In this Friday Fundamentals episode, Ben is joined by Glen James to explore one of the most overlooked ideas in wealth creation:

The best investment is often in yourself.

From pay rises and career growth to business income and automated investing, this conversation unpacks why the biggest returns early on often come from increasing your earning power — not from chasing speculative returns in a small portfolio.

Glen explains how human capital becomes real capital, why personal contributions matter so much in the early wealth-building years, and why improving your income can be one of the safest and most effective ways to grow your financial future.

If you’ve been focused only on products, platforms or properties, this episode is a useful reminder that the real engine of wealth may be much closer than you think.

Got a question or a “hill” you want us to unpack? Send it through here 👉 https://thepropertycouch.com.au/topics/

⏱️ Timestamps

00:24 – Welcome back to Friday Fundamentals
00:54 – Glen’s hill to die on
01:17 – Why the best investment is in yourself
01:45 – The $10,000 portfolio thought experiment
02:36 – Why chasing huge returns can mean huge risk
03:03 – What a $10,000 pay rise really means
03:49 – Why career growth is a low-risk wealth lever
04:44 – How long-term earning power compounds
05:22 – Why your own contributions do the heavy lifting early on
06:18 – The difference between earning more and capturing more
07:12 – The waterfall analogy for income
08:00 – Business as a wealth-building engine
09:19 – When it becomes a career discussion, not a job discussion
10:03 – Final thoughts and practical takeaways