Women's Money Wisdom

Episode 272: First-Class Travel on an Economy Budget with Points Pro Bry Keith

• Melissa Joy, CFP® • Season 4 • Episode 272

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Ever wondered how people afford champagne and lie-flat seats at 35,000 feet?


 Hint: It's not always their wallet—it's their credit card strategy.

In this episode, Melissa Joy, CFP®, sits down with travel pro and entrepreneur Bry Keith to reveal how to turn everyday spending into extraordinary travel experiences using credit card points. Bry shares how she went from corporate finance and tech to helping clients fly business class for pennies on the dollar—sometimes squeezing 5–10x more value out of their points.

You’ll learn:
 ✈️ The #1 mistake most travelers make when using points (and how to avoid it)
💳 How to build a card portfolio with “main dishes” and “side dishes” for max value
🏨 Ways to elevate your entire trip—lounge access, hotel upgrades, TSA PreCheck, and more
🌈 Special travel tips for LGBTQ+ travelers navigating safety and inclusivity abroad
🚀 What it’s really like to leave corporate life and build a business around your passion

Whether you’re points-curious or already deep in the rewards game, this episode will help you travel smarter, better, and often—without breaking the bank.

🎧 Ready to level up your travel game?
Listen now to unlock the secrets of luxury travel on a budget.
#WomensMoneyWisdom #TravelHacks #CreditCardPoints #SmartTravel #FinancialFreedom #LuxuryForLess


Resources: 

Website: https://www.bryguides.com/

1:1 Consult Tool: https://www.bryguides.com/pointsconsulting

Points Deal Finder Tool: https://www.bryguides.com/pointsdeals

MasterClass: https://www.bryguides.com/masterclasslaunch

Connect: IG & FaceBook 

The previous presentation by PEARL PLANNING was intended for general information purposes only. No portion of the presentation serves as the receipt of, or as a substitute for, personalized investment advice from PEARL PLANNING or any other investment professional of your choosing. Different types of investments involve varying degrees of risk, and it should not be assumed that future performance of any specific investment or investment strategy, or any non-investment related or planning services, discussion or content, will be profitable, be suitable for your portfolio or individual situation, or prove successful. Neither PEARL PLANNING’s investment adviser registration status, nor any amount of prior experience or success, should be construed that a certain level of results or satisfaction will be achieved if PEARL PLANNING is engaged, or continues to be engaged, to provide investment advisory services. PEARL PLANNING is neither a law firm nor accounting firm, and no portion of its services should be construed as legal or accounting advice. No portion of the video content should be construed by a client or prospective client as a guarantee that he/she will experience a certain level of results if PEARL PLANNING is engaged, or continues to be engaged, to provide investment advisory services. A copy of PEARL PLANNING’s current written disclosure Brochure discussing our advisory services and fees is available upon request or at https:...

Melissa Joy :

Welcome to the Women's Money Wisdom Podcast. I'm Melissa Joy, a certified financial planner and the founder of Pearl Planning. My goal is to help you streamline and organize your finances, navigate big money decisions with confidence and be strategic in order to grow your wealth. As a woman, you work hard for your money and I'm here to help you make the most of it. Now let's get into the show. And I'm here to help you make the most of it. Now let's get into the show. Just a quick note before we dive in.

Melissa Joy :

The information that we share is meant to educate and inspire, not serve as personalized financial advice. Everyone's situation is unique, so be sure to consult with your own financial professional for guidance that fits your life. And just so you know, the opinions shared in this podcast are my own and those of my guests, and they don't necessarily represent those of any organizations that I'm affiliated with. For more important disclosures, please go to our webpage at pearlplancom. Now let's get started. How do you have the best summer travel, get the best summer travel deals? How do you travel with your financial hat on? That is what we're going to be covering today. I've got a great guest. I'm joined by Bri Keith, who is the founder of Bri Guides, a travel concierge service that helps people turn points and miles into premium travel. After a decade in New York City working in finance and tech, he now travels the world while helping clients save thousands and use their points to explore the world in comfort. Bri, welcome to the podcast.

Bry Keith :

Thank you so much for having me, Melissa. I'm so excited to be here.

Melissa Joy :

Well, I can't wait to have this discussion. Full disclosure. I like traveling in comfort. It's probably because I, you know, kind of grew up doing due diligence trips and financial, you know, like on other people's dime, and I learned that luxury does feel a little different. So I can't wait to hear how to keep somewhat of a budget in mind as you kind of upgrade your travel experience.

Bry Keith :

It certainly does. And I think once you get a taste of what it's like up at the front, it's hard to go back. And you know what I do and what I help clients do is help unlock those luxury experience with the credit card points they already have. And oftentimes very small tweaks in your strategy and where you're spending and then how you're redeeming those points can unlock those types of experiences for less than you're already spending on just booking economy.

Melissa Joy :

Well, this is perfect, because I think people often well, first question is should I do the travel point? Credit cards? And I think it depends. If you're just looking for the very least cost for your credit cards, then that may not be the best option because there is often an annual fee. But what do you tell people when they start with that question, even before we get to the points themselves and how to maximize them?

Bry Keith :

Yeah, so if you are, it depends on your goals, right? So every person is going to come with different, you know goals and objectives, but if you are going to want to turn your credit card points into the most, and particularly into luxury travel, I would certainly you know recommend going with one of those travel-based credit cards. And while they do have annual fees oftentimes, a lot of these cards will have different types of credits or redemptions that make those fees worth it very, very quickly. And I particularly recommend ones where you can have those points and then transfer those points to external partners and most of those. That's where you're going to really start to unlock the most value from these credit card points and rewards. Those cards are usually going to have an annual fee associated.

Melissa Joy :

Well, and here's one point is I know the credit card companies in their engagements and cooperation with the point kind of dealers, let's say they know that a lot of us are kind of not engaged or not as proactive, so they're making money first of all because, not everybody pays their credit card statement off at the end of every month.

Melissa Joy :

One of the things I say when people ask about points is like are you able to pay it off Because being motivated to put more on your cards? If you can't, let's talk about it after. We figure that part out, and you need to take a break from those points getting. Once you go there, though, you need to understand how to use the points, because I assume that there is inflation when it comes to the points as well as with our currency. Is that right?

Bry Keith :

That's absolutely correct. So every year you know programs, look at flights and how things are and you know what it takes to book. The same experience goes up in the number of points each year. So I usually recommend to people you know if you have something you're thinking about, do not hoard your points right, because next year and in years down the road it's going to cost a lot more points to unlock the same experience that you're doing right now at that same level of points.

Melissa Joy :

Yeah, it'll cost more points. The prices go up and, with some of those you know, kind of engaging, moving around the points but also taking your benefits and using them, you need to know what those benefits are first. Right, like you've got to read the fine print. How do you recommend people do that?

Bry Keith :

I think it really depends on what is going to give you the ultimate return on happiness for you personally.

Bry Keith :

Right, some people are going to really get excited about, you know, sitting at the front of the plane and being in business class.

Bry Keith :

Other people are going to want to turn those points into. You know, maybe luxury hotel stays, and what you know I help my clients do is basically figure out you know what are the goals that you have, right, and then let's get you in the right strategy that's going to support those goals. So, for someone that wants to earn, you know, points that they put towards hotels, there are certain credit cards and transfer alliances that we're going to want to have that person earning points in. That's going to help them unlock that. For someone that wants to do that with flights, we're going to want to be strategic about where they're flying from and which airlines are their kind of preferred airlines, so that they're earning points sort of in those areas as well, so that when it comes time to redeem those points, we have those kind of transfer windows open so that they can get the most bang for their buck from their points and, ultimately, the type of experience that they're going to want to have.

Melissa Joy :

Perfect. So this I already. I'm thinking, ok, what's most important to me? I mean, all things being equal, luxury across the board sounds amazing, but if you're one of those people who's like I, can be packed in like a sardine on the flight because it's just eight hours, but I really want to maximize the look and feel and neighborhood of the location I'm staying in. These are kind of self-reflective questions that you should assess over time, right?

Bry Keith :

Absolutely, and I think you know as a rule of thumb, you know there are going to be slight tweaks in your strategy, but the overall strategy I would say for most people, if they want to earn credit card points right that they can put towards travel, is to start earning points in what I would call a transferable points currency, and so some of the big ones that you would think about would be Amex, chase, capital, one, built Rewards those are some of the more popular ones Citi as well, and that's going to give you just more flexibility and options when it comes time to redeem those points.

Melissa Joy :

So you're not starting with the brand of either the airline or the hotel.

Bry Keith :

Instead, you're starting with a flexible kind of identity in terms of the brand, yeah, and the way I kind of think about your strategy and an analogy that I use are kind of like your main dishes and your side dishes, right.

Bry Keith :

So for your main dishes, where you're doing most of your spending and the cards you're putting that on, it makes sense to have that in a transferable points currency, particularly if you're not 100% sure on your strategy.

Bry Keith :

Right, because then you have options to transfer those points to different airlines or to different hotels or use them right kind of in your credit cards tool. Then the side dishes if you know you live in, let's say, newark, new Jersey, right, and that is a United hub, then we're going to want to, you know, maybe open cards that are going to have you know the right benefits or the right perks. Maybe you know you want free check bag and opening like a United credit card that might get you that option as well free check bag and opening like a United credit card that might get you that option as well. So it's thinking about what are the perks that matter to you and then aligning you know cards with the right lounge access cards with you know the right transfer partnerships to those things so that you can get ultimately, the type of travel day that you, that you, would like.

Melissa Joy :

So I am about 40 minutes from the Detroit Metro Airport and there's two different terminals. One is the Delta terminal and I will not fly on the other airlines unless it's an emergency, because there's just a different experience there. But then that would be a side dish like Delta priority. But we also need that transferability, is that right?

Bry Keith :

Yeah, and Delta is a really interesting use case too because you know it's one of the best you know airlines in the United States. For sure I think they have a really premium.

Bry Keith :

you know quality of service and earning and redeeming Delta points is really great, but Delta does tend to be priced a lot higher than their competitors, particularly in the point space.

Bry Keith :

So a lot of folks come to me, you know, with Delta branded credit cards and then when it comes time to book a trip to Europe, they might not have enough points to do that, whereas if they had instead had the same amount of points in Amex which is, you know, a Delta partner, right, we can then transfer those points from Amex to Delta or to a dozen other airlines.

Bry Keith :

And some of the times you know, if you're wanting to fly, let's say, from Detroit business class to France, right on Delta, that's going to cost a couple hundred thousand points. But if we take, if we have points in Amex instead, we can transfer those points to Air France or another kind of carrier and book that for usually under 100,000 points. So the value that you get from having points in a transferable points currency can really unlock a lot more luxury rewards when it comes time to finally book. But that's where that card strategy matters, and making sure that you're earning points in a place where A it's flexible to transfer out and then B can get you the rewards that you particularly want.

Melissa Joy :

Now you're saying transfer. You're not going shopping on the actual rewards page for the Amex card or like I have at Chase Rewards business line, where it's like generic rewards. You're actually transferring them to the place that you're going to be purchasing and then shopping. Is that correct?

Bry Keith :

Yeah. So there's a couple different ways to think about this, right? So the first thing that we want to do is we want to optimize how we are earning our points right, and that's making sure that we're in the right cards and that we're optimizing our spend based on, you know, this card might get three X on restaurants, so we want to be using that card there Right. Then it comes time to redeem the points. So we've been good, we open up the right cards, we got the sign on bonuses, we're doing a great job, you know, earning lots of points. We have hundreds of thousands of points and it's time to book. This is where it comes time to redeem the points Right, and this brings us to a common mistake that people are making.

Bry Keith :

And now there's obviously exceptions to this, but the common mistake that people are making is actually booking directly in their credit cards tool. So now, sometimes this makes sense. This makes sense usually for domestic flight purchases. You know you mentioned in Chase Chase has pretty good rewards in terms of when you're booking with one of those cards. Usually you get 1.25 or 1.5X if you have a you know you mentioned in Chase, chase has pretty good rewards in terms of when you're booking with one of those cards. Usually you get 1.25 or 1.5 X if you have a, you know, a Chase Sapphire card. But where you're going to get the most bang for your buck, particularly on longer haul or international flights, is by taking the points from your credit card provider and transferring them out to external partners.

Bry Keith :

So, this is where I help clients a lot, right, because usually you can get you know two, three, four, five. I've helped people get over 10X their points value by doing this one step right. And so what is going to happen? If you book in your credit cards tool, it's going to be tethered to that cash price, right?

Bry Keith :

And so let's maybe use an example right, let's go back to that. And so let's maybe use an example. Right, let's go back to that. You're flying to France and you want to fly in business class. Well, a business class flight to France is going to be, you know, let's say, $3,000, $5,000, right, round trip, all things in. So if you would book that in your Chase or your Amex tool, that would be 300,000 or 500,000 points right, because it's tethered to that dollar amount. Now, if you would take those same points and transfer them to Air France and book directly with Air France, you're often going to find that that price is significantly lower. Again, you can routinely find those for less than 100,000 points. So if you are transferring out and booking for 100,000 points, what would have cost three or 500,000 points? You're getting three to five extra points value just by doing this one step when you redeem your points. And these are the deals that I'm an expert in finding in and help clients find all the time.

Melissa Joy :

Okay, I'm ready to hire you. So when people are ready for that trip they've got it all laid out. They've also been collecting their points. What do you end up doing? Are you like logging in with them, giving them a list of instructions, shopping on their behalf? Or how does the travel concierge work his magic?

Bry Keith :

Yeah, so there's. There's two different things that I do that are my main kind of business objectives. First, if you're new to credit card points and miles, you're not really sure where to start. You want to just get on the phone and chat with me I do, you know. One on one consultations where we figure out what the right strategy for you is right. What are the travel goals that you are wanting to optimize for? Are they, you know, luxury? Are they, you know, volume? Where are you living? Because all of these things are going to impact the strategy.

Bry Keith :

Then, once you have and have earned all of those points that you, you know, want to use and then put towards travel and you say, all right, we're ready, we're going to France, let's do it, or Italy, or wherever may be, all you do is there's a form on my website and you just go in and you fill out that form and you enter your date, destination and points balance, and then what I will do is I will go out and scour all the different channels, because sometimes these deals can be a little tricky to find Right because you're looking at a lot of different programs.

Bry Keith :

There are some aggregator tools, but it's a little bit confusing, particularly if you're not well versed in the space. So what I help clients and customers do especially people that are just busy, that don't have the time to learn how to do this I help, I go out and I just find the best possible deal and then I circle back, give them a few options and ultimately together coach them how to move the points and then transfer and book this flight for a much better deal.

Melissa Joy :

That's money well spent. I love the concept because if you're just doing, you know, one trip A feels intimidating. Also, the level of complexity, the degree of difficulty at least for my own self-interest, sounds like it's well worth paying for a service. Yeah, so many cases we evaluate that and say pay for it please.

Bry Keith :

Yeah, and look, and if people want to learn too, I have a whole masterclass that I built that has 12 hours of content that you can learn everything that I know. If you want to, you know, spend and invest the time. That's certainly something that you know people can do as well if you're interested. But I find, particularly for the concierge service, these are, you know, busy people that understand the value of their time and they look at how many hours that they are going to spend digging into and looking for and finding a good deal on a trip and realizing that with what their hours are worth, these are busy professionals. These are business owners. These are people that just know the value of their time and know that it's better spent on other things and also want to just book with confidence, knowing that they're going to get the best possible deal when it comes time to travel that is so valuable for a large subset of people.

Melissa Joy :

I think people are often told you know, with travel we used to have travel agents and professionals that typically booked because it was you know you couldn't just log in. Professionals that typically booked because it was you know you couldn't just log in. And nowadays it's more difficult to see where those travel professionals are. But they're out there and they certainly bring value in areas like this.

Bry Keith :

Yeah, and it's been interesting, right, you know, with the age of the internet, you know there's been a lot of changes right, and now we have all of this information sort of at our fingertips, and so what has sort of gone the other way now is that how do you cut through all of that noise when it comes time to plan a trip or find a deal or things like that, and so that's an area where you know working with people that are experts in certain parts of the field can help you kind of cut through the noise of the endless amounts of information that we're constantly drinking through a firehose whenever we log online to try to figure something out ourselves.

Melissa Joy :

Well, since you're an expert on luxury travel, do you have any suggestions on ways to enhance your experience beyond the initial booking of the flight and booking of lodging? Are there other ways you can upgrade your experience that people may be missing out on if they're just kind of taking the standard travel planning route there, ways you can upgrade your experience that people may be missing out on if they're just, you know, kind of taking the standard travel planning route?

Bry Keith :

yeah, absolutely. I think the biggest way that you can really improve the quality of your travel is just by opening the right cards, right and so there's a handful of cards that are going to get you really robust um rewards, um, particularly in the luxury perk space.

Bry Keith :

So, like, like what I would consider maybe one of the top perks, so that one would be the Amex Platinum. And so there's a bunch of other cards that have these kind of perks as well. But, like the Amex Platinum, you're going to unlock, you know, lounge access right, which is going to, you know, every time you're at an airport and if you're flying out of you know Detroit, you're going to have access to that. You know Delta lounge. You know, with, with that card, when you get to the airport, you know that card is going to also give you TSA pre check included.

Bry Keith :

You're going to have a clear membership so you're not going to have to take your laptops out or your shoes off. You're going to zip through security pretty quickly. You're going to go to the lounge. You're not going to be sitting there paying, you know, $30 for the worst airport sandwich you've ever had in your entire life. There is going to be a full, delicious buffet of food and free flowing champagne.

Bry Keith :

If you're at JFK, there is a speakeasy bar where you get, like, an espresso martini with the 1855, the year Amex was founded, like on there. So and the thing is is once you have a card like this and once you have that like if the other week I was flying somewhere and my flight got canceled, right, there was a technical issue on the aircraft and you know they're like sorry, like we're going to have to put you on the next flight and so I was able to rebook very quickly, because another pro tip always travel with whatever airline you're on their airline app downloaded on your phone, because the moment they announced that I logged into the phone, change the flight done before, before I even got off the plane.

Bry Keith :

But then I was like, all right, well, now I have three hours to kill. What, what shall I do? And it's like, okay, I'll go to the lounge where there's free food and, you know, free alcohol, right, so it takes, when bad things happen, you're just sitting in a level of comfort, right. And then a lot of complimentary things as well, and so, like the MX Platinum for example, you'll get automatic gold status at Hilton and Marriott, right, and so at Hilton, that means like an upgrade, oftentimes, right, and that means you know better treatment when it comes time to, you know, show up at the property. So these simple things like just opening a card and you know shifting spend accordingly across them and having the right cards that are going to ultimately help you, kind of build this.

Melissa Joy :

I lost you for a second. I'm sorry. We have a thunderstorm coming through here, but it's recording on your end, so we would have lost what you said.

Bry Keith :

I think it's okay, but if you need me to say anything, I can restate it.

Melissa Joy :

No, no, that's perfect, but we'll pick it up from here. Um, so I want to pivot for a moment and you specialize in travel advice for LGBTQ clients. You specialize in travel advice for LGBTQ clients. Can you talk to the differences and considerations that may be? You know kind of need to be on your mind or want to be on your mind when you work with your niche clientele?

Bry Keith :

Yeah, absolutely. So. You know I am a member of the LGBTQ plus community. I absolutely love the tight knit community that we are all over the world. But unfortunately, you know, in today's political climate, you know there are a lot of challenges and considerations that us LGBTQ plus folks need to consider that you know our. You know counterparts that maybe are not a member of the community don't need to think about.

Bry Keith :

There are many, many countries, dozens of countries around the world where it is illegal to be gay, that you could be thrown in jail, you could be, in some cases, put to death, right just by being who you are. So, understanding the implications, you know, are the laws friendly? Is it okay to be? You know, out and myself, and you know, if you're traveling with a partner, is it okay to hold hands in public? Are we putting ourselves at risk? Is, and you know, if you're traveling with a partner, is it okay to hold hands in public? Are we putting ourselves at risk? Is there, you know, a potential risk of safety? These are all kind of considerations that you know us LGBTQ plus folks need to be thinking about when it comes time to, you know, book, travel and go to certain destinations. So it's constantly something that you know is important to understand, and you know I travel quite a bit, you know for the type of work that I do, and so I get to experience on the ground.

Bry Keith :

You know how things are, how safe I felt. You know how you know the local laws kind of impact, you know how you're able to kind of be free and express yourself, and so these types of considerations do really matter. You know, for you know clients in this space as well and something that you know we constantly need to be thinking about, you know when it comes time to book trips, and also at home too.

Melissa Joy :

Yeah, I'm sorry that it's necessary to have such vigilance, but also appreciate for the people I care about and the Pearl Planning community that there are resources like yours that are able to talk about both how to be safe but also how to have the best experience.

Bry Keith :

Yeah, I think you know what we're seeing is. You know there's a lot of things going on right now in the political sphere as well, but I think the hospitality industry as a whole has been very, you know, open and welcoming. You know of the LGBTQ plus community and I look at a lot of like the large, you know, us based chains and they have, you know, remained firm in their commitment and support of, you know, these diverse diversity and inclusion programs.

Melissa Joy :

So you know, I've noticed that as well.

Bry Keith :

Yeah, so you know that's that's a positive trend. I think you know that, for and we'll continue to monitor the space as time goes by.

Melissa Joy :

Excellent. Well, you have transitioned from a financial career to doing this travel, concierge, advice and, dare I say, creator content as well, full time. Tell me about that transition and how did you think the career would be? And and how is it like? What's the perception versus reality when it comes to your entrepreneurship?

Bry Keith :

Yeah. So maybe I'll go back and explain a little bit about my past. So I I went to college, I studied, you know, finance, accounting and German actually. So I spent a little bit of time living and working in Europe and Germany and that's where I really kind of caught the travel bug and worked for, you know, large corporations. I helped two organizations go public.

Bry Keith :

I spent a decade living and working in New York City, you know, working in finance and corporate finance, which was an amazing time and experience in my life. I really enjoyed that. But I always had this nagging, you know, bug and passion for travel. And so I was, you know, working really, really hard, spending a lot of hours. You know, new York is a it's a pressure cooker right, and so, you know, in that space I was traveling a lot to kind of just take a break and take a breather, and so in doing so, new York's expensive right.

Bry Keith :

So I became an expert in these programs out of necessity, so just to fuel my own travels and lifestyles, like, okay, I bet there's a way I can do this and save money. And so I became obsessed with points, programs, finding great deals, and after doing that I started helping friends, right, and the turning point came when a group of friends and I wanted to visit South America. Right, we were going to go to Patagonia, buenos Aires and Rio de Janeiro for Carnival, and the flights are going to the flights that we wanted the flight path, because we all had to get back for work. We're going to be really expensive. It was going to be like $2,000. And I was like wait a minute, I bet I can find us a better deal, because the trip almost got canceled. Oh, no, yeah. And so then you know, fortunately I was able to find a really great deal.

Bry Keith :

I was like, hey, does everyone have like 30 40,000, like chase or Amex points? And they're like, yeah, so I'm like jump on a conference call, we're gonna book it right now. And so I walk everyone through it. We booked the things and then they're like wait a minute, like how did we do that? I feel like I just stole this flight.

Bry Keith :

Smart, right, we are optimizing for how we can get the most bang for buck or value of our points and in that particular deal, I think we got four or five x the value versus booking in our card school, which would have been, you know, for that particular example, two thousand dollars would have been like two hundred thousand points, um, so yeah, you know, and such that, you know, I asked them, you know, is this something that you would like be interested in, like, would you pay for the service? And they're like, absolutely. And then when they told you know what they would pay or what they thought the service was worth, I was like, oh, my goodness, like we have a business here and so, yeah, very, it was very exciting stuff. And then it's been like a really interesting kind of fun journey right of you know, building up the, the processes right.

Bry Keith :

And I would say, you know, entrepreneurship is hard, right, there's a period where you're kind of like balancing, you know, your your normal work and then your kind of side hustle work, and that is a really intense, challenging part of life. And I think, you know, fortunately for me, you know, I had a lot of traction, you know pretty quickly and was able to kind of like make the decide, to make the move, and you know that has afforded me a lot of really amazing opportunities to, you know, be a little more mobile and travel and have some kind of more flexibility. I would say the the challenging thing is when, when you are an entrepreneur and kind of on your own, there's no one telling you what to do, so you have to be very motivated.

Bry Keith :

You have to work, you know, really, really hard. You have to have the vision, but then you also have to be the execution, your marketing, your finance, your everything right and you are learning everything new for the first time. And so that's where I think it's really important to surround yourself with either mentors that have been there, a really strong support system, particularly for me. I travel a lot, you know, while I'm doing all this, so like having a strong support system, you know, back home as well, is really, really important. And then I would say in general, just the with entrepreneurship, the highs are higher and the lows are lower.

Bry Keith :

right, you know it's a little bit of a wild ride and to me the journey is worth it and extremely rewarding, but it's not for the faint of heart. So I would try before you fully commit, and I would say you know, if you're thinking about, you know, making a big change in your life, test it out first. You know. If it's a move, maybe go and spend a couple weeks there. If it's, you know, launching new business like, see if there's demand, make sure that you know the thing that you want to do. Don't spend months and months and months building it right and then launch it to have no one be interested.

Bry Keith :

Right and I think that's that's something that I learned very quickly in this journey is don't do anything that people aren't asking for. Right, and if you know that demand is there and you know that people are going to benefit from it, then the challenging part becomes distribution. And you know we're very fortunate in this age of social media right, where you know any idea that's you know good or you know has, you know, grabbed people's attention is a great way to spread, and I've been very fortunate that social media has helped me spread the word on on the services that I offer as well.

Melissa Joy :

Well, it is hard work. Speaking as an entrepreneur myself, and especially if you're achievement oriented I mean you need to replace an income that was a paycheck then you know it's always. You can always compare yourself to someone that you're doing better than. But there's also always those beats where you're like but I'm nothing compared with this. And so there is this constant every day feels different, but also, you know it's up to you to make it work. But then when you find success, it can often be recurring, which is is really powerful.

Bry Keith :

Yeah, and it think you know that's really important and I would say, you know, before launching an entrepreneurial endeavor like understanding you know, what are the things about you that make you tick, what are the things that are going to be super motivating, what are the things that are you know, maybe the things that you're not good at, and then being not being afraid to outsource those to someone who that is the thing that lights them up. So I think all of that is really important.

Melissa Joy :

Well, I can tell you're an entrepreneur at heart and I think for so many people I find you know, society today is like everybody needs to work for themselves, and there are great pathways to both be a W-2 employee and maximize your travel with someone like Bri. And then there are also people that are just born to run a business and they also have the right idea at the right time, and both of those can be true, and it's not the same for everyone, so you don't have to look at everybody else and decide how you need to be.

Bry Keith :

Yeah, and I would just say be careful about you know what we see online. I think a lot of what we see, particularly on social media, is that people are not going to be able to see what they're doing. There's pros and cons, right, there's highs and lows as well to to this journey, um, but yeah, it's uh, you know, just be careful what you're consuming. Actually, I might've cut out there.

Melissa Joy :

Let me know if you want me to redo that one, you did You're good, though I it it caught up at the end. Okay, great, sorry. Sorry, it's this room.

Bry Keith :

No, actually that one might've been me Cause I got the spinny wheel that time?

Melissa Joy :

Okay. Well, Sherita can fix it.

Melissa Joy :

Do you want to go over just that last part again about kind of the so as we think about you know that are each of our entrepreneurial journey. What I know, too, is that it's a completely different world, that I think it's opening people up to possibilities. But you're also living in. You know the edited images of amazing bride guides travel around the world. We look and compare ourselves and, as we know, comparison can sometimes be the thief of joy. What is your caution when it comes to the honest pathway for an entrepreneur versus the way it looks from the outside, looking in.

Bry Keith :

Yeah, I think what's really important is to be radically honest with yourself.

Bry Keith :

you know, make sure that you know, before launching an entrepreneurial journey like am I okay with the ups and downs and the waves of the? You know there's going to be weeks where I'm not sure where the next piece of business is coming from. And you know, if you're, you know, hiring a team and doing that there's going to be pretty significant. You know ups and downs, right, and so knowing what are the things about you, is that you know a life that would would leave me happy. Am I in a place where I can feel good and centered in doing that is really important, right? And for some people that is that's going to light them up, that's going to excite them, and other people are going to hear that and that's going to terrify them. So, depending on which side of the coin you are, like, go with who you are right, because at the end of the day, like knowing who you are and having that sort of you know, radical self acceptance is going to be the most important thing, because we all bring something special and unique. And just be careful to in this age of social media, because a lot of what you see on there is a highlight reel and, like you said, comparison is the thief of joy is such a great quote. I love using that all the time because the way that some of this is described is is built to is to have you always feel like you're missing out, right, someone else is going to have this or that or whatever the thing is. And so figure out what's important to you, whether it's in travel or in life in general, and then optimize for those things.

Bry Keith :

And so, you know, for many people, travel is one of those things that makes them really happy. For me, it was, so you know I'm building a life that's optimized for that, and you know it's really fun to get to help other people do that as well, right, and what really motivates me about this is that, like, travel has always been a really amazing place where I can go and learn about a new place and experience different cultures. And, you know, take a breath or breather right. And travel has been something that's been really important to me, too, as I process big changes in my life dealt with difficult, you know, things that you know have happened in my personal life. It gives you a moment to take a step back right and look at who you are, where you are and what really matters, and so the ability to kind of you know do that has been really, you know, fun and exciting and helping others do that helps me get out of bed really excited every day.

Melissa Joy :

I working in a helping profession is so rewarding, it's so fulfilling, and I was reminded as you talked about that you know kind of radical candor. When I first opened Pearl Planning, the first value that we came up with was courageous authenticity and, you know, just having the courage to say when things are going great and also when things are difficult was a pathway that's necessary in financial planning but also in running a business and in life, so go ahead.

Bry Keith :

No, it's really important and I love that. That's such a really amazing perspective and, yeah, it's just so important right For everything that we do.

Melissa Joy :

Well, I know that people who have listened are like tell me more, how do I follow you? Give me all the tips. So how do um take their fandom from the podcast into the real world?

Bry Keith :

well, the first place to find me is on instagram, that's at bry guides b-r-y-g-u-i-d-e-s. So that's where I'm you really, you know, communicating with folks the most right, um. So that's the the best place to first go and find me, and then there you'll find links to all the other things, and I'm not sure if we'll put in the show notes, but yeah, we certainly will.

Bry Keith :

Okay, great, the other two places that would be really helpful is I have a points deal finder tool where you just kind of fill out your date, destination and points balance which we talked about, or, if you're, you know, relatively new together to figure out what the right strategy is for you. So you know, thank you again for this opportunity. I'm really excited to hopefully chat with some of the folks that are listening and, yeah, it's amazing what you can accomplish with credit card points and miles once you start to understand these systems and use them to your benefit.

Melissa Joy :

And, yeah, I'm excited to help people experience the world and comfort. Well, I can feel you opening the curtain for us. Thank you. I've learned so much in our conversation and so much so that I bet we'll have you back sometime if you're open to it. So thank you so much for joining us.

Bry Keith :

I would love that Always happy and thank you so much for this opportunity. It was great speaking with you today.

Melissa Joy :

Thank you for listening to the Women's Money Wisdom Podcast. If you found value in this episode, the best way you can support the podcast is to forward an episode to a friend or leave a review. Go to pearlplancom and the podcast link to get all the resources and links mentioned.

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Melissa Joy, CFP

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