Smart Money Happy Hour with Rachel Cruze and George Kamel - Guilt-Tipping: How to Deal With an Absurd Tipping Culture

Episode Date: October 13, 2022

Do you want to leave a tip with that . . . and that . . . and also that? Rachel and George talk current tipping trends giving Americans anxiety and why true generosity can’t be forced.    In This Episode:   ·     The craziest places we’re being asked to tip (um, the drive-through?) ·     How to get that “giver’s glow” when leaving gratuity ·     The mortifying moment that made George give up waiting tables for life   Helpful Resources:    ·     Be entered to win a $100 Visa gift card when you take our listener survey! Click here to let us know what you think.    ·      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. Click here 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:   Manhattan ·     2 ounces rye whiskey  ·     1 ounce sweet vermouth ·     1 dash Angostura bitters ·     Brandied cherry (optional)   Fill a cocktail shaker with ice. Add rye whiskey, sweet vermouth and bitters. Shake and strain into a coupe glass. Top with a brandied cherry. Take a sip–and tip yourself with a pat on the back for saving money today! 😊 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. That was a good clink. I don't care who you are. That was a good clink. That was a clink, for sure. All right, this is it.

This is the show where two money experts, who happen to be friends, talk about all the things you wish your friends were talking about, pop culture, entertainment, and of course, money. It's what makes the world go around. That's right. We have a drink in hand, and today, this episode, we're going to talk about one of the most controversial. and convoluted money topics of all time.

Are you ready? Taxes? Dun, done, done. Different T word there, George. What is it? Tipping. Ha, ha. There it is.

Do you feel great? Because you just had a great waitress or waiter, and you're like, I can't wait to be generous with them, or do you just feel really awkward at a kiosk and they're asking for 20%? You think, oh, God, do I do I not? I don't know.

I mostly feel awkward. It's really tough. But you talk about, yeah, you do feel awkward sometimes, George, and not always awkward in your work, though, you do a great job hosting podcasts, including this one, The Fine Prince, we host the Ramsey Show together. You've been talking about money for a while. And you've been talking about it even longer. You've been speaking on stages across the country, best-selling author many times over,

and of course host of the Rachel Crews Show, where we also have some fun there too. That's right. I know we did an episode today together, so I appreciate that. All right. So what's our sipper today, George? This was my choice, and it is a topic. Oh, wait. I don't think it was your choice. Who called, hey, producer Lindsay, whose idea? Was it? No idea. Oh, man. This used to me my go-to cocktail before the gimlet.

I know, but I chose it for this episode in particular. Tell the people what it is. Tell the people. One of my favorite cities in America, a Manhattan. I think I'm going to say Des Moines. And I was like, I've never had that drink. It is a classic Manhattan. It's hard to go wrong.

It's very good. It's my go-to when eating out. And so I thought, because we're doing an episode on tipping, Oh. This would be an appropriate one. I love that. Yeah, it's a little bit more of an expensive cocktail, but it's a good one. Maybe it is.

Maybe it isn't. You have to wait until the end. Do you tip the bartender, George? I mean, it's all great. Well, producer Lindsay was the bartender. So, yes, I think we should tip her. She deserves it. We're having to put up with us.

So we're going to talk about what's in it, what's it cost to make, and we're going to give it our rating at the end of the episode. So we'll see if she deserves a tip. We'll see. We'll talk about tipping, yeah, through this entire episode. but it's kind of an American thing, this whole tipping idea. You've been to Europe, right? I have been, yes, George.

And tipping is very different across the pond there. It's very true. You don't tip. I mean, like, they don't really accept tips. It's not required. Yeah, and if you're eating out, it's minimal. Yeah. This idea of, like, you've got to tip 20%.

This is a very American thing. So we're going to talk about that. Well, it's American for sure, but we tip on so many things, restaurants, coffee, shops, ride sharing, food delivery, hair salons, nail salons, valet, hotel housekeeping, etc., etc. It's a hard subject to get your head around because there is so, there are so many places to tip, and sometimes you don't know. I have what's called tipping anxiety.

Oh, no, George. You sound so dramatic. I get anxiety for a lot of reasons. Oh, my gosh. But it's a real thing. It's, you never know, like, am I doing this out of obligation? Is it from the heart? I don't know anymore because everything's just forced upon me with the iPads. We'll talk about that later. So this is interesting. Seattle Times did a five-part series about tipping.

One of the columnists referred to tipping as psychological warfare. Oh, my gosh. I'm dramatic, but can we turn the drama down? Wow. Y'all, it's not that big of a deal. I mean, it's not waterboarding, guys. Let's not go over the top here. But I will say there is anxiety around it.

Why? Because there's cultural norms, societal norms. No one wants to feel judged. They're staring at you while you tap the buttons. Yes, and there are some places that I do have my questions on what to tip and how much is appropriate all of that. But majority of my tipping, majority is when you go out to eat. And for me, it's just like a 20% so I don't have zero anxiety about it. Wow.

I double the tax. Well, I hope that rubs off on me today, Rachel. I should teach you something, George. You need to chill and enjoy life and tip generously. Well, one of the places that tipping culture is being exposed is the talk, TikTok. Oh, man. And I think for this episode, we're going to call it Tip Talk. Do you like that?

So a girl was asked, she was complaining. She was asked how much she'd like to tip on an order of chicken fingers and fries at a drive-thru window. Oh, all right. Watch this, and we're going to get your- I'm going to sip this Manhattan as I'm entertained by the talk. The tip talk. I'm sorry to say this, but tipping culture has gotten out of control. And I just want to preface by saying that I always tip.

I always tip 20% like standard. I went to this like local, like, it's like a brinketting. Burger and Frye Place kind of like the local version of McDonald's. So like chicken tenders and fries, right? I get up to the pay window and she's like, how much you want to tip? And I'm just like, what? And she's like, yeah, did you want to leave a tip? And she's like, pointing to them.

And I was like, oh, no, not today. And then I just felt really uncomfortable. But like, home girl, what am I going to tip you for? I'm in the f*** drive-thru. Oh, my God. What'd you think of that? Oh, man, I... Oh, I...

Oh, I was... would have felt terrible not to tip. I wouldn't tip. I don't think in the drive-thru. How much do you want to-it's not do you, it's how much would you like to tip? It's assumed. In the drive-thru. Now, a Sonic, I don't know if Sonic is national.

Yes, it is for sure. It's considered a, I mean, it's a drive-up, right? Like you order, and they bring the food out to you, sometimes on roller skates. Which they get paid a little more for that. No way. Yeah, it's not much. It's like 25 cents extra-in-out. They should get paid way more.

For sure, it takes talent to do that. enough just to do that job. Now, I will tip Sonic for sure. But when I drive my own car around and you just, I don't know. Lean out the window. Yeah, I don't know about that, George. Yeah. Am I cheap?

No, no. The fact that this like just came on the scene recently tells me that there's a deeper issue here, that it's gotten out of control. It used to be like you go to a restaurant, you sit down, there is a server there for two hours hanging out at your beck and call. Very nice. been to find out. This is how it is, Rachel. Yeah, I know, I know. I agree. I totally agree. Yeah, so it has gotten out of control. But again, going back to the idea that, man, this is like, tipping, though,

it helps with people's income, specifically when you are, yeah, waiting tables and stuff, because in America, you're paid like nothing, and your, and the tips are what carry you through. I mean, that, that's it. Have you waited tables? I have not, George, no. Have you? I did. What restaurant? I think everyone should be forced to lay tables. I could get that. I did a Young Life camp where I was where I like had the kitchen duty. So I feel like I served. Yeah.

It is not easy. I think actually waiting tables gives you a newfound respect. For sure. For how hard it is, how stressful it can be. So I waited tables in college at a Middle Eastern restaurant in Mobile, Alabama. That's a real thing. And as you know, Rachel, my parents are of Middle Eastern descent. I love Middle Eastern food

and some family friends Oh, so you knew the people that owned it Yes, they were family They were like family friends And so I got a job there serving And let me tell you, I didn't last long The owner's daughters Got all the good tables

I'm gonna make that very clear So like doctors would come in With like 15 people They'd get the big They'd be handing them 20s at the door Shoot, you'd get the college students And I would get the college students And it was a partial hookabar

And so you get a lot of these You know Just like people who would just wanted to sit there on the patio and smoke their hookah for three hours. And I remember one night, I went and cleaned up after them and there was literal pennies on the table as my tip. No. I about cried. I may have. George. Because after a long night, you served as good. Oh, that's, that is terrible. And you just come back to pennies. Hey, well, I'll tell you this. I remember in high school, after youth group, there was one Mexican restaurant in the area that was open that late, like after we

got out. So we all would go eat chips and salsa and water. A.k.a. $0. Free. No. I wouldn't order anything. We just eat chips and sauce and drink water. But I remember mom dead always saying, if you go to Las Palmas, you all leave a $5 bill, leave a $5 bill no matter what. So my head, you always tip.

Even if the service is bad. Yes. You always tip. That's my thing. So the pennies that were left to you by the hookah, the hookah. The hookah people. I don't know what that.

Sure. I don't know what the device is called, specifically, but I'm very sorry, George. I really am. Here my heart. That wasn't even the worst part, Rachel. What? Not days later, I was serving the owners and their family and, like, brothers and sisters, and I had a tray with three pictures of ice water, filled with ice and water.

I went to go take one picture off, and I don't know if you know how science works, but gravity caused one of the pictures to slide directly off onto the owner's brother. No. And all of the ice at once dumped right onto his crotch. And it was like slow motion. Oh, that is the worst. He could not breathe. Oh, I bet.

I bet. You know why. That level of ice cold liquid in that area. I'm so sorry. They were so nice. They didn't even fire me. They were very kind. I'm pretty sure they even tipped.

But I quit about a week later and I went, serving is not for me. You're like I'm done. I'm done. It is not for me. It's a skill that I do not possess. Oh, it's hard work. It's serving and waiting tables. Yeah, that's, I'm so sorry.

That's the worst feeling that when I hear plates crashing at a restaurant, I literally just like say a silent prayer and just say, Lord, give them strength. Like driving by a car accident. Let peace that surpasses all understanding enter their life because that is terrible. Terrible. But I got paid. You know, you get paid like $2 and something cents per hour, and then you make all of your money on tips. All right, so let's go through the guidelines from U.S.

News and World Report and what they suggest, you should tip per category. I'm getting your thoughts, George. Ready? Hit me. Sit down restaurants, 20%. Agree. I think if the service is terrible, 15% is minimum. But if I had a normal level of service, 20%.

For sure. I agree. Coffee shop, fast, casual restaurants, and take out 10%. Ooh. This one I don't agree with. That seems kind of high. My order at any coffee shop is generally a black drip car. which means they take a cup, they walk over, they pour it from the spout, and they hand it to me.

Yeah. I'm not needy. If I'm ordering from my counter, I'm very rarely going to tip. Now here's the caveat. I feel so guilty saying that. Sometimes fast casual restaurants now, you order at the counter, but then they bring you the food and they bus. And so if I know that's the situation, I'll try to leave a little something.

Yeah, that's fair. You know, and then takeout, I did this recently, and I'll tip one or two bucks. Usually it's just a meal for me. If I'm ordering for like 14 people and they're bagging up 19 containers. Sure, sure, sure. That's different. But normally takeout is iffy, and if I do, it's a little bit. A little bit.

Okay. Barbershop, hair salon, and nail salon, 15 to 20%. You can speak to the hair salon. Yeah, I do 20. I double the tax. Because in Tennessee, I guess it's like 10%. But I'll double the tax usually. This is a tough one for me because I go to the barber every two weeks,

which I know is very upsetting. What? upsetting to a lot of people, Rachel, including you. That makes me... That's a lot of time. I mean, your hair, it's wonderful. But, thank you. Man, why? Because it just grows too long up top.

Yeah, I mean, I got to keep a professional look, you know, having to be on camera almost every day. I've got to run a tight ship. I can't get shaggy skater hair. So here's the problem. I asked my barber the other day, I said, hey, have I been under tipping you? Like, can you just be straight with me? Because I was normally tipping. you know, five bucks, and I thought, okay, that's normal.

And he said, I was like, what do normal people tip? And he said, anywhere from 20 to 40%. I was like, 40%. Are you serious? Who's tipping 40%. Now, if they got them in last minute for, you know, or something like that, where it was some crazy scenario, maybe I get that once in a while. Sure, sure.

But a normal 40% tip on a haircut is insane to me. How much you pay for hair cut, George? I pay $35, which is a lot. I know the part of my profession is you got to keep up with whatever this is. You don't have to justify. Oh, I do, Rachel. I do. Because the sports clips, people out there get mad at me because I pay $15, you're insane.

Yeah, yeah, yeah. One guy fought me in the YouTube comments. Turns out he's a farmer. And he said, yeah, you're right. The cows don't care what I look like. What do you fight me about this for, dude? Would you still pay that, though, if you didn't have this job? No, I would be getting a haircut probably every six weeks.

Oh, wow. Okay. Yeah. That's fair. That's fair. But it's worth it. I care about hair for some reason. Okay, how about Uber and ride sharing?

Hmm. Yeah. I do. Okay, this says 10 to 20%. And I'll usually hit the, depends on the length of time, but I'll go like 15 usually. And I appreciate Uber, the app. Yep. Because they will come back and say, what do you want to tip?

So it's all right there for me. It makes it very easy. Attached to this, what do you think about like grocery delivery? Like shipped or Instacart? I always tip. And it kind of hurts because it's really expensive. but I tip, yeah, 15 to 20 percent. Wow.

Yeah. Because they work hard. That's my thing. You go to Costco on a Saturday? I am avoiding Costco. I will tip. I will tip. You are a blessing to my life that I don't have to go down that aisle with that big

old shopping cart. I remember during COVID. Kids screaming. We weren't getting out a lot and I did like Instacart and it was like kind of an icy day and Homegirl was out there doing the Lord's work. Man. I gave her a real nice tip that day because. They were.

conditions hard matter and the ones that like talk to me on the app where they're like hey i'm so sorry about this what the da da da da da da da i tip even more so much respect when they communicate versus the ones that just replace the item don't ask and i'm like oh and i don't get to the app in time it's a very it's science well you're very needy too that's what it's coming down to i'm just kidding okay so here's the big question what if the service is bad should you ever leave zero dollars? oh no zero dollars never what's Winston's take Winston will gauge the service between his like 15 and 20. Like he like, I will give 20. He'll still do 20 even for terrible service? Me, I will. He will lower it to 15 and I won't. I don't know why. I'm just like

I feel like you're enabling at that point. It's 20% regardless. You were enabling terrible service. No, because they could have had a terrible day. They could have had eight tables. The boss could have yelled at them and they're just trying. Here's, you want to know what, uh, what old Dave Ramsey, Papa Dave taught me. What's that? If the food is late and it's cold, it's usually the service's fault over, like they have too many tables, right? It didn't grab it in time. It's sitting there. But if it's late and it's hot, it's usually the kitchen's fault.

So I don't want to, I don't want to, like, blame my waiter if the kitchen's backed up. Whose fault is that? Yeah, I think I totally agree with that. And what I do, which this makes my wife very uncomfortable, is I'll say, hey, like, the fries came out and they're like kind of cold. Is there any way we get... And so if they're willing to work with me on that, that tells me I'm going to... They're going to get a much better tip.

Do you take French fries back, George? Is that what you're telling me? I have been. How many things have you taken back at a restaurant? I'm sorry, but if I am paying a restaurant to cook for me, there are certain expectations I have, and one of those is the food is going to be hot. But anyways, so I say if there's an issue and they're willing to fix it,

they're going to get a great tip for me. But if they kind of brush it off, and I know I'm not being a diva. Yep. They're not going to get as good of a tip. I'm still going to tip at least 15%. All right. So you are gauging service.

You have to earn my love. Man. Yeah. Maybe I'm just like 20% all day. You're just missed generosity over here. All day. I'm a terrible person for having any expectations of humanity in restaurants. Speaking of generosity.

Do you think you should tip more during the holidays? Ooh. Yes. Me too, George. We agree on that. And it's not like a, it's the holidays, let's be generous. It's like a, it's the holidays. And this person is probably so burnt out and on the verge of going insane that I just want to try to have this one moment in their day not be the worst.

And so that's how I feel. It's not about me. It's about like working during the holidays. I worked in retail. I worked at the Apple store, Urban Outfitters, to no one's surprise. Urban Outfitters. And during the holidays, both of those. And it is so stressful.

Yeah. People are mean. They're rude. Everything's crazy. And so anytime there's a moment of generosity, it warmed my heart. That's good. All right. So there's some trends around tipping.

Tipping trends. Yep. Technology, semi-cashless economy, current events, all of this is coming to play. So let's go through the trends, George. Trends number one. Asking for tips at the point of sale. This one is a gear grinder for me, Rachel. And this is like where you're like going to buy and they turn that little iPad around.

Yes. And there's like a tipping screen right there. What do you do? There's an ice cream place locally. You've been there. I won't say who it is. Won't name names. Delicious ice cream.

But they scoop the ice cream. Great. You are doing your job. And at the end, they won't like be like super. Sometimes they're friendly, but sometimes until they spin the iPad around, they're not friendly. And then they go, how's your day going? And I'm like, oh, this is maniacal. Great word, George.

Thank you. Wow. Yeah, that's tough. They want to get in your, this is the psychological warfare. This person's asking me how my day was. That's a very nice thing to do. I feel pressured to tip. Now I'm trying to figure out should I do 10, 20, 30?

I know. I might get hate for this, but man, if I, if they spend that iPad around and it's just like me ordering food, I don't tip. Agreed. Okay. Am I a bad person for that? No. Because I'm like, I'm paying for my food and you're. Now, the only caveat is those fast casual places where they're bringing me the food, they're busing the table.

Then I'm more likely to do it, yes. But this whole idea of you spun an iPad around and you did your job and now you're just like requiring a tip is insane to me. So I will specifically go to like the custom amount, go to zero. So maybe that makes me a bad person. But I think most of America will agree with me. Yeah. I hope so because it does make me feel a little cheap. But also I'm like, gosh, where's the balance?

Like I said, the suggestions start at 20%. That's crazy. Trends number two. Asking for tips on goods, not just services. Ooh. So normally you tip for a service, but now there's a new thing where you could be shopping online and they will ask for a tip. Yes, I'm going to show you a TikTok. I'll be honest. I have not had personal experience with this. I don't think. We're going to show you what we mean here. There's a TikTok out there.

Okay. And this girl has this experience. Purchasing an office chair online and they're asking me if I want to leave a tip. That's it. I've never experienced it, but I wouldn't know. I wouldn't tip on that. No, I'm purchasing online. I'm just, I'm going to keep going. Agreed. I'm going to keep going. I'm with you on that. We're not tipping on that. Sorry, not falling for it. All right, trend number three, tipping with Venmo, cash app, Zell, or PayPal.

Oh. I don't have PayPal. I don't have cash app. I don't have Zell. I do have Venmo. Wow. Okay. Everyone, Venmo, Rachel Cruz. She's inviting you. So this is an interesting one, because a lot of the times you have to tip with cash. And if you don't have cash, then you feel bad. And so it's a nice option that I can ask. Now, it's a little awkward and personal to be like, hey, can I get your Venmo? I think it's a cool option for those that don't always have

cash. I think it will encourage more people to tip because you can just scan the QR code and you're in. So I am a fan of that one. All right. Trends at number four, automatic gratuity. So this is one you've experienced. You know, and it's like, for a party of six or more, automatic gratuity of 18%

will be applied. So you've seen that at restaurants. I just went to a comedy show this weekend where they have automatic gratuity, regardless of how many people are with you. And I'm a fan of it personally. Yeah, I don't think I'm mad at it. There's a convenience aspect as a customer. You did some math for me, and I didn't have to do this awkward. How much did I tip? And if it's actually amazing, I'm going to put a little bit more. Wow. Yeah, yeah. That's true. Sometimes I have been known to add some on top of the 18. Like, if I wanted to tip 20 normally,

I'll add a little bit more. If you get room service at a hotel because you're bougie, do you know they already add in the gratuity? So you got to check for some stuff. This is something to make sure check your receipts, people. This is a teaching moment. A lot of people don't check. It's already added. And then they add another 20%.

Love the accidental generosity there. But it can also bust your budget and cause you to spend way more than you intended. Yeah, because technically you already tipped in the bill. Yes. And then you're going even more on top of that. So that's big. And fun fact for you, Rachel, the IRS considers automatic retirement. to be a service fee, not a tip.

Therefore, restaurants that exclusively use this must pay servers the state minimum wage. So that's interesting. I did not know that. That goes back to our very beginning of the podcast, George. I know. We're circling all the way back. All the way back. All right.

Trend number five, tipping more generously post-pandemic than pre-pandemic. Wow. Yeah, so apparently service industry workers were afraid that Americans would have tipping fatigue post-pandemic. That's true. But actually it so remains high, even despite inflation. Well, because people weren't going out as much. And so it felt like those who were going out had to, you know, tip more, be more generous in order to keep these businesses afloat, keep the employees there. Yeah, for sure.

So I think I'm a fan of that one. I think there's nothing wrong with us being more generous. And if it took a pandemic to get us there, then that's just what it took. You know? It's not the way I would have chosen it. not the way I would have chosen it. But I think it's good. We're seeing that the average restaurant tip amount is up nearly 10% compared to last year,

according to Toast's Q2-2020 report. There you go. So, Rachel, this is really fun to talk about. But at the end of the day, this all comes down to generosity and to our hearts. This is not a competition. I don't want to do any of this for some kind of social standing. I want to do it because I want to be a generous person. And we know that generosity affects the giverness.

as much as it affects the receiver. For sure. There's something called the givers glow. Scientifically, it like releases chemicals into our brain when we give. It feels good not only to us, but to the person receiving it. Yeah, for sure. And you're not doing it for a sense of pride or like, it's out of guilt. I have to.

There is that part of like, gosh, I just want to bless this person. So whether it's in a situation of tipping or just pure generosity, of just generosity in general, it is. There's something about it that when you live with that open hands, hand. It's amazing what can happen because I think we do live in this more selfish, self-centered world, right? Everything is about me, me, me, focusing on my career and my looks, my family, me, my happiness. And when you just stop for a second, I actually look out and look to see, okay, who are the people that I'm interacting with day in a day out? And

what does generosity look in that way? And how can I truly bless someone, even with the overflow of what I have? And I think what's so hard is people have the heart to give, they just don't have the budget. But man, I do feel like giving it, it's a heart issue. I mean, you could look at your budget and be like, okay, am I paying Comcast? Yes, I am, George. We know this from past episodes. But I'm not being generous. That's why, yeah, teaching people to give and encouraging people to give is throughout, regardless of where you are financially. Oh, I've heard you say, give a little until you can give a lot. Yes, but giving something, because money to it is a magnifying glass. It makes you more of what you already are.

And so starting that giving and that habit early on, even if you feel like, gosh, everything's so tight, give a little. But then as you start walking the Ramsey Baby Steps, like what we talk about all the time of getting out of debt and investing and saving up for an emergency fund, all these things, you're going to have overflow. So you're going to be able to give even more.

And it's so much easier to give more when you've given a little and you've started that habit. Well, and it's easier to give when you have the margin to give. Yes. It's hard to do that when you're living paid. paycheck to paycheck and you have all this debt hanging over your head and you don't feel confident about your own future and truthfully it makes you self-centered in the sense that you can't really be others focused because you're so stressed about your own situation you're worried about your

own bills so it's hard to worry about your server's bills yes and so that's what I love about this plan is that you're able to look out there for opportunities to give and that's why I'm rallying against this like compulsive giving society I want to give as a matter of the heart because I want to, not because I feel socially obligated and guilted because of an iPad spun around. Totally. And can I say this, George? If you can't afford to tip, you can't afford to go out to eat.

Say that again, Rachel. If you can't afford to tip, you can't afford to go out. I'll let me do that stronger. I can't stronger a second time. If you can't afford to tip, you can't afford to go out to eat. Louder for the people in the back. But that's so true. Like, if you can afford that,

there's other things going on. on. It's time to eat at Micasa. Yeah. Okay. That is, whoof, that's good. So there's a lot there. If you're a person of faith like we are, this has a biblical element to it. And we know that God loves a cheerful giver. The Bible says that. And, you know, God is a giver. Like, he gave his son. And so we're wired for generosity. And that is why there's such an emotional thing that happens within us anytime we see an act of generosity, especially a spontaneous act that was unexpected or unwarranted even, or this person didn't even deserve this, or they were on the street.

But we just love to see those redemptive stories. And that's what's so funny is I feel like people even take the whole idea that money is so bad. Like there's different camps. Oh, just evil. In general. Yeah, that like, oh my gosh, you know, if you have a lot of money, you're somehow not godly or you're shallow or whatever the thing is. Well, you must have gotten it by stealing from people.

Well, that too. But I'm like, but money, it's a tool. Like, it's there to help. people and the more money you have and the heart you have to give, the more people you get to help. So it's a win-win for sure. Absolutely. And the other key here is budget for generosity. Yeah, be intentional about it.

When you plan for it, it's more likely to happen. And so when we started, you know, getting a hold of our finances, me and my wife decided, let's have a budget line item specifically for random giving. And that way when we see an opportunity, it's not even a conversation. We just go, oh, we've already budget. Like, yeah, let's give them 50 bucks. Yeah. Or a co-worker's going through a hard time and they have a health issue or a medical bill or a car repair.

Let's just give them a few hundred bucks. And it's not in the spirit of we don't need to tell anyone about it. Yes. You can do this anonymously and for your own good, not as a flex on social media. Which is sometimes the most fun. Oh, yeah. Even when the person doesn't know it's you. Yes.

But you can kind of watch it play out, selfishly for yourself to watch a play out because you're like, we helped with that. That was the most amazing stories where someone's like, I had a $1,200 bill I couldn't afford and I just got an envelope in the mail. With $1, $1,200? And you're like, how did this happen? And so there's some amazing stories of generosity out there. It's so fun. Yeah, and when we teach about budgeting even, we, even on the Everdeller app from Ramsey Solutions, like we have 10% at the top. So giving regardless of your situation, we encourage it.

We really, really do because it didn't change the other person. It does help them for sure. But it changes who you are. When you start to get your tight grip from money and it's so tight and you can loosen your grip and have more peace in your life, it's, And can we call this out, Rachel? We live in Nashville, which is like the buckle of the Bible Belt. There's more Baptist than people, as Dave Ramsey likes to say. And it frustrates me that servers don't want to work on Sundays because of the church crowd. Yes, it's the lowest tipping day. And that drives me bonkers. I agree. So church, hey, if you are going out to eat after church, you better be the most generous person that servers ever encountered. Otherwise, don't go out to eat. You're giving us all a bad name. That's right. Don't leave a track. with us. For sure.

All right. It's almost the end of the episode, and we close out every episode with Guilty as charged. And this is where our producer gives us a new Guiltiest Charge question every week. We have to drink if we have and give context behind our answer. Oh, boy. All right, Lindsay, hit us. All right.

So this question came from someone who follows you on Instagram. Mm-hmm. They asked, have you ever re-gifted a gift? to save money. Shoot. 100% Yes. And I got caught.

Wait, what? This is a really terrible story as we're talking about generosity. Well, you must tell us about your re-gifting generosity. Yeah, and I kind of lied to. Are you admitting this for the first time?

Oh, man. Take a drink, Rachel. That's how this game works. Because you, wow, you might need to take a few sips. So we got married when I had a semester left of college. Okay, so Winston has graduated, working, and I have my last communications class, and then I have, like, walking and social dance and yoga, like all your electives. I'm sorry.

Social dance and yoga? Oh, yeah, it's all my electives left in college that I had. God bless you, T. Yep, so I'm broke, okay? Can we just say that? Like, we are starting off. You can say that. Okay, we are starting off our marriage.

So we get married, and we get this. really nice picnic basket as a gift and it has like plates and silverware and it all matches and all that it's a beautiful gift. Very cute. I'm not quite like the outdoorsman like I'm not like going on picnics very often but I thought someone that goes outdoors would love this gift would love this gift. So long story short kept it away and one of my friends in college got married May after we graduated and she was an outdoors woman. Like she's like her and her husband. They did all the outdoor stuff.

And I thought she would love this gift. So I gave it to her, not knowing that some of the wrapping paper of the original gift was at the bottom of the box. And she asked me, she said, huh, I loved your gift or something. And I said, when I saw it, I thought of you. No.

But when I saw it, I kind of thought about Dorsey people. Your sentence was true. I can't, yeah, but it was short of a lie. And she knew. And she said, took a picture of it and laughed. She had a great sense of humor. But, oh, yeah, I got caught. And I tried to cover my tracks.

So, George, if you ever a gift, make sure the original wrapping paper is not on the gift. I was waiting for you to be like, and the card was still in there from the other person. Yikes So, yeah Yeah But other than that

I probably ever gifted too Like if someone gives me like lots of canes I don't know if stuff then I'm like I'm sure someone else will love this Have you? Surely you have But I've probably done it more Like brought it to a white elephant thing

Versus like made it a whole gift Yeah yeah yeah Like family gives me a gift I'm like I'm not using this but it's a good white elephant gift I don't know what you call it in your day You call it white elephant dirty Santa Both Okay

I'd take both. So I've done my fair share of re-gifting to those kinds of parties. Okay, yep. Well, mine were real gifts, George. Real gifts. But yeah, if you don't love it, someone else will. Well, looks like you're guilty as charged. I'm going to drink to that.

Cheers. Wow. All right. Let's talk about this drink, Rachel. I think we made it about as far as each other. You did a little better than me. We're pretty even, close to the bottom. What rating would you give this drink?

You can be honest. The bartender is sitting right there. I've had many Manhattans in my life. Lindsay, I'm going to give it a solid eight. Oh, my gosh, I'm so honored. Okay, I'm going to give it a seven. Rude. I prefer it in a coop. Oh, my God.

Listen, I've told you, it's my favorite drink. I'm rolling my eyes. But it was very good. It's hard to make a bad one. And let's talk about the cost breakdown. If you want to make this at home, you'll need two ounces of rye whiskey, an ounce of sweet vermouth, a dash of bitters. One cherry, I prefer luxardo, because I think it is the only cherry you should use in a Manhattan.

Only one that says that gets her hair cut every other day. She can't get over it. You're the one who asked Rachel, how much are your haircuts? Thousands of dollars for women's haircuts. My wife is getting one right now. Is she? Every six weeks, George. That's fair.

The cost to make this, it's not the cheapest drink to make, but it's not the most expensive. if you can make this for about four bucks a serving at home. That's right. If you go out to get this drink, it's going to be way more expensive. And you're going to have a tip on top of that. That's right. So recipe is in the show notes. Try it this weekend and let us know what you think.

All right. It's closing time, George. So in lieu of tips, you guys can follow us on social, Instagram, Facebook, all the things. And click and subscribe on this podcast if you haven't yet. So click that follow button. And if the spirit leads, you can leave a review. Wow. That is some free generosity. I love that. I know. And if you have a friend, share it.

If you don't have a friend, borrow one and share it with them. That's great. Find a friend and listen to this podcast. That could be fun. That's right. And we'll be releasing new episodes every Thursday. So we'll see you next week on Smart Money Happy Hour.