Smart Money Happy Hour with Rachel Cruze and George Kamel - The True Cost of Being on Reality TV (And Why You Should Care)

Episode Date: October 20, 2022

Fill up your Stanley cup, friends—things are about to get spicy! Join Rachel Cruze and George Kamel as they talk trash TV, why being on The Bachelor will make you broke, and the financial strategy reality stars should use if they win big.    In This Episode:   ·     Why the Real Housewives stars are actually business ninjas ·     Which reality shows George and Rachel would consider appearing on ·     How to build wealth—and not blow through cash—when receiving a lump sum of money 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:    Spicy Margarita: 2 ounces of blanco tequila 1/2 ounce triple sec 1 1/2 ounces fresh lime juice (2 limes) 1/2 ounce jalapeno simple syrup Lime wedges and sliced jalapenos (for garnish) Optional: Tajin or salt for rim Jalapeno Simple Syrup: 1 cup water 1 1/2 cups brown sugar 1/2 cup granulated sugar 2 jalapeno peppers, rinsed and sliced Steps for Margarita: 1. Add tequila, triple sec, lime juice and simple syrup into a cocktail shaker with ice. Cover and shake vigorously until the outside of the shaker is very cold (about 30–40 seconds). 2. Place salt or Tajin on a small plate, rub the rim of a glass with a lime wedge, then dip the glass rim into the salt to coat. 3. Fill the glass with ice, pour in margarita, garnish with lime wedge and jalapeno slice, and enjoy! Steps for Simple Syrup: 1. In a saucepan over medium-high heat, bring the water to a boil and add the sugars. Stir constantly until the sugar is dissolved. 2. Add jalapeno slices to the pan. Reduce heat and simmer three minutes, stirring frequently. 3. Remove from heat and let the syrup steep for 20 minutes.  4. Strain through a fine mesh strainer to remove the pepper slices and seeds. 5. Mix into drinks! *Store extra syrup in a sealed container and refrigerate. This should last in your fridge for a month, or you can store it in a freezer bag or ice cube tray and freeze it for a year. 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. So this is the show where two friends who happen to be money experts talk about themes throughout culture with a drink in hand and what has to do with money. That's right. And today's drink, do you know where it is, Rachel? Spicy margarita. One of my absolute favorites.

Because you know what we're talking about? Reality TV. Oh! And when I think of spicy, spicy. TV, I think the drama of a reality show. I think of Bachelor in Paradise. You live for this. This is my episode, George.

I didn't think I liked reality shows, and then I started watching a few with my wife, and I was like, I get it. It's amazing. It's like a guilty pleasure, like trash for your brain. And here's the deal, George, in our everyday lives at work, in the walls of Ramsey Solutions, we are serious money experts. We're on the news. We're on podcasts. We're doing interviews. We have our own shows.

It seems like we are doing money. Money tips. But this podcast, we get to talk about the Kardashians. This is your dream. This is why you wanted to start this thing. This is basically the episode I've been waiting for. So you know how this goes. We start with a new drink every episode.

We talk until it's finished, or at least until one of us finishes. And because of the nature of today's content, we've got the spicy marg. And if you wait until the end, we're going to give you our rating, break down the cost of making it, and give you the recipe. So what's in today's episode? So today we're going to talk about the costs to be on a reality TV show. And we realize that there's a lot of different types of reality shows, right? So you got like, yeah. From Survivor to the Kardashians, there's a spectrum.

To American Idol, right? Like, you got it. You got it all. So we're going to break it down in three categories. Shows that pay you, big one, shows that you basically pay yourself to be on, and shows where you win actual money. Okay. And we're going to share some facts, opinions about each.

of these types of shows and tell you what we would do with a giant lump sum of cash if we scored big on one of these shows. That's right. And I think we could, George. I think we could win. As a team, I think you would win. I think I'd kicked off whatever the show is, episode one, I'm out. But you're going to actually learn a lot.

I know. It's shocking. How can you learn anything from these shows? That's part of this show is we're going to teach you something about money. That's right. All right. So first up, the shows that pay you. So you can't think of reality TV without keeping up with the Kardashians.

Yep, they come to mind. Which is now the Kardashians. I have a totally different show towards. My wife was filling me in because I have no idea about any of this. So here's the difference. Keeping up with the Kardashians, like the whole premise was like, they're just like you. They fight like you. Their family has strong.

They're relatable. Yeah, they're just like you. The Kardashians on Hulu, it's like, heck no, we're not relatable. We're billionaires around for much money they have. We have amazing cars and houses and spouses and kids, and we're going to show you ever. Are the spouses amazing? All of the glam. I watched the first episode of the new season.

I know, Courtney, man. There's some sad situations. It was so sad. Well, they're not married, though, so technically not a spouse. Sure. But, yeah, so the Kardashians, the new one, it is. It's just like all the glitz and glam. So in 2010, the Kardashian-Gener family was worth about $65 million, which is a lot.

Not bad, 12 years ago. But this year alone, Kim Kay. by herself flying solo her net worth are you ready for this hit me 1.8 billion dollars I'm impressed that's impressive y'all you can say whatever you want about Kim K regardless what you think yeah like what does she do she's like famous for being famous 1.8 billion she has done something right done very well on she's a I will say this she's an amazing business woman like the way the strategy Yeah. Is that word?

You remember that word? Nope. George Bush, someone. Come on. They'll play the clip. Oh, yes, strategic. So I had dinner with Lauren Michaels, the head of Saturday Night Live, and I said, he said, I put a great speechwriter on you, and he came up with strategy. And I said, wait a minute, I said strategic.

And he said, no, you didn't say strategy. I said, I damn sure said strategic. He said, we invent it. I said, well, let me ask you this. Did he come up with misunderestimate? Anyway, the Kardashians, this is Hulu spin-off. It's rumored the family's getting paid nine figures. Can we just go over how this works?

Six figures is $100,000 or more. Seven figures is a million. Eight is like tens of millions. Yep, keep going. And nine, George. Holy crap. Over $100 million. No freaking way.

Man, we missed our shot, George. We really did. You know, it could have been... What are we doing here? It could have been keeping up with the Ramsies. Sipping homemade cocktails and... But, you know, sweet Denise and Daniel, they're not dramatic enough. They're just normal people.

Oh, okay. I could have figured something out for $1.8 billion. Rachel would have created the... And I would have done something for that. No, I'm just kidding. All right, my other favorites show, Real Housewives. But I only watched two... Two seasons.

What would you call it? Episodes? No, two of the franchises. Okay, franchises. That's good. The O.C. and Beverly Hills. So those are the ones that I love. So how does the show work?

They just follow like probably eight housewives, quote, unquote, which just means women that are, yeah, they're working or they have kids, they have families. And they're the spouses of celebrity people or no? No, nope, nope, they're not. They're just normal people. I'm not sure who they are. Well, they're normal, but they have money and glam, glam squads. So camera, and they have drama and they fight and they go on trips. And I don't know, but it's wonderful, George.

Okay. I think he would love it. So, for example, Bethany Frankel, who was on Real Housewives in New York, so she's considered probably one of the most successful Real Housewives. Actually made money outside the show. But for her first season, she only made $7,000 for the whole season. But her last season that she was on, according to page six, she made a million dollars. A million dollars.

So $40,000 per episode. Just for living, just for being her. Yeah, but now she has all these businesses, and she has, like, skinny girl. I mean, she has all this stuff out there. Wait, like Skinny Girl Popcorn? I think it's Skinny Girl Popcorn? That can't be the same thing. No, Skinny Girl Wine.

Oh, I've seen Skinny Girl Wine. It's not Skinny Girl Popcorn. For sure, the Skinny Girl Popcorn. No, it's just skinny popcorn from Costco. It doesn't have Girl on it. There's a skinny girl popcorn. No, there's not. I'm Googling as we're sitting here.

There's no way there's skinny girl popcorn. That doesn't exist. Oh, Rachel, there's nothing I love it. more than proving you wrong. It's Skinny Pop, right? Skinny Pop, yes. Oh, man, I have never loved being more right than being right about Skinny Girl popcorn. I just see a Walmart something. Well, did you Google Skinny Girl Popcorn? Okay, that's her though. That's her, George. That is her. So you knew, but you didn't even know. Wow. You know, Rachel, I think I know more about the real housewives than you at this point because of my knowledge of Skinny Girl Popcorn. I don't want to say that's true,

but it feels like it's playing out that way. Wow, George. Have I bought Skinny Girl Popcorn? I'm not a liberty to say. But the answer is an absolute yes. Why did you buy Skinny Girl Popcorn? Because of the ingredients. Wow.

It has a cleaner ingredients. This is it, y'all. I was influenced by a real housewife and I didn't even know it. Didn't even know it. Wow, my mind is blown. Yep. Business platforms, man. Business.

You taught me something. I taught you something. Would you teach me? That Skinny Girl Popcorn exists. This, don't act like you do. I do question when you say those things. That is some pompous behavior from Rachel. So basically, yeah, I mean, the people that make money really well

is that they have businesses off of these shows. Business acumen, if you know. Yeah, and they're smart about it, which I think is true. They get big platforms. They create brands. Make a lot of money. I think it's great. Okay, but let's face it, people aren't paying us millions of dollars to have cameras

follow us around. That would be nice. It would be great. If you're willing to watch that, I can... Would you do that, George? If someone paid me millions of dollars to live my very boring life outside of work, now work is probably the most exciting. I go home and I'm like immediately in PJs, immediately like feeding the dogs and straight chilling.

Nobody wants to watch that. Yeah, the pilot episode probably wouldn't be... Me neither. You don't have a lot of... I mean, the most drama in your life is your kids like spilling things and drawing markers on your car and like all kinds of chaos. That's true. Yeah. People probably don't really... The Ramsey Kid Chaos.

Don't really care about it. all that. Okay, so when you think about George, the Kardashians, Bethany Franklin, maybe a few others, they're kind of the exception. If you think about all the reality stars out there. And yet we feel like they're part of this culture of us feeling like we have to keep up. It's in the name. It's a nod to keeping up with the Kardashians. And you talk about keeping up with the Joneses a lot. And sometimes that can mean influencer culture and celebrities and what are they wearing and I want that purse now. And we lead very different lifestyles. Yes. And some of the these people, I would argue, don't even have the money. Or if they do, they're barely making, you know, to make their lives seem amazing for these shows to be part of these shows. So, movie magic and editing goes a long way. That's right. Making people look for certain way. Yeah, so don't use this as a standard to compare your life because that is, it's a false standard. It's strictly entertainment. Yep. Anything beyond that will make you broke. I know. We got to keep that

in the frontal cortex. That's hard. George. Truthfully, they set a lot of the trends and they have their own products that they're selling us. That's right. And it's easy to fall for that. Yep. So just be careful of the comparison game, especially with these reality stars. Like skinny pop. Like skinny girl popcorn, which I didn't buy because I was influenced by Bethany.

I cannot believe you eat Bethany's popcorn. I mean, who knew? You influenced me. I want to try it now. It is good popcorn. I mean, it's still microwave popcorn, so still probably not like the best for you. Sure. Cleaner ingredients.

Something. Something for you. And they have a lime and salt. That was why I bought it. Yeah, I think I'd go to this marg. Speaking of lime, can I just say, producer Lindsay, this spicy marg is hitting. It is just immaculate. It's really good.

Yay. So if you like a little spice in your life. I'm working on my skills. Doing great. It's great. Up next, George, what we have. Shows that cost you money. This is the opposite.

Why you'd want to be on a show that costs you money? I don't know. So in most cases, networks love making money off of reality shows. because they are typically have a higher revenue return than just scripted shows, which is fascinating. And it takes less money to produce them. Makes sense. So they are making a lot of money off of these shows. So you're telling me everything's unscripted on reality TV?

I'm not sure I buy that. I like to believe in my own world that it's all true. All the reactions. No, of course it's not. But it's less scripted. It's not line for line. Yes. There may be some fabricated drama.

That don't, that they don't pay people at all. Oh, that's true. Yep. So there's a lot of casts that don't get paid. And one of those, one of my personal favorites with a lot less drama, is the Great British Baking Show. You know, I've never seen it, George. I watched it this weekend. Because a friend here told me about it.

And they were like, it is just lovely. And it gives you a little bit of hope for the world. It's just amateur bakers. So these are amateur people, just at home. They have normal jobs, and on the weekends, they film for this show. And they can practice during the week at home, but otherwise they are on the show. They're in this big tent altogether, and they're like so supportive of each other, and they all have sweet accents.

It's because they're British, not American. It's because they're British. They're just better people than us. And it's just amateur bakers competing, and there's a few judges who are like a cookbook writer and an artisan baker celebrity guy. And it is just a lovely show, and they don't get paid to be. on this show. Interesting.

Yeah, they do it for the honor and a cake stand. Have you seen the show Is it cake? Oh, yeah. That is that show. How did they get signed for a season two?

It's literally a show where they have to guess. Is it a cake? Is it not like the great British American baking show? No, it's just people, it's just normal people guessing if something is cake

or if it's plastic. No, I've seen that one. Yeah. Is it different then? It's different. Very different. They're actually baking and ovens and having to make this stuff

and they have challenges and it's all sweets and cakes and biscuits and all that. So many of them keep the regular job. They film on the weekend, and it probably costs the money when you think about travel, taking time off work, getting supplies for practicing recipes. And so that is one of the shows that actually costs you money. Another one of those is one of my favorites, The Bachelor.

So if you are The Bachelor or Bachelorette, you actually get paid. And right now I think it's $100,000 from what I've read. Not a bad payday. It's great. That's great. You could travel the world, you know, all the things. But if you're one of the contestants, then it costs you money. You have to pay for so much.

And I will say on the Rachel Cruz show, I had Caitlin Bristow on. How amazing was that? I know. And then Jason came on her fiancé for another episode. Were you fan girl pretty hard on that episode? I do. I do. I mean, I was actually nervous or no?

I would say nervous. I was just excited to meet her, though. Okay. Because I love the show so much. So it was fun to get all the insight information from her. Yeah, what does she tell you? Oh, everything. I literally asked her anything and everything.

She spilled the tea. Yeah, she really did. She was like out of contract or whatever. I think they have you like on contract. Oh, it's like an ADA where you can't talk about it. And she was out of it. So she was like, ask me whatever you want. I'll tell you.

I love it. So she did say, yeah, when she was the lead, meaning she was the bachelorette, everything was provided for everything. But when she was a contestant, it was the opposite. So you have to fly yourself to the auditions. You have to pay for yourself to be in a hotel room. You have to buy all your new wardrobe, potentially nine weeks of filming. you get all your, you know, cosmetic treatments

and buy makeup, all the things. Cosmetic treatments? Botox storage filler. I mean, probably like the things that they do. I would think. Wow. Sure. So if you want free Botox, just...

No, no, no, no, no. This is what they have to pay for, like, when they're a contestant. Who's forcing them to get Botox? We're not forcing it, but they want to, like, look what they think is the best, I'm assuming. Is it the point of the show to fall in love with someone for who they are? Maybe I'm misunderstanding, Rachel. Nothing is real. Not even their face.

Nothing is real. God bless. I did hear this. They get a free ring from Neil Lane if they propose. That is true. I know. I did my due diligence here, Rachel. But they have to make it two years as a couple.

Otherwise, they have to give it back. I didn't know that. Yeah, and this is an expensive ring. Well, they get some, Neil gets some placement on that show. And they do multiple camera shots into that ring box. And it's like, Neil Lane, Neil Lane. It must be an expensive ring. I guess so.

But what's crazy, too, is though, when you're a contestant, and on The Bachelor, Bachelorette, people, they go into debt for it because they want to buy new clothes, they want to do all this stuff. So Jillian Harris, she was season 13 on The Bachelor, and later she was a Bachelorette. But she said that, yeah,

we received some goodie bags on the show, but like half the clothes they don't fit, there's not enough stuff. And she actually remortgaged her house and spent $8,000 on clothing. That's a bad idea. And she kind of came out ahead because she ended up being The Bachelorette,

which is great, all the things. But think about all the people that, yeah, that it stops. That don't make it. You know, that first row ceremony, George, your name's not called. Oh. And you go home and then it's like, oh, my gosh, you just spent all that and you didn't make it. And TV blogger Dana Weiss told Mike, I know that there are women in the past who cashed out the 401K for the show. And if you've listened to the Ramsey show, our constant advice is never cash out your 401K.

No, for sure. Yikes. It's a risky investment. Yeah. So long story for. This is not a good idea. And it's not reality either. What you see on the show is beautiful people who have apparently fake faces. I'm just learning right now. They're parading around, pop and champagne. What you don't see is massive credit card statements, futures being robbed because they're cashing out their 401ks, a lot of stress. They're remorgeting their house. And so don't believe the lies. Don't believe everything you see. And don't ever. I mean, regardless of if you're on reality,

TV. These are bad ideas. That's true. Don't, yes. And people ask, like, do I cash up my 401k to pay off this type of debt? Or do I cash it out to help my mom? Whatever the thing is. No, fees, penalties, especially with retirement accounts. No, leave it in. And even when the market's down, people are freaking out. Oh, yeah. Take the roller coaster ride. Take the ride. Now, there is some shows that the cast, they do get a stipend. And one of my shows, which I love. Your shows. Love is blind. Oh, yeah. Great one. I did watch that season.

Oh, it's so good. That was a good one. It was an interesting concept. Can you explain what it is for those that haven't watched? Yeah, so you enter into these pods basically on a hallway where one woman goes in one door, a guy goes in the other door, and there's a big wall in between you. You can't see each other, but you can talk. And you just talk, and you fall in love with a person based on their voice and what they say without seeing them. You get engaged before you see them.

and then if you choose to accept the proposal, then you can see what kind of Botox they got. Apparently. Then you can see they have really bad cosmetic stuff down to their face, yes. On season one of Love is Blind, the cast had to pay for the majority of their own wedding expenses. So if you do propose and get married, that's on you. Oh, I didn't know that.

That is on you. Oh, man. Well, yeah, so a lot of risk there. And if you can't cover the expenses, don't go on the show because that 15 minutes of fame is not worth it. all to go into debt potentially. Well, and there's probably a major pressure, right? I mean, there's pressure in real life to feel like, yeah,

you want to keep up to a certain level. But especially if you're going to go be compared to other people, there's debt. I mean, I would think for sure that much more pressure. Yeah. So, man, take the pressure off. And even if you're not on reality TV, just don't feel like you have to keep up, like we were saying earlier.

And maybe, I don't know, see your future spouse before, proposing. That just feels like a good common sense principle. I feel like it doesn't need to be said, but there it is. We're going to throw it out there. There we go. All right, last category. Shows where you can win money. This is my favorite person. So this is like real competition, right?

This is actually based on skill and not Botox. Love is a love. Love Islands, Survivor, Big Brother, Top Chef, American Idol, Project Runway, Amazing Race. Now we're talking. We are getting a prize, people. We are getting a prize. So which one would you be on, George, if you had to be on all these? You know, Big Brother intrigues me because it relies on, like, social skills and, like, social manipulation, which sounds fun. Because I feel like I'm really good at being like, hey, they talk trash about you.

You know what I mean? Like that kind of, that level of drama. No, I wouldn't lie, but I might, you know, try to fabricate some drama for TV. This is a reality show, Rachel. You got to manipulate it to win. As if the whole thing is true. Amazing Grace for me. I'm great at logistics, especially when I travel.

I did not know that was one of your skill sets. Oh, yeah. We went to a, we went to Disney World last fall break with the girls. We left Charles, baby Charles at home with another family. By himself? What is his home alone? He stayed with, who do you stay with? I'm just imagining baby Charles with his hands on his face, like, oh.

And we went with another family friend, right? family, another family that are friends of ours. And we coordinated the trip together. So we stayed at the same place, same flight, all of it. And they kept laughing at us because somehow we kept being ahead in the line to get the bus at the airport to getting our room at the hotel. Like we always were first. One step ahead. I know. And they kept saying if we were on a macy grace, we would lose. In that moment, I feel like the Holy Spirit just said, this is a gift, Rachel. Use it wisely. So one One day, George, I might be on Amazing Grace, and I would kill it. I would kill it.

I believe it. So what do you think is the motivation to be on one of these shows? Like, do you think people are going on going, I'm going to get a sweet payday real quick? Yeah, I would think. I think there's probably a money motivator for sure. But do you think also it's kind of the personal challenge and excitement of like America is going to watch me win? Because you're in N-Egram 3. See, that's what's scary for me.

Which is very like, I want to win. I want to look good doing it. And that's reality TV. That's why you love this. I'm built for this. No, the camera aspect I think would make me the most nervous. Why would a camera make you nervous? Because you're in, like...

Because George, I'm in Bangkok trying to get a new plane ticket. I don't know how I'm going to act on Amazing Race because I got to get my plane ticket or my bus ticket. You're like, your like worst side would come out. I don't know possibly. If I get stressed, I'm like, oh, yeah, I'm like, we got to get this stuff. I don't have that competitive bone. I would just be like, you know what?

Rachel really wants to win. I'm here for it. Do you know what show I'd tap out? out of like probably day one. American Idol. That too. I heard you sing. I'm just kidding.

That would be a real bad. I'm sure you're a decent singer. No, I'm not at all, but Survivor. Oh, yes. Nothing about that in me says, I want to go do that. If it doesn't have AC, it's not for me. That's just kind of my life mantra. Another one, American Idol, Rachel, I went to, like, the Disney.

They have like an American Idol thing. You can, like, try out and get on the show. Wait, what? Yes, it's a real thing. Like currently? Yes. And you did it? And I did it.

And I made it through, is it not a thing anymore? It's not a thing anymore. A few years ago. This was a thing. And I made it through the first round. And my brain went, bro, you're going to be on American Idol. And then I got cut from the second round. George, I'm so sorry.

I know. My music career already had failed. But that was like another indication that I should not be in. That was bad. That was bad. Decent singer, but like not my forte. Yeah, not great. I need a guitar to really make it pop.

I'm sorry, George. Well, on any of these shows, you've got to remember a couple things. They have to pay taxes. Yep. Yep. So the winner of Survivor, which will not be me or you if we entered the show, they take home a million-dollar grand prize. But what's fascinating is Richard Hatch,

the very first winner did not consider his taxes. So in 2005, he was accused of tax evasion for his prize, and he was convicted and sentenced to 51 months in prison, because he did not pay his taxes on the show's earnings. Wow. For those of you doing the math, that's a little over four years. Whew. So, again, it's looking great.

He wins. Hopefully he survived jail. Man, but was it worth it? I don't know. I don't know. Yeah. So when something looks too good to be true, like a cash prize, it probably is. And we've heard these stories like Wheel of Fortune, you win the car.

But what they don't tell you is you have to pay taxes on it. Yes. On the MSRP price of that $50,000 car. And game show taxes on, like, price is right. No. And then they're stuck in a worse position. I know. They have to forfeit that.

And so you've got to consider things like taxes. And generally, it's just safe to assume 50% is just gone. So you're not going to, like, just retire on this and buy an island. It's not happening. It's not happening. Sorry. Sorry, rich. Okay, but then that's kind of like the sad side.

But there is the happy side. So the show, the circle, it only takes 15 days to film. and the last season, the guy who won, Frank, was paid $150,000, and he used that money. Are you ready for this, George? We're going to give old Frank a clap. Are you ready for it? He paid off his grad school debt. Let's go, Frank.

Frank. Way to be responsible. I'm not a guy named Frank winning anything. Hey, more Franks need to be. That is an amazing story. To be frank. That's an amazing story. Wow.

So I like this, and part of this is taking care of your finances, is really, really the best prize of all. And you don't even need to win a reality show to do it. And you don't need to be buying insane things that you might win on these shows. And so I want to tell everyone out there listening, if you're hoping for like a reality show prize pool to change your life, like you need to rethink your life. And you can get out of debt and you can pay off your own grad school debt and you don't have to wait to be on the circle to do it. Do you think a lot of our listeners are waiting to be on reality TV? No, but I think there's a mentality that like, Like there's going to be a thing, a moment, Rachel, that changes everything.

And the truth is, it's just this day by day consistency of living on a budget, living on less than you make, making sacrifices, cutting the subscriptions, doing the side hustles. That's the sacrifice that changes you, not a reality show. No. I will preach that from here until eternity. Amen. Hallelujah. No, that's the truth, though. And what's fascinating, too, is those kind of, that journey that you just described, it builds a level of character for you that when you actually do start building wealth.

you can hold it. It's not like this flash in the pan where you have bad money habits and you're giving all this money and then you probably squander it, don't pay taxes on it because you forget about or whatever the thing is.

And then it leaves you in a worse situation than before. So there is something about the diligence over the long term that is so, so, so important. And we take calls on the Ramsey show and one of my favorite pieces of the show is the debt-free screen.

People travel from all over the country to celebrate their debt-free journey and they share their story. And what's amazing is like the debt payoff is great. We celebrate that. But the person they became because of the journey and the fact that they can face anything in life with more resilience, with more discipline, with more determination, that's what inspires me. Yes. It's incredible.

It really is. And one of the, you know, consistent things in that is that they believe that they can, right? I mean, you see people from every background, every city, around the world. We've had people from internationally come in to do their debt-free screams. Income levels, debt level. So it is. It's a powerful thing. read between this, a reality show winner and a debt-free screamer, they believe they could.

So for majority of people, they're not going to win a big lump sum on a reality show, but you still could get a lump sum, whether it's from an inheritance or like an insurance payout. I mean, there's people that, you know, will get thousands, even tens of thousands of dollars. Even over 100,000 sometimes. Yeah, totally. And so figuring out what to do with that is important. Huge. But if you did ever get a big sum of money, here's some just advice. So build a team, kind of a board of advisors, that will sit with you and help you understand everything.

This is huge. When we get calls on the Ramsey show and people say, hey, I just got $100,000. I just got $500,000 in inheritance or I won the lottery. We tell people to build a team. And here's what that means. You need an amazing tax advisor or CPA in your corner. You need an insurance agent in your corner. An umbrella insurance is one of the things you need to get because it protects the wealth.

because people will come after you. Yeah, they will. And if they, if you get hit in a car with them, they're going to wait. My pinky toe, George. Rachel just hit your foot. And now. And now I'm going to be cashing in. Another one, investment professional.

This is huge because we see people go broke because they didn't invest that money and spent. Instead, they just spent it all. You want to invest it wisely to make it work for you. And estate planning attorney, because now you got to worry about legacy and like, who am I leaving this to? and what's the right way to do it in order to minimize my tax burdens. And lastly, of course, a tax attorney. That's right. We don't be rich.

You know this. The IRS taxes prize money as an ordinary income. Yeah. So if you win a million dollars, they're going to see that as you just got a raise of $1 million. And taxes will be owed for sure. Yeah. And we have endorsed local providers in all of these areas that are Rams trusted that we recommend.

Because in all of these areas, whether you get a lump sum or not, they're very, very niche parts of money. And so you want to make sure that you're with people that know what they're doing, they're professionals, they do this day in and day out. Yes. And whether or not you have a lump sum

or you have $10,000, these are good people to have in your corner. That's right. Absolutely. So some things to do with that lump sum or if you just, yeah, get a raise at work or whatever. It may be, you know,

be giving first always and then start working the baby steps. If you don't have a $1,000 emergency fund, make sure you do that. Put it towards the rest, towards paying off all your debt, build up a larger emergency fund of three to six months of expenses, start funding retirement, 15% of your income, start funding kids college, pay off your house early, and you can start building wealth. And that's the long-term play versus the

flash in the pan of, you know. Well, and this type of money can accelerate that journey. For the normal person, this could be a 10, 20-year journey. It's amazing. If you get this all at once, you've got to steward this well. That's right. And it can work for you, and you can to retire early and have this amazing life, but we also see really sad stories where it vanishes in a flash. I know. Because we decided we're going to just go spend all this money and live this lavish life. Well, and people think if I just had more money, I would be okay. And is there an equation of that that is true? Yeah, it's a small percentage. But for the most part, it's the habits, right? If you are not great with money and then more money's given to you, you're going to continue not to be good with

money, but on a huge magnified scale. So those habits are so, so key. And you can have some fun with it. We haven't mentioned that, but yes, you can spend some of it and go on an amazing vacation or get like a fun car. That's okay to do. Just make sure the ratios aren't crazy to where half of your life is tied up in a luxury car. That's right. That's insane. All right, George, I think it's time for our last segment. Oh, boy. Guilty as charged. Okay, this is where our producer, Lindsay, hits us with a question that, you know, may be a little convicting. And if we're convicted, we must take a drink. So, Lindsay, what's the question today? Okay, so today's question came from Christine on Instagram.

She said, have you ever been mindlessly scrolling on your phone and you see an ad for a product you've never seen, didn't want, didn't need, but you got sucked in and you decided you needed it and immediately hit the buy now button. If so, when did you do that? This question was made for Rachel. Rachel lives for this. I'm a sucker for you. It's not if you're guilty is how guilty are you and how many times have you succumbed to

this, Rachel. Oh, geez. I don't know how many times. I mean, it's... Just give us the last time. It's enough. The most recent one.

Was it today? The last one was, no, no, it wasn't today. An eye shadows. There's a makeup brands, and it came up on my Instagram, and it was like, eyeshadow in a pin. You're not going to drop the name? No.

I would totally give it if I knew it. I don't even know it. Oh, wow. It's a turquoise pin looking thing. Thrive. She knows You're welcome It is, it is

Thrive It is 100% Thrive That's amazing And you got this random ad in your stories Yes And you swipe down And it's eyeshadow You literally just like draw on

And it's wonderful It's wonderful I'll probably buy more shades More shades of it So I do that I've done hair products Oh I've done clothes and shoes And George

I've done it all George I've done it all Okay But for me I'm not mad at it Because instead of me Walking through the mall Like I would have

20 years ago see stuff, clinic, or whatever the thing was. Now it comes to you in an Instagram ad. It's right there. I don't have to leave my house. But how do you combat it? So you've done it, I'm sure, too. What have you done? I was just checking because I almost felt.

So here's what I do. It's kind of like putting it in the cart, but then you never do it. I swiped up, gave my information, and they're emailing me now. You know, they have these what's called an email drip campaign, a journey, if you will. Well, they try to then sell you on the thing. And I fell for an app called Full Sleep. I guess it's an app. I think it's like a session that is like online therapy.

I don't know, because I need to sleep better. Yeah. And apparently I was talking about that with someone and they hear it because it's always listening. We talked about this in our first episode on the convenience culture trends that made us broke. And so, yes, I have fallen for it. I can't remember the time I actually gave money to one of these ads. But I've definitely swiped up. You godly child over there.

You just sit back and sip your margarito. But the way to combat it, Rachel, is to not give them your money immediately. Sleep on it. No pun intended. I know. Yep. But here's my thing. If it's in the budget and I have a personal line item and I haven't spent much money and I see something I want.

Like the Rachel, like blow money, fun, money. Yeah, totally. And I'm like, you know what? I see a pin that's eye shadow. Sure. I'll click that link. Why not? That's not a bad thing.

Can I be honest with you? I don't know the difference. If you haven't budgeted. Between eye shadow and mascara. Can you just tell me right here? George, are you kidding me? It's going to die. Yes, yes.

Mascara is goes. Eye lashes. They're so close together. And eyeliner. And eyeliner goes right underneath. Underneath or in above. So you go two and two. Be honest, they're confusing.

Shadow, liner, mascara. It's all within a half inch vicinity. George just. The guy's listening. If there's any men listening, back me up on that. Anyways, DM us your fun, guiltiest charge questions on Instagram at Rachel Cruz or at George Camel with a K. And we might use it on an upcoming episode. All right.

George, I think your drink is lower than mine. I did really, I mean, it was delicious. I loved it. It was great. Almost nutritious. Almost nutritious. Okay, what do you rate it? This is a rare 10 out of 10 for me.

Wow. Oh, my gosh. I'm so honored. Lindsay. I'm happy. I'm going to echo it. Oh, my gosh. It literally tastes like a restaurant spicy margarita.

I would have paid $18 for this at a high-end Nashville restaurant. So, break it down for a short-off. So break it down. There are six ingredients, blanco tequila, jalapeno simple syrup, homemade. Oh, that's the secret sauce. Orange liqueur, freshly squeezed lime juice, and some sliced jalapenos. And it comes out to just $4 a glass, even after all of that. and I'm telling you, this would be a pricey cocktail at a restaurant.

So highly encourage you make this one at home. Let us know what you think about it. If you like a little spice in your life, go watch a reality show. We'll give them the simple syrup recipe as well. Oh, so we're not only going to give you the recipe for the cocktail, but you can also make the homemade halopeno simple syrup at home thanks to producer Lindsay. So we'd love to know what you think. Check out the show notes and we'll give you the recipe.

We've got those for both cocktails and mocktails. So give us your suggestions. If you've got suggestions for either of those, we'd love to hear it. Yep. And make sure to follow us on social. Subscribe to this podcast if you haven't. Click on that follow button because we're going to be talking more about culture, money, and how it affects our lives.

It never ends. We'd love for you to leave a review too. If you enjoy the podcast, leave a good review. And leave five-star. Like if you hated it, like, you know, like my mom said, if you don't have anything nice to say, don't say it. You know, just leave it. But if you enjoyed it, we want other people to know that you enjoyed it.

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