Hey pal,

The internet is ablaze with new statistics about me and my fellow millennials. A study done by Empower concludes that millennials estimate needing a salary of $525k to be happy; nearly $400k more than other generations reported needing.

There is such a powerful allure that comes along with money. The study even cited that most participants believe most of their problems would disappear with more money.

And deep down inside, most of us probably believe that if we had more money, all our problems would disappear. I certainly fantasize about this, even though I know it’s untrue. Yes, many problems would go away, and for many of us, the quality of our lives would improve.

But I think it’s important to recognize and realize that life is full of problems, and once we solve one, it won’t take long for another to pop up. Without problems, we’d have nothing to work towards, we’d stop feeling a sense of progress, and we’d probably become bored enough that we’d create more problems.

Of course, having more money might mean we have better problems than when we had less money. But it does seem like those who end up with some level of financial security still find things to feel insecure about in their lives.

This is exactly what we spoke about in this week’s conversation with Khe Hy on the Weird Finance podcast. Khe Hy of Rad Reads, a former Wall Street executive, has a unique insight into the cost of a high-income job, the allure of lifestyle creep, the psychology of scarcity even when our lives are abundant, and everything that money can’t buy. I really enjoyed this conversation; I hope you do too.

What do you think about this $525k statistic? Do you believe that money can buy happiness? Or at least make all your problems go away? Don’t be shy; hit reply!

Your pal,

P.S. Welcome to tax pre-season! If you’re self-employed, a freelancer, or a small business owner, this is your friendly reminder to connect with your accountant between now and the end of the year to schedule your year-end tax planning meeting.

1. 💸 Everything that Money Can't Buy with Khe Hy (Weird Finance) In this thought-provoking episode of Weird Finance, Paco’s conversation with Khe Hy reveals insights on issues that money can't resolve, such as the universal need to feel worthy of love and the influence of our environment on emotional well-being.
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​2. 💭 When mindfulness meets capitalism, it loses its way (Psyche Ideas)​
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​3. 💵 The People Who Lost Serious Cash on NFTs (VICE) Five investors – whose losses range from a few thousand quid to $5 million – tell us what went wrong and what how they feel now.
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​4. 🤓 A bookkeeping thing - Fifteen Questions to Ask Your Potential New Accountant (HYG Original) ​
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​5. 💼 The End of Retirement (The Walrus) “Treating retirement as a default outcome of ageing is a workplace bias that will affect the life expectancy, financial dependency, and long-term care costs for a generation retiring earlier than it needs or wants to. Not to mention the impact on the economy.”
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​6. 📺 The Strange $55 Million Saga of a Netflix Series You’ll Never See (New York Times) “It’s not uncommon for Hollywood productions to run into trouble, but a debacle of this magnitude is rare. And it has surfaced at an inopportune moment, with Hollywood under pressure from investors to cut back on lavish spending and to focus on making profits rather than adding streaming subscribers at any cost.”
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​7. 💻 The “Alpha Kings” Practicing Financial Domination Online (The New Yorker) Enrique Pedráza-Botero and Faye Tsakas’s short documentary follows a group of friends in suburban Texas who make their living in the world of “findom” on OnlyFans. “What was fascinating to us is how these kids felt, given the current economic climate, given the rapid shrinking of the middle class, that this was genuinely the best opportunity for them to achieve the trajectory of the American Dream that isn’t really possible for Gen Z in the way it used to be. […] We were also interested in the fact that it was a group of boys who all did this together, in a kind of social-bonding way.”
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​8. 💰 How I stopped shopping for clothes and home goods to form a new identity (Vox) “Shopping didn’t give me freedom or agency. By placing me on a conveyor belt where I was constantly tasked with keeping up with the latest trends, it took control away from me. The ease with which many of us can shop now — through the same digital panopticon that encourages us to always present ourselves as something new — is a quick comfort. It’s easy to feel that way when you are trapped under flooding Brooklyns, global pandemics, and threats of international war. It’s also a double-edged sword. It’s true, shopping can provide a dopamine hit that feels like a momentary break from the life you’re living in. But if you’re constantly taking that break when you feel unsatisfied and insecure, you are letting the muscle that deals with the negative parts of your life atrophy. When do you actually start accepting who you are? At what point are you living your life, instead of planning for a new reinvention of it?”

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​@thehellyeahgroup​

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 is put together by my Editorial Assistant, Cole Yaverbaum, of Ladies Talking About Money. Please consider several ways you can contribute to this important mission – an inclusive conversation about money, finances, and capitalism for Creatives. 🌟 Leave a review for the Weird Finance Podcast​ 👯‍♀️ Share this issue with friends​ 🤓 Tell us what you think of The Nerdletter​

📚Purchase FINANCE FOR THE PEOPLE​ 👛 Check out our agency, Hell Yeah Bookkeeping 🙂🧳 Sponsor The Nerdletter - The Hell Yeah Group​ 💸 1:1 Financial Coaching with Paco​ We can't do this work without you. Thanks for being part of the crew and reading this far. Peace.