Weird Money Habits That Will Make You Rich

Well, if you're in the mood to be a little bit weird to build wealth successfully, you're in the right place.

“Do you ever feel like you're the main character in a girl power rom-com montage?”

I mean, I think everything about me, people would consider unusual. This is the number one area you can focus on, because it's something you can actually control. [MUSIC] Hey guys, I'm Rachel Cruz. I'm George Campbell.

And this is smart, many happy hour. [MUSIC] All right, well, this is the show we're two friends who have many many experts talk about what you're talking about. So I think from pop culture, current events and the money.

But first Rachel, we're sipping on a virgin apnea calada.

And it's delicious. We're going to give you the rating and reveal the cost per glass at the end of the episode. So stick around for that. I think you're going to like what you're here because you can't taste it. [LAUGH] I think what you see what you're here.

Okay, George, you know where the funniest things I have noticed about doing all this like a money content. Like if we're ever on stage or even on a media hit, I'll randomly just say, live on less than you make. And I will get an audible, like gas. They're mind as well. They're like, yes, I remember being doing a new segment and remember the anchor was like, that is so wise.

Like it's like mind blown. I just realized man, you know, it's just not common.

“Some of the things we talk about when it comes to money genuinely, not common since these days.”

Yeah. Can be a little weird, even something like that, something that is common. We encourage that around here at Ramsey. And for 30 years now, we've been promoting what has become controversial weird principles like paying for things in full and not buying it if you can't afford it in full.

And we get a lot of flag for that. So we thought it'd be fun to break down some of these habits behind living on us and you make. And talk about the unorthodox ways you can build wealth. Yeah, kind of the weird way, if you will. But okay, before we go to the financial side, are there any unusual habits that you swear by, George,

that are unusual for today? Like hobbies, parenting, or things? I mean, I think everything about me, people would consider unusual because my habits, mostly related to hygiene. Wait, oh, because it's so.

Yeah. Up at the up. Oh, here's one that Whitney finds very odd. Whitney could give you a litany. Sure, sure.

I, in the shower, I have a bar of soap. And I have to like wash my hands in between like a shampoo and a conditioner. For example, I don't know why I can, I don't like the people. For instance, if it's so personal to ask a friend, is that bar of soap used at all for anything else except for hand washing?

No. Like you don't use it like on your butt. No, I have like a, a lufus body water. It's just like to, I don't like the feeling of that. On my hands, I don't know how to explain it.

Oh, my god.

“You should put your face, then you go straight for the face wash.”

I just feel like that can't be good for your face. So you wash your, okay, but you said you wash your hands with it. Yes, okay, so from like shaving cream, wash your hands. Yes, get the gun cut. Makes no sense with running water, water like hitting you.

Yeah. Okay. That is so funny. The only time I do that because my routine is make up wise. And I do, I use it my hands a lot when I apply my makeup.

Is that not okay? I don't know. Some people are picky about that.

But I mean, like my moisturizer, I always do a part of makeup with your hands.

But like my foundation, all sometimes, like use my fingers. Like I'll use like my hands a lot for my moisturizer. Found it, I don't know. Now, and then I go do my hair after my makeup. Then I will in between wash because I don't want my makeup,

or more shows are greasing up my hair. Similar concept. No, but yours has water coming already at you. It's like water alone does not cleanse. I don't know if you knew that.

Tell people that. Yeah, what are you, what are you doing? On the Oregon trade. But if they just had water, they would, you know, they would have been fine. They didn't have soap.

I don't think. Oh, my gosh. Soap on soap. Yeah. That's dangerous for George.

Okay, that's funny. Do you have any unusual habits you swear about? I know that, um, man, no, uh, I'm not as an orthodox as you. I'm sure, and I'm sure I do. I'm terrible.

We've talked about this on the show. I'm not, I don't swear by it, but it is I have it. I don't finish things. So like I'll have like a bite of a granola bar left, and I'll leave it in my car.

Or my water bottle will always have like that much left.

And I won't drink. Like I always have like a, you can't finish anything. What, why is that? I don't know. If you went to a therapist, how would they cycle?

There would probably be something along the lines of like needing to have extra just in case. Oh. I mean, I don't know. I'm making that up right now.

I don't know. I thought it was because you hated for something to end. So you just never let it out. No, that's much more fun. No, I'll take that analysis.

If I eat the bar, it's going to be gone. It's going to be on fire.

“Like part of the bar right now in my car.”

Literally, I have like one bite of granola. I was going up, you know, going to work. And I don't finish.

I mean, I don't know what you've never like a,

you're not part of the clean plate club. Well, you clean off the plate again. You're always doing a little bite. Yeah, I always leave like a little something. I don't know what.

I leave a little bit for the angels. I think that's beautiful. It's really angel. It's really sweet. Yeah, that's probably the most weird, unorthodox thing ever.

Well, that was fun. Let's talk about the money things that people do that are unorthodox. But we would probably applaud for a season. Yes. All of these aren't going to be like your forever.

These are not life principles to live by. But things that you do to get ahead for a season. First up, working more than 40 hours a week. You just upset a lot of people out there. Well, yeah, I guess.

They don't think we should be working 40 hours a week. They should, they think we should be working way less. They do. They as in just in general. Okay.

People, the people, the people do. Yeah, we're going against the 40 hour work week. That's true. Yeah, yeah. The industrial era and Henry Ford wanted more work. You know, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah.

It's more like, yes, work smarter, not harder. Yeah, mentality. And it could you know, I feel like there's a, well, there is a case to be made that in the America works longer hours than most countries.

Yeah, but I do think we talked to people on the show. And they're easily working 50 to 60 hours. Some people we talk to and we're like, woo, you know. So yeah, I do think we can get more creative. I'm not mad about that.

Of how we spend our time in the hours. But, but trying to like cut corners constantly out of now. But the idea of working more than that on orthodox. 100%. But if you're trying to get out of debt, this is the number one area you can focus on.

Because it's something you can actually control. Yes. Is the number of hours you work, how much money you make. And if you can't do it at your, you know, full-time job, we live in a side gig economy.

And I've proven this. I signed up for Instacart for a night. And within an hour, I was on the road driving. Yeah, for better hours. And it was mostly what I mean.

I'm going to tip you, right? Um, one, well, I went to the most affluent neighborhood I could think of. And it was like the weakest tip of the night. Oh, I just so sad. One, my final final one, zero tip.

And that's wild. Yeah. That's wild.

“That's why I've been lugging these 12 packs of sodas and gallons of one.”

And come on, Ethan. I think should be based on weight. That's your tip should be automatic based on how much weight I had to carry. That's funny. I like that.

That's actually pretty good. Sign me up. But that's pretty good. And working more in Senna's people. You know, especially entrepreneurs.

They're getting their business off the ground. That's normal. Working way more than 40 hours to get something going. So, so yeah, for a period of time, up in the income, up up in the work hours, whether it's over time with your primary job or a side gig.

Yep, for a season, getting out of debt. We would have that. And it's worth it. You can do it. Yep.

You'll survive. All right. Here's one.

People could never imagine being a one car family.

Oh, going down the one car to be able to say money. Yep. There's a lot of people. And a lot of people feel like it's not even doable. But I do think I'm like, if you had to, if you had to, you could.

Because that was more common growing up, like we were one car family for years. Now, if two people are working and you got to figure out schedules, I mean, yeah, it can be a little hectic. You know, who did it? Jade Warsha and Sam.

Oh, that's right. Yeah, for years. Yes. They were one car family. 'Cause they were like, yeah, we can't afford another car and we're getting out of debt.

So, on orthodox, but is doable for a season. You're at Ramsey, do we? Yeah. 'Cause even carpool. Either you can't afford to make the car repair.

You know, it's kind of a put.

“You don't have the money for the new one or you need to sell the one you have to get rid”

of the payments and go down a one car while you save up for the next one. There's a lot of reasons to go down a one car. And I think we should all take some stock and go. If you need to right now because of debt or other financial obligations, it's worth exploring this option.

Yeah, absolutely. Yeah. This is one way to sacrifice. Mm-hmm. All right, next, another orthodox way of looking for money, not caring about your credit

score. Oh, it's kind of a hot take these days. People love a credit score. They love to measure up, figure out where they are in the pack. 'Cause people get this mistake in all the time.

They think because I don't have a score, it means I'm not financially responsible. Yes. That is a mistake about credit scores. People really do think if I have a high credit score, I'm doing great with money. Where all credit score is mathematically calculated is all have to do it around debt.

So it's basically you paying your debts on time, yes, but acquiring new debt, keeping your

current debt going, and it's just like a debt juggling formula. And then it's like, here's how well you aren't managing debt. That's basically your credit score. So a bad score will hurt you. I want to make that clear.

There's three buckets. The bad score of people, the no score of people, and the really good score of people who brag about it. Yep. Yep.

I'm talking about no score is a good thing to aim for because it means you don't have debt. You don't know anyone, anything, and six to 12 months after you pay off all of your debt, close all your accounts, your score will disappear.

And it will go down while you're getting out of debt.

“So you may kind of see it start to go down, but then again, it will become in the”

term because you can't determine the credit score if you don't have debt open, especially those accounts. So that's a very unorthodox way of looking at it, but we love a- I'd rather that than play this game where if you pay off debt, they punish you by lowering your score.

Yeah. And then you increase it if you take out more lines of credit. Yep. I think it sucked into that matrix. All that game.

Yeah, about this, cash or debit is better than credit and debt. Ooh. That's an orthodoxy says. Yeah. Well, it goes along with that credit score one.

People have just gotten so used to having a credit card, having multiple credit cards, rotating their credit cards for whatever has the best cash back program that month. That's also an insane game to play. Oh, my God. Versus just using your own money.

And saving way more than the 2% you would have gotten. Yeah. By using your own money. You spend differently. Yeah.

And just having peace that in the moment it's done, like, you swipe the debit card, you pay with the cash, and you move on. I don't have a debit card statement at the end of the month that I have to then reconcile and pay. And figure out and think, yes, and hope you have the money for it and all of it.

So yeah.

“And I think always as people always have good intentions getting a credit card.”

I see that I'm going to play the game. We get this or that. And then you talk to people and they're racking up 12,000, 20, 40, right? I have credit card debt. Thousands of dollars of credit card debt.

We're at record high now. Did you know that? Yes, we have hit it. 1.23 trillion. In credit card debt.

So someone's winning. And it ain't you. It's not the American people. Yeah. How do that much?

Those banks, man. They love them. Some credit cards. Speaking of banks, Rachel. If you want a bank smarter, not harder.

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You see that right there? Yeah. I know. Well, they are fantastic. And what is your card Rachel?

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All right. Next we are at habit, throwing all savings except for $1,000 at your debt. So this is referring to the infamous baby set one of the Ramsey plan where we tell people save of $1,000 real quick for a starter emergency fund. And a lot of people have that in more sitting in savings.

Yes. And it's a real emotional turn to take money out of savings to apply to debt. That's right. Yeah. Because people do feel like it's riskier to have no savings and to have a lot of debt.

“But the truth is, if something were to happen and you lost your job and you could only”

float a month maybe of that savings, then you have all these bills that you're going to get behind if you keep the debt. So the faster you can clear out other people having their name all over your finances, that's the less riskier bet. And usually for most things that you're finding that pop up, either they're under $1,000

or even if they're over, you can always pause the baby steps, save up.

And if you're throwing $2,000 to $3,000 at debt every month, you could pause and save up that amount of cash in one month and figure out how to fix the emergency. So there's definitely options out there because I know a lot of people feel urgent with it. And it is kind of scary.

I was talking to a girl here at Ramsey and they're going to get out of debt and she's like, oh my gosh, they've been, I think it's almost 18 months with just $1,000. She was like, hey, always keeps doing on ads, but it makes me want to get on debt that much faster. And the extra money we have every month just put at the debt, like I want to get out of

it faster. That's the thing. That actually gets people out of debt. Is that fire going like, I'm not okay. And what the problem is, you get too comfortable having a pile of cash over here to where

you got, well, I don't need to be that aggressive paying off the debt. Right. I want to live my life. And there's something to just scorched earth sending all of the savings to the debt except for the 1,000 to go, I mean at this time.

And then some people want to try to save up three months before they start paying off debt. And then that slows the whole progress down again, too. So yeah, it's just like just kind of bite the bullet and do it, y'all. Just do it. So you have the thousand dollars, but very unorthodox these days.

And it's not meant to be a long-term solution. Most people get out of debt in 18 to 24 months following this Ramsey plan. So once you get out of that debt, you can stack it up to three to six months of expenses. That's right. All right.

Perfect. I think a lot of people hate the details of this. They're like, I don't want to just nickel and dime myself to death.

“I think that's what people feel like if they're tracking transactions.”

Nobody wants to track anything. Take a two 99 fee for this thing. It's a track and it's like, wait, why don't I just three bucks? It's not a big deal. But when you get in the habit of you guys, it's a dick thing.

Can I say that? I do it. I open up my $1 app genuinely. Maybe 1 or 2 times a day. Yeah.

No, let's glue. It happens and it's like four transactions. The worst of is over a weekend or something. I didn't. They all come running.

The worst of it all. Oh my god.

Give me a second, everyone.

Pause. The family. I got to track my transactions and we can get back to reality. There's something, there's something just so controlling about it, but it's like a good control.

One, you're actually having to reconcile the purchases you made, which is something we don't do anymore. Yes. We don't have our checkbooks out. Reconciling the back of the checkbook.

Totally. We're just swiping, swiping and then we just hopefully make the ability in which is a terrible way to live. Every dollar makes this super easy. That's what Rachel's talking about.

She just drags the transaction over to the correct line item and boom. It's done and it shows you how much money you have left for that category, so that you don't overspend. That's the point of tracking. It's not to nerd out.

“So if you want to check it out, we'll leave a link to every dollar in the description”

below. All right. Next is Quitting Talks Expending Habits Cold Turkey. So do you ever feel like you are the main character in a girl power, rom-com, montage? Always.

It's kind of like L Woods on the stair master, and they have like all the music and all the things.

You know, there is something like that you're like, okay, I can do this.

Like I can make a change. I can make a change. Do you ever feel better than everyone else when you do something drastic? Like, I'm going to delete Instagram off my phone. Phone?

Yeah. Oh, I think I'm a better human than everyone. Well, it's weird. Flex. I know it is.

Nobody knows, but you unless you please don't post about it on social media. I'm deleting Instagram. I'm deleting Instagram. Text me if you need me. Literally nobody cares.

Nobody is trying to message you on Instagram. They would have just text you if they needed something. Oh man. But yeah, deleting apps on your phone that cost money or that tempt you to spend money. Yep.

Maybe you're going to stop eating out for an entire month. That's a huge emotional one thing to switch when you used to stop and through that drive through after a long day at work, and it said, you drive past it. Yeah. And you go home.

Think about it. I just was like, I'll pay you $10 to drive past that drive through. You would do it. Think about that. That's what it is.

Paying yourself by not going through the drive through it.

That's smart. That's good. Until in and out is finished down the street and then I will be going to that drive. Hey, that's actually pretty budget friendly. It's still like $3 a burglary.

Yeah, it's pretty. It's actually pretty great. The inflation proof over there. I know. Yeah, I love it.

No spin challenge. That's always fun. That one's kind of exciting, though. Yeah. You kind of band together.

I have to have an end date, though. Yep. I've only done it a few times in my life, George. It's hard. I think 30 days is the max.

Mine also the, like, no spending on clothes for like a season. Oh. I feel like no. I'm not buying anything for winter. Shop your closet.

Shop your clothes. I know. Yeah, those kind of things. There's something again. It's kind of empowering.

Or you're like, I'm doing something big. Changing my life. Here's an idea. Steam your clothes and put a fake tag on it and tell yourself it's brand new. Oh, love it.

I'll be like, look at it. Because at one point, it was brand new and you loved it. And you loved it. And you felt all excited about it. And the next segment wears off.

And so. And then you realized, I'm not a turtle neck guy. What was I thinking? Why did I go for that? I didn't have my neck for this.

I don't know. Oh, my gosh. Too good. I do a credit card challenge in the book, too. Breaking free from broke.

I, at the end of the credit card chapter, I say, hey, bet, put your credit card in a block of ice, hide it, do something with it to where you can't use it for a whole month and see how it changes your spending. Oh, and just look and see. And the people who do it, they go, I saved hundreds and hundreds of dollars just by

using my own money. Is that correct? Because I was just spending more when it was other people's money. And I pay back later. It is.

The emotional attachment thing is so real. You know, we have a good friend who used to work here. And he told me he was like confession and was like, it's fine. I'm not like judging you. But he was like, hey, I just want you to know when I left, I did, I got a credit card.

And he said, I only kept it for like three to four months because he was like, I found myself going to like a academy sports and he's like, I had to pick up one thing. He's like, yeah, he was like, it is crazy how you do detachable things. You do. Like he's like, he was like, he's like, I found he's got rid of it.

I was like, okay, fine. We were right. The whole time, you know. But I was like, yeah, I appreciate that. True testament right there.

“That's why I got a Academy Sports to two tempted by all the sporting goods.”

So many things I could buy so much. Now, you know where I am tempted to spend though. Where's that? Cozy Earth. Now, that's worth it.

I put a whole line item in the budget. I mean, because when you buy it, that quality, you still get excited about it. This pajamas, the socks, the sheets, the bedding, all of it. You still get that new exciting feeling because it's so great. It is so great.

I bought a lot of Christmas gifts from my family from Cozy Earth to season. Because it's just like, it's the thing that they don't have and wouldn't buy for themself because like, well, I don't deserve a nice PJ set and I'm like, mom, you deserve

You deserve the most. I'm that kind of son. They're just who I am. The Cozy Earth. Yes.

“So lots of bath towels, their new Baja bed in collection.”

The Ozen said the Baja bed in court.

It's beautiful. You guys elegant. Beautiful. You do. You feel like you're in combat.

I know that. I know. I know. Because it's simple. It's not overly busy, but it's like, it's so tasteful.

It's beautiful. Just enough. They did great. Yep. So make sure to check it out.

Because again, it's everything from the bedding set you guys, the sheets, all of it. It's the towels. Everything. It is incredible.

I mean, all the products are incredible. So you can go to Cozy Earth.com/smartmoneyuse@thecodesmartmoney for 20% off. And if you get the post-purchase survey, be sure to mention that you heard about Cozy Earth your own smart money. You get those points here and in heaven.

More jails on your crowd. That's right. Any turnity. All right. Next on Orthodox Money Heaven is investing above the company match.

Now we're talking. Okay. So most people go, well, I'm in, how much are you investing? They go, I'm investing about 4%, and I go, why is that? Well, the company match is 4%.

So I'm going to do the bare minimum. I'm going to do what they do. And then we don't. Yep.

The problem is they get to retirement, realizing I need more than this.

That's 4% over my career was not enough to sustain a great retirement most likely. Yep. Well, and a lot of people don't have the margin to invest more either, right?

“So that is why with the baby steps, that's why getting out of debt and then saving up”

an emergency fund, did you all that first? And then you have the margin to save up to that 15%. So always go up to your employer's match, match, and then go to a Roth IRA. It's another great investing vehicle for retirement. And then if you still have more for that 15%, you can go back to the 401(k) and invest.

But going above the match, not everyone does it, but it's a good plan long term. We recommend 15% long term until your house is paid off. So while you're still got the mortgage, invest 15% once you're debt free. And for most people, that's going to be a 7-figure mistake over the work you're working lifetime.

Now, if you're like 58 and just getting started, this might look different. But if you're in your 20's, 30's even 40's, you can still have a million-dollar plus nest egg if you invest that 15% of the average income. That's very encouraging. Right.

Our next is to prioritize the gifting in generosity. That's a weird habit. Yep. Because a lot of people don't think about it and I do feel like a lot of people in the money space don't talk about it.

I feel like usually like investing in crypto and interest rates and all of that is talked about a lot. Yeah. But the generosity is not as applicable. People don't, yeah.

But it is so important to get in because you do, there's something about prioritizing other people. Those around you need. There's something about that that's just really beautiful that we opening up your hand to give.

And sometimes the habit, you start to do it even if you don't feel like you want to, to be honest. And then when you get into the habit, it becomes a part of who you are. And then you start to realize, oh, I do have the margin for it because I'm making an a priority to do it.

Yeah. The college kids come through and they were like the sweetest, smartest kids. I was embarrassed to be in that room.

“But they were like, how do you prioritize generosity?”

I was like, who are you? You're 20 years old. This is insane. Yes. But I told them, just fake it till you make it, put it in the budget, force yourself

to give and you'll realize how much you actually enjoy giving and how it changes your perspective on money. Yes. And you know, I love how you say it. Give a little until you can give a lot.

Correct. That blew their mind when I dropped that Rachel Cruz quote. Oh my gosh. That's very nice. They like it because it just frees you to go, oh, it's not a certain milestone

I need to hit. Where if I make a certain amount of money, then I'll start giving. Right. Because people think, well, I'm not rich enough to give or I don't make enough. So what is my contribution going to do?

But it really is the thought that counts in the heart behind it, whether it's $1,000, $100 a thousand dollars and it changes someone's day. Yes. You have a simple gesture. Like you know people, or it's just like all about them all the time, right?

Yeah. It's why giving is so shocking. Watch these videos and people are just overcome with emotion when someone gives them anything. I love it. Yeah.

That kind of kindness is much needed in today's society. Incredible. Prioritize it. Put it in the budget. All right.

Next. Pain cast for higher ed. Dunton Dunn. Say what? I know.

Student loans are the norm these days, you know. It's not not even thinking of another path. It literally is. It's just the default option is, what do you mean you're going to pay for college outright?

Or I'm not going to go to that school that I always wanted to go to because I can't afford it. You rarely hear an 18 year old say that. Yeah. It's a smart thing to do.

And not all degrees are created equal. And so everyone just thinks, well, if I'm going to invest in my education, it's an investment. So it will have an ROI.

The problem is there's not always a great paying job handed to you at the end of this

road. And you're still carrying 100 grand of student loans. I think it's gotten harder to you. Yeah. Well, especially because a lot of people are getting more kind of niche degrees or more

thought, this will be a cool thing to study.

Yes. Yes. It's like, well, this will be a cool restaurant to go to, but they don't think through it all the way to go, is there a job on the other side that I want to do that pays

“enough to make this education worth it, cash or not?”

Yeah. So that's the scary part. Yeah, for sure. So thinking through that is so important. And then again, just making sure that you can cash flow it.

And so that may mean taking a gap year that could be going to a community college for your two scholarships and grants, whatever it looks like, but man, graduating with no student loan debt and starting life off on like a solid financial path to build upon versus digging yourself out of a hole at 21, telling you, it takes years and years and years and years and years and years and years.

And you get ahead. It's a blessed decision. On the other side. You're different. Yeah.

Person in that job interview. When you're like, I need to make the student loan payments man, give me the job, give me the job, man, give me the job. So, you know, there's a lot of ways to go to school debt free trade schools, community colleges part time, just don't feel like the default path is take out monopoly money and

hope for the best. Yeah. It has not worked out. Amen. All right.

Next up on our list of weird habits, using the debt snowball method. Oh, yes, controversial in the financial world. Yep. So the debt snowball is where you pay the smallest debt first. And then you go up to the largest debt regardless of the interest rate.

But the debt avalanche is another way to pay off debt where you pay off the highest interest rate first because mathematically, you know, that would be correct. And what we have found over and over again is people get quick wins. You start knocking off some of those credit cards that you've had around. You start knocking off that personal loan to your parents at 10,000, like whatever it is,

you knock them all off and moment them builds and you're like, oh gosh, there's just something about getting all the small ones out of the way, you're done with them and then you attack the big ones with extra margin because you don't have the payments of all the other ones. And so that's yeah, a lot of people like to go that avalanche way, which focuses on math

and knowledge.

And we always say personal finances, 80% behavior, it's only 20% head knowledge.

And so the debt snowball attacks behavior and your psychology matters a lot when it comes to getting out of debt and time magazine did a piece on this. Harvard did a piece on this saying Dave Ramsey is right.

“The debt snowball method is the best way to get out of debt.”

Yes. They did the study and went, listen, this is what actually works. And if you do the math, it's probably a wash because we're telling you to get a debt with such intensity, you're not even paying that much interest. Right.

I'll tell you that. If you're going to hang onto it for a decade, sure, the interest matters, but we will never recommend or suggest. And the completion rate, I think, is higher with the debt snowball versus the avalanche. People stay with it.

Yeah. Because again, they're encouraged. You know, you get this like quick wins, which is amazing. Yeah. If we were doing math, we wouldn't be in credit card debt.

That's the old joke. Amen. I'd be like, well, the interest rate, like, well, if you knew it was that high, why'd you go into it? Why'd you go into it anyway?

If you were just smart, it's all about it. Yes. Well, I know one thing that's all too common, George. That's not a great habit. It's the fact that our information is all over the internet.

“Getting your information removed is so important in today's world.”

And delete me's privacy team does that. They literally go into these data broker websites and remove your data for you and keep it gone. So when you sign up for newsletters and coupon codes and all this stuff, you put your information out there.

A lot of times companies will sell your data to data brokers and then they collect your data on these sketchy websites, like find people.com, it's like random. And that means all your information is out there. I mean, this is like, it's big business. Home addresses from the past, like two or three places you've lived.

Like all the way back to like your first place you ever lived, your address is out there.

They keep scanning all your long sending reports along the way and it's brought me a lot of peace of mind. So if you want that for your family, for your life, you can go check it out. And get a sweet deal. Just go to joindeletme.com/smartmoney and you'll get 20% off their annual plans.

And that works out to around nine bucks a month. And this is a subscription that's worth having. This is not entertainment. It's not even a luxury. It's an necessity for my family.

Absolutely. All right. Next is paying your house off early. Dundendent. Oh, that's an extra weird habit today.

Yeah, no. There's a big beef on X, the social media platform that you haven't used in years Rachel. I know. Yes, you're on there. This guy posted his screenshot of his mortgage with a zero balance.

And he was roasted for paying off his low interest in mortgage early. So that was the most financially stupid thing you could have done. So there was this whole argument on Twitter between the people who said no, it's worth it for the peace of mind. Under Ramsay Solutions, Banner, Dave Ramsey, Banner, or no, just in general.

Just in general. Funny, okay. So I thought I was just watching, you know, sit in my tea like kermit off to the side. Yeah. But it is interesting.

What I found out early is something most people don't do. Yes. And we found that millionaires in our millionaire study paid off their home in 10.2 years on average. They didn't hang on to it, even if they had a quote and quote low interest rate.

Yes. And the thing is, we don't know what life's going to throw at us.

mortgage payment. Right.

“But if it's gone, that's one less thing than that.”

Yeah.

And my thing always is to pay off the house number one, and if you hate it, if you hate having

a paid off house, you can always go get a mortgage on it again. Right. So some people have the money to pay off their house. And we talked to a lot of people, and in savings, you'll have like $141,000. And they have an $80,000 mortgage left.

Right. Pay it off. And like, I don't know. I don't know. Like, pay it off.

And if you hate it, you can go and, you know, get a mortgage again on the house. Or they say when you could invest the difference, and you could be way better off. Like, while I was investing the whole time, we would never advocate to pause your investing to pay off the mortgage earnings. And then go pay your-- and then invest your mortgage payment every month.

Yeah. See, that's $2,000. Jump you. Yes. Invest it every month for the rest of your life.

You're going to be okay. So the peace of mind in the presence is a part of money that we fight for so much. So again, it's not always about the spreadsheets and all of it. It is about you as a whole person having autonomy over your money, and that's going to give you peace and options way more than being like, I have this over here in the this.

I'm balancing it all. There's something that you carry when you do that. There is.

“And so you're going to end your head rent free that whole time.”

Isn't that funny? Having a paid off house is controversial. People funny? I'm like, if someone gave you a paid off house, like no, no, no, no, no, I'm going to borrow on it to invest.

No, you would never do that.

No, you're like, thank you for the house. Yeah. I'll take the no payment. Appreciate that. Appreciate that.

And then here's my second lease favorite. Well, Rachel, you still have to pay property taxes. Okay. I'm not gonna leave. That's gonna be a little bit.

You'll never actually own it. You'll never actually own it. You'll always do this for some George. Just motion with 30 minutes. Okay.

I am a little bit like that. It is kind of creepy to think. You could have a paid off house. But if you didn't pay the taxes, you still lose it. If you don't pay a water bill, they shut off your water.

Do you own the water? No. But I own the land that I bought that land. That is true. And we live in a society with like roads, fire fighters in police.

I know. And hopefully the government's using that money wisely. Maybe that's why I want to see. That's, I know. I think I feel better about all taxes.

If I could see if it was good at everything. Exactly where it's going.

“And if it was like the fire department, engine 64, I think.”

Thank you. What a beautiful teacher. Hey, you paid 1% of Brad's salary this. But then it's like, hey, congressman's own. So I want to fly here and you pay for his plane ticket.

I'd like. Yeah. That makes me mad. You know. So I think that's better about taxes.

If I could control where it's going, I don't think. Are you listening to government? I'm not. We want you to report exactly where this money went. I'd shuttle all of mine to my little element.

That's true. That would be fun if you could. So I wish all my property tax just went. Send it all. Like, you had to still pay the same amount.

But you could say, I want this all to go to the school. Yes, it's been a big, great. But then like, the police would have no funding if we were outside. Well, the teachers are more funnier to you. I know.

I think the citizens would feel better government if we knew where it was going. Fixed the pod holes first. Just saying. All right.

Next up on our weird habits, buying cars in cash. Oh, yes. This is a hard one. This is a hard one because you get stuck in the car payment cycle. You know, you have a car payment.

You drive the car. And then it's four years, five years later. And you're like, OK, I'm done with that. Now it's time to get another car, right? So a lot of people feel like they're just like in this.

So you trade it into the dealership and get hoesed on that deal. Yes. Sometimes rolling over negative equity to get the next loan. And you keep going. That's what we see on the Ramsey show.

It's frightening.

So I always tell them, what's your car payment?

500 bucks. OK, well, that's $6,000 a year. Yes, yes. 700 is now like the new average for a new car. Yep.

It's crazy. And the interest rates keep going up too and talk about the prices. Some of these interest rates that we're hearing, it's like 28 percent or something. I'm really. People are just desperate.

And they just, they want to get out of that dealership. Yes. And I know. Yep. So saving up and paying for a car in cash, again, controversial.

But if you have a car payment right now, if you have a car loan, if you can't pay off that car in 12 to 18 months, or it's more than half of your annual income, the car is, then, you know, if you, all of that, you got to get rid of it. You got to sell it. And you may have to take out a small loan for the difference if you're under water.

You could put $1,000,000 on that loan to get you a, you know, $3,000, $4,000 a car to get out of that car payment, that $40,000 car payment, you know, for, I don't know, $8,000. Make that trade all day. Yeah. And that first car you get with cash, it's not going to be the prettiest car.

It might be a $6,000 car. Right. And then the next car you get might be a $10,000 car, then maybe a 15 or 20. Yeah. So upgrading slowly over time is very healthy and normal.

Going into debt consistently to buy the latest and greatest to impress people that you

It's not the move. Not the move. And again, people are just willing to pay for it because they can just afford the payment. Well, that's it, too. It's the line of thinking of, yes, if I can afford the payment.

I'm good. I can afford the car. But it's whole save up and pay for it and full, or if you don't have the money, don't buy it. My latest car purchase, it was unbearable.

Can you always have to talk to the finance office no matter what?

To complete the purchase. What did I keep saying? They just can't. And he kept me on the line. Even after I convinced them, listen, dude, I have not taken out a loan.

So stop. He went, well, the warranty, you really need the warranty. So then he pitched the warranty for another seven minutes. It was exhausting. You got to say on that phone.

And at some point, I just want to say, hey, man, ah, you Google me. Just Google me. We can end this call earlier. I swear. We saved your time to go ahead all this to someone else.

Yes, that's right. That's right.

“But you have to really be firm because they will, they're really good at sales.”

They will talk you into pretty much anything. Unless you have your principles laid out early. 100%. Oh, man. So just some crazy habits, George.

Some weird habits in today's world. And you live by by these habits. I mean, not the, you know, getting out our debt for the season and having a work more than 40 hours a week. I don't miss that.

Yep. The one car family life. We got more than that now. Sure. But I still do all these other ones.

Like I have an indeterminable credit score. I use cash or debit only. Yep. I have quit some toxic spending habits called turkey. Look at you doing it all.

Yeah.

And I think the, always the moral of the story is that these harder ones, like you're

saying, one car family and more than 40 hours a week, it's for a season. If you feel like you're just doing it to do it, then that feels hopeless to me. Right. We're not telling people to sacrifice and do these things for nothing. You're doing it to get ahead and it's only for a period of time.

It's not your whole life. So that's the encouraging part. So I have a date out there to be like, okay, we can do all of this for 14 months. You know, for 14 months, we can do anything or nine months. Whatever the thing is, whatever the timeline is, have it up there for a goal to shoot

for. Cause that always gives you an end date. And again, you're going to be better off financially for it. So we always say, live like no one else, so later you get to live and give like no one else.

And these habits are weird. They're not normal. Some people may be like, what are you doing? You're paying off your house. You're trying to pay off your house.

That's a weird goal. You could be doing X-Wine's either. They may throw math. That just spreadsheets all of it. But there's something about the common sense approach to money.

That gives peace of mind and it allows you to build wealth. Beautiful. I do think there's a superpower and not carrying what other people think. That's true, too. There's too many of us are influenced by the pressures we have from family and friends.

And what are they going to think? Well, it's just easier to make them happy, George. There's ego involved. It is. To go backwards.

What feels like backwards in lifestyle for someone to sell your $52,000 SUV and drive a beater. And the family's now like, what are you trying to do? What are you trying to do? Well, that's a nice goal.

That is. It is. That's family. This is not a safe to be driving around your toddler. In this car, there's all kinds of things you're going to face as you do weird things.

“And you have to just put blinders on and go, if they don't pay my bills, they don't get”

a vote. This is what's right for me and my family. And it's for a season or it's forever for you're going to be a cash and debit person. And you're going to get flag for it from the people who, you know, maybe love you most. Sometimes.

Absolutely. But you got to stick to your guns. I love it. It's a great job. George.

Okay. Before we spill the tea on our guilty charged segments. Thank you, May. I beat you too. Thank you.

Did beat me. Can I say this state frozen? Well done. I don't even know what the combination was, but it's a state frozen. They use some really high quality ice in here.

This was a virgin Pina Calada. Very simple ingredients. He'll be shocked. Pineapple juice, cream of coconut. Plus ice.

Is that it? In a blender. $1 and $12, and not a penny. My kids would chuck this. This is a great.

$10 out of 10. I might too. I mean, genuine. Yes. 10 out of 10.

So good. Take me to the all inclusive. You know, one of my favorite videos have you seen it? Well, they have an alcohol version of this video.

I'm about to talk about where it's like, "Hi, it's girls night and this is my first

drink." And then it's like, "Hi, it's girls night. This is my second. They have a kid version. We're like, "This is my first Pina Calada."

It's like a little gay. And then it's like, "This is me after my second Pina Calada." And he goes all the way. It's like 12 on his stroke of his barely. It's so cute.

He just has like a sugar frown. So I know you like freaks out on the sugar. I don't know. But it's four peas or pants. That's more likely to happen.

That's just, that's a lot of liquid. For a little bit of liquid going into the 12 year old. Yeah. I've been there. Oh, that's so funny.

Well. Yeah, your 10 out of 10 too. Yeah, for sure. All right. Shout out.

The producers have been on it. I know. Gosh. So yeah, this. And this is when you can make for the kids, too.

Exactly. So the recipe is in the show notes. Give it a try this weekend.

“And if you want to spice it up and spike it.”

That's your prerogative. You're an adult. You do what you want to do. Okay. This feels very Caribbean to me, George.

Mm-hmm. Yes. It does. Are you thinking what I'm thinking? I know.

Are you thinking, Ramsay Cruz? Twenty twenty seven.

I think we should.

“Did you know we did a smart money happy hour twice at sea on the last Ramsay Cruz?”

So epic. Were they special? We had a special commemorative smart money happy hour. Tiki glass. Yeah, and people got to buy it.

Yeah, okay. Some people don't even know. You may not even know. So you know that. I feel like sometimes it's news people.

They didn't know. Arch of twenty twenty five. Yes. So we did a Ramsay Cruz with everyone that was on baby steps four, five, six, and seven. So debt for all the things.

An entire cruise ship of Ramsay. People. Can you picture it like twenty five hundred of our closest friends? Yes. And yeah.

And for a week, we took sale around the Caribbean. And it was so fun. We got to speak at night. We did live a podcast episodes like smart money happy hour. There was comedians and musical guests.

Magic shows fun and entertainment. Good food and drink. I gave us so fun. All the Ramsay personalities were there. Dave and Sharon were there.

And everyone was so kind. I was like this and even the staff was like, who are these? Seriously. It was these are the kind. They were the nicest cruisers we've ever dealt with.

Yes. So like, yeah, I was in the spa one day. And like, do my massage was like, I don't know who you all are.

She's like, but we've never been tipped more.

That's right. Just a generality was amazing. All of it. And other cruisers were saying that. We're just so glad to be in an environment.

Like, we're, we're very positive. Yeah. It was like a utopia. It was so good. So the invitation is already gone out to those cruisers.

And it's filling up quick because they're all wanting to go again. Now we come at tradition. They want to come back. Yes. So we are going.

I think it's what the Western Caribbean this time. Sure. We're going to different islands. But it's going to be with some white sand and a beautiful ocean. I know.

Yeah. It's all the same. Yeah, hitting the seas again, you guys. March of 2027.

“So we'll put a link down below if you want to join us.”

The Ramsey live like no one else cruise is upon us. You can book your cabin now and save up to 200 bucks online only. So go to Ramsey Solutions dot com slash cruise to book your cabin today. Or click the link in the show notes. And again, it'll be the entirety of the Ramsey team.

All the Ramsey personalities Rachel myself. Dave, Delo's. Let's do this morning have the hour live again. That was so good. It really is.

You know the best part was. We started and it was like hi. I'm Rachel Cruz. I'm George Campbell. And this is in the whole audience went smart money happy.

Yeah. It was so good. I could die happy. This is so good. So fun.

I've never felt more like a rock star than 2,500 people who are like.

I'm here for this podcast. We love this podcast. We love a good podcast. They were ready to learn. They were like, I was like guys.

That was the other. That's your hair down. And they're like, now we want to learn about mutual funds. That's what we're going to do. That's what we're going to do.

That's what we're going to do. That's what we're going to do. That's what we're going to do. That's what we're going to do. That's what we're going to do.

That's what we're going to do. That's what we're going to do. That's what we're going to do. That's what we're going to do. That's what we're going to do.

That's what we're going to do. That's what we're going to do. That's what we're going to do. That's what we're going to do. That's what we're going to do.

That's what we're going to do. That's what we're going to do. That's what we're going to do. All right. You ready George?

Can I ask this one? Oh, sure. All right. Have you ever gone into full panic mode? Thinking you accidentally bought way too much of something Rachel.

I don't know. Maybe it was backtreep voice tickets. Could have been anything. You wouldn't happen to have a story like that. Would you?

You've never panic bought.

Is that a thing you would do? My Lord. Geez. That you've been guilty. I can't believe you're right.

Yeah. That I had to pull you from the depths out of to say you. You were a great friend in that moment to me. Okay. Yeah.

Okay. So guilty. Yeah. I'm going to take a sip just for entertainment sake. Oh, my gosh.

Okay. So I went back to true voice last year and it changed my life. It genuinely was the closest to heaven I might have ever been. I felt so alive. God would like to have a word.

So no, he gets it. He created them. We're all creating an assuming. So he knows. This cause they wore all white ones doesn't mean they're angels right.

No.

“It was it was honestly such a funny experience.”

And so I was chatting up with some other friends and two of them were turning 40 back to the 40th. This is like where I'm at. And they were like, I want to go to the back to the voice. I was like, I'll go again.

And they were cute. So then we finally like she texts. She followed up with the text. And she was like, no seriously. These dates.

And then it gets serious. Right? People start throwing out dates. And you're like, oh, my gosh. Okay, I could go here.

So we're like, we're doing it. And I'll say, okay, well, I'll get the tickets. Since I've been and I can try to find the sections that are good with a good price point. So I always do ticket master to buy my tickets.

So I'm going and I find four. And it's actually a pretty good. Like, I was like, hey, this is good. I go when it's like, sorry. I went through and I was like, I'm available.

And then it would take me to this weird ad pop up. And I'm like, what is going on? And I said, I seriously sent my car.

And you start sweating.

Because you're like, why is it not working?

Why is it not working? Someone's going to get these tickets. Oh, go on. And I start panicking. Well, I have to do the show.

I'm in the parking lot at Ramsey. And it's like 12, 52. And I have to be on air and like, I don't know 12 minutes. Yeah. With me.

George is hosting with me that day. So I get up and I'm like, George, I'm so stressed. I have got to get these backstripped waste tickets. And it's not letting me look. This is what keeps popping up.

And I'm showing up and you're like, that looks like a scam. I'm like, I know, but it's coming from tick him. I don't get it. And then George was like, okay, next break. So then the next break comes.

We have to go out and take pictures. And we come back and I saw him. Oh, yeah. I shouldn't do another break to do this. Then we get to the next break.

“And George was like, did you know about what took a pic?”

Take pic.

And I'm like, never heard tick pic.

So I'm like, I'm picking off a tick. But no, I'm not our tick pic. And you're like, it's a great place to buy tickets. I was like, okay, George is my, he's my deal maker. He's my friend that does all the weird websites.

So I'm like, so then I go, tick pic legitimately. Was cheaper for the same seats. Yes. So I was like, oh my gosh, I'm going to, I'm reviled. And I found the same for seats.

That was, I was like, and so I do it. My card doesn't go through. Remember? So then I'm like, having to call Winston on the next break. Long story short.

I get the tickets. But then I go and refresh my Gmail. Ticket master has emailed me. Like six times to confirm to confirm to claim my tickets. And I thought, oh my goodness.

Oh my gosh. But I just bought 18 tickets to actually boys. Like I took tickets of backstreet boys. I just spent thousands of dollars. And so then I start panicking.

“Because I was like, oh my gosh, what am I going to do?”

And he's like, it's okay. You can resell in. You know what I was like, oh my god. Oh my god. Oh my god.

Do I have enough of my check? I'm going to bounce it. I'm going to overdraft. I mean, seriously. And then we had to go back on air.

So then I'm talking to Sally about our car payment. And I'm just sweating. Oh my gosh. I just got bankrupt. I'm backstreet boys tickets.

They want to felt like then it turned out. So I'm so dramatic. That no. It is that's not true. Tickpick just sent me through ticket master.

Each individual ticket and confirmation email. So it was all just a jump scare. How about you, George? Anything? When I buy something, it's so intentional.

So if it's ever something I'm not sure about. Like I get transactional alerts.

So it's always something outrageous.

And I'm just immediately text Whitney. Hey, was this you? Yes, it was me. Yeah. And I sleep soundly at night.

Knowing that it's my wife and not a. Although I do think if we got hacked, the hacker would spend less than my wife does. So I'm like, should we try it? Maybe we shouldn't.

Maybe we should get the car shut down because of a hacker. Oh, two guys. I only buy a lot of things that I know I'm going to use. I famously bought a box of bar soap. Cause they were going to he was going to get discontinued.

Oh, so you're like, I need like. So I need to stock up. I need to pack. Don't ever make it again. Look at what we're kind of so.

He was looking. I was spring did like an out bar situation. Yeah. And you loved it. And it was a young man.

You know, he said discontinued the soap and George said, I think, no, I need to wash my hands. A lot. So. So when that Walmart really packed a box full of soap going.

Someone really needs the. But I used them for years. Okay, that's good. That's a good one better than no. No panic, though.

Okay. Cool is a cucumber. See, that's me. I'm so urgent. I will do things like that.

Well, you are.

“You tend to be impulsive, which is why I think you need the budget more than anything.”

You know, my nature. You know, but we live on the edge. I have more fun. That's right. And you're going to have a great time of back street voice coming up here soon.

So we'll report back. So if you have a guilty as charged question. Make sure to DM us at Rachel Cruz and at George Camel. We would love to use it. And if you enjoyed this episode, you are going to love the episode that we did on.

Are these common money habits? Brooke, average or wealthy. So we'll put the link down below for you. And make sure to subscribe to the channel. So you don't miss an all new episode of smart money happy hour.

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