If Life Were Perfect

The end of the year is a great opportunity to take stock of our lives--the trials we've overcome and the triumphs we've enjoyed. It's also a moment to look at our family's financial health, figure out how circumstances have changed, and plan for the coming year.Join Laura on this week’s episode to learn how you can give your finances an end-of-the-year checkup and ensure that you leave bad financial habits behind.As always, please follow Josh and Laura on Instagram @meetthemeiers--we'd love to follow you back!

Planning for the holidays requires so much coordination: Where will you spend the holidays? Who's hosting? Who else will be there? What will you be having? How can you afford it all? While many of us will take time to plan for our special celebrations with loved ones, we need to be asking these same questions of one another when it comes to planning for the bigger events in life.Join Laura on this week’s episode about asking the right questions to ensure your loved ones will always be cared for, no matter what--beyond just the holiday planning.Plus, we have an exciting announcement about our upcoming third season of the If Life Were Perfect, and we want you to be a part of it! Follow Josh and Laura on Instagram @meetthemeiers

Happy Thanksgiving from everyone at If Life Were Perfect! We're taking this week off to enjoy the time with family, but the show will be back next week with an all-new episode. Until then, enjoy the holiday!

Holidays can get overwhelming very quickly—where will you spend them, who will be there, what about time away from work, and how will you fund everything?In this episode, Josh and Laura share important tips you can use to make sure this holiday season is stress-free and full of cheer. Learn how to re-focus on what matters most and eliminate common problems that can steal your holiday joy.Happy holidays everyone!Visit iflifewereperfect.com to subscribe to get our “quick-steps” in your inbox each week.Follow Josh and Laura on Instagram @meetthemeiers. We would love to follow you back!Please subscribe, rate and review the podcast, and help us grow by sharing If Life Were Perfect with your friends, family, and co-workers.

Job interviews can be stressful, but with the right approach you can secure the job of your dreams and separate yourself from the pack. In this week’s episode, we share our perspective as employers on what makes a job candidate stand out and how to handle that awkward conversation about pay. From preparation beforehand, the initial meet and greet, the interview itself, and the follow up, we’ve got you covered from beginning to end so you can nail that job interview.Follow Josh and Laura on Instagram @meetthemeiers. We would love to follow you back! Visit iflifewereperfect.com to subscribe to get our Quick-Steps in your inbox each week.Please subscribe, rate, and review the podcast on Apple Podcasts--and help us grow by sharing If Life Were Perfect with your friends, family, and co-workers.

Think there’s only room for one of you in your field, your school, or in your community? Unhealthy competition can very easily become toxic and keep us from growing our own talents and abilities. Learn how a healthy view of competition can help you refocus your energy, reach new heights, and even turn your competitors into colleagues. Plus, in this week’s mailbag segment, we talk to a young man feeling resentment over his brother’s success, and a website developer worried that a new gig could hurt his wife’s business. Follow Josh and Laura on Instagram @meetthemeiers. We would love to follow you back!

Isn’t it the best when you finally get some free time with your spouse and you aren’t bogged down with kids, jobs, housework and everyday life? When you remember how much you both like each other when you're not dealing with the daily grind?In this week's episode, we share how our standing day date is our free pass to enjoy life and each other. We'll tell you how a regular day date can benefit your career, your finances, and your family, some fun day date ideas, and the ground rules you should follow to ensure your day dates are a complete success. Plus, we'll even tell you how to get the time off work!Plus, in this week’s mailbag segment, we talk to a successful business owner who needs help managing growth, and a newly single mom who needs help managing household tasks.Follow Josh and Laura on Instagram @meetthemeiers. We would love to follow you back! Visit iflifewereperfect.com to subscribe to get our “quick-steps” in your inbox each week.Please subscribe, rate and review the podcast on Apple Podcasts, and help us grow by sharing If Life Were Perfect with your friends, family, and co-workers.

Blending beliefs with someone you love can be a long, hard journey, but changing one’s perspective on those differences can lead to love and unity.In this week’s episode, we’re talking about how we had to find the common ground with each other when it came to blending different faith backgrounds, and the specific steps we took to find that path to unity. Whether you and your loved one are at odds over religion, politics, lifestyle choices, or other deeply held beliefs, learn how you can achieve love and unity in important relationships without losing your core or trying to change theirs.Plus, in this week’s mailbag segment, a computer programmer is unsure whether to work for herself or another company after feeling duped by her dream job, and a listener asks Josh and Laura what it’s like working with your spouse.Follow Josh and Laura on Instagram @meetthemeiers. We would love to follow you back! Visit iflifewereperfect.com to subscribe to get our Quick-Steps in your inbox each week.Please subscribe, rate, and review the podcast on Apple Podcasts--and help us grow by sharing If Life Were Perfect with your friends, family, and co-workers.

Home buying in cities like NYC, DC, San Francisco, and Los Angeles can seem about as possible as climbing Mount Everest. High prices, low inventory, and cash buyers leave many of us feeling shut out and driven out. But did you know that despite these very real obstacles, there’s still a home out there meant just for you?In this week’s episode, we talk about how we had to overcome our own obstacles when buying our home here in Orange County, CA, along with our thought process and journey for securing the home perfect for our family. Find out what you should really be considering—beyond the down payment—and the #1 thing every home must have regardless of your budget.Plus, in this week’s mailbag segment, we talk to listeners about homeowners associations and loan qualifications—two important factors when buying your home!Follow Josh and Laura on Instagram @meetthemeiers. We would love to follow you back! Visit iflifewereperfect.com to subscribe to get our “quick-steps” in your inbox each week.Please subscribe, rate and review the podcast on Apple Podcasts, and help us grow by sharing If Life Were Perfect with your friends, family, and co-workers.

Turning 18 and heading off to college brings all sorts of new rules and responsibilities and we want to help you make the absolute best decisions for yourself and your future. From signing your first contract to making your own medical decisions, find out what you need to do to handle these new situations successfully and keep yourself on track.Even if college is now a distant memory for you, you’ll still want to listen in. The tips we are sharing in this episode are important for every stage of life and it’s never too late to get in the know or get back on track.Visit iflifewereperfect.com to subscribe to get our “quick-steps” in your inbox each week.Follow Josh and Laura on Instagram @meetthemeiers. We would love to follow you back! Please subscribe, rate, and review the podcast, and help us grow by sharing If Life Were Perfect with your friends, family, and co-workers.

Throughout this season, we’ve talked about the many ways that you can get organized and plan for success, but today in our season finale, we’re discussing how you can spread that prosperity around—and why you absolutely want to!Charity and philanthropy can reward us in so many ways: feelings of happiness and gratitude, deep personal relationships, a broader perspective on life and its many struggles—even tax breaks!We’ll share with you the personal benefits we have experienced from giving back and share stories of the people who taught us the power of generosity.Visit iflifewereperfect.com to subscribe to get our “quick-steps” in your inbox each week.Follow Josh and Laura on Instagram @meetthemeiers. We would love to follow you back! Thank you so much for an amazing first season! If you need anything during our summer break, just email us at meier@iflifewereperfect.com. And please help us continue to grow the show together by sharing If Life Were Perfect with your friends, family, and co-workers. And don't forget to subscribe, rate, and review the podcast!

You are incredibly important and special to your loved ones. No one wants to think about getting seriously hurt or dying, but these are scenarios we must prepare for to protect ourselves, our family, and our money. We’ll show you step by step what you need to consider and how to formalize your wishes so you can have total peace of mind.We know it’s a tough subject, because we had to do this for our own family and for the families we help at our law firm. We’ll tell you all about how we set things up so we don’t have to worry about who would raise our kids, where our money would go, or who would make our medical decisions…it’s all taken care of! Plus, in this week’s mailbag segment, a newly married couple asks if they need a will or anything else if they don’t own a home or have kids; a young mom worries about not having a will and how to make one.Visit iflifewereperfect.com to subscribe to get our “quick-steps” in your inbox each week.Follow Josh and Laura on Instagram @meetthemeiers. We would love to follow you back! Please subscribe, rate and review the podcast, and help us grow by sharing If Life Were Perfect with your friends, family, and co-workers.

Starting a business may seem like an amazing dream in theory, but there’s a reason why few people do it, and do it successfully. We’ll tell you what to consider before starting a business, and specific steps you can take to build a successful, sustainable business that supports your personal life and brings you a lot of joy.When we started our business, we made all the first-time rookie mistakes that almost sunk us before we even began. We’ll tell you how we turned it around to create an incredible business that provides our family with money, time, purpose, and flexibility.Plus, in this week’s mailbag segment, we’re helping a wife who is unsure what to put on her If Life Were Perfect List and concerned that it may differ from her spouse’s list; and we’re helping a physician who wants to start her own medical practice but is afraid of risking her assets.Visit iflifewereperfect.com to subscribe to get our “quick-steps” in your inbox each week.Follow Josh and Laura on Instagram @meetthemeiers. We would love to follow you back! Please subscribe, rate and review the podcast, and help us grow by sharing If Life Were Perfect with your friends, family, and co-workers.

How do you know that you’re in the right job or the best way to land the job you really want? No one wants to be stuck with unrewarding work, capped salaries, demanding bosses, or missing out on their kids or fun. We’ll show you simple steps you can follow to identify your ideal job and go after it, knowing it’s where you are meant to be.We had to change careers ourselves when we left our big law firm jobs behind to practice an entirely different field of law that’s more meaningful and conducive to our family life. While this meant we had to start over in some ways, changing careers brought us personal satisfaction, more money, more time, and more happiness in the long run.Plus, in this week’s mailbag segment, we’re helping a new college graduate seeking advice on how to land a job without experience; and helping a new mom questioning her career path now that her family demands have changed.Visit iflifewereperfect.com to subscribe to get our “quick-steps” in your inbox each week.Follow Josh and Laura on Instagram @meetthemeiers. We would love to follow you back! Please subscribe, rate and review the podcast, and help us grow by sharing If Life Were Perfect with your friends, family, and co-workers.

"If Life Were Perfect" is off this week but we still have a Quick Step for you anyway! Laura and Josh return next Wednesday with an all-new episode on starting--or changing--your career.

Anyone else feel like calling in sick or banging their head against a wall when they think about their daily to do list? Jobs, kids, housework, traffic, plus all the other random stuff we’re supposed to be doing but can’t even get to.As law firm owners and parents of four kids, we know all about the balancing act. We’ll tell you how we went from total daily chaos, to having an awesome schedule with time for our clients, our kids, our charity work, and even each other! We’ll show you key things you can do to prioritize your time and make time for what’s most important.Plus, in this week’s mailbag segment, we’re helping out a mom and her young son struggling with procrastination; and helping out new parents having difficulty finding time for each other.Visit iflifewereperfect.com to subscribe to get our “quick-steps” in your inbox each week.Follow Josh and Laura on Instagram @meetthemeiers. We would love to follow you back! Please subscribe, rate and review the podcast, and help us grow by sharing If Life Were Perfect with your friends, family, and co-workers.

How many times have we heard that all you have to do to make a ton of money is to work yourself to death and sacrifice your personal life. No thanks! We know that while most of us want money and security, we also want to enjoy our family and have some fun along the way.When we started our law firm and fell into debt, we knew we had to increase our income asap without adding more stress, hassle, and hours on top of our already long days. We’re sharing exactly what we did to increase our income without spending more time and resources, that not only helped us eliminate our debt, but also buy a home, pay off student loans, save for retirement, and even go to Italy.Plus, in this week’s mailbag segment, we’re talking with a young woman wrestling with the right way to ask her boss for a raise; and talking with a massage therapist wondering how to raise his fees without alienating customers.Visit iflifewereperfect.com to subscribe to get our “quick-steps” in your inbox each week.Follow Josh and Laura on Instagram @meetthemeiers. We would love to follow you back! Please subscribe, rate and review the podcast, and help us grow by sharing If Life Were Perfect with your friends, family, and co-workers.

Debt, fighting, anxiety, and shame- not being in control of your finances means not being in control of your life! And while the idea of setting up a budget may seem about as fun as going to the dentist or shutting down the party, we’ll show you why it’s the key to getting what you REALLY want and why it will give you peace and security.We had to set up our own budget after starting our business and realizing we were rapidly going broke AND constantly fighting over money. We’ll tell you all about Laura’s epic Nordstrom meltdown and the easy process we went through to take control of our finances and use our money to build security, prioritize our goals, and enjoy the fun stuff without worrying about the cost.Plus, in this week's mailbag segment, we’re talking with a couple who is unsure whether to buy a home or invest in a business; and talking with an independent contractor who is struggling with no longer having a steady income.Visit iflifewereperfect.com to subscribe to get our “quick-steps” in your inbox each week.Follow Josh and Laura on Instagram @meetthemeiers. We would love to follow you back! Please subscribe, rate and review the podcast, and help us grow by sharing If Life Were Perfect with your friends, family, and co-workers.

You have a lot of hopes for your future and great ideas going on in your head, so we’re going to show you a simple technique we follow, and have our clients follow, that will help you turn those hopes and great ideas into real, attainable goals.We use this simple technique all the time, like when we left our big law firm jobs to start our own business and to create a better life for our family. Laura even used it to meet Josh back in the single days!Even if you feel stuck right now or feel like your current circumstances will never change, this technique will help you move forward and get you to where you want to be…every single time!Visit iflifewereperfect.com to subscribe to get our “quick-steps” in your inbox each week.Follow Josh and Laura on Instagram @meetthemeiers. We would love to follow you back! Please subscribe, rate and review the podcast, and help us grow by sharing If Life Were Perfect with your friends, family, and co-workers.

Coming soon from married California law firm owners Laura and Josh Meier: If Life Were Perfect, a series that teaches you how to build your ideal life with expert advice on career, finances, and family.