Podcast appearances · Radar

Lev Mandel

Financial Life Strategist at Echelon Future & Co., author of the "Money is Weird" workbook, and KQED Perspectives contributor writing on the human side of money.

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APPEARANCES

1

PODCASTS

Aug 27, 2026

KQED's Perspectives

KQED's Perspectives

Lev Mandel: The Backstop

Aug 27 · 3m

speaker_4ADVERTISER

1:16

[upbeat music]

Lev MandelGUEST

1:18

I was small and had a good eye when I played baseball.

Lev MandelGUEST

1:22

In North Oakland Little League, that meant I got on base by laying off bad pitches, a reasonable strategy for a small strike zone.

Lev MandelGUEST

1:30

My dad taught me that strategy.

Lev MandelGUEST

1:32

Then he changed his mind.

Lev MandelGUEST

1:34

As I got older, from the stands, every time I came to the plate, he'd say, "Be a hitter now." I didn't understand what he meant then.

Lev MandelGUEST

1:42

Sometimes it embarrassed me how everyone heard, but it also felt secure knowing he was there.

KQED's Perspectives

KQED's Perspectives

Lev Mandel: Affordability is a Feeling

Jun 15 · 2m

Sasha KogaADVERTISER

0:40

You can hear more Community Connection stories on the California Report magazine podcast.

Lev MandelGUEST

0:49

Affordability isn't just math.

Lev MandelGUEST

0:52

It's a feeling shaped as much by hope as by numbers.

Lev MandelGUEST

0:55

I spend a lot of time thinking about money.

Lev MandelGUEST

0:58

I've also stretched and rationalized my spending more than you'd think.

Lev MandelGUEST

1:02

I once paid rents that would sound absurd to anyone outside San Francisco, not because they made sense on paper, but because I believed my income would grow.

Lev MandelGUEST

1:11

Now, my wife and two boys and I are moving to Berkeley, where I grew up.