Smart Money Happy Hour with Rachel Cruze and George Kamel

Whether you love MLMs or just love to hate ’em, none of us are immune to getting a “Hey, hun!” in our DMs. But have all the boss babes really been conned? Join Rachel and George as they take a closer look to find out if MLMs are an entrepreneur’s paradise . . . or just another scam.   In This Episode:   ·     The fine line between a pyramid scheme and an MLM ·     George’s and Rachel’s personal experiences with MLM products ·     Solved: the mystery of the free luxury car   Helpful Resources:   ·     Be entered to win a $100 Visa gift card when you take our listener survey! Click here to let us know what you think.    ·     Do you have a Guilty As Charged question for Rachel and George? Send a DM to @rachelcruze or @georgekamel on Instagram! Be sure to type “GUILTY?” at the top of your message so we don’t miss it.   ·     Get your finances organized, make a plan, build up your confidence, and kick money stress out of your life for good with the EveryDollar budgeting app. Go to everydollar.com/smart to get started today! ·     Learn more about your ad choices. https://www.megaphone.fm/adchoices ·     Ramsey Solutions Privacy Policy   This Week’s Happy Hour Special:  The Aviation ·     2 ounces gin ·     1/4 ounce Luxardo maraschino liqueur ·     1/4 ounce ​crème de violette liqueur ·     1/2 ounce freshly squeezed lemon juice   Grab your trusty cocktail shaker and fill it with ice. Add gin, maraschino liqueur, crème de violette and lemon juice to the shaker. Shake that thing and strain into a glass. For an elevated experience, garnish with a lemon twist! 🛫

Cheers, old sport! The TikTok teens have spoken, and we’re here to ask the hard-hitting questions on the latest viral hashtag. What is “old-money aesthetic,” and how does it relate to your money? What does it really take to build generational wealth? And if you were a RollerCoaster Tycoon kid, are you an old-money adult now? We tackle it all.   In This Episode:   ·      George advocating for the coastal grandfather movement ·      Marie Osmond, Bill Gates and thoughts on big inheritances ·      The Kennedys, the Vanderbilts and other old-money history   Helpful Resources:   ·      Get your finances organized, make a plan, build up your confidence, and kick money stress out of your life for good with the EveryDollar budgeting app. Go to www.everydollar.com/smart to get started today! ·      Be entered to win a $100 Visa gift card when you take our listener survey! Click here to let us know what you think.  ·      Do you have a Guilty As Charged question for Rachel and George? Send a DM to @rachelcruze or @georgekamel on Instagram! Be sure to type “GUILTY?” at the top of your message so we don’t miss it.      ·      Learn more about your ad choices. https://www.megaphone.fm/adchoices   Ramsey Solutions Privacy Policy     This Week’s Happy Hour Special: Lemon Drop   Ingredients: ·      2 ounces vodka ·      1/2 ounce Cointreau ·      1 ounce fresh lemon juice ·      1 ounce simple syrup ·      Sugar   Instructions: Apply a light layer of lemon juice to the rim of a cocktail glass. Dip the coated rim into sugar, then set the glass aside. Combine vodka, Cointreau, lemon juice, simply syrup and ice in a cocktail shaker and shake until chilled. Strain the liquid into the prepared cocktail glass and enjoy!

Smart Money DUUUPE. Just kidding—it’s still the real us. And we’re going to talk about everything from cheap versions of viral high-end products to internet shopping scams and fake cash. Plus, we’ll discuss which name-brand products on your wish list are most likely to be counterfeit.   In This Episode:   ·      Construction workers: Are they the underappreciated fashion icons of our time? ·      Fake Taylor Swift tickets, jury duty scams, and Winston’s Craigslist trauma ·      Our listeners’ worst scam stories   Helpful Resources:   ·      Feeling like your money habits need a refresh? Check out our sponsor, Financial Peace University, to start making money moves with confidence today!   ·      Be entered to win a $100 Visa gift card when you take our listener survey! Click here to let us know what you think.  ·      Do you have a Guilty As Charged question for Rachel and George? Send a DM to @rachelcruze or @georgekamel on Instagram! Be sure to type “GUILTY?” at the top of your message so we don’t miss it.       Learn more about your ad choices. https://www.megaphone.fm/adchoices   Ramsey Solutions Privacy Policy     This Week’s Happy Hour Special: Classic Texas Ranch Water   Ingredients: ·      3 ounces (or 2 shots) tequila ·      2 limes ·      1 bottle Topo Chico Instructions: Juice one whole lime and slice the other lime for garnish. Fill a highball glass with ice, then add the lime juice and two shots of tequila. Top off the glass with chilled Topo Chico. Garnish with a lime slice and enjoy!

It’s about to get awkward! 😬 Whether you think it’s time to confront your aging parents about their iffy money habits or you’re fighting the good fight against splitting the check evenly at dinner, Rachel and George are here to offer their advice for getting through life’s most cringeworthy money convos.     In This Episode:   ·     George admits to charging this close family member rent  ·     How to handle people who assume they’re getting the friends and family discount ·     How to get out of a group gift situation that you didn’t sign up for   Helpful Resources:   ·     Be entered to win a $100 Visa gift card when you take our listener survey! Click here to let us know what you think.    ·     Do you have a Guilty As Charged question for Rachel and George? Send a DM to @rachelcruze or @georgekamel on Instagram! Be sure to type “GUILTY?” at the top of your message so we don’t miss it.   ·     Get your finances organized, make a plan, build up your confidence, and kick money stress out of your life for good with the EveryDollar budgeting app. Go to everydollar.com/smart to get started today! ·     Learn more about your ad choices. https://www.megaphone.fm/adchoices ·     Ramsey Solutions Privacy Policy   This Week’s Happy Hour Special:    The Tom Hanks (aka Diet Cokagne) ·     1 can (12 ounces) Diet Coke ·     Champagne Add ice to your favorite highball glass. Pour in about one third of the Diet Coke. Top with the champagne of your choice until the glass is full. Now be brave and take a sip!

There’s genius––and then there’s evil genius. Rachel and George go head-to-head on some of today’s ethically questionable penny-pinching hacks to help us all find the line between smart spending and just acting shady. 🧐   In This Episode:   ·     The streaming platform that George and Rachel temporarily shared a password for ·     How techies tap Google Voice for extra cyber security . . . and shopping discounts 🛍 ·     The money-saving dating game everybody has an opinion about Helpful Resources:    ·     Get your finances organized, make a plan, build up your confidence, and kick money stress out of your life for good with the EveryDollar budgeting app. Go to everydollar.com/smart to get started today! ·     Be entered to win a $100 Visa gift card when you take our listener survey! Click here to let us know what you think.    ·     Do you have a Guilty As Charged question for Rachel and George? Send a DM to @rachelcruze or @georgekamel on Instagram! Be sure to type “GUILTY?” at the top of your message so we don’t miss it.   ·     Learn more about your ad choices. https://www.megaphone.fm/adchoices ·     Ramsey Solutions Privacy Policy   This Week’s Happy Hour Special:    Blackberry Mojito Mocktail ·     2/3 cup blackberries ·     1 tablespoon fresh lime juice ·     1 cup berry flavored sparkling water ·     Fresh mint ·     Lime slices Muddle blackberries and mint in the bottom of your cocktail glass and add lime juice. Fill the glass with ice, then pour the berry flavored sparkling water over the top. Garnish with lime slices or extra mint. Sip and enjoy!

You’ve heard of pin the tail on the donkey, but are you familiar with pin the dollar on the bride? Join Rachel and George on a journey to learn about money traditions around the world––from the West African sou-sou to an unexpected German spending obsession that not even the pandemic could shake!   In This Episode: ·      Communal savings, questionable British accents, and “the dollar dance” ·      The global money custom that George’s ancestors may have invented ·      The OG GoFundMe and other heartwarming ways different cultures give back   Helpful Resources:   ·      Get your finances organized, make a plan, build up your confidence, and kick money stress out of your life for good with the EveryDollar budgeting app. Click here to get started today! ·      Be entered to win a $100 Visa gift card when you take our listener survey! Click here to let us know what you think.  ·      Do you have a Guilty As Charged question for Rachel and George? Send a DM to @rachelcruze or @georgekamel on Instagram! Be sure to type “GUILTY?” at the top of your message so we don’t miss it.       Learn more about your ad choices. https://www.megaphone.fm/adchoices   Ramsey Solutions Privacy Policy     This Week’s Happy Hour Special: Sazerac   Ingredients: ·      1/2 ounce absinthe ·      1 sugar cube ·      1 1/2 ounces rye whiskey ·      1/2 ounce Peychaud’s bitters ·      1/2 ounce Angostura bitters ·      1 1/2 ounces cognac ·      1 lemon peel   Pour a small amount of absinthe in a chilled glass, swirl it around to coat the glass, discard the remaining liquid, then set aside the glass. In a cocktail mixer, muddle the sugar cube with Peychaud’s and Angostura bitters. Add rye and cognac to the cocktail mixer with ice and shake until chilled. Strain into the prepared glass, twist the lemon peel over drink’s surface to release the oils, garnish with the lemon peel and enjoy!

Biden’s not feeling the junk fees and neither are we! Turns out Americans are being nickeled and dimed to the tune of $24 billion a year, which begs the question­­––what are we going to do about all the junk fees?   In This Episode:   ·     Why companies have you paying junk fees instead of raising their prices ·     The quaint way Rachel used to pay for her fav fashions at Hollister ·     A creepy $5 Airbnb fee you should look for before you book your next getaway 👻 Helpful Resources:   ·     Be entered to win a $100 Visa gift card when you take our listener survey! Click here to let us know what you think.    ·     Do you have a Guilty As Charged question for Rachel and George? Send a DM to @rachelcruze or @georgekamel on Instagram! Be sure to type “GUILTY?” at the top of your message so we don’t miss it.   ·     Feeling like your money habits need a refresh? Check out our sponsor, Financial Peace University, to start making money moves with confidence today! ·     Learn more about your ad choices. https://www.megaphone.fm/adchoices ·     Ramsey Solutions Privacy Policy   This Week’s Happy Hour Special:    Painkiller 🏝🍹 2 ounces rum 1 ounce cream of coconut 1 ounce orange juice 4 ounces pineapple juice   You know the drill, people! Fill a cocktail shaker with ice. Add all the ingredients. Wave the shaker in the air like you just don’t care and strain into a highball glass. Sip out of a bendy straw.

We’re covering the ins and outs of social media influencing—is it a realistic side hustle? Listen to hear Rachel and George cover popular internet lingo and find out how likely you are to make it as a successful influencer.   In This Episode:   ·      ShamWow, OxiClean and other founding fathers of modern influencer culture ·      The multiple “tiers” of influencing and how much money each one makes on average ·      A few of Rachel’s favorite follows, including Babs and bougie Utah moms   Helpful Resources:   ·      Feeling like your money habits need a refresh? Check out our sponsor, Financial Peace University, to start making money moves with confidence today!   ·      Be entered to win a $100 Visa gift card when you take our listener survey! Click here to let us know what you think.  ·      Do you have a Guilty As Charged question for Rachel and George? Send a DM to @rachelcruze or @georgekamel on Instagram! Be sure to type “GUILTY?” at the top of your message so we don’t miss it.       Learn more about your ad choices. https://www.megaphone.fm/adchoices   Ramsey Solutions Privacy Policy     This Week’s Happy Hour Special: Classic Cosmo   Ingredients: ·      2 ounces vodka ·      1/2 ounce Cointreau orange liqueur ·      3/4 ounce cranberry juice ·      1/2 ounce lime juice ·      Lime to garnish   Pour vodka, liqueur and juice over ice in a cocktail mixer. Shake to chill, then strain liquid into a stemmed glass. Garnish with fresh lime and enjoy!

Technology, personal finance, jury duty—Rachel and George cover some hard-hitting topics as they answer the internet’s most popular “How to get out of . . .” questions (and also share a few thoughts on the Wendy’s franchise). You don’t want to miss this one!   In This Episode:   ·      George discusses fanny packs and his time in the Arabic Baptist Church. ·      You’ll hear top Google searches and some financial limericks written by ChatGPT. ·      Rachel compares her husband, Winston, to a mysterious 90s sitcom character.   Helpful Resources:   ·      Feeling like your money habits need a refresh? Check out our sponsor, Financial Peace University, to start making money moves with confidence today!   ·      Be entered to win a $100 Visa gift card when you take our listener survey! Click here to let us know what you think.  ·      Do you have a Guilty As Charged question for Rachel and George? Send a DM to @rachelcruze or @georgekamel on Instagram! Be sure to type “GUILTY?” at the top of your message so we don’t miss it.     ·     Learn more about your ad choices. https://www.megaphone.fm/adchoices   Ramsey Solutions Privacy Policy     This Week’s Happy Hour Special: The Hurricane   Ingredients: ·      1 ounce light rum ·      1 1/2 ounces dark rum ·      3 ounces passion fruit juice ·      3 ounces orange juice ·      1 tablespoon grenadine ·      Orange slice and maraschino cherry to garnish   Add rums, juices and grenadine to a shaker filled with ice. Shake to combine, then pour into an ice-filled glass. Garnish with an orange slice and a maraschino cherry for extra color and enjoy!  

Goooo sports! It’s almost time for the big matchup between the Eagles and the Chiefs––or as George likes to think of it: cheesesteaks vs. BBQ. Whether you’re a football fan or a Rihanna stan, we’re breaking down how this all-American tradition is bound to give you (and maybe your budget) some sticker shock.   In This Episode:   ·     The minimum amount you need for a solo trip to the big game IRL 🤑 ·     Rachel and George brainstorm some ballin’ nonmonetary bets (#savethebudget) ·     Three money-saving tips you need if you got volunteered to host the party on Sunday  Helpful Resources:   ·     Be entered to win a $100 Visa gift card when you take our listener survey! Click here to let us know what you think.    ·     Do you have a Guilty As Charged question for Rachel and George? Send a DM to @rachelcruze or @georgekamel on Instagram! Be sure to type “GUILTY?” at the top of your message so we don’t miss it.   ·     Feeling like your money habits need a refresh? Check out our sponsor, Financial Peace University, to start making money moves with confidence today! ·     Learn more about your ad choices. https://www.megaphone.fm/adchoices ·     Ramsey Solutions Privacy Policy   This Week’s Happy Hour Special:    Mango Michelada ·     1 bottle Corona Light beer ·     1/2 fresh lime, juiced ·     3/4 cup mango juice ·     1 tablespoon ancho chili powder ·     Hot sauce (optional)   Pour ancho chili powder on a small plate. Rub a lime wedge around the rim of your favorite glass, then press the rim into the chili powder until the rim is fully coated. Partially fill the glass with ice. Add lime juice, mango juice and a few drops of hot sauce if desired. Stir to combine, then top with Corona beer. (Have beer left over? Serve it on the side!)