logo
episode-header-image
Apr 2023
55m 13s

400: Mindy and Scott’s Money Stories and...

BIGGERPOCKETS
About this episode

Being able to retire early is a blessing and a curse. When you first start working a job, all you can think of is escaping your everyday responsibilities. The mind-numbing tasks, the early mornings, late nights, horrible bosses—it all adds up. But, you then find the “financial independence, retire early movement (FIRE),” and almost overnight, you decide that your future will be dedicated to setting yourself financially free. You develop skills that help you make more at your job, feeding into bigger, better investments. And as a result, you end up being in a better position, at a more respectable job, earning more than you thought possible, and enjoying the challenge of everyday work.

This is precisely what happened to your hosts, Mindy Jensen and Scott Trench. Both started at jobs they didn’t love, wanting to be financially free. Through hard work and skill-building, Mindy and Scott were brought together, prompting them to start the BiggerPockets Money Podcast and build a company they both love. Now financially free, Mindy and Scott refuse to retire early for a good reason.

In this special four-hundredth episode, Mindy and Scott share their money stories, how they found the FIRE movement, what they did with their money, and why they choose to work, even though they don’t have to. If you want to know the real reason behind Scott and Mindy’s skyrocketing success, stick around because their stories are much more repeatable than you may think.


In This Episode We Cover

The origins of the BiggerPockets Money Podcast and how risky investing prompted a powerful podcast

The index fund vs. individual stock-picking debate and why Mindy started to shift her portfolio

How Mindy and Scott found the FIRE movement and how they both quickly reached financial independence

Becoming a CEO and why Scott’s “don’t ask for a raise” philosophy paid off BIG time

Choosing to work instead of retiring early and why a meaningful livelihood beats a relaxing early retirement

The simple but profound moves Scott made to triple his net worth in just a few years

And So Much More!


Links from the Show

BiggerPockets Money Facebook Group

BiggerPockets Forums

Finance Review Guest Onboarding

Scott's Instagram

Mindy's

Connect with James

Listen to All Your Favorite BiggerPockets Podcasts in One Place

Apply to Be a Guest on The Money Show

Podcast Talent Search!

Subscribe to The “On The Market” YouTube Channel

Listen to The “On The Market” Podcast: SpotifyApple PodcastsBiggerPockets

Money Moment

Mr. Money Mustache's article

1,500 Days

Breaking the Taboo of Talking About Money with Friends, Family, and Bosses

How to Change Your Financial Life with a Money “Reset”

Margin Loans: Low-Interest Lending or Risky Rates?

Mindy's First Episode: Jump Starting Your Early FI Plans by Live-in Flipping

Scott’s First Episode: An All-Out Approach to Financial Independence at an Early Age


Click here to check the full show notes: https://www.biggerpockets.com/blog/money-400


Interested in learning more about today's sponsors or becoming a BiggerPockets partner yourself? Let us know!

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Up next
Jul 8
The Best Investing Order of Operations for FIRE (2025)
In this episode of the BiggerPockets Money Podcast, hosts Mindy Jensen and Scott Trench discuss the order of operations for investing your money to achieve FIRE. They outline the steps for both traditional early retirees and those looking to invest in real estate (or start a busi ... Show More
39m 4s
Jul 4
How I'm Accessing My IRA at 45 (Without Paying Penalties)
Want to access your IRA before turning 59½ without paying the brutal 10% early withdrawal penalty? You're not alone, and there are completely legal ways to do it that most people never learn about. In this comprehensive guide, John Bowens from Equity Trust will walk us through th ... Show More
52m 39s
Jul 1
Your Complete Guide to Financial Independence (2025)
The FIRE (Financial Independence, Retire Early) movement has transformed how people think about work, money, and retirement. In this comprehensive episode, Mindy and Scott break down everything you need to know about achieving financial independence and potentially retiring decad ... Show More
37m 12s
Recommended Episodes
Mar 2021
100: You Can't Fear Failure: Scott Trench on the Evolution of BiggerPockets
How does a 27 year old become the CEO of a major online brand? Not only that, how does a 27 year old take an online brand, build upon it, and create something better? Well, if your name is Scott Trench, the answer is: a lot of hard work, some tough decisions, and looking out for ... Show More
1h 10m
Mar 2022
1842: [Part 1] Why Create an Emergency Fund by Scott Rieckens of Playing With Fire on Easing Your Financial Stress
Scott Rieckens of Playing With Fire talks about the value of creating an emergency fund. This is part 1 of 2.Episode 1842: [Part 1] Why Create an Emergency Fund by Scott Rieckens of Playing With Fire on Easing Your Financial StressA successful entrepreneur living in Southern Cali ... Show More
11m 24s
May 2024
MI351: Get Better at Anything w/ Scott Young
Patrick Donley (@JPatrickDonley) sits down with Scott Young, author of Get Better at Anything-12 Maxims for Mastery, which you can apply to any domain in life. You’ll learn more about the learning challenges Scott accomplished, how to set and achieve ambitious goals, how to creat ... Show More
1h 9m
Apr 2024
The Realities of Retiring Early
The point of money is to make life easier. To give you security, comfort, and the ability to do the things that make you happy.So if you’ve made enough to take care of that for life, you can just stop making more… right?Retiring early is a dream for many, but what happens when yo ... Show More
39m 13s
May 2024
TIP630: The Wealthy Gardener w/ Kyle Grieve
On today’s episode, Kyle Grieve discusses the book The Wealthy Gardener. He covers a variety of wealth topics like how to optimize your time to generate wealth, why it’s so important to avoid wage slavery, why you should embrace challenges to live a more fulfilling life, why we m ... Show More
57m 54s
Aug 2022
648: Why Winners Quit: The 5 Factors to Leaving a Soul-Sucking Job w/Pat Hiban and Tim Rhode
Quitting your job is a big decision and it doesn’t always lead to the perfect outcome—at least not immediately. Most people think that you have to be miserable or make very little money to want to quit a job, but even high earners still find themselves struggling to attend their ... Show More
1h 17m
Jul 2024
What Are You Willing to Sacrifice to be Wealthy? with Scott Galloway
Young people these days talk about wanting balance in their lives.  Well according to Scott Galloway, that means you don’t want to be rich. Building wealth is no easy feat. It requires determination, hard work and sacrifice. But luck plays a huge role too. Scott shares stories wi ... Show More
44m 52s
Dec 2014
102: How to Struggle and Still Succeed at Real Estate with Scott Costello
Have you ever struggled to get to the next level with your real estate investing?On today’s episode of the BiggerPockets Podcast, we sit down with real estate wholesaler and self-proclaimed “struggling investor” Scott Costello. In this riveting interview, you’ll learn why real es ... Show More
55m 20s
Mar 2017
469: Why I Quit My Job & Took a $50,000 Pay Cut by Scott Alan Turner - The Scott Alan Turner Show
Scott Alan Turner shares why he quit his job and took a $50,000 pay cut.Episode 469: Why I Quit My Job & Took a $50,000 Pay Cut by Scott Alan Turner - The Scott Alan Turner Show (Career Advice).Scott Alan Turner is the author of the best-selling book 99 Minute Millionaire - The S ... Show More
8m 54s
Oct 2023
827: From $16/Hour Factory Wages to SIX-FIGURE Real Estate Paychecks w/Keith Everett
Want a PRACTICAL guide to making six figures in real estate? What about a way to do it in a year or less? That’s precisely what Keith Everett did, trading his sixteen-dollar-an-hour factory job for the potential to make six figures by himself, wholesaling real estate. Keith dropp ... Show More
48m 37s