 2, 2026 1315 In the opening episode of The Psychology of Money series, Erik Garcia, CFP®, ChFC®, BFA™ and Dr. Matt Morris, LMFT explore one of the most overlooked drivers of financial success: mindset. Long before people learn how to invest, budget, or build wealth, they develop internal “money scripts” — subconscious beliefs shaped by childhood experiences, family dynamics, culture, and personal history. Tog
Episode 109: Time, Compounding, and the Truth About Building Wealth
Episode 109: Time, Compounding, and the Truth About Building Wealth May 21, 2026 1556 In this episode, Erik P. Garcia, CFP®, ChFC®, BFA™, and Xavier J. Angel, CFP®, ChFC®, unpack a misunderstood truth about building wealth: real wealth takes time. Picking up from their earlier conversations on discipline, behavior, and consistency, they dive into the power of compounding—not just financially, but professionally and personally as well. Through stories, analogies, and practical examp
Episode 108: Consistency: The Hidden Engine of Wealth
Episode 108: Consistency: The Hidden Engine of Wealth May 5, 2026 1551 In this third episode of the series, Erik Garcia, CFP®, and Xavier Angel, CFP®, uncover what they call the hidden engine behind wealth: consistency. After breaking down the behaviors that destroy wealth and the ones that protect it, this episode answers the real question—what actually builds it. The answer isn’t intensity, timing, or even talent. It’s doing the right things over and over again, lo
Episode 107: 3 Behaviors That Protect Your Wealth: The Disciplines That Keep You From Losing What You’ve Built
Episode 107: 3 Behaviors That Protect Your Wealth: The Disciplines That Keep You From Losing What You’ve Built Apr 21, 2026 1702 In the last episode, we broke down the behaviors that quietly destroy wealth—emotional decisions, lifestyle creep, and overconfidence. But avoiding mistakes is only half the equation. In this episode, Erik Garcia, CFP®, and Xavier Angel, CFP®, flip the conversation and focus on what actually protects wealth once you start building it. Because wealth isn’t just created—it has to be preserved with i
Episode 106: Before You Build Wealth… Stop Destroying It: The 3 Behaviors That Sabotage Your Financial Future (Part 1 of 4)
Episode 106: Before You Build Wealth… Stop Destroying It: The 3 Behaviors That Sabotage Your Financial Future (Part 1 of 4) Apr 7, 2026 1744 Before you can build wealth, you have to stop destroying it. Nobel Prize-winning economist Richard Thaler said it best: “People don’t act rationally.” And when it comes to money, that shows up in ways that quietly cost us more than we realize. In this episode, Erik Garcia, CFP®, and Xavier Angel, CFP®, break down three wealth-destroying behaviors—emotional decisions, lifestyle creep, and overconf
Episode 105: Beyond the Salary: Real Money Decisions for New Pharmacists
Episode 105: Beyond the Salary: Real Money Decisions for New Pharmacists Mar 26, 2026 2535 Landing that first job feels like the finish line, but for most young professionals, it is really just the beginning. In this episode, Xavier Angel, CFP®, ChFC®, CLTC®, sits down with Christopher Bland, PharmD, FCCP, FIDSA, BCPS, Albert W. Jowdy Professor in Pharmacy Care at the University of Georgia College of Pharmacy, to unpack the real-world financial questions that pharmacists and other gradu
Episode 104: Normal Returns, Broader Markets, Sexy Bonds and Lasagna With Phil Blancato
Episode 104: Normal Returns, Broader Markets, Sexy Bonds and Lasagna With Phil Blancato Mar 10, 2026 2872 Erik Garcia, CFP®, ChFC®, BFA™, welcomes back Phil Blancato for their annual market conversation, now a tradition on Stuff About Money They Didn't Teach You In School. Phil is Chief Market Strategist at Osaic Wealth, a regular on Fox Business, and an experienced portfolio manager who brings equal parts insight and humor, including a lightning round that somehow turns the 2026 market into a lasagna

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