Want money advice that you can actually understand? So much money advice ignores who we are, our background, our values, and our emotions. I’ll show you how to be in better control of your money every week, even if you’re just starting out.
🎨 Managing the feast or famine nature of creative work
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Hey pal, I’ve been thinking about this quote from Katherine May’s book Wintering. “We are told to live within our means, but there are times when, frankly, I feel that 'my means' would be a caravan on waste ground. Instead, I suspect that most of us have periods of feast and famine in our lives, and, increasingly, we spend the feast years paying off the debts of the famine. It's only money, as a friend of mine often says with a sigh.” Most of the creative professionals I’ve spoken to at the beginning of this year have told me that they spend this time looking ahead, trying to project what they think this year will look like in terms of income. And while most will earn something similar to the year before, at this point in time, they don’t seem to have any idea how things will shake out. If you’re a creative professional with an inconsistent or unpredictable income, I’d love to hear from you. How do you approach your financial life with an inconsistent or unpredictable income? From paying yourself to saving for retirement, what has worked for you and what hasn’t? Thanks in advance for sharing. As always, don’t be shy about hitting reply. Your pal, P.S. Are you looking for a financial planner to get 2024 off on the right foot? I’m partnering with Ladies Talking About Money to provide personal financial planning this year. Spots are limited; inquire here. 1. 💸 Owning Your Art, Ideas and Intellectual Property with Pamela Rosario (Weird Finance) In this episode of Weird Finance, Paco talks to Pamela Rosario (@pamelarosariolaw) about her path to becoming a self-employed intellectual property attorney, the importance of setting up your business properly, the financial implications of working for yourself, and how to navigate and understand creativity in the context of intellectual property and the law. This episode also features Loose Change, a short segment with Chris Laughter, where he walks up to random strangers on the street to ask them their thoughts, feelings, and opinions about how we relate to money and one another. From helping you get a grip on your spending to planning for retirement and tackling debt, we’re working with Ladies Talking About Money to provide personal financial planning. Our approach to money and personal finance is all about making it accessible, less scary, and meeting you where you are. We have limited spots available; fill out an inquiry form here. If you have a question you’d like me to answer on the Weird Finance podcast, you can leave me a voicemail at 1-833-ASK-PACO. You can also email me your question by replying to this email or emailing us at weirdfinancepod@gmail.com. |
The Nerdletter by Paco de Leon
Want money advice that you can actually understand? So much money advice ignores who we are, our background, our values, and our emotions. I’ll show you how to be in better control of your money every week, even if you’re just starting out.
Hello friend, Here are some numbers that caught my eye this week. Revenue between $10k - $50k and production costs between $30k - $80k. What emerging artists on the 2026 Coachella line up earn and spend in production costs. Compare that to headliners like Justin Beiber’s record-breaking $10M fee. After $500k - $2M in production costs, there’s still a hefty profit. $0.004. What Spotify pays per stream. In California, artists must rack up ~733,000 streams a month in order to earn minimum wage....
Hi there, I had a roommate who, at one point, was one of the most powerful assistants in Hollywood. She was 1 of 4 assistants and her life was chaotic, but when you’re in your twenties, you have the energy for it. One day I remember coming home, walking into the kitchen and seeing several deli platters full of uneaten food. There were multiple loaves of bread and packs of cigarettes. My immediate thought was, “Score.” “Where did all this come from?” I asked my roommate. She was standing in...
Hello there, I’m writing this from a hotel room in Paris, where I’ve been staying for a bit over a week. Since I arrived, the news out of the U.S. has been a steady drumbeat: a military parade during the largest protests on record, political assassinations, attacks exchanged between Iran and Israel, and talk of the U.S. going to war. The headlines shift, but the chaos doesn’t, that part stays the same. From this strange vantage point—physically, far from it all but, emotionally, still wired...