In our culture, we tend to put a lot of value on independence, self-sufficiency, and individual achievements. So much so that it can oftentimes breed a sentiment that we SHOULD do it all on our own. Life, money, career, parenting.....you name it. It can be a lonely road, but luckily it doesn't have to be! In today's episode, host Travis Shelton explains why he believes this is a false and destructive narrative. Instead, each one of us should spend some of our time, energy, and humility assemblin...
Nov 10, 2021•15 min•Ep. 66
If you're a young adult, you've likely been exposed to the hustle culture that permeates Instagram and TikTok. You know, go, go, go, more money, more money, more money. This never-ending pursuit of hustling for more. Then, it goes one of two directions: a) glorifying having more stuff and a fancier lifestyle, or b) glorifying an early retirement and a life of leisure. Both are as equally toxic in our perspectives. It shouldn't be about grinding our life away in the pursuit of more stuff or a lif...
Nov 08, 2021•18 min•Ep. 65
Aside from fear, the perceived availability of health insurance is the #1 reason why people abandon their dreams. Yes, health insurance is important.....vitally important!!! But we oftentimes let health insurance dictate our career decisions without considering the bigger picture or the alternative options. It's a tragedy health insurance is tied to our employment in modern America, but we can't just let it rule our decisions. In today's episode, host Travis Shelton discussed how we got here, of...
Nov 03, 2021•23 min•Ep. 64
As Travis's mentor Dr. Gary Hoag always says, we need to invest in mission and memories. Recently, Travis and his wife celebrated their 12-year wedding anniversary with a quick trip to Chicago to attend a Twenty One Pilots concert at the United Center. Aside for ranting about how amazing Twenty One Pilots is, Travis discusses the fact this 27-hour trip cost $1,000.....yikes! It's important for us to recognize the importance of memories, stop dwelling about money, and why there are broader implic...
Nov 01, 2021•10 min•Ep. 63
In the wise words of Steve Jordan, "never end on a miss." In today's episode, host Travis Shelton reflects back on the habits of his childhood best friend and how this silly and simple mantra has the power to transform our lives. Fast forward several decades, these same principles are carried forward to a new generation. When Travis's son Finn recently fell off his bike and tore up his leg, he needed to get back on the bike to prove to himself it's not as scary as it now felt. Never end on a mis...
Oct 27, 2021•16 min•Ep. 62
If you're a regular listener, you know generosity is one of our favorite topics. This is Meaning Over Money, and very few things provide as much meaning as joyful and sacrificial generosity. In today's episode, host Travis Shelton discusses a unique way to handle our month-to-month giving that provides so much more freedom, intentionality, and flexibility. This method has changed his life, as well as the way many of his clients view and handle their own generosity. We hope this is the simplest, ...
Oct 25, 2021•8 min•Ep. 61
Sometimes crap happens! It always does. No matter how good things are going in life, finances, or career, some form of trouble is right around the corner. We don't say that to be pessimistic. Far from it! In today's episode, host Travis Shelton discusses the topic of turmoil. Whenever something bad happens to us (whether it's our fault or not), a story will be told. The beautiful part is we get to be the author of the story. We have a powerful and critical role to play in the narrative. We don't...
Oct 20, 2021•13 min•Ep. 60
When it comes to the topic of luck, our culture tends to have two polarizing views. One perspective is luck is totally random and completely unpredictable.....kinda like a lottery ticket. The other perspective is luck doesn't exist....."I earned it!" Here's what we believe: sometimes we get lucky.....and that's ok! In today's episode, host Travis Shelton reflects on a handful of his lucky moments in life (there are several, and they are life-changing) and explains why he's not afraid to admit th...
Oct 18, 2021•16 min•Ep. 59
You know the person who bottles up their feelings over and over and over, only to eventually explode? I think we can all agree this isn't healthy. Well, there's a financial version of this person. After a fun conversation with a client, we coined it the "guilt, guilt, guilt, screw it" syndrome. We feel guilt so we don't spend....over and over and over.....until we reach a point where we say "screw it" and completely binge on spending. This isn't healthy, but so many of us are dealing with some v...
Oct 13, 2021•20 min•Ep. 58
We're doing something a bit different today. Cole recently walked into the office and said, "Travis, you gotta check out these comments on a TikTok video I saw." After pausing, he added "no, let's turn the mics on, then show you the comments." Thus, this episode was born. We aren't huge Dave Ramsey fans, but there is most certainly an overlap on some topics. In this particular video shared on TikTok, Dave Ramsey discusses the recent statistic about how the average car payment in America is $499/...
Oct 11, 2021•43 min•Ep. 57
In the final episode of our in-the-wilderness series, we talk about the importance of planting seeds. The things we say, the behaviors we model, the decisions we make, the positive we try to instill in others. Oftentimes, it can feel like it's all for nothing. Then, every now and then, there's a moment we're reminded good has, is, and will come from our efforts. Not all seeds grow. Some wash away, some die, and some just never take root. However, some seeds thrive and eventually grow into someth...
Oct 06, 2021•10 min•Ep. 56
In the third installment of the in-the-wilderness series, host Travis Shelton reflects on all the ways society defines our identity: income, job title, social status, neighborhood, cars/houses, schools, degrees, etc. When we boil it down, none of these things actually matter. In fact, they matter so little, one day they will be gone in an instant. Instead, we have the privilege of focusing on the things that actually matter in life. In today's episode, we unpack what those things are and how we ...
Oct 04, 2021•10 min•Ep. 55
Do you ever get so focused on your goals you fail to enjoy the process of working to achieve them? Whew, we're glad we weren't the only ones. In the second installment of our in-the-wilderness series, host Travis Shelton reflects on how we can often find ourselves fixating so much on the destination that we forget to enjoy the journey. What if the journey was actually more important than the destination? Sure, goals are great. But the real growth, fulfillment, and meaning actually comes from the...
Sep 29, 2021•11 min•Ep. 54
This is the first in a 4-episode in-the-wilderness series Travis recorded on a recent trip to the Boundary Waters. If you're an active listener of the show, you probably know his annual trip to the Boundary Waters has been transformational in his life, his marriage, and his career. During this year's trip (6th trip in 7 years), Travis recorded four episodes while deep in the wilderness. This first episode is a follow-up to one of our most popular episodes ever (006 - Comfortable Being Uncomforta...
Sep 27, 2021•12 min•Ep. 53
In today's episode, host Travis Shelton shares the story of his new friends, Jake and Meredith. Jake and Meredith are a young adult couple who model exactly what it looks like to dive head-first into life, calling, and community. There's so much we can learn from this young couple and how they approach life together. In a world that says we should do what's safe, comfortable, and easy, the road less traveled is often the far harder, but far more fulfilling road. Travis compares Jake and Meredith...
Sep 22, 2021•9 min•Ep. 52
We believe in generosity! In fact, it's one of the foundations of our work and our own personal lives. There's one problem: when we start to become generous, we tend to condition ourselves to deny the generosity of others. After all, I am the generous person. I am the one blessing others. I don't NEED anything from anyone. Pride starts to take over and we find ourselves slamming the door of generosity on other people. In today's episode, host Travis Shelton explains why true generosity needs to ...
Sep 20, 2021•10 min•Ep. 51
We often perceive our current reality as a permanent state of being. When things get tough, it’s easy to believe this is just our new reality. Good news: it’s not! In today’s episode, host Travis Shelton discusses the concept of looking at life as a series of seasons. Good seasons, bad seasons, easy seasons, challenging seasons. Often multiple seasons at the same time. When we can view life in this way, it has a two-fold benefit: 1) it can help us persevere through the tough stuff, and 2) it hel...
Sep 15, 2021•17 min•Ep. 50
Whether we want to believe it or not, using debt has many psychological and emotional effects, and it alters our decision-making process. We think it’s a clever tool to do what we would have otherwise done anyway, but with extra side benefits. However, it’s not that simple. In today’s episode, host Travis Shelton explains the psychological warfare we subject ourselves to by using debt, and one very simple way we can combat it. If you have questions or would like to connect with us outside of the...
Sep 13, 2021•11 min•Ep. 49
Most fun things we can spend money on fall into one of two categories: memories or things. Experiences or possessions. Doing things or having things. In today's episode, host Travis Shelton makes his case for why memories are always better than things. It's not to say things are bad, but given the choice, memories win every single time. Younger Millennials and Gen-Z already know this to be true, but it tends to (unfairly) get held against them. This is one of the big reasons why we love young ad...
Sep 08, 2021•14 min•Ep. 48
Do you ever find yourself comparing yourself to someone else and wish you were as far along as them? Whew, we're glad we weren't the only ones! In today's episode, host Travis Shelton shares a lesson he learned from Jon Acuff about keeping things in perspective. It's easy to (unfairly) look at someone else's accomplishments and feel like we aren't good enough, but we forget about the fact these people are usually further ahead of us on their journey. Therefore, it's only natural they are further...
Sep 06, 2021•10 min•Ep. 47
Can we be honest? We really don’t care about money. Seriously. It may seem ironic for a financial podcast to explicitly state they don’t care about money, but it’s true. In today’s episode, host Travis Shelton explains why he really doesn’t care about money…..and the four primary (and awesome) repercussions that naturally happen when you stop caring about money. This will most certainly be a counter-cultural episode, so we hope you enjoy. If you have questions or would like to connect with us ou...
Sep 01, 2021•21 min•Ep. 46
One of the biggest psychological hurdles we face with money is we subconsciously spend our money in accordance with the world's values. When we do this, it robs us of our joy because we are spending money on things that don't truly add value to our lives. Every time we spend a dollar on something we don't care about, it's one less dollar we get to spend on something we do care about. The repercussions can be as deep as they are wide. In today's episode, host Travis Shelton emphasizes the importa...
Aug 30, 2021•19 min•Ep. 45
Sometimes we make mistakes, screw up, let people down, and embarrass ourself. It happens to all of us. In today's episode, host Travis Shelton confesses in real-time about making two embarrassing mistakes in the same day. These mistakes are equally as embarrassing to talk about as they are to make in the first place, so why not just discuss them publicly with thousands of our closest friends?!? Travis shares his story, gives some perspective on making mistakes, and gives some tangible steps to w...
Aug 25, 2021•15 min•Ep. 44
In a world filled with financial illiteracy, we unknowingly find ourselves taking financial and career advice from people all around us who struggle with money and hate their jobs. It's no wonder why so many people struggle with these things.....we're walking the same shaky road so many others are following. Friends, family, co-workers, and many more. In today's episode, host Travis Shelton shares some of the craziest money myths Meaning Over Money listeners are repeatedly receiving in their own...
Aug 23, 2021•23 min•Ep. 43
Teachers (and the teaching profession) get a bad rap in our culture, and we think it's unfair and unwarranted. Specifically, we want to address something we refer to as "the teacher myth." The narrative in our culture tells us teachers don't make much and will always be poor, thus discouraging current and future teachers from using their unique gifts to bless our children. In today's episode, host Travis Shelton explains why teachers have a better gig than we give them credit for, and why it mat...
Aug 18, 2021•18 min•Ep. 42
In episode 25, host Travis Shelton explained why he believes women are generally better at handling money than men. In that episode, he argues men are indeed more emotional with money, for two primary reasons: 1) men use money as a scorecard, and 2) pride and ego. We've received a lot of reactions and responses since that episode launching into the world. In today's episode, we share some of that feedback and answer some of the follow-up questions we received on the heels of that episode. Episod...
Aug 16, 2021•18 min•Ep. 41
Have you ever asked someone a question where their words and their tone gave two completely different answers? In today’s episode, host Travis Shelton explains why this often happens when we talk about our jobs, why we often lie to ourselves, and how others can spot the real truth. This may sound like a trivial topic, but really engaging in this exercise has the potential to change everything! Thank you for listening!!! If this episode added value to you, it would mean the world to us if you wou...
Aug 11, 2021•12 min•Ep. 40
No matter how good we're doing in a particular area of life, there's one thing that always has the power to knock us down: comparing ourselves to others. Unfortunately, there's always going to be someone smarter, funnier, better looking, making more money, having more opportunities, and one step ahead of us. It's so easy for us to have a pity party and get frustrated. In today's episode, host Travis Shelton explains why the curse of comparison can stunt our progress, sabotage our journey, and st...
Aug 09, 2021•11 min•Ep. 39
"My spouse and I are on the same page with finances, but he/she isn't engaged with the budget." This is one comment we hear over and over. In fact, this is a very common trend in families today. Even for couples who budget and are on the same page, some spouses exclude themselves from the process and instead put all the trust and responsibility on the other spouse. Big mistake! In today's episode, host Travis Shelton discusses all the reasons it's important for both spouses to be involved with t...
Aug 04, 2021•14 min•Ep. 38
Young couples today are facing two really important questions: "Do we want one spouse to stay at home with the kids?", and "Can we afford for one spouse to stay at home with the kids?" The first question is a deeply personal one, and every couple needs to seek out the right answer for them. But the second question is a lie our culture tells us. Staying at home with kids isn't something we get to do if we are "lucky" or "fortunate". Rather, staying at home is a choice. It's always a choice. A ver...
Aug 02, 2021•19 min•Ep. 37
