Gen Z Investing in Meme Stocks Like a Casino? | Kyla Scanlon

James Connor  0:00  
What are your views on the US stock market?

Kyla Scanlon  0:01  
Yeah, it's doing quite well. I mean, I think a lot of people will say, you know, the stock market's going up, like, why aren't people happy? A lot of people don't own stocks, like 62% of Americans do. But a large portion of that is in their 401k, they don't really pay attention to it. And so I think the strength in the stock market is impressive, like earnings have been good. If you dive a little bit deeper into a lot of the consumer goods companies, like we were talking about earlier in the conversation, a lot of that has been through growth of price versus volume. And so I think that's a concerning thing. But a lot of the tech companies have been doing really well, um, despite, you know, perceived economic weakness. And so I think it's a stock market that is, I don't know if it's necessarily strong on fundamentals. I think there's a lot of hope, baked into that, like a lot of hope of cuts perhaps, but it's a stock market that keeps on surprising me.

James Connor  21:35  
Hi, and welcome to Wealthion. I'm James Connor. My guest today is Kyla Scanlon and Kyla is a financial influencer and the founder of a financial education company called bread. She also hosts her own YouTube channel. And her work has also been published in the New York Times, Bloomberg in the Financial Times. And we're gonna hear Kyla's views on the US economy what she thinks the future holds for her generation.

Hi, Kyla, thank you very much for joining us today.

Kyla Scanlon  0:57  
Hi, thanks so much for having me.

James Connor  0:57  
I am very much looking forward to this discussion. You represent a new general generation of financial influencers. And most influencers of your vintage are more focused on travel or food or entertainment. But you're focused on economics and business. So I want to hear your backstory.

Kyla Scanlon  0:57  
Yeah, I try not to use the term influencer because actually consider what I'm doing more education that might be pompous with me. But yeah, I mean, I think the thing is, I grew up in Kentucky graduated school went on to work for Apple group out in Los Angeles, and six months after I graduated, the pandemic happened. And so this job that I had lined up, didn't really work out the way that I thought that it would. And I realized that there had been a lot of knowledge trapped in asset management. And I really wanted to start unlocking that I had had a blog, throughout college about my own options, trading experience, had tutored all throughout school had been a research assistant. And when Gamestop started going crazy, around like, you know, in that era of the pandemic, I just started making videos about it and trying to educate people. And so I just think that it's really important that people understand the system that they live in. And that's what I try to provide to people is a toolbox so they can interact with the world around them better. You know, understanding inflation, understanding labor market, understanding the Federal Reserve, and doing that where people are, which is social media, is how I how I decided to strategize my posting. So that's why I am considered an influencer is because I post educational content on social media. But I do like the term educator. 

James Connor  0:57  
I understand. So Gamestop is going crazy. Again, I now want to ask you about that. Before we go there, I want to get your views on the US economy, the economy tend to continues to be very strong, jobless numbers are very strong. What do you think of the US economy?  

Kyla Scanlon  0:57  
Yeah, I mean, you know, GDP came in a little bit softer than anyone kind of expected that it would, you've seen consumers kind of, you know, retail sales aren't maybe as strong as people that they would be, you're seeing consumer credit card debt begin to take up. But I think like still, like people are out there spending, people are still out there doing what they need to do. And it's like, it's a really tough economy to wrap your head around. And I think part of the reason is because it's very bifurcated. So wealth inequality is a massive problem in the United States. But we also have this wealth transfer that's happening between boomers and millennials, boomers are retiring, some of that wealth is going toward millennials. And so you have this millennial generation, which is the generation before mine, who is either inheriting a vast sum of wealth or not, you also have millennials who have a two to 3% mortgage rate and those who are not able to get a mortgage rate at all right now, because mortgage rates are so high. And so I think that's one aspect of the economy is that it's incredibly divided, and it's only getting worse. And then number two, by all accounts, it's like still a strong economy. And so I think a lot of people are looking at this, looking at how divisive and polarized like the political atmosphere is, and just trying to figure out, you know, what is actually numerically happening with the economy and why is there such a disconnect between that and how people feel about the underlying economy.

James Connor  0:57  
And you brought up a good point about this bifurcation that's happening within the economy. But one thing that really strikes me is when you look at the consumer, it looks at both at the high end and the low end we're starting to see some weakness here. Recently LVHM and also Gucci came on said that their sales are starting to suffer across the globe. Just last week, we had weak numbers out of Starbucks, and they're saying their same store sales in the US were down, I believe 4%. In China, they were down 11%. And the common theme out of Starbucks. And also McDonald's said this was that the consumer is not spending as much money.  

Kyla Scanlon  0:57  
So I actually did a big piece on Domino's Pizza, and Domino's Pizza is doing quite well as a stock. And then they're also you know, beating all estimates on earnings, and, you know, just performing quite well. And I think when you look at the difference in this is just one part of the question that you asked. But like when you look at McDonald's, and you look at Starbucks, they both have raised prices, like they have made it more expensive for consumers to purchase things. McDonald's is like reintroducing a $5 meal, because people are not going to McDonald's for cheap meals anymore, because it doesn't feel cheap. Whereas Domino's has a rewards program that makes it so buying a I think it's a medium pizza is actually cheaper than a meal at McDonald's. Even though Domino's has raised prices as well. And so I think those two companies are a very good example of the other part of inflation that's really hairy to talk about, which is like companies have been raising prices, because they have to respond to the all seeing God of the stock market. And that's really hard. Because they have an obligation, right, let's return value to the shareholders. But then you can't complain about that, like, you know, people are not going to buy your stuff if it's getting more and more expensive. And so I think that's kind of what we're seeing with some parts of the economy. And then in the luxury goods market, like yeah, that is getting tough to, you know, consumers are pulling back on spending on goods, and they're spending more and more so on services, like we saw the Taylor Swift concert series just totally take hold of Americans, people spending an average across the world, not even just Americans, but like an average of 1300 US dollars on a on a concert. So people have the capability to spend, they have the want to spend, but we have seen the consumer shift more toward spending on services versus goods. And so I think that some of the slowdown that we're seeing in consumer goods companies, but I also think like, you know, when you raise prices, people do have the optionality to go to a different company. And we have seen consumers make that choice.  

James Connor  0:57  
Yeah, I think you raise a good point, too, about services being very strong. The last CPI number indicated that all the growth came on the services side. But so let's talk about inflation now in we recently saw a strong PPI number year over year, I believe was in line, but month over month was stronger than they had anticipated. And we've also had very strong retail numbers. What's your take on inflation? Do you really think it's as low is the government and the Fed or trying to make us believe it is?  

Kyla Scanlon  0:57  
Yeah, I mean, I think this is always a tough one. Because I think that, you know, the question has two parts, right? So it's like is inflation actually what we think that it is? And I think that like, you know, we are capturing the price, a market price of a basket of goods. It's collected from a lot of different data points. There's even a metric called Trueflation, which is like a homegrown service that measures inflation, they're actually reporting inflation is lower than what the government says that it is. So I think like inflation has been slowing down. But I think the really tough part about inflation is that inflation is slowing down doesn't mean that prices are going down. Inflation slowing down is not deflation, it just means that things are not getting as expensive as fast, right? Deflation would be prices actually going down. And so I think that's the thing that's going on with inflation is like we have been in this pressure cooker for so long, where it's like, okay, things are really expensive, like cereal boxes are like $7, you know, people are feeling very stressed and pressed from that. But I do think we're seeing improvements in the metrics. It's just not maybe as impactful as people hope it would be. I also think inflation is coming from housing primarily like shelter inflation is I think, 1/3. It's a huge portion of the CPI print. And, you know, raising rates isn't necessarily going to build more houses. And that's kind of what we have to do to address shelter inflation. There is also the lag effect with things like shelter, like rent prices don't show up in the CPI, the Consumer Price Index, as fast as we would hope that they would. Also the Federal Reserve looks at personal consumption expenditures, which has a whole different measurement methodology to and some aspects. And so I think all the numbers are pointing toward inflation slowing down, but we do get these hot prints like PPI came in. Today, May 14, a little bit hotter than expected because of investment fees. Right. And so I think that's the tough part is like it's coming from a lot of different angles, car insurance, shelter investment fees, apparently, and how do you manage that with the toolkit that the Fed has? I think that's the tough part that we're at, is like is raising rates actually going to be the most effective tool to battle inflation at this point? And I don't know if anybody like actually knows the answer to that.  

James Connor  0:57  
Yes, and I can't speak to where you're living, but I know where I am. I'm in Toronto. And the cost of living here just blows me away. Like, I used to be able to go to Costco and spend three or 400 bucks. But now every time I go there, I'm dropping five or 600 bucks on the same sort of thing, right? And I go to Costco to save money. It's crazy.  

Kyla Scanlon  0:57  
No, it's super frustrating. I have the same experience at my local grocery store. Where it's like, wow, every time I look at the receipt, I'm like, Oh, really? Like, what did I buy? And that's, it's, it's hard. And I think a lot of times, people will say, like, oh, inflation is going down, like you should be feeling good, like things are getting better. But inflation has been a pressure cooker. And it has really taken a toll on people just psychologically, to like, just seeing this price increases so quickly. And then of course, you know, trying to figure out where it's coming from. And it's also rolling, like we're experiencing inflation in different categories at different times. So it's kind of like this pop up, like Whack a Mole sort of inflation, where it's like, what's going to get extraordinarily expensive next, auto insurance, like skyrocketed here in the United States. And so I think it's that kind of thing, where it's like, every time you turn around, there's this massive bill hitting you in the face. And for the United States, we just have in Canada to actually there's a structural affordability crisis, where people feel like there's no beginner mode, right? Like, you really can't get your wrong or your foot on that first rung of the ladder. It's I know, in Toronto, it's like impossible to get a house even worse than here in the US. And so I think there's also that added level of frustration where people are like, I don't even know where to start. Like, I feel like my knees are being cut off before I can even walk.  

James Connor  0:57  
Yes. So just to summarize a few of the points that you said about the economy, you made mention of the fact that it's bifurcated, and you're having a tough time determining what type of economy it is, is it do I just want to summarize this? Do you think it's going to doing well? Or do you think it's weaker than we're led to believe? 

Kyla Scanlon  0:57  
I mean, I think that the it's tough question. i Yes, I do think it's doing well. But that's all relative. I think that we're really lucky. Here in the United States, specifically, like we're actually according to GDP were like outpacing what the IMF even thought the US would be doing back in 2019 pre pandemic, like we are stronger than anybody thought that we would be by metrics of GDP. I think that if you look at those metrics, if you look at the labor market, if you look at inflation metrics, you know, obviously a little bit hairy with inflation recently. But if you look at GDP, like all of these are relatively strong prints for an economy that went through this, this pandemic. So I think numerically quantitatively, the economy is strong. But I think qualitatively the economy is weak. I think there is as there as across the world, like just distrust, there's polarization, there's bipartisanship. There's all sorts of other stuff that we can get into, like around the attention economy, algorithmic incentives. And so like, even though we have a strong economy, people like, they don't believe in it. And like, for reasons, like I talked about with structural affordability, rightly so, to some extent, but I think the economy could be a lot worse than it is now. And so that's the only reason why I'd say it is strong, numerically speaking, it is, and you can't really fight with numbers, even though, you know, some people do. So I think that would be my answer is yes, but...  

James Connor  0:57  
Yes. And I guess a naysayer might say, well, it is strong, but only because the current administration is spending billions or trillions of dollars to keep it going. And that's also contributing to a lot of the inflation.  

Kyla Scanlon  0:57  
Yeah, I mean, I think, you know, part of the reason that we had a weak GDP print was because government spending wasn't as high as it has been, because of spending on the inflation Reduction Act because of spending on the chips act, because it's spinning on the IIJA. You know, the government has spent a lot of money. And I think that's a really tough part about where we're at now. Like, for two reasons, like number one, the government spent a lot of money during the pandemic, because they had to because we had to get out of this situation. Austerity was not the answer, then. But people also saw what the government could provide, like the government can provide, you know, meaningful unemployment checks, it can provide rent forbearance, it can help out constituents and citizens more than more than it does. And so I think people seeing what was possible and then having that taken away as part of the reason that the economic sentiment might be quite negative. But then also, like, you know, we do have to actually invest in American manufacturing, especially if we're gonna be slapping tariffs on China. We do need to spend the money through the long term and I think that's the tough part about the political cycle is it does exist in these two to four year iterations, where it's like, you know, like, we have to look beyond that, and we have to spend the money now. So that way we're not, you know, 15 years into the future. And we don't have any manufacturing manufacturing capacity, completely reliant on other countries who might not have great relationships with at that moment. So I think it's necessary spending in a really big way. And I think it's for the long term rather than the short term. But of course, you know, deficits are no joke, right? Like interest payments are a huge part of the US budget right now of spending is because rates have been really high, because the Fed has been fighting rates or raising rates in order to battle inflation, that makes everybody's debt more expensive to service, including the US government's, and I think that's the situation that we're in is like we had to spend the money, but it's expensive to spend. Yeah. 

James Connor  0:57  
And the federal debt is around $35 trillion. Now, and which blows me away every time I think of that number, but and it's growing by a trillion dollars every you want 100 days. But do these debt levels? Do they concern you at all? Or is it be just thank God will look after itself?  

Kyla Scanlon  0:57  
Yeah, I think it is concerning. I think it's concerning from the standpoint of interest payments, right? Like it is expensive to service this debt, if we don't really want interest payments to be a huge part of where the money's going. And that's not ideal. But I think also like, the role of a government is to provide for its citizens. When people say like, oh, I don't want the government to spend on anything. It's like, why do you pay taxes, because that's what that the purpose of tax  is so that you have a public service to partake in. So I think the government spending is is necessary and important. But I think there also has to be some sort of fiscal responsibility around it, too. And plenty of people I've talked to talked about this as well, I'm not, I'm just actually sort of summarizing other's opinions on the topic. But I think it's something to be mindful of. Absolutely.  

James Connor  0:57  
Inflation is the primary focus of the Fed. Right now. It's all about getting inflation under control. And you're using interest rates to do that. And we started this year expecting six interest rate cuts, which is crazy. But then that number changed to two. And now some people are saying one, and even none. But what's your take on interest rates this year? Do you think we're gonna see a cut? 

Kyla Scanlon  0:57  
Jerome Powell came out today, and he didn't seem like he was budging on the idea of cutting you seemed very content with where interest rates are at right now. I think that when you look at what's happening with GameStop, obviously, financial conditions are not that tight. So from that perspective, probably not inflation has been really hard to tame. And so from that perspective, there's no reason to cut. But I think the big question is, you know, higher the JP Morgan had this paper that came out, where it was arguing that higher rates actually make it harder to fight inflation, right, like higher rates can be inflationary, because it's harder to build more homes, it's harder to invest in the supply issues that are causing some aspects of inflation. And so I think that's the thing that the Fed is going to have to consider is like, can we cut a little bit just to give the economy a little bit more breathing room? Or do we need to hold them where they're at, like, you know, some people come out and say that they got to start hiking, again, I think now is really the time to consider more of the supply side versus the demand side, which is what interest rates ultimately influence, and figuring out how we build more and how we do more how we address inflation at the root versus just sort of like knocking it around. So people feel like they can't spend as much money as a reductive way to summarize it. But I think that's the issue at hand.  

James Connor  0:57  
So we spoke about the economy, we got your views on interest rates and inflation and also debt levels. And let's put it all together. Now when it gets your thoughts on the stock market. Its continues to trade very well at or near all time highs, we've pretty well seen all the q1 numbers come out. For the most part, they were good, especially out of these tech companies. Apple announced the largest buyback ever, and $110 billion. Google also came out and announced their first ever dividend. They also announced the large buyback $70 billion. But what are your views on the US stock market?  

Kyla Scanlon  0:57  
Yeah, it's doing quite well. I mean, I think a lot of people will say, you know, the stock market's going up, like why aren't people happy? A lot of people don't own stocks, like 62% of Americans do. But a large portion of that is in their 401k they don't really pay attention to it. And so I think the strength in the stock market is impressive, like earnings have been good. If you dive a little bit deeper into a lot of the consumer goods companies like we were talking about earlier in the conversation. A lot of that has been through growth of price versus volume. And so I think that's a concerning thing. But a lot of tech companies have been doing really well, despite, you know, perceived economic weakness. And so I think it's a stock market that is, I don't know if it's unnecessarily strong and fundamentals, I think there's a lot of hope, baked into that, like a lot of hope of cuts, perhaps. But it's a stock market that keeps on surprising me.  

James Connor  0:57  
And we started this conversation off by you telling us about how you got into business and economics. And it had to do with Gamestop during 2020. And now Gamestop came roaring back with roaring Katie coming back to life. So GameStop, I think it was up 100%. The first day it was up over 100%. The second day, mature word is now but AMC also went parabolic. What are your views on these meme stocks? And I'm sure you speak to a lot of investors, what do you tell them about playing or trading these memes stocks? 

Kyla Scanlon  0:57  
Yeah, I mean, the meme stocks are, they're pervasive. They survived a hike cycle. And that says a lot about them. And the persistence of whoever is buying them. You know, I think it's not there was a piece from I think John authors in Bloomberg, where he was talking about this is not 2021. Again, like this is definitely a different market, there aren't as many short sellers, like it's not going to have that same sort of squeezed in bursts that we saw. But I do think this is a sign of stock market that is disconnected from fundamentals, it is a stock market that is more of a casino, then than anything. And I don't think anything's necessarily wrong with that, I just think it's important to know that like, GameStop, like, there's a difference between a company and a stock, specifically with GameStop, like Gamestop is maybe not a very good company, but they seem to be a tremendous stock. And I think that's the confusing thing. But it says a lot, I think about this current state of affairs, like there's an element of financial knowledge and baked into that. There's an element of people just sort of wanting to get rich quick, like it ties into the sports gambling phenomenon that we're seeing here in the United States. And I think that it deserves a serious consideration as a cultural movement, honestly, because it does tell us so much about how people feel about their economic circumstances, not to get like too deep onto something that's obviously a meme. But I do think there's a lot going on there.  

James Connor  0:57  
So okay, so let's dive into that. All right, you represent a younger generation. I'm curious how you feel about the economy right now. The political situation in the US and in your financial future?  

Kyla Scanlon  0:57  
Yeah, yeah. So I'm 26. So I'm an old Gen Z. I am worried, I think I think a lot of people are worried. And, you know, oftentimes, I'll talk a lot about like, how my generation is feeling, which I'm always very grateful to have the opportunity to do and a lot of people will say, Well, you know, this generation had a tough, the other generation had a tough, and I think that's true, like every generation has had these hurdles that they've had to overcome. I think for Gen Z, specifically, they are worried about their housing prospects, they are worried about the polarization and the distrust that just as pervasive throughout every corner of anywhere you look, they're worried about inflation, they're worried about a labor market that could be impacted by AI, in a way that I don't think any of us are prepared for. both good and bad, right, AI is complement and AI is a replacement. So I think the younger generation has an economy that is relatively strong. But there are all these issues that are at the forefront of their minds, that are making them feel like they are not able to benefit in the strength of the economy. And I think that's the tough part is like how do you help people through a moment where there are there is a structural affordability crisis, there are all these issues that you have to grapple with on a massive national scale. And, you know, how are you going to feel good about things when all that's going on? 

James Connor  0:57  
Yes, you touched on a lot of interesting points here. And one of which that really stood out to me was this whole element of trust. And I think this really came to the forefront during the pandemic. And after because people realized, Oh, my God, what just happened here, right, and what are they trying to sell us? They've been the government. But what are your thoughts on that? When you look at the government and whether or not you can trust the government or trust Wall Street or trust the media, or Congress or the Supreme Court? What are your views on that?  

Kyla Scanlon  0:57  
Yeah, I mean, the Harvard youth poll came out about two months ago now. And trust in all these institutions has declined substantially. The United Nations is the only  group that's gained more trust, everyone else has dropped by like, like literally 40%. Nobody trusts a Supreme Court, nobody trusts the president, nobody on both sides, media, Wall Street, whoever. And so I think that's like the hard part is, you know, we have this, it's sad, again, the structural affordability crisis. But we also have a lack of trust in the underlying structures. And so I think that's like, the really hard bridge to walk over is like, okay, so we don't trust in these things that are maybe contributing to issues around affordability. And we don't trust them to address the problems of affordability. And I would say, like trust, what I say often is, trust is the most expensive commodity in the world, because it is. And whether it be you know, media headlines, or polarization or bipartisanship, if people feel like they're not able to even, you know, have faith in these institutions to make the right decisions for them. And that is, is a crisis of confidence in a really big way that I think we have to address like sooner rather than later. But the how is extraordinarily complicated, because it is about being transparent and telling the truth. And, you know, telling people that yeah, like things are kind of weird. And like, there is all these issues, and we're fixing it, and here's how we're fixing it. But breaking through to the algorithm and sort of this, like, you know, how do you break through to that? How do you break through past people's biases, or just their ability to even absorb that information? When they already have a wall up? It's a, it's a really tough problem to solve.  

James Connor  0:57  
And I want to hear your thoughts, too, on the fact that a lot of the institutions that I mentioned, the White House, the Congress, Supreme Court, every one of those people are 70, or 80 years old. What are your views on that? 

Kyla Scanlon  0:57  
Yeah, I think it it's not good. I think that there's so much value to having sort of that wisdom, that mastery of, of knowledge of politics in those places, like, I do think there's plenty of room for that sort of mindset. But I also think you really have to start bringing up the young people, you really need to start reinvesting in the younger generations and allowing them through. And I think this is the problem with the labor market at large is like people are just staying in their jobs for a long time. And so that's kind of creating this, like lack of promotional viability, and a lot of the more traditional companies. And so I think that's one problem. And then I think, number two, it's hard for someone to govern somebody that they don't understand. And I think that's kind of what we're seeing with older generations, there's a lot of policy to benefit the older demographic, which makes sense, like, that's who is running the country, of course, they're going to design policy to benefit that. That's who they are. And so I think you do need younger voices in there to sort of advocate for policies that benefit younger people. Like in the US, if you're a homeowner, there's just one example. There's all sorts of tax incentives for you to stay into your house, well past, you know, prime age to be owning a house that is like with four bedrooms, that you should be downsizing at some point. But all the incentives are in place for you to stay. And that means that there's lack of mobility, right? There's all sorts of incentives to be a homeowner, there's tax write offs, etc. Versus when you're a renter, you don't get any of that. And so I think the laws are very much designed to benefit the older generation, those who have been able to accumulate wealth, and deservedly are like benefiting from that. But you have to bring up the next generation behind you. And I would say, I'm not alone in this opinion that the older generation has has failed at that.

James Connor  0:57  
And you mentioned that a lot of people are staying in their jobs longer. Well, maybe that's because you're not doing that well, economically, right? They can't afford to quit or retire.  

Kyla Scanlon  0:57  
25% of baby boomers have no retirement savings. But baby boomers are the richest retiring generation ever. And so it just goes back to that point of the bifurcated economy. We have a lot of boomers honestly, who are kind of keeping the economy afloat. You there was a Wall Street Journal piece talking about their their travel expenditures and their expenditures on like golf courses and stuff. So you have this group of boomers who is spending spending spending, because they've saved and they've invested and they've done everything, right. And then you have another generation that maybe hasn't had the same offer, or the other cohort in that generation that maybe hasn't had the other opera, the same opportunities to do so. And so I think that's kind of what we're seeing is that like, yes, you know, there are those who can retire and definitely have, and then there are those who have no money. And that is really problematic because when we look at what's happening, like we are facing a demographic crisis, like not to be a boomer about it, but like we do have an aging population that is not being replaced with the fertility rate is far too low to replace the number of the number of babies that we would need to fund the aging population. And so elder cares like $10,000 a month in the United States. It's exorbitant. And I think that that's tough. That's a really tough one to solve. Because what do you do with an aging population? And you can't pay for them. Like everyone talks about Social Security being underfunded, what do you do?  

James Connor  0:57  
Kyla, as we wrap up, what is the message you would like to convey to your demographic about investing in the financial markets and looking after their financial future?  

Kyla Scanlon  0:57  
Yeah, I mean, I think the chart that I always bring up is the distribution of financial assets. It's a chart from the Federal Reserve, and it shows that the bottom 50% have all their wealth tied up into real estate, and the top 10% have their wealth and equity ownership and business ownership. So owning a business and owning stocks. And I would say there's a lot to learn from that chart. I would say like we oftentimes in the United States, and I think it Canada as well, we look at these homes as a way to build wealth and like, Oh, I gotta get home to generate all this money, and then I can retire like, I gotta get the home. And I do think that there's value to thinking outside of home was the only wealth generation asset and I think people are doing this to a large degree, but like thinking about business ownership, thinking about stock ownership, Bond ownership is really key. And like, that's one thing that I just tried to talk to people about is like, you don't have to have a house to, you know, feel okay. You can do other things to diversify. Well, you can buy Kryptos. You could you could some people would say that's the right thing to do. I'm not sure on that one, though. Not investment advice across the board. Yeah. 

James Connor  0:57  
Kyla that was a fascinating discussion. And if someone would like to learn more about you and find out about your various services, where can they go?  

Kyla Scanlon  0:57  
Yeah, so I have a book coming out May 28. It's available for preorder. Basically, anywhere that you buy books. There's also you can purchase a signed copy if you'd like. And you can enter a giveaway on Goodreads for the book. I'm also on Twitter at Kylascan on Tik Tok at Kylascan Instagram at Kylascan. I have a YouTube channel. I have a podcast called Let's Appreciate. And yeah, I kind of exists almost everywhere I think on the internet, and then I do a lot of live discussions as well. So I'm sure I'll be in your city. soonish. So yeah, thanks so much for having me on.  

James Connor  0:57  
Well, man, you are very busy with all those platforms. And when your book comes out, you're gonna go on a book tour across North America.  

Kyla Scanlon  0:57  
That's the goal. Yeah.  

James Connor  0:57  
Well, that's great. Good luck with that. And once again, I want to thank you very much for spending time with us today.  

Kyla Scanlon  0:57  
Thanks for having me.  

Well, I hope you enjoyed that discussion with Kyla Scanlon. I thought it was interesting to hear Kyla's perspective and what her concerns are about her financial future. One of the reasons we do these interviews with people like Kyla is to help you understand what's happening in the economy and also to help prepare for during times of economic uncertainty, never enduring inflation like we're going through right now investing in physical gold is one way to help protect your portfolio. If you would like to learn more about gold and how it can benefit your portfolio, visit our sister company hardassetsalliance.com. Hard Assets Alliance is a trusted platform that's being used by over 100,000 institutional and retail investors to buy and sell gold bullion and gold coins. Once again, that's hardassetsalliance.com There's a link below in the show notes. I want to thank you very much for spending time with us today and I look forward to seeing you again soon.