Where did you learn to manage your money? School? Books? Family?  Did you ever learn?

I don't remember learning anything particularly useful about finance at school.  I did economics at college but that didn't teach me anything I could particularly apply to my personal finances.

The market has crashed!  The Zombie apocalypse has happened!  Life is ending!  Who gives a #?@! about investing and financial independence? 

I would ask is there a better or more important time to take control of your finances? 

Have you ever worked till you get ill? Have you ever been so stressed you lose sleep and feel sick? Do you stop and take time to look after yourself?

Historically self-care is something I have been epically bad at doing.   In my mid-30s it became more of a priority and I learnt a few painful lessons.

How is your relationship with money?  Do you have a relationship?  If money was personified and sitting across from you right now what would you want to say to her?

Money plays such a major role in all our lives but have you ever really considered the current state of your relationship with it?

For many years I had a bad relationship with money.  Money had ripped my family apart in so many different ways, money had caused arguments, money had avoided me!  It took a lot of work to overcome that and find a new love for our friendship. 

Since I have repaired my relationship with money my finances have changed dramatically!  

Announcing The Rebel Entrepreneur Podcast launching on the 4th of May in partnership with ChooseFI Radio. After months of planning and preparation we have a launch date and Season 1 Outline, we are ready to go!   This is it launch time!

Are you stuck in the house?  Have you been quarantined? Wondering what to do with al the new time on your hands? Netflix calling to you?

​Katie and I are in New Orleans, Louisiana.  Normally a hot bed of music, food and partying.  Not at the moment though!

The world seems to be changing faster than ever before and with these changing times comes uncertainty.  This post is inspired by the fact that PopUp Business School (an events business) has had 10 events cancelled this week because of the Coronavirus.  
With change happening so quickly and so out of the blue it is difficult to prepare.  What is important is how you react. 

"The biggest challenge we have is that we can't be seen to fail" said the director of innovation for one of the biggest companies in the UK as we sat sipping flavoursome coffee, outside some of the swankiest offices I have ever seen in my life.  

I had spent an hour understanding his company's goals (to create an innovative, entrepreneurial culture) and what was stopping them (A HUGE list!). ​

My friends used to laugh at me when I said "You can learn anything from a book; anything".  

Especially my friend Mike, he roasted me continuously!  But I truly believed it!  I read a book when I was 21 that changed everything and set me on a new path for ever!

The extraordinary belongs to those who create it.  This is written over and over again throughout my notebooks as a reminder that if you want to have an extraordinary life then you have to create it, build it and make it happen.  No one else is going to create it for you.  You have to create it.

The PopUp Business School team and I had a huge amount of fun last week coming up with advice for Meghan and Harry on their journey to Financial Independence.  Jon and Corinne Card the fabulous PR people that help PopUp helped us write it into an article and here it is!  The traditional media weren't brave enough to publish it!  But I think it is too good to waste so here is the full article. 

Our advice to Meghan and Harry on their journey to Financial Independence

It is the last few days of the decade!  Can you believe it? At this time of year I get to do one of the most exciting things I do each year!  I get to do my annual review and start to think about what I want the next year to be like!  

Are you thinking about 2020 yet? What you want life to be like in the next decade?

A documentary about Financial Independence and early retirement?  Really?  Can you make a feature length documentary about money and retirement and make it interesting? 

So you want to build a business? Launch a YouTube channel? Build a happy, loving family? Build a blog? Become a millionaire? Have a beautiful home? Build financial security?  Write a book? Change the world? Or any other miriad of goals! 

What's going on with Alan? This post is only interesting if you care about what is going on with Alan and Katie.  If you want to learn about Financial Independence then start here.  If you want more on Entrepreneurship the visit PopUp and the online StartUp Guide

Another podcast on Entrepreneurship? Is there a need for one? Do we need more advice on how to start a business? 

I started PopUp 7 years ago with Simon Paine because I felt that the advice out there in the world was not only poor but at times misleading!

What happens when you put yourself out into the world? How will the world react? Why don't more people do it?

Two weeks ago whilst in Portugal in the Douro Valley at an Airbnb with a piano, Katie (my wife) sat down and started playing a new tune.  

The FIRE (Financial Independence, Retire Early) movement started in the USA.  That is where all the biggest bloggers and podcasters live and where a lot of the FIRE Community is based. But just because all the blogs write about 401ks, Roths and other American terms doesn't mean that there isn't anything going on in the United Kingdom!

There is a movement in the UK, there are people have achieved FIRE and there are people who understand what you are working towards!

Do you spend your time creating or consuming? Do you watch other people's shows, blogs, radio and consume?  Or do you spend your time creating?   How much time do you spend each week creating and adding value to the world?

I went to Los Angles to write a movie.  But did I achieve it?  Do we have a script? Am I now a movie writer? 

The clue is in the picture! ​ This is me holding the printed version of my script before the table read in Hollywood! 

We are now a month into my 7 week screenwriting experiment!  Am I going to get the script done? Will the love interest be more than a pretty girl with nice hair?  Will I manage to focus through to completion!?!?  Will it be ready to share with the movie director?

It is all in the pitch!  At PopUp Business School from day 1 on our course we talk about pitching your idea, your product or service and selling it!  Turns out it is exactly the same in the movie industry!  Before I even got to LA to write my movie I had been asked "pitch your movie to me"!