Coming up, we’re going to do our first Q&A post where I’ll answer questions from readers. So many good questions have already come in. Please keep them coming! Leave a comment below, subscribe to our newsletter, or find us on Instagram.
One question we already received was so good, I’ve answered it here in a dedicated post. The question came from someone that I love to talk money with. He read the Think and Talk Money Welcome Post where I mentioned that my credit card debt was partially due to having Chicago Cubs season tickets.
He knows that I’m a big Cubs fan and asked me if I would I really trade all those great experiences and memories just to save money.
It’s such a good question because it points to the intersection of money and life. It took me all of two seconds to know and feel the answer was, of course, “No, I would not have given up my Cubs tickets.”
He was absolutely right. If I gave up my tickets in 2010 when I was struggling with debt, I never would have been in the stadium in 2016 with my family for the Cubs’ World Series run. Those are some of the best memories I have.
In hindsight, I would have done some things differently so I could enjoy the experiences without the money worries. Let’s talk about that.
But first, story time.
Our nice friends, Phil and April.
Throughout that World Series run, we sat next to the nicest couple in the world, Phil and April. Phil was a diehard Cubs fan. April was more reserved. Both were smart and very friendly. They were enjoyable people to sit with. We chatted baseball, mostly. Pitching changes. Send the runner. Question the manager. That sort of thing. Completely normal, unremarkable stuff.
Until Game 5.
Game 5 was played on a crisp, October evening. Jackets and beanies weather in Chicago. Phil and April were sitting next to my brother and I, as usual. Mike Napoli was playing first base for Cleveland.
Around the 3rd inning, a jerk four rows in front of us taunted Napoli with a crude, juvenile insult. It was apparent the jerk was doing his part to keep Old Style in business for another year.
Phil was nice…and tough.
Anyway, the rest of our section was none too pleased with the jerk’s shameful display. Nobody was more displeased than Phil, who did what the rest of us were thinking but were too scared to do ourselves. Phil stood up. In so many words, Phil sternly recommended that the jerk knock it off and show some class.
The jerk turned around, aggressively scanning the crowd for the man who had publicly shamed him. The jerk had that unmistakable look in his eye that meant, “Let’s dance.” My brother and I were a bit worried for our nice… and all of a sudden tough…friend, Phil.
April did not look worried. She sat there like nothing strange was happening. Almost like she had seen this movie before.
When the jerk locked eyes with Phil, he immediately saw that Phil was happy to accept the invitation to tango. Well, the jerk was sloppy, but he had enough sense to recognize that he wanted no piece of Phil. He wisely turned back around and sat down quietly.
That was the last we heard from the jerk that night. Our nice, and now confirmed tough friend Phil had restored order.
Phil’s on TV!
On the day of the Cubs’ championship parade, my brother called me excitedly, “Phil’s on TV! Phil’s on TV!” It didn’t register right away who he was talking about. When I turned on the TV, sure enough, there was Phil, our World Series friend. I was so confused. Phil was giving an interview on set with the Cubs announcers. Our nice (and tough) friend, Phil? On TV?
I turned up the volume and listened to Phil talk about his experience watching the Cubs win the World Series. Maybe I was hoping he’d mention his nice friend, Matt. He didn’t.
I still couldn’t figure out why Phil was on TV. Why won’t they just put his name on the screen already!?
It wasn’t until the end of the interview that I learned who Phil was. All I could do was laugh.
Our nice, and confirmed tough, friend Phil is better known as World Wresting Entertainment (WWE) champion and icon, CM Punk.
His wife? WWE champion and bestselling author, AJ Mendez.
Life, huh?
A memory I wouldn’t trade for anything.
As much fun as the World Series was, my favorite Cubs memory actually took place during the 2015 season, the year before they won the World Series. It was during the 7th inning of Game 4 of the NLDS. This was the game where the Cubs knocked the rival St. Louis Cardinals out of the playoffs.
In the 7th inning, with the Cubs up 5-4, Kyle Schwarber hit one of the most epic home runs in Cubs history, landing his moonshot on top of the new right field video board. It was such a feat, the ball is now enshrined where it landed.
The entire stadium was rocking so loud, you could feel the ground shaking beneath your feet. Every fan was jumping up and down, hugging anyone close enough to touch. We were all dancing like nobody was watching. That moment was pure happiness.
I was there with my mom. A lifelong Chicagoan, she too was jumping up and down and high-fiving all the other diehard fans in our section. After the game, we met up with my wife at a restaurant and relived the victory over Champagne.
What does this have to do with money?
What does any of this have to do with money? When I said money was emotional, this is what I meant. I wouldn’t trade that memory with my mom for anything. My brother and I still joke about our nice friends, Phil and April.
These are the types of experiences that I want more of. These memories, and the desire for more like them, continue to motivate me today. I want to be good with money, not so I can stash it in the bank, but so I can use that money to create joy for me and my family.
So, to get back to my friend’s question. Would I really have given up my Cubs tickets? No, absolutely not.
What would I have done differently to keep the tickets but not the worries?
In hindsight, what could I have done differently so my Cubs tickets were not a major source of financial worry?
Even back then, I knew and felt that spending money on Cubs tickets was money well spent. I didn’t need to wait for hindsight to come to that conclusion.
That said, I would have put more thought into solutions to keep the tickets and the experiences without the debt and the shame. I would have looked at expenditures in my Now Money and Life Money buckets that were ripe for adjustment.
Maybe that would have meant giving up something else less meaningful, like my gym membership. Or, I could have looked into a side hustle as a way to earn more money, something we’ll explore at another time.
Whatever the solution was, I would have been more intentional with my decisions so my experiences were not overshadowed by my worries.
Talking money is really just talking life.
This was such a good question to illustrate a foundational concept of Think and Talk Money. Yes, we discuss money. But, we’re really talking about our lives and our experiences. Money is just a tool to help us.
And before you get cynical on me, of course money is not required for good experiences. That’s not the point. What I’m suggesting is that if you’re spending most of your time each week at your job, like most of us do, shouldn’t we think about the money we earn so we can maximize experiences like I had with my mom?
Think and Talk Money is all about awakening that thought process so we can use the tool of money to fuel meaningful lives. Would you use that tool to get you Cubs tickets? Or, do you prefer trips to Disney World? What if money is just the currency that you trade to get your time back, so you can do more of what you want with who you want?
Whatever it is that you’re after in life, thinking and talking about money will help get you there.
Keep the questions coming!