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Hey Reader,

The weather has been wild in NYC this week.

We had days hitting 70 degrees and sunny, followed by 30 degrees and snowing.

Anyway, I got some bad news and some good news to share with you today.

PS: Could you do me a small favor and check out the poll at the bottom of the newsletter? It's 1 question and takes 0.2 seconds to fill it out. Thanks in advance!

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👀 What I'm Watching:

Are you taking my advice? Cause it’s showing in the data.

Retail sales fell 0.2% in January. Now it doesn’t sound that bad but it’s below what economists expected.

So if you’re spending less because my free Freedom Builder Starter Kit is helping you take control of your money, great job :).

But if you’re spending less because of everything that’s happening (see below), then I have some good news to share (depending on how you look at it).

What's happening?

Long story short: Americans are pulling back on spending.

Why? Because EVERYTHING costs more.

The global oil benchmark is now over $98 a barrel (and climbing fast thanks to what I talked about in last week’s newsletter).

Groceries aren't getting cheaper.

And on top of all that, the economy just lost 92,000 jobs in February.

So yeah... people are scared.

But I have some good news that might help you out (again, depending on how you look at it).

It’s tax refund season and people are getting back 10% to 20% more this year

Meaning if you got $3,000 back last year, you could be looking at $3,600 this year.

📝 The Breakdown:

Here's how this impacts your money and wallet:

When your tax refund hits your bank account, what's the first thing you're gonna do with it?

New shoes? A little vacation? A new phone?

Most people treat their refund like free money.

But it's not.

It's YOUR money that the government held onto because you overpaid on your taxes. They’re just giving it back to you.

Regardless, it’s still a great feeling to get some extra cash.

But you want to make sure you actually put it to use.

✍️ Your Next Move:

Here's what you need to do today:

Don't spend your refund. Deploy it.

I know, I know. It's tempting to treat yourself to something nice.

But that’s why I’m here (whispering in your ear in a non-creepy kind of way) to remind you to make smarter financial decisions.

So what can you do with your tax refund? Put it to work.

One of the easiest ways to do that is to keep this money in a High-Yield Savings Account where it can actually earn you more money while it sits there.

Most HYSA's are still paying 3.5%+ right now which is free money on top of your refund.

​My favorite HYSA that I talk about all the time currently has a promotion offering 4%.

If you already have a HYSA and you’re looking to put your money to work somewhere else that:

1. Gives you a higher yield than most HYSAs
2. Is safe
3. Doesn’t lock your money up
4. Isn’t a hassle to manage

Simply reply to this email with “Curious Cat” and if enough people are interested, I’ll talk about it in a future newsletter.

🗓️ Behind The Scenes:

Here's a quick recap of what I was up to this past week:

• Shout out to my Freedom Investor Accelerator students! This week we dug into how to optimize your taxes as an investor. Taxes are one of those really complicated and boring topics but I'm glad I was able to simplify it so that everyone now understands how it works and how they can take advantage of it to build wealth.
• I started blending up my high fiber breakfast into a smoothie. And it's A LOT more enjoyable to consume. If you're curious, for breakfast I have 30 grams of chia seeds, a cup of non-fat Greek Yogurt, 30g of protein powder, 8g of creatine and 5 dates.
• This week was exhausting. I raked a total of 11 bags of leaves in the front yard after all the snow melted. The reason I had so many leaves is cause I left them all there from Fall. I thought the leaves would disintegrate and become fertilizer for the soil during Winter but boy…. was I wrong.

✅ Cool Things From This Week:

• Money Tip of the Week: Why you don't need millions to stop working​
• ​The cheapest student loan repayment option just got eliminated. Your bill is going up.​
• ​Gas prices are rising and the White House just said they're not worried. Your wallet should be.​