Putting Your Money in Buckets Is a Trap, Do This Instead w/ Joseph Kovacevic
Release Date: 02/12/2026
The Fastest Way to Grow Your Business (It’s Not Strategy) w/ Greg McDaniel
Money School Podcast
Most people think success comes from strategy…better marketing, better positioning, better timing. But what if that’s not the lever at all? What if the thing that actually drives growth isn’t what you take, but what you give, freely, consistently, and without any immediate expectation of return? Because when you really look at how businesses grow, how opportunities compound, and how networks form, the pattern isn’t subtle. The people who seem to “get ahead” aren’t always the smartest or the most tactical. They’re the ones who become connectors, who create value before...
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Real Estate Investing Isn’t Complicated, You’re Just Doing It Wrong w/ Joel Miller
Money School Podcast
Most people don’t associate residential real estate investing with enjoyment. Between tenant issues, maintaining properties, and financing problems, it can really be a headache. But the problem isn’t the asset class; it’s how you approach it. Because real estate, when done right, is actually one of the most forgiving businesses you can be in. What separates the people who enjoy real estate from the ones who burn out isn’t intelligence or even experience. It’s getting around the right people and getting the right education. What kind of information should you be consuming? How...
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Smart Money Is Leaving Cash Behind, Here’s Where It’s Going Instead w/ Ben Reinburg
Money School Podcast
Most investors believe that holding cash during uncertain markets is the safest move. If you stay liquid, wait for clarity, and avoid risk, you’ll be in a better position when opportunities come… or at least that’s the thinking. But what many high-income earners and investors don’t realize is that cash sitting idle isn’t neutral; it’s losing ground. Between inflation, taxes, and missed opportunities, capital that isn’t deployed is quietly working against you. And while many investors are pulling back, the most sophisticated capital, family offices, institutions, and sovereign...
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What’s Really Happening In Real Estate Lending Right Now? w/ Jonathan Yoo
Money School Podcast
Many real estate investors believe success comes down to one thing: access to capital. If you can borrow money easily, scale quickly, and leverage aggressively, the thinking goes that your portfolio will grow faster. But what a lot of investors are learning right now is that capital alone doesn’t create successful deals. Structure does. In today’s lending environment, small mistakes in leverage, underwriting, or financing strategy can turn what looked like a solid deal into a long-term problem. And many investors don’t realize where those risks actually show up until after the...
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The End of Traditional Financial Advice? w/ Stefan Astheimer
Money School Podcast
For a long time, truly personalized investment advice has been something only the ultra-wealthy could access. If you have tens of millions of dollars, you can hire advisors who don’t just sell you products. They build strategies around your entire financial life. But everyone else gets standardized portfolios and is told to keep contributing to their retirement accounts and stay the course. That’s starting to change. A new approach to financial advice is emerging, one built around a fee-for-service strategy instead of product sales. Instead of paying someone based on how much money they...
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What Banks Actually Look For Before Funding a Business w/ Sebastien Boyer
Money School Podcast
Starting a business is often framed as a simple equation: have a good idea, take it to the bank, and secure the funding. But the reality is very different. Most business owners aren’t rejected because their idea is bad. They’re rejected because they approached the capital the wrong way. So many deals fail before they ever reach underwriting, and it’s not because of the opportunity. It’s preparation, structure, and understanding how lenders evaluate risk. Banks aren’t investors looking for the next big idea. They operate under strict guidelines, regulatory frameworks, and underwriting...
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The Financial Reality of Pro Snowboarding and How to Escape It w/ Stevie Bell
Money School Podcast
Every athlete knows the music will eventually stop. Whether you walk away on your terms, are forced out by injury, or have a contract that doesn’t get renewed, your career will inevitably end. In leagues like the NFL, NBA, or MLB, that ending can still leave you financially set. You might walk away with generational money. In action sports, that’s rarely the case. A pro snowboarder can start earning real money in their teens. They can travel the world, land major sponsors, build a name, and live what looks like a dream career. But very few retire with enough money to last a lifetime. The...
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The Real Reason AI Valuations Are So High w/ Daniel Nikic
Money School Podcast
In today’s market, AI valuations are expanding faster than fundamentals can justify. Companies with minimal free cash flow are being priced as if dominance is already secured. Capital continues to circulate between venture portfolios, strategic partners, and ecosystem incumbents, reinforcing growth narratives that assume liquidity remains abundant. But markets don’t reward narratives forever. When growth slows or capital tightens, the question shifts from projected upside to structural durability. Does the business generate real cash? Does it control proprietary data that compounds...
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Wealthy People Upgrade Everything… Except This w/ Ted Ryce
Money School Podcast
As people make more money, they tend to get sharper about almost everything. They think long term, manage risk better, hire experts, invest wisely and optimize their businesses and portfolios. But when it comes to health, a lot of people are still running the same basic playbook everyone else is. Standard labs, five-minute appointments, and just waiting until something breaks. When you want to level up in every area of your life, the conversation shouldn’t be, “Am I sick right now?” It should be, “Where am I headed, and how early can I catch it?” The people who are strong,...
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“I Can’t Afford a Coach” Is Why You’re Stuck w/ Patrick Engasser
Money School Podcast
When you’re struggling in business or just starting out, the last thing you think you need is a coach. You think you can’t afford it, you’re not ready, or you should wait until you have better results first. But every time someone feels like that, that’s actually when they need a coach the most. Most people see coaching as something you do later. Once things are going well, the money is there, and you’ve “made it” enough to deserve help. But that’s not really how it works. Coaching isn’t there to reward you for being successful. It’s there to stop you from wasting years...
info_outlineMost people think financial freedom comes from earning more, saving harder, or finding the perfect investment. But the real trap isn’t income…it’s the way we’re taught to store and move money.
We’re told to separate everything into neat little buckets: checking, savings, mortgage, credit cards, investments. And somehow, even when we’re “doing well,” the system still feels tight, slow, and exhausting.
The traditional system is wildly inefficient by design. A 3–4% mortgage isn’t really 3–4% at all. It’s closer to 12–15% in simple interest once you account for amortization.
Savings accounts paying 1–3% sit right next to debt costing 8–25%, and no one ever teaches us to connect those two dots. We’re working hard, being disciplined, and still leaking money through invisible cracks.
Instead of playing by those rules, Joseph Kovacevic built a completely different operating system: one pot, one line, one flow. All income goes into a first lien HELOC, and all expenses come out of it.
No idle cash, no artificial separation between “good money” and “bad money.” How did he go from using money like everyone else to building an entirely different financial system? Why do people struggle so much to understand and actually implement this system?
In this episode, entrepreneur, money mentor, and first lien HELOC specialist Joseph Kovacevic breaks down how he’s been running this system for over 15 years - from quitting the railroad, to scaling real estate, to using HELOCs and insurance policies as an integrated financial engine.
Things You’ll Learn In This Episode
Your mortgage interest isn’t what you think it is
A “low” 3–5% mortgage is actually closer to 12–15% in simple interest over 30 years, so what are you really paying for homeownership?
Why savings accounts make you poorer, not safer
If you’re earning 1–3% in savings while paying 8–25% on debt, are you actually saving, or quietly burning money?
The one-pot system that replaces budgeting entirely
What happens when all income, expenses, investing, and saving run through a single HELOC instead of 10 separate accounts?
How to become the bank instead of borrowing from one
From infinite banking to lending your own capital at 12%+, how do you turn cash flow into a self-funding wealth machine?
Guest Bio
Joseph Kovacevic is an entrepreneur, Money Mentor, and first lien HELOC specialist.
At 23 years old, he hired out on the railroad for a career that lasted almost 20 years. He has been investing in real estate since 2000. Between managing rental properties and flipping houses, he was able to escape the corporate world and become an entrepreneur. In 2018, he met Chris Naugle at a Home show in Buffalo, NY, and was later introduced to Brent Kesler, who introduced him to IBC. After years of using the Infinite Banking Concept, he now wants to share IBC with everyone. Being a part of The Money School and The Money Multiplier team, he now helps others break away from conformity and pursue their dreams. He is passionate about educating others about the implementation of the Infinite Banking Concept to solve people's money problems. To learn more, visit https://themoneymultiplier.com/joseph-kovacevic.
About Your Host
From pro-snowboarder to money mogul, Chris Naugle has dedicated his life to being America’s #1 Money Mentor. With a core belief that success is built not by the resources you have, but by how resourceful you can be. Chris has built and owned 19 companies, with his businesses being featured in Forbes, ABC, House Hunters, and his very own HGTV pilot in 2018. He is the founder of The Money School™ and Money Mentor for The Money Multiplier.
His success also includes managing tens of millions of dollars in assets in the financial services and advisory industry and in real estate transactions. As an innovator and visionary in wealth-building and real estate, he empowers entrepreneurs, business owners, and real estate investors with the knowledge of how money works.
Chris is also a nationally recognized speaker, author, and podcast host. He has spoken to and taught over ten thousand Americans, delivering the financial knowledge that fuels lasting freedom.
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