Judging Your Shopping Addiction (and How to Overcome It)

💻 Wondering how you’re actually doing with money? Find out where you stand. Since everyone’s “doing their own research” these days, we decided to match that energy and dig into the psychology of money and why humans tend to overspend. Next Steps: · 🎙️ Catch our episode Waste or Worth It: Rating “Life-Changing” Products! · 💵 Create a free budget and find more margin with EveryDollar. · 🍸 Follow Smart Money Happy Hour on TikTok: @smartmoneyhappyhour · 📱 Submit 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. Connect With Our Sponsors: · Check out the FAIRWINDS Credit Union exclusive account bundle. · Get 20% off when you join DeleteMe. · Get 20% off with code SMARTMONEY at Cozy Earth. Today’s Happy Hour Special: 🥃 Maple Old Fashioned Recipe by: @thesocialsipper · 2 ounces bourbon · 1/4 ounce pure maple syrup · 2 dashes Angostura bitters · 2 dashes orange bitters · Orange peel · Cocktail cherry, like Griottines or Luxardo Instructions: In a rocks glass, combine bourbon, maple syrup, Angostura bitters and orange bitters. Stir to combine. Add a large rock of ice and stir until chilled. Twist the orange peel above the drink to express citrus oil, then run the peel around the rim of the glass and add to the drink. Garnish with a cocktail cherry. Explore More From Ramsey Network: 💰 George Kamel 🎙️ The Ramsey Show 💸 The Ramsey Show Highlights 🧠 The Dr. John Delony Show 📈 EntreLeadership Ramsey Solutions Privacy Policy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Speaker names marked ? are inferred from speaking time and the show’s known hosts — they are not voice-verified.

• 0:05George Kamel?

  Since everyone's doing their own research these days, we decided to match that energy and dig into the psychology of why we tend to overspend.

• 0:13Rachel Cruze?

  Big skateboard and little skateboard. Weren't you a little skateboarder? Gifts, guns, and real estate.

• 0:18George Kamel?

  I didn't know Dave Ramsey responds to your social posts.

• 0:20Rachel Cruze?

  George is like, there's our new Reddit thread. I'm like, I've never been on Reddit.

• 0:23George Kamel?

  Why do I talk like that?

• 0:29Rachel Cruze?

  Hey guys, I'm Rachel Cruz.

• 0:31George Kamel?

  I'm George Kamel.

• 0:33Rachel Cruze?

  And this is Smart Money Happy Hour. Cheers, George.

• 0:38George Kamel?

  Cheers.

• 0:42George Kamel?

  Oh.

• 0:42Rachel Cruze?

  Just hits right sometimes.

• 0:44George Kamel?

  Gospel gorgeous.

• 0:45Rachel Cruze?

  Well, this is the show where two friends who happen to be money experts talk about what you're talking about. So everything from pop culture, current events, and money.

• 0:52George Kamel?

  And we are sipping on a maple Old Fashioned, one of my faves.

• 0:57Rachel Cruze?

  Just can't go wrong.

• 0:57George Kamel?

  So simple, you can't mess it up, and yet people choose to go another route for some reason.

• 1:02Rachel Cruze?

  Yeah.

• 1:03George Kamel?

  So as we head into the fall, this is one you're gonna wanna check out. We're gonna give you our rating and reveal the cost per glass at the end of the episode.

• 1:09Rachel Cruze?

  Okay, so I saw the funniest thing, George. It's like a Korean shopping site, basically.

• 1:14George Kamel?

  Okay.

• 1:15Rachel Cruze?

  It's like a simulation that you can go in on this online store and shop, put everything in your cart, quote unquote, "checkout," but it's all fake. It just makes you feel like you're shopping.

• 1:26George Kamel?

  Wait, is the site a scam?

• 1:26Rachel Cruze?

  No, no, no, you don't put your own information in, like...

• 1:29George Kamel?

  It's a simulation?

• 1:30Rachel Cruze?

  Yeah, so you just go as if you are actually buying, because you know, we are, I do. I love going on a site if they're like 40% off, and I'm like, oh my gosh. And you go and you're like, oh, that's cute, that's cute. I like that, I like that, I like that. And this is like, you can get that feeling, because there is something happening when we shop online, or shop in general. Spend money, things are happening, George.

• 1:51George Kamel?

  So you get the dopamine hit without actually needing to spend the money?

• 1:54Rachel Cruze?

  Yes. Brilliant.

• 1:55George Kamel?

  This feels like you're just gambling without using real money.

• 1:58Rachel Cruze?

  Exactly.

• 1:58George Kamel?

  It's the same idea.

• 1:59Rachel Cruze?

  And you get the same hit, the same fun.

• 2:01George Kamel?

  Okay, I saw one that is that for food.

• 2:03Rachel Cruze?

  Okay.

• 2:04George Kamel?

  There's a site, Food Never Comes is what it's called. And the one, there's, I think you're talking about like DopamineCart.com is kinda like an Amazon.

• 2:10Rachel Cruze?

  Uh huh.

• 2:11George Kamel?

  But again, nothing is real.

• 2:13Rachel Cruze?

  Right. It's all fake.

• 2:14George Kamel?

  That's pretty sad. That's where we're at as a society.

• 2:16Rachel Cruze?

  Yours is called what again?

• 2:18George Kamel?

  Food Never Comes.

• 2:19Rachel Cruze?

  Food Never Comes?

• 2:19George Kamel?

  So you click all the food, but then it never comes?

• 2:21Rachel Cruze?

  Like mozzarella stick, oh, I'd be great at that. Queso, artichokes, you know.

• 2:26George Kamel?

  You'd get it all.

• 2:26Rachel Cruze?

  Yeah, the cheese artichoke dip, fantastic.

• 2:28George Kamel?

  You love a dip.

• 2:29Rachel Cruze?

  I love a dip. You know who has the best dips?

• 2:33George Kamel?

  Chili's?

• 2:34Rachel Cruze?

  Publix.

• 2:35George Kamel?

  Oh, I thought you were gonna say Chili's.

• 2:36Rachel Cruze?

  I do love Chili's, a triple dipper. No, Publix Deli, they have a buffalo, a chicken buffalo dip.

• 2:43George Kamel?

  It's like Publix brand?

• 2:44Rachel Cruze?

  Yes, and they make it in the deli, and it's all, go.

• 2:47George Kamel?

  Don't sleep on the Publix Deli.

• 2:49Rachel Cruze?

  There's a little hint for you. It's delicious, delicious, yeah.

• 2:51George Kamel?

  I love it. So what is it about shopping and spending money that feels exciting? What do you think that rush comes from? Like, are we just trying to be hunter-gatherers again? We don't actually need to go kill our food, so we just wanna click it?

• 3:04Rachel Cruze?

  We're just bored, we just need some excitement, I guess so. I like the idea of newness, too. Something new, that's fun.

• 3:10George Kamel?

  And it feels spontaneous for you.

• 3:11Rachel Cruze?

  And even if it's like, yeah.

• 3:12George Kamel?

  You're like, what if we, what if we just got some dips? What if we...

• 3:15Rachel Cruze?

  What if we just threw it, threw it an extra out?

• 3:17George Kamel?

  What if we go to a restaurant instead of eating at home?

• 3:19Rachel Cruze?

  I know. You know what I bought last night, speaking of all of this? We actually talked about it maybe two weeks ago on this, one of these shows.

• 3:25George Kamel?

  On this very show?

• 3:27Rachel Cruze?

  Um, or maybe we were recording, maybe it was before, I don't remember.

• 3:30George Kamel?

  Don't hold her to it.

• 3:31Rachel Cruze?

  But it's the Ninja Slushy.

• 3:34George Kamel?

  The Ninja, oh, the slushy version, not the creamy, but the slushy.

• 3:37Rachel Cruze?

  No, not creamy.

• 3:38George Kamel?

  We did talk about this.

• 3:38Rachel Cruze?

  Slushy. And I said, I'm gonna take a beat, I'm gonna take my own advice, I'm gonna sleep on it. And then I try not to think about it. I'm gonna keep on moving on with my life. And did I keep thinking about it?

• 3:48George Kamel?

  You thought about it.

• 3:48Rachel Cruze?

  Yes. And it was on sale, you said that.

• 3:51George Kamel?

  I sent you a link.

• 3:52Rachel Cruze?

  Yes, and last night, or yesterday morning, pulled the trigger. That's what showed up last night at about 8:30 PM. Thank you, thank you, Amazon Prime. Why does that make me so excited? And then why did I buy six tumblers for $30 to go with it?

• 4:07George Kamel?

  You gotta have matching tumblers.

• 4:08Rachel Cruze?

  Because I need, yes, I need new tumblers so that the icicles don't melt.

• 4:13George Kamel?

  Oh, they're like double walled?

• 4:14Rachel Cruze?

  Yeah.

• 4:15George Kamel?

  Insulated?

• 4:16Rachel Cruze?

  But I didn't get Yeti version, I went cheap.

• 4:18George Kamel?

  Okay.

• 4:18Rachel Cruze?

  See? But I still got the same excitement.

• 4:20George Kamel?

  That's where she saves her money, on the tumblers.

• 4:23Rachel Cruze?

  I know.

• 4:24George Kamel?

  But it is like Christmas morning when you open that up.

• 4:26Rachel Cruze?

  Why is that so fun?

• 4:26George Kamel?

  I think it emulates that feeling that we have on Christmas morning as kids.

• 4:30Rachel Cruze?

  Maybe so, that's probably it.

• 4:32George Kamel?

  But as an adult, you're like, you know full well, you build up the anticipation until it arrives.

• 4:36Rachel Cruze?

  What have you bought that's made you kinda giddy? Where you're like, oh my gosh.

• 4:39George Kamel?

  Okay, this is a sad one. On the frugal side, I finally bit the bullet and got the neck fans.

• 4:44Rachel Cruze?

  Is it worth it? I've seen them, I just haven't done it.

• 4:47George Kamel?

  I think it's mostly placebo effect, because it's just pushing, whatever the temperature is around you, it's just pushing that air at your neck.

• 4:54Rachel Cruze?

  Isn't that a fan, though?

• 4:56George Kamel?

  Yes, but it's not like cooling.

• 4:57Rachel Cruze?

  Oh, it's not?

• 4:58George Kamel?

  It just like moves some air against your chin. So I used it at the zoo. I looked really cool.

• 5:06Rachel Cruze?

  You were walking around the zoo.

• 5:07George Kamel?

  Yeah. That's the thing, is you gotta wear it in public, because you're outside.

• 5:10Rachel Cruze?

  100%, well, that's usually when you're gonna wear it.

• 5:12George Kamel?

  But I also wore it around the house.

• 5:13Rachel Cruze?

  You did?

• 5:14George Kamel?

  And that was actually a game changer. Have you ever been hot in your own house? Or you come out from doing yard work or something?

• 5:19Rachel Cruze?

  Yeah.

• 5:19George Kamel?

  Not that I know what that's like, but people do it.

• 5:22Rachel Cruze?

  Yes.

• 5:22George Kamel?

  But inside, because the temperature's much cooler, it actually is cold air hitting you.

• 5:27Rachel Cruze?

  Circulating and feeling great.

• 5:28George Kamel?

  That's the game changer. And if I bought two, it came with a free mini fan. Thanks, Amazon. So yeah.

• 5:34Rachel Cruze?

  Was it good? Like, worth it?

• 5:36George Kamel?

  I think it was very worth it, especially when you take your dogs for a walk.

• 5:39Rachel Cruze?

  I've been sitting at a lot of soccer games this fall, in August, in Tennessee, and it is hot.

• 5:42George Kamel?

  I'll send you my link.

• 5:43Rachel Cruze?

  Okay, yep.

• 5:44George Kamel?

  That's a good one.

• 5:44Rachel Cruze?

  I'm a cheer coach these days, George. I don't know if you...

• 5:47George Kamel?

  Not a real coach.

• 5:48Rachel Cruze?

  I don't know if you knew that.

• 5:49George Kamel?

  Not like a coach for the team. What?

• 5:52Rachel Cruze?

  For nine-year-olds.

• 5:53George Kamel?

  That's not a thing.

• 5:55Rachel Cruze?

  Yes, it is.

• 5:56George Kamel?

  You've been elected as the coach?

• 5:57Rachel Cruze?

  I had to volunteer, because no other parent did, so me and my good friend Kristen, we volunteered.

• 6:02George Kamel?

  So you're on the sideline with the girls who aren't playing, and you're like, girls cheer loud.

• 6:07Rachel Cruze?

  They're cheerleaders.

• 6:08George Kamel?

  Oh, they're officially cheerleaders?

• 6:09Rachel Cruze?

  Yeah, they got uniforms and pom poms and bows, and like, yeah, Caroline's a little cheerleader. So you'll learn, in Nashville, like Franklin has the Franklin Cowboys, and it's hundreds of kids, like it's actually, now that we're in it, I'm like, football. And then they have cheer squads.

• 6:25George Kamel?

  Okay, I just didn't know that like, basically Little League has their own cheerleading squad.

• 6:29Rachel Cruze?

  They do, they do.

• 6:29George Kamel?

  That's what I was trying to get at.

• 6:30Rachel Cruze?

  Yes, they do.

• 6:31George Kamel?

  I get high school level, they have cheerleaders, but below that...

• 6:34Rachel Cruze?

  And middle school, and then these little community teams.

• 6:36George Kamel?

  You gotta train them up for when they're at high school level.

• 6:39Rachel Cruze?

  So, sorry, I'm saying all that to say, I may need a fan for my Saturdays as cheer coach on the sideline. That's where that was going, that went off the rails.

• 6:46George Kamel?

  All right, so Ramsey has known for years that swiping a piece of plastic gives the buyer more impulsive dopamine.

• 6:53Rachel Cruze?

  Yes.

• 6:54George Kamel?

  It causes them to spend more than just paying cash. Cold hard cash that you hand over and never see again, that hits your brain differently.

• 7:01Rachel Cruze?

  Yes.

• 7:01George Kamel?

  Than a swipe, or even a tap to pay, where I tap, I take my phone back, and I get to keep the item.

• 7:07Rachel Cruze?

  Yep, all the things. I wonder in today's world if they ran that test again, that study again, if you will, if it is the same, because I've heard more and more Gen Z's say, if they have actual cash, it feels like free money.

• 7:18George Kamel?

  Oh, yes, it sort of backfires.

• 7:20Rachel Cruze?

  It actually does the opposite, because it doesn't hit their account, when they see their account, they get stressed. But if nothing ever hits their account, it's almost like it's just free.

• 7:28George Kamel?

  It's outside of the system.

• 7:29Rachel Cruze?

  Yes, yes. I'm curious in today's world if that changes, if that's changed.

• 7:33George Kamel?

  You're right, I think it has changed.

• 7:35Rachel Cruze?

  Because it is way more cashless, right, today than it was.

• 7:39George Kamel?

  You know what I think they should do? Every time you swipe, your phone should announce your bank balance.

• 7:44Rachel Cruze?

  Oh.

• 7:45George Kamel?

  Publicly.

• 7:46Rachel Cruze?

  Oh my gosh.

• 7:46George Kamel?

  That will really help. I think we need more public shame, is what I'm saying.

• 7:51Rachel Cruze?

  I've always thought, wouldn't it be a fun like superhero, like, um, gift, what do they call that? Skill? A superhero talent?

• 8:01George Kamel?

  Why can't I think of the name?

• 8:02Rachel Cruze?

  Like a...

• 8:03George Kamel?

  Superpower?

• 8:04Rachel Cruze?

  Thank you, producer Jana.

• 8:06George Kamel?

  Superheroes have superpowers.

• 8:07Rachel Cruze?

  Superpower, yes, a superpower where you can see people's like, net worth on top of their head. Wouldn't that be fascinating?

• 8:14George Kamel?

  Yeah. Oh, you don't watch Black Mirror, way too dark for you.

• 8:17Rachel Cruze?

  No.

• 8:17George Kamel?

  Don't encourage anyone to watch it, it is very dark. But they had a whole episode that gave you a social score that everyone could see.

• 8:23Rachel Cruze?

  Of how good you are socially?

• 8:25George Kamel?

  Yes, and in public. Like, if you were a terrible person, you had a bad social score.

• 8:29Rachel Cruze?

  Oh.

• 8:29George Kamel?

  But if you had a good social score, you had access to things that people didn't have access to.

• 8:33Rachel Cruze?

  Oh my gosh, okay.

• 8:34George Kamel?

  And so it was a very like, dark episode, but it's kinda similar to like a credit score, but for you as a person.

• 8:39Rachel Cruze?

  Wouldn't that be interesting to know?

• 8:41George Kamel?

  I'm not above it. Like, you hold the door open, you stop for someone at a crosswalk, like you get some points.

• 8:46Rachel Cruze?

  Yeah.

• 8:47George Kamel?

  You do something terrible, you get negative points.

• 8:48Rachel Cruze?

  Negative, not good.

• 8:50George Kamel?

  And then we can all see Rachel's score.

• 8:51Rachel Cruze?

  And see like, how good of a person are you?

• 8:53George Kamel?

  Yeah. But the goal is not to like, be a good person because you get extra points, you know what I mean? You don't wanna gamify it in that way.

• 8:59Rachel Cruze?

  No.

• 9:00George Kamel?

  Because then terrible people would just game the system.

• 9:02Rachel Cruze?

  Yes, yes. Uh, our kids have a little character pledge at their elementary school that they do every... Did you have one of those? Like, after you did the Pledge of Allegiance, you like, did like your school pledge? Did you ever have that? They call it the character pledge.

• 9:13George Kamel?

  I didn't know about character.

• 9:14Rachel Cruze?

  And there's like a little line in it, and it says, basically along the lines of, "And today, I will do the right thing, not because anyone is looking, but because it is the right thing to do." It's like a little line in there, isn't that good?

• 9:24George Kamel?

  That's so cute.

• 9:25Rachel Cruze?

  I know. So remind me of...

• 9:27George Kamel?

  They're, they're doing good things in school, guys.

• 9:29Rachel Cruze?

  They are.

• 9:30George Kamel?

  Stop looking at the headlines.

• 9:31Rachel Cruze?

  We love, we love.

• 9:32George Kamel?

  What are they teaching kids in school? Character? What are you teaching them at home?

• 9:36Rachel Cruze?

  Character pledges, character pledges, but yeah.

• 9:39George Kamel?

  My kids are unschooling.

• 9:40Rachel Cruze?

  So, so anyways.

• 9:42George Kamel?

  Fine.

• 9:43Rachel Cruze?

  Uh, no, but the psychological aspect is so real when you're spending money. And in fact, there's three main reasons, a quick Google search would tell you this, of psychological reasons we want to spend money. You ready? Number one, the dopamine hit. You already mentioned that. But anticipating a purchase triggers the brain's reward center multiple times. So you add to cart, ding ding ding, hit.

• 10:06George Kamel?

  That's a hit.

• 10:07Rachel Cruze?

  You get your shopping notification, your shipping notification.

• 10:09George Kamel?

  Oh, that's another hit.

• 10:10Rachel Cruze?

  Ding ding ding ding. And then it arrives at the door, ding ding ding ding. Then you open it, ding ding ding. Then you get to wear it and use it, ding ding ding.

• 10:17George Kamel?

  And then it, you go back down.

• 10:19Rachel Cruze?

  And then three weeks later, you're done. Yep. And then you gotta find it again.

• 10:22George Kamel?

  And then at least the next one, which is retail therapy.

• 10:23Rachel Cruze?

  Ah, that's rough.

• 10:25George Kamel?

  Restart the cycle. So people buy items to soothe the sadness, the anxiety, the lack of control, maybe even the happiness. You're so overjoyed about the job promotion, you go out and spend.

• 10:34Rachel Cruze?

  Yeah.

• 10:34George Kamel?

  Let's celebrate, guys.

• 10:36Rachel Cruze?

  Totally.

• 10:36George Kamel?

  That's another one that happens to a lot of people.

• 10:38Rachel Cruze?

  Yep. And number three is FOMO. So people shop to fit in socially or achieve what they've always wanted, right? Something they see out there and they're like, this is what I've always wanted. And so regardless if you can actually have the money to spend on it, thanks to debt.

• 10:53George Kamel?

  You just want to fit in. Have you found yourself ever doing that knowingly or unknowingly?

• 10:57Rachel Cruze?

  Oh, I'm sure.

• 10:59George Kamel?

  Like eventually you and your friends dress similarly. And you're like, how did we all land here?

• 11:03Rachel Cruze?

  Yes. See, that's where I'm like, I am probably on the undercurrent of being influenced.

• 11:09George Kamel?

  Yeah.

• 11:09Rachel Cruze?

  Like I bought some workout stuff that I have not bought new in like probably two years. Like I went to Old Navy and just like got a bunch of stuff.

• 11:16George Kamel?

  Your basics.

• 11:17Rachel Cruze?

  But I was like, you know what? I am a working woman.

• 11:20George Kamel?

  Yes.

• 11:20Rachel Cruze?

  I pay property taxes. Like I can buy some nice workout stuff. But I went with a brand that like some of my friends have.

• 11:27George Kamel?

  I can guess the brand.

• 11:28Rachel Cruze?

  And I don't like it. I've decided. I'm very, I have another nice brand that I like better. We can talk about this if you want.

• 11:35George Kamel?

  Can I guess?

• 11:36Rachel Cruze?

  Yes.

• 11:36George Kamel?

  If I guess you have Sam right.

• 11:38Rachel Cruze?

  Yeah.

• 11:38George Kamel?

  You bought ALO, you prefer the Lulu.

• 11:41Rachel Cruze?

  I prefer Viori.

• 11:42George Kamel?

  Oh, Viori.

• 11:44Rachel Cruze?

  All right, this little ALO company, little.

• 11:46George Kamel?

  What happened?

• 11:47Rachel Cruze?

  And when I say little, everything in there is little. And I was like, good night. Like it is for a bunch of 12-year-olds. It's basically what they like have built this clothes for.

• 11:57George Kamel?

  Wow.

• 11:58Rachel Cruze?

  Not a mom who's just trying to do sit-ups with a free weight. You know what I mean? Like I'm just like doing the basics and.

• 12:04George Kamel?

  It's really not about the brand at this point. It's the brand association.

• 12:07Rachel Cruze?

  I know. And I was like, I just need some like somewhat baggy comfy nice tees to wear, you know, with shorts, like, uh-uh. And so I bought one or two things and they're fine. But then I went to Viori and I'm like, this is my place. This is my place. So if I'm going nice, I'm going Viori.

• 12:23George Kamel?

  Okay. So not a fan of ALO.

• 12:26Rachel Cruze?

  No. And then another place I love for athleisure specifically is Cozy Earth.

• 12:30George Kamel?

  Now I feel like I'm an athlete because I have Cozy Earth.

• 12:32Rachel Cruze?

  Oh, well, yes, you are.

• 12:34George Kamel?

  I have the athleisure part down. It's the part before, the aths part I need to work on.

• 12:38Rachel Cruze?

  Just the leisure is great.

• 12:39George Kamel?

  The leisure part I am here for.

• 12:41Rachel Cruze?

  I know. But no, it's great about Cozy Earth though is when you're on their site, you can buy multiple things. As we're talking about the excitement of buying, because it's not just athleisure wear. It is blankets and sheets and towels. It's like all of it.

• 12:53George Kamel?

  And robes and clogs. Oh my.

• 12:55Rachel Cruze?

  And socks. Wonderful.

• 12:57George Kamel?

  Head to toe, you're covered.

• 12:59Rachel Cruze?

  Seriously, all their stuff. I use something from Cozy Earth literally every single day.

• 13:03George Kamel?

  I get a lot of compliments.

• 13:04Rachel Cruze?

  I'd say multiple things because they're sheets. I'm in that every day.

• 13:06George Kamel?

  Yeah.

• 13:07Rachel Cruze?

  So good.

• 13:07George Kamel?

  I have a button up from Cozy Earth and I just got a DM like, hey, where did you get that shirt? I don't get that a lot, as you know, because people on this show never comment, George, where'd you get that jacket? But they're always like, Rachel, love your Out of Air.

• 13:19Rachel Cruze?

  I know.

• 13:20George Kamel?

  But Cozy Earth really, they don't miss. Everything they make is high quality and it's stuff that's going to last you a long time.

• 13:27Rachel Cruze?

  Yeah, it's amazing. So we love the quality. We love the company. So if you go to cozylearth.com/smartmoney, there's actually a great deal for our listeners.

• 13:34George Kamel?

  20% off.

• 13:35Rachel Cruze?

  Fantastic.

• 13:36George Kamel?

  And makes a great gift too. So if you're one of those guys who's like, I don't know what to get, or just get our Cozy Earth. You can't miss.

• 13:41Rachel Cruze?

  We love it.

• 13:42George Kamel?

  Well, here's a wild study that was done. 200 people, seven countries, they gave participants 10 grand to spend. I don't know how I could have, I could have signed up for this. We missed out bigly. All right. Can you guess which kind of spending gave people the most quote unquote happiness?

• 13:57Rachel Cruze?

  What, like category?

• 13:58George Kamel?

  Yes.

• 13:59Rachel Cruze?

  Of spending?

• 14:00George Kamel?

  It doesn't have to be spending. Just what did they do with the money that gave them the most happiness?

• 14:04Rachel Cruze?

  Experiences.

• 14:05George Kamel?

  Well, you'd be wrong.

• 14:07Rachel Cruze?

  Oh, what was it?

• 14:07George Kamel?

  That was close, but participants reported the highest levels of happiness from donating to charitable organizations and buying gifts.

• 14:15Rachel Cruze?

  Giving.

• 14:15George Kamel?

  Giving.

• 14:16Rachel Cruze?

  George, what do we talk about?

• 14:17George Kamel?

  That's pretty wild that these people chose to do that. But then also, high levels of happiness from spending money on personal care, education, and experiences.

• 14:25Rachel Cruze?

  Okay. Well, I like the education piece. That's kind of nice.

• 14:27George Kamel?

  We don't talk about that a lot.

• 14:28Rachel Cruze?

  No, but like spending to actually.

• 14:31George Kamel?

  To learn and grow?

• 14:32Rachel Cruze?

  Mm-hmm.

• 14:33George Kamel?

  Who would have thunk it?

• 14:33Rachel Cruze?

  Who would have thought?

• 14:35George Kamel?

  I need some education. And then those who kept their spending private as opposed to those who were advised to publicly display their purchases on social media, experienced more happiness. You always say this quote and I like it. And you say, if, if nobody saw this purchase, would I still want it?

• 14:50Rachel Cruze?

  Exactly. Thanks for quoting that.

• 14:52George Kamel?

  It's a Rachel Cruz original.

• 14:53Rachel Cruze?

  So actually, if you, yeah. So if you still want it, it really is for you.

• 14:57George Kamel?

  Keep your spending private.

• 14:58Rachel Cruze?

  And something that you're going to enjoy. Yes. You don't need to post it.

• 15:00George Kamel?

  That's a good way to think. If everything I own, nobody knew about, would I still want?

• 15:03Rachel Cruze?

  That generosity, privacy, and things that probably better you in a sense, and the people around you, right?

• 15:09George Kamel?

  Or create a memory.

• 15:10Rachel Cruze?

  Experiences, education, all of that. Like that is, that's it. That's prime.

• 15:15George Kamel?

  Beautiful.

• 15:15Rachel Cruze?

  I like it, you know? It's like Ecclesiastes. It's just all dust.

• 15:19George Kamel?

  It's all vapor in the wind.

• 15:21Rachel Cruze?

  It's all vapor. So.

• 15:23George Kamel?

  Finally, you mentioned Ecclesiastes.

• 15:24Rachel Cruze?

  Bring some richness into your life.

• 15:26George Kamel?

  Usually it's me going ecclesiastical. So thank you for doing it for once.

• 15:29Rachel Cruze?

  You're welcome. It's the series that our church is.

• 15:33George Kamel?

  Oh, that makes sense. Just heard the whole Sunday sermon.

• 15:37Rachel Cruze?

  I know. No, Winston loves Ecclesiastes. You and Winston are on that same mood vibe.

• 15:41George Kamel?

  It's just a great, like, hey, there's a guy who had it all, had all the money in the world, did all the things, and here's what he had to say about it.

• 15:46Rachel Cruze?

  And he's like, listen, it's just not, yeah, not good.

• 15:49George Kamel?

  It's great. Enjoy your life, but like, don't expect something you can't get from money.

• 15:53Rachel Cruze?

  Yeah, like it's not going to happen. What you think is going to bring you is not going to bring you.

• 15:56George Kamel?

  And also life is temporary. So just enjoy it.

• 15:58Rachel Cruze?

  All the lessons, the presence. I know. Gosh, so good, George.

• 16:02George Kamel?

  So good. Okay. Enough science and confessions from us. Now it's time to judge you guys, which is one of my favorite things to do. So this is what you sent on social. When we asked what purchases give you the biggest dopamine hit, we're going to decide if we agree or disagree based on our own spending tendencies.

• 16:17Rachel Cruze?

  Yep. And listen, this is all out of love. So don't get mad at us. But if you want to start a little drama in the comments, be our guest.

• 16:24George Kamel?

  Yeah, because Rachel ain't looking. I'll report back to her if there's any good ones.

• 16:29Rachel Cruze?

  George, like there's our new Reddit thread. Like I've never been on Reddit.

• 16:32George Kamel?

  Why do I talk like that? Like Tom Brokaw?

• 16:35Rachel Cruze?

  That's just our nightly news.

• 16:38George Kamel?

  That's pretty good.

• 16:39Rachel Cruze?

  All right. First up is someone responded, gifts, guns, and real estate.

• 16:46George Kamel?

  I didn't know Dave Ramsey responds to your social posts, but I love that.

• 16:50Rachel Cruze?

  Dave? Winston? I don't know.

• 16:52George Kamel?

  That does sound like either of those guys.

• 16:54Rachel Cruze?

  Oh my gosh. Oh, yeah.

• 16:56George Kamel?

  That gives them the biggest dopamine hit is getting gifts?

• 16:58Rachel Cruze?

  I mean, I have to give Green a lot of the dudes in my life. That's like probably their, gifts is first though.

• 17:03George Kamel?

  Real estate is a wild, like, oh yeah, one of my favorite purchases, real estate. Would Winston take me to go shopping?

• 17:11Rachel Cruze?

  For sure.

• 17:12George Kamel?

  Like a rite of passage?

• 17:13Rachel Cruze?

  For sure.

• 17:15George Kamel?

  Okay. That's a good one. All right. Next up on our social responses for purchases that gave you the biggest dopamine hit, a coach purse. That's very specific.

• 17:24Rachel Cruze?

  Man.

• 17:25George Kamel?

  That felt like a big trend.

• 17:26Rachel Cruze?

  It's like an '04.

• 17:27George Kamel?

  Yeah, it feels like high school, like coach purses were all the rage. I don't know if people are still doing it.

• 17:31Rachel Cruze?

  Listen, if this lady loves a coach purse, I'll give it to her. Go girl. Go girl.

• 17:36George Kamel?

  Yeah, I'm all, I'm all for it.

• 17:38Rachel Cruze?

  I think that's great.

• 17:38George Kamel?

  I don't know what they cost. I have no clue what a coach purse costs. It could be $50 or 5,000 and I would have no clue.

• 17:44Rachel Cruze?

  I'd say a couple hundred bucks probably for a coach purse, I would think. Yeah.

• 17:48George Kamel?

  We'll never know. There's no way to find out.

• 17:50Rachel Cruze?

  Yep. Um, next is a, I don't know what this is, a Telecaster electric guitar.

• 17:56George Kamel?

  Green flags.

• 17:57Rachel Cruze?

  Red flag. Don't know what it is.

• 17:59George Kamel?

  I have one hanging in my YouTube studio on the wall. It's a Fender Telecaster. It's one of the most classic guitars of all time.

• 18:07Rachel Cruze?

  Amazing.

• 18:08George Kamel?

  I bet Winston Cruz knows what a Telecaster is.

• 18:11Rachel Cruze?

  He might.

• 18:11George Kamel?

  So there's the Stratocaster, then there's the Telecaster.

• 18:15Rachel Cruze?

  Okay. And Tele is bigger than Strata?

• 18:17George Kamel?

  I wouldn't say bigger. You're talking different tones, different pickups.

• 18:21Rachel Cruze?

  Wait, what?

• 18:22George Kamel?

  Why am I wasting the time? But I go Telecaster. It's more of a country vibe.

• 18:28Rachel Cruze?

  Does that look like an acoustic guitar?

• 18:29George Kamel?

  No, it's an electric guitar.

• 18:30Rachel Cruze?

  Oh, okay.

• 18:31George Kamel?

  If you just think, what does an electric guitar look at?

• 18:33Rachel Cruze?

  Why would you play an electric guitar and not an acoustic guitar?

• 18:35George Kamel?

  Well, electric guitars plug in, more of that rock and roll sound. You can use different pedals, create different tones from punk rock to country.

• 18:42Rachel Cruze?

  Okay.

• 18:42George Kamel?

  Acoustic is you're gonna get an acoustic vibe.

• 18:44Rachel Cruze?

  Okay. I think I like the acoustic.

• 18:46George Kamel?

  More of a Jack Johnson gal.

• 18:47Rachel Cruze?

  Or Taylor Swift gal.

• 18:49George Kamel?

  That's true.

• 18:51George Kamel?

  Taylor does go more acoustic, but she has electric. I mean, you know, don't you know her electric guitar player?

• 18:55Rachel Cruze?

  Paul.

• 18:56George Kamel?

  Yes.

• 18:57Rachel Cruze?

  Yes. Oh, he plays an electric guitar?

• 18:58George Kamel?

  What do you think he plays?

• 19:00Rachel Cruze?

  I don't know.

• 19:01George Kamel?

  I mean, he obviously plays acoustic too in the, for the band, but mainly.

• 19:04Rachel Cruze?

  All guitars are guitars to me. Don't even talk about a bass guitar. That makes no sense.

• 19:08George Kamel?

  So when you think lead guitar, think they're probably on an electric.

• 19:12Rachel Cruze?

  Because it has range.

• 19:13George Kamel?

  Rhythm guitar, it can be electric or acoustic.

• 19:15Rachel Cruze?

  Okay.

• 19:15George Kamel?

  In general.

• 19:16Rachel Cruze?

  If you play an acu- last question. If you play an acoustic guitar, can you play an electric guitar?

• 19:21George Kamel?

  Yes, but not necessarily as good.

• 19:24Rachel Cruze?

  Okay.

• 19:25George Kamel?

  So electric guitar.

• 19:26Rachel Cruze?

  What's easier to learn?

• 19:27George Kamel?

  If I was gonna just pick a guitar for someone, I'd probably go acoustic.

• 19:30Rachel Cruze?

  Okay.

• 19:31George Kamel?

  There's less you need. Electric guitar, you need cables and amps, and it's a different feel.

• 19:36Rachel Cruze?

  Mm-hmm. All right.

• 19:38George Kamel?

  So acoustic, it's easier to learn songs. All right.

• 19:41Rachel Cruze?

  So interesting.

• 19:42George Kamel?

  That's a green flag. I might as well have submitted that one.

• 19:44Rachel Cruze?

  Yeah, for sure.

• 19:45George Kamel?

  And I did get a dopamine hit when I bought it for the YouTube studio.

• 19:48Rachel Cruze?

  Oh, did you?

• 19:48George Kamel?

  Especially because it wasn't my money.

• 19:50Rachel Cruze?

  Oh, that's fair.

• 19:51George Kamel?

  I got it as like decoration for the studio.

• 19:52Rachel Cruze?

  Oh, my gosh.

• 19:53George Kamel?

  It was in the budget.

• 19:54Rachel Cruze?

  Well, I just spent some money, George, and I swiped my Fairwins debit card. Uh-huh.

• 20:01George Kamel?

  There she is.

• 20:01Rachel Cruze?

  To live like no one else.

• 20:02George Kamel?

  So they have a new one.

• 20:03Rachel Cruze?

  I had two Fairwins cards in my back pocket. That's how much I love Fairwins.

• 20:07George Kamel?

  The Dead is Normal Be Weird debit card, but they have a new Live Like No One Else themed debit card.

• 20:12Rachel Cruze?

  And I will say, there's something just fun about spending and knowing you're done. That's why spending with debit cards.

• 20:17George Kamel?

  Your own money now, instead of a credit card, someone else's money that you have to pay back later.

• 20:21Rachel Cruze?

  And that you know a bill's coming, and you're like, okay, I'm gonna have to eventually pay for it. When you pay for it and you're done, it's amazing. And that's one reason I do love Fairwins, because they have the Smart Bundle, because there is a no monthly fee checking account, up to 10 high-yield savings accounts, and you get the debit card. And so, yeah, knowing that all your money's right there, the app is great. You keep track of it. I've actually plugged it into EveryDollar, so I'm getting all my statements, all my transactions.

• 20:46George Kamel?

  Transactions flow in beautifully.

• 20:48Rachel Cruze?

  But I love it. And I love that the high-yield savings accounts connect to the checking, too.

• 20:52George Kamel?

  You can transfer seamlessly.

• 20:53Rachel Cruze?

  Yes, it's so easy.

• 20:54George Kamel?

  If you ever did need your savings, you gotta transfer from the online. Well, Fairwins makes it super easy because they're connected, which I love. And they're federally insured by the NCUA, so similar to FDIC insurance with your traditional bank. Credit unions have NCUA, so you know your money's covered. So check it out. Go get that Smart Bundle and the all-new Live Like No One Else debit card at fairwins.org/Ramsey. We'll also drop a link in the description.

• 21:17Rachel Cruze?

  All right, next comment was, flights home to the Midwest. I work on the East Coast.

• 21:22George Kamel?

  Oh, that's sweet.

• 21:24Rachel Cruze?

  That's precious.

• 21:25George Kamel?

  A flight home is priceless. I'm gonna go, I don't know how much it costs to go to the Midwest. I feel like it's not that cheap. To get to places that are harder to get to costs more.

• 21:33Rachel Cruze?

  That is true, especially if you're gonna fly into a regional airport and connect.

• 21:37George Kamel?

  Brutal. But hey, home is worth it. That's a sweet one.

• 21:42Rachel Cruze?

  Um, a fancy new radio flyer wagon to tote my kids around all summer. That's so cute. I love those.

• 21:50George Kamel?

  I have one of those. I don't even know how I have it, but I have it.

• 21:52Rachel Cruze?

  We have one, too. It's actually been sitting out in our driveway for like months. We probably need to pick it up.

• 21:56George Kamel?

  There's just so many things to tote the kids around in the garage. It's a nightmare. I don't know how you guys store it at all, but there's just so much. You just collect it, and then one thing's free off the Facebook group, and you grab that, too.

• 22:07Rachel Cruze?

  I know.

• 22:08George Kamel?

  You never get rid of the old stuff?

• 22:09Rachel Cruze?

  Can I tell you, that's when I see Winston Cruz's anger, because you'll get a bike and it's like, krrt, krrt, krrt, and then it's like the electric Jeep, and he's like, this is all just cool.

• 22:20George Kamel?

  It's all stacked on top of each other.

• 22:21Rachel Cruze?

  Like, what are we doing? Yes.

• 22:23George Kamel?

  Well, then it's like Jenga. I'm trying to get one thing out of the bottom of the pile.

• 22:26Rachel Cruze?

  Yeah, it makes my like, um, what's it called? When there's a lot happening.

• 22:31George Kamel?

  Sensory simulation?

• 22:33Rachel Cruze?

  Yes. I don't have sensory issues, but if I did, it'd be happening in my garage, because it makes me stressed.

• 22:38George Kamel?

  Yeah.

• 22:39Rachel Cruze?

  I don't like it. I feel tense.

• 22:40George Kamel?

  The radio flyer does like fold up, so that is nice. It like collapses in on itself, the one that I have.

• 22:46Rachel Cruze?

  You don't have a big plastic one?

• 22:47George Kamel?

  It's like the cloth version.

• 22:48Rachel Cruze?

  Oh.

• 22:49George Kamel?

  Not that like.

• 22:51Rachel Cruze?

  So we got the, we got the plastic one.

• 22:52George Kamel?

  We've upgraded. There you go.

• 22:53Rachel Cruze?

  Well done.

• 22:54George Kamel?

  All right, next one, thrift store treasures.

• 22:57Rachel Cruze?

  Can I be snobby?

• 22:59George Kamel?

  You can be snobby. You disagree with this one as a concept?

• 23:03Rachel Cruze?

  I just, the older I've gotten, maybe because I know how I live and my children live, who are disgusting, you know? That when things are, yeah, I'm like, oh, I just don't know what's happened in that shirt. Or I don't know what's happened with that spoon. Like, what do, you know what I mean? Like, what are we?

• 23:20George Kamel?

  A very particular spoon.

• 23:21Rachel Cruze?

  I'm just saying, like, the thought of other people, a couch, you can't do furniture, like, there's just certain things now that I'm like, I don't know, I think I just Amazon. And get the cheapest of the cheap. It's not like I'm getting nice stuff, but.

• 23:31George Kamel?

  You don't care about the thrill of the ride, of trying to find the thing?

• 23:34Rachel Cruze?

  Nope.

• 23:34George Kamel?

  You're just like, search, tap, buy.

• 23:36Rachel Cruze?

  Yes. Yep.

• 23:37George Kamel?

  All right, I'm gonna go, I'm gonna go with a nice green flag on this one, but here's the caveat. Treasures feels like it's something unique, like, it's a cool lamp, that they just, you can't find lamps like that anymore.

• 23:49Rachel Cruze?

  That's true.

• 23:49George Kamel?

  So people that like the vintage look of things, when everything now, it just feels like it's all made in the same factory. It's all boring. It's all the same.

• 23:57Rachel Cruze?

  Okay, that's fair.

• 23:58George Kamel?

  So treasures made me think cool items.

• 24:00Rachel Cruze?

  If it said antique?

• 24:02George Kamel?

  Yeah.

• 24:03Rachel Cruze?

  That may have some of that nostalgic, good, warm vibes.

• 24:07George Kamel?

  Yeah. I used to buy a lot of clothes from, like, I thought it was really cool when I was in high school to buy like youth league soccer t-shirts.

• 24:15Rachel Cruze?

  Oh, yes.

• 24:16George Kamel?

  And I would wear them as a grown, I mean, a grown adult is a strong word for me, but like, I was not a child. I was like 16, wearing a 10-year-old.

• 24:25Rachel Cruze?

  Yeah, like thrift feeling. Yeah.

• 24:27George Kamel?

  But I thought it was funny, it's like youth soccer, and I was 16.

• 24:30Rachel Cruze?

  We went through a thrift phase. Yes. I know what you're talking about. Yeah.

• 24:33George Kamel?

  That was my vibe. It's very telling of me.

• 24:36Rachel Cruze?

  And with a skateboard.

• 24:37George Kamel?

  With my, exactly.

• 24:38Rachel Cruze?

  Big skateboard and little skateboard. Weren't you a little skateboarder?

• 24:40George Kamel?

  Okay, they're called fingerboards.

• 24:42Rachel Cruze?

  Okay, fingerboards.

• 24:43George Kamel?

  They have a name. They're not little skateboards, but yes, I did love those. And yes, we had little skate parks, and yes, we filmed us skateboarding with our fingers. We were cool. It was cool.

• 24:54Rachel Cruze?

  God love them. Yeah.

• 24:55George Kamel?

  All right, we're stepping it up on this next one.

• 24:57Rachel Cruze?

  Okay, here we go. Wow.

• 24:58George Kamel?

  Purchases that gave you a dopamine hit.

• 24:59Rachel Cruze?

  Rolex and Omegas.

• 25:01George Kamel?

  Wow. This person likes watches. What do you think about a watch guy? Turn off? Ick? That's like a personality trait?

• 25:12Rachel Cruze?

  Okay, I'm not saying this because you're sitting.

• 25:13George Kamel?

  I'm assuming this is a man, by the way. This could be a woman.

• 25:16Rachel Cruze?

  Yeah, I'm not saying this because you're sitting here.

• 25:17George Kamel?

  Thank you.

• 25:17Rachel Cruze?

  I'm being genuine when I say this. If the Rolex has a cool story, okay? So just like you, George.

• 25:23George Kamel?

  Thank you.

• 25:24Rachel Cruze?

  You did.

• 25:24George Kamel?

  Well, you know, I'm not a watch guy.

• 25:26Rachel Cruze?

  You know what's crazy, though, is my friend, Megan, literally, this just happened to her. Husband's grandfather had a Rolex, but it was like, it was a smaller one, like, it was a little bit probably feminine looking. So her husband was like, you take it, get it. So she's doing what you're doing. To me, that is so cool.

• 25:42George Kamel?

  It's like heirloom.

• 25:43Rachel Cruze?

  And you know what? I'm okay with one. If you got one nice watch as a guy, I'm not mad. But maybe it's because I'm married Winston Cruz. I just like a rugged, like, I got a garment, I got a, like, I got a utility watch. There's something masculine about that versus like clunky, big watch. Does that make sense?

• 26:04George Kamel?

  Like tech bro with a fancy watch. You're like, that's not it for you.

• 26:07Rachel Cruze?

  Why are you saying tech bro, though? What does that mean? That makes me think that it's like a.

• 26:09George Kamel?

  Well, just people who are into watches, you know, they tend to be those types of guys. There's a stereotype.

• 26:14Rachel Cruze?

  Or like financial planners. I don't know.

• 26:16George Kamel?

  Sure.

• 26:16Rachel Cruze?

  Sorry, no offense. We love financial planners.

• 26:18George Kamel?

  It tends to be more of a flex.

• 26:20Rachel Cruze?

  Should actually get a smart vest, bro.

• 26:22George Kamel?

  Here's what I found, though.

• 26:25Rachel Cruze?

  But you know what I'm saying? Just like, I don't know, it's just the clunky silver wa- it just doesn't.

• 26:29George Kamel?

  It's not for you.

• 26:30Rachel Cruze?

  I don't know. It's like kind of daint- it's like kind of like jewelry on a guy.

• 26:34George Kamel?

  Oh.

• 26:35Rachel Cruze?

  Do you know what I'm saying?

• 26:35George Kamel?

  You think it's more feminine?

• 26:37Rachel Cruze?

  I think so, where I'm like, I just need a little rugged. Give me a beard.

• 26:41George Kamel?

  Yeah.

• 26:41Rachel Cruze?

  But granted, I'm attracted to my husband, so that's, you know, I like the rugged look.

• 26:46George Kamel?

  I just get stressed, like, wearing like a $25,000 wrist piece just feels like, I don't want to go outside. I'm gonna get kidnapped.

• 26:52Rachel Cruze?

  Yes. They're coming to get me.

• 26:55George Kamel?

  Yeah, if I go on a trip, I'm not bringing my watch.

• 26:58Rachel Cruze?

  Right.

• 26:58George Kamel?

  I'm not doing it. You can't risk it.

• 27:00Rachel Cruze?

  Like, some women don't bring their wedding rings on trips.

• 27:03George Kamel?

  Yeah, because some wedding rings are worth a lot.

• 27:05Rachel Cruze?

  Yeah.

• 27:05George Kamel?

  I'm not gonna lose a wrist or a finger just for that.

• 27:08Rachel Cruze?

  I don't know. I mean, what do you think? Does the look throw you off?

• 27:11George Kamel?

  I just watched a 32-minute video that was a rookie's guide to watches, and it was so fascinating, but the guy was really cool.

• 27:18Rachel Cruze?

  Okay.

• 27:18George Kamel?

  And he was explaining the history behind it. He went to Switzerland to see like how it's made.

• 27:23Rachel Cruze?

  Okay.

• 27:24George Kamel?

  And all the differences and why you'd want a certain type of watch and the different brands. And there are certain brands that are known to be like, you're trying to flex, or based on why you want it. The motive matters.

• 27:33Rachel Cruze?

  Okay.

• 27:34George Kamel?

  So I will say that. So I've been getting more into it, not because I want to be a watch guy, but because it is interesting to me.

• 27:39Rachel Cruze?

  Yes, yes.

• 27:39George Kamel?

  I'm like, why would someone pay $50,000 for a watch?

• 27:42Rachel Cruze?

  For a watch? I know, I know. So.

• 27:45George Kamel?

  I won't, and I'll read my words one day if I do.

• 27:47Rachel Cruze?

  Can I do this? Just like a half and half?

• 27:50George Kamel?

  But overall, if that's.

• 27:51Rachel Cruze?

  Did I sound judgy?

• 27:52George Kamel?

  No, you are judgy. You don't sound judgy. I wouldn't say you sounded judgy.

• 27:58Rachel Cruze?

  I think, again, I'm gonna go back to my statement. If the watch has a cool story, I think I'm bought in. Okay, we have a lot to cover, so let's go quick.

• 28:05George Kamel?

  All right.

• 28:05Rachel Cruze?

  Okay? Last thoughts here. You ready?

• 28:07George Kamel?

  Yep.

• 28:08Rachel Cruze?

  My 2024 Tundra, yes, it's paid off. I'm gonna go green.

• 28:12George Kamel?

  Dopamine hit. Okay.

• 28:14Rachel Cruze?

  It's a great one.

• 28:15George Kamel?

  I feel like if you're bragging about a Tundra, you're a green flag kind of guy. Next up, perennials. I imagine that's the flower.

• 28:23Rachel Cruze?

  Yeah, I'm not a plant person. I'm gonna go here.

• 28:26George Kamel?

  Yeah, I mean, I love that for you, but it's not for me.

• 28:29Rachel Cruze?

  Yeah.

• 28:30George Kamel?

  If that's what gives you a dopamine hit, then you probably have a beautiful lawn.

• 28:35Rachel Cruze?

  Okay, this next one's funny. Not what you're looking for, but it ticks me off when the wife buys Red Bulls.

• 28:42George Kamel?

  That's a direct quote. Is, quote, "Not what you're looking for, but it ticks me off." So they're just venting to us on social media?

• 28:48Rachel Cruze?

  Sure.

• 28:49George Kamel?

  Why does it tick them off?

• 28:50Rachel Cruze?

  All these overpriced energy drinks, though, stupid. Get a, get a cup of black coffee like a real man and call it a day. So. I like, I like that.

• 29:00George Kamel?

  I'm gonna go, I don't like this guy's energy. All right?

• 29:03Rachel Cruze?

  I like him.

• 29:03George Kamel?

  Because I bet there's things he buys that she goes, how much zen does a guy need, man? You know what I mean? Like, who knows what he's into? Why is he judging his wife for needing a little energy? She taking care of the kids all day, and they're feral? She might need some energy. And if you're getting them in bulk and not from the gas station.

• 29:18Rachel Cruze?

  Okay, all right. We got it. Okay.

• 29:20George Kamel?

  But also, go to a doctor.

• 29:21Rachel Cruze?

  Christmas decor at Hobby Lobby. Yes, yes, and yes, sometimes the red is terrible. You gotta be real careful with the gold, but sometimes it's fantastic.

• 29:32Rachel Cruze?

  Sometimes it hits perfect.

• 29:33George Kamel?

  Okay, here's my caveat. If you're going every year, it's a problem. But if you have like your Christmas setup, that's a green.

• 29:39Rachel Cruze?

  Yeah, I'm going, I love it. I love it. Okay.

• 29:41George Kamel?

  All right. I don't know what this one is, but Baccarat perfume? Baccarat. It would be Baccarat. Is it an expensive perfume? Cause does anyone have any intel on this?

• 29:51Rachel Cruze?

  You know, I love perfume. I'm gonna say yes. Go.

• 29:53George Kamel?

  I'm in my crunchy era and I go, well, that's toxic. So I'm gonna go thumbs down on this one.

• 29:58Rachel Cruze?

  Notebooks. I know it's weird. It says in parentheses. What brings you joy? You know what? If you're a journaler, I used to be and not anymore. Yeah, if you're a journaler.

• 30:08George Kamel?

  Yeah.

• 30:09Rachel Cruze?

  I can see how notebooks are pretty. Give like an aesthetic to the nightstands.

• 30:12George Kamel?

  I have a lot of empty notebooks, so I'm jealous of this person for using them to their fullest extent.

• 30:17Rachel Cruze?

  Instagram ads that stalk me for weeks.

• 30:20George Kamel?

  That gives you a dopamine rush?

• 30:23Rachel Cruze?

  You end up actually buying it?

• 30:25George Kamel?

  Like you gave into it?

• 30:26Rachel Cruze?

  Yeah, I can't. Cause I think I see too many of those and I'm like, uh-uh.

• 30:29George Kamel?

  It feels like defeat and I've rarely been like, that was a worthy purchase. Although I did fall for one. And I tried it.

• 30:35Rachel Cruze?

  What was it?

• 30:36George Kamel?

  It's a magnetic, this sounds so lame, but it's a magnetic nose strip. That is for people with deviated septums, so that they sleep better. And I fell for it.

• 30:48Rachel Cruze?

  Stop it. It didn't work.

• 30:50George Kamel?

  Forty bucks. I can't say it didn't work, but the sensation of something on my nose all night, especially magnets, was so distracting that I haven't been able to sleep better.

• 31:01Rachel Cruze?

  Yeah, that doesn't feel good.

• 31:03George Kamel?

  But it does clear the deviated septum a little bit.

• 31:06Rachel Cruze?

  Good for you. Are you gonna get a nose surgery?

• 31:09George Kamel?

  It saves you on having to spend thousands on deviated septum surgery.

• 31:12Rachel Cruze?

  Well, there you go. You fell for it. Pet accessories and supplies.

• 31:19George Kamel?

  Green from me, thumbs up, thumbs down from Rachel, cause she hates her pets.

• 31:23Rachel Cruze?

  I don't hate my pets. I love my dog June.

• 31:26George Kamel?

  You've never bought any supplies or accessories for her that have made her so happy?

• 31:29Rachel Cruze?

  Genuinely say no.

• 31:31George Kamel?

  I think it's an act of generosity to give your dog a joyful life.

• 31:34Rachel Cruze?

  Winston takes great care of our dog.

• 31:35George Kamel?

  I will say for cats, it's a thumbs down, but for dogs.

• 31:39Rachel Cruze?

  Okay, that's fair.

• 31:39George Kamel?

  Mostly because if you have like a cat tower, and this is personal, cause there was a house that needed to be sold so that they could purchase our house. And I knew it wouldn't sell because their back patio had a gigantic enclosed cat tower.

• 31:54Rachel Cruze?

  No. Did you tell them to get rid of it?

• 31:56George Kamel?

  Who am I? I can't, I don't even know the, I can't contact them. But I wanted to contact the realtor and say, hey.

• 32:02Rachel Cruze?

  Get the cat stuff out of there.

• 32:03George Kamel?

  And they had like bright pink furry pillows that had like cats.

• 32:06Rachel Cruze?

  They call them $20,000 cats. That's like the key. It's like, yeah, if people know you have a cat, it's like automatically $20,000.

• 32:13George Kamel?

  They can smell the urine from, through the Zillow listing.

• 32:17Rachel Cruze?

  Listen.

• 32:18George Kamel?

  But yeah, I'm for pet accessories in general.

• 32:20Rachel Cruze?

  Okay, good for you.

• 32:21George Kamel?

  Okay.

• 32:21Rachel Cruze?

  Uh, next, buying DVDs from the thrift store. I'm building out my physical library.

• 32:26George Kamel?

  If it's a, I would or wouldn't.

• 32:27Rachel Cruze?

  I don't have time.

• 32:28George Kamel?

  It's a thumbs down.

• 32:29Rachel Cruze?

  I don't have, I don't have room. I don't have time.

• 32:31George Kamel?

  Cause guess what? Some, your kids, your poor children are gonna inherit your DVD library and have to give it to a Goodwill.

• 32:36Rachel Cruze?

  Do you know what? Um, our van has a DVD player.

• 32:40George Kamel?

  So you keep some.

• 32:41Rachel Cruze?

  So I had old DVDs from like high school, college.

• 32:46Rachel Cruze?

  And it was like Notting Hill.

• 32:48George Kamel?

  That's what your kids are having to watch in the van on road trips?

• 32:50Rachel Cruze?

  Well, I ended up buying like, what's the one with all the men that sing?

• 32:54George Kamel?

  Veggie Tales?

• 32:55Rachel Cruze?

  Nope. They all have different color shirts. The Wiggles! Bought the Wiggles off of Amazon, back when the kids were little. So that or Notting Hill. Julia Roberts or the Wiggles. That's what they get to choose from.

• 33:08George Kamel?

  I think I might choose Notting Hill.

• 33:10Rachel Cruze?

  I know. Let me tell you, yeah, the Wiggles were something. They're something.

• 33:15George Kamel?

  My daughter is just figuring out Veggie Tales and she's obsessed with the Hairbrush song.

• 33:19Rachel Cruze?

  Oh, cute.

• 33:19George Kamel?

  Oh, where's my hairbrush?

• 33:20Rachel Cruze?

  Yeah, loves it. Hey, does she love Bluey? Oh yeah, Bluey's about to house, of course.

• 33:24George Kamel?

  She's a big Bluey fan. Yep.

• 33:25Rachel Cruze?

  My kids still.

• 33:26George Kamel?

  Miss Rachel, Bluey, Blippi unfortunately.

• 33:29Rachel Cruze?

  Yeah, that's sad.

• 33:29George Kamel?

  The Wiggles on occasion.

• 33:30Rachel Cruze?

  Okay.

• 33:31George Kamel?

  So I'm trying to steer her toward Veggie Tales.

• 33:33Rachel Cruze?

  You're gonna come out of that phase.

• 33:35George Kamel?

  Into what?

• 33:36Rachel Cruze?

  My kids are into movies. So like, um, like Toy Story 5.

• 33:40George Kamel?

  Love it. I can't wait to watch a good movie with her. That'll be fun.

• 33:44Rachel Cruze?

  Yeah, so my kids are, they're Bluey or they turn on movies. Okay, keep going.

• 33:48George Kamel?

  Okay, last one on the list of purchases that give you the dopamine hit. Index funds.

• 33:55George Kamel?

  There's my fellow nerd right there. Just investing into an index fund every month. Just DCA, dollar cost averaging. That's what's up.

• 34:03Rachel Cruze?

  I know I should be green.

• 34:04George Kamel?

  I'm green on this one.

• 34:06Rachel Cruze?

  I'm not. It does not give me a dopamine hit.

• 34:08George Kamel?

  Here's the thing, I automate investing.

• 34:10Rachel Cruze?

  My money's gone. That's how I truly believe. A wise man saves a generation for the generation.

• 34:15George Kamel?

  We're mixing our verses now.

• 34:17Rachel Cruze?

  A wise man leaves an inheritance, you know.

• 34:20George Kamel?

  A good man leaves an inheritance to his children's children.

• 34:23Rachel Cruze?

  A good man leaves an inheritance, yes.

• 34:24George Kamel?

  Yep. Wealth gained hastily will dwindle. Whoever gathers little by little will increase it.

• 34:29Rachel Cruze?

  But I just feel like, when this money's going in, I'm like.

• 34:32George Kamel?

  I'm not saying this person has friends.

• 34:33Rachel Cruze?

  But I'm like, am I gonna spend any of this or is this all gonna go to my kids? Like, am I gonna see this?

• 34:37George Kamel?

  Oh, I see what you're saying.

• 34:38Rachel Cruze?

  Am I gonna see this? Probably not.

• 34:40George Kamel?

  Well, I invest with a purpose.

• 34:41Rachel Cruze?

  Cause Winston's gonna be like, we're fine. We don't need it. I'm like.

• 34:43George Kamel?

  Why are we investing?

• 34:44Rachel Cruze?

  What are we doing? Yeah. I feel like the money's gone. You're welcome, Amelia, Caroline and Charles.

• 34:49George Kamel?

  The real Rachel Cruz just came out. She's just like, live for the now. What are we investing for?

• 34:54Rachel Cruze?

  Why are we investing? But I, do you feel like that though? That it's going into a black hole?

• 34:58George Kamel?

  Not necessarily, cause I have a purpose behind every dollar being invested. I don't invest just for the sake of putting it away. You know what I mean? Your boy's gonna use every dollar. And then whatever's left can go to the kids or charities or church or whatever. But I just, here's what I think that they're getting at. The dopamine hit of the, yes, it leaves your bank account, but you know it's going towards something good that's gonna grow versus some regrettable purchase.

• 35:21Rachel Cruze?

  What I feel like this whole episode has made me feel like the shallowest person and you're like, listen.

• 35:27George Kamel?

  I'm not saying you're shallow. I think you just are fun. There's a difference.

• 35:32Rachel Cruze?

  Thanks, George.

• 35:33George Kamel?

  Some of us don't have hobbies and so we invest. Some of us have friends and we wanna invest in experiences.

• 35:39Rachel Cruze?

  Oh my gosh.

• 35:40George Kamel?

  But it is interesting to see everything people value when it comes to their hard earned money.

• 35:44Rachel Cruze?

  It is true though. And I think that's what's important though, is to know what you do value. Like what does bring you joy, right?

• 35:51George Kamel?

  For some, it's a flower. For some, it's a truck. For some, it's investing.

• 35:55Rachel Cruze?

  You know, and, and I do think when your money is spread, I know I'm joking about the saving thing, but for real. When you are giving, when you are spending and you are saving, and you're doing all three, within each of those even, there's value. Like you have excitement in each of those, right? Of what you're saving towards.

• 36:09George Kamel?

  None of them are bad.

• 36:10Rachel Cruze?

  No, no, not at all. But don't put all your eggs in one basket, if you will, thinking like this thing is gonna be great of all the spending category, or even all the saving.

• 36:20George Kamel?

  Yeah. Even just having any, like too much expectation from any one of those categories can be bad.

• 36:26Rachel Cruze?

  Because with saving, the finish line moves. Everyone's like, if I could just get, you know, 500,000 or whatever, like this crazy number, and then you get it.

• 36:34George Kamel?

  The goalpost moves.

• 36:34Rachel Cruze?

  And then it's going. You know what I'm saying? So it's like, you gotta be careful with that. Now generosity is the one that I think could have a lot of, a lot of freedom.

• 36:42George Kamel?

  Absolutely. But even that one, the motive of like, well, I think I'm gonna get something out of it.

• 36:47Rachel Cruze?

  Oh, that's true.

• 36:47George Kamel?

  The more you lean into that, the more dangerous it gets versus just giving to give. And yes, you're gonna feel good about it, but don't do it just to try to.

• 36:55Rachel Cruze?

  Yes.

• 36:56George Kamel?

  Get a dopamine hit of joy.

• 36:57Rachel Cruze?

  Yeah, yeah, yeah. That's fair. That's fair.

• 36:59George Kamel?

  Beautiful.

• 37:00Rachel Cruze?

  You know a dopamine hit that I do get though?

• 37:02George Kamel?

  What's that?

• 37:03Rachel Cruze?

  When I, in my inbox, I see a email from Delete Me.

• 37:06George Kamel?

  It goes, bloop, your report is here.

• 37:08Rachel Cruze?

  The reports and you open it every month and you see how many hours they have saved you from going into these data broker sites and trying to remove your own data. No, no, Delete Me will just do it for you.

• 37:19George Kamel?

  I love it. Knowing where I was and now that I'm not is a true pleasure. And Delete Me does that for you. They find, you know, your home address was over here and your personal address was here and email address and family's information, and now it's gone. And you saved 150 hours so far. Thank you, Delete Me.

• 37:36Rachel Cruze?

  So nice. And you know what? AI is making things even worse. Like I'm like, out of all times on earth today, to get your information removed.

• 37:43George Kamel?

  The spammers and scammers have an easier time now to do this at scale.

• 37:46Rachel Cruze?

  Yes, so fast. So the less information that's out there, again, the less risk you have of getting phishing and spams and scams and all the things. So Delete Me is where it's at. So make sure go to joindelete.me.com/smartmoney to get 20% off your annual plan. Again, that's joindelete.me.com/smartmoney.

• 38:07George Kamel?

  We'll also drop a link in the description for you.

• 38:09Rachel Cruze?

  All right, George. Well, that was fun. We love a little spending episode.

• 38:13George Kamel?

  It was cathartic for me. I actually enjoy judging people's spending more than spending itself. That's my toxic trait, I guess.

• 38:21Rachel Cruze?

  You know, sometimes we got to. We gotta be the bad guys sometimes, you know?

• 38:24George Kamel?

  Yeah. And a big part of this is just building in fun money in your budget so that nothing ever feels impulsive.

• 38:29Rachel Cruze?

  Yes.

• 38:30George Kamel?

  You can pre-plan for the fun and you're still a fun person for it.

• 38:33Rachel Cruze?

  I love that.

• 38:33George Kamel?

  And in my book, Breaking Free From Broke, I actually have a little Smart Spender Acrossstick to help people think through these purchases with wisdom.

• 38:40Rachel Cruze?

  Love it.

• 38:41George Kamel?

  So here it is. It's real simple. S-M-A-R-T. Self-awareness. Why am I buying this thing? And then M, what's the motive behind it? A, can I actually afford it? The R for research. Have I actually done the research? Is this the best option retailer and price? And then T for timing. Some things are just, it's fine, but it's a not now. Punt it later on down the road. All right. If you learn nothing from this episode, that's on you. I just wanna make that very clear, that there was.

• 39:07Rachel Cruze?

  Little unhinged.

• 39:08George Kamel?

  A lot of wisdom and teaching.

• 39:09Rachel Cruze?

  Sometimes we need these every now and then. Um, all right, George, before we get to our guilty as charged segments, let's share the drink details in writing.

• 39:17George Kamel?

  This is a Maple Old Fashioned. It's got bourbon, maple syrup, Angostura bitters and orange bitters. Very simple ingredients. Comes out to $3.01, depending on the bourbon that you choose. Do we know what bourbon is in this one?

• 39:31George Kamel?

  Wild Turkey 101.

• 39:32Rachel Cruze?

  Oh, we went.

• 39:32George Kamel?

  A classic.

• 39:33Rachel Cruze?

  Yeah. We went simple.

• 39:35George Kamel?

  You can get that on your Southwest flight. We're not bougie.

• 39:38Rachel Cruze?

  Delicious. 10 out of 10.

• 39:40George Kamel?

  Really nice.

• 39:41Rachel Cruze?

  I would order that.

• 39:41George Kamel?

  Again, it's so shockingly simple. They're like, how can it be that good?

• 39:44Rachel Cruze?

  It was great.

• 39:45George Kamel?

  The recipe's in the show notes. Give it a try this weekend. Let us know what you think. I'm going 10 out of 10.

• 39:49Rachel Cruze?

  Me too.

• 39:50George Kamel?

  For, especially for a fall drink, you gotta have the.

• 39:53Rachel Cruze?

  The orange peel.

• 39:54George Kamel?

  A little orange peel in there.

• 39:55Rachel Cruze?

  Beautiful. And I will say, a little shout out to our toothpicks.

• 39:59George Kamel?

  Shout out to the toothpicks. Not to the producers who made this drink, but to the toothpicks.

• 40:03Rachel Cruze?

  The little gold ball. Gorgeous.

• 40:05George Kamel?

  Yep.

• 40:06Rachel Cruze?

  Gospel gorgeous is what you would say, George.

• 40:08George Kamel?

  Gospel gorgeous. I heard that once. I think it was like a pastor, maybe Christie McClellan said it in a church sermon once and I was like, I'm using that.

• 40:15Rachel Cruze?

  You can't stop. I love it. All right, now it's time for guilty as charged. And this is where we ask each other a guilty as charged question every week. And if we're guilty, we take a sip. All right, we're gonna stay on our, um, spending theme.

• 40:29George Kamel?

  All right, time to roast ourselves.

• 40:31Rachel Cruze?

  What's one bougie home purchase you've regretted? Shout out to Ben on Instagram. He asked.

• 40:37George Kamel?

  Thanks for submitting that, Ben. Oh, I hate to say it because it's one that I most wanted.

• 40:42Rachel Cruze?

  Oh.

• 40:42George Kamel?

  But it was the ceiling speakers. I got like six speakers put into the living room, kitchen and patio.

• 40:49Rachel Cruze?

  And you don't use it?

• 40:50George Kamel?

  Thinking, oh, I can put music on in the house. You know when you go to someone's house and there's music coming and it's not from like-

• 40:54Rachel Cruze?

  Come to the cruises, yeah.

• 40:55George Kamel?

  Yes.

• 40:56Rachel Cruze?

  Why don't you use it?

• 40:57George Kamel?

  Because I'm not allowed.

• 40:59Rachel Cruze?

  I'm sorry, what?

• 41:00George Kamel?

  I'm not, it's not that I'm not allowed.

• 41:02Rachel Cruze?

  Kids are sleeping.

• 41:04George Kamel?

  There's always something. So the only time I get to use it really is if we're having people over.

• 41:07Rachel Cruze?

  Okay.

• 41:08George Kamel?

  But then, when he's like, can you turn that down? It's so loud. We're trying to have a conversation. I'm like, well, I guess I'll turn it. And you barely hear it in the background.

• 41:15Rachel Cruze?

  Yeah.

• 41:15George Kamel?

  And I worked really hard on the playlist.

• 41:18Rachel Cruze?

  Yeah.

• 41:18George Kamel?

  And I'm like, why did I get these speakers?

• 41:20Rachel Cruze?

  Oh, shoot, George. Okay, we have Sonus.

• 41:22George Kamel?

  Because what I wanted was to blast it in the house, you know what I mean?

• 41:25Rachel Cruze?

  Yeah, we don't want that. I'm with Whitney on that.

• 41:27George Kamel?

  So now it's really for dance parties for my toddler.

• 41:29Rachel Cruze?

  A low, low-grade music happening?

• 41:32George Kamel?

  Yeah.

• 41:32Rachel Cruze?

  And you go out on the porch and it's all the same. Oh, yeah.

• 41:34George Kamel?

  With a good candle going? Are you kidding me?

• 41:36Rachel Cruze?

  Listen to a James Taylor playlist? Or a-

• 41:38George Kamel?

  It's over.

• 41:39Rachel Cruze?

  Or Nancy Meyers?

• 41:40George Kamel?

  In the fall?

• 41:41Rachel Cruze?

  Oh, my gosh. I do, I love it. It's like one of the first, I light candles and put a playlist on.

• 41:47George Kamel?

  James Taylor is a really good one.

• 41:48Rachel Cruze?

  James Taylor playlist, like go on Spotify and just like find like a like-kind playlist.

• 41:53George Kamel?

  I appreciate that you're a Spotify gal. Is Winston Apple Music? Do I remember that right?

• 41:58Rachel Cruze?

  Winston's Apple. We pay for two. We need to condense. We need to consolidate our lives.

• 42:02George Kamel?

  I want to know, does that give you the ick, women, if men are Apple Music guys? I feel like most women are Spotify because they have class and taste.

• 42:10Rachel Cruze?

  Yeah.

• 42:10George Kamel?

  Anyways, what's yours? Bougie home luxury purchase you regretted?

• 42:14Rachel Cruze?

  When we built our home, in one of like our hallways, we had like some, like a fridge, like I have like a bar, little area.

• 42:20George Kamel?

  Oh, yeah.

• 42:21Rachel Cruze?

  And I pushed for this one. But I wanted an ice maker that had Sonic Ice.

• 42:27George Kamel?

  Oh.

• 42:28Rachel Cruze?

  Love the little like pellet, like little pellets, you know? Number one, it is broken twice a year.

• 42:35George Kamel?

  It's like a McDonald's ice cream machine.

• 42:37Rachel Cruze?

  It's the most high maintenance. And every guy that comes to help fix it says, they complain all the time about it. Because like every, like it just, I don't know if it was the year-

• 42:45George Kamel?

  It's keeping them in business to fix these.

• 42:47Rachel Cruze?

  Oh, my gosh. And so we're finally done. So we're switching it out because it's the filter, everything gets caught and clogged. So like it's-

• 42:53George Kamel?

  Is it the specific ice that's doing it?

• 42:54Rachel Cruze?

  I think it is. I think it's the shape. It's just like it, it's just very high maintenance.

• 42:58George Kamel?

  Wow.

• 42:58Rachel Cruze?

  Very annoying. And I will say, um, when you make cocktails with it, it melts really fast.

• 43:04George Kamel?

  I didn't want to say it.

• 43:06Rachel Cruze?

  I know.

• 43:06George Kamel?

  But you said it first.

• 43:07Rachel Cruze?

  I know. So I didn't know that. Like I didn't, I wasn't thinking about that. So, all that to say, get it out of here.

• 43:13George Kamel?

  Regret.

• 43:14Rachel Cruze?

  Yeah.

• 43:14George Kamel?

  Be gone.

• 43:15Rachel Cruze?

  And it was the most expensive.

• 43:16George Kamel?

  Those ice machines that are like installed are very expensive.

• 43:19Rachel Cruze?

  And this mold of ice too. Like it was like an extra expense to get the like fancy Sonic Ice.

• 43:25George Kamel?

  See, they make those, like tabletop ones. You can get it, you know, Costco or Sam's.

• 43:28Rachel Cruze?

  I know, but ours was flush with the counters.

• 43:30George Kamel?

  Yeah, it looks better than a countertop ice maker. No, I'm with you on that. Okay. Hey, thanks for being vulnerable.

• 43:36Rachel Cruze?

  Yeah.

• 43:36George Kamel?

  A lot of people say Rachel needs to be more vulnerable and I feel like you really, you went for it there.

• 43:41Rachel Cruze?

  Thank you. Well, if you guys have a guilty as charged question for us, make sure to DM us at RachelCruz and at GeorgeCamel. We'll screenshot it and send it to our producer, Jenna.

• 43:48George Kamel?

  We might even shout you out.

• 43:49Rachel Cruze?

  And we're gonna use it because we love them. They're so great. Now, if you enjoyed this episode, you're gonna love our next episode, Waste or Worth It, Rating Life-Changing Products. We will link it for you. And make sure to subscribe to our channel so you don't miss an all-new episode of-

• 44:05George Kamel?

  Smart Money Happy Hour.