bob and linda lotich

Guess what? SeedTime just turned sweet 16 today! 🎉 (Psst… we've got some cool gifts and bonuses for you today!)

It's been a crazy ride these past 16 years, hasn't it? 

I mean, by God’s remarkable grace, we've had the chance to connect with over 55 million folks through our website, the SeedTime Money Podcast, and our YouTube channels. 

Can you believe that!? 

And then we've seen more than 9,200 students pass through our courses https://seedtime.com/u and nearly 20k copies of Simple Money, Rich Life https://seedtime.com/smrl have found new homes.

But even though I am admittedly a numbers nerd, the numbers aren't even close to the best part...

From day one I have been collecting stories from people like you who have shared with me the things God has done in their financial lives. 

And over 16 years I now have thousands of those stories that I treasure.  Every story, every success, is another reminder of the great things God can do. Looking back, it's pretty amazing seeing what God has done the last 16 years.

But, it never should have happened…

 

The unlikely story of SeedTime

On June 1st, 2007, SeedTime (or originally ChristianPF.com) was born. 

It was just a little blog where I shared the personal finance lessons I was learning along with what I was finding in the Bible about money. 

At the time I was stuck in a dead-end job and felt hopeless about my career and my ability to make any sort of impact in the world.

And I had this pipe-dream that one day we could earn enough from the blog to eat and live indoors. 

But the odds were terrible. 

At the time earning money from a blog was incredibly difficult.  In fact, in 2007 I literally was only aware of 2 bloggers in the entire world that were earning anything close to a full-time income from blogging.

And my millionaire mentor, who had taught me so much about money, told me going full-time as a blogger was a terrible idea.

And He was right. 

But here’s the thing. The Bible is full of “terrible ideas” that just happened to be exactly what God wanted. 

Here’s one: “Hey, I have a military strategy for you. Just march around the city 7 times and then yell real loud. Oh and if it doesn’t work, you’ll probably die.”

God seems to love to use “terrible ideas” because no one can take credit for it when it works out.

 

Today Linda and I are going into the full story of how SeedTime began.  

• How we went from being the financial messes that we were to following God into the unknown
• How we overcame our fears and insecurities and nay-sayers
• How we handled “stepping out of the boat” after I got laid off and became a “full-time blogger”.
• One critical mistake I made that should have sunk us
• And the most important thing we did to keep SeedTime alive and well 16 years later.
• And a lot more of the ins and outs of how God took 2 broke kids from Missouri and did something only He could do

 

Links:

• Enter the $2k giveaway: https://seedtime.com/2k-giveaway 

 

 

Watch this episode on our SeedTime Money Podcast YouTube channel!

If you haven’t checked out our best-selling book Simple Money, Rich Life, we think you’ll love it. It was named the 2022 Book of the Year by ICFH and has over 300 5-star reviews on Amazon and is best described as “a money book for people who don’t read money books.”

You can take it for a test drive for FREE at SeedTime.com/sample where you can download chapter 1 of the audiobook, grab the 1st 2 chapters of the ebook version, and even get the 5-week book study companion guide.

 

Have you ever felt like you were born for more... for greatness?  If you feel stuck or maybe are not sure of what your God-given purpose is, this is going to help. Stephen Chandler has a cool new book out: Stop Waiting for Permission. This is a great motivater and is an instruction for all of us. I needed this book really bad during multiple points in my life and we hope you find this helpful too! 

 

Links Mentioned:

1. Stephen's book: Stop waiting for permission
2. Fear-setting PDF
3. Our book: Simple Money, Rich Life
4. Docuseries: The Last Dance

 

These are a few of the topics we cover:

1. God ordained greatness and potential in all of us

2. Every single person experiences fear

3. We are all fueled by something

Find out more at: seedtime.com/you-were-born-for-greatness-with-stephen-chandler/

 

If you haven’t checked out our best-selling book Simple Money, Rich Life we think you’ll love it. It was named the 2022 Book of the Year by ICFH and has over 275 5-star reviews on Amazon and is best described as “a money book for people who don’t read money books.”

You can take it for a test drive for FREE at SeedTime.com/sample where you can download chapter 1 of the audiobook, grab the 1st 2 chapters of the ebook version, and even get the 5-week book study companion guide.

Dr. Josh and Christi Straub are speakers, authors, and marriage and leadership experts. They host the Famous at Home podcast, have written many children’s books on emotional intelligence, and have released their new book Famous at Home: 7 Decisions to Put Your Family Center Stage in a World Competing for Your Time, Attention, and Identity. We are excited to have Dr. Josh with us to discuss getting on the same page as your spouse. Because, we all know being on the same page as your spouse financially is so important!

 

Links Mentioned:

1. Famous at Home podcast
2. Famous at Home book
3. Our Book: Simple Money, Rich Life
4. Kid's Book: What Am I Feeling?

 

These are a few of the topics we cover:

1. How to change the atmosphere of our homes

2. How to talk about money in front of your kids

3. Planning the Sabbath Day to maximize rest

Find out more at: https://seedtime.com/getting-on-the-same-page-as-your-spouse-with-dr-josh-straub/

 

If you haven’t checked out our best-selling book Simple Money, Rich Life we think you’ll love it. It was named the 2022 Book of the Year by ICFH and has over 275 5-star reviews on Amazon and is best described as “a money book for people who don’t read money books.”

You can take it for a test drive for FREE at SeedTime.com/sample where you can download chapter 1 of the audiobook, grab the 1st 2 chapters of the ebook version, and even get the 5-week book study companion guide.

This is the story behind the infamous Bubble Taurus (as referenced in Chapter 9 of our book Simple Money, Rich Life) and 3 life-changing lessons that I learned and are valuable for everyone to learn.

 

Links Mentioned:

1. Our Book: Simple Money, Rich Life

 

These are a few of the topics we cover:

1. They key to getting ahead financially

2. Why it is necessary to learn humility

3. Where do you put your identity

Find out more at: https://seedtime.com/bubble-taurus/

 

If you haven’t checked out our best-selling book Simple Money, Rich Life we think you’ll love it. It was named the 2022 Book of the Year by ICFH and has over 275 5-star reviews on Amazon and is best described as “a money book for people who don’t read money books.”

You can take it for a test drive for FREE at SeedTime.com/sample where you can download chapter 1 of the audiobook, grab the 1st 2 chapters of the ebook version, and even get the 5-week book study companion guide.

This episode isn’t really about money, but more about your relationship with your spouse and how money plays into that. The nuggets Shaunti shares are powerful and can have a huge positive effect on your marriage. If you are married, don’t miss this one!

 

Links Mentioned:

1. Shaunti's Book: Thriving in Love & Money

 

These are a few of the topics we cover:

1. The real reason money is a big issue in a lot of marriages

2. Money not only reveals the heart but steers the heart

3. How to increase happiness in marital finances

Find out more at: seedtime.com

 

If you haven’t checked out our best-selling book Simple Money, Rich Life we think you’ll love it. It was named the 2022 Book of the Year by ICFH and has over 275 5-star reviews on Amazon and is best described as “a money book for people who don’t read money books.”

You can take it for a test drive for FREE at SeedTime.com/sample where you can download chapter 1 of the audiobook, grab the 1st 2 chapters of the ebook version, and even get the 5-week book study companion guide.

We sent out an email not too long ago to our email list. It was basically a devotional that I made off of my Bible study for the morning. And it just got a whole lot of response. So I figured we would go over it and share it with you. It really is just me sharing my notes from my Bible study from the day, but I think the lesson on growth is something we all could learn from (especially those in leadership positions). Our study is out of Acts 6.  And we're going to learn how to grow your business/ministry/etc with this Biblical secret. We encourage you to join us as we study The Word!

Find out more at https://seedtime.com/devo-grow-your-business-ministry-etc-with-this-biblical-secret/

 

If you haven’t checked out our best-selling book Simple Money, Rich Life we think you’ll love it. It was named the 2022 Book of the Year by ICFH and has over 275 5-star reviews on Amazon and is best described as “a money book for people who don’t read money books.”

You can take it for a test drive for FREE at SeedTime.com/sample where you can download chapter 1 of the audiobook, grab the 1st 2 chapters of the ebook version, and even get the 5-week book study companion guide.

Today we are chatting with Jen Smith and Jill Siriani (hosts of the Frugal Friends podcast). Jen is the author of a best-selling book on Amazon called the No-spend Challenge Guide and she ended up using no-spend challenges to not only help her pay off over $70k of debt, but also to learn a lot of deep lessons about herself.

 

Links Mentioned:

1. The Frugal Friends Podcast
2. The No-spend Challenge Guide
3. Frugal Friends on Instagram
4. Frugal Friends on Facebook

 

These are a few of the topics we cover:

1. How to have a no-spend challenge 

2. Mistakes learned during the challenge

3. Long term benefits from completing the challenge

Find out more at: https://seedtime.com/how-to-use-a-no-spend-challenge-to-pay-off-debt-save-and-learn-about-yourself/

 

If you haven’t checked out our best-selling book Simple Money, Rich Life we think you’ll love it. It was named the 2022 Book of the Year by ICFH and has over 275 5-star reviews on Amazon and is best described as “a money book for people who don’t read money books.”

You can take it for a test drive for FREE at SeedTime.com/sample where you can download chapter 1 of the audiobook, grab the 1st 2 chapters of the ebook version, and even get the 5-week book study companion guide.

I (Bob) never imagined I would own anything from Burberry, but thanks to Linda I now own a pair - and this is why.  

 

Links Mentioned:

1. Find us on Instagram: @seedtime
2. Our Book: Simple Money, Rich Life
3. Feedom Company

 

These are a few of the topics we cover:

1. Minimalism and your closet
2. Value vs. cost
3. Attractiveness of items on sale

Find out more at: seedtime.com/

 

If you haven’t checked out our best-selling book Simple Money, Rich Life we think you’ll love it. It was named the 2022 Book of the Year by ICFH and has over 275 5-star reviews on Amazon and is best described as “a money book for people who don’t read money books.”

You can take it for a test drive for FREE at SeedTime.com/sample where you can download chapter 1 of the audiobook, grab the 1st 2 chapters of the ebook version, and even get the 5-week book study companion guide.

There is one financial skill that almost no one ever masters. And, truth be told, it is a really important one. In this episode we discuss what that skill is and what we have done that is helping us master this financial skill.

 

Links Mentioned:

1. Mentioned book: The Psychology of Money 

2. Our book: Simple Money, Rich Life

 

These are a few of the topics we cover:

1. Social comparison is a problem

2. How much is enough?

3. Giving your age as a percentage of your income

 

Find out more at: seedtime.com

 

If you haven’t checked out our best-selling book Simple Money, Rich Life we think you’ll love it. It was named the 2022 Book of the Year by ICFH and has over 275 5-star reviews on Amazon and is best described as “a money book for people who don’t read money books.”

You can take it for a test drive for FREE at SeedTime.com/sample where you can download chapter 1 of the audiobook, grab the 1st 2 chapters of the ebook version, and even get the 5-week book study companion guide.

So today's episode was a little bit different. We actually had some good friends over and grabbed a few mics, hit the record button and had a very real and raw conversation about learning to trust your spouse financially. And they shared their story. Kind of how they worked through that and really a lot of awesome things that God did. And so we really enjoyed this conversation and so we hope you enjoy this conversation with some of our good friends, Jamie and Amy Cunningham.

 

Links Mentioned:

1. Our Book: Simple Money, Rich Life
2. Our Class: True Financial Freedom

 

These are a few of the topics we cover:

1. Learning to trust your spouse when it comes to finances

2. Money isn't always the answer

3. Trusting that God will provide

Find out more at: seedtime.com

 

If you haven’t checked out our best-selling book Simple Money, Rich Life we think you’ll love it. It was named the 2022 Book of the Year by ICFH and has over 275 5-star reviews on Amazon and is best described as “a money book for people who don’t read money books.”

You can take it for a test drive for FREE at SeedTime.com/sample where you can download chapter 1 of the audiobook, grab the 1st 2 chapters of the ebook version, and even get the 5-week book study companion guide.

We were at church and someone started talking about the offering. It was so impactful that we thought that we should talk about this on the podcast. Because it's something that's interesting in which a lot of people don't do, but makes a really huge impact on your giving. And when you do it really can change your life!

 

Links Mentioned:

1. Simple Money, Rich Life (our book)

 

These are a few of the topics we cover:

1. Remembering what God has done in your life

2. Kurt Warner's life story

3. God is our provider and He will provide

 

Find out more at: seedtime.com

 

If you haven’t checked out our best-selling book Simple Money, Rich Life we think you’ll love it. It was named the 2022 Book of the Year by ICFH and has over 275 5-star reviews on Amazon and is best described as “a money book for people who don’t read money books.”

You can take it for a test drive for FREE at SeedTime.com/sample where you can download chapter 1 of the audiobook, grab the 1st 2 chapters of the ebook version, and even get the 5-week book study companion guide.

Part three of our book: Simple Money, Rich Life is all about giving and really how to making giving fun. I had a friend reach out to me recently about giving and how we do this in practically in certain situations. Particularly, how we handle family and giving when it feels like you don't have a choice. Join us in seeing how you can control how you give and that you do have a choice when it come to giving.

 

Links Mentioned:

1. Our book: Simple Money, Rich Life

 

These are a few of the topics we cover:

1. Our most important financial metric

2. Your heart posture with giving

3. Living a lifestyle of generosity

 

Find out more at: seedtime.com

 

If you haven’t checked out our best-selling book Simple Money, Rich Life we think you’ll love it. It was named the 2022 Book of the Year by ICFH and has over 275 5-star reviews on Amazon and is best described as “a money book for people who don’t read money books.”

You can take it for a test drive for FREE at SeedTime.com/sample where you can download chapter 1 of the audiobook, grab the 1st 2 chapters of the ebook version, and even get the 5-week book study companion guide.

In this episode we're talking with Brant Hansen. He's an author, radio host and host of the Brant and Sherri Oddcast. Brant just wrote a book called “The Men we Need” which I love. It's a really powerful book for any man. Join us as we cover godly masculinity and being who God has created us to be as men. 

 

Links Mentioned:

1. The Brant and Sherri Podcast

2. The Men We Need (book)

3. BrantHansen.com

 

These are a few of the topics we cover:

1. What’s wrong with Christian men today?

2. What women want from men

3. Why people with self-control are more interestng

 

Find out more at: seedtime.com

 

If you haven’t checked out our best-selling book Simple Money, Rich Life we think you’ll love it. It was named the 2022 Book of the Year by ICFH and has over 275 5-star reviews on Amazon and is best described as “a money book for people who don’t read money books.”

You can take it for a test drive for FREE at SeedTime.com/sample where you can download chapter 1 of the audiobook, grab the 1st 2 chapters of the ebook version, and even get the 5-week book study companion guide.

We got a question from a listener asking what we are doing (and recommend) doing with our cash right now. Should we be pulling it all out of the banks? Should we be holding cash at home? In Bonds? In crypto? We talk about all of that and more.

 

Links Mentioned:

1. Our Book: Simple Money, Rich Life
2. Our 10X Investing Course

 

These are a few of the topics we cover:

1. Erosion of money value 

2. The diversification component

3. What are iBonds

Find out more at: https://seedtime.com/making-money-fun-with-annie-f-downs/

 

If you haven’t checked out our best-selling book Simple Money, Rich Life we think you’ll love it. It was named the 2022 Book of the Year by ICFH and has over 275 5-star reviews on Amazon and is best described as “a money book for people who don’t read money books.”

You can take it for a test drive for FREE at SeedTime.com/sample where you can download chapter 1 of the audiobook, grab the 1st 2 chapters of the ebook version, and even get the 5-week book study companion guide.

I read this really interesting article today. You're not gonna believe this. I was pretty surprised by it, but it says that 36% of Americans making $250,000 a year are living paycheck to paycheck. That is shocking. So, Linda and I are going to break this down at what we've identified from the opportunities we had to talk to thousands of students now.

Links Mentioned:

1. Bloomberg Article 
2. Real Money Method (our budgeting course)
3. Simple Money, Rich Life (our book)

These are a few of the topics we cover:

1. Parkinson's Law

2. How to have freedom in your finances

3. Be careful who your friends are

 

Find out more at: Seedtime.com

 

If you haven’t checked out our best-selling book Simple Money, Rich Life we think you’ll love it. It was named the 2022 Book of the Year by ICFH and has over 275 5-star reviews on Amazon and is best described as “a money book for people who don’t read money books.”

You can take it for a test drive for FREE at SeedTime.com/sample where you can download chapter 1 of the audiobook, grab the 1st 2 chapters of the ebook version, and even get the 5-week book study companion guide.

Today we are sitting down with Annie F Downs as we are chatting about FUN and why it is important and her new book: "Chase The Fun." We dig into how and why it is important to make money fun too! 

Links Mentioned:

1. Annie's Book: Chase The Fun
2. Annie's Podcast: That Sounds Fun
3. Our Book: Simple Money, Rich Life
4. Annie's Book: That Sounds Fun

Find out more at: https://seedtime.com/making-money-fun-with-annie-f-downs/

 

If you haven’t checked out our best-selling book Simple Money, Rich Life we think you’ll love it. It was named the 2022 Book of the Year by ICFH and has over 275 5-star reviews on Amazon and is best described as “a money book for people who don’t read money books.”

You can take it for a test drive for FREE at SeedTime.com/sample where you can download chapter 1 of the audiobook, grab the 1st 2 chapters of the ebook version, and even get the 5-week book study companion guide.

On the first weekend of each quarter we take time to reflect back, have important conversations, pray, plan, and set goals (and rewards) for the next 12 months. This is a look at what our exact goals are and exactly how we lay out a day like this (that you can steal)  ;)

 

 

Links Mentioned:

1. Streak: to-do list that helps you form good habits.

 

These are a few of the topics we cover:

1. The key to achieving goals

2. Setting goals with your spouse

3. How to take your goals more seriously

 

Find out more at: https://seedtime.com/our-quarterly-planning-day-for-our-business/

 

If you haven’t checked out our best-selling book Simple Money, Rich Life we think you’ll love it. It was named the 2022 Book of the Year by ICFH and has over 275 5-star reviews on Amazon and is best described as “a money book for people who don’t read money books.”

You can take it for a test drive for FREE at SeedTime.com/sample where you can download chapter 1 of the audiobook, grab the 1st 2 chapters of the ebook version, and even get the 5-week book study companion guide.

For the last few years I have been doing this and it has been amazing for our business. I step out of the office and get to the 40,000 foot view to get out of the day-to-day weeds and evaluate what I want to do for the quarter and break it out week-by-week. It has been so clarifying for me and help me waste far less time and focus on the things that are most important.  In this episode I break down my exact process and checklist I follow.  Hope it helps!

 

Links Mentioned:

1. Our Instagram account
2. Asana - web and mobile work management platform
3. Our 10X Investing Course
4. Our True Financial Freedom Live 6-Week Online Class
5. Seedtime on YouTube

 

Find out more at: https://seedtime.com/our-quarterly-planning-day-for-our-business/

 

If you haven’t checked out our best-selling book Simple Money, Rich Life we think you’ll love it. It was named the 2022 Book of the Year by ICFH and has over 275 5-star reviews on Amazon and is best described as “a money book for people who don’t read money books.”

You can take it for a test drive for FREE at SeedTime.com/sample where you can download chapter 1 of the audiobook, grab the 1st 2 chapters of the ebook version, and even get the 5-week book study companion guide.

Today we have a little bit of a special for you. One of the bonuses that we offered to anyone who pre-ordered our book: "Simple Money, Rich Life" was able to attend an exclusive AMA with Linda and I. Where we went behind the scenes with: the book creation process, some of the challenges and obstacles we overcame, how we landed on the title and how all these pieces came together. And a lot of what we learned in the process. It's super long, like an hour and 40 minutes long. So if you're on a road trip and you want to get to know Linda and I more and find out more about the backstory of the book, this would be perfect for you. So with that, let's drop in...

Links Mentioned:

1. Our book: Simple Money, Rich Life

Find out more at SeedTime.com

 

If you haven’t checked out our best-selling book Simple Money, Rich Life we think you’ll love it. It was named the 2022 Book of the Year by ICFH and has over 275 5-star reviews on Amazon and is best described as “a money book for people who don’t read money books.”

You can take it for a test drive for FREE at SeedTime.com/sample where you can download chapter 1 of the audiobook, grab the 1st 2 chapters of the ebook version, and even get the 5-week book study companion guide.