Roasting the Latest Financial and Social Fads (Here to Stay?)

❓Have a money question? Ask Ramsey is here to help! The trend pendulum never stops swinging. Today, we’re unpacking financial and lifestyle fads that we’ve seen before . . . and we’ll probably see again in another ten years. Next Steps: · 🎙️ Catch our episode Ranking the Worst Financial Habits (and Admitting Our Guilt) · 🍸 Follow Smart Money Happy Hour on TikTok: @smartmoneyhappyhour · 📱 Submit a Guilty As Charged question for Rachel and George! Leave us a voicemail with your question at 877-306-1517 or 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. · 💵 Create a free budget and find more margin with EveryDollar. 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: 🧊 Cold Brew Cocktail Recipe by: Cocktails · 1.5 ounces vodka · 0.5 ounce simple syrup · 0.5 ounce coffee liqueur · cold brew · 1/4 cup heavy cream · 1 teaspoon caramel sauce Instructions: Add vodka, simple syrup, coffee liqueur, and cold brew to a glass filled with ice. Froth the heavy cream and caramel sauce to create a cold foam. Gently pour cold foam on top of ice. Serve immediately. Explore More From Ramsey Network: 💰 George Kamel 🎙️ The Ramsey Show 💸 The Ramsey Show Highlights 🧠 The Dr. John Delony Show 🪑 Front Row Seat with Ken Coleman 📈 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?

  The trend pendulum never stops swinging. Today, we're unpacking financial and lifestyle fads that we've seen before and will probably see again in another 10 years.

• 0:15Rachel Cruze?

  So that was an investment I did, but I got a deal. It was like a Black Friday, like get one airy.

• 0:19George Kamel?

  That always worries me. Like I found a group on though.

• 0:22Rachel Cruze?

  I know, I know.

• 0:22George Kamel?

  Whoa, them fighting words.

• 0:25Rachel Cruze?

  That's a good one.

• 0:25George Kamel?

  Are they trying to get me in hot water? I can't believe you're putting that poison in your body.

• 0:34Rachel Cruze?

  Hey guys, I'm Rachel Cruz.

• 0:36George Kamel?

  I'm George Kamel.

• 0:38Rachel Cruze?

  And this is

• 0:39George Kamel?

  Smart Money Happy Hour.

• 0:42George Kamel?

  Cheers, George. Cheers.

• 0:46Rachel Cruze?

  Oh, that was delicious.

• 0:48George Kamel?

  Silky.

• 0:49Rachel Cruze?

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

• 0:56George Kamel?

  And let us start by talking about the cocktail we're sipping on. This is a cold brew cocktail.

• 1:01Rachel Cruze?

  Yes, giving espresso martini vibes, but it's good.

• 1:05George Kamel?

  It's giving like a masculine espresso martini. I like it. Well, stick around till the end of the episode. We're going to give you our rating and reveal the cost per glass.

• 1:13Rachel Cruze?

  So George, apparently adults are trading Pokemon cards again. Have you heard the fad?

• 1:18George Kamel?

  Oh, have I ever?

• 1:19Rachel Cruze?

  It is happening. The card trading is back.

• 1:21George Kamel?

  I don't know what happened.

• 1:22Rachel Cruze?

  I know.

• 1:22George Kamel?

  You know what? Honestly, go back to crypto, guys. Somehow felt better when it was crypto.

• 1:28Rachel Cruze?

  A little bit more masculine than Pokemon cards.

• 1:30George Kamel?

  I mean, I used to like do Pokemon when I was a child.

• 1:33Rachel Cruze?

  Is it Pokemon or Pokémon?

• 1:34George Kamel?

  I think the technical definitional Merriam-Webster's pronunciation is Pokémon.

• 1:41Rachel Cruze?

  Pokémon. What if I go over?

• 1:43George Kamel?

  Pokémon.

• 1:43Rachel Cruze?

  What if I kept?

• 1:44George Kamel?

  I do the theme song in my head.

• 1:48Rachel Cruze?

  Pokémon, Pokémon.

• 1:49George Kamel?

  I used to do the Game Boy. I think Pokémon.

• 1:53Rachel Cruze?

  Pokémon.

• 1:53George Kamel?

  Just like that, yeah.

• 1:56George Kamel?

  I can't do it any better.

• 1:57Rachel Cruze?

  I can't.

• 1:57George Kamel?

  I'm nailing the theme song right now.

• 1:59Rachel Cruze?

  I can't. Oh my gosh.

• 2:00George Kamel?

  But I used to have the cards. I'd play with my friends, but we actually played Pokemon. It wasn't like a collectible thing.

• 2:04Rachel Cruze?

  Yeah, cuz they had like powers, right? That like you could kill one and you get this point or like the little white and red ball.

• 2:12George Kamel?

  I love hearing you explain this.

• 2:13Rachel Cruze?

  That was...

• 2:15George Kamel?

  And then I had the Game Boy games. I had the red and the blue.

• 2:18Rachel Cruze?

  Yes.

• 2:18George Kamel?

  I think I had red. My friends may have had the blue.

• 2:20Rachel Cruze?

  Yes, okay.

• 2:21George Kamel?

  And then, uh, then it became, uh, you know, video games. So there was like that Pokemon Snapshot game where you go like you find...

• 2:28Rachel Cruze?

  Pokemon Go.

• 2:29George Kamel?

  Pokemon Go.

• 2:29Rachel Cruze?

  Now that became a big thing.

• 2:31George Kamel?

  It really has staying power.

• 2:32Rachel Cruze?

  It has. So I, I'm laughing at the adults, but maybe it's been around longer and continued on longer than I think.

• 2:37George Kamel?

  Yeah, I don't think it ever died. It just became a hotter commodity where people were buying and selling for more and more money.

• 2:42Rachel Cruze?

  Yeah, but like a lot of money too.

• 2:43George Kamel?

  Now people like line up outside of Best Buy. You're like, what is this? It's not even Black Friday. They're lining up for the latest drop of the Pokemon cards, hoping they're gonna strike it rich.

• 2:52Rachel Cruze?

  But the pendulum of fads, it swings. It's like what was popular comes back sometimes. Low-rise jeans. That was in the Christina Aguilera days. And apparently, according to, well, they're, they're saying it, but you know who I saw recently? That had very low-rise pants, a woman.

• 3:09George Kamel?

  Who's bringing it back?

• 3:10Rachel Cruze?

  And I thought, what are you doing, girl? Pull your pants up. Is that Frankie girl from, um, Mormon Wives, who was the Bachelorette, but then they canceled it?

• 3:18George Kamel?

  Yeah.

• 3:19Rachel Cruze?

  Yeah, and I don't watch Mormon, I wouldn't say Mormon Housewives. I watch Housewives.

• 3:24George Kamel?

  The Secret Lives of Mormon Wives?

• 3:25Rachel Cruze?

  Thank you, Mormon Wives. I don't watch that show. Um, but I do watch Dancing with the Stars when Whitney was on. So I knew Whitney through Dancing with the Stars and then this whole Bachelorette, you know, stuff. Which that happened like, I don't know, a month or two ago. Anyways, she had low-rise pants on in one of the videos on Instagram and I thought, what are you doing? What are you doing? Stop that.

• 3:42George Kamel?

  I wonder if that's a sign?

• 3:43Rachel Cruze?

  Don't bring it back. Stop that.

• 3:44George Kamel?

  Do you think it's a sign that someone's unwell if they're wearing low-rise jeans in 2026?

• 3:48Rachel Cruze?

  If you're a mother, it's, yes. Why? Why do we need that? We don't need them.

• 3:52George Kamel?

  Are, these are high-rise jeans that you're wearing currently?

• 3:54Rachel Cruze?

  Always.

• 3:55George Kamel?

  Okay.

• 3:55Rachel Cruze?

  I always have my old lady jeans on.

• 3:57George Kamel?

  Yeah, you really adopted the trend as soon as Gen Z told you. You were like, I'm on it, girls.

• 4:01Rachel Cruze?

  I just appreciated it.

• 4:02George Kamel?

  You got rid of all of your like, no more skinny jeans.

• 4:04Rachel Cruze?

  And, and a wide leg.

• 4:06George Kamel?

  Yeah.

• 4:06Rachel Cruze?

  Love a wide leg.

• 4:07George Kamel?

  So no low-rise, no skinny?

• 4:09Rachel Cruze?

  Correct.

• 4:10George Kamel?

  Wide and high?

• 4:11Rachel Cruze?

  Wide and high, George.

• 4:12George Kamel?

  Got it, I can remember that.

• 4:14Rachel Cruze?

  So, we want that, for sure.

• 4:15George Kamel?

  And then, on the masculine side, MMA has become really big.

• 4:19Rachel Cruze?

  It's coming back.

• 4:20George Kamel?

  Mixed martial arts. I know what it stands for, that's all I know.

• 4:22Rachel Cruze?

  Oh, I thought, I was thinking of the wrestling. What's the letters that are wrestlers?

• 4:27George Kamel?

  Are you talking about like the WWE?

• 4:29Rachel Cruze?

  That's what I was thinking of. Oh, I read MM backwards.

• 4:33George Kamel?

  No, MMA is like, I feel like wrestling is now known that it's, it's theater. And people still like it for that, but MMA is like real fighting.

• 4:41Rachel Cruze?

  Oh, it's the guy that had the Pokemon card around his neck.

• 4:43George Kamel?

  Logan Paul.

• 4:44Rachel Cruze?

  Yes.

• 4:45George Kamel?

  Sixteen million dollar Pokemon card that he sold.

• 4:47Rachel Cruze?

  Look, we're connecting all the dots here.

• 4:48George Kamel?

  I think he did MMA. I know he also boxed, or is that his brother? I can't, they get mixed together.

• 4:54Rachel Cruze?

  Okay, sorry.

• 4:54George Kamel?

  As just one toxic human, so I don't ever remember them.

• 4:57Rachel Cruze?

  MMA is just, are they punching?

• 4:59George Kamel?

  I think there's, are they kicking too? There's punching and kicking, I think.

• 5:02Rachel Cruze?

  Punching and kicking.

• 5:03George Kamel?

  Cause it's mixed martial arts.

• 5:04Rachel Cruze?

  Mixed, so it's like a karate with a boxer.

• 5:09George Kamel?

  Sure. I mean, I'll let you pass, cause I barely know.

• 5:13Rachel Cruze?

  What's the thing that people do, this is what I would learn in that world. I wouldn't, I wouldn't do kick, well, kickboxing actually is a great workout. Not karate, what's the thing that people do?

• 5:23George Kamel?

  Jiu-Jitsu?

• 5:24Rachel Cruze?

  Yes.

• 5:24George Kamel?

  Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu.

• 5:25Rachel Cruze?

  Now, that, well, why the Brazilian? Why'd you throw that in there?

• 5:28George Kamel?

  I feel like they invented it, I don't know, I just heard, I hear it as like BJJ, like Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu. It's, I mean, it's a type of Jiu-Jitsu that's very popular.

• 5:35Rachel Cruze?

  I don't know, Jiu-Jitsu, I just like the name of it, and I hear that's the, that's the route to go.

• 5:40George Kamel?

  I could do that, cause that one's good, cause I can learn self-defense that way.

• 5:42Rachel Cruze?

  If you're like in a street fight, you can like take someone down with their arm.

• 5:46George Kamel?

  Yes.

• 5:46Rachel Cruze?

  Or something, yeah.

• 5:47George Kamel?

  Cause I like that I don't look like a guy you could, that could take you in a fight.

• 5:51Rachel Cruze?

  Yes.

• 5:51George Kamel?

  But if I knew Jiu-Jitsu, they'd be like, "We didn't know, man."

• 5:53Rachel Cruze?

  We didn't know, but you went for the knees, you know?

• 5:55George Kamel?

  He just like twirled me over his legs and flipped me on my back, and I was done.

• 5:58Rachel Cruze?

  Oh my gosh.

• 5:59George Kamel?

  Chokehold.

• 6:00Rachel Cruze?

  How fun would that be?

• 6:01George Kamel?

  KO.

• 6:01Rachel Cruze?

  How fun would that be?

• 6:02George Kamel?

  Now, it would be super fun, as a superpower, just to know, I could take that guy.

• 6:05Rachel Cruze?

  That I could do it.

• 6:05George Kamel?

  I'd be walking the streets, just going, "Yeah, I could take that guy, I could take that guy."

• 6:09Rachel Cruze?

  Yeah, you wouldn't worry, wouldn't worry about anything. Um, pickleball.

• 6:12George Kamel?

  I could take that guy.

• 6:15George Kamel?

  Pickleball's a fun one.

• 6:16Rachel Cruze?

  Yeah, and it's...

• 6:18George Kamel?

  Pickleball's like an MLM. Like, someone's always trying to talk you into joining their pickleball...

• 6:22Rachel Cruze?

  Stop it!

• 6:23George Kamel?

  Like, rec league. You know what I mean? It's a very like, "Oh, you should come out, come out and play with us sometime." Like, "I'm not buying what you're selling, bro."

• 6:30Rachel Cruze?

  George, we were on a pickleball team together.

• 6:33George Kamel?

  We were. What a team. You know what? We were an underrated team.

• 6:37Rachel Cruze?

  All the personalities. We went out for like a half-day team-building thing.

• 6:40George Kamel?

  You wanna, you wanna tell them whose idea this retreat was?

• 6:43Rachel Cruze?

  Not mine!

• 6:44George Kamel?

  It was Ken Coleman's idea.

• 6:46Rachel Cruze?

  Oh, yeah, Ken. He's like, "We should play pickleball together."

• 6:48George Kamel?

  A semi-amateur player, he is.

• 6:49Rachel Cruze?

  It was actually pretty fun, but they paired us up together.

• 6:52George Kamel?

  Yeah.

• 6:53Rachel Cruze?

  Which at one point, I was like, "Why would y'all put two people together that don't ever play?"

• 6:57George Kamel?

  We are... Now, you're athletic, you're strong, you're brave.

• 7:01Rachel Cruze?

  Thank you.

• 7:01George Kamel?

  But we are some of the least athletic as far as the personalities go. Like, you have John Deloney, Jade Warshaw.

• 7:07Rachel Cruze?

  And Ken, who plays pickleball sometimes.

• 7:08George Kamel?

  And Ken, who's really good at pickleball.

• 7:09Rachel Cruze?

  Yeah, yeah, we're at the bottom of the list. I can appreciate that.

• 7:11George Kamel?

  You know what I mean? If this was us kickball, I'd be last on the team to be picked. It's fine.

• 7:16Rachel Cruze?

  Everything is fair. Everything is fair. We know our strengths. We know the value we bring to life.

• 7:19George Kamel?

  But we got pretty good by the end.

• 7:20Rachel Cruze?

  I think we did pretty great. We did. Anyways, but Pendulum, I think if it goes down, it'll be back in 10 years, so just get ready.

• 7:29George Kamel?

  So you think pickleball will die out?

• 7:31Rachel Cruze?

  Mm-hmm.

• 7:31George Kamel?

  Really? I feel like old people can keep it alive longer than we want them to.

• 7:34Rachel Cruze?

  No, 'cause if, um, if the game where you hit the ball on the wall and you... Boop, boop, boop, boop. What's that game?

• 7:40George Kamel?

  Racquetball?

• 7:41Rachel Cruze?

  Indoor. Yeah.

• 7:42George Kamel?

  Yeah.

• 7:42Rachel Cruze?

  If that didn't come... You know what I mean? Racquetball's the same thing.

• 7:46George Kamel?

  Yeah, I don't see a lot of racquetball these days. I do think tennis is coming back because of pickleball.

• 7:50Rachel Cruze?

  But racquetball will come back too. Mark my... Ro... Mark my word!

• 7:54George Kamel?

  Mark... Rock my... Mark my word.

• 7:57Rachel Cruze?

  Mark my... Mark my words.

• 7:59George Kamel?

  I believe you.

• 7:59Rachel Cruze?

  Thank you.

• 8:00George Kamel?

  You know what else has, uh, come back? Trucker hats. Not on my bingo card.

• 8:04Rachel Cruze?

  Yes! Oh, my gosh, I gotta show you.

• 8:07George Kamel?

  But a lot of like, the hip girlies on our team wear trucker hats. And my wife is now, has a collection of trucker hats.

• 8:12Rachel Cruze?

  Okay, I'm gonna get your wife one of Winston's Winston-made hats.

• 8:14George Kamel?

  And they have like cute little sayings on them.

• 8:16Rachel Cruze?

  Yes! This is my hat. I gotta show you. I sent it to him, 'cause I was wearing it, and I was like, "Babe, I'm totally supporting you."

• 8:21George Kamel?

  Is it Southern Gentleman, his podcast?

• 8:23Rachel Cruze?

  Yeah, it's a Southern Gentleman hat.

• 8:24George Kamel?

  I need one of those. Oh, wow.

• 8:26Rachel Cruze?

  Good one, huh?

• 8:27George Kamel?

  That, it's a really cool hat, and I, it's a different look for you.

• 8:32Rachel Cruze?

  What does that mean, George Kamel?

• 8:34George Kamel?

  I don't know if it's your face that you're making.

• 8:37Rachel Cruze?

  It may be.

• 8:37George Kamel?

  But you're not, you're not selling it.

• 8:39Rachel Cruze?

  What?

• 8:40George Kamel?

  Yeah, I'm gonna be honest.

• 8:41Rachel Cruze?

  Good night, George. There's another me in a hat.

• 8:43George Kamel?

  That one's better. That one's better.

• 8:47Rachel Cruze?

  Oh, gosh.

• 8:48George Kamel?

  I'm sorry. Do you want me to be an honest friend?

• 8:50Rachel Cruze?

  Well, I'm glad, I'm glad we're not married, because when I sent that to my husband, he was like, "Yeah, babe, you're so hot. Unbelievable."

• 8:55George Kamel?

  You're wearing his podcast.

• 8:57Rachel Cruze?

  I don't know.

• 8:57George Kamel?

  You're wearing his podcast merch. That's every man's dream. It's for his wife to care about his podcast. That's what he's excited about.

• 9:06Rachel Cruze?

  But front porch philosopher, southern gentleman, and it's a red trucker hat. I love it.

• 9:10George Kamel?

  I like that. I do like that podcast. Good guys over there.

• 9:13Rachel Cruze?

  Oh, my gosh. Anyways, didn't mean to jump on that bandwagon, but...

• 9:17George Kamel?

  But I wore a lot of trucker hats when I was a skateboard punk in Boston. That was like, real big. We all had trucker hats.

• 9:22Rachel Cruze?

  Oh, really?

• 9:23George Kamel?

  Yeah. And we'd have our hair flipping out of the sides.

• 9:26Rachel Cruze?

  Yeah, 100%.

• 9:26George Kamel?

  You know.

• 9:27Rachel Cruze?

  100%.

• 9:27George Kamel?

  The early 2000s skater hair.

• 9:29Rachel Cruze?

  Man, I would think of like, a baseball. People wore those baseball.

• 9:32George Kamel?

  Oh, yeah.

• 9:33Rachel Cruze?

  Like, in their hat. And then they'd take the hat off, and it looks like a bow was on their head.

• 9:37George Kamel?

  Not a good look. That's why you leave the hat on.

• 9:39Rachel Cruze?

  Yes.

• 9:39George Kamel?

  But those have really come back from the ladies. I don't know, Van Dutch is, Von Dutch is a popular brand for trucker hats, for some reason.

• 9:46Rachel Cruze?

  Yep. I like to go a little bit more local, you know?

• 9:50George Kamel?

  Shop local.

• 9:50Rachel Cruze?

  Shop local.

• 9:51George Kamel?

  With your husband's podcast. Really sold them on the merch there. That was fun. Well, trends move a lot quicker now. You know, as soon as they come, they're gone by the time I find out about it.

• 10:00Rachel Cruze?

  It's true.

• 10:01George Kamel?

  And that's why I don't jump on them.

• 10:02Rachel Cruze?

  They are quick.

• 10:03George Kamel?

  I'll miss the boat.

• 10:03Rachel Cruze?

  Is it the internet, you think, social media? Because back in the day, you had like, your best friend and

• 10:07George Kamel?

  Yes.

• 10:07Rachel Cruze?

  your hairdresser.

• 10:08George Kamel?

  Well, now it's, like, someone can make a TikTok that goes viral, that then becomes a trend, but then by the time it like, reaches the zeitgeist of millennials and Gen X, it's kind of like, oh, it's not really cool anymore.

• 10:19Rachel Cruze?

  It's been done. It's been done.

• 10:20George Kamel?

  A lot of the sayings are like that. So I just try not to jump on the slang.

• 10:25Rachel Cruze?

  Yes, the slang.

• 10:27George Kamel?

  Now, your son, I've heard, is hip to the slang.

• 10:30Rachel Cruze?

  Oh, my gosh. Charles says it all the time.

• 10:32George Kamel?

  What's his current?

• 10:33Rachel Cruze?

  I'm cooking. That's what he'll say.

• 10:34George Kamel?

  I'm cooking.

• 10:35Rachel Cruze?

  Like, he'll like, shoot basketball in the driveway or something, and he like, makes, it's like, "I'm cooking." Literally.

• 10:40George Kamel?

  Apostrophe.

• 10:41Rachel Cruze?

  Funny, funniest thing.

• 10:42George Kamel?

  No, he's not cooking.

• 10:43Rachel Cruze?

  Well, I said cooking at one point and someone shunned me. It may have been in this room. I don't know.

• 10:48George Kamel?

  So if he's, if he's doing good at his sport in the moment, he's like, oh, mom, I'm cooking.

• 10:52Rachel Cruze?

  I'm cooking. Yes.

• 10:54George Kamel?

  That's adorable.

• 10:54Rachel Cruze?

  So funny in kindergarten. I'm like, where did you hear this?

• 10:57George Kamel?

  Kindergarten. That's great.

• 10:58Rachel Cruze?

  Oh, God bless.

• 11:00George Kamel?

  And speaking of TikTok, Rachel, this is taking the world by storm in the sweets world. And that is Dubai chocolate. Have you heard of Dubai chocolate?

• 11:08Rachel Cruze?

  Maybe. I don't know.

• 11:10George Kamel?

  It's a, it's a style of chocolate. It's got pistachio. It's got some, uh, some wheat in there. It's a little crunch.

• 11:15Rachel Cruze?

  Mm-hmm.

• 11:16George Kamel?

  And I want you to try it. I brought you some.

• 11:18Rachel Cruze?

  Oh, my gosh. I'm so on trend.

• 11:19George Kamel?

  This is probably a hundred dollars worth of Dubai chocolate.

• 11:22Rachel Cruze?

  Wait, are you serious?

• 11:22George Kamel?

  No, it's not. But it is, it is expensive. Like anytime you see it, you're like.

• 11:25Rachel Cruze?

  Where do you buy it? Target?

• 11:27George Kamel?

  Almost anywhere. Like if you go to Costco and peruse the chocolate aisle, there's probably no less than four or five products that are labeled as Dubai style.

• 11:35Rachel Cruze?

  Okay. And the Dubai style is the pistachios?

• 11:38George Kamel?

  Um, it's pistachio mixed with the wheat. It's called k- k- ketafe? In Arabic, it's kinafe.

• 11:46Rachel Cruze?

  Kinafe?

• 11:47George Kamel?

  Yeah.

• 11:47Rachel Cruze?

  Sure.

• 11:48George Kamel?

  Which is like a wheat. It's like flour, sugar.

• 11:50Rachel Cruze?

  I always forget you speak Arabic.

• 11:51George Kamel?

  Starch. Kinafe.

• 11:52Rachel Cruze?

  Isn't that weird?

• 11:53George Kamel?

  I'm teaching my daughter.

• 11:54Rachel Cruze?

  Still crazy.

• 11:55George Kamel?

  Cause my parents got her a little like Arabic book.

• 11:57Rachel Cruze?

  Give us, give us a sentence.

• 11:59George Kamel?

  In the butiach and best mer or ha taik mit kafal wa shek.

• 12:02Rachel Cruze?

  I mean, that is just the craziest. You are so.

• 12:05George Kamel?

  It's really fun. So I'm teaching Mia little words. Like butiach is watermelon.

• 12:09Rachel Cruze?

  Oh, yes.

• 12:10George Kamel?

  So I'm trying to get her to say the h. So I'm like, but? And she's like, but? Tiyach. She's like, tiyach. It's so cute.

• 12:19Rachel Cruze?

  So good. So good.

• 12:21George Kamel?

  Oh, wow. Look at, the packaging is gorgeous. All right.

• 12:25Rachel Cruze?

  Is that the only thing in that box what you just pulled out? Is there another one in there?

• 12:28George Kamel?

  This is it. I mean, it's a, it's a big old boy. Let me see how it's a.

• 12:33Rachel Cruze?

  Big old boy.

• 12:34George Kamel?

  How do I?

• 12:35Rachel Cruze?

  I have Roy DeMircer. Who's ever listened to Roy DeMircer?

• 12:38George Kamel?

  Oh, wow.

• 12:39Rachel Cruze?

  This little can of.

• 12:41George Kamel?

  Get a load of this.

• 12:42Rachel Cruze?

  Oh, my gosh.

• 12:45George Kamel?

  All right.

• 12:47Rachel Cruze?

  My gosh. Okay. And if you knew me, you would know I, sweets are not my thing.

• 12:51George Kamel?

  Yeah.

• 12:51Rachel Cruze?

  If this was a tortilla chip?

• 12:53George Kamel?

  You're salty.

• 12:54Rachel Cruze?

  I would be excited.

• 12:55George Kamel?

  You're a salty person.

• 12:55Rachel Cruze?

  I am. I'm not a big chocolate fan. I mean, I mean, chocolate's fine, but, okay.

• 13:01George Kamel?

  Oh, I don't think she's a pistachio girly either.

• 13:07George Kamel?

  But, let it cook. It's cooking.

• 13:14George Kamel?

  The face is... we're going south now.

• 13:18Rachel Cruze?

  I'm gonna say...

• 13:20George Kamel?

  You've offended all of Dubai. This is their national pastime, and also this was made in New Jersey, so. I apologize. Distributed.

• 13:30Rachel Cruze?

  It's really rich.

• 13:32George Kamel?

  Not for you. Okay. Well, this is wise.

• 13:37Rachel Cruze?

  I like pistachios, though.

• 13:37George Kamel?

  Some trends, they don't hit.

• 13:40Rachel Cruze?

  Okay, is that what it looks like? Is that the style?

• 13:44George Kamel?

  It's the style. I don't think they all look like that.

• 13:46Rachel Cruze?

  Will it come in a chocolate bar?

• 13:47George Kamel?

  Yeah, like Starbucks now has a Dubai, you know, latte. So like, everyone's got it. I'm gonna toss this over to you. The team can enjoy this.

• 13:55Rachel Cruze?

  Yeah, just cut off what I ate.

• 13:57George Kamel?

  Rachel doesn't have the palate for this quite yet.

• 14:01George Kamel?

  We'll get you there.

• 14:01Rachel Cruze?

  Just a little too...

• 14:02George Kamel?

  You know what? We can auction it off for charity and say, "This is the Dubai chocolate bar Rachel took a bite of."

• 14:07Rachel Cruze?

  Rachel took a bite of. Mmm, yep.

• 14:10George Kamel?

  So Rachel, overall take on the Dubai chocolate fad? Yeah or no?

• 14:14Rachel Cruze?

  If it was thinner, I could get on board. But, yeah.

• 14:18George Kamel?

  It's a no for you.

• 14:19Rachel Cruze?

  Yeah.

• 14:19George Kamel?

  That's fine.

• 14:20Rachel Cruze?

  How about you? Well, you didn't have it, but...

• 14:22George Kamel?

  I like the style of it, because I'm a big pistachio fan. That's big in the Middle East especially. Pistachio is very common.

• 14:29Rachel Cruze?

  Yes, very nut, yes.

• 14:31George Kamel?

  Nut to have in desserts. All right, moving on. Next fad, stock market panic. That's a fun fad.

• 14:37Rachel Cruze?

  Always. You know, there's always one. You know, especially during a presidency, you're gonna get something, right? This one was tariffs. Made the stock market dip. Iran, the war, dip.

• 14:51George Kamel?

  Barrel of gas goes to 116, you're like, "That's gonna cause the markets to get shaky."

• 14:55Rachel Cruze?

  You see it, and people panic, they freak out, and then sometimes the fad is like, "Okay, just get out of the market. Everything's gonna collapse, the world is ending, and just everyone take your money out." And it's like, "No, no, no, no. Stay in, ride it out, it's gonna dip, it's gonna come back, like, everything's gonna be fine over the long haul." But man, people love a... Yeah, they love a panic.

• 15:16George Kamel?

  They love to see the little red down arrow on the news going, "Oh my gosh, the Dow is down." We don't like that. But here's my life hack: only look at your investment account when the market's up. I'm a glass half-full kinda guy.

• 15:30Rachel Cruze?

  Look at you, all positive.

• 15:32George Kamel?

  Okay, well, what's the point of looking at while it's down?

• 15:34Rachel Cruze?

  Yeah, yeah, 100%.

• 15:34George Kamel?

  I lost thousands of dollars on paper.

• 15:37Rachel Cruze?

  Yep.

• 15:37George Kamel?

  Well, don't pull the money out.

• 15:39Rachel Cruze?

  Yep.

• 15:39George Kamel?

  And keep buying. That's actually, it's on sale.

• 15:41Rachel Cruze?

  Yes.

• 15:42George Kamel?

  If, if that mutual fund was trading at $100, now it's at 85, it's 15% off.

• 15:48Rachel Cruze?

  100%.

• 15:49George Kamel?

  Congratulations. And it's gonna be back to record highs within a year or two or three, as it always does.

• 15:54Rachel Cruze?

  Before you know it. Love it.

• 15:56George Kamel?

  So I'm not a fan of that fad.

• 15:58Rachel Cruze?

  Yeah, me neither. Let's don't panic. Let's ride it out, y'all. Ride the roller coaster. It's gonna be fine. We promise.

• 16:04George Kamel?

  And you're not taking all your money out, even if you're in retirement. You're not doing it all at once.

• 16:08Rachel Cruze?

  Yeah, yeah, it's just a little bit.

• 16:09George Kamel?

  Try to avoid dipping into your retirement accounts as much as you can, and it's good to have some cash reserves if you're in that phase of life.

• 16:15Rachel Cruze?

  100%.

• 16:16George Kamel?

  So that you're not selling when it's down.

• 16:18Rachel Cruze?

  All right, next up, George. Health and wellness. Oh, man. You got your canola oil, your hot, your cold plunges?

• 16:25George Kamel?

  Oh, yeah.

• 16:25Rachel Cruze?

  Your saunas?

• 16:26George Kamel?

  Are we anti-canola? No seed oils. We're anti-seed oils these days.

• 16:30Rachel Cruze?

  Yeah, everyone loves a canola oil, right?

• 16:31George Kamel?

  No, canola bad.

• 16:32Rachel Cruze?

  Oh, sorry, bad.

• 16:35Rachel Cruze?

  I'm, what am I talking about?

• 16:36George Kamel?

  Canola is, you might as well just clog, clog those pipes.

• 16:40Rachel Cruze?

  What is a canola? Can I ask that?

• 16:42George Kamel?

  It's like a vegetable oil.

• 16:43Rachel Cruze?

  Okay.

• 16:44George Kamel?

  I think they just, like, relabeled it. I don't know. Someone's gonna come at me in the comments.

• 16:48Rachel Cruze?

  We have vegetable oil that we use.

• 16:49George Kamel?

  Not good.

• 16:50Rachel Cruze?

  With, like, um, like mixes, like, if you do, like, a cake mix or something, you have to have, like, a half a cup of vegetable oil.

• 16:57George Kamel?

  It would be preferable by the health and wellness world if you would use a cleaner oil.

• 17:02Rachel Cruze?

  Yeah, that's stupid.

• 17:03George Kamel?

  Avocado, perhaps?

• 17:05Rachel Cruze?

  Gross.

• 17:07George Kamel?

  Gross?

• 17:07Rachel Cruze?

  You're gonna have the, you're gonna have a, you're-

• 17:09George Kamel?

  Coconut oil?

• 17:09Rachel Cruze?

  No, definitely not coconut oil. You taste it. I cooked with coconut oil for a bit. You taste it.

• 17:13George Kamel?

  Cook it with something sweet, and it's not that overpowering. It adds a nice flavor.

• 17:18Rachel Cruze?

  I just think, you know-

• 17:19George Kamel?

  Olive oil. Again, that olive oil has some flavor to it.

• 17:21Rachel Cruze?

  This is grim. This is grim. But I think, uh-

• 17:24George Kamel?

  You'd rather-

• 17:25Rachel Cruze?

  We're all gonna be- In the ground at some point, George.

• 17:29George Kamel?

  So might as well crack open that bucket of Crisco.

• 17:31Rachel Cruze?

  And feel good, you know? Be in the sun. Have a sippy, sippy of.

• 17:39George Kamel?

  Have a sippy, sippy and be in the sun.

• 17:41Rachel Cruze?

  And just.

• 17:42George Kamel?

  Rachel is your.

• 17:43Rachel Cruze?

  Enjoy your life a little bit.

• 17:44George Kamel?

  You're like a de-influencer for the health and wellness space.

• 17:46Rachel Cruze?

  Okay, and I, you know, and I eat broccoli and Brussels sprouts, like, whatever, like, we do it, it's fine. But like, also, people, I just, I think it stresses, I think the stress that people take on who are obsessed with this world.

• 18:01George Kamel?

  Yeah.

• 18:01Rachel Cruze?

  I think does more harm than good.

• 18:03George Kamel?

  I believe that.

• 18:04Rachel Cruze?

  I think you can just sleep great.

• 18:06George Kamel?

  You meet a grandma who's like 98 and she lives off of Diet Dr. Peppers.

• 18:09Rachel Cruze?

  Smoking with a martini and you're like, oh my gosh.

• 18:12George Kamel?

  Dr. Pepper for breakfast.

• 18:13Rachel Cruze?

  Hundred percent.

• 18:14George Kamel?

  And she's thriving.

• 18:15Rachel Cruze?

  She's rocking, rocking it, yeah.

• 18:17George Kamel?

  So there you go.

• 18:18Rachel Cruze?

  People are gonna be mad at me.

• 18:19George Kamel?

  Some of these other ones you have fallen for, though, cold plunges? A sauna, perhaps?

• 18:24Rachel Cruze?

  Okay, I do love a sauna. That is one of my favorites.

• 18:26George Kamel?

  You gave up the cold plunge?

• 18:27Rachel Cruze?

  Yeah, I gave up the cold plunge. I read that it's actually not good for women, it actually ages you.

• 18:32George Kamel?

  Wow, reverse effect you're looking for.

• 18:34Rachel Cruze?

  Yep, and so there's not enough, um, science behind it. You know who else told me? Our good friend, Arthur Brooks.

• 18:40George Kamel?

  Oh, that's right.

• 18:41Rachel Cruze?

  He said the science is conflicting on cold plunges, and I thought, I like you, I like you, Arthur.

• 18:44George Kamel?

  Conflicting science is what you're looking for.

• 18:46Rachel Cruze?

  Yeah, yeah.

• 18:46George Kamel?

  You wanted an out.

• 18:47Rachel Cruze?

  I want, I want a hundred percent, like, this is the best thing for you. Sauna?

• 18:51George Kamel?

  And sauna, yeah.

• 18:52Rachel Cruze?

  Everything you read about a sauna, good.

• 18:53George Kamel?

  The data's out there.

• 18:54Rachel Cruze?

  I'm gonna detox my vegetable oil out of my system and.

• 18:59George Kamel?

  Let that canola oil through the skin, be gone. Wow. That's life balance.

• 19:04Rachel Cruze?

  Oh my gosh, yes, that's life balance right there. Do a little sauna and enjoy your life.

• 19:09George Kamel?

  So my overall take with health and wellness is.

• 19:12Rachel Cruze?

  You're very healthy, y'all are very crunchy.

• 19:13George Kamel?

  Take it all with a grain of salt. Well, I just go, like, I think the Mediterranean diet is sort of like a tried and true.

• 19:17Rachel Cruze?

  Yes.

• 19:18George Kamel?

  Eat whole foods, get your fruits and veggies in, a good complex carb. You're gonna be fine. I don't do a lot of liquid calories either, you know, so I think that helps, but I wouldn't say I'm a picture of health. But my blood work came back spectacular. After doing nothing for years, except kind of trying not to eat terribly.

• 19:36Rachel Cruze?

  Yep. Mine came back great, too. I did like a women's panel.

• 19:39George Kamel?

  Oh, yeah.

• 19:40Rachel Cruze?

  Blood test, and it was like 25 things.

• 19:44George Kamel?

  A plus.

• 19:45Rachel Cruze?

  Pretty, uh, pretty average, down the center. And I just thought, alright, I'll keep doing what I've been doing.

• 19:49George Kamel?

  That's all you need.

• 19:49Rachel Cruze?

  Just a little like, a little something here, a little something there, but worked out. Get your steps in. Eat some chicken and broccoli, you'll be good.

• 19:57George Kamel?

  Oh, that's not, that's like the, every health bro, that's all they do is they meal prep, just no flavor chicken broccoli.

• 20:05Rachel Cruze?

  I didn't say no flavor. Get you some Greek seasoning.

• 20:07George Kamel?

  It just reminded me of that. That's all they eat.

• 20:09Rachel Cruze?

  And you just shuddered.

• 20:10George Kamel?

  Like, I just can't stand when it's like, just get your protein in. It's just at all costs, just eat the most depressing meal.

• 20:15Rachel Cruze?

  Oh, yeah.

• 20:15George Kamel?

  To get your protein in. It's just, life is too short. Add some hummus.

• 20:19Rachel Cruze?

  Hummus, hummus. Does that come from a seed? No.

• 20:24George Kamel?

  Chickpeas.

• 20:25Rachel Cruze?

  Chickpeas.

• 20:26George Kamel?

  Garbanzo beans, if you wanna get a little crazy.

• 20:29Rachel Cruze?

  So more of a bean than a seed?

• 20:30George Kamel?

  Yep.

• 20:31Rachel Cruze?

  Learning a lot.

• 20:34George Kamel?

  It's a bean dip, basically. Think about it that way.

• 20:36Rachel Cruze?

  Oh, yes. So Winston's doing the keto diet. He can't have beans. So would that mean he can't have hummus?

• 20:42George Kamel?

  No legumes.

• 20:44Rachel Cruze?

  What?

• 20:44George Kamel?

  Yeah. I'm sorry. I didn't know it was gonna like, freeze your brain with the word lagoon.

• 20:51Rachel Cruze?

  I don't know what a lagoon is. What's a lagoon?

• 20:54George Kamel?

  It's the bean family.

• 20:55Rachel Cruze?

  Oh, yay. Sounds like a, like a 90's insult. Ya lagoons?

• 21:01George Kamel?

  Ya lagoon?

• 21:02Rachel Cruze?

  Ya lagoons?

• 21:03George Kamel?

  Laguma Beach. There we go. That's a spinoff.

• 21:07Rachel Cruze?

  Oh, God bless.

• 21:08George Kamel?

  Starring beans. Wow.

• 21:12Rachel Cruze?

  Oh, man. Well, while you're looking up all your recipes for your chicken and broccoli, right?

• 21:17George Kamel?

  No recipe needed.

• 21:18Rachel Cruze?

  Just don't fill out a ton of forms because if you do, you're going to need Delete Me. Because every form you fill out online is what it feels like, that these companies sell your data, data brokers then collect that data, package it, and then sell it off to other companies.

• 21:33George Kamel?

  So gross.

• 21:33Rachel Cruze?

  Yeah, so then you get spam texts and calls and weird emails and they know your address, your kids' names, like all of it. It's really scary.

• 21:41George Kamel?

  And there's more out there than you think. And you can even try searching this for yourself and you'll be shocked at how much is just out there. And like, I didn't put that, how do they know my past address and my family's info? And that's why I love Delete Me. They'll scour these data broker sites, hundreds of them, remove your info, send you a report on a silver platter showing you what they've done, how much time they've saved you.

• 22:00Rachel Cruze?

  All right there. And it's a team of actual people going in.

• 22:02George Kamel?

  Real privacy experts.

• 22:03Rachel Cruze?

  Yes.

• 22:03George Kamel?

  Behind the scenes.

• 22:04Rachel Cruze?

  And removing your data and they go back and they relook because it's so easy for that stuff to get duplicated. So go to joindelete.me/smartmoney and it's up to 20% off annual plans. It comes out to around nine bucks a month.

• 22:16George Kamel?

  That's a deal.

• 22:17Rachel Cruze?

  Well worth it.

• 22:17George Kamel?

  I've saved like, what, 160 hours, they told me, of time it would have taken me to go do all that.

• 22:22Rachel Cruze?

  So good.

• 22:23George Kamel?

  Well worth it. We'll drop a link in the description as well.

• 22:25Rachel Cruze?

  All right, next up is the gold rush.

• 22:27George Kamel?

  Oh, it's back.

• 22:28Rachel Cruze?

  So another-

• 22:29George Kamel?

  There's like gold bros out there. You know, there's like Pokemon bros and crypto bros. There is precious metal bros.

• 22:34Rachel Cruze?

  And they love it. Yep.

• 22:35George Kamel?

  They love to be like, "You guys are wrong."

• 22:37Rachel Cruze?

  Yes.

• 22:38George Kamel?

  "I got gold."

• 22:39Rachel Cruze?

  "I got gold."

• 22:39George Kamel?

  "Relax, you little leprechauns."

• 22:41Rachel Cruze?

  "I got gold."

• 22:42George Kamel?

  "Where the gold at?"

• 22:43Rachel Cruze?

  Yeah, well, March-

• 22:44George Kamel?

  If you know, you know.

• 22:45Rachel Cruze?

  Yes, if you know, you know. Oh my gosh. Okay, well, as of March of 2026, gold was sitting at a value more than $5,000 per ounce, more than a 60% increase from $3,000 just a year prior. So it has gone up. And there's usually a correlation with gold in the market that you see. When fear goes up because the market's going down, sorry.

• 23:11Rachel Cruze?

  Fear goes up, gold goes up.

• 23:13George Kamel?

  Yes.

• 23:14Rachel Cruze?

  Fear, I was just, did I make correlations?

• 23:17George Kamel?

  Thumbs up, thumbs down.

• 23:18Rachel Cruze?

  Yeah, yeah, yeah. But both up, with that, both are not good.

• 23:22George Kamel?

  If you're listening on podcast, you're just very confused as to what's happening. Rachel's just getting her directions all confused.

• 23:27Rachel Cruze?

  Yes, but.

• 23:28George Kamel?

  When people get spooked, they go out and buy a bunch of gold, thinking it's gonna save them, and it's gonna be a hedge against the stock market collapsing.

• 23:35Rachel Cruze?

  Yes.

• 23:36George Kamel?

  But I don't buy anything based on fear. Like, it's just a fear-based commodity. It's usually kind of peddled in the fear-mongering space of, everybody go buy gold and silver right now, because in the apocalypse, that's where we're all gonna be bartering. It's not worth it. And yes, on paper, you could say, well, it's up 60% compared to the stock market. But it will eventually go back down. And what are you gonna do? Just hoard a bunch of gold?

• 23:57Rachel Cruze?

  Yeah. Well, I don't think it's even 60% from the stock market, is it? I think it was just from the prior, it's prior value.

• 24:02George Kamel?

  From the prior year.

• 24:02Rachel Cruze?

  Yeah, value of what it was, yep.

• 24:04George Kamel?

  But they're going, you can't get that in the stock market, 60% up, you know what I mean?

• 24:08Rachel Cruze?

  Yeah, and then it's gonna go back down.

• 24:11George Kamel?

  So trade instability often follows the geopolitical instability. So US threatens Greenland, gold's gonna go up. European countries send military support there, gold goes up. Trump threatens tariffs on eight countries. So all of this affects the prices of precious metals, but I personally don't own any. If you want to do it for fun and make it a small part of your net worth, like less than 5%, go for it. But I would not trade investing in the stock market to go buy a bunch of gold.

• 24:35Rachel Cruze?

  No, not at all.

• 24:36George Kamel?

  So as far as fads go, I'm out on precious metals.

• 24:39Rachel Cruze?

  Yeah, not for an investment.

• 24:41George Kamel?

  I mean, you own a lot of fake precious metals from Amazon. You're wearing it right now.

• 24:46Rachel Cruze?

  I do, lots of fake, lots of fake gold, but.

• 24:49George Kamel?

  That's all you need.

• 24:49Rachel Cruze?

  Oh, yeah, all fake.

• 24:50George Kamel?

  It'd be scary, I mean.

• 24:51Rachel Cruze?

  But who cares? Maybe I can trade this little bracelet for some bread if the world collapses. I'm like, please?

• 24:56George Kamel?

  I think they can tell it's fake pretty quickly.

• 24:58Rachel Cruze?

  All this discolored, what do you mean? What do you mean?

• 25:01George Kamel?

  No, it's real, I promise.

• 25:02Rachel Cruze?

  It's real, it's real. Give me some bread.

• 25:04George Kamel?

  Give the lady some bread, guys.

• 25:05Rachel Cruze?

  We won't be doing that. We won't be doing that. Okay, how about, here's a fad, not money-related. The no contact boundary setting.

• 25:12George Kamel?

  Oh.

• 25:13Rachel Cruze?

  There's kind of a new thing relationally that people are like, my parents, my family, we don't agree, we don't see life the same, and they're just toxic, and I just have to get them out of my life.

• 25:23George Kamel?

  Yeah.

• 25:24Rachel Cruze?

  And they're like shutting off their family, like, like on the reg.

• 25:27George Kamel?

  I think this started during COVID. That's my hot take.

• 25:30Rachel Cruze?

  Yes.

• 25:31George Kamel?

  Is that's when things got extra heated.

• 25:33Rachel Cruze?

  Cause you're like, we gotta social distance. No, we don't.

• 25:35George Kamel?

  A lot of extremes.

• 25:36Rachel Cruze?

  No, you don't.

• 25:37George Kamel?

  Did you get the vaccine? Did you not? And you're not coming for Christmas.

• 25:40Rachel Cruze?

  Yep.

• 25:40George Kamel?

  And your politics are wrong, and so all of that caused a lot of no contact boundary setting, or

• 25:46Rachel Cruze?

  Good point, George.

• 25:47George Kamel?

  Elsie, low contact. Give you a new acronym there.

• 25:49Rachel Cruze?

  Low contact.

• 25:50George Kamel?

  Yeah, low contact is like, I'm gonna try to avoid contacting.

• 25:53Rachel Cruze?

  Oh, yeah.

• 25:54George Kamel?

  But it's not like a, you can't reach me.

• 25:56Rachel Cruze?

  Yes.

• 25:56George Kamel?

  I blocked your number.

• 25:57Rachel Cruze?

  Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah.

• 25:58George Kamel?

  That's different.

• 25:59Rachel Cruze?

  I know.

• 26:00George Kamel?

  But I think, you know, you, I, I don't agree with my relatives and family on everything, and I just try to, like, why go to that conversation when you see them? Out of all the things you could talk about?

• 26:09Rachel Cruze?

  Yeah, talk about anything in life. Yes.

• 26:11George Kamel?

  That's your own poison right there.

• 26:12Rachel Cruze?

  Unless they're like, super passionate about it, and that's what they're gonna end up talking about.

• 26:14George Kamel?

  Well, the problem is, they bring it up, then you have to take the high road and go, hey, we're not gonna do this.

• 26:18Rachel Cruze?

  And I just imagine some crazy girl at Easter lunch, talking about the newest conspiracy she read about.

• 26:23George Kamel?

  Is that you?

• 26:24Rachel Cruze?

  And maybe, but, I don't know.

• 26:25George Kamel?

  I'm guessing your family shuts that down. I don't think they're entertained by it anymore. Cause you are the crazy one in the family.

• 26:32Rachel Cruze?

  They think I'm crazy.

• 26:32George Kamel?

  They're all very logical people.

• 26:34Rachel Cruze?

  Yeah.

• 26:34George Kamel?

  Like Daniel.

• 26:35Rachel Cruze?

  That's why you gotta kind of stir it up a little, George.

• 26:37George Kamel?

  Denise never wants to stir anything up.

• 26:38Rachel Cruze?

  Yeah, you gotta stir a little something up.

• 26:39George Kamel?

  That's the Dave Ramsey in, in the DNA.

• 26:41Rachel Cruze?

  Just say, we didn't walk on the moon in 1969, and then they're, bah, bah, bah. And it's fun.

• 26:46George Kamel?

  But without Rachel at the dinner table, would it even be fun?

• 26:48Rachel Cruze?

  It's not fun, no. And they wouldn't know all this stuff, man. Is Selena Gomez really her? We don't know. We don't know. Listen.

• 26:56George Kamel?

  Where do you find this stuff?

• 26:58Rachel Cruze?

  I know, I know.

• 26:59George Kamel?

  I wouldn't even know where to search on the internet.

• 27:00Rachel Cruze?

  No, it's on Instagram. I get into an, I get into a conspiracy reel, and then

• 27:04George Kamel?

  The algorithm goes, oh, we know the type.

• 27:06Rachel Cruze?

  Says, oh, this is what she likes, and then it starts feeding me more. And here's the thing, George, I'm, I've realized about myself, I can be convinced kind of easily. I have like my core convictions about life, and like, what I do believe.

• 27:18George Kamel?

  Like a, you're gullible?

• 27:19Rachel Cruze?

  But I have other things that I'm like, someone really could

• 27:22George Kamel?

  Well, you're just open minded.

• 27:22Rachel Cruze?

  They could really talk me into Into one way or the other.

• 27:26George Kamel?

  If they're persuasive.

• 27:27Rachel Cruze?

  Hundred percent.

• 27:28George Kamel?

  Okay, so a logical persuasive.

• 27:30Rachel Cruze?

  But they have some evidence about something. I'm like, alright, I can get on board with that. I can get on board with that.

• 27:35George Kamel?

  Wow. And now you've become that person.

• 27:37Rachel Cruze?

  I'm convincing other people.

• 27:38George Kamel?

  It's contagious.

• 27:39Rachel Cruze?

  I know. You're welcome.

• 27:40George Kamel?

  Because once you've been convinced, you're like, everyone needs to know about this.

• 27:42Rachel Cruze?

  Yes, that's what I'm saying.

• 27:43George Kamel?

  You can just fall off the earth, guys.

• 27:44Rachel Cruze?

  You're like, they could just talk about something else. And they could. But also.

• 27:49George Kamel?

  But that's what's on your mind constantly.

• 27:50Rachel Cruze?

  If they're very passionate about something, you're like, listen, I want you all to know. Antarctica ain't what it seems.

• 27:55George Kamel?

  What's going on in Antarctica?

• 27:58Rachel Cruze?

  Oh, we don't have time, George.

• 27:59George Kamel?

  You got tea on that? Alright.

• 28:00Rachel Cruze?

  But if I was on Antarctica, I'd want to be warm and cozy. And I would hope my Cozy Earth blanket was with me.

• 28:06George Kamel?

  Take it with you.

• 28:07Rachel Cruze?

  That's for sure.

• 28:08George Kamel?

  Pack that, bad boy.

• 28:09Rachel Cruze?

  Pack that. Yeah, that's like a freaking Eskimo suit.

• 28:12George Kamel?

  You need to.

• 28:13Rachel Cruze?

  Wrap yourself in the warmth.

• 28:15George Kamel?

  Your own luggage for that.

• 28:15Rachel Cruze?

  Of wonderfulness. And you're good to go. Because Cozy Earth products, they keep you warm. And even in the summer.

• 28:23George Kamel?

  Keep you cool.

• 28:24Rachel Cruze?

  Keep you cool.

• 28:24George Kamel?

  Because they use this viscose from bamboo material?

• 28:27Rachel Cruze?

  And it like, it allows it to breathe if it needs to, traps the heat if it needs. It's crazy.

• 28:32George Kamel?

  I don't know how they do it.

• 28:33Rachel Cruze?

  I don't either.

• 28:33George Kamel?

  But they do it. The sheets, the joggers, the athleisure, the sleep sets, all of it.

• 28:37Rachel Cruze?

  If I'm cold, I swear it like, keeps me warm. But then if I wear it like,

• 28:41George Kamel?

  Both hands.

• 28:42Rachel Cruze?

  Walking the kids to school in the morning, and I'm like, oh, it's kind of hot out here. It's cool. I don't know.

• 28:47George Kamel?

  Science. If you still believe in that, Rachel, I think that's how they do it. But it's great. Everything there, if you want to upgrade your life, you want a little taste of luxury, meets affordability. They got a 10-year warranty on their bedding, 100-night sleep trial. It's all incredible. And you can get up to 20% off at cozylearth.com/smartmoney and use code SMARTMONEY at checkout. And if you get the post-purchase survey, which I think you will, be sure to let Cozy Earth know that Smart Money Happy Hour sent you.

• 29:14Rachel Cruze?

  Alright, next up, George. Everything is bettable.

• 29:16George Kamel?

  Oh, that's exhausting.

• 29:18Rachel Cruze?

  Man.

• 29:19George Kamel?

  Why? Why can't we just enjoy things and not have to put money on it?

• 29:23Rachel Cruze?

  So during March Madness, I was reading like, an article about a game, the Tennessee game, against Michigan, which was very unfortunate.

• 29:30George Kamel?

  I'm guessing it didn't go well by the look on your face.

• 29:32Rachel Cruze?

  Very unfortunate. Terrible, actually.

• 29:34George Kamel?

  I could have guessed that, though.

• 29:35Rachel Cruze?

  No, but sometimes there's the upsets, you know? UConn and Duke, like.

• 29:38George Kamel?

  Not with Tennessee.

• 29:41George Kamel?

  Tennessee, Michigan, even I know.

• 29:43Rachel Cruze?

  Well, that's what I'm saying. March Madness, there's always the upsets. Like, this could have been an upset.

• 29:47George Kamel?

  Okay.

• 29:47Rachel Cruze?

  And they were a really good team, George. They actually played very well. Why am I defending them?

• 29:51George Kamel?

  You're really good.

• 29:52Rachel Cruze?

  They lost really bad. Anyways, but there was an entire article and it was like section after and I started reading. I was like, oh, this is interesting. And then halfway through, I was like, I can't. About all the betting. Have you bet on this, this, you know, whatever spread here? And then this, and then how you know here? And then, and then the Vegas odds are here. I mean, it was so much info about it. And I thought, oh my gosh, people are reading this. Like this is like, they're, they're sucked in.

• 30:17George Kamel?

  Oh, yeah.

• 30:18Rachel Cruze?

  It's crazy. So, yeah.

• 30:19George Kamel?

  Well, when there's money on it, you're glued to it. And so it's the, they love it as far as advertising goes, because they know you're going to watch the game if you start betting on it. So, Polymarket, Call She, DraftKings, FanDuel, Bet MGM, all of these companies are cashing in by making you think you could win. It's just a lottery, but kind of socialized with your hobbies and things you love, which is sports. But now it's like, is Trump gonna burp today? And you can, there's a $200 million pool of yes or no.

• 30:46Rachel Cruze?

  Like, it's crazy. Yes. You can bet on anything in life.

• 30:47George Kamel?

  It's insane.

• 30:48Rachel Cruze?

  Yes. Let's, uh, let's stay focused.

• 30:50George Kamel?

  Who's gonna get married on Love is Blind? You can bet on that. And so it's gotten out of control. And I think it sadly, this is real talk, it's gonna lead to addictive behaviors, gambling in other areas, and people are gonna lose big money. It's gonna hurt relationships. That's not a guess on my part. That's just what's happening and what will continue to happen.

• 31:07Rachel Cruze?

  Well, and the trend is showing that. Like, data is coming out. The, yes, like the rate of people who gamble, the amount of money they are, the frequency at which they are gambling. It's just continuing to increase. So.

• 31:19George Kamel?

  And because it's apps, they'll lure you back in saying, hey, have a free bet on us.

• 31:23Rachel Cruze?

  Well, that's the hard thing, too. If you lose money, you're like, okay, crap. How do I make that back? And like, well, maybe I'll just bet a little bit more and try to win it back. And yes.

• 31:29George Kamel?

  It's gonna be different this time.

• 31:30Rachel Cruze?

  It's a spiral. It's an absolute spiral.

• 31:32George Kamel?

  Ay, ay, ay.

• 31:33Rachel Cruze?

  Uh, all right. Next up is, uh, oh, cosmetic procedures. Dun, dun, dun. So, there's, uh, I guess the fads. People are actually removing filler, though. That's a fad happening.

• 31:44George Kamel?

  Oh. Is that like getting rid of a tattoo?

• 31:46Rachel Cruze?

  People, I guess so.

• 31:47George Kamel?

  You get the filler or you take it out?

• 31:48Rachel Cruze?

  Get the filler and the lip filler, cheek, all of that. And a lot of celebs are apparently removing those. Um, man, all the treatments, laser care, all of it.

• 31:58George Kamel?

  What do you think I should get done?

• 32:00Rachel Cruze?

  You don't have hooded lids, because I can see your eyelid right now, so you're good.

• 32:04George Kamel?

  Maybe a chin implant?

• 32:06Rachel Cruze?

  Oh, you could have a little bit.

• 32:07George Kamel?

  I could use a better jawline, we can all agree on that.

• 32:10Rachel Cruze?

  Go a little bit, a little bit further out. Yeah, George, sure.

• 32:12George Kamel?

  I don't have a lot of neck. Can I extend my neck too?

• 32:15Rachel Cruze?

  I guess.

• 32:16George Kamel?

  Is that a thing?

• 32:17Rachel Cruze?

  Go up with the neck? That'd be a sad procedure.

• 32:20George Kamel?

  Now, the one that's really sad is the height surgery.

• 32:23Rachel Cruze?

  Height?

• 32:23George Kamel?

  Yeah. They literally like break your legs and then add to it and then, yeah, it's a thing.

• 32:29Rachel Cruze?

  No way.

• 32:29George Kamel?

  It's a real thing.

• 32:30Rachel Cruze?

  Don't do it, George.

• 32:31George Kamel?

  I never said I was.

• 32:34Rachel Cruze?

  Don't do it.

• 32:34George Kamel?

  But if there was a way to do it without having to break both of my legs.

• 32:38Rachel Cruze?

  Terrible.

• 32:39George Kamel?

  I would consider it.

• 32:40Rachel Cruze?

  Um, you know, the one that's kind of going out, the people were all in? Venieres.

• 32:45George Kamel?

  Oh.

• 32:46Rachel Cruze?

  People are getting like those just like perfect veneers.

• 32:48George Kamel?

  Yeah, and everyone can tell?

• 32:49Rachel Cruze?

  Yes, and people are going back to more natural looking teeth.

• 32:52George Kamel?

  Wow, do people accuse you of having veneers?

• 32:55Rachel Cruze?

  Um, I don't know. I don't know.

• 32:58George Kamel?

  Check the comment section, what are they saying?

• 32:59Rachel Cruze?

  No.

• 33:01George Kamel?

  But I do think it's become more normalized.

• 33:03Rachel Cruze?

  Did you know that?

• 33:03George Kamel?

  Really?

• 33:04Rachel Cruze?

  Never had braces.

• 33:05George Kamel?

  That's impressive. Did anyone in your family have braces?

• 33:07Rachel Cruze?

  My mom didn't, and I want to say dad didn't either. Denise and Daniel did, though, but I did not. I know.

• 33:13George Kamel?

  You are highly favored.

• 33:14Rachel Cruze?

  Isn't that crazy?

• 33:16George Kamel?

  That's good. Well, these smaller procedures now, they feel more affordable, and people are putting it around payment plans, and so they go, I could afford that. It used to just be for celebrities and athletes and rich people. Now it's like, well, I could afford $500.

• 33:28Rachel Cruze?

  Yeah, the med spa down the street's doing this and this, and we can do it, yeah.

• 33:31George Kamel?

  And you can afford one, if not two, three, four, five, six, and do it over time.

• 33:36Rachel Cruze?

  Yes.

• 33:36George Kamel?

  And so these are popping up, I've noticed, these sort of, they're not like hospitals, they're not surgical centers, they're just little offices. Yeah, a little med spa where it's a casual, you're going to Target, let's stop by the old med spa.

• 33:48Rachel Cruze?

  Okay, you know, one thing I did, uh, the ladies will appreciate this, and it was worth the investment, time and money, laser hair removal.

• 33:56George Kamel?

  Oh.

• 33:58Rachel Cruze?

  Y'all, game changer.

• 34:01Rachel Cruze?

  Legs, armpit, all of it. It is fantastic.

• 34:03George Kamel?

  How many times you have to do it?

• 34:04Rachel Cruze?

  You have to go eight times, six to eight sessions. It's a, it's a, it is a consistent thing, but oh.

• 34:11George Kamel?

  But then it works forever. Never comes back.

• 34:13Rachel Cruze?

  Yes. So that was an investment I did, but I got a deal. It was like a Black Friday, like get one area.

• 34:19George Kamel?

  That always worries me. Like I found a group on though.

• 34:21Rachel Cruze?

  I know, I know. But it was at a local like plastic surgery center that was doing it. So I trusted them.

• 34:26George Kamel?

  I figure it's not that expensive for them. I think a lot of these are high margin procedures.

• 34:30Rachel Cruze?

  Yes, I think so too. That's why they can do some like, yeah, big discounts. Yeah.

• 34:34George Kamel?

  There you go.

• 34:34Rachel Cruze?

  Would you ever do that for like your neck or something?

• 34:36George Kamel?

  You know what? I do hate shaving the neck to keep that clean.

• 34:39Rachel Cruze?

  Winston talks about that.

• 34:40George Kamel?

  I would consider that because never in my life am I going to be like, man, I just wish I had more hair on my neck.

• 34:47George Kamel?

  Gosh, I miss those days.

• 34:48Rachel Cruze?

  You're not gonna miss it. You're not gonna miss it. Okay. So the fad, I'm gonna go like, I'm okay with this fad to an extent.

• 34:55George Kamel?

  Yeah.

• 34:56Rachel Cruze?

  Right? The beauty treatments?

• 34:57George Kamel?

  I think it's easy to go overboard because once you get a little, it's kind of like tattoos where you get two and you're like, well, why not get a sleeve?

• 35:03Rachel Cruze?

  Why not get another one?

• 35:04George Kamel?

  And then all of a sudden, unlike tattoos.

• 35:06Rachel Cruze?

  It's a slippery slope.

• 35:07George Kamel?

  You look like you got stung by bees.

• 35:09Rachel Cruze?

  Yeah. So keep your, keep your face ladies. Oh, you know where I love to keep my money is a safe place, George. And Fair Winds Credit Union. Spot on.

• 35:18George Kamel?

  That's my safe place for sure.

• 35:19Rachel Cruze?

  Yes. And it's a safe place because not only the people behind it that are actually running it, they are amazing people. But the system at which you're putting your money in, it is a place that wants you to win with your money. And to have any level of a banking institution to be for you with your money, that's amazing.

• 35:35George Kamel?

  That's rare.

• 35:36Rachel Cruze?

  Because usually they're trying to make so much money off of you through debt and fees and all of this. Yes. But Fair Winds came in and like, hey, we want to like be pro the Ramsey plan. And so we love them for it.

• 35:48George Kamel?

  This is true. Their CEO watched my YouTube video on travel hacks. And I said, hey, don't make sure you're not getting charged international fees. And he looked into it and he said, hey, are we doing that? And they said, yeah. And he said, let's get rid of international fees on our Fair Winds debit card. And they did it from watching my video. And so they truly want the best experience for their fans. They have a great high yield savings account. One of the top questions we get, where should I store my money so it can make some money? And you can have up to 10 different savings accounts in there for all the different savings goals in your life. So check it out with their smart bundle, no fee checking, high yield savings and the Ramsey branded debt is normal be weird debit card. Go to fairwinds.org/Ramsey or click the link in the description.

• 36:28Rachel Cruze?

  Okay, George, wow. What do we think about these fads?

• 36:31George Kamel?

  It's exhausting.

• 36:32Rachel Cruze?

  I feel like a lot of them are negative, you know? If something's like really popular, I mean, besides pickleball, but like if something's really popular right now, there's a little bit of me that's like a little bit-

• 36:41George Kamel?

  Well, if I had to sum it up, like what's behind each one, right? If we go back through, you kind of realize, uh, you got Dubai chocolate. That one, I feel like is a harmless one. All right? A food fad, I'm fine with that.

• 36:52Rachel Cruze?

  Sure.

• 36:52George Kamel?

  But then stock market panic.

• 36:54Rachel Cruze?

  Yeah.

• 36:54George Kamel?

  That's not good. People are gonna lose a lot of money. Health and wellness, there's a lot of toxic negativity of like, if you don't do it my way. I mean, I posted just a bag of these like Girl Scout, um, like granola cookies.

• 37:05Rachel Cruze?

  Yeah.

• 37:06George Kamel?

  Uh, and just granola, that kind of mimics the flavor of their coconut caramel cookie. And people were like, I can't believe you're putting that poison in your body. I'm like, I'm not a, I'm not a health influencer.

• 37:16Rachel Cruze?

  Totally. Like, this is not my job.

• 37:18George Kamel?

  This lady straight up said that to me and I was like, people need to relax a little bit.

• 37:21Rachel Cruze?

  Yes.

• 37:22George Kamel?

  I'm not hurting myself. I'm not the problem.

• 37:24Rachel Cruze?

  Yeah.

• 37:24George Kamel?

  Okay? If you've seen me in real life, I'm doing okay.

• 37:27Rachel Cruze?

  You're doing great.

• 37:28George Kamel?

  I'm not thriving.

• 37:29Rachel Cruze?

  Rhonda, calm down. Rhonda.

• 37:30George Kamel?

  I'm not gonna be on my 600 pound life anytime soon.

• 37:33Rachel Cruze?

  Yes.

• 37:33George Kamel?

  So don't at me, Debbie. So health and wellness, there's, there's some toxicity there. There's some vanity there, but overall-

• 37:41Rachel Cruze?

  I think motivated in a good way, though, trying to keep us healthy.

• 37:44George Kamel?

  People wanna look better, feel better.

• 37:45Rachel Cruze?

  And live longer, not be sick.

• 37:47George Kamel?

  And then you got Pokemon and Gold Rush. That feels a little bit get rich quick.

• 37:51Rachel Cruze?

  Yep.

• 37:52George Kamel?

  Fear-based, a lot of hype around that.

• 37:54Rachel Cruze?

  Mm-hmm.

• 37:54George Kamel?

  No contact boundary setting, I feel like is a good mode of gone too far.

• 37:59Rachel Cruze?

  Yes, that's true.

• 38:00George Kamel?

  You're trying to do a healthy thing in an unhealthy way.

• 38:02Rachel Cruze?

  Yes.

• 38:03George Kamel?

  And then everything's bettable. Again, get rich quick, gambling, addiction, a lot of that happening there. So overall, not great.

• 38:10Rachel Cruze?

  Not great. Yeah.

• 38:11George Kamel?

  State of America.

• 38:14Rachel Cruze?

  Yeah, we'll see.

• 38:15George Kamel?

  Give it a C minus right now.

• 38:17Rachel Cruze?

  Oh, man. But if you do have questions about your money and specific situation, whether it is about the gold rush or sports betting, like whatever your question is, you can go to Ask Ramsey and this is actually pretty amazing because it's an AI tool that we have now that you can put in your specific question and it'll give you an answer, just like you called the Ramsey show, so.

• 38:35George Kamel?

  I do love that.

• 38:36Rachel Cruze?

  Yeah, so check it out.

• 38:37George Kamel?

  It's timeless. No fads here, and that's what I love about Ramsey that I think we don't talk about enough, is the principles and the values have stayed the same.

• 38:45Rachel Cruze?

  Consistent.

• 38:45George Kamel?

  You go back and-

• 38:46Rachel Cruze?

  It's not a fad. It is what it is.

• 38:48George Kamel?

  Find a video of Dave Ramsey from 1995 and you're like, he's saying the exact same things he says now. Like, he believes it and he's stuck with it. I think that's actually such a pro in today's world.

• 38:58Rachel Cruze?

  Yes.

• 38:58George Kamel?

  Where everything's constantly changing and evolving. You gotta keep up. Just follow the plan. Live on less than you make. Stay out of debt. Build wealth for the future. Don't fall for the traps and the hype and the trends. You're gonna be okay.

• 39:09Rachel Cruze?

  Love it. Okay, before we spill the tea in our guilty as charged segment, George, tell us what we're sipping on. What's in it?

• 39:16George Kamel?

  We're sipping on a cold brew cocktail that is made up of vodka, simple syrup, coffee liqueur, cold brew, heavy cream, and caramel sauce.

• 39:25Rachel Cruze?

  Okay.

• 39:26George Kamel?

  Or caramel sauce if you're Rachel.

• 39:27Rachel Cruze?

  I'm a caramel, not a caramel.

• 39:29George Kamel?

  I'm from Boston.

• 39:30Rachel Cruze?

  Caramel.

• 39:32George Kamel?

  What's your ranking?

• 39:33Rachel Cruze?

  I like it. 9.5?

• 39:36George Kamel?

  Whoa, that's higher than I thought you'd rate it.

• 39:38Rachel Cruze?

  Like, I would have that if someone was like, hey-

• 39:40George Kamel?

  Would you choose it over an espresso martini?

• 39:41Rachel Cruze?

  That's exactly what I was just thinking. I know. An espresso feels more lighter. This is heavier.

• 39:47George Kamel?

  The heavy cream kinda sits on the top?

• 39:49Rachel Cruze?

  Yes.

• 39:51George Kamel?

  I think that's probably what's messing with you.

• 39:52Rachel Cruze?

  It just feels, I don't know.

• 39:53George Kamel?

  The viscosity's a little thicker than an espresso martini.

• 39:55Rachel Cruze?

  Yeah, cuz it's a cold brew versus just an espresso shot. You know what I mean? So like, it's kind of like a black coffee versus an Americano.

• 40:03George Kamel?

  Yeah, cuz the ingredients are very similar to an espresso martini, but it's just kinda packaged differently. I'm gonna go, I'll go 7.5 out of 10.

• 40:11Rachel Cruze?

  Okay.

• 40:12George Kamel?

  I like a stronger, like, coffee feel. And this one's more like a vodka latte, if you will. That's what we should've called it.

• 40:19Rachel Cruze?

  The vodka latte.

• 40:22George Kamel?

  But it's good. I'm not really a fan of vodka drinks in general, but this one, I think it makes sense to have the vodka just kind of be a clean, let the other flavors shine through.

• 40:31Rachel Cruze?

  Yep.

• 40:31George Kamel?

  And it comes out to $2.49 if you wanna make it at home.

• 40:34Rachel Cruze?

  Not too bad.

• 40:35George Kamel?

  That's cheaper than anything you'll get at Starbucks, and it has alcohol in it. Pretty crazy.

• 40:39Rachel Cruze?

  There you go, kids.

• 40:40George Kamel?

  I really sold you on that one.

• 40:42Rachel Cruze?

  Cheaper on all fronts, you know?

• 40:43George Kamel?

  Cheaper than a Frappuccino. So get the recipe in the show notes. Give it a try this weekend if you're of age. If not, just make a latte.

• 40:50Rachel Cruze?

  Make a latte.

• 40:51George Kamel?

  Honestly, kids shouldn't be drinking caffeine.

• 40:52Rachel Cruze?

  Make a cold brew. No, not the kids.

• 40:54George Kamel?

  At that point, you're drinking chocolate milk.

• 40:56Rachel Cruze?

  Yeah, I think you should be at least, what, 16, 17, where you're drinking coffee?

• 41:00George Kamel?

  I think you should be that age to drink anything from Starbucks, because it's all sugar bombs.

• 41:05Rachel Cruze?

  Sugar bombs.

• 41:05George Kamel?

  Like, what these kids are drinking, it's 50, 60 grams of sugar in them.

• 41:08Rachel Cruze?

  Those pink drinks.

• 41:09George Kamel?

  Speaking of toxic health and wellness, that's the, I'll stand on that. It's crazy.

• 41:14Rachel Cruze?

  I'll stand on that.

• 41:15George Kamel?

  You get a venti whatever. It's just pump after pump after pump in there.

• 41:20Rachel Cruze?

  There was a, I saw an Instagram reel of a Dunkin' Donuts.

• 41:24George Kamel?

  Yeah.

• 41:24Rachel Cruze?

  And the sugar, it's like, brrr, brrr.

• 41:27George Kamel?

  It shows you how much sugar is actually in there.

• 41:30Rachel Cruze?

  I was like, oh my gosh. Yeah, that, that's, okay. You know what? I'll take my canola oil, which I don't really use, but vegetable oil, with my water. I drink water. Literally, I don't, I really don't drink.

• 41:43George Kamel?

  Let her live.

• 41:44Rachel Cruze?

  I don't drink, and I don't drink, and I will drink coffee.

• 41:46George Kamel?

  I have never seen you have a soda.

• 41:48Rachel Cruze?

  I really don't drink soda.

• 41:50George Kamel?

  Do you have a Diet Coke every now and then, or something?

• 41:51Rachel Cruze?

  Yeah, sure, yeah.

• 41:52George Kamel?

  Okay.

• 41:53Rachel Cruze?

  But like, I don't crave it. That's not my thing.

• 41:55George Kamel?

  Yeah.

• 41:56Rachel Cruze?

  So like, when you said you don't drink your calories.

• 41:57George Kamel?

  But to be fair, I've never seen you drink water either.

• 42:01Rachel Cruze?

  I do, I drink water.

• 42:04George Kamel?

  But also, to be fair, I only have a drink with you where we're having a cocktail.

• 42:07Rachel Cruze?

  That's true. It's usually something that, yeah.

• 42:09George Kamel?

  I don't know what you do in the privacy of your own home.

• 42:10Rachel Cruze?

  Yeah, but I don't drink all those sugary drinks. I don't do Starbucks, I don't do any of that.

• 42:13George Kamel?

  That's true.

• 42:14Rachel Cruze?

  So you know what? Give me a, give me a half a cup of vegetable oil and a brownie mix.

• 42:18George Kamel?

  Gosh.

• 42:19Rachel Cruze?

  Sue me. Okay? Just justify myself.

• 42:24George Kamel?

  Never seen someone just like throw canola.

• 42:27Rachel Cruze?

  My mother is gonna be listening to this and like, Rachel.

• 42:28George Kamel?

  Oh, Sharon Ramsey would definitely be like, Rachel.

• 42:31Rachel Cruze?

  She's like, you need activated charcoal if your stomach hurts. And I'm like, I'll just take Advil. Terrible. Am I gonna be okay? I'm gonna be okay.

• 42:40George Kamel?

  You shouldn't be. If you're asking me, you will not be okay. I'm not a doctor.

• 42:46Rachel Cruze?

  Oh my gosh. I lift weights. That helps. Right?

• 42:50George Kamel?

  Yeah, I could say that factually.

• 42:53Rachel Cruze?

  Okay, now it's time for

• 42:55George Kamel?

  Guilty as charged.

• 42:57Rachel Cruze?

  And this is where we ask each other our guilty as charged question every week. And if we're guilty, we take a sip. All right, George, the question is, this came actually from Instagram from Lorena. Have you ever heard an argument on The Ramsey Show or online that made you second guess a baby step?

• 43:15George Kamel?

  Whoa, them fighting words.

• 43:17Rachel Cruze?

  That's a good one.

• 43:18George Kamel?

  Are they trying to get me in hot water?

• 43:20Rachel Cruze?

  I know, it's okay. Dave will be okay.

• 43:22George Kamel?

  An argument that made me second guess it to where it was like, should we update this step? Is that kind of thing?

• 43:26Rachel Cruze?

  I get, I could just, yeah. Second guess a baby step.

• 43:29George Kamel?

  Okay. How about, you got one?

• 43:32Rachel Cruze?

  I have one.

• 43:32George Kamel?

  That's coming to mind?

• 43:33Rachel Cruze?

  Yes.

• 43:33George Kamel?

  Okay.

• 43:35Rachel Cruze?

  I think it's, I think the baby step $1,000 emergency fund. I understand why we do that because you need money in a short amount of time. And like 40% of Americans can't cover a $1,000 emergency in cash. So like to get $1,000 for a lot of people is like a big step.

• 43:52George Kamel?

  Life changing.

• 43:52Rachel Cruze?

  In general, and you want to do it quick in order to start paying off debt.

• 43:57George Kamel?

  So there's a balance.

• 43:58Rachel Cruze?

  But I could see if you got small kids, you have one income earner in the house, all of that. That feels very insta, like it doesn't, like the instability feels big to just have $1,000. So I could, and then someone loses a job and you're like, oh my God. Like, I get how that feels very uncomfortable.

• 44:15George Kamel?

  Yeah.

• 44:16Rachel Cruze?

  So that one, I could see someone being like, that's not enough. And I wouldn't teach it differently because I think the pros of doing it that way are greater. As you're getting out of debt, but I get it. I get it.

• 44:29George Kamel?

  That's a good one. If I, I mean, I'm trying to think of the arguments I've seen on the show with like debt avalanche versus snowball. And kind of more than six months.

• 44:36Rachel Cruze?

  Retirement while getting out of debt?

• 44:38George Kamel?

  That would be a good one. I understand people's hesitation when they're getting like an employer match, for example. And we say, hey, go down to 0% investing to put all of the focus towards debt payoff as fast as possible. And they go, why would I give up my 4% match? So as I'm like a math nerd, I get that.

• 44:55Rachel Cruze?

  Yep.

• 44:56George Kamel?

  And so I, I connect with, I empathize with them.

• 44:59Rachel Cruze?

  Totally.

• 44:59George Kamel?

  Going like, why would I give up 100% return? For 4%.

• 45:03Rachel Cruze?

  Right.

• 45:03George Kamel?

  You'll get out of debt a little slower, but you'll get this return and you guys talk about compound growth and starting early. So that one is a harder one for me.

• 45:11Rachel Cruze?

  Yes.

• 45:11George Kamel?

  Because I get it, but I also know it's so much more than math.

• 45:14Rachel Cruze?

  Totally.

• 45:14George Kamel?

  And I've realized that now on the other side of all this, the people that struggle the most with the baby steps are the ones that are so focused on the mathematics.

• 45:22Rachel Cruze?

  Yes.

• 45:23George Kamel?

  And on what happens on paper.

• 45:24Rachel Cruze?

  Every little thing, yes.

• 45:25George Kamel?

  And I forgot how much is emotional and behavioral about money.

• 45:28Rachel Cruze?

  100%.

• 45:29George Kamel?

  So that would be the one I understand.

• 45:30Rachel Cruze?

  Yeah.

• 45:30George Kamel?

  That was a good call.

• 45:31Rachel Cruze?

  Get it. Well, there you go, y'all. Look at us going rogue. Well, if you have a guilty as charged question, make sure to DM us at Rachel Cruiser, at George Kamel, because we see them, we use them, and we thank you.

• 45:42George Kamel?

  You are seen and you are loved.

• 45:43Rachel Cruze?

  Yes. Well, if you enjoyed this episode, then you are going to love our episode ranking the worst financial habits and admitting our guilt. So we will link that for you. And make sure to subscribe to the channel so you don't miss an all new episode of Smart Money Happy Hour.