About InvestmentZen

The best investing advice is boring...ditto with personal finance. The fun part is seeing what boring, no-BS advice can actually do for your life! We like to focus on the fun part.

We share inspirational stories & actionable insights from people who have found a way to make money work for them, so you can do the same.

As our side gig, we also gather objective data on the latest financial products so you can choose the products that work best for you. Hopefully you'll learn something useful along the way.

Will Money Work For You, Or Against You?

Most people don't like thinking about money.

In polite conversation, wanting to get rich is greedy, retirement accounts are for boring ol' foggies, the stock market is gambling, and the word "investment" often conjures the word "risky", or even "scam".

Yet whatever your views on money, money doesn't care.

Whether you're paying down debt or racking up credit card bills, whether you're saving money or spending every dime, whether you're starting a business or slogging through your 9-5, whether you're studying to enter a profession or starting your first job, whether you're penniless or independently wealthy - money will either work for you, or it'll work against you.

There's no avoiding it. Even if you choose not to think about it, your actions (or inactions) will determine the direction of your finances.

The Zen Of Making Money Work For You

If you want money to work for you, instead of having to work for your money, there are only 3 things you need to do:

  • Spend less
  • Earn more
  • Invest the difference

Investing is key to making it all work. Once money works for you instead of against you, you have the freedom to do whatever you choose.

We share the stories & insights of those who have figured out how to make money work for them, so you can do the same.

Want To Contribute?

We'd love to hear from you! Send us a message at hello@investmentzen.com.

Meet Our Team and Contributors


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Mr. 1500

Mr. 1500 loves to write about personal finance, early retirement and anything else that has to do with money. When not thinking about numbers and dollar signs, you can find him with his family playing in the beautiful outdoors of Colorado.

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    Holly Johnson

    Holly Johnson is a financial expert and award-winning writer whose obsession with frugality, budgeting, and travel plays a central role in her work. In addition to serving as Contributing Editor for The Simple Dollar, Holly writes for inspiring publications such as U.S. News and World Report Travel, Personal Capital, Lending Tree, and Frugal Travel Guy. Holly also owns two websites of her own - Club Thrifty and Travel Blue Book. You can follow her on Twitter or Pinterest @ClubThrifty.

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      Pauline Paquin

      Pauline Paquin is a personal finance expert who writes over at ReachFinancialIndependence.com. She left the rat race at 29 to live life on her own terms, and help readers achieve financial independence through smart work and asset allocation.

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        John Schmoll

        John Schmoll, MBA, is a former stockbroker, mutual fund administrator and veteran of the financial services industry. His interest in investing and passion for financial literacy led him to leave his career with a well-known brokerage house to grow an advertising business with his wife and start a personal finance site, Frugal Rules, in 2012. In addition to running the business with his wife, John also writes for sites like Investopedia, Lending Tree and U.S. News & World Report.

        Eric Rosenberg

        Eric Rosenberg

        Eric Rosenberg is a finance, travel, and technology writer originally from Denver, Colorado living in Ventura, California. When away from the keyboard, Eric he enjoys exploring the world, flying small airplanes, discovering new craft beers, and spending time with his wife and baby girl. You can connect with him at his own finance blog Personal Profitability.

          My Money Wizard

          My Money Wizard

          My Money Wizard is a personal finance blog authored by Sean, a 20-something financial analyst by day and money blogger by night. Sean saved over $150,000 by age 26 as part of his plan to reach complete financial independence in his 30s, and his approach to saving over half his income has been featured in Forbes, Business Insider, and Yahoo Finance. When he's not writing, Sean can be found cycling, skiing, or traveling the country.

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            Amanda Abella

            Amanda Abella is a personal finance expert, speaker and writer. She is the author of the book 'Make Money Your Honey: A Spirited Entrepreneur's Guide to Having a Love Affair with Work and Money.'

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              Nate

              Nate is a serial entrepreneur and co-founder of InvestmentZen. He's still waiting patiently for Wordpress to integrate eye tracking software that doesn't let you comment until you read the entire article. Twice.

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                Connie Mei

                Connie blogs about personal finance and her journey to financial independence as a 20-something over at Savvy With Saving. She works in the eCommerce industry and currently resides in New York City.

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                  Charley Mendoza

                  Charley Mendoza is a freelance writer covering business, personal finance, careers, and personal development. Check out her website at FreelanceWriterCharley.com

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                  Mindy Jensen

                  Mindy Jensen is the Community Manager at BiggerPockets.com where she spends her days writing about her two favorite things, real estate and personal finance. Mindy has flipped numerous homes with her husband, doing most of the work themselves because finding a good contractor is as common as raising unicorns. Keep up with her on Twitter Facebook or jump into the forums over at BiggerPockets

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                  Catherine Alford

                  Catherine Alford is the go to personal finance expert for educated, aspirational moms who want to recapture their life passions, earn more, reach their goals, and take on a more active financial role in their families. As a self employed entrepreneur and the mother to boy/girl twin toddlers, she lives the messages she teaches each and every day. Learn more at CatherineAlford.com

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                    Brian @ Rental Mindset

                    Brian is a real estate investor living in San Francisco who invests in rental properties thousands of miles away. He believes mindset is the key to getting started and pushing through when things don’t go as planned. He writes about how he earns a 29% annual return on his turnkey investments, achieves the right mindset, and more at RentalMindset.com.

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                      Chad Carson

                      Chad Carson is passionate about investing in real estate and traveling with his family of four. He also enjoys writing at coachcarson.com about using real estate investing to retire early & do what matters. For practical advice each week — join his free newsletter at coachcarson.com/newsletter.

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                        Joseph Hogue

                        Joseph Hogue, CFA is an investment analyst and owns six blogs including PeerFinance101 and MyStockMarketBasics. He holds the Chartered Financial Analyst (CFA) designation and lives with his wife and son in Medellin, Colombia.

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                          Sean Cooper

                          Sean Cooper is a Financial Journalist and Personal Finance Expert, living in Toronto, Ontario. He paid off his $255,000 mortgage in only three years. He offers Money Coaching, specializing in pensions and the decumulation of financial wealth in retirement. Follow him on Twitter @SeanCooperWrite. Write and read his blogs and request his writing services on personal website

                            Andrew Josuweit

                            Andrew Josuweit

                            Andrew Josuweit, is the CEO of Student Loan Hero, a company that combines easy-to-use tools with financial education to help millions of Americans living with student loan debt.

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                              Mike McRitchie

                              Mike is a resume writer, job search strategist, and career coach, who helps his clients identify and leverage their passions, strengths, and personal brand to build rewarding careers.

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                              Physician On Fire

                              The Physician on FIRE is an anesthesiologist, husband, and father of 2 boys who became Financially Independent (FI) at age 39 and has plans to Retire Early (RE) in his forties. He has more hobbies than time to enjoy them, which include experiencing the outdoors, photography, homebrewing, travel, and running. He also enjoys writing, publishing a couple original articles per week on his own blog, along with a weekly compilation of other great articles, The Sunday Best.

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                                Benjamin Davis

                                Benjamin Davis is the man behind From cents to Retirement, a blog where he explains, step by step, what he is doing to retire early. Ben also published a book recently, called "My strategy to retire early". The main reason for him to want to retire early is his health condition: Ben developed CFS during his early 20s, while doing his PhD. He believes that hustling hard to increase his montly income, saving aggressively and investing wisely will enable him to retire by 33. His long term goals include making From Cents To Retirement a reference blog for early retirement, inspiring others with his own story, owning 100 homes and retire in the coast of Portugal.

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                                  Sophia Bera, CFP(R)

                                  Sophia Bera, CFP® is not your father’s financial planner. After working in traditional financial planning firms since 2007 she quit her job at a NY start-up to launch her own firm, Gen Y Planning. Now, she runs a 6-figure online business from her laptop. Her recent accolades include the “Top 40 Under 40” by Investment News, “10 young Advisors to Watch” by Financial Advisor Magazine, and “10 of the Best Personal Finance Experts on Twitter.”

                                    Elizabeth Colgrove

                                    Elizabeth Colgrove

                                    Elizabeth Colegrove is a passionate "buy and hold" investor who specializes in turning her once-negative transient lifestyle (Military) into a positive lifestyle. She self manages her entire real estate portfolio from long distance while holding down a full time job.

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                                      Jay Tomlinson

                                      Jay Tomlinson is an entrepreneur, author, and former finance professional who became financially secure in his late 20's, affording him the ability to take time off of work to pursue his hobbies and passions. He now uses that time to connect with others about the power of financial independence. Since his friends and family are probably tired of listening to him, he decided to start writing about money management, frugality, and financial freedom. He can be reached through his website tomlinsonbooks.com or on Twitter @tomlinsonbooks

                                      Ben Miller

                                      Ben Miller

                                      Ben Miller is Co-Founder and CEO of Fundrise. With over 18 years of commercial real estate experience, Mr. Miller is an innovator and champion for the everyday investor, focusing on the Fundrise mission to democratize access to real estate investing.

                                        Megan Wells

                                        Megan Wells

                                        Megan Wells is a data journalist and content strategist based in San Francisco, California. Wells currently focuses on personal finance, mortgage, and fintech content. Wells' work has appeared on Fox, Nasdaq, MSN, Motley Fool, and more. Wells also spoke at the 2015 Exceptional Women In Publishing conference.

                                          Abby Chao

                                          Abby Chao

                                          Abby Chao is Co-Founder & COO of CollegeBacker, a simple and social way to save for college. In just 5 minutes, a parent can open a tax-advantaged 529 College Savings Plan, determine a personalized savings plan for their child, and invite family and friends to contribute. Plus, with CollegeBacker Gifts, anyone can kickstart a child’s college fund by sending a redeemable gift.

                                          Han Chang

                                          Han Chang

                                          Han Chang is a cofounder of InvestmentZen. His extensive technical background and work experience on Wall Street and in Silicon Valley makes him passionate about the role of technology in investments.

                                            TJ Porter

                                            TJ Porter

                                            TJ Porter has been sharing his financial expertise through his writing since 2014. He graduated with a degree in business from Northeastern University in 2016. In his spare time, TJ enjoys esports, cooking, and board games.