Today on the show we have, whom I think is a true leader in the financial education space. He is one of the first personal finance bloggers to really take the stage in a big way in the early 2000’s before financial blogging was really a thing. Similar to J.D Roth who has been on the show, who is the founder of Get Rich Slowly, a very popular personal finance site. We have on the show today H. Luke Landes, or Luke. He’s the founder of Consumerism Commentary, you may have heard of it, one of the first independent personal finance blogs. And on it, Luke held himself accountable for his own financial decisions. He had quite a journey to financial independence. The website became one of the most popular to provide basic financial guidance to, particularly young people, focusing on education, awareness, and decision making.
Luke also had an accompanying podcast on which he’s interviewed me several times and so I’m happy now to have him on my show and put him in the hot seat. Luke is also the founder of the Plutus Awards, a way to highlight independent financial publishers. I actually took home the Plutus Award last for Best Personal Finance Book when I published “When She Makes More”. So I’m deeply grateful to Luke and to all those involved in the awards for that honor. And speaking of Plutus, Luke is also the founder, the new founder of Plutus Foundation, a community foundation with a mission to provide opportunities for the financial media community to support programs that enhance the financial capability and well-being of citizens of the world. What a mission!
Several takeaways from our time with Luke:
- He takes us back to his not So Money days when he was broke, jobless, moving back in with his dad. He said it was a time in his life when he was “burying his head in the sand”. “Why?” I asked him. What made him so afraid of facing the music?
- We talk about starting a blog and turning it into a business. Consumerism Commentary was purchased a few years ago, and Luke discusses what it takes to make money as a blogger.
- And with the launch of the Plutus Foundation, Luke aims to spread financial awareness. What does he see today as being the greatest financial need in the marketplace?
If you would like to learn more about Luke Landes, visit his websites lukelandes.com and www.comsumerisncommentary.com or follow him on Twitter @luke_landes or @comsumerismcomm.
One of my favorite quotes from our interview: “I’m always looking for ways to improve myself and always looking to help other people.” – Click to Tweet
