April: Well, we’re in a new year. Have you made any New Year’s resolutions?

Robert: Yes, I have, April. And don’t you start laughing out loud — you’ll bust somebody’s ears. But you know every time after Christmas, everybody wants to do what?

April: Lose that weight.

Robert: Exactly. And I’m one of those people too. Every time I turn my computer on now, there’s some ad about “gelatin and this herb and that herb,” and then they flash Kelly Clarkson across the screen like, “That’s how she lost all her weight.”

Well, obviously I was interested… because they said you don’t have to do anything else but mix up this little concoction — and you don’t even have to exercise — because it’s going to “burn fat.”

April: I don’t think it’s going to be through Jell-O that you lose 60 pounds like Kelly Clarkson.

Robert: And then I got sucked into this 45-minute video. The “doctor” says pharmaceuticals couldn’t stand behind it and she lost her job. She explains all these ingredients… and then at the end, guess what?

They say: “But we have a product now designed specifically for this, measured to the proper quantities — called Burn Slim.” And I’m like… where’s the Jell-O? I couldn’t find the Jell-O anywhere.

So with all that being said about diets… where are you on your financial hangover after Christmas and New Year’s?

April: Not succumbing to Ozempic.

Robert: Well let me ask you this — do you think that’s what Kelly Clarkson took?

April: Yeah. Kelly said she didn’t like taking the shot. And a lot of us don’t want to take the shot — but when it comes to finances, at the end of the day… no pain, no gain.

Robert: Exactly. There are no shots for financial weight loss.

And I think that’s where a lot of people are right now. I had to ride down the road the other day and hang my credit card out the window so it could cool off a little bit. But I think I’ve got it cooled off now.

Fortunately, I was able to pay everything off at the end of the month. And that goes back to something we talked about earlier — using a credit card properly to build points.

During Christmas, I practiced what we discussed. I used my credit card — but I knew exactly what I could spend — and I gained points that I can use for next year.

Not by borrowing money… but by using money.

April: Mhm.

Robert: But I know there are people listening who overspent, put it on the credit card, and now you can’t pay it off.

That’s what I want to encourage you about today — because it’s just like dieting. It’s frustrating when you know you were doing good, then two weeks later you wake up and think, “Why did I let this happen again?” You get mad at yourself.

But if that happened to you, don’t give up. Drop back and punt. Reset and do what you already know you need to do.

Go back and listen to our first few episodes. The one thing we keep wearing out — and we’ll probably keep wearing out — is this:

Change the way that you think.

Don’t think you can’t do it. Don’t think it’s too bad and you’ll never get out of debt. You can — but you have to go to the financial gym now. And when you go to the financial gym, you’re going to have to work hard to burn off that “financial weight” and get back to where you were.

April: You didn’t spend too much money, did you?

Robert: Not too much. I already paid my bill.

April: How much did you spend on me?

Robert: I can’t remember.

April: Ain’t that lame, y’all? That’s just lame.

Robert: Wait — what did I get you for Christmas?

April: A security system.

Robert: Yeah.

April: You only know that because I just brought it up. Mama does all the buying. He doesn’t even know what he gets us.

Robert: I do.

April: After it’s paid for.

Robert: After it’s paid for.

April: If I hadn’t given you the cheat sheet before this, you wouldn’t even be able to tell me what I got from you for Christmas.

Robert: I would’ve looked it up. I promise I would’ve looked it up.

But seriously — we know what we bought. The question is: Do we know how we’re going to pay for it? Hopefully you planned ahead.

That’s why last time we talked about two expenses that people leave out of their budget: Christmas and vacation. And another one…

April: Birthday presents.

Robert: Yep — birthday presents. People forget those too.

April: Who do you buy birthday presents for?

Robert: Well, I’m buying one for you here shortly, because your birthday’s coming up next week.

April: Did Mama tell you what you’re buying me?

Robert: No.

April: Well, you need to ask her.

Robert: (Laughs) But anyway — when you go through Christmas and you didn’t plan, you start telling yourself, “I have to buy that present. I have to spend this much. I know they’re going to spend that much on me.”

And guys, that takes us right back to Episode 1: change the way you think. Sometimes you can’t afford certain things — and you don’t need to be ashamed of it.

If you give someone what you can afford and they don’t appreciate it, shame on them. You did what you could.

A story about expectations

Robert: Let me share a story. People today — especially when they’re getting married or in their 20s and 30s — feel like they have to start with the very best. Especially when it comes to houses.

Then they say, “I can’t afford my house payment. I can’t afford my car payment. I can’t afford my student loans.”

But they don’t talk about changing their habits so they can afford those things.

And speaking of student loans: when you’re single, you may borrow money for college thinking, “When I graduate and make $80,000 or $100,000, I’ll pay it off in three years.”

But what can happen right after college?

You meet someone and get married… and now they bring student loans too. Now you’ve got two sets of loans — and you didn’t plan for that when you were single.

So you really have to think through life and adapt to what you can afford. And don’t be embarrassed by the season you’re in.

“24” wasn’t what I thought it was

Robert: In 1983 — before you were born — a guy offered me a job. He said, “I’m going to pay you 24.”

I said, “Great.” I quit my other job and started.

Then I found out he meant $20,400 a year. I thought he meant $24,000.

Your mama had quit her job to make the move, so we were living off that.

We didn’t go out to eat. We bought the groceries we could afford. We lived by logic: if you don’t have it, you can’t spend it.

And we had an opportunity to build a house. Your grandpa had an acre of land and said he’d help me build it and draw it out. It came out to about $300 a month, even back then.

We built a little 1,200-square-foot house for about $22,000 because we had help from friends — lumber, plumbing, electrical — and we did a lot of the work ourselves. I even laid the carpet.

The point is: we did what we could afford, not what we thought we were supposed to have based on somebody else’s standard.

April: I looked it up — that income would be about $65,000–$67,000 today.

Robert: And a lot of people live off less than that now. But what gets me is the people who whine and say, “I can’t live in a house that small,” or “I don’t like the carpet,” while they’re drowning in debt.

And that ties into what we’re going to talk about next — investing and growing your money. If you can’t get out of debt and change how you think, it’s going to be hard to build anything.

Our first house didn’t even have HVAC

Robert: Here’s another truth: that first house didn’t have HVAC. We couldn’t afford it.

We had a wood-burning stove in the middle of the living room, and a window unit for air conditioning. The house was designed so the cool air could circulate through the bedrooms.

I remember coming home late one night — it was about 25 degrees outside — and your mama was sitting in front of that stove with a blanket. She couldn’t get it started.

I never showed her how to start a fire.

So I taught her about lighter fluid, how to get it going, and after that… we were fine.

April: I burned my tummy on that heater.

Robert: Because you got too close.

April: I was two!

Robert: Well, you learned.

April: I think I did it twice.

Robert: (Laughs) But that’s the point — there are seasons you have to be willing to go through.

Health and money both have consequences

Robert: Attitude matters. Getting back on track financially after Christmas is like getting back on track physically. If you want to lose weight, you work hard. You apply yourself. You do it the right way.

Same thing with money.

And here’s a connection: health problems are expensive. If you get to where you can’t take care of yourself, somebody has to… and that costs money.

April: He’s saying he wants enough money saved to hire someone instead of making Mama wipe his rear end.

Robert: That’s exactly what I’m saying.

So whether it’s your health or your finances, do something about it. Have a plan. Have a backup plan.

Nothing is free — if something is given to you, somebody paid for it.

Character over money

Robert: Learn confidence in who you are. Money does not make you who you are. Your character makes you who you are.

You can have money and still be a jerk. You can be broke and still be a jerk. Character is what matters.

I used to think I’d be left behind while other people were “having fun,” but I’ve been blessed to move forward by applying discipline.

That’s why we do this podcast — to share methods and mindset that can help you live better.

Success isn’t about the amount

Robert: And here’s something to remember as we move toward investing:

If one person invests $100 and earns a 20% return, and another person invests $200,000 and earns a 20% return — both are successful, because the return is strong.

Don’t think you can’t build wealth because you don’t have much right now. If you learn the process and stay consistent, you’ll be amazed what you can have later.

Compound interest is your friend — and we’ll talk more about that.

A note from listeners

Robert: A couple people have told me, “Robert, I didn’t have a dad growing up. It’s been meaningful listening to you because I’m hearing things I never got to hear.”

I can’t replace your dad — but if you need help and want to talk through something, send in a question. We’ll do our best to help you.

That’s the whole intention of this podcast: not to generate income, but to help people who are struggling with their finances and give a common-sense approach to making life better.

April: So go to themoneydadpodcast.com. He may not be your dad, but he can give some fatherly advice. Send in anything you want to talk about — we’d be happy to help.