Author: Kyle Burbank
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Earning My First (Real) Banking Bonus — Or How I Made $400
Over the years, I’ve managed to score a surprising amount of free money. Mostly, what I’m thinking of are some very generous bonuses I’ve earned from FinTech apps while they’ve been in their “throw VC money at people to acquire customers” phase. Yet, my most recent bonus win was not only among the most lucrative…
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Travel Tuesday: The Increasingly Complicated World of Disney Parks Bookings
Once upon a time, visiting Disneyland or Walt Disney World was pretty straightforward: you’d buy tickets for the parks (or paid an entry fee and bought a ticket book if you’re really old school), show up, and wait in line for the rides you wanted to experience. Well, those days are long gone. First, there…
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YouTube Has Lowered Its Thresholds for Monetization (Sort Of)
The YouTube Partner Program (YPP) is changing once again. Specifically, the video site is lowering the requirement, allowing more creators to join sooner — but there’s a bit of a catch. Let’s start with the basics. Now, those with at least 500 subscribers and who have made at least 3 valid public uploads within the…
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What I Learned From Making YouTube Shorts for 30 Days in a Row
Last fall, I wrote about my experience making my very first YouTube Short. After crafting those initial few Shorts, I largely gave up on the format for whatever reason. But, when fellow creator Jeff Rose suggested a 30 Day Shorts Challenge, I decided to take him up on the idea. So, from May 22nd through…
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Delta’s SkyMiles Credit Cards are Now Offering Enhanced Bonuses
Next week, summer 2023 will officially begin. In turn, millions of Americans will be soaking up the sun and setting off on fun-filled vacations. So, to capitalize on this travel moment, Delta and American Express have rolled out new welcome bonuses for a number of their co-branded cards. Now, new Delta SkyMiles cardmember can earn…
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Travel Tuesday: Even More Extended Stay Hotel Brands Are Coming
A couple of months ago, I wrote about Hyatt’s plans to launch a new imprint called Hyatt Studios. This brand — which the company bills as its first “upper-midscale” concept — is meant to appeal to extended-stay travelers and, in turn, will include such features as a full-sized fridge, multi-function convection microwaves, stovetop burners, and…
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With Another Price Increase, Is CLEAR Still Worth It?
In 2021, the American Express Platinum Card was revamped — a change that came with a number of new perks but also a hike in annual fee. Among the numerous additions was an annual credit for CLEAR. This wasn’t completely unexpected as, by that time, the Green Card had also been relaunched and featured a…
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MasterClass Actually Lowered Its Subscription Price
The world of streaming entertainment has been incredibly frustrating as of late. For all of the mockery the move from HBO Max to just Max got, the story that sticks out to me is the fact that Disney+ just purged a bunch of their original content — meaning that great shows like Prop Culture and…
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Travel Tuesday: I Kickstarted a New Travel Product
Over the years, Kickstarter has had an interesting trajectory. While it was originally associated with art projects such as independent films (including some that were criticized for using the site to raise money when the creators were perceived as having the ability to self-finance… whether or not that was actually true) and musical albums, it…
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Starbucks’ Summer Game is Back and You Could Score Free Stars
I feel as though I’m kind of going back to my roots with this week’s Quick Tip: discussing a new Starbucks promotion. If you’re newer to my site, pre-pandemic, my wife and I would go to Starbucks every weekend as a means of hanging out with our favorite baristas, enjoying some breakfast, and catching up…
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Cutting Your Loses: My Brokerage Battle and How I Finally Fixed It
Late last year, word came down that the app Bumped — which allowed customers to earn stock in the companies they made purchases from — was shutting down. As bummed as I was at the time, it turns out that this announcement would only be the start of my troubles. Let me explain. After learning…
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Travel Tuesday: Understanding Chase’s New Sapphire Lounge
When Chase announced that it was opening a number of airport lounges in partnership with The Club, there were several questions I and others had. At the top of the list, with The Club being a staple of Priority Pass membership, it seemed fair to assume that those with Priority Pass — including those who gained…
