Adrian Brambila on 21 Brutal Money Lessons You Need Now | EP 536
57:59 Share

Experiences make life more meaningful. And with MasterCard's Priceless.com, you can immerse yourself in unforgettable experiences in dining, sports, art, entertainment, and more in over 40 destinations. From a round of golf with a legendary player to a cooking class with a celebrity chef, you can fuel your passions and create lasting memories. Explore experiences today at Priceless.com exclusively for MasterCard cardholders. Terms and conditions apply.

Whole Foods Market has Thanksgiving gatherings covered. First things first, reserve your no-antibiotics-ever-fresh-whole turkey today, starting at $2.99 a pound. Or go with their organic spiral cut bone-in ham, full of seared-in flavor. For sides, choose Whole Foods Market grab-and-go platters. Go even further and get your whole meal catered. Just order online by November 26th. Get Thanksgiving ready at Whole Foods Market. Terms apply.

Coming up next on Passion Struck. Those people that are born rich and then they become adults, they actually have really terrible money habits. And that's why short sleeves are short sleeves in three generations, because they're not taught how to earn. Like the way of thinking, I need to earn. I need to be vigilant about my money. It doesn't just come. I have to work for it. I have to manage it.

And this is what we talk about in our book of, you know, we use some language that can be offensive because we talk about poor, we say poor people and we say rich people, but we're actually not talking about money at all. We're talking about a way of thinking. Welcome to Passion Struck. Hi, I'm your host, John R. Miles. And on the show, we decipher the secrets, tips, and guidance of the world's most inspiring people and turn their wisdom into practical advice for you and those around you. Our mission is to help you unlock the passion

We have long-form interviews the rest of the week with guests ranging from astronauts to authors, CEOs, creators, innovators, scientists, military leaders, visionaries, and athletes. Now, let's go out there and become passionate.

passion struck. Hey, passion struck fam. Welcome back to episode 536 of the passion struck podcast. I am so grateful for your continued energy, passion, and commitment to living a more intentional life. Week after week, you show up ready to elevate your life.

And that's what makes this community extraordinary. If you're new here, welcome to the PassionStruck family. You've just joined a movement dedicated to igniting purpose, embracing change, and living boldly with intention. We're thrilled to have you on this transformative journey. Before we jump in to today's powerful episode, let's take a moment to reflect on the inspiring conversation we had earlier this week with Glenn Phillips, frontman of Toad the Wet Sprocket.

Glenn shared deeply personal reflections on change, loss, and finding meaning through life's most challenging transitions. It was a heart-opening exploration of his album Swallowed by the New where Glenn poured his experiences with separation and grief into music.

that resonates with anyone navigating life's unexpected twist. If you missed it, I highly recommend going back and listening. It's a must-hear for anyone seeking to transform adversity into growth. For those of you who want to take these insights even deeper, don't forget to sign up for my Live Intentionally newsletter.

Each week, I send out exclusive content, practical exercises, and tools to help you apply the lessons we discuss in the podcast directly to your life. Head over to passionstruck.com slash newsletter and start living with more intention today. New to the podcast and wondering where to start?

or where to introduce the show to a friend or a family member, we've got you covered with our episode starter packs. These curated playlists on themes like leadership, mental health and personal growth make it easy to dive into the content that matters most to you. Check them out on Spotify or at passionstruck.com/starterpacks. Now, on to today's episode. Today we're diving into an inspiring and transformative conversation with Adrian Brambilla, a self-made millionaire who's here to share his insights from his new book, Start Thinking Rich.

21 Harsh Truths to Take You from Broke to Financial Freedom, co-authored with financial expert Dr. Brad Klontz. Adrian's story is anything but conventional. He started his career doing what he loved, dancing as a backup performer for T-Pain. But when that chapter ended abruptly, Adrian found himself working a 9-to-5 job

as a customer service representative at a retirement planning firm, earning just $27,000 a year at the age of 21. These two vastly different experiences taught him some of life's most valuable lessons, from witnessing the abundance of wealth on tour to learning the importance of smart money management at his day job. Fast forward to today, Adrian, now 32, has built a net worth of over $4 million.

He credits his financial success to staying debt-free, investing wisely, and embracing a minimalist lifestyle. He's here to break down the strategies and mindset shifts that helped him transform his life from saving 30% of his modest salary to now saving 90% of his income. In this episode, Adrian will discuss the 21 harsh truths that helped him and can help you achieve financial freedom. We'll talk about eliminating high-interest debt,

building emergency funds, investing strategically, and diversifying income streams. His no-nonsense approach cuts through the fluff, giving you the practical tools to change your relationship with money and start living your best financial life. And don't forget to check out our YouTube channel if you prefer to watch these interviews. Get ready for a conversation packed

with actionable insights, tough love, and the blueprint for financial success. Let's welcome Adrian Brambilla. Thank you for choosing PassionStruck and choosing me to be your host and guide on your journey to creating an intentional life. Now, let that journey begin.

Are you feeling stressed? Not sleeping well? You're not alone. Thankfully, I found a game changer, Magnesium Breakthrough from BioOptimizers. It's been a total upgrade for my sleep and stress levels.

Magnesium Breakthrough is packed with the top seven forms of magnesium, giving you the ultimate support for better sleep, stress management, balanced hormones, and improved mood, all in one bottle. It's like a wellness reset you didn't know you needed. Since using Magnesium Breakthrough, my sleep has gone from restless to restorative. I wake up feeling refreshed and ready for the day.

Right now for the entire month of November, BioOptimizers, the makers of Magnesium Breakthrough, are having a Black Friday blowout sale on all their products. All month long, you will get discounts with my unique code, plus access to up to $100 in free gifts with purchase. Go to biooptimizers.com slash passion and use code passion to get your discount and free gifts today.

Guys, the only thing worse than losing your hair is waiting forever for it to grow back. That's why you need HIMS, where you can start seeing results in just three to six months. HIMS offers doctor-trusted, clinically proven hair loss treatments

with ingredients like minoxidil and finasteride that actually work. The best part? The whole process is done from the comfort of your couch. You can choose chewable, oral, spray, or serum options to fit your routine. It's 100% online. Just answer a few questions and a medical provider will determine if treatment is right for you. If prescribed, your treatment is discreetly delivered right to your door.

Start your free online visit today at HIMSS.com slash passionstruck. That's H-I-M-S dot com slash passionstruck for your personalized hair loss treatment options. Results vary based on studies of topical and oral minoxidil and finasteride.

Prescription products require an online consultation with a healthcare provider who will determine if a prescription is appropriate. Restrictions apply. See website for full details and important safety information. Hey, PassionStruck listeners. I am so excited today to have Adrian Brambillo with us. Welcome, Adrian. Thanks so much for having me. Man, congratulations on your brand new book.

which has recently come out in the world. It's called Start Thinking Rich that you did with Dr. Brad Klontz. Thank you so much for coming on today to discuss it. I'm super excited. As we talked before we hit live, you're also an author and we were just sharing how the days leading up to the launch, how it feels like you're just going all out doing podcasts and press and traveling. And it feels like a grind. And you said something that is such a refreshing reminder is that actually when the book launches, it's

just the beginning, not the end. So I'm in that phase right now, but thanks for having me. Yeah, I'm super excited to do this and I've gotten to listen to a couple of the other interviews you've done. So I feel like I've got a good handle on your background and the book. So let's kick this thing off. Adrian, I'd love to open up with this question. We all have moments that define who we become. What's a pivotal moment in your life that set you on the path that you are today?

This is very clear to me. I used to be a pro dancer for T-Pain. And at the time, I was a living room dancer. And just a few weeks into being a pro dancer with T-Pain, which I really shouldn't have been there, but he launched a song right in front of us. The song was called Reverse Cowgirl. Actually, it's a pretty terrible song. I wouldn't recommend listening to it. But one thing that changed...

everything for me was before the song launched, he showed it to us, we heard it. And then he launched the song in front of the dancers. And this is around like 10am in the morning. And back then, this is like 2012 ish. He every song that's downloaded costs 99 cents on iTunes. And after a first few minutes, I saw it rise from 100 500,000

A million, 2 million. After 10 minutes, it was like over 5 million downloads. And I was trying to comprehend what was happening. And I watched someone basically look over at his manager and say, hey, you ready? Yes, we're ready. Cool. Let's do it. Launched it. And then they made millions of dollars in minutes, which is

I was super broke at the time. And then the thing that T-Pain did afterwards was even better. Cause what I learned about working hard and being successful before that was like, you got to sacrifice. You have to work really hard. It has to make money has to be very painful. And then after T-Pain made millions of dollars a minute, you know what he did?

He got drunk at 10 a.m. So my whole world was being shattered on what it means to be successful, to make money. And in some ways, T-Pain was like not the best role model. But what he did was unlock that there's actually many ways to become successful and that sometimes all the things we're taught that they're not really true. They're not the only way. Well, that's what we're going to be exploring more of throughout this podcast.

episode today. I do want to go back to your dancing just for a second. My fiance, initially, she's a nurse practitioner now, but initially she went to school at University of Florida for dance and did modern dance. I just have to ask, if you're doing one of these concerts, let's say Taylor Swift or Pink or one of these shows that has a lot of dancing in it, how tired are you after two hours, three hours out there with them on one of these megatours?

Well, I just went to Taylor Swift yesterday in New Orleans. And what I definitely can say is that those dancers had to work way harder than I did. So here's the truth. T-Pain is a pretty big guy. He's out of shape. And so any one of you listening, even if you're someone that thinks they can't dance, you could have been a backup dancer for T-Pain. You would have had to raise your right hand, bounce it up and down, do a two-step, snap your fingers,

And so it just goes to show, it depends who you're dancing for. For me, I was dancing for someone that like he partied a lot and was really out of shape and didn't really like dance. So I had a couple little segments of freestyling. I was a robot dancer. But when I remember I was talking to my wife because at the Taylor Swift concert, I kept saying, man, these dancers have the toughest dance job in the world dancing with Taylor Swift. Because that to me, I don't know how they did a three hour performance.

performance. I could never have done that. The whole thing just looks exhausting. I don't personally know how Pink flies through the air upside down and is able to sing the way she can and hold her body the way she can because I just imagine myself doing it. It would be pretty comical. Well, I want to jump from there to values.

So I don't remember much because my great grandmother died when I was an infant, but I remember my grandparents telling us of the sacrifices that the parents on both sides made being immigrants coming in to the States and how

Much the lives that we have now are because of their sacrifices. And I understand for you, your grandmother is really influential and her sacrifices were really foundational to who you are today. How has her legacy influenced your own approach to values, wealth, and the journey you've taken? My grandma...

She's a reason that the Brambilla family came from Mexico to the U.S. She is someone that has faced unspeakable adversities and tragedies. And my dad was 13, around 13, when he came to the States. My dad's dad was murdered when he was five years old. My grandma, there was a

I actually interviewed my grandma. And if you have never interviewed someone you love, like a grandparent or a parent, I recommend doing it because it's actually a video I look back to. And this is not something I have this posted online, the full interview, but I wanted to ask her all these questions. So they're really sharp in my mind because I love talking about my grandma. She's my superhero. But there was a period of about half a year where she was commuting from Mexico to the

to the U S and just the amount of work she's always had a job actually today. She still has a job. She like babysits on the side and she's in her late seventies. So she's always working. But when I got educated, um,

And I feel like I was raised with this kind of immigrant mindset that we left the bad place where we were like, we, my dad actually went to bed hungry and they had to steal food. And we came to the good places, which is the U S. And so I have this lens of how I view the U S is like, this is a land of opportunity. This is why we came here. And for sure, it can seem maybe narrow-minded that I ignore some of the, what the media says on challenges, but I believe this is the place to make it happen. That's why we came here. But my, my, my,

My grandma and because of my dad and what they went through, it created, when somebody say legacy, this is how I feel, it created pressure. They did so much. They sacrificed so much.

They went through every adversity to give me a platform that they only dreamed of having. So what does that do for me? It creates an immense amount of pressure to do well, to not be an idiot, to not be a failure. And so that's how I see the legacy of like, how much do like it would be the most disrespectful thing I could do to be a failure.

And to, cause it would discredit all the people that came before me to give me this place to where I started from. So this whole idea of values and cultural legacy is something that you guys talk about in the book. How do you see people's values in the way that they are brought up intersecting with their financial decisions? This is huge. Actually my coauthor and feel free to Google him. His name is Dr. Brad Klontz. He's actually a,

And pretty much every modern day finance book, because he is, when people say things like 80% of millionaires are self-made and all ranges of studies, where do they get these studies from? They actually get it from people like Dr. Brad Klontz. But one thing he pioneered was this concept called money scripts.

And this is how you inherit your beliefs around money. And guess who you inherit that from? Your parents. That means the good ones, the bad ones. And so part of your personal financial development journey is to first become aware of what are the money scripts that you inherited.

The funny thing about Americans is that we are actually all immigrants. So Dr. Brad Klontz is white, but he traced his family all the way back to the Mayflower. Now, Dr. Brad Klontz grew up in trailer parks and comes from a family of trailer parks, like in generations. And so when he started thinking about that and he learned that he came from the Mayflower, he would say things like, how come we don't own any land around here? We came here on the Mayflower. We could have just walked over and be like, okay.

This is mine.

these money scripts on how you handle money, how you think about money have been, and the poverty of living in trailer parks is also being passed. And that's why the first step is understanding what money script did you inherit? When you were raised, do your parents think that all rich people are evil? Because on a subconscious level, even if you don't think that, you're probably, if you haven't worked through that, you probably are sabotaging your own success because again, to make a lot of money means you have to do bad things, means you have to take advantage of people.

Do you think money is abundance? Do you think it's scarce? Do you think that if you make a lot of money, that means it takes from someone else? And so there's a whole realm of different ways that we think about money. And really, it comes from our parents. And guess who they got it from? Their parents. And so you can see how families kind of stay in stuck in lower class or poverty or this idea of a poor way of thinking, especially when it comes around money. What do you think for you, John? Like if you were to think what's a money script that you inherited from your parents?

So as I look at my two sets of grandparents on my father's side, they were typically living just above the poverty line. They were in inner city Detroit. I never met my grandfather who was a steel worker because he died of lung cancer before I was born. But my grandmother, I would say that she had work ethic, but I didn't ever get to

financial advice from her, nor did I think she really understood how to manage money. On my mother's side, my grandparents were the exact opposite.

They were very concerned about their retirement, about saving every dollar that they had to the point that they really didn't take a lot of vacations when they were earlier in life because they were really living that American dream where they were going to do it when they got older and they wanted to save money because they didn't want to go into a nursing home, wanted to be able to live their full life out of their house. And

They basically stuck exactly to their plan and that's what they did. So my parents growing up, I would say we were middle-class and I never felt like we were broke, but I never felt like we were killing it either. We were kind of

We got what we needed, but not necessarily more than that. And anything that I needed as a kid, I kind of got maybe three, four dollars a week from chores and anything above that. I had to go out and provide for myself. Because of that, I ended up getting paper out when I was in fifth or sixth grade and have been a hard worker ever since because of that value that you kind of had to earn your keep.

I think that actually says a lot about like money scripts. So I think getting paid to do chores. So you could say two different ways of looking at one, like that's a privilege that your parents could afford to pay you. But two, like you, you actually, in order to, they didn't just give you the money you had to work for it. So that actually is like a money script. Like I can, I have to earn money.

And so when you think of people that are born rich, where they don't have to work and they just are given the money and we, and people love to complain about rich people, like they have it all made and set. But the truth is those people, like it, once they, those people that are born rich and then they become adults, they actually have really terrible money habits. And that's why short sleeves, short sleeves in three generations, because they're not

taught how to earn, like the way of thinking, I need to earn, I need to be vigilant about my money. It doesn't just come, I have to work for it, I have to manage it. And this is what we talk about in our book of, we know we use some language that can be offensive because we talk about poor, we say poor people and we say rich people, but we're actually not talking about money at all. We're talking about a way of thinking.

And so actually you can on paper be broke, but have a rich mindset. And it's only amount of time until you're not broke because you're being good stewards of your money. You believe you have to work for your money. You have to earn it. You have to save it, live under your means. These are all things that this is a rich way of thinking of planning ahead and not just living in the moment. And then a poor way of thinking again, someone that is born rich and then

doesn't know, understand that they have to work for it. Cause they just say, mom, dad, can I get some money? Yeah, here's some money. And that's, this is the assumption that money just comes. They're not vigilant about their money. So then these people end up going broke. They get, they have lots of money. This is why 70% of people that win the lottery in five years, poof,

It's gone. It's gone because these people, they don't know how to think about money. They have a poor mindset with money. So it doesn't matter how much money they get. That's why it gets gone. And there's countless stories of celebrities and athletes. And again, it's really easy for us to shame them and judge them. It's like they made how much money in their career? $100 million and they went for bankruptcy. But the truth is we shouldn't because the money that you make

It only matters on how you think about it. And so do you have a rich mindset or poor mindset? And just because someone has a high income earner doesn't mean that they have a wealth skill sets, which is that ability to save and that ability.

You know the drill with big wireless companies. What they advertise is rarely what you end up paying. I've been a Verizon customer for years, and the hidden fees, upcharges, and ever-complicated bills, let's just say they can be a real pain. With Mint Mobile, there's finally some honesty in wireless. They say $15 a month for a three-month plan, and they mean it. No surprises, no gimmicks, just high-speed data, unlimited talk and text, and all on the nation's largest 5G network.

Plus, you can keep your own phone, number, and contacts. It's all the perks without the gotcha moments. To get this new customer offer and your new three-month premium wireless plan for just $15 a month, go to mintmobile.com slash passion. That's mintmobile.com slash passion. Cut your wireless bill to $15 a month at mintmobile.com slash passion.

Sometimes words seem so unnecessary.

Introducing Unspoken, the new diamond fashion collection you'll only find at Jared Jewelers and just in time for the holidays. Discover the brilliance of natural diamond pendants, rings, earrings, and bracelets in a range of carat weights, expertly interwoven in white or yellow 14-carat gold. It's the perfect holiday gift where your love speaks for itself. Unspoken, the dazzling new collection exclusively at Jared.

We all have plans in life, maybe to take a cross-country road trip or simply get through this workout without any back pain. Whether our plans are big, small, spontaneous, or years in the making, good health helps us accomplish them. At Banner Health, we're here to provide more than health care. Whatever you're planning, wherever you're going, we're here to help you get there. Banner Health. Exhale. Invest it.

So I have something funny to share with you. I think I've heard that you live in Austin. Is that correct? Yes. So I lived there before I moved here to Tampa. I used to be an executive with Dell and we lived in a nice neighborhood right off of Bee Caves and 360. And

On this street, I've got fellow executives from Dell. I have a really famous private equity founder who was on the street, et cetera, et cetera. And at the end of our street, before you make this turn, there's this house that had

It had boats in the driveway. It had jet skis. They had RVs. They had ATV vehicles, this and that. It just looked out of place from the rest of it. And I asked one of my neighbors who lived across the street from them, what's the story about this house? He goes, dude, they won the lottery like three years ago. And every single day, all I see is them bringing a new toy into their compound.

And I don't know what happened, but it was just as you said, they were just spending and spending. I couldn't believe how many toys they had.

That's insane. Actually, one of our chapter titles in our book is you don't want to be a millionaire. You just want to spend a million dollars. And this is what happens when someone wins a lottery or here's a test right now for all the listeners. If I was to give you a million dollars, what would you do with it? Feel free to pause this. Or if you know the answer, what would you do? Generous things? Would you retire your parents? Would you start a business?

There's only actually only one answer. If you have a rich mindset, you invest 100% of it. Nope. You don't even take a little bit out. You invest 100%. And then what you would do is you, there's a concept in finance called the 4% rule, which is you take 4% of that a year from the earnings, just based on average stock market returns, which is say is $40,000 a year. And then with that 40,000, that's what you use to do.

invest that business that you always want to start with. Cause you know what, if you do start a business and I'm an entrepreneur, 95% fail.

If you do want to invest in payoff and go on vacation. And by the way, if you do, if you want to invest in business, that's great. And if you lose because you're only taking 4% out, guess what? Next year, you'll have another 40,000 to try again and try again. But the people who win the lottery and based on the limited amount that you just shared about that neighbor, I would imagine that they don't live there unless they invested 100% of it. And then everything you saw was just based off

that passive income that the investments were making. But a lot of people don't do that. Last week, I got to see the Barenaked Ladies, and it reminds me of their song. If I had a million dollars, what would I do with it? Yes, exactly. So before I go further into the concepts of the book, I wanted to go more into your backstory because we talked about at the beginning, you were a professional dancer for T-Pain.

You also spent a number of years living out of a van. And I think sometimes people see your story and they're like, what did this guy do to rocket ship up to where he's at? And I think your story and mine are similar because people have seen my success and they think I'm an overnight success.

And I'm like, you didn't look back and see the years of pain. I was hoping maybe you could use that as a way to describe what was your trajectory and what was that light bulb moment for you where it started clicking and your trajectory started to change?

I think only overnight thing I can say, and this is a true, I feel like overnight is when I went to college my freshman year, I did what most college kids do. We drink and party. But after, when I came back my freshman first semester and my parents asked me how I was doing, I lied to them and said I was working hard when I wasn't. And the thing is my parents, they sacrificed so much.

that they gave me the most generous gift I will always be indebted to them, is that I was able to graduate debt-free because they saved, even to a deficit on what they should have put for themselves. They just truly believe that education for me, and I'm the first Brambilla to graduate from university, was going to change everything. And so here I was screwing off.

When I got back then, my freshman semester, I felt so guilty on my flight home that I was like, I'm going to completely stop drinking. And that's what I did. And then what happens then? There's so much time that college kids spend drinking and partying. I had so much time. So then I went to YouTube.

And I started learning how to dance. And here's where God's miracle happened. This is my only overnight thing I can ever say. Because I know dancers who dance for 20 years and they never get an opportunity like I got. After two years of dancing from watching YouTube videos, T-Pain had an open call edition. I submitted it and I made it. But here's the truth. Did I go to riches and fame after that? Absolutely not.

I did not have an agent. And so I was like on my, by myself. And so when I was doing, I have so many cool stories when I was dancing, I got screwed over so much when it came to money. I did the amazing things, never got paid. I was living off per diem was 35 bucks a day. And when tour ended, I was broke. I had less money than before I started because I was having to pay with my own money to pay for this lifestyle and like traveling. And so I,

After that, this was like 2010. That's when I was like, I need to learn how to make money. And I was living in Dubuque, Iowa, not the best place to be a pro hip hop dancer. I had a job that paid $25 an hour as a go dancer at an 80s club for a casino. That's it. So when I got back, I was like, I need to learn how to make money. I went to YouTube. Very early on YouTube, I started posting videos. For two years, I posted and I only had like maybe...

a hundred ish subscribers. And the only person that would comment on my videos was my mom. So here's a question. Would you work two years for free? That's what I did. And then after two and a half years, it started to have traction. And then a subscriber of mine said, Adrian, I love all your tutorials, but if you were to, if you were to teach me in a more organized fashion, like a long tutorial, I'd pay you for it. And that was my first product online, which was a 60 minute

tutorial on how to dance the robot. And then that month is the first month I made a thousand dollars, which was life-changing. Again, I was living in Dubuque, Iowa. I worked at a call center as my main nine to five, which paid $27,000 a year. And then my income start. So that's two and a half years in after five years, I made enough.

as my nine to five, which was at that time, $50,000 a year. And so my side hustle made 50,000. That's when I was able to quit. And then after 2015, that's where things started compounding. And I started, I lived in the van during the pandemic. What year was that? It's always a blur, like 2020, 2019. And then 20, okay. 2021. That's where like my income was now making in like the

before that, like high six figures, I was ramping up. And then when I was in the van in the year before, those were my first couple of years making over seven figures. So if you go back from the beginning to the end, that is 10 years, not overnight. It's 10 years of trying and the first two years of making absolute nothing. Well, there's something about that financial freedom of living out of a van. I don't know if you've

read Greenlights by Matthew McConaughey, but I love the sections where he talked about just him, his van, and his dog traveling the United States between gigs and the freedom that he felt as a result of it.

Yeah, I live in Austin. So he's like the most famous person in Austin, like the city of Austin loves him. But I think van life was super, it is a beautiful lifestyle. And since I've been creating content for since 2010, I feel like I'll always be creating content. So naturally, I shared what it was like living in the van. And that's how my following went from maybe 100,000 to like almost 2 million. And this is where I started talking about money online, because

I, when I was living in the van I was, I had a super high income, and I was sharing it online like I would say hey I made $100,000 online last month, and I live in this van, and people could not accept this as true, because their perception of wealth is wait a second.

this guy's definitely a liar or a scammer because he lives in a van. No person rightfully in their mind that's sane would live in a van if they're a millionaire. No person, if they make six figures in a month, let alone would live in a van. This guy's definitely a liar. It's a hoax. So it became an accident. I did not live in a van to go viral, but when I was living in the van and I would share, hey, I made $3,000 today. And by the way, I wasn't even by my laptop. I'm here out in the

in the Canyon or something. And yes, I had to poop outside and dig a hole. That's my life. Like it just, it was, it ended up being an accident, a viral recipe for, for conflict of what people's perception of wealth was. And I, and then I really leaned into it. And that's when I actually met Dr. Brad Klontz, my coauthor, because he was saying the same stuff that most millionaires actually consider themselves frugal. They're not big spenders.

And so we, he, but he was sharing it from a data perspective now. And here I was living this extreme lifestyle of minimalism. And then we became really close friends. So I have another great story of this. And Matthew McConaughey also for a period of time, didn't even own a home. He would just rent. Initially when he was on the South side and the famous time when he got arrested for naked drumming, when the police without a search warrant came into his house, he was renting that house at the time.

And I happened to be listening to Sirius XM over the weekend. And it was one of those shows where they were playing old Cason episodes from way back when. And he goes, this next artist who's going to be coming up

I have to tell you his backstory because he is a minimalist and he doesn't own any property, doesn't really believe in owning a lot of clothes, a lot of this, a lot of that. In fact, everywhere he goes, if he's staying there for any duration, he just rents a temporary place before he's on his way. And then he goes, this person is the lead singer of the Rolling Stones, Mick Jagger. I was like, no way.

That's crazy. One of our chapters in our book, and again, when I say poor and rich, this is about way of thinking. Poor people buy stuff, rich people buy time. And as a minimalist, I'm not a minimalist anymore. I have a house, I have air conditioning and a dishwasher. They're really nice, by the way. When I lived in a van, before I lived in a van, I lived in Europe and I rented and we were backpacks. We were nomads for three full years, pretty much. And this

concept of stuff as a minimalist stuff is you're like allergic to it. Every people think they own stuff as a minimalist. No stuff owns you. And the more stuff you have, the more it owns you, the nicer it is, the more owns you. I share an example of like how the other day I went to a coffee shop. There's actually a last month. I shared this on another podcast and this guy pulled out and he had the new Corvette. It's very nice car.

When he parked the car, he walked around it twice. There's no other cars in sight, by the way. Walked around it twice. And then as he's walking to the coffee shop, he does like a triple take, like making sure the car is still there. And to me, it was like a great example of, okay, does he own the car or does the car own him? Because when I go and I park it and then I walk in the store or whatever I need to do. So as a minimalist, we take it a really extreme side on it. But again, I'm not a minimalist anymore. I feel like now I try to be an intentionalist, which means I'm

I'm not a blind consumer. I'm buying stuff that I either really want or that I need. Well, I think that's a great way to lead into the core lens of this show, which is really about how do you create an intentional life? And it reminds me of something that you guys tackle in the book, which is the idea that 90% of millionaires are self-made, which really highlights this whole sense of you've got to be intentional about your individual accountability, which is why I wanted to have you on the show.

because people often say, how can you have an alternative health podcast yet a lot of your subjects aren't about this? Well, my podcast is really about the power of the choices that we make. And so when people hear the statistics of 90% of millionaires are self-made, a lot of people don't like it because it stirs resistance. It's really about

The fact that if you embrace personal responsibility, it can change your entire trajectory. But if you keep going, living your life on autopilot the way things are, you're going to stay stuck where you are. And to me, that's really the gap that you guys explore in this book.

Here's the thing I'd like to say to all those people who don't like that statistic. Can you imagine if it was reversed? Can you imagine if the real data said only 10% of millionaires are self-made? Gosh, that would suck. Then I also would feel, wow, so my chances are not looking pretty good to do this thing and become a millionaire. But 90% of millionaires are self-made, and by that definition means they did not inherit wealth.

their wealth that they had to build from scratch. Do you also know that 70% of millionaires work a nine to five job? You don't have to be an entrepreneur and create the next Facebook. These are all things that when you hear these stats, and especially if you're not a millionaire, you should be like, Ooh, okay, this is good. I, that means I can make it happen.

And in psychology, this is the mindset shift that needs to happen is this question. Do you have an internal locus of control or an external locus of control when it comes to your life? And those are fancy words for just saying like, how much of your life do you feel is in your control?

And typically, especially when it comes to money, and these are the people that don't like the stat that 90% of millions are self-made. And they'll say, that can't be true. What about racism? What about systemic problems? There's no way I can't believe that. And it's probably because these people, they have an external locus of control. They're constantly focused on external reasons why they're not at the level that they're at. My boss is bad. The economy is bad. The president, and by the way,

Whenever you're listening to this, whoever's president, it's always the same thing. The president. It doesn't matter who they are. The president is the reason why I can't live my life. I can't save money. There's always external blame. But wealthy people, rich people, they have an internal locus of control, and this is where the accountability comes in. I'm actually getting paid what I'm worth. And by the way, when I say that, I don't mean human life, which is priceless. I mean economic worthiness.

it worth. I'm getting paid what I'm worth. If I want to become a millionaire, it's in my power. I have to make decisions to get there and I can't. I do have control. I need to start learning what a budget is. I need to learn about credit cards. I need to learn about what a 401k is, what a Roth IRA is and why I should invest it and why I should make it automatic. And so these are all things that the tactics

of it. But if you are, it's constantly focused on the external world on that's preventing you. That's the first thing that needs to change is that, is that mindset shift? Like actually most of your life is in your control where you're at right now is in your control to change.

One of the chapters that I think is important for listeners is your chapter seven. In this book, you're going through really 21 different statements or mindset beliefs that people have that are prohibiting them from living the financial life they want. And this one is chapter seven, and it's about you don't deserve more, which is

is something that I think a lot of people believe. You're getting paid what you're worth. And I think a lot of people tie their worth to how much money they make and the job that they have. What do you tell someone who is feeling this and they feel kind of stuck in their circumstances on some of the first steps that they can take to break free?

Some of the chapter titles we call these harsh truths for a reason. And because that is not a thing you'd want to say to a friend is, you know what? You're actually getting paid what you're worth. I'll just use my personal example. I worked at a call center at Prudential Retirement. I made $27,000 a year. Of course, I wanted to get paid more, but that is not a six-figure job. You're at a call center helping people with customer service on their 401ks. And so the lens that you need to put on how do you view

working and making money is in, this is going to be really hard, especially in your position of struggle right now, but it is very helpful.

is to think of it like a game. When you think of it like a game, you have to think of, hey, when you play a new game, like a new board game, the first thing is what are the rules? What are the rules to this game? When you play a new sport, what are the rules? I remember when I first played pickleball and it looked different. I had to learn about the kitchen and it's different from tennis. I want to be good at the game, so I need to learn what the rules are. When I went in my

in my customer service job and like most people, they're like, I want to make six figures one day. And so I thought that through and then I tried to research who makes six figures at this call center. And it was the manager of the call center. And so when I looked at the manager, the manager had been there for 13 years.

And maybe it was like a 10-year pass. So those are the rules. If I want to make six figures at this call center, I need to work here for 10 years, probably always show up on time, probably over-deliver, and then in about 10 years, I can make six figures. That's the rules. Most people never take the time to this planning of recognizing it's a game, and you have to understand what the rules are. Now, after you've done that and you see what the realistic path is,

Then you have to ask a tough question. Is this a game you want to or should be playing? When I did the trajectory, I was like, oh my God, I do not want to wait 10 years to make six figures. I need to figure out a new game. And that's actually where I went to YouTube to start making videos. But you don't have to go the entrepreneur route. If you're in a sales position and you look at the, let's say if you sell cars, there's probably someone at the dealership that sells more cars than anyone.

And so same, they're playing a game at a different level. What are they different? Maybe the rules are the same, but what are they doing there? Are they like the LeBron James of car sales? So they're probably training harder. They have long longevity. They build rapport. So there's people that are in the same game of you that probably make more money. Again, trying to pay attention, like how are they playing this game? It's probably different how I'm playing it. But yeah, this first step is awareness to know you're actually, you are getting paid what you're worth.

understand what the game are, what the rules are, and then make the decision, the tough decision to say, if this is a game I should not be playing, I need to change. And I'll say one specific career path

nursing, nurses, man, that is a tough job. And the pandemic, the nurses were like the modern day superheroes. I bring up nurses because in one of my programs, I teach people how to basically make money online through like really risk-free stuff, like making product reviews and things like that, or how to write and get paid as a blogger. And my actually...

number one job category of people is actually nurses. And you think why? It's because at the beginning, nurses, I remember when I was in college, it was like a field that really needed people. And so it was marketed as like, hey, you'll definitely get paid. You're going to make good money, but it's really hard. And sometimes it's like, it's recognized, yes, you did go to college. You do have a degree. You've been doing this career for years. With all those things said, again, understanding the game, is this something you want to keep doing for another 10 years? And you can

etch out the math and making the touches like I do, I think it's time for me to switch. And that is okay. Even if you went to school for that same degree to change, because I think your happiness and your fulfillment is more important than any paper degree that you've ever received. Another principle, Adrian, that I really wanted to double down on is poor people buy stuff, rich people buy their own time. And you've mentioned this at the beginning of the episode, but I think this one is so important because it's

- We think about when we have this money, the material goods that we can have with it. But as you were talking about earlier, those goods really weight you down. Whereas if you think about investing as your time is financial freedom, what are some ways that people can shift their priorities to value that time over the possessions? And what impact does this have on their financial success?

Okay. I'm going to give really tactical advice is something you could do. And actually my coauthor, Dr. Brad Klontz has done a study that basically teaches this, which is increased people's savings rate by 70% in just one hour. I'm only going to give five minutes. So my stats aren't going to be that good, but.

Okay. Here's the truth. And by the way, throughout this conversation, everyone here is probably thinking I'm still a minimalist. I lived in a van. I do want to say I have really nice stuff and you guys, this might offend people. Cause I, it sounds like I'm like this really extreme minimalist. I just spent $40,000 at a pickleball court on a pickleball court at my house. Right? So I did spend that. I have a sauna. I have a cold plunge. I have really nice stuff now. So I want to make that clear. So what's the difference? Am I a hypocrite? I have nice stuff. Here's the difference.

Rich people, truly rich people, they never trade their time for an object.

And when you're not rich, when you're struggling, when you don't make a good income, everything is expensive. You know why it's expensive? It's because you have to trade your time for it. So if you want to buy a PS5 or go on a $600 vacation and you make $60 an hour, this is how you think. Okay, I make $60 an hour. It costs $600. I have to work 10 hours, and then I can save enough to go on this trip.

Rich people don't think like that. They're not trading their time to do whatever, to buy whatever they want, to do whatever they want. They have an investment and they're like, so if I want to go on a $600 vacation every month,

A rich person would say, okay, what investment do I need to participate in or put money in that's going to pay me $600 a month so I can go on that vacation every single month? Totally different way of thinking. They're not thinking, how much do I make per hour I need to save and then do the vacation? And that's why everything seems really expensive at first. So here's the tactics.

First of all, your time is the most valuable thing you have. That's you have to first believe this. And so you want to invest. This is why you want to invest so that one day you own your time. That is the best definition of financial freedom to not be having to make decisions on the constraints of money and having the choice. If you believe that, then this next tactic is going to help for you is this sounds so simple and silly, but so powerful. And here's why.

Let's say you have bank accounts and right now you have a checking and a savings, maybe you have others, but you probably haven't named them. And what I mean by naming them is like actually given a specific vision or a name. So let's say you want to go something serious, important for you. Let's say you want to go to Europe trip. So instead of just putting that money into checking, you actually create a new savings account and you label it as Europe trip.

Or if it's more specific, say Italy, the more specific, the better Italy trip, Italy, once in a lifetime, Italy trip. That's the name. And then as you start allocating money into there, here's what it does on a psycho on a psychology deep level is let's say you, some shiny object appears, which there's always shiny objects or something you can buy black Friday, seven Monday, there's a bunch of deals. And then you're like, Ooh, should I get this thing? You'll open up your bank account. And when you see that Italy, once in a lifetime trip,

You're not going to pull from it. You know why? Because now you're taking away from your vision. And if it lets some people, if you're saving for your kid's college, it's man, how bad of a person are you to have to take away from your kid's college? Cause you want to go buy a TV, right? So this is why naming it and, and, and adding a vision, the more specific you can on your vision and late and labeling those accounts will allow you to start saving for those things.

And I hope everyone here has a vision one day that when they wake up, that their entire schedule and time is up to them. And that is financial freedom. That's the gift. That's why I wrote this book is because I want people to operate in a world where they don't have money problems, but it goes against our instinctual habits because it's about saving and in thinking long-term. And that's really tough for us to do. So what would you say to those people who

I know a lot of the people I know are saying that they want experiences and that's where they want to share their wealth.

But then you have candid conversations with them and you learn that they're maxing out their credit cards and they're living paycheck by paycheck and they have all these high interest debts that they're paying back. Yet they are taking these expensive vacations. My fiance and I were just driving yesterday talking about this because we

She's like, you probably wouldn't have taken that vacation if you knew you were in that situation. I go, it's probably why I don't take more vacations because I look at the financial impact of doing it versus meeting the long-term goals that I have for savings. And I know it's oftentimes it's a trade-off in the moment because we all wish we could take that gateway to Italy. How do you advise people in those situations?

This is a really interesting question because you mentioned at the early beginning of this podcast of, I believe it was your grandparents that they struggled to spend their money. Is that right? Was it your grandparents? Yes.

Yes. My parents right now are living this. So my parents, they're, even though they're supposed to 62, they're making money from now social security. And then I hired them part-time many years ago, but they invested enough that they're good. They're good. And you know what the big problem is now is that they can't spend their money. It's because they never invested.

they're still operating from a standpoint of 30, 40 years ago when they had nothing, were super broke and came from worse poverty. So now when you get to this retirement age, here's the problem of waiting till the end. You can't make a switch. In fact, I'm saying crazy things to my parents. And by the way, this is a joke, but I say this to my parents say, Hey, mom and dad, if you leave me any money for, in fact, at this rate, it's going to be a lot of money.

and you leave as inheritance, you know what I'm going to do? Day one, I'm going to donate it to the opposing political party of your choice. I'm saying these crazy things because I want them to spend their money. So you do need to live today. You do need to find ways to enjoy and live your rich life. If you're struggling right now, if you do have high interest credit card debt, it doesn't mean, okay, well,

Adrian said, I need to live my life. I am going to book that trip, even though financially doesn't make sense. No, I get glimpses of it until you can get full moments of it and taking get full days of it until you can get full weeks of it. Cause this is the smart way to do about it. It's true at the beginning.

I didn't, I quit drinking alcohol. I didn't go out to eat. I didn't buy new clothes. I can list all the sacrifices I did in my early twenties to get ahead. Yeah, that it wasn't fun. I wish I could have gone to those things, but I was saving and investing and trying to put as much money as I could so that one day sooner than later, I would be able to live the life of financial freedom. But I also, even back then would do things that I loved one space and spending money.

Coffee is often the go-to attack of finance books. Well, if you give up your coffee and that $5 that you get saved can compound in a rough IRA, one day that would be millions. And I think to me, I love coffee. One of my favorite things, I lived in Europe, I love going to coffee shops.

And so I think if, if you are someone that's an intentionalist and that cup of coffee is your moment to like, enjoy your rich life, because this is something you're going to do even in your, once you have financial freedom, it's like enjoying a cup of coffee for me. It's if I can have a cup of coffee outside somewhere in a city on a patio, it's like, that is a rich, I'm going to do that no matter how much money I have. I'm always going to do that. So living it now allows me to make it easier in the future. And I don't think about, Oh my God, I just spent $8 on this

oat milk cappuccino. Because I'm like, this $8 is practicing me living my rich life today. And so you do need aspects of that. But when I was in my 20s, I was like, all right, I'm going to spend $10,000 in Europe because I want to go there. No, I wouldn't be in the position I am today if I made those financial mistakes. So it's about finding moments versus just being all about sacrifice and grind and hustle culture. Okay. And Adrian, another one I wanted to just do a couple minutes on is,

In my book, I have a chapter called The Mosquito Principle, and it's all about that if you want to have the intentional life, fulfilling life that you desire, you've got to start auditing out people in your life who are holding you back.

who I call them mosquitoes because sometimes they're the people closest to you and you don't realize the negative impact that they're having on you. And in your book, chapter 10, you phrase it as get rid of your poor friends if you want to get rich. And I think there's similarities. I'm talking about people holding you back because of their habits, but was hoping you could use that as an introduction to discuss this chapter.

Wait, did I say that? Just kidding. I know I said that. This is a chapter title that brought the most heat. A lot of our chapter titles we tested online, Brad and I combined have over 3 million followers. And when we posted this, it sounds really bad. If you want to get rich, you have to get rid of your poor friends. Ouch. But again, just want to emphasize poor has nothing to do with money.

Rich doesn't either. It has to do with the way of thinking. And the mosquito concept is exactly the same thing. There's people in your life,

that maybe make the same amount of money as you, but they're not thinking long-term at all. In fact, these are signals that you have, again, poor friends in terms of the way they think about money. They look forward to their paycheck. Hey, Friday's coming up. Yo, what are we going to do? What are we going to do on Friday? Dude, let's go out. Let's go out. Because those are all signs. I remember in all my paydays, even though I was broke, I never looked forward to it.

because I was always living underneath my means. But people that live in paycheck to paycheck, as soon as that money comes, they're thinking of ways of spending it. They're not thinking about the long-term. They're not saving. They're racking up their credit card debt.

But actually, and the funny thing is, let's talk about people who have a high income. I'm going to say six figures. Did you know that 50% of six-figure earners live paycheck to paycheck? And this is another funny concept. For those, I don't golf, but a lot of my golf friends and Dr. Brad Klontz, who talks about in golf, there's a concept like you go out with all your quote unquote successful high income earners.

And on the first hole and the third hole, they're like, oh, life's great. Business is great. Oh, my sales are up this year. It's doing great. And then by the time you get to the 10th, 12th hole, they're like, man, yeah, like I get, I'm in credit card debt up to my knees. And like, oh yeah, like we might have to foreclose on the house. Yeah. Like actually, and you can tell it's like at the beginning, as you dive deeper across, you get to the whole 12 holes. The truth is that they're actually not doing good at all.

And so you need to find rich friends and rich friends, they sound like this. Hey, let's save, let's invest. They talk about their investments and poor friends, they sound like this, like excuses, they blame, they complain, especially when it comes about money. So it's just like the law of averages, the five people you associate around, that affects you and it affects you with money as well. If you hang out with a bunch of spenders,

guess what? You're probably going to be a spender. If you're hanging out with a bunch of savers or they spend their money on experience versus objects, you're probably going to spend your money on experiences. If you hang out with a bunch of people who like making an impact, like donating to good causes, guess what? You're probably going to start doing that too. So your circle influences you heavily, especially with money. And if you have a family member who is not the best with money, I'm not saying, hey, sorry,

I need to find rich friends, not you. All you have to do is love them from afar when it comes to money. Not everyone should have access to your ideology and what you're doing with money. Money is one of those things when you bring up, everyone has an opinion. And you got to be careful who you get that opinion from. The last thing I wanted to go into was the last chapter of your book, which is you got to start thinking rich and adopting a rich mindset.

what does this thinking rich mean and how can a listener start incorporating this shift into their daily life the whole idea of start thinking rich first starts with the belief that you actually can become rich through actions of your own this whole entire concept is based off creating an internal locus of control and understanding that yes sometimes life throws you a curveball

We did not all start at the same standpoint. Some of us have adversities that we have faced or will face. That's not fair. That's the reality. Life is not fair. But despite those things, the majority of our life and our financial outcomes are up to us and we have the power to change. And once you have that first belief, the tactics become easy.

the tactics become doable because finance, financial books could all be summed up by this one sentence. We actually don't need finance books at all. There shouldn't be a mystery on how to become rich. It's make money and try to keep making more.

live under your means and try to save it and then invest. And actually, I should clarify invest because I've learned many times that when I say the word invest, it's usually not what the other person on the receiving end says invest. So I'm just going to keep it simple and say invest boringly and automatically, stock market, 401k, diversified portfolio of ETS and index funds that meets your goal or target date funds. And so that's it.

Boom. We don't need financial books. If it's that simple, how come we don't do it? It's because of the psychology of how we think. So if you can first have that belief set that you actually are in control, you can make it happen, the tactics and the strategies become easier and you'll be able to see progress. And that's the best thing we can know is that every day we wake up and we know we're heading towards the right direction of financial freedom. Adrian, thank you so much for coming on the show today. If people want to learn more about you, where's the best place for them to go?

Awesome. Thanks for having me, John. Okay. So you could for sure get the book where all books are available at Start Thinking Rich, or it's a special place. It's just for everyone here. And this is a way that we can say thanks. If you go to startthinkingrich.com slash John, that's going to have extra bonuses and resources. That's just for a way that we can say thanks for all your listeners here and having me on. And it has a link to the book, but again, it's include some like sheets and tools and calculators that you can't get anywhere else. Again, just want to say thank you so much for having me.

Thank you so much, Adrian, and congratulations again on this launch.

Thank you. Wow. What an incredible conversation with Adrian Brambilla. Today, we uncovered some of the harsh truths about money and financial freedom and explored how intentional decisions can lead to a life of financial success and purpose. Adrian's insights, whether it's eliminating debt, mastering investments, or embracing a minimalist lifestyle, show that financial freedom isn't reserved for a select few. It's available to anyone willing to prioritize discipline and consistent action.

One thought I'd like to leave you with is this. Your financial freedom begins with one intentional choice. Maybe it's creating a budget, cutting unnecessary expenses, or finally starting that emergency fund. Whatever step you take, let it be a reminder that small, consistent actions compound into life-changing results. Financial independence is a journey, and the key is simply to begin.

As always, links to everything we discussed today, including Adrian's book, Start Thinking Rich, 21 Harsh Truths to Take You from Broke to Financial Freedom can be found in the show notes at passionstruck.com. If you're ready to take your next step toward financial transformation, grab a copy of his book or explore the other incredible resources from our guests on the website. And don't forget, you can watch today's episode on YouTube at both John R. Miles and Passion Struck Clips. Be sure to subscribe and join our growing community there. I also want to remind you

about the broader work I do beyond hosting this podcast. If today's discussion sparked ideas you'd like to see applied in your team or organization, head over to johnrmiles.com slash speaking to learn how we can work together to ignite intentional growth. Supporting our show partners is another way to help us keep delivering these impactful conversations. Check out passionstruck.com slash deals for exclusive offers and discounts from our amazing partners. Before we go...

I'm thrilled to share a preview of our next episode where we'll dive into an inspiring conversation with Heather Moyse, a two-time Olympic gold medalist, world rugby hall of fame inductee, coach, and author. Heather will share her insights on the power of mindset, the small shifts that lead to big changes, and her podium process for achieving success. Sometimes it's just the tiniest little shift in our thinking that can help make

big changes in our behavior but also in our outcomes. One of the shifts I've been talking to people about is this how, live in the how, using this one word, this how word.

And oftentimes people aren't even pursuing the things they really want because they're asking the wrong question and they're asking, can I do this? For example, can I become the number one podcaster in the world? Whatever it is that goal might be, if it's a can I, that only leaves a binary option of answers yes or no. And if it's something that someone really wants and it's just seems just so enormous,

then they're probably going to be like, well, if my choice is a yes or no, then if the answer is going to be probably not, so then why bother trying? Whereas if you don't even ask that question, can I, but you say, how can I? It immediately shifts your focus into solutions. It immediately is, you're not even thinking about whether you can or not. You're just thinking, how would I be able to do this? And remember, we rise by lifting others.

If Adrienne's story resonated with you, or if you know someone who could benefit from today's episode, share it with them. The greatest compliment you can give us is spreading the word and helping us inspire even more people to live intentionally. Until next time, live life passion struck. Thank you so much for being here. Sometimes words seem so unnecessary.

Introducing Unspoken, the new diamond fashion collection you'll only find at Jared Jewelers and just in time for the holidays. Discover the brilliance of natural diamond pendants, rings, earrings, and bracelets in a range of carat weights, expertly interwoven in white or yellow 14-carat gold. It's the perfect holiday gift where your love speaks for itself. Unspoken, the dazzling new collection exclusively at Jared.

Imagine what's possible when learning doesn't get in the way of life. At Capella University, our FlexPath learning format lets you learn on your own schedule. A different future is closer than you think with Capella University. Learn more at capella.edu.