Winning at Life with Gregory Ricks

A clinic in Scotland is the first in the world to treat an addiction to cryptocurrency. The diagnosis and treatments are based on a similar approach as a gambling addiction, and the comparisons are pretty easy to piece together.

Gregory dismantles a common commercial seen on financial channels. The spot is terribly misleading, probably intentionally so, and Gregory exposes what the commercial conveniently leaves out.


Heather on Facebook asks: Are you supposed to tip the workers who bring your groceries out when you order from the Walmart app? Gregory shares his take on how much to tip and when it's appropriate. Do you always tip the valet? Do you tip when you pick up a take-out order?

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What is the financial impact of ABC's decision to cancel Roseanne? A good lesson here is that in the business world, the wrong tweet or Facebook post can be incredibly damaging.

Italy's financial world gets rocks as their bond markets melt up. Often when your country's bond yields spike up like this, that signals a default of some sort is heading your way. It may already be contributing to our bond rates sliding, as the bond holders who just got scared out of Italy look to park elsewhere.

There's 101 people in America with over $1 million dollars in student loan debt. We share the story of Mike, who borrowed over $600K to get through dental school, and how he got swamped by the math.

Heather calls from Kenner to ask Gregory's advice on how to pay for her daughter's college expenses. How much is too much when it comes to graduate school?

John in Old Jefferson teaches a financial wellness program in Harahan, and shares some guidance on paying down your household debt.

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As the show approaches our 8th anniversary, we reflect on how the show affects Gregory, James, and Angie outside of the studio.

Europe is missing a whole lot of the internet now that the GDPR goes into effect. The European Union has new privacy regulations that will have ridiculous negative consequences across the internet and especially in Europe. Gregory has never shared or sold his email list with anyone.

Gregory reports on a warning about Orajel, although James is highly skeptical about the claims of the warning.

Netflix is now worth more than Disney and Comcast. A company that wasn't even on your radar 20 years ago has now passed the empire founded by Mickey Mouse.

In honor of Memorial Day, Gregory shares some basics of retirement planning for the military.

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A New Jersey man gets sent to prison for cashing his deceased aunt's Social Security checks for 19 years. Gregory explains the process on how to handle some of the financial issues in the death of a loved one. If this guy can get away with it for 19 years, how many other Social Security checks are going out for deceased people? Do we not have better mechanisms to catch this?

Louise in Metairie is past full retirement age for Social Security, and now looking to get the max retirement benefit. When does she have to start the process to turn on Social Security to get the max benefit the first month it's available?

Median household income has jumped to an all-time high in America. It's up over 3% since the election, so how can you maximize the extra income to get your finances together? Gregory recommends you start by making sure you have a solid emergency fund. If you have some overbearing debt you need to get off your shoulders like credit cards, maybe you should pay that down next. Are you getting the full matching on your 401k at work? Perhaps you could start savings with after-tax dollars to balance out your pre-tax retirement savings.

Gregory reports that trade industries are getting so short on skilled workers that some plumbers are now enjoying sweet employee perks like you hear about at Google: a tap with craft beer, an espresso machine, a putting green, and a smoker for brisket lunches.

Trump rattles some cages by calling off the summit with North Korea. Gregory and James immediately recognize Trump is following some of his favorite negotiating tactics he talked about in Art of the Deal.

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Do YOU know when you should turn on your Social Security retirement benefit? People over age 50 scored pretty badly on a Social Security survey, so don't feel bad if you don't know. Gregory explains some of the basics on figuring out when you should turn on Social Security.

Now that the kids are out of school, Eddie in Thibodaux has an extra $10k a year to invest. Eddie asks Gregory how the money should be invested for retirement.

Randy in Mandeville asks Gregory if his wife will get his Social Security benefit after he passes since she was part of the State of Louisiana retirement system. Gregory drops the bad news that she won't get much - if anything - under the Windfall Elimination Provision.

Scott in Ocean Springs, 50 years old, is getting into a Roth IRA. Does Gregory Ricks approve?

Joe in Harahan is in a position where he starts getting an extra $4,800 a month in income. He has not starting saving for retirement, so how can he use this new income to play catch up?

John in Biloxi found some old Savings Bonds. John asks Gregory if he can put those in his IRA somehow?

Jimmy Fallon's advice on being successful is to not think about money, just follow your passion. James thinks that's a horribly shallow view of the world, and that no matter how much everyone wants to follow their passion, someone has to pick up the trash.

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She was fed up with working, and asked Gregory help her retire at the end of the year. Gregory sets up a retirement income plan that's over $50k a year, including Social Security, that will be virtually untaxed. The Guided Planning System shows where she will be financially throughout retirement.

No matter what your age is, go sign up for your Social Security account now at SSA.gov. Setting up your account and password will prevent scammers from setting one up and exploiting your record.

More than half the country doesn't know what to do with their own 401k when it's retirement time. Gregory shares some ways to maximize the abilities of the assets in your 401k, and how to turn it into income streams.

Tesla stock takes a hit after Consumer Reports' low rating of the Model S. Elon Musk vows to fix the braking distance issue with a firmware update. It will be the first time a line of cars could be improved without touching them, according to Consumer Reports.

The new Fortune 500 list comes out ranking the top 500 companies by revenue: Walmart wins! Amazon joins the top 10, while Ford falls out of the top 10. Sears is closing 40 more stores this summer.

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What happens if the rules on your employer's retirement plan don't match up with the rules of a regular 401k or IRA? Gregory explains how to tell which rule applies to your situation.

The proportion of people over 65 still in the workforce is booming. Much of it is because we are healthier, maybe we need the money, and also because employers can't live without the experience Boomers bring to the table. So what's evolving is an increase in flexible schedules, working from home, and working less hours.

What do you do when your deceased uncle named you as a beneficiary on his IRA? Charlie in Covington asks Gregory for guidance. Gregory reminds Charlie to check if there's a Required Minimum Distribution owed, and offers some options on how to take the money.

Gregory and James review more of PT Barnum's rules from the Art of Money Getting. Living below your means, and being healthy are timeless advice, and Gregory adds in some advice of his own.

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Gregory's flight had an aborted landing at the New Orleans airport, and they had to go wait out the bad weather in Jackson. It's a pretty harrowing experience, but the airline seemed to handle it OK.

PT Barnum's financial advice from the 1880s stands the test of time well. Gregory and James discuss some of the timeless pieces of financial guidance, starting with: live below your means.

JB in Covington calls in and asks Gregory what all info she needs to have to get him to make her a financial plan. She's working with Wes and Jude of the Total Wealth Authority, and needs Gregory's services as well.

Gregory expands on PT Barnum's advice railing against smoking tobacco and drinking alcohol. It sounds like health advice, but Barnum warns about poor health above choosing the correct vocation.

Barnum also warns against buying things on credit and getting into personal debt.

Jude Heath, CPA of the Total Wealth Authority, chats with Gregory about how to handle the IRS when you get behind on your taxes. The tax resolution commercials you hear on the radio and see on TV aren't a total scam, but there's better ways to go about cleaning up your tax record, and there's no substitute for having your own CPA.

Jude Heath breaks down the financial dilemna created by the wedding of Prince Harry to the American Megan Markle. The royal family has been steadfast about keeping their financial details under wraps, but American law may get the IRS in the Queen's business. Plus, things could really get complicated if she's still an American citizen when they start having kids.

Jude responds to the story of the financial professional who messed up the Required Minimum Distribution from her own IRA.

The Supreme Court strikes down a ban on sports betting, making it legal in Mississippi! Before the decision to allow sports betting came down, MS had already passed the legislation necessary, and Gulf Coast casinos could be taking bets by football season. This could be a game changer for the Mississippi Coast.

Robert in Slidell asks Gregory if his wife is eligible to draw off of his work record, or hers, and which should she use?

Eric in Biloxi wants to know if his wife's spousal Social Security benefit is correct, because the amount is not half the size of his check.

John in Marrero is a widower, and asks Gregory if he can draw from the widow's benefit while his Social Security record grows.

Larry in Marrero asks Gregory for some idea on how he could transfer a piece of property to his son.

Kenneth in Biloxi asks Gregory about how the math looks when you turn on Social Security early. Gregory walks through the numbers, but also reminds Kenneth that the larger benefit could help out his wife after he's gone.

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How much does it REALLY cost to own a home in retirement? While it can be nice to have your home paid off in retirement, it may be better to have the cash on hand instead of plowing it into your house.

An expert advisor on retirement planning admits to messing up her own distributions from her IRA. When it was time for Required Minimum Distributions, she opted for a Qualified Charitable Distribution option, but when all of the checks don't find their targets, problems start.

Someone leaves a busted up Maclaren in the Nevada desert. It had been part of a cross country supercar rally. If someone is walking away from a $300k car like that, they are living in a completely different world than the rest of us.

Meet the father of the offshore oil industry: Doc Laborde.

Is early retirement really worth financial hit? Gregory and James review a few scenarios that could help your money last if you decide to retire early. Cutting expenses and getting even a small income from a passion project can be the boost you need to stop working early.

Gregory gives the real truth behind Peak Gold, and explains how history and technology show that we still have a long way to go. Gold mining reality shows are an interesting display of how technology has changed the gold industry, and most of the gold above ground today has been extracted in the last 50 years.

Jim in Baton Rouge asks Gregory if he's ready to retire. Giving his current assets versus his standard of living, retiring now at age 57 is pretty close, but working five more years would really put him in a safer situation.

Gregory and James welcome the new sponsor on Winning at Life: Spectacular Tubers! Spectacular Tubers is a chain of restaurants that specializes in baked potatoes and sandwiches, with a few locations from Baton Rouge, Grammercy, and Gonzales. SpectacularTubers.com.

A man with early dementia is reportedly robbed of over a million dollars by his caretaker-relative and a crooked insurance salesman. Gregory suspects that while no financial safeguards are 100% foolproof, you can sure prevent a lot of financial abuse with proper legal structuring and well designed trusts.

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