WEBVTT - Ways to Cut Your Monthly Bills #013 0:00:00.080 --> 0:00:02.880 Welcome to How to Money. I'm Joel and I'm Matt, 0:00:03.080 --> 0:00:05.840 and today we're talking about ways to cut your monthly bills. 0:00:18.000 --> 0:00:20.160 That's right. Coming up on the show today, we're going 0:00:20.200 --> 0:00:22.920 to talk about why trimming your monthly bills is important, 0:00:23.320 --> 0:00:26.600 which ones you need to attack, and tactics to use 0:00:26.880 --> 0:00:29.400 in order to save the most. Yeah, Joel, I think 0:00:29.400 --> 0:00:32.519 that's gonna be a good topic, particularly because I kind 0:00:32.520 --> 0:00:37.080 of see you as like the monthly bill cutting expert. Yeah. 0:00:37.120 --> 0:00:38.839 I think on this podcast we think of ourselves more 0:00:38.840 --> 0:00:40.640 of like jack of all trades when it comes to 0:00:40.800 --> 0:00:43.839 financial topics. Like we're not experts when it comes to 0:00:43.960 --> 0:00:47.000 real estate or investing, but we're pretty solid on those 0:00:47.000 --> 0:00:48.400 things and are things we care a lot about and 0:00:48.440 --> 0:00:51.320 we spend a lot of time thinking about and developing ourselves. 0:00:51.360 --> 0:00:53.680 And you know, we are real estate investors and so 0:00:53.680 --> 0:00:55.480 it's something we talk about. But but I don't I 0:00:55.480 --> 0:00:57.520 don't know that much about it, Like, yeah, stop asking 0:00:57.520 --> 0:01:00.680 me questions, right, But we're not experts. So but just 0:01:00.720 --> 0:01:02.520 getting on this, I mean, I think if I were 0:01:02.520 --> 0:01:05.119 to call myself an expert on anything, I think cutting 0:01:05.120 --> 0:01:08.400 monthly bills would be pretty dang near the top. Yeah, man, 0:01:08.400 --> 0:01:10.319 that's totally in your wheelhouse. You're just really good at 0:01:10.440 --> 0:01:12.800 like knowing you know all the deals. You feel like 0:01:12.800 --> 0:01:14.800 you know a lot of the different providers. What. I 0:01:14.800 --> 0:01:16.160 don't know how you know this, but you kind of 0:01:16.200 --> 0:01:18.320 know like all the current deals that are out there. 0:01:18.440 --> 0:01:20.639 Even just when it comes down to like local gas. 0:01:20.640 --> 0:01:23.360 Sometimes too, you're like, oh uh, someone says offering a 0:01:23.400 --> 0:01:25.600 thirty nine point nine sense the firm, Like, how do 0:01:25.600 --> 0:01:28.440 you know that? Dude? Like, well, Matt, the Public Service 0:01:28.480 --> 0:01:31.240 Commission releases something every month in the state of Georgia 0:01:31.319 --> 0:01:33.200 and they tell you who's got the best deal on 0:01:33.440 --> 0:01:35.640 natural gas? Do they really? Yeah, I can show you 0:01:35.680 --> 0:01:38.320 the apples to apples comparison. Okay, so that's literally something 0:01:38.360 --> 0:01:41.440 I didn't know that. So you just get this report evidently. 0:01:42.240 --> 0:01:45.160 All right, So first we need to tell the listeners that, uh, 0:01:45.400 --> 0:01:48.919 we're having our first giveaway. Man. Yeah, I'm super stoked 0:01:48.920 --> 0:01:50.720 about this, and it's a really good one. It's gonna 0:01:50.720 --> 0:01:53.320 be super cool. Like it's not an empty bottle of 0:01:53.360 --> 0:01:56.280 booze that we finished up. It's a really good giveaway. 0:01:56.640 --> 0:01:59.920 So if you will go to our Instagram page at 0:02:00.040 --> 0:02:03.880 Poor not Poor, we are giving away three months of 0:02:04.120 --> 0:02:07.760 service to Republic Wireless and a three hundred and fifty 0:02:07.800 --> 0:02:10.240 dollar credit towards a new Republic Wireless phone, which makes 0:02:10.280 --> 0:02:12.560 a lot of their phones completely free and if you 0:02:12.560 --> 0:02:14.040 want to get a really high end phone, it's a 0:02:14.040 --> 0:02:16.720 good discount. So three three months of service for free, 0:02:17.120 --> 0:02:19.799 a sweet phone, a swag bag, and a six pack 0:02:19.840 --> 0:02:22.040 of beer. Yeah, because we're poor not poor, we're gonna 0:02:22.080 --> 0:02:25.120 throw in a six pack as well. We're very thankful 0:02:25.240 --> 0:02:28.240 to Republic Wireless for for hooking us up with this, 0:02:28.480 --> 0:02:32.560 uh for this giveaway. Yep, so sweet giveaway. Uh. For 0:02:32.639 --> 0:02:34.960 more details on this giveaway and how to enter, go 0:02:35.080 --> 0:02:39.079 to our Instagram page follow us at Poor not Poor 0:02:39.240 --> 0:02:42.160 p O you r n O T p O O R. 0:02:42.639 --> 0:02:45.000 And that's a timely giveaway too, man, right, Yeah, I 0:02:45.000 --> 0:02:47.799 mean it's really fitting with with this episode because we're 0:02:47.840 --> 0:02:50.880 talking about ways to cut your monthly bills and Republic 0:02:50.880 --> 0:02:55.040 Wireless is one of like the cheapest possible cell phone 0:02:55.040 --> 0:02:58.640 providers to be with. So awesome giveaway, perfect episode to 0:02:58.639 --> 0:03:01.919 do it on, and we're pumped. Yeah, speaking of so 0:03:02.040 --> 0:03:04.280 like a monthly billgual? How much how much TV do 0:03:04.320 --> 0:03:06.919 you think you guys watch? Like you and Emily. I mean, 0:03:06.919 --> 0:03:10.040 don't you guys watch TV together most of the time. Yeah, 0:03:10.120 --> 0:03:13.160 when we're watching TV, we're watching together. I would say, like, 0:03:13.200 --> 0:03:15.000 if we were to boil it down to how many 0:03:15.040 --> 0:03:17.960 hours a week of television do we watch? I would 0:03:17.960 --> 0:03:22.480 say probably an average of two hours is a week. Nice, 0:03:22.560 --> 0:03:24.079 That's that's what's gonna say. I was gonna se like 0:03:24.160 --> 0:03:27.400 two to three. Yeah, probably two to three because three hours, 0:03:27.400 --> 0:03:29.280 you know, you can kind of that's like the length 0:03:29.280 --> 0:03:30.880 of a movie as well, So if you only like 0:03:30.880 --> 0:03:32.480 watch a movie once a week or something like that. 0:03:32.639 --> 0:03:34.320 I think we used to watch a lot more TV. 0:03:34.520 --> 0:03:37.040 I know we used to watch a lot more, but now, 0:03:37.120 --> 0:03:39.720 I mean, between kids and work and just honestly other 0:03:39.760 --> 0:03:43.040 things I just want to do other than just sit there, 0:03:43.360 --> 0:03:46.080 sit there on the couch. There's that article on Bigger 0:03:46.120 --> 0:03:49.960 Pockets titled the Case for not Owning a TV. The 0:03:50.000 --> 0:03:52.960 average person in the United States watches five hours of 0:03:53.000 --> 0:03:55.840 television a day. Yeah. I don't know how the crap 0:03:55.920 --> 0:04:01.000 that's even possible. I mean, these are legitimates, though this 0:04:01.040 --> 0:04:03.960 is a reporter from Nielsen. That's the average five hours 0:04:03.960 --> 0:04:08.440 a day. Mind blowing that that is even humanly possible. Yeah, 0:04:08.840 --> 0:04:11.200 it's an average. So there's some people who are obviously 0:04:11.200 --> 0:04:14.160 certainly watching TV a lot more, which is even more 0:04:14.160 --> 0:04:16.240 crazy for me. That sad is like right up there 0:04:16.279 --> 0:04:19.280 with one and three Americans eats fast food every day 0:04:19.320 --> 0:04:21.159 like that. That gets that kind of mind blowing stat 0:04:21.200 --> 0:04:23.800 that you're like, how is that possible? How is that 0:04:23.839 --> 0:04:26.680 a thing? Um? And that that almost everyone does this 0:04:27.400 --> 0:04:29.880 and it's terrible for your health, terrible for your eyes, 0:04:30.520 --> 0:04:33.800 terrible for your general motivation in life. And I will 0:04:33.839 --> 0:04:37.520 say this too, I'm really into like a good show 0:04:37.640 --> 0:04:38.960 or a good movie. I used to be like a 0:04:39.040 --> 0:04:42.160 huge movie buff, and the movies have just gone downhill 0:04:42.200 --> 0:04:43.560 a lot in the past, you know, ten years. And 0:04:43.600 --> 0:04:46.160 maybe that's just like old man speak, but I think 0:04:46.520 --> 0:04:50.400 old man Joel. Yeah, but I have found so many 0:04:50.480 --> 0:04:52.560 other joys in life, so many other good things to 0:04:52.600 --> 0:04:54.760 partake in, uh, and so many other things that I 0:04:54.800 --> 0:04:58.039 just like have to get done that I rarely watched TV, 0:04:58.160 --> 0:04:59.800 and it is it is really fun to get to 0:04:59.800 --> 0:05:02.360 see sit down and watch a good show every once 0:05:02.360 --> 0:05:04.440 in a while, like every time Stranger Things comes out 0:05:04.480 --> 0:05:09.839 on Netflix. But yeah, I just can't. I can't in 0:05:09.880 --> 0:05:13.080 good conscience dedicate much more than three hours a week 0:05:13.200 --> 0:05:16.320 towards watching television. That being said, this episode is not 0:05:16.360 --> 0:05:20.119 all about TV, so let's move on to the beer. 0:05:20.680 --> 0:05:21.919 So Joel, do you want to tell the folks what 0:05:21.920 --> 0:05:24.440 we have today? I have in my hands, Matt weighing 0:05:24.480 --> 0:05:29.640 in at thirteen point seven from Kansas City, Missouri, Boulevard 0:05:29.640 --> 0:05:34.360 Brewing Company, Grand Crew, Barrel aged Ale, and I gotta say, 0:05:34.400 --> 0:05:38.440 Boulevard is one of those national craft brewers that's been 0:05:38.440 --> 0:05:40.800 around for a long time that is still making some 0:05:40.839 --> 0:05:45.320 amazing stuff. And thank you to Boulevard because they donated 0:05:45.320 --> 0:05:48.039 this beer to the podcast, and they donated next week's 0:05:48.040 --> 0:05:49.920 beer to the podcast, so we're gonna be drinking Boulevard 0:05:49.920 --> 0:05:51.840 two weeks in a row. I don't know what I'm 0:05:51.839 --> 0:05:53.720 more excited about this one or the one next week, 0:05:53.760 --> 0:05:56.320 because next week's is one of my favorites. Next week's 0:05:56.320 --> 0:05:58.600 is one of my favorite beers of all time. And 0:05:58.880 --> 0:06:01.440 uh and this it's a new iteration, so you and 0:06:01.480 --> 0:06:04.080 I've never tasted it, but we've had previous very similar 0:06:04.279 --> 0:06:06.400 but this I hadn't even heard of, man, So I 0:06:06.440 --> 0:06:09.080 am beyond stoked to to try something new, which is 0:06:09.160 --> 0:06:11.400 kind of my favorite beer is a new beer. Yeah, 0:06:11.400 --> 0:06:13.640 so Grand Crew usually it's like a Belgian thing and 0:06:13.640 --> 0:06:16.440 it usually means like the best, right, So they're putting 0:06:16.440 --> 0:06:19.800 out like their finest beer. It's this, it's this epic creation, 0:06:20.000 --> 0:06:22.120 kind of the cream of the crop exactly. And so 0:06:22.160 --> 0:06:26.000 Boulevard describes their as it's literally a blend of two 0:06:26.000 --> 0:06:28.800 of their beers and the finest barrels of those beers. 0:06:28.960 --> 0:06:32.880 So it's selected lots of their bourbon barrel aged Quad 0:06:33.400 --> 0:06:36.560 and their whiskey barrel aged Imperial Stout. I'm already a 0:06:36.600 --> 0:06:40.000 huge fan of their bourbon barrel Quad and any Stout 0:06:40.000 --> 0:06:42.520 aged and whiskey barrels I like. So it's a really 0:06:42.520 --> 0:06:45.040 good quad. Yeah, dude, this is gonna be epic. Let's 0:06:45.080 --> 0:06:51.520 pop the top. This is pouring a dark brown Joel. Actually, 0:06:51.520 --> 0:06:53.360 as you're pouring it, I thought I looked a little 0:06:53.400 --> 0:06:54.960 bit lighter, But then I look I see it in 0:06:55.000 --> 0:06:57.560 the glass and it's like pitch black. I can't see 0:06:57.560 --> 0:06:59.520 through it at all. But looked a little bit lighter 0:06:59.560 --> 0:07:01.080 as you're pouring it as it was coming out and 0:07:01.120 --> 0:07:05.320 almost had like a reddish quality to it. And I 0:07:05.360 --> 0:07:07.960 don't know what the temperature is like for you listeners 0:07:08.600 --> 0:07:11.520 right now. But as we're recording this, this is when 0:07:11.560 --> 0:07:15.000 that's that last sort of cold snap is hitting the 0:07:15.040 --> 0:07:19.000 East coast. So having a dark, huge beer like this, 0:07:19.600 --> 0:07:21.680 it just feels so appropriate to me. Yeah, there's like 0:07:21.720 --> 0:07:24.600 a northeastern New York right now, So if I was 0:07:24.600 --> 0:07:26.560 in New York, this is what I'd also be drinking. 0:07:27.120 --> 0:07:29.320 For me, Man, having the weather sort of reflect what 0:07:29.320 --> 0:07:34.080 you're drinking something about that just seems right, agreed. So 0:07:34.200 --> 0:07:37.240 smells wonderful. It's got a nice head, it's got that 0:07:37.320 --> 0:07:41.440 sweet barrel aged quality to it. Let's take a sip, Matt. 0:07:41.760 --> 0:07:44.440 I'm just gonna keep sitting here with my eyes closed 0:07:44.880 --> 0:07:46.800 as I hold my glass. Does it help you, like 0:07:46.840 --> 0:07:49.440 imagine in your mind all the flavors rushing through your 0:07:49.440 --> 0:07:52.320 mouth there were? I mean, yeah, it kind of it does. Man. 0:07:53.160 --> 0:07:55.640 I'm not distracted by your your mug in front of me. 0:07:57.280 --> 0:08:00.440 This is a fantastic beer. I feel like I'm getting 0:08:00.440 --> 0:08:02.640 the quad coming through the most with kind of those 0:08:02.680 --> 0:08:05.560 notes of like raisin and fig a little bit of 0:08:05.560 --> 0:08:09.800 that whiskey barrel, and that the combo is of those 0:08:09.840 --> 0:08:13.400 two beers blended together is is just beautiful. Yeah, I'm 0:08:13.440 --> 0:08:17.440 tasting that that barrel. Definitely that quad, and the sweetness 0:08:17.440 --> 0:08:18.760 is kind of actually reminds me of like a little 0:08:18.760 --> 0:08:20.520 bit of banana. I feel like there's like almost like 0:08:20.520 --> 0:08:23.320 this sort of sweet fruit mixed in there with those 0:08:23.360 --> 0:08:25.480 darker flavors. It kind of lifts it a little bit. 0:08:25.560 --> 0:08:28.160 So it's not that this isn't a really heavy, dark, 0:08:28.880 --> 0:08:32.440 like sticky beer. Yeah. For thirteen point seven and just 0:08:32.520 --> 0:08:35.319 kind of being this like beastly kind of concoction, you 0:08:35.679 --> 0:08:39.560 kind of assume that it's going to be a little heavy, 0:08:39.640 --> 0:08:42.960 like yeah, thick monsters, but this it drinks like real 0:08:43.080 --> 0:08:45.320 lively if it feels good. Yeah, it really does have 0:08:45.360 --> 0:08:48.960 like a really fun character to it for something that 0:08:49.160 --> 0:08:51.240 is kind of a darker beer. It's got these like 0:08:51.440 --> 0:08:53.200 and I think that's really like the Quad and this 0:08:53.320 --> 0:08:56.000 combo coming through. It's got this kind of livelier a 0:08:56.040 --> 0:08:59.640 little bit fruity, but not not certainly not over overly fruity. 0:09:00.320 --> 0:09:02.480 It's just delicious, it really is. It's this is a 0:09:02.520 --> 0:09:05.800 great beer, so Grand Crew from from Boulevard to a 0:09:05.880 --> 0:09:10.520 limited release and it's dang tasty. I could picture myself 0:09:10.600 --> 0:09:12.480 drinking this like in a cabin next to a fire, 0:09:12.559 --> 0:09:14.839 you know, there's like snow falling outside, like if you're 0:09:14.840 --> 0:09:17.400 on like a ski trip or something. Yeah, thanks again 0:09:17.440 --> 0:09:21.000 to Boulevard Brewing Company for for sending us those bottles. 0:09:21.040 --> 0:09:26.120 We appreciate it very much, and this is a delicious, 0:09:26.200 --> 0:09:29.280 delicious beer. All right, let's get into the topic at hand, 0:09:30.120 --> 0:09:33.040 ways to cut your monthly bills. Monthly bills add up, 0:09:33.760 --> 0:09:36.520 and we think that you could legitimately stand to save 0:09:36.640 --> 0:09:40.600 hundreds of dollars a month, possibly even enough to fully 0:09:40.600 --> 0:09:43.000 fund a wrath i RA And that contribution limit is 0:09:44.120 --> 0:09:45.880 a year, so you might be able to save that 0:09:46.000 --> 0:09:48.960 much on monthly bills alone. And we're not talking car, 0:09:49.040 --> 0:09:51.800 we're not talking mortgage. Yeah, like the different utilities or 0:09:51.800 --> 0:09:55.320 the different monthly subscription services that you have. That's for 0:09:55.320 --> 0:09:57.760 the most part we're gonna be talking about today. So 0:09:57.840 --> 0:10:00.400 first off, we want to talk general stratgy g's and 0:10:00.440 --> 0:10:03.079 we've got a few general strategies to lay out for you, 0:10:03.360 --> 0:10:04.760 and then we'll get into kind of some of the 0:10:04.880 --> 0:10:10.200 specific bills and how to tackle those in particular. General strategies, though, 0:10:10.800 --> 0:10:12.760 the first and easiest thing if you feel like you're 0:10:12.800 --> 0:10:15.240 overpaying on a monthly bill is to shop it with 0:10:15.280 --> 0:10:18.520 another provider and get multiple quotes. And we'll talk later 0:10:18.559 --> 0:10:20.480 about how that's not possible for some of these bills, 0:10:20.480 --> 0:10:23.240 but any bill that is possible to shop with other 0:10:23.320 --> 0:10:26.160 providers and get lots of quotes, that's gonna be the 0:10:26.200 --> 0:10:30.040 best way to to save money. Right, is essentially using 0:10:30.080 --> 0:10:34.720 capitalism for what it is people competing for your business. Yeah, Joel, 0:10:34.720 --> 0:10:38.160 this is something that's relatively easy to do, but it's 0:10:38.200 --> 0:10:41.400 just something that kind of takes some mental work. Like 0:10:41.480 --> 0:10:44.480 it's it's it's it's almost emotional because you kind of 0:10:44.480 --> 0:10:46.319 get locked into your ways. You're kind of used to 0:10:46.360 --> 0:10:49.000 paying a certain bill, and it's not that it's hard 0:10:49.040 --> 0:10:52.240 work to go find say a new gas provider or 0:10:52.240 --> 0:10:54.480 something like that, but it's just something kind of extra 0:10:54.559 --> 0:10:56.760 that you're just like, I don't really want to do that, 0:10:56.800 --> 0:10:59.800 but you could be saving a good bit of money 0:11:00.000 --> 0:11:02.880 every single month. That's true. That's the first step in 0:11:02.920 --> 0:11:07.000 general strategies is to shop with other providers. The second 0:11:07.440 --> 0:11:10.720 actually read your credit card statements. That's really key, and 0:11:10.800 --> 0:11:12.440 I feel like a lot of people in this day 0:11:12.440 --> 0:11:14.720 and age don't go through line item of their credit 0:11:14.760 --> 0:11:18.200 card statements, and they're likely overpaying on a lot of things. 0:11:18.440 --> 0:11:22.000 And there's likely service subscriptions, Matt that they have like 0:11:22.040 --> 0:11:24.800 a monthly recurring charge that they don't even know about, 0:11:25.000 --> 0:11:27.120 and they're not gonna know about it because they're not 0:11:27.160 --> 0:11:29.760 looking at their credit card statement, Yuel. That's one way 0:11:29.800 --> 0:11:33.120 that having a budget every month, where you're actually reconciling 0:11:33.120 --> 0:11:35.560 it and keeping track of your expenses, you're gonna know 0:11:35.640 --> 0:11:38.400 what those numbers are. And we've talked about why you 0:11:38.440 --> 0:11:42.400 need a budget in a previous episode and we still 0:11:42.480 --> 0:11:44.160 highly recommend it. I mean, if you don't know where 0:11:44.160 --> 0:11:45.880 your money is going, then you're not gonna know what 0:11:46.040 --> 0:11:49.439 steps to take in order to reduce your monthly expenses. Yeah, 0:11:49.559 --> 0:11:51.760 technology can help us as we're tracking our bills. And 0:11:51.800 --> 0:11:54.920 there's this really cool service called ask trim dot com 0:11:54.920 --> 0:11:57.160 a s K t R I M dot com. I've 0:11:57.200 --> 0:11:59.000 never heard of that. Yeah, it's really cool and it's 0:11:59.200 --> 0:12:02.079 free and it's actually they will you log in you 0:12:02.160 --> 0:12:03.920 with your credit card information, kind of like you would 0:12:03.920 --> 0:12:06.600 into mint dot com, which we use I used for 0:12:06.640 --> 0:12:09.560 budgeting and I recommend it, uh and and terms kind 0:12:09.559 --> 0:12:11.320 of similar in which they log in and they kind 0:12:11.320 --> 0:12:14.600 of pour through your statement for you and they pop 0:12:14.640 --> 0:12:18.080 up this list. Hey, here are all your recurring monthly charges. 0:12:18.400 --> 0:12:20.160 Do you want us to cancel any of these for you? 0:12:20.920 --> 0:12:24.680 They actually ask you that, and they can, on on 0:12:24.720 --> 0:12:27.480 many of them cancel it for you, so you don't 0:12:27.480 --> 0:12:28.920 even have to take the time out of your day. 0:12:29.080 --> 0:12:31.680 There's a couple like, for instance, let's say you signed 0:12:31.760 --> 0:12:34.520 up back in the day or something with yesterday, even 0:12:34.760 --> 0:12:38.760 with one of the credit bureau monthly services to get 0:12:38.760 --> 0:12:41.800 your credit reporter score or something. And on a recent episode, 0:12:41.800 --> 0:12:43.720 we talked about how you can get your credit score 0:12:43.760 --> 0:12:47.360 and credit report for free, for free, completely free. So 0:12:47.400 --> 0:12:49.720 if that pops up on your ask Trim run through, 0:12:50.080 --> 0:12:52.600 you don't need that cancel it, right, And there's a 0:12:52.600 --> 0:12:54.760 lot of things like that. Maybe you didn't realize you're 0:12:54.760 --> 0:12:57.280 paying for Hulu and you only watch Netflix, and ask 0:12:57.320 --> 0:12:59.080 Trim says, you know what, what do you want to 0:12:59.160 --> 0:13:01.319 cancel this? And so it's a really cool service that 0:13:01.480 --> 0:13:04.360 will essentially just pop up all your recurring monthly, uh 0:13:04.679 --> 0:13:08.320 monthly obligations and then give you the option to nip 0:13:08.360 --> 0:13:10.800 him in the bud. Nice I had no idea that 0:13:10.800 --> 0:13:12.760 that even existed. Man, I'm gonna I'm gonna have to 0:13:12.840 --> 0:13:16.120 check that out. Trim it up, dog, That should be 0:13:16.120 --> 0:13:19.040 their phrase, their catch phrase. I think trim it up. Yeah. 0:13:19.520 --> 0:13:21.400 Oh so Matt the next one on the list. So 0:13:21.600 --> 0:13:23.920 number one, shop it with another provider. Number two, check 0:13:23.920 --> 0:13:26.280 your credit card statements or use a service like ask trim, 0:13:26.320 --> 0:13:28.400 which kind of does that for you. The third one 0:13:28.480 --> 0:13:30.160 you kind of disagreed with me on this. As we 0:13:30.160 --> 0:13:33.400 were putting the outline together, I said, don't use auto 0:13:33.440 --> 0:13:37.240 pay for some of those bills that are subject to change. Yeah. Well, 0:13:37.480 --> 0:13:42.040 auto pay for me is like a godsend, like dude, 0:13:42.080 --> 0:13:44.079 for me to not have to log in every month 0:13:44.200 --> 0:13:47.040 and pay all my bills. I can't think of the 0:13:47.120 --> 0:13:49.440 number of hours that I would waste every month doing that. 0:13:49.520 --> 0:13:52.280 So there's some bills that I do manually pay or 0:13:52.320 --> 0:13:55.079 push money to. So yeah, do you not do auto 0:13:55.080 --> 0:13:57.840 pay on the majority of your bills? Yeah, So here's 0:13:57.920 --> 0:14:01.680 my philosophy. So anything that is sub to change month 0:14:01.760 --> 0:14:04.760 to month basis, I want to kind of feel the 0:14:04.800 --> 0:14:08.120 pain and and see, like if I said it on 0:14:08.160 --> 0:14:11.640 auto pay, I might forget to shop it or or 0:14:12.080 --> 0:14:15.600 forget that it's gone up. And so I want to 0:14:16.760 --> 0:14:20.680 personally pay the bill every month because it reminds me 0:14:20.720 --> 0:14:22.840 what I'm paying for that thing and makes me think 0:14:22.880 --> 0:14:24.960 about whether I actually want to have that bill or 0:14:25.000 --> 0:14:27.960 not or I need to reshop it. So, for instance, 0:14:28.160 --> 0:14:31.440 I like to physically pay my water bill every month, 0:14:31.720 --> 0:14:34.960 not have it on a recurring payment, because I like 0:14:35.040 --> 0:14:37.640 to like go into city hall in person and write 0:14:37.640 --> 0:14:40.440 out a check my hand as well. Excuse me, who 0:14:40.480 --> 0:14:44.440 do I make this checkout? Too? Uh? Usually you like 0:14:44.480 --> 0:14:47.080 to go that old school totally. Let let me write 0:14:47.080 --> 0:14:49.360 my carbon copy check as well. I put on my 0:14:49.440 --> 0:14:51.880 like Dick Tracy suit, you know, my Fedora hat, and 0:14:51.920 --> 0:14:54.400 I you know, and and roll up in your eighties 0:14:54.400 --> 0:14:57.560 seven niecean exactly. Well, no, you gotta do something even 0:14:57.600 --> 0:15:00.920 older than that. So, yeah, my month water bill strategy. 0:15:01.000 --> 0:15:04.400 I like to see it every month and acknowledge that 0:15:04.440 --> 0:15:07.680 I'm paying it. I usually fluctuate either between a sixty 0:15:07.720 --> 0:15:10.160 three dollar bill or a seventy five dollar bill. It's 0:15:10.160 --> 0:15:12.680 only twelve dollars a month, but I'm, you know, kind 0:15:12.720 --> 0:15:16.080 of weird about it, and so every time I see it, 0:15:16.120 --> 0:15:18.920 if it's the seventy five amount, it kind of gives 0:15:18.960 --> 0:15:22.440 me that extra kick in the butt to shower less 0:15:22.640 --> 0:15:26.160 flush my toilet list and generally use less water. Yes. 0:15:26.240 --> 0:15:28.280 So it's almost like your own asked trim, where you're 0:15:28.320 --> 0:15:30.640 just kind of presenting the facts to yourself and kind 0:15:30.640 --> 0:15:33.960 of making yourself answer the question like was it worth it? Yeah? 0:15:34.000 --> 0:15:37.600 And so like, for instance, I changed internet service providers 0:15:37.720 --> 0:15:39.520 and we'll get into this a little bit later in 0:15:39.520 --> 0:15:41.920 the show, but I decigned to sign up for gig 0:15:41.960 --> 0:15:43.640 service to kind of see how it was. Like it 0:15:43.680 --> 0:15:45.560 was it's like the new hit thing, and I was like, oh, 0:15:45.600 --> 0:15:47.680 it's gonna be so fast. You're not the biggest fan 0:15:47.880 --> 0:15:50.800 from what I collect. Well, it's it's fine, It's it's good, 0:15:50.800 --> 0:15:53.720 but it doesn't feel like it's better than my thirty 0:15:53.720 --> 0:15:55.800 dollar a month internet service that I had before. It 0:15:55.880 --> 0:15:57.880 just doesn't feel like it's that much better. It's not 0:15:57.960 --> 0:16:01.280 worth fifty dollars a month, and so it angers me 0:16:01.400 --> 0:16:03.640 every month that I pay that I think about six 0:16:04.040 --> 0:16:06.000 dollars a year that I could put back in my 0:16:06.080 --> 0:16:09.280 pocket to do things with awesome things. The value that 0:16:09.320 --> 0:16:12.720 I'm getting for faster internet just isn't worth it to me. 0:16:12.920 --> 0:16:15.960 And so I think for me, not having auto pay 0:16:16.000 --> 0:16:20.280 on these bills that can fluctuate really helps me to 0:16:20.360 --> 0:16:22.880 make the decision every month, Hey do I want this 0:16:23.160 --> 0:16:26.840 Because I'm actually physically paying this bill. I'm actually signing 0:16:26.880 --> 0:16:29.840 in to the website and clicking through to make this 0:16:29.880 --> 0:16:32.320 payment and doing that instead of just letting it be 0:16:32.400 --> 0:16:36.000 on autopilot. It has this like psychological and we talked 0:16:36.000 --> 0:16:38.760 about recently that you know, the psychological power of money. 0:16:39.000 --> 0:16:41.520 It has a psychological effect. It gives me the kick 0:16:41.560 --> 0:16:44.000 in the pants to make a change in my personal 0:16:44.040 --> 0:16:48.360 life and how I'm using that resource, or change providers 0:16:48.560 --> 0:16:50.120 or you know, call in just to see if I 0:16:50.120 --> 0:16:52.640 can get a reduced bill amount. Nice man, Yeah, I 0:16:53.120 --> 0:16:55.120 see the advantage of doing that. And I think a 0:16:55.160 --> 0:16:58.040 lot of folks too would say, oh, fifty bucks, that's 0:16:58.080 --> 0:17:00.160 not that big of a deal. But sort of a 0:17:00.280 --> 0:17:03.840 quick math rule that's out there, I've seen a lot 0:17:03.840 --> 0:17:06.240 of people refer to it. But basically, if you take 0:17:06.280 --> 0:17:10.040 an amount that you're spending per month and multiply that 0:17:10.640 --> 0:17:12.680 by a hundred and seventy three, you know where you 0:17:12.800 --> 0:17:14.760 to take that same amount that you're not spending and 0:17:14.960 --> 0:17:18.000 invest it. That amount compounded over the next ten years 0:17:18.640 --> 0:17:21.720 would equal you know that answer. So yeah, so you 0:17:21.720 --> 0:17:24.040 take that fifty bucks and you multiply it by hundred 0:17:24.040 --> 0:17:27.760 and seventy three, and we're that fifty dollars a month 0:17:27.760 --> 0:17:30.000 to be invested for the next ten years. Compounded, you'd 0:17:30.080 --> 0:17:33.000 end up with, you know, here on the calculator, eight thousand, 0:17:33.040 --> 0:17:36.560 six hundred fifty dollars. Whoa slow down, rain man. So 0:17:36.600 --> 0:17:39.199 I'm the calculator. That is a lot of money, man. 0:17:39.400 --> 0:17:43.040 And so it's I think it's easy for we're so shortsighted, 0:17:43.040 --> 0:17:44.560 I guess, is what I'm trying to say a lot 0:17:44.560 --> 0:17:46.400 of times, and I know I'm this way and I think, oh, 0:17:46.440 --> 0:17:48.639 it's just a little you know, twenty bucks here, twenty 0:17:48.640 --> 0:17:51.080 bucks there, or whatever. But all this money adds up, 0:17:51.240 --> 0:17:54.320 and you're talking about making a change to go from 0:17:54.320 --> 0:17:56.560 a D to thirty, and we're talking about a larger 0:17:56.600 --> 0:17:59.240 amount of money than I think we even realize in 0:17:59.240 --> 0:18:01.240 the end. Yeah, I think it's easy to kind of 0:18:01.320 --> 0:18:03.800 rationalize away the small amounts that we spend a month 0:18:03.840 --> 0:18:06.600 on a certain service or uh you know something that 0:18:06.680 --> 0:18:08.879 maybe we're not even using, like a gym membership or 0:18:08.880 --> 0:18:12.159 whatever whatever it may be, that uh, well, it's twenty 0:18:12.240 --> 0:18:14.920 or thirty bucks, it's forty bucks here, it's fifty bucks here, 0:18:15.160 --> 0:18:17.080 and for me that that that fifty bucks a month. 0:18:17.560 --> 0:18:19.800 I mean that's meaningful because, like like you said, you 0:18:19.840 --> 0:18:22.160 know the way it impacts you over time. Fifty bucks 0:18:22.200 --> 0:18:24.840 for one month, right, is not very much, but fifty 0:18:24.880 --> 0:18:27.480 bucks compounded over ten year, but yeah, and then it 0:18:27.480 --> 0:18:30.720 invested and compounded, Yeah, it makes a huge difference. And 0:18:30.800 --> 0:18:33.600 so you need to kind of change your mindset to 0:18:33.680 --> 0:18:36.399 thinking about it as opposed to just that twenty or 0:18:36.440 --> 0:18:40.119 fifty dollars for that one month. Well, that adds up 0:18:40.119 --> 0:18:42.320 to multiple months, and then over those months you could 0:18:42.320 --> 0:18:45.200 have done something else with that money, and it adds 0:18:45.240 --> 0:18:47.240 up to this like outrageous amount at the end. And 0:18:47.280 --> 0:18:49.800 so we'll put a link on the show notes to 0:18:49.840 --> 0:18:52.560 the rule of one seventy three because that's really helpful 0:18:52.600 --> 0:18:55.440 when extrapolighting some of these bills that you're overpaying on. So, yeah, 0:18:55.520 --> 0:18:58.080 but just to recap that, that rule of one seventy three, 0:18:58.280 --> 0:19:01.560 you take whatever your monthly payment is for a certain bill, 0:19:01.760 --> 0:19:04.680 multiply that by one seventy three. That gives you were 0:19:04.680 --> 0:19:06.320 you to take that amount and invest it for the 0:19:06.359 --> 0:19:09.200 next ten years as opposed to continuing to pay the bill, 0:19:09.280 --> 0:19:11.480 and then you don't have any money. Yeah, you don't 0:19:11.480 --> 0:19:14.359 have that. You know that at the end of ten years. 0:19:14.680 --> 0:19:16.720 The next general strategy to cut down on your monthly 0:19:16.720 --> 0:19:21.360 bills is to make use of customer service and particularly 0:19:21.600 --> 0:19:25.840 the customer retention department. Uh And so I think people 0:19:26.119 --> 0:19:28.199 in general don't know this. They're talking to maybe a 0:19:28.240 --> 0:19:31.400