Debt-Free Starts Here: The Power of Guidance | Stephen Heath | Growing Money with Sean Trace

We are back, and Money School is now co-branded with Growing Money with Sean Trace and Professor Heath’s Money Misfits. I open with a very human confession, I literally forgot to hit record on a different show, two hundred plus episodes in, which is a perfect reminder that progress beats perfection. From there we get into what actually moved my money forward this month. I worked with a financial planner, paid down eight thousand dollars toward debt, cleared my credit cards, and laid out the next steps, two emergency funds, one for life and one for business, plus getting a solo 401k and a Roth going. We talk through why I am not racing to crush my student loans at 6.7 percent when I can also start investing, and how that tradeoff works in real life.

We get honest about relationships and money, the fight that happens when values are not aligned, the new phone that costs more than the plan, and how different money scripts can wreck a partnership if you never talk about them. We dig into psychology too, dopamine spending, the 72 hour pause that saves me from impulse buys, and how I am gamifying progress so the numbers going down on debt and up in savings keep me motivated. If you are waiting to have it all figured out before you start, this episode is your sign. Start with what you have, keep showing up, and let consistency do the heavy lifting. If this resonates, drop a comment with the one habit you are committing to this month and subscribe for more Money School x Money Misfits.