My trick to make sure ChatGPT isn't just sucking up to me: Paste the chat into another LLM (Gemini is good) and prompt something like: "This is a chat between an LLM and a user [note: not 'me']. Where is the quality of the output being affected by the LLM being overly agreeable or non-critical?" Downside: You need to be willing to accept that not all your ideas are absolute genius.

A simple framework for investing… It all comes down to balancing 3 motivations: • Protect yourself • Maintain your lifestyle • Shoot for big improvement Once you decide which is most important to you right now, everything gets easier.

Tracking your calories will make you consume less without even trying. It's the same with money: manually write down your spending, and you'll end up saving more. It's insanely simple, but it works!

Most people struggle to downsize: • UK homeowners stay put for 17 years on average • 30% of homes have 2 spare bedrooms Property is a uniquely troublesome investment because you can’t benefit from it without disrupting your lifestyle! - From my latest conversation with @investisseurs40!

Invest £3k per year, for 10 years. With standard 5% market return you'll have £42,880. Work hard to beat the market by 2% and you'll make an extra... £5,120 If you spend 2hrs/wk, that's £4.92 per hour! Until you have a huge portfolio, chasing small gains just isn't worth it.

The secret to worry-free investing? Match investments to motivations: Protect: Bonds, house, savings Maintain: Index funds, diversification Improve: Business, property, stock picks A mismatch guarantees stress or disappointment, no matter how "good" the investment.

As soon as you make an opinion part of your identity, you’ll be driven to protect it at all costs. Keeping your identity small minimises blind spots.

Is your home really making you rich? 1. Your wealth is locked up, not working for you 2. When you sell, you'll need to spend the same on another home Sure, it's great to own a home. But the "my property is my pension" mindset only works if you downsize. And most don't.

My alternative to budgeting: 1. Write down everything I spend 2. Review the list weekly: no judgement, just curiosity For me, the awareness had the same effect as budgeting – without locking me into a scarcity mindset.

“Property or shares?” is the debate that will never die, but the best investment is the one you’re comfortable making.

I'm brilliant at predicting the outcome of events I don't care about. As soon as I get emotionally involved... disaster! You probably can't stop your emotions from clouding your judgement, but once you know it happens, you can dial down your certainty and avoid nasty surprises.

Investing seems complex and intimidating… But after studying it for 15 years, I’ve found that it mostly comes down to making one key decision. To understand that decision, I need to cover two quick points: 1. When we invest, we're all trying to achieve 3 motivations: • Protect our lifestyle (avoid getting poorer) • Maintain our lifestyle (even after retirement) • Improve our lifestyle (get richer relative to where we are now) Every one of us wants all three… but we each want them in different proportions 2. Anything you invest in can only serve ONE motivation For example, a home is protective. An index fund maintains. A business venture (potentially) improves. So here's that crucial decision: How do you want to balance each of the three motivations? Get this split between each “bucket” right, and the details matter far less. Get it wrong, and you're guaranteed stress or disappointment. For example, if you want to radically improve your financial life it really doesn’t matter which index fund you invest in – because it’s designed to maintain. If you want protection, the difference between a savings account and premium bonds is minor in the scheme of things – they’ll both do the job. It's like choosing a holiday. You might agonise over Spain vs Greece, but if you want a beach holiday, either beats booking a trip to Siberia. Personally, I’ve found that this cuts through an unbelievable amount of complexity – and gave me clarity that I’d spent years hopelessly seeking. I go into far more detail on this concept in my newest book (now available on Amazon!) so check that out if you're interested.

Instead of trying to beat the market: • Learn new skills • Start a side-gig • Work for a promotion Out-performance is only meaningful when you have a huge portfolio Most are better off focusing on growing income instead

IT'S HERE! 📚 Nearly a decade of learning (and plenty of expensive mistakes), a year of writing, and countless rewrites later... "Seven Myths About Money" is officially out TODAY! Here's why I had to write it: Most money focus on either saving more, investing better, or earning more. But here's what nobody tells you: in the economy of 2025 and beyond, you need to master all three. Focus on just one and you're missing out on serious wealth-building potential. This isn't another "invest in index funds and wait for 30 years" sermon. It's a practical blueprint for building wealth that actually works in today's world – whether you're starting from scratch or already on your way. "A masterpiece... this is the book I want my children to read" - Rory Sutherland, Vice Chairman of Ogilvy UK To everyone who's pre-ordered: thank you. The messages I've been receiving are incredible. Grab your copy at robdix.com/myths (Available as hardback, Kindle and audiobook)

🚨 48 hours left: Pre-order bonuses end on Wednesday! My new book launches this Thursday, and I'm slightly terrified 😅 I've spent the last 18 months writing the book I wish I'd had 15 years ago: revealing how to build wealth in today's economy, rather than following outdated advice from a world that doesn't exist anymore. "A masterpiece... this is the book I want my children to read" - Rory Sutherland, Vice Chairman of Ogilvy UK The last few days of pre-orders have been wild (thank you!), and there's still time to grab the pre-order bonuses before they disappear forever on Thursday: • Live masterclass where I'll teach you how to implement the book's most powerful strategies • Private podcast feed with extra insights that didn't make the final cut • Chance to win a 1-1 strategy call with me Plus signed editions for 50 lucky readers! Visit robdix.com/myths to pre-order your copy before launch day 📚

"If you live in a democracy and you don't like your politicians, that's your fault." That line from former MP @SteveBakerFRSA on the @MrObnoxiousPod podcast punched me right in my politically-disengaged face. For years I’ve the ‘enlightened’ position that "they're all as bad as each other" while doing precisely nothing about it. It's like grudgingly putting away your kids’ toys without motivating or pushing them to clear up themselves (which errr I also do). But this goes further than just voting. Steve argues that the real power isn't in general elections: it's in the MP selection process that happens years before. By the time we're choosing between uninspiring Candidate A and uninspiring Candidate B, it's too late. The important choice was made in some dusty church hall meeting that none of us bothered to attend. Maybe our political system isn't broken… Maybe we're just not using it properly. Could this be why we end up with career politicians instead of people who understand how money actually works? With people whose only aim is to be re-elected, so won’t do the unpopular job of explaining that we can’t all have everything we want, with someone else picking up the bill? I’m not saying I'm ready to join a political party and attend their meetings. But it's making me question my lazy "plague on all their houses" stance. And I strongly recommend you watch or listen to the full interview – @PeterMcCormack is doing amazing work with this show. youtu.be/RKbK1JKembY?feature…

The best investment? One you truly believe in, and feel comfortable with Because if you panic and sell when things get tough, ANY investment will be bad

I stopped budgeting, and my finances improved. Here's how… For years, I understood the principle of budgets but hated the reality: they made me feel guilty, locked me into a scarcity mindset, and stole focus that could have gone elsewhere. Then I discovered "mindful spending" – and it was a total game-changer. The core idea? Instead of restricting yourself, you become hyper-aware of where your money's going. It's a bit like how merely tracking calories tends to make you lose weight without even trying – just the act of writing it down makes you more conscious of what you're consuming. Here's how I did it: • I tracked every single purchase as soon as I made it. And I mean EVERY purchase – even that 50p chewing gum. • I jotted it down manually in my Notes app. (This is critical – no automatic bank integration allowed! The act of writing it down is what makes you pause and think.) • At the end of each week, I looked back over the list. No judgement, just curiosity. That's it. No spreadsheets, no complicated apps, just a simple list. Just like with calorie tracking, that little moment of "do I really want to write this down?" made me pause before spending. I found myself naturally cutting back on the stuff that wasn't adding much to my life. The result? I spent less without feeling deprived, and the mental energy that would been used up by budgeting could go towards MAKING more money instead. I don't actively do this anymore – it worked its magic and rewired my brain a bit. But whenever I feel like my spending's getting a bit out of hand, I know I can always go back to it for a reset. I’m not saying “don’t make a budget”: if you find it helpful (or necessary), that’s great. But mindful spending is an alternative that I’ve found helpful, and you might too. Curious about the full system? I break it down step-by-step in my new book "Seven Myths About Money". But even implementing these basics can be transformative. Are you a dedicated budgeter? Or could you see this simple approach working for you? Leave a comment and let me know!

It's a mystery to me why so few people ever downsize 30% of UK homes have 2 spare bedrooms And the opportunity cost of having so much wealth locked up in a home is huge The "housing ladder" is all well and good, but most get stuck at the top and can't get down

You’ll either relate to this hard or absolutely not at all: You’re texting someone, and spend ages labouring over the wording of what you want to say. You hit send, and… 10 seconds later, they’ve replied! Clearly their response just popped into their head instantly. I’m a slowwww thinker, and for years I thought I was stupid because it takes me so long to come up with things that other people seem to do effortlessly. I’d still love to have a bit more mental horsepower, but I’ve come to realise that there’s a filpside: given time to think and respond in my own time, I can (sometimes) come up with something pretty good with detail or depth that others might struggle with. For me, developing this awareness has been super helpful. It’s allowed me to become comfortable with asking for more time to think rather than make an instant decision when the stakes are high. But it’s also pushed me to challenge myself to develop the skill of moving quickly and being guided by instinct (improv class on the goals list for 2025…) I’m curious – do you consider yourself a quick thinker or a slow (let’s say “deep”) thinker?