Smart Money Happy Hour with Rachel Cruze and George Kamel - Explaining Our Most Hated Financial Advice

Episode Date: June 15, 2023

You can’t be everyone’s cup of tea, but you can always show up with a good cocktail! Rachel and George are responding to the loudest, most common criticisms they receive. Haters gonna hate—but we’re okay with that.   In This Episode: ·      Rachel shocks modern women everywhere with her joint bank account stance. ·      George defends his frugal eating in vs. eating out strategy. ·      Rachel and George read “mean tweets” about themselves (Jimmy Kimmel style). Helpful Resources:    ·      Get your finances organized, make a plan, build up your confidence, and kick money stress out of your life for good with the EveryDollar budgeting app. Go to www.everydollar.com/smart to get started today. ·      Do you have a Guilty as Charged question for Rachel and George? Send a DM to @rachelcruze or @georgekamel on Instagram! Be sure to type “GUILTY?” at the top of your message so we don’t miss it. ·      Learn more about your ad choices. https://www.megaphone.fm/adchoices   Ramsey Solutions Privacy Policy     This Week’s Happy Hour Special: The Roy Rogers   Ingredients: ·      6 ounces cola ·      1 tablespoon grenadine syrup ·      Maraschino cherry (for garnish)   Instructions: Pour grenadine into tall glass filled with ice. Top with cola. Garnish with a maraschino cherry and enjoy! 🍒 Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Hey guys, I'm Rachel Cruz. I'm George Camel. And this is Smart Money Happy Hour. Cheers, George. Cheers. Very refreshing. Fun for the whole family. All right.

Well, this is the podcast for two friends who happen to be money experts. Talk about what you're talking about. So everything from pop culture, current events, and money. And typically, we block out the haters. But today, we are choosing to respond. What we take the high road? Only time will tell. We are bringing in the haters for this episode.

Do it for the plot. That's right. Do it for the story. Do they still, I don't know. Have you heard that? No, I'm so useful though. Thank you. They have the energy for it because we don't always have the energy for that.

But we're going to talk about some of our most controversial topics when it comes to money. People love to hate on them. And that's okay. The biggest criticisms. And while we're talking about the hate, we're sipping on a what, George? This is a mock tale today. And it is called the Roy Rogers, which is why I said it's fun for the whole family in case you're a one. wondering. The kids can enjoy this one too. It's like a cherry coke almost. I feel like a kid again.

Yeah. It's actually delicious. I think it's fun. So we're going to reveal, a big reveal of our rating, the cost to make it, the recipe at the end of the episode. And that's what we're drowning our sorrows with today as we respond to the haters. We're so brave. Can I just say that? Most people, they're not. We have so much courage doing this. Fearless. Taylor Swift reference, 10 points. We are fearless. Thank you. Not all heroes wear capes. Is that another Taylor Swift song? It feels like it could be. She probably isn't. That feels like a line from her. It's coming. I think it's coming. Okay.

Well, before we jump into this episode, you guys might notice that someone else is sitting in producer Lindsay's chair. But no fear. It is my friend and fellow producer for my YouTube channel, Alex. Alex, we welcome you. And the crowd goes wild. Lindsay has chosen. No hate here. Lindsay has deserted us in our time of need and is on vacation.

And Alex has dutifully stepped in to feel. fill in the gaps and fill some big shoes. So you'll see him for a few episodes here on Smart Money Happy Hour. That's right. Okay. So for the listeners, George, that don't know, let's just give a quick overview of what we do because it's going to help set the stage. Oh, love setting the stage.

This episode because people hate us. Also, kind of nerve-wracking to be like, what do I do? I know. And I don't think we've ever really done this on this show. That's true. Because we just say we're two friends who happen to be money experts. That's all they know. Yeah, so we work here at Ramsey Solutions outside of Nashville, Tennessee.

Technically, it's Franklin, so it's a little suburb of Nashville, but we're here in the middle Tennessee. I don't know why that was a hashtag, but they can visit us. Did they say that anymore? Franklin is a destination, and so is Ramsey Solutions. Come see us. Come see us. So Ramsey has a lot of different branches. It started as really like a personal finance money company, started by your dad, Dave Ramsey,

helping people get out of debt, build wealth. And now we have over 1,000 team members here. And we're personality. So we're kind of the front-facing folks who get to do a whole lot of different stuff, Rachel. Yes. So, again, there's many different departments, everything from we have school curriculum

to the media side of our company, to ELP, yeah, our endorse local provider. So there's a bunch of different, we call them P&Ls within Ramsey, but the front-facing people are the Ramsey personalities, which George and I are. And we're focused on money, to be clear. Yes, George and I specifically. And so we write books and do podcasts, put out content all around helping you become in control with your money.

That's one of our big things. Financial Peace is kind of one of the slogans around here. We want you to have peace when it comes to your money. Financial Peace University. Yes, which is our nine lesson course. That we're both in. We're in. You can check us out there.

So just again, a lot of content. and products and everything around helping people specifically get in control with their money, which means getting out of debt, getting an emergency fund in place, investing in retirement, paying for kids' college, paying after house, all of it. Just doling out money advice on the reg. It's called the seven Ramsey Baby Step. So we talk about that. And we also speak at live events. And so if you want to see us around the country, we travel a lot and do events.

So while all of our intentions are so pure on helping people with money. So pure. We get a lot of pushback, and some people get very mad at us with some of our stances. Is it shocking to you at, like what people get offended at? I mean, some people get really angry. So that's where I'm talking about this episode, I'm laughing because I'm nervous. Well, it doesn't hurt my feelings. When people say things that are actually true about, like, my character, I'm like, that's not true.

When people are like, I'm like, hey, maybe we shouldn't all use credit cards. And they're like, kill him. I'm like, whoa, that was aggressive. But okay. That's true. I don't get as offended when they're mad. But we have a firm stance on anything that you believe in deeply. You're going to get pushback. That's true.

But we have, I would say a level of confidence, though, because literally millions of people have gone through this and have found such freedom. And what I love about our job, George, and a lot of you listening or watching this podcast, it's everyday people. Like, we're not like the flashy, trying to, like, hit the wealthy celebrity market. Like, we want to help everyday people that are going to work because they're making great money. they're paying their bills. They feel a little behind, stress. They want good for their kids. Like, it is the everyday Americans. And we have helped a lot of people. The content has helped a lot of people. We deliver the content. But that's our heart behind it. And we've lived it out, too. We actually believe this stuff so much that we do it. We don't have credit cards. Wild concept. We pay for things in cash. We fund retirement, even though it's not fun always to put money away.

I have zero crypto. No crypto. Yeah. So we really do. truly live out what we talk about too. And Rachel, you know my story, but for those that don't, I put a video on my new YouTube channel about this, how I went from broke to millionaire. That was my story. When I started here at Ramsey Solutions 10 years ago, I was an intern, attempt, got an entry-level job, and I was $40,000 in consumer debt. I got out of that.

I got an emergency fund. I started investing. I bought a house, and my wife and I paid off our house a few years back. So we followed it, and we became net worth millionaires over 10 years of following these principles. So I'm just like, I'm normal. I have immigrant parents. Like, I don't have trust funds. You can do this too.

And so that's what I love helping people understand, believe, and then put into action. For sure. Yep. And my story was started, I was born the year my parents filed for bankruptcy. And so I'm kind of that second generation coming from parents that were very intentional with teaching us about money. And growing up knowing. And so now as adults, you know, and being married 13 years with three kids, like truly having the dignity to make day-to-day decisions with our own money and choosing this path. And again, thankfully, got a head start in that sense because of having the knowledge and the practice and the behavior from early on was very helpful.

So a big passion of mine is people that, yeah, they have little ones, little kids. And I'm like, the stuff you're doing now truly does change them that when they're 20, 21, 22 years old, off on their own, they really can start their life then. Like, it's amazing that you can avoid so many money mistakes. Not that we're perfect. Sure. But there's power in that. It's never too late. If you're 40, 50, 60, we still have people who go, I got out of debt.

I can retire with dignity. For sure. Okay. So do you think we convince everyone that we're good people? I don't think anyone's convinced that I'm a good person, but I'll concede. So let's raise a glass, Rachel, of haterate here. Okay. And the relentless negative Nancy's out there because it's time to invite the skeptics

into the chat as we discuss our controversial money advice. You ready? All right. You kick us off, Rachel. What's the number one criticism that you get when it comes to your money advice? Yeah, the number one hate that I for sure. is when I tell married couples to combine their finances. The audacity.

People get so angry with me, George. Oh. So people are comfortable sharing DNA and a bed. A baby. But not an account that holds money. No. They go, not on my watch. Don't tread on me, Rachel.

That's right. Oh, yeah. What's behind that? Well, I'll say a lot of it probably comes from a lot of pain. You know, someone's been taken advantage of in a divorce situation, right? They've come from a family history where there's a lot of brokenness financially and they really feel the need to protect themselves. Like I do think that it comes from a level of probably trueness in their story. But even with that, though, we just see when you are married, when you combine everything and say we are one and we're going to work as the same team, you just win with money faster.

You really do. And then on top of that or underneath that even is a level of intimacy that is built. You are fully transparent with your spouse on every part of marriage, let me say, which is very scary. Sure. And not always fun. But the more you are of that in marriage, I just think the richer your marriage is. So I would, I still push for it because I think on a tactical level, it's easier to handle money when you're working out of one account. But then it does something to the relationship when you say, you're not going to, you know, you pay this bill, I pay that bill.

And you're acting almost like roommates. It's very petty. It is. And you end up running on these two separate. tracks versus saying, hey, if we combine everything and we're one and we're working as a team, somebody gave us this picture years early on in our marriage. And I loved it. They're like, if you ever have an issue, put the issue out there and like stand beside each other, right, metaphorically. But it's like, that issues, that's the issue out there. It's not you. And don't

put it in the middle of you. Put it out there. And when you look at money like that, it's like, yeah, if you're a married couple, like those are our problems. Like, we want a fun retirement. And there's not enough in there. That's the problem. Or, we're drowning in debt. That's the problem. And so how do you and I together do that? I mean, not you and I, George. We're not married. We're married to other people. But do you know what I'm saying? But we have joint bank accounts with our spouses.

And I thought like this is normal. Like people don't do this. And then I found out, people like, well, we have one account that's for like the shared bills and we have our savings. And then we each have our personal accounts. So it's my money. I get to say what. And so then I went, well, why don't you talk about the trust issues you have with each other if she's going, you can't spend your money that way. a conversation about it. Yes.

Instead of brushing it under separate rugs. That's it too, right? So an issue comes up and it's like, well, we'll fix the issue by separating so we don't have to deal with the issue. And in marriage words, deal with the issue. Trust me. Deal with the issue. Go in therapy.

Like, do the work. Well, people are worried like, I'm going to lose my sense of independence and self and autonomy. And what I would say is have a line item in your budget that is yours. Like Winston has one and he goes and gets rocks at Home Depot and does something in I don't know, whatever he does. Rocks. And then I need to go get my nails done.

So I'm going to go do this. But there's no judgment, right? Like when it's your personal Rachel category. Winston's not like you spend it on what? No, no. That's the fear. They go, I don't want someone, I don't want to ask for permission when I go spend my money. It's the dollar amounts that you agree upon.

And then you go. So that is one though, man. And people are angry about it. But haters is going to hate. But I'm okay with that. George, give me yours that you get eaten alive when it comes to the internet. This one like went viral, like millions of views on me saying that it is cheaper to eat at home than eating out. And my stat was like average cost of a meal, $13 eating out, average cost of a meal at home, $4.

And so you're willing to spend over. Yeah. Why? Because of your math? What were they mad at you for? Because they're like, this guy's the next time he went grocery shopping, 1992. And I went, bro, you don't even know my grocery shopping game. Okay.

don't come at me with that. Don't come at me at that. So I did a video on my YouTube channel breaking it down. I went shopping. I showed literal receipts from Trader Joe's and Costco and broke it down into servings and went, look at that. It's under $4 per serving. Isn't that funny?

So people didn't understand, number one, what a serving is. They thought I was leaving the grocery store with a $4 receipt. Which tells me about their IQ level. So that tells you something about the haters. It's more about them than it is about you. But then the other piece was they were like, well, with inflation, it's so. much cheaper eating out. Groceries are so insane.

I'm like, do you not think that restaurants have to buy groceries to make their food? And do you not think they're passing on that cost to you, the consumer? Do you think that it's actually cheaper? Now, what they're really saying is, I'm too lazy to cook and I'm not good at meal planning and shopping. That's really what they're saying. I could be saying that. Now, I can't call that out because they will implode, Rachel.

Yes, they will. And so we... People do get mad about food. That's a thing. It's just basic math. And everyone that actually cooks at home, they're like, oh, yeah, he's right. And the people that don't cook at home are like, you can't do that. So that's kind of most of our advice.

The people who don't actually do it are the ones who have issue with it. Oh. Good tagline, George. Good tagline. Terrible tagline. Up next. Who, credit cards. Oh, my gosh. Okay.

So we are anti-credit cards for the record because we just believe in spending your own money. Don't use the bank's money. Even for your everyday monthly purchases, just use your money. So you don't have a bill because you end up spending more on a credit card. I think, too, you're just involved in this, like, toxic game of, like, points and all this because other people can't. Well, I'm hoping for 2% with the chance that I risk 20% interest. Yes. That's just stupid odds.

Yeah. So just, you know, we're all about, yeah, and you can rent a car, you can travel, you can do all the things with a debit card. Now, sometimes there's like a little hoop, right? Some, not all rental car companies will take your debit cards. You need a call ahead. So there's some planning, but we travel all the time. what the bigger hoops are, playing the credit card game. I was watching a video, and it was like nine steps to use a credit card the right way,

and then you want to transfer it to the zero balance, but then you've got to use, you've got to utilize this much of your credit card limit in order to get your credit score up, and I went, they think we're insane? Like, do they not understand? This is ridiculous. We've all just been raised to believe that, like, credit cards have better fraud protection. False. Yes, it is your money with a debit card, but the bank replaces it.

There's the similar protections in place. To protect your money. And then the other thing is the credit score. And we've realized, oh, you don't need a credit score to survive. You can rent cars and hotels and even buy houses without a credit score. So the whole, like, system, you can get around without a credit card. And let me just tell you, I think there is something so freeing when I go and whether it's shopping or we do go out to eat, right? And you go to a restaurant.

And you swipe the debit card, the money leaves the account, and you're done. It's done. And it's over. I'll think about it a month from now. You keep on moving on with life. So living in the presence is really big because you make different decisions financially when you do that. So against credit cards, but, man, we get a lot of hate. The key to building wealth for me was when I actually cut up my cards, not when I was using it and trying to, like, game the system.

Right, right. It was when I just went, I'm going to use my own money. And then I treated that money differently. Yes. And I just made my own reward system by, like, you know, saving up for stuff. And I was like, wow, I got $2,000 just by not being an idiot. Because people do pay off their card every month and get the airline money. Right?

Like, they do play the game. And for some people, it... The miles are confusing. It's like, you have 30,000 airline miles. Like, great, I can fly anywhere. Like, no, you have a one-way to Boise with 30,000 airline miles. They're not road miles.

But companies like Southwest... I mean, there are some that is a plug-and-play. Sure, but they're still, they confuse you with points and miles now instead of, like, actual dollars amounts. Yes, now that is true. Yes, yes, for sure. I have a million points. But my point is, like, even if you play the game

and you get the benefit of the airline ticket, you still statistically spend 12 to 18% more of, a credit card. Like your emotions are detached. And that's, that's the science. We're just, we're speaking science here. Follow the science. Hey, here's my challenge to any of you who still use a credit card. Try using a debit card for 30 days and then track how much you spend differently. And I guarantee it's going to be less. All right. Up next, George, we have the $1,000 starter emergency fund. People get very mad about this because they say $1,000 is not enough. So this is the first step in the Ramsey Baby Steps. Baby Step 1. Save $1 in a starter emergency fund. Every other

dime other than your buffered in your checking account should go towards paying off debt. Yes. And people freak out. Yes. And so, listen, the $1,000 emergency fund, honestly, it's not meant to be enough. Like, it's not. Like, it will not cover everything. And we know that. Like, we know that. So what do you do? Well, you pause the debt snowball if you're in baby step two to go and fix the emergency when it happens. And you move on. And you move on. Over $1,000. Over $1,000. Which we found most emergencies actually are under $1,000.

Yes. In your mind, you spiral. to like, what if the H-FAC goes out? Sure, that's a possibility. Right. More realistically, it's like, oh, I got a flat tire. I got to pay for a $300 tire. Yeah, we've got to figure it out, yes. But that urgency, though, is one of the things that kind of fuels people to get out of debt faster.

Because you realize, oh, I'm not safe. If I owe $60,000 and I have $10,000 in my bank account, I'm not safe. And the other point of the $1,000 emergency fund is we want you to do it quickly because this is the first step in a process of change for you. and if you really do choose to engage in this, we do, as the teachers in it, like, we want you to have a quick win. And if we're like, you got to save $10,000, you're like, oh, my gosh,

that's going to take me forever to do that first step. So getting that first step done to move on to pay off debt, there's a behavior change that occurs that is really big when it comes to winning with money, you guys. Momentum is key. Yes, behavior is a big part of this. It's not just the numbers and the math. It's that momentum.

So it takes most people 30 days on average for baby step one, which is amazing. If you can do something in under 30 days, you're like, I'll keep going. Oh, yeah. I mean, sell stuff, work. Do what you got to do. Get that $1,000 quick. Love it.

Okay. Next up, Rachel, on the controversial advice list, paying off debt from smallest to largest balance and ignoring the interest rate. I know. The audacity. Yes. So people get very mad about this. They're like, do you not understand math, Rachel? Because mathematically, mathematically, we are incorrect.

You're right. If we are doing math. On paper, you might pay less interests. Yeah. On paper, you would pay off the highest interest rate first. Mathematically, that is correct. But as we said earlier, we're not talking about math here, y'all. We're talking about behavior change.

And what got you into this mess was not a math problem. It was a you problem. Tell them. And a you problem. Tell them. So we got to fix us first. Like it's the people that are managing the money that need to be fixed, not just the money. And so when you get these quick wins, when you get that momentum, that's when you see change.

And this works whether you have $30,000 of debt or $30,000. $300,000 worth of consumer debt. Smallest to largest, that's what kept me going on the plan. I was like, I knock one out. I freed up a payment. It was great. I can use that, plus all the other margin towards the next debt. And you actually see the light at the end of the tunnel instead of trying to take down

the mountain first. Yeah, and there was actually a study down between the debt snowball, which is what we teach, smallest to largest or the debt avalanche, which is highest interest rate to lowest interest rate. And people actually got out of debt faster using the debt snowball. Listen, avalanches are scary. Snowballs are fun. I'm choosing the snowball every time.

Get it at Snowball Fight, George. Okay. Okay, next is helping out adult kids slash grandkids financially. Ooh. Okay, this one, this one's a little different. It's a little nuanced because here's my advice. Define helping out. Well, and here's what I would say for me.

This is the advice I would give. I don't know. Maybe we differ on this. But I think if it's for a season or a time or a specific situation and you choose to help your kids when you financially are able to, I don't see that as bad. When it becomes a pattern and you're enabling the same behavior

from your child that can't get ahead and you just keep funding that, that does more damage to the child than them having to learn and figure it out. Yes. But I'm like, maybe I'm a millennial, but I'm like, I'm not angry if someone moves home for a few months.

An adult child has to move home for a few months to kind of get on their feet, figure out a new lease for an apart. I don't know. I'm not rigid with this one. Maybe you're a millennial, maybe it's Mabelene. We don't know.

But I will say there is a line between enabling and being generous. And what is that, George? I don't think you should ever loan your kids money. Never co-signed for debt for your family members, whether it's kids, grandma, I don't care. It changes the relationship when you owe money to a family member. And family relationships are too precious to destroy over money. Because if you like owe money to your parents and they see you in Winston go on vacation, Oh, I know.

And you still owe them money. All of a sudden, Thanksgiving dinner just got real awkward. It's weird. Yeah. If you want to give money to your kids, gift it. Yes. Gifted. And I've had friends in this situation, and it is.

Or like the parents like, oh, yeah, well, just do this and we'll pay you back or whatever. And then the parent never. I mean, it can go both ways. So it's just weird. If family asks you for money, you've got to have the boundaries. If you don't feel good about it to just gift it, they just say no. Yes. If you know it's going to enable bad behavior.

They're not in a good spot financially. They're not really wanting to change. They just want a shortcut. I don't feel good about giving someone the money to do something dumb or risky. That's right. That's right. So that's a tough one. Okay.

The last one, George, is cars. We encourage people to pay cash for cars, which may mean... And used cars if you're not a million-year- It's a used car, which is not great. And people, they just, wow. The safety comes out. I've never seen people who are like, Rachel, the safety and reliability.

Are you trying to kill your phone? family on the road? How do you not drive a brand new vehicle? I know that used cars are like, you know what your new car turns into and you drive it off the lot? A used car. You know what can still burn up in flames? Your new car. And what's funny to me is I'm like, like cars that are that are over 100,000 miles, it's obviously a really good car because it's that's what I'm saying. It's a really decent car because it's still going. It's got a great track record so far. Yes, I know. So we're, I don't know. So this is a big one. I think people use safety and reliability. liability to justify the flex of I want a new car to look good.

Yes. But they're doing it under the guise. They're like, well, I just care about safety. Can I say out of all the debt we talk about car loans, it's the one that makes me like, it's the dumbest type of debt. It hangs my head. Tell them I. Well, it's the toughest because you're paying interest in something that's going down in value.

And in the book, The Psychology of Money, great book. He said it perfectly. He was like, it's the ego that stands in the way. for a lot of people in their car. Yes. Because your car says something about you. It's a status symbol. Yes.

It's supposed to just get you from point A to point B, but we've created this world where cars are a thing. We like cars. We both have a Tesla. We both paid cash for our cars. We did, yes. So we're not against nice cars, but...

And we're not even against new cars. But there's just a time and place for it. What, $600 for a car payment? If you have two of those, that's $1,200 a month going out in a car where if you invest in that... And let your money work for you versus working for the bank. Like, it's a mathematical thing to me.

Yeah. And most people now I feel like want the SUV, the truck, which just gets astronomically expensive so quick. Yep. So get it used to payments. So they just go, well, if I can afford the payment, who cares? I'm like, well, you're choosing. You're actively saying, I don't want to build wealth. I'm happy to make bad decisions to look good.

That's what you're really saying. I know. And so I know it's hard because you're like, you may not be that person. You're like, I'm not doing it for ego. I really want safety and reliability. get a pre-purchase inspection and get a reliable brand. Yes. Actually research and go, okay, the Camrys, the civics, the accords, whatever.

Right. Reliable brands that can go over 100,000 miles and buy what you can afford in cash. We love a minivan. We love a lot of thing. Listen, I put my pride aside every time I drive my Odyssey. Listen. I die a little bit inside, but it's the best. I got in producer Alex.

You have a Honda Odyssey, Alex? You do too, Alex? What years is it? 2011. That thing's got some baller features on it. I'm telling you. The doors are electric. It's got the screen.

It's got everything a boy could want. I do die. It's a minivan. Like, I acknowledge it. Every time I get in, I say, I'm getting into a minivan. That's what I'm choosing to drive. But it is like a parent set in that driver's scene and said, what do I need? Yes.

And it's all about practicality. It's the passenger's experience. It's unbelievable. It's unbelievable. And you can do that, like, if you want a nice car. Okay, get the version of that car. 10 years older. Like, that's what I did with my Tesla.

Yeah. I was like, I want a Tesla. I can't afford a brand new Tesla. So I'm going to find one that's older. That's still reliable. So good. It's possible. All right, George.

So that's all the controversial money advice that we give. So Jimmy Kimmel does a segment on his show. Are you ready for this, George? We're going to do it. We got some mean tweets ahead. I'm kind of nervous. Okay. The team shows these.

We don't really know what's coming here. Okay. You go first, George. All right. Here we go. We're going to channel our inner T-Swift here and just shake it off, Rachel. All right? So many trailer references.

Wow, she, like, loves writing songs about the critics. It's so good. Okay. This was a comment about me. I give two stars because this is the segment that fits them both. George routinely gives bland and at times bad advice on the Ramsey. His personality comes off smug and really not someone I would want to hang out with or have a cocktail with. Oh, George.

Well, that's a shame because this person sounds like a real piece. who's fun at parties. So I'm a real, I'm real bummed that I'll never get to hang out with this person and have a drink with them. Oh my gosh. Is that a, I mean, do you think I give bland and at times bad advice? No, I think you're fun. I guess bland advice is like invest 15% into your 401k. That's plain. It could be blamed. Bad advice. I've been known to tell people to sell their horse, which horse people would say is bad advice. They get so mad at you at that. You were on that show. That was bad. Okay. You're next. Oh, wow, it's about my husband's. It's even about me. It's so.

is there a more wealthier person's name than Winston? Okay, that's true and funny. Show me a broke Winston. Prove to me that they're out there. Even like... And it comes from a hardworking family. If a dog is named Winston, like that dog has money. Which always happens.

And they're always like, it's a French bulldog. Like it's a fancy dog. It's a dog name. Wow. Okay, I'm next. Okay, go. Does anyone feel... Does anyone else feel like George is very...

hard to tolerate asking for a friend. I'm pretty sure producer Lindsay submitted this one. Now this one I actually agree with. Like if I wasn't me, I wouldn't be able to tolerate me. I'm a lot. But you know the old quote, Rachel, if someone says you're too much, maybe they're not enough. And I live by that motto. I do the most so everyone else can do less.

And that's a burden. It's a cross that I bear daily. But that's the gifting that I was given from the Lord above. Do you feel that way? From a toleration standpoint. Are you okay? I had a drink and I couldn't. It hit the wrong way.

No, I just couldn't. I feel like at times even my wife would say you're hard to tolerate. Oh, well, George, you know, for the hour we work with every week, I think I'm fine. Rachel can withstand me for one hour and that's it. That's the limit. That's why we only record one a week. It's too much. Okay, the next one.

Gosh, mine are kind of nice because I think it includes you. Well, it must be nice, Rachel. It says they're not money experts, but they are entertaining. They, so it wasn't even like Rachel. So there you go, George. I'll take that one. Now, here's the thing. Obviously, we use the word expert.

An expert can mean a lot of things. Yes. We are not certified financial advisors. We don't actually choose mutual funds. We actually send you to those people. But the word expert is so loosey-goosey today's world. I know. All right, my next one.

more inane babble from people I don't want to see on my feed. Who cares? Three question marks. Do you have no regard for punctuation? One was sufficient. One. Okay, I don't get the next one.

Rachel is a female Tyler Darden. Durdon. I googled this one. Tyler Durdon is the character in Fight Club. Played by Brad Pitt. But let me read you. I was like... So I googled, Rachel.

Tyler Durdin, personality. He said a mean person. He's mean? Tyler. He's not even real. Get this. Yeah. Sorry.

It's a movie character. Here are his traits. Okay. Tyler is manipulative, selfish, hypocritical, and most importantly, a danger to society. He also, by the end of the movie, spoiler alert, we find out he's schizophrenic with split personalities. But then I also found out that at the end of the movie, we learned that his plan is to erase debt by destroying buildings containing credit card records. Maybe that's what they're talking about. Rachel wants to erase the debt of America.

Yes, I do. That's the only connotation I can think of as to why you are like Tyler Dirt. That is so funny. There you go. There you go. Okay. Okay, next up. George Camel is such a Chad.

What is it? I had to look up Chad and it got dark real quick. There's many definitions. Here's the only one that I found that I think makes sense. It originally meant, it doesn't make sense actually. An attractive, charismatic man who is successful with women. Have you seen my track record? But to people here, it has come to mean any man who can attract a partner at all.

But really, I think it just means any guy you don't like, he's a Chad. You're such a Chad. To me, it sounds like very nickelbacky. The next one is for you, though. Ready for this? All right. George is so funny and sexy to listen to better than Dave himself. I couldn't pay someone to leave a review that night.

Five-star rating. Wow. There's a lot of adjectives that have been used to describe me. I don't think sexie's ever made the cut. Well, you got that one, George. That's not a mean tweet. That is a, take that.

Put that in your pipe. Thank you so much. You know what? I don't want Dave to feel down if he's listening to this. Dave, sex appeal is not a competition. We're all worthy in the eyes of God.

We're all beautiful in our own way. And that will be edited out because there are children listening, Rachel. Do you have no regard that this is a family show? Do you not care at all that like seven-year-olds are listening going, Mommy, what is that? I didn't do anything. You did it.

You read the comment. Oh, I did. That's fair. The burden is on you in a court of law. I will take it. I will take it. Oh, George. That was fun.

Hater's going to hate. And we shake it off, Rachel. We shake it off. Because we got people to help. Like, I want to help people build wealth and avoid the traps out there, become millionaires. And I'm not going to let some comment section or a negative podcast review just crush me. Do you tell yourself that, like,

every morning. It's on, it's in my contentment journal, the Rachel Cruz contentment journal. It's on my bathroom mirror. But no, I really, I mean, Whitney would say like, no, the comment section does affect you. But I have a dark curiosity and I'm like, I'm like you. I'm like a troll that has overcome. So I want to help them overcome their troll-like behavior. Well, there's George's like fortune cookie message to everyone.

It's almost the going to be episode, George. And we end every episode with. Guilty as charged. And this is where our producer, usually Lindsay, but today, Alex, guest producer, gives us a new guilty-a-church question every week. And if we're guilty, we have to take a sip, Alex. All right, this is a great one. Have you ever pretended to be sick or any other excuse to avoid going out with friends and spending money?

Oh. That's a good one. I've done it for worse or less. Not even money involved, just because I don't want to do it. money is like lower on the list of why i don't know if i have for a social thing it's normally i'm sick and i don't want to tell people i'm sick to still go out and see people now i will say like my it's the opposite i lie about hopping saying like i'm fine i'm so here though and i'm so excited to be here nice there's been like trips that friends take or festivals concerts where i feel like the pressure

like hey we're all going man you in like we're going to go on this trip there was a trip to like napa and Michael Reddish was going to mixologist. And I was single. And the trip was like, it was a very nice Napa trip. Yeah. It was thousands and thousands of dollars. And I wanted to go, but I was like, I have obligations. Prior obligations.

I'm unable to attend. I'm unable to attend this event. So I do it more often than not. Yeah. But a lot of times is not for me. I really don't do that because I'll find a way to go. Really? Well, not a trip to nap.

I mean, that's a big deal. going out with friends. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. I think my friends love me enough and know me enough to know that that's, it's not my speed. So they've learned. It's good.

That, uh, I don't love just going out and blowing a bunch of money. Now, a nice meal. I will do that. It's nice. It's good. All right. Well, you're guilty. I'm not.

So I'm not going to take a sip. All right. But we are drinking a what? A Roy Rogers? Mm-hmm. Is that what it is? It's a mock tale called the Roy Rogers. And I think you're a little closer, Rachel.

Maybe not. I'm closer. It's very sweet. I will say that. It is very sweet, and I'll tell you what's in it, and it'll explain it. It's straight up, Coca-Cola, grenadine syrup, and maraschino cherries. Yeah. So it's very simple, very sweet.

It's why kids love it. Yes, children love this. It's like candy. It does taste like a really nice cherry Coke flavor. But here's the best part. It comes out to 97 cents per glass. Well, there you go. So fun for the whole family.

Make a picture of it. Parents can spike it if you want to. Have fun. Oh, gosh. While the kids enjoy their version. So great. The recipes in the show notes, give it a try this weekend. I'm going to give it a five out of ten.

It's very sweet and I'm not like a big Coke. I know. I know. I love a Diet Coke. I do like a Diet Coke. This is like a lot of flavor. A lot of sweetness. I wouldn't choose it, but it's hard to say that it's not a good drink.

Yeah. You're drinking Coke. We'll go five out of ten. Five out of ten. Roy Rogers. Recipe in the show notes. Let us know what your kids think of it. That'll be fun.

Yep. And make sure you guys to subscribe to this podcast because next 30. Thursday, every Thursday, there's a new episode. And make sure to leave a review. It's very helpful when it comes to... And if you are a hater, skip it. Go do something else with your time. That's right.

We just like the great reviews. So you leave that because we read them, appreciate them, and it helps the podcast. Get out to more people. All right. Well, George, I guess we'll see everyone next Thursday on a new episode of Smart Money Happy Hour.