What happens when you’ve maxed out all your retirement accounts and followed every piece of conventional financial advice—but still aren’t sure you’re thinking about money the right way? Dr. Adam Link, founder of Fireweed Capital, brings a rare combination of Silicon Valley engineering leadership experience, multiple company exits, and deep finance expertise to challenge how technical professionals think about wealth, risk, and long-term decisions.
In this conversation, Adam shares why optimizing for low fees might be costing you more than you think, how behavioral psychology sabotages even the smartest engineers during market downturns, and why your financial goals might be setting you up for disappointment. Whether you’re living paycheck to paycheck or sitting on excess wealth wondering “what’s next?”, this episode will shift how you think about the relationship between money and the life you actually want to build.
Key Takeaways:
- Optimizing for low fees alone can cost you more than paying higher fees for better returns—it’s about net results, not minimizing costs
- The biggest financial mistake engineers make isn’t poor investment choices—it’s locking in losses during market downturns because they lack clarity on where they’re going
- Wealth without purpose becomes an endless cycle of “now what?”—defining what you want from life matters more than hitting arbitrary dollar milestones
- The abundance mindset isn’t just about money—it transforms how you approach career growth, time management, and resource allocation in engineering leadership
- “Feeling rich” doesn’t require millions—it starts when you have enough freedom to make choices aligned with what matters to you
Timestamps:
- [00:25] Introduction
- [01:43] How money perspective evolves from finance to engineering leadership
- [05:25] What engineering leadership teaches about resource allocation and human emotions
- [10:28] The “I’ve done everything I’ve been told, now what?” challenge
- [12:20] Why you shouldn’t let the tax tail wag the income dog
- [14:50] The fee optimization trap engineers fall into
- [18:43] The $200,000 red number: Why psychology matters more than strategy
- [23:00] The third entrée story: When Adam first felt rich
- [26:28] Coach in Your Corner: What are you optimizing for?
Guest Information:
About the Host:
Dr. James Bryant is an engineering leadership coach and host of the Engineer Your Success podcast. He helps technical professionals and engineering leaders make intentional decisions about how they lead, work, and live—so success in one domain strengthens the other. Learn more at engineeryoursuccessnow.com.
