Episode Overview

Podcast: Travis Makes Money
Host: Travis Chappell (with producer Eric Skorzinski)
Episode: Make Money with Purchases That Will Change Your Life
Date: November 9, 2025

In this engaging episode, Travis Chappell and his producer Eric Skorzinski dive into a rapid-fire Q&A focusing on purchases—good, bad, regrettable, life-changing, and everything in between. The discussion aims to spotlight how our money habits and decisions around purchases reveal our mindset, impact our future, and sometimes even trigger powerful life lessons. With characteristic humor and candor, Travis shares personal stories about houses, cars (including a wild tale about a wheel falling off), investing missteps, and the value of spending on health, experiences, and generosity.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. The Best and Most Impactful Purchases

Best Purchase Ever Made

• Main choice: Travis’s house—a practical and profitable purchase with a good rate, mother-in-law suite for rental, and a promising investment.
• Honorable mention: Anker portable chargers for their innovative dual-function as a wall and portable charger.

  “You plug them into the wall like a regular charger, but also the block itself acts as a portable charger... those are cool.” —Travis (02:01)

Small Purchase, Big Impact

• Travis humorously skips, unable to recall a small purchase with significant impact on the spot.

2. Expensive Regrets and Painful Lessons

Most Expensive Mistake

• Investing in high-risk ventures instead of sticking to tried and true stock market strategies, leading to near six-figure losses.

  “If I just put that money in the markets... it probably would be a little bit over double... if I would just put it in the markets at that time.” —Travis (03:41)

Immediate Regret Purchase

• A used, lifted Toyota Tundra truck bought after a car accident; the wheel fell off days later, leading to immediate buyer’s remorse and a near-disastrous incident.

  “The front left, like driver side wheel just fell off of the truck. And so the entire truck just like... cut into the asphalt right there...” —Travis (08:00)

3. Money Mindset Shifts

Changes in Spending Habits

• No longer spends heavily on travel, shifting to flying podcast guests in rather than traveling himself. Parenthood also shifted priorities and costs.

  “Now it’s like I fly people to me... Because it just takes way too much time and energy for me to go out for three days...” —Travis (10:49)

Most Meaningful Money Spent on Others

• Recounts a formative high school experience, paying for friends at Starbucks—learning firsthand the non-material value of financial generosity.

  “There is lots of other reasons to have money besides just what it can do for me... it feels so good to be able to help people...” —Travis (13:20)

Purchase Before Affordability and Do You Regret It?

• Aside from the infamous truck, has rarely overreached personally, except sometimes on travel. Never regrets spending on experiences.

4. Investments Beyond Finances

Non-Financial Best Investment: Health

• Investing consistent time in health and fitness, finally breaking destructive “yo-yo diet” cycles. This change has profoundly affected all aspects of life.

  “I just invested... to figure out what is the actual thing I’m going to be able to do that allows me to enjoy the things I still enjoy...” —Travis (17:01)

Producer Eric Jokes:

• Teases Travis about cooking, fitness sabotage, and McDonald’s cookies:

  “Both you and your wife are, I would say, decent cooks...it feels like anytime I eat with you guys, you’re trying to sabotage me...” —Eric (19:26)

5. Life-Altering Purchases and New Eras

Purchase Marking a ‘New Era’

• First investment in a coach and a podcast mastermind, around $11k, at a time when money was tight. Marked a deep identity shift—“I am someone who invests in myself.”

  “It did definitely shift my identity to, like, I am somebody who invests in myself...” —Travis (21:03)

6. Dream Purchases if Money Was No Object

Practical & Aspirational Choices

• First instinct: Buy a top cash-flow real estate asset for lifelong income.

  “I would buy the best cash flowing asset that I could find in a day and I would pay cash...” —Travis (22:15)

For Fun/Frivolity:

• “Probably a jet.” More practical than a yacht—not a “boat person.”

  “I am not, I’m not a yacht guy... I would choose the jet over the yacht.” —Travis (23:05)

• Eric references Taylor Swift, who famously uses private jets for short hop flights, weaving in pop culture humor.

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• On Instant Regret (and Luck):
  “My second immediate thought was, I could have died... I’m so so so lucky that this happened in a parking lot and not on a busy road or god forbid the freaking freeway...” —Travis (07:59)

• On Helping Others:
  “It was selfless at first, but it became super selfish, you know, because it feels so good to be able to help people out...” —Travis (13:20)

• On Investing in Self-Identity:
  “I am somebody who invests in myself, and that has been something that served me long term.” —Travis (21:03)

• On Health as High-Leverage Investment:
  “Health is absolutely it. Because it affects everything, man. Affects your energy, affects how you feel, affects your confidence...” —Travis (18:35)

Timestamps for Important Segments

• Best Purchase Ever: 02:01
• Expensive Mistake in Investing: 03:41
• Immediate Regret: The Truck Story: 04:20–10:26
• Changes in Spending (No more travel): 10:49
• Giving Money—Formative Experience: 12:31–14:20
• Non-financial Investment (Health): 16:48–19:26
• Purchases Marking a New Era (Mastermind/Coach): 21:03
• What Would You Buy If Money Didn’t Matter?: 21:52–23:44
• Taylor Swift Jet Reference: 23:44–24:41

Tone, Flow, and Takeaways

The episode is dynamic, informal, and anecdote-rich—with Travis and Eric’s playful back-and-forth making financial wisdom both accessible and enjoyable. Travis’ stories often spiral from humor into genuinely useful advice, underscoring that money isn’t just about restriction or reckless spending, but leveraging what you have to create opportunities, stability, health, and value for others.

Key Takeaway:
It’s less about what you buy and more about how a purchase—big or small—aligns with your values, enables growth, or unlocks the freedom to live and give generously.