Apr 20, 2016 · 28m · top-founders

This Teacher is Right About Education and You're Crazy if You Disagree with Joe Sual Sehy of Stacking Benjamins Podcast EP 245

Joe Saul-Sehy · 16m spoken Nathan Latka · 9m spoken
0:00 / 0:00

gold bands on the timeline = statements, start to end. Hover to read, click to jump. CC turns on captions

Host Nathan Latka interviews Stacking Benjamins creator Joe Saul-Sehy to examine his transition from managing a sixty-million-dollar financial planning firm to building a lean, highly profitable personal finance podcast and digital media business.

How this conversation actually went

Every chapter scored 0–10 on four independent dynamics. Hover any point for the reasoning behind the score. Nathan holds 37.1% of the talking time here. How this is scored →

Nathan as informed peer 4.2 Guest teaching 3.8 Guest disagreement 1.8 Nathan pushing back 2.2
05100:0010:0020:001:18–5:30 · Nathan as informed peer 5/10 Joe Saul-Sehy on Leaving Wealth Management and Selling His Firm Nathan drills down on the valuation mechanics of Joe's Ameriprise franchise sale. Joe explains the multiple calculations, upfront cash, and five-year earnout with 6% interest.5:31–8:37 · Nathan as informed peer 4/10 Critique of the Education System and Transition to Freelance Writing Joe discusses leaving teaching certification to make $21k freelance writing, prompting Nathan to echo and amplify criticism of the traditional educational system.8:37–13:24 · Nathan as informed peer 4/10 The Genesis and Format of the Stacking Benjamins Podcast Joe describes designing Stacking Benjamins as an intentionally light magazine-style show akin to Car Talk rather than a deep productivity show, while Nathan clarifies Joe's monthly versus per-episode download numbers.13:26–21:43 · Nathan as informed peer 5/10 Podcasting Economics, Sponsorship Strategy, and Educational Courses Joe outlines his deliberate strategy of offering an accessible $18 CPM to maintain long-term sponsors like SoFi and MagnifyMoney, while Nathan brings up fintech lending benchmarks from previous interviews.21:43–27:03 · Nathan as informed peer 3/10 Sponsor Announcements: FreshBooks Invoicing and HostGator Web Hosting Nathan transitions from mid-roll sponsor reads to the standard Famous Five rapid-fire questions, where Joe cites military strategy and creative sleep schedules.1:18–5:30 · Guest teaching 4/10 Joe Saul-Sehy on Leaving Wealth Management and Selling His Firm Nathan drills down on the valuation mechanics of Joe's Ameriprise franchise sale. Joe explains the multiple calculations, upfront cash, and five-year earnout with 6% interest.5:31–8:37 · Guest teaching 4/10 Critique of the Education System and Transition to Freelance Writing Joe discusses leaving teaching certification to make $21k freelance writing, prompting Nathan to echo and amplify criticism of the traditional educational system.8:37–13:24 · Guest teaching 4/10 The Genesis and Format of the Stacking Benjamins Podcast Joe describes designing Stacking Benjamins as an intentionally light magazine-style show akin to Car Talk rather than a deep productivity show, while Nathan clarifies Joe's monthly versus per-episode download numbers.13:26–21:43 · Guest teaching 5/10 Podcasting Economics, Sponsorship Strategy, and Educational Courses Joe outlines his deliberate strategy of offering an accessible $18 CPM to maintain long-term sponsors like SoFi and MagnifyMoney, while Nathan brings up fintech lending benchmarks from previous interviews.21:43–27:03 · Guest teaching 2/10 Sponsor Announcements: FreshBooks Invoicing and HostGator Web Hosting Nathan transitions from mid-roll sponsor reads to the standard Famous Five rapid-fire questions, where Joe cites military strategy and creative sleep schedules.1:18–5:30 · Guest disagreement 1/10 Joe Saul-Sehy on Leaving Wealth Management and Selling His Firm Nathan drills down on the valuation mechanics of Joe's Ameriprise franchise sale. Joe explains the multiple calculations, upfront cash, and five-year earnout with 6% interest.5:31–8:37 · Guest disagreement 2/10 Critique of the Education System and Transition to Freelance Writing Joe discusses leaving teaching certification to make $21k freelance writing, prompting Nathan to echo and amplify criticism of the traditional educational system.8:37–13:24 · Guest disagreement 3/10 The Genesis and Format of the Stacking Benjamins Podcast Joe describes designing Stacking Benjamins as an intentionally light magazine-style show akin to Car Talk rather than a deep productivity show, while Nathan clarifies Joe's monthly versus per-episode download numbers.13:26–21:43 · Guest disagreement 2/10 Podcasting Economics, Sponsorship Strategy, and Educational Courses Joe outlines his deliberate strategy of offering an accessible $18 CPM to maintain long-term sponsors like SoFi and MagnifyMoney, while Nathan brings up fintech lending benchmarks from previous interviews.21:43–27:03 · Guest disagreement 1/10 Sponsor Announcements: FreshBooks Invoicing and HostGator Web Hosting Nathan transitions from mid-roll sponsor reads to the standard Famous Five rapid-fire questions, where Joe cites military strategy and creative sleep schedules.1:18–5:30 · Nathan pushing back 2/10 Joe Saul-Sehy on Leaving Wealth Management and Selling His Firm Nathan drills down on the valuation mechanics of Joe's Ameriprise franchise sale. Joe explains the multiple calculations, upfront cash, and five-year earnout with 6% interest.5:31–8:37 · Nathan pushing back 2/10 Critique of the Education System and Transition to Freelance Writing Joe discusses leaving teaching certification to make $21k freelance writing, prompting Nathan to echo and amplify criticism of the traditional educational system.8:37–13:24 · Nathan pushing back 3/10 The Genesis and Format of the Stacking Benjamins Podcast Joe describes designing Stacking Benjamins as an intentionally light magazine-style show akin to Car Talk rather than a deep productivity show, while Nathan clarifies Joe's monthly versus per-episode download numbers.13:26–21:43 · Nathan pushing back 3/10 Podcasting Economics, Sponsorship Strategy, and Educational Courses Joe outlines his deliberate strategy of offering an accessible $18 CPM to maintain long-term sponsors like SoFi and MagnifyMoney, while Nathan brings up fintech lending benchmarks from previous interviews.21:43–27:03 · Nathan pushing back 1/10 Sponsor Announcements: FreshBooks Invoicing and HostGator Web Hosting Nathan transitions from mid-roll sponsor reads to the standard Famous Five rapid-fire questions, where Joe cites military strategy and creative sleep schedules.

speaking balance: gold is Nathan, purple is the guest (3 minute bins)

0:00 · Nathan 72.7% · guest 27.3%0:00 · Nathan 72.7% · guest 27.3%3:00 · Nathan 21.9% · guest 78.1%3:00 · Nathan 21.9% · guest 78.1%6:00 · Nathan 22.7% · guest 77.3%6:00 · Nathan 22.7% · guest 77.3%9:00 · Nathan 15.2% · guest 84.8%9:00 · Nathan 15.2% · guest 84.8%12:00 · Nathan 29.8% · guest 70.2%12:00 · Nathan 29.8% · guest 70.2%15:00 · Nathan 23.8% · guest 76.2%15:00 · Nathan 23.8% · guest 76.2%18:00 · Nathan 8.3% · guest 91.7%18:00 · Nathan 8.3% · guest 91.7%21:00 · Nathan 83.4% · guest 16.6%21:00 · Nathan 83.4% · guest 16.6%24:00 · Nathan 32.4% · guest 67.6%24:00 · Nathan 32.4% · guest 67.6%27:00 · Nathan 98.2% · guest 1.8%27:00 · Nathan 98.2% · guest 1.8%
Sharpest disagreement ▶ 10:42 Rejecting the deep-dive productivity podcast model

Joe dismisses the conventional format of serious, productivity-oriented podcasts, arguing instead for an accessible and entertaining show structure.

Hardest push from Nathan ▶ 12:21 Clarifying per-episode vs total monthly downloads

Nathan refuses to accept the ambiguous 10,000 figure, pressing Joe to separate per-episode metrics from total monthly show downloads.

Biggest teaching moment ▶ 15:01 Explaining SoFi's student loan marketplace model

Joe corrects Nathan's assumption that SoFi competes with robo-advisors, explaining how it refinances high-debt professionals like doctors through marketplace lending.

Nathan holds their own ▶ 15:39 Citing fintech marketplace lending data

Nathan demonstrates domain familiarity with online lending by citing metrics and past guest data from mortgage marketplace Lended.com.

the scores for every segment, with the reasoning behind each
ChapterTopicNathan as informed peerGuest teachingGuest disagreementNathan pushing backWhy
Joe Saul-Sehy on Leaving Wealth Management and Selling His Firm 5412 Nathan drills down on the valuation mechanics of Joe's Ameriprise franchise sale. Joe explains the multiple calculations, upfront cash, and five-year earnout with 6% interest.
Critique of the Education System and Transition to Freelance Writing 4422 Joe discusses leaving teaching certification to make $21k freelance writing, prompting Nathan to echo and amplify criticism of the traditional educational system.
The Genesis and Format of the Stacking Benjamins Podcast 4433 Joe describes designing Stacking Benjamins as an intentionally light magazine-style show akin to Car Talk rather than a deep productivity show, while Nathan clarifies Joe's monthly versus per-episode download numbers.
Podcasting Economics, Sponsorship Strategy, and Educational Courses 5523 Joe outlines his deliberate strategy of offering an accessible $18 CPM to maintain long-term sponsors like SoFi and MagnifyMoney, while Nathan brings up fintech lending benchmarks from previous interviews.
Sponsor Announcements: FreshBooks Invoicing and HostGator Web Hosting 3211 Nathan transitions from mid-roll sponsor reads to the standard Famous Five rapid-fire questions, where Joe cites military strategy and creative sleep schedules.

Statements from this episode (5)

Disclosure
Saul-Sehy: Sold Ameriprise Financial Planning Franchise for Roughly $750,000
“I sell it for about three quarters of a million dollars.”
Joe Saul-Sehy Apr 20, 2016 ▶ 4:02
Insight
Saul-Sehy: Magazine-style podcast segments reduce listener drop-off
“So we have a lot of different segments. So if you hate one segment or if you hate a guest, then you're not clicking it off and going to the next one. You're just going to fast forward to the next segment.”
Joe Saul-Sehy Apr 20, 2016 ▶ 11:16
Assertion Not checkable as stated
Saul-Sehy: Stacking Benjamins reached 152,000 monthly downloads in early 2016
“Yeah, you asked me a different question. We're at about, well, per month downloads. Let me just pull it up right now. We're at a 152,000.”
Joe Saul-Sehy Apr 20, 2016 ▶ 12:30
Disclosure
Saul-Sehy: Stacking Benjamins earns about $5,500 a month in sponsorships
“Monthly, monthly revenue is, Is right now because we're right in the middle of our contract renegotiation. So, so we're at about 5500 a month.”
Joe Saul-Sehy Apr 20, 2016 ▶ 16:49
Prediction Not checkable as stated
Saul-Sehy predicts reaching 40,000 listeners per episode within 18 months
“At our growth rate, I think we're at 40,000 listeners in in 18 months. And there's no reason for us not to be.”
Joe Saul-Sehy Apr 20, 2016 ▶ 20:27
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