In an attempt to follow the humorous leads of popular corporate Twitter accounts like Netflix and Wendy’s, Chase attempted to dish some relatively common financial advice in a since-deleted tweet.
seems like chase deleted that tweet pic.twitter.com/CNiLZv8x02
— Colin Campbell (@colincampbell) April 29, 2019
As far as jokes go, it sort of misses the mark, but it’s fair financial advice. Yet predictably, people were pissed.
Me: Why does your CEO make $29 million?@Chase: DON’T ASK QUESTIONS, JUST EAT THE FOOD IN YOUR FRIDGE!
— Cody (@TheNotRealCody) April 29, 2019
This is definitely motivating me…
To seize the means of production.
— grillcover (@bizarrojenkz) April 29, 2019
jUsT mAkE cOfFeE aT hOmehttps://t.co/spNtZJ3itD
— Henkepotamus (@Henke2020) April 29, 2019
The vitriol of the backlash aside, Chase’s critics miss that the tweet actually conveyed some of the best financial advice for young workers today, and it’s advice they generally need to hear.
A 26.8-ounce canister of Maxwell House Master Blend Ground Coffee sells on Amazon for $6.02 and makes 210 cups of coffee. 210 small cups of standard Starbucks coffee costs nearly $400, not including tax or tip. If you drink two cups of coffee a day, this means that you could save well over $1,000 per year making coffee at home rather than buying it.
Cooking at home entails even more savings. Wellio, a meal planning company, found that the average price of a meal from popular chain restaurants like P.F. Chang’s and Applebee’s is around $15, whereas the average recipe requires around $4 worth of ingredients. Using Wellio’s estimates, replacing five restaurant meals a week with home cooking would save you nearly $3,000 per year. Replace five delivered restaurant meals a week with home cooking, and you could save more than $4,000 per year.
These aren’t just good tips for broke millennials to abide by; they’re tips embraced by some of the world’s most successful billionaires. Carlos Slim (net worth: $63.4 billion) regularly cooks his own meals. Dish Network Chairman Charlie Ergen (net worth: $10.3 billion) brings a packed lunch to work every day. Warren Buffet (net worth: $88.1 billion) does buy his breakfast out, but at McDonald’s, where he never spends more than $3.17.
Millennials across the board aren’t going broke because they eat out occasionally, but nor are they going broke because Chase’s CEO is well-paid. Even if most people cannot cut corners on such expenses as car payments and insurance, Chase rightly pointed out two easy ways for most young workers to keep a good deal more of their cash.
