Thursday, March 18- On this episode, Jim and James talk about all the ways you can invest in yourself and in your community around you.
Quick Links:
Jim Schauer LinkedIn James Cross LinkedIn
Episode Transcript:
Jim Schauer: [0:24] Good morning, everyone to this edition a very special edition of “Coffee with Jim & James. James. As I tell you there’s a lot going on these days and if let me just tell you a quick little story.
[0:36] Decades and decades ago. I got a bonus one time and I’m like, what am I going to do with this bonus? Besides putting some money away, you know one away for a weekend and then on the way back I stopped by and I wanted this socket set. I wanted it for a long time.
[0:52] And it may sound strange but I got the socket set that you know, I could work on my at that time. I had a Jeep and I can work on the Jeep and do things like that.
[1:01] And again, you know, reason I bring up that story because there’s a lot going on right now and especially with some of the stimulus and I think you know you and I wanted to get together and just talk about not financial planning by any means folks.
[1:14] This is not a financial planning…
[[1:15] crosstalk]
James Cross: [1:17] …anti‑financial planners.
[[1:19] laughter]
James: [1:20] Everybody knows like yeah, I don’t seek financial advice from James or Jim.
: No: [1:25] do not do that.
James: [1:27] Rule of thumb today.
Jim: [1:29] But we want to talk about investing in ourselves and yourself and in a very serious way. And and James it’s funny that you know decades later I realized that that bonus money how I spent part of it actually fit into many different things.
[1:44] But one of them could be considered like sharpening the saw, you know, some seven habits that I’ve you know, continue to learn today.
[1:52] And you know, it’s just great to maybe share some thoughts about you know, what James and I are kicking around in our head with you know how people can invest in themselves and you know take stock in themselves.
James: [2:06] Yeah, I think I read a stat. I don’t even know what the number was but it was a high volume of stimulus money they feel like are going to go into the stocks and crypto which which you know to each their own.
[2:25] There’s some people that are getting this money that may be that don’t need it as much as others but you know once I think our big talk this started from a LinkedIn post. Shout out to Nathan who said this might be good content.
[2:40] We agree. Here we are but helping people understand, you know like that bonus you talked about.
[2:48] I remember getting a bonus one time and that’s essentially what we are, right? This is our bonus for being Americans. How do we you know help other folks get back on their feet?
[2:58] And so I remember getting a bonus an old boss of mine locked in one day, you know so different time but walked in and handed me just cash in an envelope boom…
Jim: [3:10] Really?
James: [3:11] …on a Tuesday and there’s just something about cash, you know, especially back then and it just being a random Tuesday, but we you know, we’d killed a project and he wanted me to fill it and and I did.
[3:24] And funny enough. I went I left work early that day. That makes sense. Right? Here’s a bonus. So I left early and I went straight to Golf Galaxy and I’m bought a set of golf clubs.
[3:38] I’d never had a nice set of golf clubs. They were always hand‑me‑downs. They were always, you know knockoffs and all that. I went and bought me instead of pins.
[3:46] Now, I don’t play golf very well Jim, you know that but I still play with them, you know, and they’re an investment and mind sanity.
[3:56] So that’s that’s really what we want to talk about today. We talked I broke it up really into three things. And well, I think we just kind of wade through it Jimmy.
Jim: [4:06] Yeah. James: [4:06] But the first one I think is important. So for those that are getting stimulus money is investing locally first.
Jim: [4:18] Yeah.
James: [4:20] Local and small businesses got hit really really hard this year. And so, you know, how can you use that as a home improvement? You know, I’m putting a fence in right now for the same reason. I mean, I want to spend that locally.
[4:34] But you know investing in that falls in a lot of categories, but first and foremost local how can our restaurants need us, Jim.
[4:45] Man, those servers those people like how can you put this money in people’s hands so they can put it to work for them is really important. Jimmy. Are you how do you feel about local?
Jim: [5:01] Well, I absolutely 100 percent agree with that. You know, you’re in Texas North Texas. I’m in South Florida two different worlds, so to speak. We live by hospitality down here.
[5:14] And I’ll tell you over the last year it’s been tough.
James: [5:18] Was that a shot? Like we don’t live by hospitality here in Texas? Or are you saying both?
Jim: [5:22] Well, well, no.
James: [5:24] I know. tourism tourism more, yeah.
Jim: [5:27] Tourism, I’m sorry tourism. That’s the right…
James: [5:30] Yeah, I gotcha, I gotcha. You better watch out.
Jim: [5:32] The hospitality industry. That’s I was trying to say.
[5:36] And it’s I mean really it’s been devastated down here over the during the time not just you know hotels but you know amusement parks and you know, all the attractions and restaurants and coffee shops and everything like that.
[5:52] And you know, we were hunkered down for a long time. Like, you know, make the pilgrimage to the grocery store stock up as much as you can, come home and cook.
[6:00] But we you know we made a conscious decision to try to get we didn’t go to restaurants, but we got takeout. And you know, you know in the past, you know you go get takeout. Let’s say it’s $30 or $2 and you leave like a $2 tip just as a courtesy.
[6:14] I tell you, you go in there. And you see these people and you see the look on their faces and you know, if it’s a $20 pickup meal and you leave them like a 10 a $10 tip to their face.
[6:26] And you know people say wow, I could really thank you. I needed that. I could really use that that’s going to you know.
[6:33] I mean I’ve had I had one lady one time so this I’m trying to buy a new pair of shoes for work and I look down and she had shoes that were you know restaurant shoes, but they were very old.
[6:44] And I looked at her and I reached in my pocket and I didn’t have much but I gave her some more money. I said, you know bless, you know, appreciate everything you’re doing, you know. And she was so thankful.
[6:54] And it was just a little bit but again investing in the in the area but what about you what besides you’re building a fence?
James: [7:03] Yeah, that’s a big part of what we’re doing. I mean that’s just in general, you know, we made a commitment this year to spend money local, you know, no matter what we were going to.
Jim: [7:16] Sure.
James: [7:16] Listen, we still go to Target. You know, my wife I think would leave me and that wasn’t the case but but boutiques and and food, you know, we tried to, you know, take takeout when we could it was a big thing. We try to tip well.
[7:35] But let’s talk about the second one Jim. I think another way that you can invest is really investing in yourself. We joke about it all the time at Energy Worldnet.
[7:49] We are we’re an education company, you know, that’s one of our pillars and so we promote people going out and learning and taking workshops and getting as much education under their belt. And I always joke around with our teams that that’s things that no one can take back from you.
[8:07] You know. if two years from now you decide this isn’t where you want to be or you know, you find a better opportunity things change whatever, no one can repo [laughs] your education, right?
[8:22] I mean, so the more skills you can add and that looks different for different people. I pick up every book that I can imagine…
Jim: [8:31] Right.
James: [8:32] …helping me. I’m I just enjoy that part and owning them, but I also enjoy listening to audible, you know, and so think about subscriptions that you would maybe not buy.
[8:45] You know, if your your outlet is music maybe you buy a Spotify subscription that’s going to last you for a year or two years and you’re like, wow, you know now you’ve got this awesome service to utilize.
[8:58] So whatever that might look, you know, maybe maybe you want to go to a workshop or or you know can have one of the experts in the industry consult with you.
[9:13] Paying for something like that out of pocket sometimes it’s something you just kick to the side non‑stop, you know put on the back burner back burner. It’s a great time to invest in yourself.
Jim: [9:24] Yep. I agree with you and I’m a little bit more old school than you, you know, I do a few things electronically and I have and I’m making a joke out of that.
[9:33] But one thing that we’ve enjoyed lately is that there’s actually still a bookstore down the road, you know and going to the bookstore going in, you know being very safe.
[9:43] And you know walking around and just finding, you know book that you can you know, learn something, you know, get get some knowledge have something tangible in your hand. I mean for me it’s a fun thing and it’s it’s a little bit of a release and it’s a it’s a great thing.
[10:00] You know, everybody’s probably living by the streaming TVs or you know cable right now and all that and just after a while you just you know, it just becomes numbing. I’m not saying it’s a bad thing. You know. It’s a good release at times. But you know expanding those those media’s.
[10:16] Like you said, in a workshop too I tell you what when you can get into workshop, we took one or I did about virtual conferences, you know last fall.
[10:25] And I tell you just you know hearing how people are communicating virtually and some of their struggles and some of the you know, good things and some of the challenges but just that interaction, you know, you know a workshop away from work, you know type of thing if that makes sense.
James: [10:41] Yeah, it does. And some of that drips into really the last point, which is the sanity side of it, right? There’s some things that and that manifests differently right that may mean that I’m going to get another chicken, you know, a new chicken or a bunny. You know, I don’t know.
Jim: : [11:00] Yeah.
James: [11:01] It may mean that I’m going to get new walking shoes, you know, or that sounds like an old man got my walking shoes.
[0:00] [
Jim: [11:08] laughs]
James: [11:09] But you know what, I mean a new pair of shoes because I plan on walking a lot this year.
[11:14] You know, and if it may be scheduling that vacation or it may be doing the charity work, you know that that may fall in sanity and may be local however, but taking some of that windfall and giving it back is so important.
Jim: [11:36] Yep.
James: [11:36] It doesn’t always have to be a transaction where you know locally sometimes you feel obligated like I’m going to go out there. I’m going to try to buy local. I mean I’m gonna support, which is great. We should do that.
[11:48] But sometimes it’s okay too to just give it all away. Right? Like we’ve said that.
Jim: [11:52] Yeah, let me a quick story in South Florida. The food banks have been struggling have been depleted and we have an unfortunately a high homeless population. And Tammy and I went and got some just a little string backpacks, right?
[12:07] And then, you know, we bought some little trinkets socks down here flip‑flops. You know get flip‑flops are everywhere in Florida and and you know, maybe some toiletries, a bar of soap, things like that and made these little backpacks. We keep them in the cars.
[12:22] So when we’re driving around if we see somebody like that might be asking for help, you know, we give them one of them, oh, and a couple bottles of water in there too you know, maybe some energy drinks some granola.
[12:34] It feels good to do that and the look on their face at first is like what’s in here, you know, and I we explain that it’s, you know, just some items that hopefully help your day. A little bit easier.
[12:44] And it’s a good feeling. You know, it’s it’s a good feeling to do. But that’s just one example that we’re doing here.
James: : [12:52] Yeah. So many people are hurting right now, you know, the charity parts are easy. I mean you can throw, I mean, you can look around and see so many that that are asking for donations things like that.
[13:07] Be sure you vet, you know, your organizations and work with ones that are close to you know causes to your heart too.
[13:17] But yeah, man, I think Jimmy that was I think it’s an interesting thing to talk about again. We’ve got a lot of people in our industry that have been affected during this pandemic.
[13:28] So, you know, no matter where you side on this politically and whether you know, the stimulus should be here or not. It’s here.
Jim: [13:41] Yep.
James: [13:41] You know if you don’t like your check that you may or may not have gotten then you can drop it off at a food bank or I’ll do something awesome with it. And that’s the good news.
[13:53] So again, I think just educating people and helping them think a little bit different because I know I know a lot of people are like, I’m going to go to Costco. I’m going to buy that big TV Costco has a lot of money. I love Costco. Don’t get me wrong.
[14:10] But you know thinking about it local and thinking about yourself, right? How do you make that side hustle? Maybe, you know a little bit less of a side hustle. Maybe more of a hustle.
Jim: [14:22] Yeah.
James: [14:23] Whatever that might look like to you. Hopefully this was helpful.
Jim: [14:30] I think I think was great. I was speaking from the heart during this time, you know we go and talk to so many industry experts every week.
[14:38] And it’s just nice just to decompress a little bit and share some of the thoughts that show a little bit of what James and I are about and what we’re thinking about and and a topic of investing in yourself and invest in our community and investing in ways to make you happy and your family happy or whatever do it.
[14:57] So on behalf of James and I we really appreciate you joining us today. We hope you got a little bit out of this and maybe just expanded the thought process a little bit.
[15:06] Until next time on Coffee with Jim & James, please everybody stay safe and have a great week.
James: [15:12] Bye‑bye, everybody. Jim, do you think they know when I’m wearing a hoodie that’s a little more laid‑back that day?
Jim: [15:19] Yeah, they might. I like it. I like it.
James: [15:23] Bye‑bye, everybody.
Jim: : [15:24] See ya’ll.