Posts tagged Reality TV
Summer Watch Party: Going from Broke

Our summer watch party kicks off with this endearing and often hilarious series from producer Ashton Kutcher staring financial expert Tonya Rapley and Chegg CEO Dan Rosensweig.  Bobbi is joined by Financial Wellness Expert Jason Vitug of Phroogal to share why they both could not stop binging this show and why you need to be watching it too!

Summer-Watch-Party-Instagram-Graphic-Going-From-Broke-with-Jason-Vitug.png

A Little About The Show

Bobbi Rebell:
I have a bunch of shows picked out for this summer watch series. Most of which are sort of, I would say under appreciated and undiscovered. And one of them that's definitely under appreciated is a show called Going From Broke. It is on Crackle, our mutual friend, Tonya Rapley is part of it. The show is in its second season. Fun fact, it is produced by Ashton Kutcher who does make occasional appearances. Jason, tell us a little bit about the show.

Jason Vitug:
Well, the basic premise for Going From Broke is that each episode features someone who is well broke. Basically they need an intervention, they need some guidance. It's hosted by Dan Rosenzweig, CEO of Chegg and our friend financial expert, Tonya Rapley, who helps young professionals, young individuals become the CEO of their own lives.

Bobbi Rebell:
Okay. So each episode is about a half an hour and it has kind of a classic reality TV structure and that the hosts come in, they do a little preview of what we're going to see. Then they do a debrief with the guest to figure out what exactly is going on. Then we see the person change their bad habits or make some tough decisions. And then there's progress reports at the end. Jason, okay, besides the fact that we both adore Tonya, what's your take on the show?

Jason Vitug:
It's really an amazing show. Just the great casting. One of the key things that I love about shows that talk about personal finance is when it humanizes the individual. And often we kind of look at the financial aspect, just the numbers, not the emotional or the personal side. And this show does a great job in choosing people with compelling stories. So they're not just broke because they made financial mistakes, they're broke because there's a ton of different aspects when it comes to their life that caused them to take on debt or to live above their means.

Bobbi Rebell:
Yeah. I mean, a lot of these people are doing amazing things with their life. I mean, one of the people featured is someone called The Donovan. So he's a musician. He's super talented at what he does. Huge personality, very giving, but yet behind the scenes, it's a mess. Right?

Jason Vitug:
It is. And I have to say that The Donovan needs his own show. He was endearing. And I was just laughing throughout the whole entire episode. He was so dependent on his income from his gigs. And when this gig stopped during the pandemic, well, what happens, there was no money coming in and he was relying on his savings and then relying on credit. And it was exacerbating his financial issues. And all of a sudden he was in a situation where he was unhappy with his life. And that's where I related.

Bobbi Rebell:
Yeah. And also he has a very colorful personality, very over the top lifestyle, but yet he didn't really see it that way. And it really was so as you said, I mean, endearing is just the best word for The Donovan. Because if he didn't have that personality, when things would come up, like his not being able to handle tasks that so many of us take for granted, like just basic cleaning your house, mowing your lawn. Although not that I've ever done that. Watching him sort of cave was so like, you just wanted to give the guy a hug because even though he was saying things that sounded crazy, watching him adapt his self care routine to more frugal approaches was the best.

Jason Vitug:
It was hilarious. And I was smiling throughout the episode and the fact that, yes, I've washed my own dishes. I've cleaned my own house. I've mowed my own lawn, but I can not play two pianos at once. And The Donovan can play two pianos at once. So that goes to show you where his talent lies and where he was using his money to help him in other aspects of his life. But when you get that financial situation where income isn't coming in, you're going to have to make drastic changes. And he was hilarious in terms of wanting to keep his routine when it comes to self care. The lawn was awesome at the final part of the show was just amazing. And I was cracking up and I couldn't wait to watch another episode.

Bobbi Rebell:
Oh, totally. And by the way, every episode you have to watch to the end because the closing credits, they put in the funniest clips that just leave you with this feeling where you were just rooting for them and so happy for them that they've achieved, whatever it is they achieved over the episode. And the other common theme that I saw in the casting was that these were people that were very successful and they were also generally very giving people. For example, there was someone in the first episode who had been an athlete and he definitely had a pension for buying expensive sneakers, but he was also paying tuition, I think for, was it his little brother? I mean, these are giving people.

Jason Vitug:
These are all giving people. So when that first episode of season one, his name was Obi, he was a former track athlete and a CEO of his own company. He felt in charge of having to take care of his parent and his brother who would be going to college. And this is just one example of the many episodes where it isn't selfish people or people who are broke because they're living way above their means. And they don't care about anyone else, but themselves. They're actually individuals who have responsibilities and they care about their family members, their neighbors, their community. And so part of their wellbeing when you think about it, that way is taking care of others. And they explore this. Well, what happens when your finances fall apart and you become broke and you still have these responsibilities? And so that was one. And one other show that got me was the mother with the special needs child. And she was in dire straits and she relied on credit cards to supplement her income. And so the first take is, okay, you need to stop using credit and you need to do X, Y, and Z such as rent out room for Airbnb. So these are practical tips. That's what I love. They give practical tips to help people manage their finances and kind of stop being broke.

Jason Vitug:
But then there's a point where she wanted to continue to spend eight weeks vacation in Mexico. Part of that was, you could say, okay, well that's luxurious spending. Why would you spend eight weeks, all that cash to go to Mexico? And she shares that is the only place and time where she sees her special needs daughter smiling and being happy. And so you have to connect with people in that human element where we make these financial decisions and we think it's just the numbers, but there's always something deeper behind it. And so for that place automatically, I said, okay, stop going. You can't go to Mexico. And that would probably be my advice, just like what they started with. And then towards the end, they're like, well, yes, that's how you should be spending your money, especially when it's helping your child.

Bobbi Rebell:
Yeah. I mean, like you said, they're very direct. They're very blunt. They're very understanding. I love an episode where they literally, I mean, this guy, he felt that he was a contractor basically. And he bought a Prius to save money because it's much more fuel efficient, but then he literally bought a truck because he felt that when he went to bid on jobs, no one would give him the job if he wasn't driving a truck and they convinced him to sell, I don't know if you saw this episode, they convinced him to sell the truck. And you know what, he was still closing the deals, but he needed an outside person to show him that. So having that outside perspective, and they do make people sell things. I mean, we were talking about Obi. Obi literally this is a spoiler, literally sells shoes that he is wearing. He bought some expensive sneakers. They made him take them off his feet. It's just an awesome show.

Jason Vitug:
It really is. And I'm a former sneakerhead. So I used to have those expensive sneakers. And so I related to him when the buyer wanted the shoes off his feet and he was going to give a pretty penny. And that is a tough decision. And some people might say, it's just sneakers. I'm telling you from a former sneakerhead, it's not just sneakers. There's a lot tied into it. And so for him to do that, just showed some growth. And I love that about the show.


Money Tips and Lessons Learned

Bobbi Rebell:
All right. Let's get to some of the lesson takeaways. Here's some of the money tips slash lessons from the show. First of all, I think there's a lot of perspective and understanding, for example, a lot of the spending that we see seems ridiculous, but it's brought to us in empathy and with love. And I think that's a great thing to understand that we're all human and we all have different values, right?

Jason Vitug:
Absolutely. And that kind of leads into that circumstances change. And season two takes place during the pandemic. And the pandemic has changed the lives of so many people and understanding that there are external factors that impact our finances.

Bobbi Rebell:
Totally. Debtors, a lot of us can be very judgy when it comes to people in debt. But the truth is a lot of the things that put them in debt are things that could easily happen to any of us. And they're very specific down to exactly where the money is spent and we can all relate. I mean, shutting down Amazon or not feeling like you have control over your life if you don't have that money to spend, who hasn't been there at some time, if we're all being honest.

Jason Vitug:
Yeah. I'm going to be honest. I've been there. And what's often necessary is doing these line by line breakdowns. And they do this really well from our friend, Tonya, who goes through the budget. And this is kind of like an indication that most people are successful with what they do and with their finances until something happens. And when something happens, you have to start asking the question, well, where's the money going?

Bobbi Rebell:
Yeah. And also look, they do tell the people that are sort of the stars of the show that they have to negotiate. They need to go in and get better deals. For example, if they have a lot of credit card debt, they need to figure out how best to manage it without just kind of continuing to pay it down. You can call up the people that you owe money to and make a better deal for yourself. And I think that's valuable too, to be your own self advocate.

Jason Vitug:
Yeah. It's really making those tough decisions. And sometimes those tough decisions are things like opening up your house to a roommate. And if you're used to living by yourself and having someone live in your house is quite a change. And so there's another person that we talked about, Obi selling his sneakers and others who decided to live with relatives and Airbnb that home. And so there are all these decisions that need to be made in order to get your finances from where they are to where you want them to be. And they're not easy, they're tough, but you need to make these tough decisions and they help them through that.

Bobbi Rebell:
Yeah. I mean, they had to sell stuff that was literally part of their identity. That's a really hard thing. There's a lot of tough love in this show. I mean, there's a great line from Dan Rosensweig to a guest who kept talking about how much money they make. And he was like, no, you don't make money. You generate revenue. There is a difference. And then this was the guy who had to sell his truck. Gary V yelled at him for a while and told him to Google the word profit. And he literally, Gary V starts yelling. It was such a great scene. Gary V is yelling at this guy, saying, sell everything you own. And then he said a lot of other mean stuff. So I won't spoil that. You guys can watch that episode. It's awesome because it really crosses a line that a lot of financial shows are just too polite to cross, but they get really kind of, they just... Let's just say that. I don't know. I'll leave it there.

Jason Vitug:
There's a lot of emotional intelligence in the show. There really is a lot.

Bobbi Rebell:
Yes.

Jason Vitug:
And I have to admit, I laughed. I cried. There was a lot of tears because I connected with these people and their stories. And it is really awesome seeing where they started in the beginning of the show and where they end. And as you mentioned, stay tuned till the end credits because you're going to crack up.

Bobbi Rebell:
Yeah, absolutely. And the other thing is there's sort of an Easter egg in this. I mean, look, it's not a surprise. It is produced by Ashton Kutcher's production company. So he knows people. So in addition to Ashton Kutcher, there's a lot of celebrity appearances. I guess we can spoil some of them. We won't say which shows they're in, but I know Demi Lovato was in one and Jewel was in one. Who else do you remember spotting?

Jason Vitug:
There were executives such as the executive for Airbnb was there. And so there are a number, but the Demi Lovato one when you get to that episode was great because it shows that people who have achieved success in their careers and have a spotlight on them, do have financial struggles and issues as well. And so it's all connected and I love that.

Bobbi Rebell:
Yeah. The show just makes so much sense. I wish I had discovered it earlier. I'm glad there's two seasons. I hope they do more. I also, as we mentioned, we're a fan of Tonya's. I also had remembered that I interviewed Dan Rosensweig when I was a reporter at Reuters, he was at Yahoo where he was, I believe the COO. He's the CEO of Chegg. The program, as I mentioned, produced by Ashton Kutcher is sponsored by Chegg and there's definitely corporate support. And I love to see that. I think it's great. Chegg's an educational company, and this is a wonderful way to both get their message out and also do some great [inaudible 00:17:07] content. Right?

Jason Vitug:
I agree. I think it's important for us to kind of get this tie... If a corporation understands the importance of financial education and can create content that entertains me and is educational, it is a win. We need more of that.

Bobbi Rebell:
Absolutely. I give it five stars. It is available. That's just a made up thing, but I'm giving it five stars. We don't have a scale. It's just five stars. That's going to be the most. And it's available on Crackle, which I also never watched. I had to download it just to watch this, but Crackle is free. There's some ads, but Crackle is free. Jason, your final thoughts.

Jason Vitug:
I recommend everyone checking it out. It is a free app, so you're not spending any money to enjoy the show.

Bobbi Rebell:
Awesome. So keep at it guys. We think you're doing great.




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Full Transcript:


Bobbi Rebell:
I hope you guys are all celebrating some big adulting milestones this season. And you know what, finding the perfect gift for those celebrations can be kind of tough. I have the solution over at grownupgear.com. We have adorable hats, totes, mugs, pillows, teas, and seriously, the most cozy and comfortable sweatshirts. They're all on grownupgear.com and all at affordable prices. We even now have digital gift certificates. If you can't decide, use code grownup for 15% off your first order. Buying from our small business helps to support this free podcast. And you know what? We really appreciate it. Thanks guys.

Jason Vitug:
And I have to admit, I laughed. I cried. There was a lot of tears because I connected with these people and their stories. It is really awesome seeing where they started in the beginning of the show and where they end.

Bobbi Rebell:
You're listening to Money Tips for Financial Grownups, with me certified financial planner, Bobbi Rebell, author of How to Be a Financial Grownup. And you know what, when it comes to money being a grown up is hard, but together we got this.

Bobbi Rebell:
Welcome, my grow up friends to our first ever financial grownup summer watch party series. During COVID you guys, I had a chance to check out some streaming shows and there's a lot of uncovered gems out there that have really got amazing money lessons. So I thought what a great idea to highlight a few of them in a little summer mini series for everybody. So we're going to highlight some of my personal favorites, and then we're going to go over the money tips from them in the coming weeks. Now for this episode, I am so excited to be joined by my friend financial wellness guru, Jason Vitug author of You Only Live Once: The Roadmap to Wellness and a Purposeful Life. Also, the brains behind Phroogal spelled with a P-H-R-O-O-G-A-L. Did I spell that right Jason?

Jason Vitug:
You got it absolutely correctly. Thank you so much. I'm excited to be here.

Bobbi Rebell:
Jason wait, you joined the podcasting world. You just launched your own podcast.

Jason Vitug:
I have. It's Live Financially Well, so I decided let's just jump in it and have awesome conversations with myself. So I'll be reading articles and giving commentary and insights on the articles that I've written. So it's a new way to kind of digest the information and the knowledge that I've written about.

Bobbi Rebell:
Well, and a lot of people like to hear the audio of articles in that it's kind of like books on tape, Phroogal on tape, right?

Jason Vitug:
It is. And it's humbling when my brothers and sisters who are part of my target market, they don't read my articles or my blog and they call me or they text me. And so I was recording and sending it to them because they have busy lives and they prefer, or they're auditory learners. They learn listening as opposed to sitting down and reading an article. And I figure there might be way more people. And just like your listeners who learn through voice versus written word.

Bobbi Rebell:
And also through watching. I mean, I do a lot of book recommendations on this podcast and I guess that same idea inspired me to do the summer watch series because I think a lot of people like to consume content and maybe learn through video. I think that's something we learned over the pandemic with everybody learning stuff and having meetings over Zoom. Yes, there can be too much Zoom. Absolutely. But we also can actually learn a lot through video, right?

Jason Vitug:
We really do. That's why I'm excited about this discussion today because it's a different form of learning. So entertainment or edutainment. So this is going to be exciting.

Bobbi Rebell:
Edutainment. Okay. I have a bunch of shows picked out for this summer watch series. Most of which are sort of, I would say underappreciated and undiscovered. And one of them that's definitely underappreciated is a show called Going From broke. It is on Crackle, our mutual friend, Tonya Rapley is part of it. The show is in its second season. Fun fact, it is produced by Ashton Kutcher who does make occasional appearances. Jason, tell us a little bit about the show.

Jason Vitug:
Well, the basic premise for Going From Broke is that each episode features someone who is well broke. Basically they need an intervention, they need some guidance. It's hosted by Dan Rosenzweig, CEO of Chegg and our friend financial expert, Tonya Rapley, who helps young professionals, young individuals become the CEO of their own lives.

Bobbi Rebell:
Okay. So each episode is about a half an hour and it has kind of a classic reality TV structure and that the hosts come in, they do a little preview of what we're going to see. Then they do a debrief with the guest to figure out what exactly is going on. Then we see the person change their bad habits or make some tough decisions. And then there's progress reports at the end. Jason, okay, besides the fact that we both adore Tonya, what's your take on the show?

Jason Vitug:
It's really an amazing show. Just the great casting. One of the key things that I love about shows that talk about personal finance is when it humanizes the individual. And often we kind of look at the financial aspect, just the numbers, not the emotional or the personal side. And this show does a great job in choosing people with compelling stories. So they're not just broke because they made financial mistakes, they're broke because there's a ton of different aspects when it comes to their life that caused them to take on debt or to live above their means.

Bobbi Rebell:
Yeah. I mean, a lot of these people are doing amazing things with their life. I mean, one of the people featured is someone called The Donovan. So he's a musician. He's super talented at what he does. Huge personality, very giving, but yet behind the scenes, it's a mess. Right?

Jason Vitug:
It is. And I have to say that The Donovan needs his own show. He was endearing. And I was just laughing throughout the whole entire episode. He was so dependent on his income from his gigs. And when this gig stopped during the pandemic, well, what happens, there was no money coming in and he was relying on his savings and then relying on credit. And it was exacerbating his financial issues. And all of a sudden he was in a situation where he was unhappy with his life. And that's where I related.

Bobbi Rebell:
Yeah. And also he has a very colorful personality, very over the top lifestyle, but yet he didn't really see it that way. And it really was so as you said, I mean, endearing is just the best word for The Donovan. Because if he didn't have that personality, when things would come up, like his not being able to handle tasks that so many of us take for granted, like just basic cleaning your house, mowing your lawn. Although not that I've ever done that. Watching him sort of cave was so like, you just wanted to give the guy a hug because even though he was saying things that sounded crazy, watching him adapt his self care routine to more frugal approaches was the best.

Jason Vitug:
It was hilarious. And I was smiling throughout the episode and the fact that, yes, I've washed my own dishes. I've cleaned my own house. I've mowed my own lawn, but I can not play two pianos at once. And The Donovan can play two pianos at once. So that goes to show you where his talent lies and where he was using his money to help him in other aspects of his life. But when you get that financial situation where income isn't coming in, you're going to have to make drastic changes. And he was hilarious in terms of wanting to keep his routine when it comes to self care. The lawn was awesome at the final part of the show was just amazing. And I was cracking up and I couldn't wait to watch another episode.

Bobbi Rebell:
Oh, totally. And by the way, every episode you have to watch to the end because the closing credits, they put in the funniest clips that just leave you with this feeling where you were just rooting for them and so happy for them that they've achieved, whatever it is they achieved over the episode. And the other common theme that I saw in the casting was that these were people that were very successful and they were also generally very giving people. For example, there was someone in the first episode who had been an athlete and he definitely had a pension for buying expensive sneakers, but he was also paying tuition, I think for, was it his little brother? I mean, these are giving people.

Jason Vitug:
These are all giving people. So when that first episode of season one, his name was Obi, he was a former track athlete and a CEO of his own company. He felt in charge of having to take care of his parent and his brother who would be going to college. And this is just one example of the many episodes where it isn't selfish people or people who are broke because they're living way above their means. And they don't care about anyone else, but themselves. They're actually individuals who have responsibilities and they care about their family members, their neighbors, their community. And so part of their wellbeing when you think about it, that way is taking care of others. And they explore this. Well, what happens when your finances fall apart and you become broke and you still have these responsibilities? And so that was one. And one other show that got me was the mother with the special needs child. And she-

Bobbi Rebell:
Yeah. Go ahead.

Jason Vitug:
Yeah. So she was in dire straits and she relied on credit cards to supplement her income. And so the first take is, okay, you need to stop using credit and you need to do X, Y, and Z such as rent out room for Airbnb. So these are practical tips. That's what I love. They give practical tips to help people manage their finances and kind of stop being broke.

Jason Vitug:
But then there's a point where she wanted to continue to spend eight weeks vacation in Mexico. Part of that was, you could say, okay, well that's luxurious spending. Why would you spend eight weeks, all that cash to go to Mexico? And she shares that is the only place and time where she sees her special needs daughter smiling and being happy. And so you have to connect with people in that human element where we make these financial decisions and we think it's just the numbers, but there's always something deeper behind it. And so for that place automatically, I said, okay, stop going. You can't go to Mexico. And that would probably be my advice, just like what they started with. And then towards the end, they're like, well, yes, that's how you should be spending your money, especially when it's helping your child.

Bobbi Rebell:
Yeah. I mean, like you said, they're very direct. They're very blunt. They're very understanding. I love an episode where they literally, I mean, this guy, he felt that he was a contractor basically. And he bought a Prius to save money because it's much more fuel efficient, but then he literally bought a truck because he felt that when he went to bid on jobs, no one would give him the job if he wasn't driving a truck and they convinced him to sell, I don't know if you saw this episode, they convinced him to sell the truck. And you know what, he was still closing the deals, but he needed an outside person to show him that. So having that outside perspective, and they do make people sell things. I mean, we were talking about Obi. Obi literally this is a spoiler, literally sells shoes that he is wearing. He bought some expensive sneakers. They made him take them off his feet. It's just an awesome show.

Jason Vitug:
It really is. And I'm a former sneakerhead. So I used to have those expensive sneakers. And so I related to him when the buyer wanted the shoes off his feet and he was going to give a pretty penny. And that is a tough decision. And some people might say, it's just sneakers. I'm telling you from a former sneakerhead, it's not just sneakers. There's a lot tied into it. And so for him to do that, just showed some growth. And I love that about the show.

Bobbi Rebell:
All right. Let's get to some of the lesson takeaways. Here's some of the money tips slash lessons from the show. First of all, I think there's a lot of perspective and understanding, for example, a lot of the spending that we see seems ridiculous, but it's brought to us in empathy and with love. And I think that's a great thing to understand that we're all human and we all have different values, right?

Jason Vitug:
Absolutely. And that kind of leads into that circumstances change. And season two takes place during the pandemic. And the pandemic has changed the lives of so many people and understanding that there are external factors that impact our finances.

Bobbi Rebell:
Totally. Debtors, a lot of us can be very judgy when it comes to people in debt. But the truth is a lot of the things that put them in debt are things that could easily happen to any of us. And they're very specific down to exactly where the money is spent and we can all relate. I mean, shutting down Amazon or not feeling like you have control over your life if you don't have that money to spend, who hasn't been there at some time, if we're all being honest.

Jason Vitug:
Yeah. I'm going to be honest. I've been there. And what's often necessary is doing these line by line breakdowns. And they do this really well from our friend, Tonya, who goes through the budget. And this is kind of like an indication that most people are successful with what they do and with their finances until something happens. And when something happens, you have to start asking the question, well, where's the money going?

Bobbi Rebell:
Yeah. And also look, they do tell the people that are sort of the stars of the show that they have to negotiate. They need to go in and get better deals. For example, if they have a lot of credit card debt, they need to figure out how best to manage it without just kind of continuing to pay it down. You can call up the people that you owe money to and make a better deal for yourself. And I think that's valuable too, to be your own self advocate.

Jason Vitug:
Yeah. It's really making those tough decisions. And sometimes those tough decisions are things like opening up your house to a roommate. And if you're used to living by yourself and having someone live in your house is quite a change. And so there's another person that we talked about, Obi selling his sneakers and others who decided to live with relatives and Airbnb that home. And so there are all these decisions that need to be made in order to get your finances from where they are to where you want them to be. And they're not easy, they're tough, but you need to make these tough decisions and they help them through that.

Bobbi Rebell:
Yeah. I mean, they had to sell stuff that was literally part of their identity. That's a really hard thing. There's a lot of tough love in this show. I mean, there's a great line from Dan Rosensweig to a guest who kept talking about how much money they make. And he was like, no, you don't make money. You generate revenue. There is a difference. And then this was the guy who had to sell his truck. Gary V yelled at him for a while and told him to Google the word profit. And he literally, Gary V starts yelling. It was such a great scene. Gary V is yelling at this guy, saying, sell everything you own. And then he said a lot of other mean stuff. So I won't spoil that. You guys can watch that episode. It's awesome because it really crosses a line that a lot of financial shows are just too polite to cross, but they get really kind of, they just... Let's just say that. I don't know. I'll leave it there.

Jason Vitug:
There's a lot of emotional intelligence in the show. There really is a lot.

Bobbi Rebell:
Yes.

Jason Vitug:
And I have to admit, I laughed. I cried. There was a lot of tears because I connected with these people and their stories. And it is really awesome seeing where they started in the beginning of the show and where they end. And as you mentioned, stay tuned till the end credits because you're going to crack up.

Bobbi Rebell:
Yeah, absolutely. And the other thing is there's sort of an Easter egg in this. I mean, look, it's not a surprise. It is produced by Ashton Kutcher's production company. So he knows people. So in addition to Ashton Kutcher, there's a lot of celebrity appearances. I guess we can spoil some of them. We won't say which shows they're in, but I know Demi Lovato was in one and Jewel was in one. Who else do you remember spotting?

Jason Vitug:
There were executives such as the executive for Airbnb was there. And so there are a number, but the Demi Lovato one when you get to that episode was great because it shows that people who have achieved success in their careers and have a spotlight on them, do have financial struggles and issues as well. And so it's all connected and I love that.

Bobbi Rebell:
Yeah. The show just makes so much sense. I wish I had discovered it earlier. I'm glad there's two seasons. I hope they do more. I also, as we mentioned, we're a fan of Tonya's. I also had remembered that I interviewed Dan Rosensweig when I was a reporter at Reuters, he was at Yahoo where he was, I believe the COO. He's the CEO of Chegg. The program, as I mentioned, produced by Ashton Kutcher is sponsored by Chegg and there's definitely corporate support. And I love to see that. I think it's great. Chegg's an educational company, and this is a wonderful way to both get their message out and also do some great [inaudible 00:17:07] content. Right?

Jason Vitug:
I agree. I think it's important for us to kind of get this tie... If a corporation understands the importance of financial education and can create content that entertains me and is educational, it is a win. We need more of that.

Bobbi Rebell:
Absolutely. I give it five stars. It is available. That's just a made up thing, but I'm giving it five stars. We don't have a scale. It's just five stars. That's going to be the most. And it's available on Crackle, which I also never watched. I had to download it just to watch this, but Crackle is free. There's some ads, but Crackle is free. Jason, your final thoughts.

Jason Vitug:
I recommend everyone checking it out. It is a free app, so you're not spending any money to enjoy the show.

Bobbi Rebell:
Awesome. So keep at it guys. We think you're doing great. Jason, where can people catch up with you?

Jason Vitug:
You can find me on social media, Twitter and Instagram. That's where I'm most active @phroogal, That's P-H-R-O-O-A-L. And you can also converse with me via the website, Phroogal.com.

Bobbi Rebell:
Jason, thank you so much for joining me.

Jason Vitug:
Thank you. This was fun.

Bobbi Rebell:
Yes. And everyone follow Jason. Follow me on Instagram at @bobbirebell1 and DM me what other shows you want us to talk about on the show. We're going to do a bunch of episodes in the summer watch series. Thanks again. We'll see you next time.

Bobbi Rebell:
Money Tips for Financial Grownups is a production of BRK Media, LLC. Editing and production by Steve Stewart, guest coordination, content creation, social media support and show notes by Ashley Well. You can find the podcast show notes, which includes links to resources mentioned in the show as well as show transcripts, by going to my website, bobbirebell.com. You can also find an incredible library of hundreds of previous episodes to help you on your journey as a financial grownup. The podcast and tons of complimentary resources associated with the podcast is brought to you for free, but I need to have your support in return. Here's how you can do that. First connect with me on social media @bobbirebell1 on Instagram and Bobbi Rebell on both Twitter and on Clubhouse, where you can join my money tips for grownups club.

Bobbi Rebell:
Second, share this podcast on social media and tag me so I can thank you. You can also leave a review on Apple podcasts. Reading each one means the world to me and you know what? It really motivates others to subscribe. You can also support our merch shop grownupgear.com, by picking up fun gifts for your grownup friends and treating yourself as well. And most of all, help your friends on their journey to being financial grownups by encouraging them to subscribe to the podcast. Together, we got this. Thank you for your time and for the kind word so many of you send my way. See you next time. And thank you for supporting Money Tips for Financial Grownups.


How to hit pause on your day job with Bachelorette and Bachelor in Paradise star and Laurel Road exec Derek Peth
Derek Peth

Reality TV can be a job- but it often doesn’t pay like one. To film The Bachelorette and later Bachelor in Paradise Derek Peth had to take a break from his paying job in commercial banking. That’s where his emergency fund savings became the star of the show. 

Derek's money story:

Bobbi Rebell:
I'm so glad that you're here and so many of your fans are going to be tuning are going to be blown away by what they learn about you, because you're so well known as one of the ... first of all you were on The Bachelor on the JoJo season.

Derek Peth:
Right.

Bobbi Rebell:
You did not apparently live happily ever after with her. But you went on to more success on Bachelor in Paradise season four. And you even now continue a side hustle, which we'll talk about, host a podcast about Bachelor in Paradise and The Bachelor. But we're here because, and this got by the way this announcement of what you're doing now got over 16 thousand likes on Instagram. We're here to talk about what you do for a living right now, which is you are in the financial services sector. You are a Senior Vice President at Laurel Road. So congratulations on this career path as well.

Derek Peth:
Thank you. This is the original career path. Speaking of side hustle, I think that's kind of what The Bachelor became for me.

Bobbi Rebell:
Exactly.

Derek Peth:
Hey, more opportunities.

Bobbi Rebell:
Absolutely. And you're stilling doing that. We're going to circle back to that, but I want to talk about your money story because what you're going to share with us is something that is, on the one hand unique to you and the people that are on reality TV shows, but also very relatable to almost anyone that has ever dreamed of taking a break from their quote, real career, their everyday job. And asking our boss for a sabbatical so that they can do something, maybe a dream, maybe an opportunity for an interesting experience. Maybe financial opportunity down the road. But that's what happened to you. You were working, all of how many years ago? Four years ago maybe?

Derek Peth:
Yeah I think it was about four-ish years ago. I was working in commercial banking as a sales role down in Florida at the time. And actually it's a funny story how it all originally happened because I wasn't ready for it. I didn't signup or anything, I was very focused on my career, and I thought it was a prank call from a radio station at first. I made them email me, and I researched them.

Bobbi Rebell:
Wait. How did they find you? I just assumed people apply to be on these shows. You just get this call.

Derek Peth:
I know. My sister signed me up.

Bobbi Rebell:
Oh my gosh.

Derek Peth:
I didn't figure it out until three weeks later when finally I ... because I had been kind of quiet about it and then finally I was like, "Hey did you happen to sign me up for The Bachelor ever?" And boom. There we go.

Bobbi Rebell:
She didn't tell you? Oh my gosh.

Derek Peth:
No. Her friends watch the show and it was like they all got around the computer and sent my photos and information in. But when I started thinking about this, it was like this is one of those opportunities that are once in a lifetime that can change the course of your life completely. And luckily, my mom has put self-help books in front of me my whole life, and I've been very, always interested in making sure that things were setup so that ... I ran some marketing businesses on the side when I was younger. I had a nice foundation of rental income incoming constantly that put me in a situation where I was like, "You know what? I don't necessarily need to have this job." While I enjoy what I'm doing, and I have a great relationship with my boss at the time. He really tried and he was like, "Listen, you're a sales role."

Bobbi Rebell:
Well what happened? Can you go in and say, "Hey I'm going to be on a reality TV show can I have a sabbatical of I don't know how long?" How does it work?

Derek Peth:
Exactly. I called him up. I said, "Hey I really need to have a side conversation that needs to be pretty quiet because there's some legal matters." And he was freaked out so he called me right away. But the legal matter was that I couldn't really discuss what the situation was with a bunch of people. And I just said, "I don't know. It could be one week that I'm gone, it could be eight weeks, 10 weeks." That's how long they tape for, and you have no idea going in. He went back and he reached out to HR and they tried to figure something out, but in the end, the response was basically, "This is a little too much of an ask right now, Derek. The only option is, if you want to do this you have to leave and quit, or you can keep working here. And call us back afterwards." The truth is, there's no chance on us just putting and eight week paused on your role.

Derek Peth:
Like you said, I saw it as a sabbatical of sorts, because there was that open end coming back, which I built from working by butt off in my job. And I built that foundation that I could really use to support my living without a normal income by working my butt off on the side. And again, I think there's a lesson there that really gives you the opportunity to do some unique and different things sometimes in life that we all dream and talk about, but when you're forcing yourself into the bare minimums, that's where I think, like I said, luckily I've had some of that literature in front of me my whole life and it was just pounded in my head, "Make sure you have enough income to live for a full year with what you're doing."

Bobbi Rebell:
You had a full year of income saved?

Derek Peth:
I did.

Bobbi Rebell:
How do people support themselves on these shows? Do you get paid to be on, do you get paid more if you last longer on the show? How does it work?

Derek Peth:
Some of those work that way. The actual Bachelor, Bachelorette, the first one there's no income from it, but the second show that I did that you talked about, it works that way where it's a per day payment situation. And so, it depends on what show you're talking about. Obviously, as we both know, the Instagram ad game has become I think the goal for a lot of people after that. And that's where the supporting themselves, and being a public figure offers some cool opportunities to do some travel where, if you're going and doing speaking somewhere or just doing an event anywhere, a lot of times there's free travel or the event itself, I should say, takes care of the travel and the accommodations. It is a unique situation. It's a little bit different than having to jump on Spirit because you're flying all over the place.

Bobbi Rebell:
But people going on these shows are not necessarily paid. There are costs involved, and you often lose your income. I don't know that people really understand that.

Derek Peth:
Yes. And that's why a lot of the people end up on the show, I think, are entrepreneurs. When you really think about it, there's business people and some small business owners a lot of the time, and it's because they have the flexibility to do that, they don't have this fear of having to jump of a cliff with their job, because it's scary thing. Not to mention just the nature of the United States these days. I don't know the exact numbers, but the cost of college has quadrupled or more in the last few years, and when you really look at that and compare that to what you come away with, and what you need, we have to have that income in order to just survive, right? Just the environment itself has made it so hard for people to jump out and do anything unique like this without cutting away, and living at home, and dodging their student loans.

Derek’s money lesson:

I think that rule is so important for people to live by. Instead of focusing on how do I get to the next paycheck, you got to focus on a rule, a separate goal. And that maybe 5% of their income for some people, 10% of their income. That's a conversation, especially if there's relationships, there's other situations that come in, but instead of maxing out what you're making, there needs to be savings goal and then a long-term goal of course. One of my favorite sayings is, how do you eat the elephant? One bite at a time. You have your big goal, but then one little step at a time, each month, each week, you're saving that money away, and that's how you, I think, create that foundation to give you the opportunity to go and do some different things.

Bobbi Rebell:
And also because as much as these kinds of ventures can create opportunity, at the end of the day, you're not an actor.

Derek Peth:
Right.

Bobbi Rebell:
You have a normal life to some degree. It will never be quite as normal again, and you're still doing a lot of Bachelor related things, but you have an actual job.

Derek Peth:
There's a few very successful individuals. No different than professional sports. Honestly every aspect of business and any job in and of itself has high performers, and medium as well. But a lot of people in that quote, medium performance, which of course relates to how many Instagram followers you have now. But they really butt their head up against the wall and get sucked into this life with these hopes and aspirations without the understanding that it does take the work no different than your job to do some hustling, to make connections, to call people, to set things up for yourself. They do the bare minimum, and sometimes that's nice for a little while, but I mean, I think the people who have been very successful with taking this opportunity that The Bachelor presents you with and have treated it like a job. You see some of those folks who previously had jobs.

Derek Peth:
I have a great example from my season. Wells, great example. They were high performers in what they were doing already. And they pivoted everything into, all right, this is my new side gig. I can just take the same lesson I learned from working hard and taking care of business in my day-to-day life and apply it to this new opportunity.

Derek's everyday money tip:

My money tip, especially for millennials like myself is, first and foremost, within the marketplace we're in, there's an urgency to refinance your student loans. We ourselves we save over $20 thousand, on average, for people who refinance their loans, when you look at the life of their loans. I think knowing your rate in the first place is a great place to start. A lot of people, a lot of my friends even when I started working at Laurel Road they didn't even know what their rate was. And I started talking to them about the opportunities and they were just mind-blown at how much they could save each year.

I don't mean that facetiously. They were shooting, kicking themselves saying, "Hey, I'm an idiot. I haven't been looking at this. I didn't even know that. Here I am complaining about my income, and I could have saved it just by going online, doing a little bit of research." And to all those millennials out there, or anyone else who's recently gone through school and still has those student loans, go refinance them. There's no cost. It's very quick. I'm going to say, go check out Laurel Road's website because we are, I think, the best at this, but across the board, that's the number one thing we need to be doing.

Financial grownup tip number one:

Emergency funds aren't just for when bad things happen. In this case, a really amazing thing happened, a once in a lifetime opportunity. Literally life-changing experiences, and Derek had the financial resources available to cover up to a year. So when he was on The Bachelorette, not a lot of financial stress. And then even more fun on Bachelor in Paradise. And by the way, did I mention he hosts The Bachelor podcast, which is strangely addicting, even though I don't even know all the people that Derek, and Kay his co-host, are talking about. Don't be judgey. Derek has had a great ride. And I'm not saying that I know anything, or that Derek told me any upcoming projects, maybe when we kept talking after we stopped taping. But you want to stay tuned to what Derek is up to. Follow him on all the socials, and keep tabs on him at Laurel Road.


Financial grownup tip number two:

I joked with Derek about being judgey. We can all get judgey, myself included, about productivity, and joke that if we spend all day watching Netflix, or whatever, on Instagram, on our social media channels, we're not going to be building our businesses, our personal brand empires or whatever our goals are. So yes, we have to be mindful of our time. Go listen to the Laura Vanderkam episode for tips on that, by the way. But you know what, I really enjoyed Derek and his cohost on The Bachelor podcast. And the Bachelor shows are really fund. If that's your thing, enjoy it. Like all indulgences, chocolate, try to keep it under control. Maybe do a Bachelor in Paradise marathon over the holidays with your friends, get it out of your system for a little bit, then be more productive in the new year. Enjoy it. Don't feel bad. It's all good. And then of course, come back and listen to all the good advice here on Financial Grownup to get your finances in order for the new year.

Episode Links:

Follow Derek!

Want to learn more about productivity? Click Here to listen to our episode with "Off the Clock" Author @LauraVanderkam

Some of the links in this post are affiliate links. This means if you click on the link and purchase the item, I will receive an affiliate commission at no extra cost to you. All opinions remain my own.

How to fund a work sabbatical when opportunity knocks with the Bachelorette and Bachelor in Paradise star and Laurel Road exec Derek Peth
Derek Peth Instagram WHITE BORDER.png

Reality TV can be a job- but it often doesn’t pay like one. To film The Bachelorette and later Bachelor in Paradise Derek Peth had to take a break from his paying job in commercial banking. That’s where his emergency fund savings became the star of the show. 

Derek's money story:

Bobbi Rebell:
I'm so glad that you're here and so many of your fans are going to be tuning are going to be blown away by what they learn about you, because you're so well known as one of the ... first of all you were on The Bachelor on the JoJo season.

Derek Peth:
Right.

Bobbi Rebell:
You did not apparently live happily ever after with her. But you went on to more success on Bachelor in Paradise season four. And you even now continue a side hustle, which we'll talk about, host a podcast about Bachelor in Paradise and The Bachelor. But we're here because, and this got by the way this announcement of what you're doing now got over 16 thousand likes on Instagram. We're here to talk about what you do for a living right now, which is you are in the financial services sector. You are a Senior Vice President at Laurel Road. So congratulations on this career path as well.

Derek Peth:
Thank you. This is the original career path. Speaking of side hustle, I think that's kind of what The Bachelor became for me.

Bobbi Rebell:
Exactly.

Derek Peth:
Hey, more opportunities.

Bobbi Rebell:
Absolutely. And you're stilling doing that. We're going to circle back to that, but I want to talk about your money story because what you're going to share with us is something that is, on the one hand unique to you and the people that are on reality TV shows, but also very relatable to almost anyone that has ever dreamed of taking a break from their quote, real career, their everyday job. And asking our boss for a sabbatical so that they can do something, maybe a dream, maybe an opportunity for an interesting experience. Maybe financial opportunity down the road. But that's what happened to you. You were working, all of how many years ago? Four years ago maybe?

Derek Peth:
Yeah I think it was about four-ish years ago. I was working in commercial banking as a sales role down in Florida at the time. And actually it's a funny story how it all originally happened because I wasn't ready for it. I didn't signup or anything, I was very focused on my career, and I thought it was a prank call from a radio station at first. I made them email me, and I researched them.

Bobbi Rebell:
Wait. How did they find you? I just assumed people apply to be on these shows. You just get this call.

Derek Peth:
I know. My sister signed me up.

Bobbi Rebell:
Oh my gosh.

Derek Peth:
I didn't figure it out until three weeks later when finally I ... because I had been kind of quiet about it and then finally I was like, "Hey did you happen to sign me up for The Bachelor ever?" And boom. There we go.

Bobbi Rebell:
She didn't tell you? Oh my gosh.

Derek Peth:
No. Her friends watch the show and it was like they all got around the computer and sent my photos and information in. But when I started thinking about this, it was like this is one of those opportunities that are once in a lifetime that can change the course of your life completely. And luckily, my mom has put self-help books in front of me my whole life, and I've been very, always interested in making sure that things were setup so that ... I ran some marketing businesses on the side when I was younger. I had a nice foundation of rental income incoming constantly that put me in a situation where I was like, "You know what? I don't necessarily need to have this job." While I enjoy what I'm doing, and I have a great relationship with my boss at the time. He really tried and he was like, "Listen, you're a sales role."

Bobbi Rebell:
Well what happened? Can you go in and say, "Hey I'm going to be on a reality TV show can I have a sabbatical of I don't know how long?" How does it work?

Derek Peth:
Exactly. I called him up. I said, "Hey I really need to have a side conversation that needs to be pretty quiet because there's some legal matters." And he was freaked out so he called me right away. But the legal matter was that I couldn't really discuss what the situation was with a bunch of people. And I just said, "I don't know. It could be one week that I'm gone, it could be eight weeks, 10 weeks." That's how long they tape for, and you have no idea going in. He went back and he reached out to HR and they tried to figure something out, but in the end, the response was basically, "This is a little too much of an ask right now, Derek. The only option is, if you want to do this you have to leave and quit, or you can keep working here. And call us back afterwards." The truth is, there's no chance on us just putting and eight week paused on your role.

Derek Peth:
Like you said, I saw it as a sabbatical of sorts, because there was that open end coming back, which I built from working by butt off in my job. And I built that foundation that I could really use to support my living without a normal income by working my butt off on the side. And again, I think there's a lesson there that really gives you the opportunity to do some unique and different things sometimes in life that we all dream and talk about, but when you're forcing yourself into the bare minimums, that's where I think, like I said, luckily I've had some of that literature in front of me my whole life and it was just pounded in my head, "Make sure you have enough income to live for a full year with what you're doing."

Bobbi Rebell:
You had a full year of income saved?

Derek Peth:
I did.

Bobbi Rebell:
How do people support themselves on these shows? Do you get paid to be on, do you get paid more if you last longer on the show? How does it work?

Derek Peth:
Some of those work that way. The actual Bachelor, Bachelorette, the first one there's no income from it, but the second show that I did that you talked about, it works that way where it's a per day payment situation. And so, it depends on what show you're talking about. Obviously, as we both know, the Instagram ad game has become I think the goal for a lot of people after that. And that's where the supporting themselves, and being a public figure offers some cool opportunities to do some travel where, if you're going and doing speaking somewhere or just doing an event anywhere, a lot of times there's free travel or the event itself, I should say, takes care of the travel and the accommodations. It is a unique situation. It's a little bit different than having to jump on Spirit because you're flying all over the place.

Bobbi Rebell:
But people going on these shows are not necessarily paid. There are costs involved, and you often lose your income. I don't know that people really understand that.

Derek Peth:
Yes. And that's why a lot of the people end up on the show, I think, are entrepreneurs. When you really think about it, there's business people and some small business owners a lot of the time, and it's because they have the flexibility to do that, they don't have this fear of having to jump of a cliff with their job, because it's scary thing. Not to mention just the nature of the United States these days. I don't know the exact numbers, but the cost of college has quadrupled or more in the last few years, and when you really look at that and compare that to what you come away with, and what you need, we have to have that income in order to just survive, right? Just the environment itself has made it so hard for people to jump out and do anything unique like this without cutting away, and living at home, and dodging their student loans.

Derek’s money lesson:

I think that rule is so important for people to live by. Instead of focusing on how do I get to the next paycheck, you got to focus on a rule, a separate goal. And that maybe 5% of their income for some people, 10% of their income. That's a conversation, especially if there's relationships, there's other situations that come in, but instead of maxing out what you're making, there needs to be savings goal and then a long-term goal of course. One of my favorite sayings is, how do you eat the elephant? One bite at a time. You have your big goal, but then one little step at a time, each month, each week, you're saving that money away, and that's how you, I think, create that foundation to give you the opportunity to go and do some different things.

Bobbi Rebell:
And also because as much as these kinds of ventures can create opportunity, at the end of the day, you're not an actor.

Derek Peth:
Right.

Bobbi Rebell:
You have a normal life to some degree. It will never be quite as normal again, and you're still doing a lot of Bachelor related things, but you have an actual job.

Derek Peth:
There's a few very successful individuals. No different than professional sports. Honestly every aspect of business and any job in and of itself has high performers, and medium as well. But a lot of people in that quote, medium performance, which of course relates to how many Instagram followers you have now. But they really butt their head up against the wall and get sucked into this life with these hopes and aspirations without the understanding that it does take the work no different than your job to do some hustling, to make connections, to call people, to set things up for yourself. They do the bare minimum, and sometimes that's nice for a little while, but I mean, I think the people who have been very successful with taking this opportunity that The Bachelor presents you with and have treated it like a job. You see some of those folks who previously had jobs.

Derek Peth:
I have a great example from my season. Wells, great example. They were high performers in what they were doing already. And they pivoted everything into, all right, this is my new side gig. I can just take the same lesson I learned from working hard and taking care of business in my day-to-day life and apply it to this new opportunity.

Derek's everyday money tip:

My money tip, especially for millennials like myself is, first and foremost, within the marketplace we're in, there's an urgency to refinance your student loans. We ourselves we save over $20 thousand, on average, for people who refinance their loans, when you look at the life of their loans. I think knowing your rate in the first place is a great place to start. A lot of people, a lot of my friends even when I started working at Laurel Road they didn't even know what their rate was. And I started talking to them about the opportunities and they were just mind-blown at how much they could save each year.

I don't mean that facetiously. They were shooting, kicking themselves saying, "Hey, I'm an idiot. I haven't been looking at this. I didn't even know that. Here I am complaining about my income, and I could have saved it just by going online, doing a little bit of research." And to all those millennials out there, or anyone else who's recently gone through school and still has those student loans, go refinance them. There's no cost. It's very quick. I'm going to say, go check out Laurel Road's website because we are, I think, the best at this, but across the board, that's the number one thing we need to be doing.

Financial grownup tip number one:

Emergency funds aren't just for when bad things happen. In this case, a really amazing thing happened, a once in a lifetime opportunity. Literally life-changing experiences, and Derek had the financial resources available to cover up to a year. So when he was on The Bachelorette, not a lot of financial stress. And then even more fun on Bachelor in Paradise. And by the way, did I mention he hosts The Bachelor podcast, which is strangely addicting, even though I don't even know all the people that Derek, and Kay his co-host, are talking about. Don't be judgey. Derek has had a great ride. And I'm not saying that I know anything, or that Derek told me any upcoming projects, maybe when we kept talking after we stopped taping. But you want to stay tuned to what Derek is up to. Follow him on all the socials, and keep tabs on him at Laurel Road.


Financial grownup tip number two:

I joked with Derek about being judgey. We can all get judgey, myself included, about productivity, and joke that if we spend all day watching Netflix, or whatever, on Instagram, on our social media channels, we're not going to be building our businesses, our personal brand empires or whatever our goals are. So yes, we have to be mindful of our time. Go listen to the Laura Vanderkam episode for tips on that, by the way. But you know what, I really enjoyed Derek and his cohost on The Bachelor podcast. And the Bachelor shows are really fund. If that's your thing, enjoy it. Like all indulgences, chocolate, try to keep it under control. Maybe do a Bachelor in Paradise marathon over the holidays with your friends, get it out of your system for a little bit, then be more productive in the new year. Enjoy it. Don't feel bad. It's all good. And then of course, come back and listen to all the good advice here on Financial Grownup to get your finances in order for the new year.

Episode Links:

Follow Derek!

Want to learn more about productivity? Click Here to listen to our episode with "Off the Clock" Author @LauraVanderkam

Some of the links in this post are affiliate links. This means if you click on the link and purchase the item, I will receive an affiliate commission at no extra cost to you. All opinions remain my own.