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How ANYONE Can Get Approved For Millions in Credit! (Step-By-Step Guide) — Transcript

by Stephen Smith · 6,478 words · 938 segments · language en · Watch on YouTube

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0:00Welcome back to Success with Steven. My
0:02name is Steven Smith. On this channel,
0:03we discuss all things financial
0:05literacy. And today, I want to take you
0:07back to where this whole journey started
0:09for me. Now, before I understood
0:11business credit cards or had um higher
0:13limits or a 0% APR funding, reward
0:16points, banking relationships, or I
0:18built a million-dollar credit profile,
0:20it started with embarrassment. [music]
0:22It started with being in a position
0:24where I wanted something very basic,
0:26something that a lot of people take for
0:28granted, and my credit profile told the
0:30bank that I was not ready. At one point,
0:32my credit score was at around like I
0:34want to say like a 426 to a 480, and I
0:37want you to understand how low that
0:39credit score is. A 480 credit score
0:41doesn't just mean that you have bad
0:43credit. It means that most banks are not
0:45going to give you a debit card. It means
0:47that approvals become almost impossible,
0:50interest rates become ridiculous,
0:52deposits become a lot higher, and basic
0:55financial needs become harder than it
0:57actually needs to be. The wake-up call
0:59happened when I went into a Citibank
1:01here in Las Vegas. The goal was simple.
1:03I was going to get approved for a
1:05secured credit card and maybe open up a
1:07checking and savings account and start,
1:09you know, rebuilding my credit. I had a
1:11few thousand dollars, and I was ready
1:13for the deposit, so I thought, you know,
1:15this should be enough. I thought if I
1:17showed up with money in hand, there
1:18would be no problems whatsoever. But,
1:20that's not how the financial system
1:22works. When your credit profile is
1:24damaged, cash alone does not always save
1:26you. The bank is looking at your
1:28history. They're looking at whether you
1:29paid people back before. And if you
1:31apply somewhere with a 426, 480,
1:34something like that credit score, you
1:36are considered a higher risk [music]
1:38borrower. So, in the end, I was
1:40basically laughed out of the building
1:42politely, and I wasn't even able to open
1:44[music] a bank account. Now, that moment
1:45was different because it wasn't just
1:47about, you know, a credit card or a bank
1:49account. It was that I realized I did
1:51not understand the financial system. And
1:53I had grown up around people making
1:55jokes [music] about bad credit like it
1:57was normal. Like people would say things
1:59like, "You're black, you're supposed to
2:00have bad credit." And it would sound
2:02like a joke, but deep down a lot of
2:04people really just accepted that as
2:06their reality, and honestly, it's not
2:08funny. That is a very dangerous way of
2:10thinking because once you accept bad
2:12credit as normal, you stop fighting to
2:15change it. You start thinking that like
2:17buy here, [music] pay here car lots,
2:18they're normal. You start thinking high
2:20interest rate loans, that's normal. You
2:22start thinking paying for everything
2:24[music] in cash because you have no bank
2:26account, that's normal. And it starts to
2:28become the norm that financial rejection
2:30is just a [music] part of your life. But
2:32on that day, it made one thing clear to
2:34me, credit was no longer optional,
2:36credit was something that I had to
2:38understand. Because there was one thing
2:39that I did know, credit was not just
2:41something that rich people used or that
2:43business owners had, credit was not just
2:45something that people talked about
2:47online. Credit was actually the
2:49difference between having options and
2:51being stuck [music] at a certain point.
2:52So, today I want to talk about ex-
2:55exactly how I went from that low 400
2:57range credit score to now having over $1
3:00million in credit to date. So, without
3:02further ado, let's get right into the
3:04video. Before we go any further, I want
3:07to be clear about something, there is a
3:09real systematic issue when it comes to
3:11access to capital, especially when it
3:13comes to minorities and disenfranchised
3:16communities that have been locked out of
3:17the banking system, that have been
3:19redlined out of housing lending, that
3:21have wealth building opportunities taken
3:23away from them for a long time. That is
3:25a real thing. But at some point, I also
3:28had to ask myself a very hard question,
3:30what am I going to do with this
3:32information that I have right now?
3:33Because once you know better, you have a
3:35responsibility to do better, even when
3:38the odds are stacked against you.
3:39Personally, I couldn't keep using the
3:41excuse that nobody taught me about
3:43credit, I couldn't keep using the excuse
3:45that my household didn't talk about
3:47money, or that I made mistakes when I
3:49was young, because all of that may be
3:51true, but it was not going to solve the
3:53issue at hand. So, the first real step
3:55was education, which is why I'm sure
3:57you're watching this video today. Before
3:59I tried to access credit, I had to
4:01understand what credit actually was.
4:04Most people want funding first. They
4:06want high limit credit cards. They want
4:08$50,000 approvals. They want business
4:10lines of credit, but that is backwards.
4:12If I give somebody access to $50,000
4:15before they understand how, you know,
4:18money works, let alone credit, or
4:20business period for that matter, you may
4:22not be helping them. You may actually be
4:24putting them in a worse situation.
4:26Before I tried to access credit, I had
4:28to understand what credit actually was.
4:31That's why the first step is not just
4:33getting approved. The first step is
4:34learning how this system will judge you.
4:36You need to understand what makes up
4:38your credit profile. You need to
4:40understand payment history. You need to
4:42understand utilization, age of accounts,
4:44account mix, inquiries, new accounts,
4:47and of course negative items. Now, I
4:49have a video called how to build a
4:51funding ready credit profile in 2026.
4:54I'm going to link that video right here
4:56if you want more details about that.
4:57Now, I would suggest that you pause this
5:00video at a desired time and maybe note
5:02this timestamp. Or if you don't mind the
5:04timestamp being public, you can leave a
5:06comment with the exact time code. You
5:08can also create a custom playlist and
5:10use the built-in start time feature.
5:12That way you can actually jump to the
5:13point of the video that you want to
5:15watch at that moment in time. Now, you
5:17need to understand the difference
5:19between revolving credit and installment
5:21credit. You also need to understand why
5:23lenders may pull Experian, or they may
5:25pull Equifax, or they may pull
5:27TransUnion. So, the goal is not just to
5:29build a profile that makes you look
5:31lendable. The goal is to also understand
5:33how this system works. I also have a
5:35much older video where I talk about like
5:38secrets that the credit bureaus don't
5:40want you to know where I talk about my
5:42experience with working at a few like
5:44different banks, and how there is a lot
5:47of systematic oppression. Now, that's
5:48something where it's not just a
5:50step-by-step guide. It goes into a lot
5:52more detail about just how I feel about
5:54this system. You guys can check that
5:56out, but you know, that's can be on your
5:58own time. Again, you can make a note
6:00right here and you can put like a
6:02timestamp if you want to refer back to
6:03that. Now, once I understood that credit
6:06mattered and I was going to take
6:07actionable steps to understand it, the
6:09next step was cleaning up the things
6:11that I had damaged. Now, this is where a
6:13lot of people get stuck because they
6:15think that credit repair means paying a
6:17company to remove everything they don't
6:19like from their credit report and that
6:20is not how this should work. Now, for me
6:23personally, back in like the early
6:242020s, like 2019, I had been a day
6:28trader. I mean, I was making money by uh
6:30trading stocks. I was doing a little bit
6:32of options, things like that. I had got
6:34to a place where I over-leveraged
6:36myself. I did something that everyone
6:38makes. It's a mistake that is, you know,
6:40it'll happen to everyone. We always do
6:42that. We over-leverage. When I did that,
6:44it put me in a position where I had to
6:46borrow a lot of money just to stay
6:47afloat and eventually, I ended up having
6:50all of my accounts go negative and I
6:52completely ruined my credit. During that
6:54time of actually learning how to repair
6:56my credit, for me, it took like 2 years
6:58in total to actually learn everything
7:01and then to actually implement what I
7:02learned. I want to tell you that credit
7:04repair ultimately is making sure that
7:06your credit report is accurate and it's
7:09complete and it's verifiable. So, if
7:11something is reporting incorrectly, you
7:13have the right to dis- pute that, but
7:15you have to approach it with a strategy.
7:17Now, again, I was able to repair my own
7:20credit and I documented like the very
7:22tail end of the process on this YouTube
7:25channel. And I've said this again, I've
7:26said it in several videos, it took me
7:29about 2 years to repair my credit, but
7:31during that time, I had to learn the
7:33correct way to do it. Now, for you guys,
7:35I've given you all the information for
7:37free. I've given you several tools. So,
7:39hopefully, it won't take you that long,
7:41but one of the overarching things that I
7:43have to say is that it takes
7:45persistence. It was a lot of times where
7:47I did the disputes the exact way that
7:49I've laid out in the videos, and they
7:51have gotten rejected. I just kept going.
7:53Credit repair is not some
7:54one-size-fits-all, and it's not a
7:56guarantee oh, you do X the X result will
7:59happen. So, if you submit one or two
8:01disputes, and then you just give up
8:02because it seems too hard, then you're
8:04never going to see any progress. So, the
8:06first thing I would do is pull all three
8:08of your credit reports. My first
8:10recommendation is always
8:11annualcreditreport.com.
8:13Annualcreditreport.com
8:14is the only source authorized by federal
8:17law to receive all three of your credit
8:18reports completely for free. At the time
8:21of recording this video, you can pull
8:23your reports once per week. My other
8:25recommendation is rising.com. Now,
8:28Rising is an all-in-one DIY credit
8:30repair platform that not only gives you
8:32access to credit reports and scores, it
8:35also shows you what may be hurting your
8:37credit, and it helps you take action
8:39with tools like dispute templates,
8:40[music] bureau response tracking, and
8:43the auto mail feature that allows you to
8:44send your disputes directly from the
8:46site or the mobile app. Now, if you do
8:48decide to use Rising, then I suggest
8:50that you use it as a 90-day credit
8:52improvement system. Like I said, this
8:54can take much longer than 90 days, but I
8:56would at least say if you're actively
8:58disputing for 3 months, you will see
9:00some good results. Rising also includes
9:02up to 24 months of rental and utility
9:05trade lines that can back report payment
9:07history. So, that can help add positive
9:09on-time payments up to 2 years of
9:11account age to your credit profile.
9:13Right now, you can access your credit
9:15report through Rising's $1 7-day trial.
9:18There will be a link in the description.
9:19There will also be a clickable link here
9:21on screen. Now, what you want to look
9:23for is collections, charge-offs, late
9:26payments, [music]
9:27old addresses, especially incorrect
9:29personal information. If you have
9:31duplicate accounts, balances that don't
9:33match, accounts you don't recognize, or
9:35anything that looks inaccurate. And I
9:37really want to emphasize this because a
9:39lot of people, and I'm I'm sorry to tell
9:41you this, but I know you guys love
9:43instant gratification. Honestly, like in
9:45my real life, I don't do that. In my
9:47real life, everything is progressive. It
9:49takes time. No one can tell you how long
9:51credit repair will take, but what I can
9:53say is that there are a lot more
9:55resources and information than when I
9:57started. And I have several videos on
9:59this channel showing you step-by-step
10:01how I did it myself. Every single video
10:04does not mean you will get the exact
10:06same result. A lot of things that I did
10:08took me a long time to do. Like I said,
10:10it took 2 years. So, if you have like a
10:13couple things on there and you don't see
10:15results after just a couple of weeks,
10:18all I can say is keep disputing, stay on
10:20top of it. Worst-case scenario, all of
10:22this stuff has a 7-year statute of
10:24limitations to report all of this debt.
10:277 years. After that, it'll fall off. So,
10:30if you just want to wait 7 years and do
10:31nothing, then that is an option for you,
10:33too. If not, then I would keep disputing
10:36until you get the results that you want.
10:38That's exactly what I did. Now, if step
10:40one was to repair my credit, that was
10:42the first step of how I went from like
10:44having like no credit whatsoever after
10:46destroying it to having now millions of
10:49dollars in credit. I think I'm at like
10:50$1.5 million right now. The next step
10:53was during the process of cleaning up
10:56negative items, I had to start adding
10:58some positive payment history with some
11:00new accounts. Because the problem is a
11:02lot of people only focus on removing
11:04derogatory accounts, but they forget
11:06they also need to add some positive ones
11:09as well. If your credit report is empty
11:11after negative items are removed, that's
11:13not good because negative information
11:15puts you behind, but the absence of
11:17credit just puts you at the starting
11:19line. You need positive history. You
11:21need quality accounts. You need accounts
11:23that show banks that you can manage
11:25money responsibly. Because let's be
11:27honest, mismanaging money is the reason
11:29why you have bad credit. I mismanaged
11:31money and it put me in this financial
11:33situation where now no one would lend to
11:35me. But one of the best ways to start
11:37building credit is with a secured credit
11:39card from a reputable bank or a credit
11:41union. Now, that's exactly what I did. I
11:44opened up an account with Navy Federal.
11:46I deposited $200 and I used that $200 to
11:50open a pledge loan. Then of course, I
11:52paid 90% of that loan. Then I took that
11:55same money and then I used it to open a
11:57secured credit card with Navy Federal. A
11:59secured credit card is simple. You put
12:01down a deposit and that deposit becomes
12:03your credit limit. The goal is to build
12:05trust with the bank or that credit union
12:08while adding positive account history
12:09from a major institution. Now, I have a
12:12full video showing you how I graduated
12:14my Navy Federal secured card to an
12:16unsecured card. I'm going to link that
12:18video right here. I also have another
12:20video covering the best secured credit
12:22cards of 2026. So, if you can't join
12:25Navy Federal, there are also plenty of
12:27other strong options available for you.
12:29Another powerful tool that you can use
12:31would be a secured loan. Like when I
12:33mentioned the pledge loan. Now, with the
12:35pledge loan, you're borrowing against
12:36your own money. For example, you may
12:38deposit money into a savings account
12:41then take out a loan secured by those
12:43funds. As you make payments, the loan
12:45can report to the credit bureaus and
12:47help you build positive installment
12:49history. Now, this matters because
12:51credit mix is a part of building a
12:52stronger credit profile. And again, if
12:54you want to learn more about that Navy
12:56Federal pledge loan strategy and how it
12:58can help improve your credit, I'll link
13:00that video here, but I do have a limit.
13:02I can only link five videos on screen.
13:05So, if you don't see it, go to my
13:07channel, click the search bar, type in
13:09pledge loan, the video should come up.
13:11Now, going back to credit mix, if you
13:13only have revolving accounts, you may be
13:15missing installment history. A strong
13:18credit profile shows lenders that you
13:19can handle different types of credit
13:21responsibly and that can be like an auto
13:24loan. It could also be an installment
13:25loan. It can be your credit cards, you
13:27know, things like that. But again,
13:29quality really does matter. So, if
13:31you're still repairing your credit and
13:33you can only qualify for credit builder
13:35accounts right now, that is okay. I
13:37recently released a video where I broke
13:39down $58,000
13:41in credit builder accounts that you can
13:42add to your credit profile. It also
13:45includes a mix of revolving and
13:47installment accounts to help you build a
13:48stronger credit mix. Now, I would
13:50recommend that you start with maybe two
13:52to four credit builder accounts, but you
13:54should also try to add two to three
13:56accounts from a major bank or credit
13:58union when possible. Credit unions,
14:01major banks, and secured products, they
14:03will eventually graduate and usually
14:05you'll get better options later down the
14:07line, which is very important in this
14:09process. Now, for me personally, going
14:11from, you know, having no credit to
14:13getting to this point where my credit
14:15was actually okay, it was decent. Now, I
14:18was actually able to start applying for
14:20credit cards. Now, some of you may have
14:23decent credit right now where [music]
14:24you weren't in that position where you
14:26have to repair your own credit, this is
14:28kind of where you would start from, and
14:30this is step number three. It's going to
14:32be access versus conditioned, and this
14:35is where the conversation gets really
14:36serious, because after you cleaned up
14:38your credit, or let's say you already
14:40have decent credit, maybe you haven't
14:41made any mistakes yet, getting access to
14:43credit is one thing, but being
14:45conditioned for credit is something
14:47completely [music] different. Now, that
14:49is the one good thing about when you
14:50ruin your credit, you definitely learn a
14:52lot from that. I mean, you have to get a
14:54lot more savvy. If you've never had that
14:56happen to you, then, you know, you may
14:58end up making some mistakes. Again, a
15:00lot of people think that the goal is
15:02[music] to get approved for like a
15:03$50,000 credit card, but that is not the
15:06real goal. The [music] real goal is
15:08knowing exactly what you're going to do
15:10with that $50,000 before [music] you
15:12even use it, because access to capital
15:14without a plan can destroy all the
15:17progress that you've worked so hard to
15:18build. And let me tell you, I've seen
15:20people get approved for credit and end
15:22up in a worse position because they
15:24treated credit like income. They got
15:26[music] some cards and started making
15:27personal purchases and they had no
15:30repayment plans and then for some reason
15:32they would act surprised when the
15:33statement came due. Credit is not free
15:35money. Credit is leverage and leverage
15:38only works when there is a strategy
15:39[music] behind it. I'll also have
15:41another video titled how to leverage
15:43credit like the rich even if you're
15:45starting from zero where I break all of
15:47this down in more details, but if you
15:49use credit, you need to ask yourself a
15:51few questions. How will this create cash
15:54flow? If you're using credit to fund a
15:56business, what will the business model
15:58actually be? How will the business make
16:00money? What are the expenses? What is
16:02the timeline? What happens if things
16:04take a longer time frame than expected?
16:07What is my backup plan? See, in the
16:08past, I never asked myself any of these
16:10questions. If you're using credit to
16:12build banking relationships, how will
16:14you manage the monthly payments? This is
16:16the part that most people skip because
16:18it requires planning. If you're watching
16:20this video, I'm assuming that you're
16:22trying to leverage credit in order to
16:24improve your financial situation in some
16:26way, form, or fashion. Now, most of us
16:29will do that by starting a business, but
16:31you have to understand a business solves
16:34a real problem and solving problem means
16:36creating value for someone else other
16:38than yourself. And for someone who cares
16:41about, let's say, status, it's very hard
16:43for someone like you to create wealth
16:45because most people I talk to who are
16:47like this, they never want to work hard,
16:49they're always looking for a shortcut,
16:51and they don't want to solve other
16:52people's problems. And that's why we're
16:54talking about this. Most people never
16:56sit down and try to figure that part
16:58out. They want approval screenshots, but
17:00they don't want the responsibility that
17:02comes with the approvals. For example, I
17:04figured out the reason why I was in that
17:06bad position was for two things. Number
17:08one, trading stock was an investment and
17:11it was not actually a business. I wasn't
17:13helping people. All I was doing was
17:15trying to find little gaps here and
17:17there in order for me to actually make
17:19money, but it was doing nothing [music]
17:21for anybody else. And that is the reason
17:23why when I was over-leveraged or things
17:26happen in the market that are
17:27unpredictable, I had nowhere else to
17:28pull money from because nothing I was
17:30doing actually had any intrinsic value.
17:33And a lot of people don't understand
17:35that. There's a difference between when
17:36you're making an investment and you're
17:38actually starting a business that does
17:40something for somebody else. A business
17:42can have cash flow. A business can
17:44produce money every 30 days. An
17:46investment, while it may be a good idea,
17:49you have no idea when that money's
17:50coming in. And that is the difference. I
17:52don't want you guys to make that same
17:54mistake. [music]
17:54And that is why being conditioned for
17:56credit matters. And the truth is most
17:59people who are conditioned, they've
18:00already failed [music] at this point
18:02before. They have to learn the hard way.
18:04Then they have to bounce back. And then
18:06because of that, they understand exactly
18:08how this is supposed to work. So just
18:10understand this. You don't need more
18:12credit if you haven't learned how to
18:14manage the credit you already have. But
18:16honestly, in my experience, if you
18:17complete step one and two the right way,
18:20[music] especially if you've already
18:21been through this, you're probably going
18:23to be in a much better position to
18:24access credit and handle that
18:26responsibly. [music] If you want to
18:27impress people by having approvals or by
18:30just showing them that you know, um, I
18:32have this credit card where I could
18:33charge this and I'm going to spend this.
18:35This isn't for you. I would hope that
18:38maybe that's not you. And if that is
18:40you, more than likely you'll end up at
18:42step number one. You'll have to repair
18:43your credit. You'll have to go through
18:45this and then you'll get back to this
18:46point where you learn that that all made
18:49absolutely no [music] sense and you'll
18:50have to get that reality check. Now for
18:52me, step number four was increasing my
18:55income and learning to pivot. So after I
18:58cleaned up my credit and everything was
19:00good, I had already started a new
19:03business. So I already knew I needed to
19:05start making money before I just applied
19:08for credit cards and, you know, tried to
19:10access all of this funding. So, cleaning
19:13up your credit, that's going to give you
19:15the ability to gain access to higher
19:17limit credit cards, um funding, things
19:20like that. But, credit alone is not
19:22enough. You still need income. You still
19:25need cash flow. You still need a plan to
19:27repay what you borrow. And this is again
19:29where a lot of people also get stuck.
19:32I've had people since I started this
19:33channel fix their credit, immediately
19:36start chasing funding, but then they
19:37have no clear plan for how they're going
19:39to use this money to actually produce
19:42more money. And I've said this in many
19:43coachings that I've done in the past. I
19:45was in the same position before, and the
19:47philosophy here has to be simple. Before
19:50you access capital, know exactly how the
19:52money will be used, and know exactly how
19:55you will pay it back. It is that simple.
19:57Now, if you're building a business,
19:59understand the business model. If you're
20:01investing, understand the risk. If
20:04you're using funding for marketing,
20:05understand your customer acquisition
20:07cost. If you're buying inventory,
20:10understand the demand. And if something
20:11is not working, then be willing to
20:14pivot. Too many people fall in love with
20:16an idea that's not really going to make
20:18the money. And at some point, you have
20:20to learn a skill, you have to solve a
20:22problem, or you have to find a way to
20:24become valuable to other people. For me,
20:26personally, the skill that allowed me to
20:28quit my job was e-commerce. I learned
20:31inventory management. I learned
20:32marketing. I learned how to build online
20:34stores and how to identify emotional
20:36connections that make customers want to
20:38buy. A lot of that came from my previous
20:40jobs. I worked in sales for 13 years,
20:43and most of my positions were
20:45commission-based. I also understood
20:47content because I spent years trying to
20:49promote myself as a musician and later
20:51as a podcaster. All of those skills
20:54eventually came together, and they
20:55helped me build what I'm doing right now
20:57here on YouTube. I have another video
20:59where I break down my passive income
21:01streams called No Job in 3 Years, How to
21:04Build Income Streams That Pay All of
21:06Your Bills. Now, if you're stuck at this
21:08part of the process, watch that video
21:10and check out my business ideas playlist
21:13for different income streams that you
21:14may want to try. Now, I really want you
21:16guys to understand this. There is no
21:18perfect path. I never thought I would be
21:20on YouTube talking about finance. Trust
21:22me, I understand this and this really
21:25isn't for everyone. But, if you get to
21:27the point where your income outside of
21:29your 9-to-5 job can cover all of your
21:32bills, you may decide you want to take
21:34that leap of faith into full
21:35self-employment like I did. And once
21:38again, that move is not for everyone,
21:40but when you have more control over your
21:42time and you treat your business like a
21:44real job, you show up every day, you
21:46stay consistent, and you improve your
21:48skills, you give yourself a much better
21:50chance to scale your income faster,
21:52which does give you the chance to
21:54leverage credit at the highest level
21:56possible. Because, honestly, the reason
21:58why I've been able to scale up so
22:00quickly is because I spend all of my
22:02time doing the same thing. Because what
22:04I do to scale is tied to how I make
22:07income every single day. I spend all my
22:09time doing it and I don't have a
22:11traditional job. It makes it very, very
22:13easy for me to see results a lot faster
22:15than the average person. So, once I
22:17actually had some really good income,
22:20that was when I started applying for
22:22credit cards and you guys kind of saw my
22:24journey throughout my YouTube channel of
22:26all the cards that I applied for and
22:28when I actually did this step-by-step.
22:30So, let's talk about that next. So, step
22:32number five is going to be building
22:34banking relationships. Once my personal
22:37credit profile and income started
22:38getting stronger, I have to start
22:40building relationships with banks and
22:42I'll keep this part brief because I have
22:44several videos that go deep into this
22:46topic, but if you want to access serious
22:49capital, you have to stop treating banks
22:51like random apps on your phone [music]
22:53and you need to start building with
22:55financial institutions with intent. You
22:58have to be intentional about what you're
23:00trying to do. And as you can see here on
23:02screen, this isn't like something that I
23:04want you to copy. I'm just giving an
23:06example of how, you know, you might do a
23:08funding sequence. You might go to Chase
23:11and you might nurture Chase from January
23:13to March. Then maybe from July to
23:15September, you might go to US Bank. And
23:17then September to November, you might be
23:19at Bank of America. That's just an
23:21example of how I would look at nurturing
23:23different banks for a funding sequence.
23:25And you don't have to do each bank one
23:27at a time. You can actually do this
23:28simultaneously, just depending on how
23:30much money you actually have already.
23:32So, what does building banking
23:34relationships actually mean? That means
23:36opening a checking and savings account,
23:38keeping money in those accounts, [music]
23:40using them consistently, setting up
23:42direct deposit, maintaining balances,
23:45and giving the bank a reason to trust
23:47you. Or just to sum it up, you put money
23:49in the accounts, you leave it there, and
23:51you have activity that looks
23:52responsible. That is really it. And this
23:54matters even more today because lending
23:57has changed. There was a time where a
23:59strong credit profile alone could get
24:01you approved for a lot of funding. But
24:02now, many banks are looking beyond that,
24:05especially on the business side. They
24:07want to see cash flow. They want to see
24:09deposits. They want to see account
24:11activity, and they want to see real
24:13relationships. So, if a bank sees
24:15consistent deposits, if they see
24:17responsible account management, strong
24:19credit behavior, and a history with
24:21them, you will look more attractive than
24:23someone who only has a decent credit
24:25score, but no banking relationship and
24:28no activity. [music]
24:29Now, once you establish those
24:30relationships, you can start positioning
24:32yourself for high-limit credit cards,
24:34business credit cards, 0% APR funding,
24:37but you still need to have a plan. One
24:40strategy I've talked about before is
24:42using 0% APR business credit cards to
24:44access capital, and then using that
24:46capital to build additional banking
24:48relationships. For example, let's say
24:51that someone gets approved for around
24:52$50,000 in 0% APR credit cards, their
24:56business credit cards with a 12-month
24:58introductory period. That does not mean
25:00that someone should just run out and
25:02spend $50,000. A strategic person would
25:05look at this and ask themselves, "How
25:07can I use this to position myself for
25:09the next credit level?" In a situation
25:11where you have income, like you're
25:13making money from your business, one
25:15option that you have is to liquidate a
25:17portion of your credit, meaning that you
25:19convert part of your available credit
25:21line into usable cash, and you can do
25:24this through a payroll service. I have
25:26an entire video where I actually show
25:28you how you can actually run payroll
25:30with your business credit cards to pay
25:32yourself, and that's also a way to
25:34liquidate those cards. Now, that usually
25:37comes with a processing fee. So, for
25:39example, the fee is usually around 2.9%
25:42plus 30% per transaction. So,
25:45liquidating $50,000 in 0% APR credit
25:48cards will cost you around $1,450
25:53or slightly more than that. You also
25:55have to remember that even with using 0%
25:57APR, there is usually still a minimum
26:00monthly payment. Many banks require
26:02around 1% of the balance. So, let's say
26:05like on $50,000, that could be about
26:08$500 per month that you're going to have
26:10to pay in minimum [music] payments. And
26:12this is where a lot of people who are
26:14not conditioned for credit or business,
26:16they get in trouble. They see $50,000
26:18and they think, "Okay, I have $50,000
26:20that I can spend." A strategic person
26:23will see 50K and immediately account for
26:25the fees, the payments, and risk
26:28management. That is where you may want
26:29to set aside 15 to 20% of the capital
26:33just to cover payments during the 0% APR
26:35period. That way, the minimum payments
26:38are already handled, and you can use the
26:40remaining capital to build banking
26:41relationships and fund a business or
26:44generate revenue or position yourself
26:46for future approvals. For example,
26:48[music] liquidate $50,000, you would
26:51subtract the processing fee of $1,450.
26:55You're left with around $48,550.
26:58Now, even if the card has 0% APR, you
27:01still have to account for the minimum
27:03payments. Now, if the minimum payments
27:05are around $500 per month for, let's
27:07say, you know, the total amount of these
27:09cards is 50K, that would be around
27:11$6,000 over 1 year. But, you want to be
27:14more conservative. So, let's set aside
27:1730% of that $48,550
27:20for payments, fees, and of course, risk
27:22management. That would end up being
27:24$14,565.
27:27After setting aside that money, you
27:29would still have $33,985
27:33available, and you can use that to seed
27:35future bank accounts. You can build
27:37stronger banking relationships, and you
27:39can position yourself for more capital
27:42in the funding sequence. But, if you
27:43liquidate credit cards and you spend the
27:45money on your lifestyle, you're not
27:47building wealth, you're just building a
27:49future problem. Also, remember the 0%
27:52APR period usually starts when you're
27:54approved for the card. So, if you wait,
27:56let's say, 6 months into having that
27:58card, you only have 6 months left before
28:01interest kicks in. That's why you need
28:02to have a plan for funding before you
28:04actually get it. So, in my case, I
28:06strategically went to banks through
28:08various banks throughout the last like 2
28:10years, and I got exactly what I needed
28:12from each one, and I used them for
28:15different projects, and then I went
28:16ahead and seeded some future funding
28:18accounts, then I borrowed more funding,
28:20and eventually, as I went through this
28:22process, I was getting, you know,
28:24$100,000 in limit approvals for one
28:27funding sequence, then I would get 250
28:29for the next, then I got into SBA loans,
28:31business loans, because I started having
28:33um a lot more actual documentation, and
28:36eventually, that's what got me like a
28:38little over $1.5 million available in
28:41credit. Now, let's bring this back to
28:43the real reason why all of this matters.
28:45This journey was never about credit. It
28:47was never about approvals or even money
28:49for that matter. For me personally, this
28:51was about freedom or at least like I
28:53like to say the illusion of having
28:55freedom. There was a time in my life of
28:57working hourly, of hating my job, and
29:00realizing that there had to be more to
29:02life than just trading every hour for a
29:04dollar. When you're paid by the hour,
29:06there's a ceiling. There is only 24
29:08hours in a day, and you can't work all
29:1024. At some point, you have to start
29:13asking yourself deeper questions. How do
29:15I buy back my time? How do I become more
29:17present for my family? How do I stop
29:19missing important moments because I want
29:21to just survive financially? How do I
29:23stop being stuck in a cycle where every
29:25bill creates stress? When you ask
29:27yourself questions like this, all of
29:29your goals will change. I started caring
29:31more about doing whatever it took to get
29:33out of that situation than I cared about
29:35being tired. [music] Like I really just
29:37was like, I don't care what I have to
29:39do. I just don't want to do this
29:41anymore. Credit is important, but
29:43honestly, credit is just an extension of
29:45money. Money is important, but money is
29:47not the final goal. The goal is to build
29:49a life where you're not financially
29:51trapped. The goal is to have enough
29:53knowledge that way you can teach your
29:55children something different because if
29:57nobody taught you credit, the cycle will
29:59never stop with you. If nobody taught
30:01you money, that cycle never stops. If
30:04nobody taught you to look internally to
30:06determine what matters because material
30:08things don't matter, it's never going to
30:10actually change. So, this was never
30:12about getting approved for credit cards.
30:14This was never about building a
30:16foundation for a great credit profile.
30:19This had to do with family, my
30:21community, [music] and the people that
30:22are going to be coming up behind me.
30:24Credit and money are just tools. Used
30:26correctly, they can change your life.
30:28Used [music] incorrectly, they can put
30:30you in a deeper hole. So, I would
30:32suggest always moving with strategy.
30:34[music]
30:34And once again, always keeping in mind
30:37that all of this, this entire system,
30:39has to to with a give and take. The only
30:41reason why I could manage all of these
30:43credit cards, the reason why I could
30:44manage this credit so well, is because I
30:47was able to create income by serving
30:49others. [music] That is how I was able
30:50to ultimately do this. So, if you're
30:52trying to somehow leverage credit to do
30:55something for yourself, just understand
30:57that in the end, in order for this to
30:59make sense, you have to find some way to
31:01be valuable to other people in some way.
31:04I want to thank you guys so much for
31:06watching this video. Now, if you're
31:07watching this right now and your credit
31:09score is low, I want you to understand
31:11something. You are not stuck. A 400
31:14credit score or 480 credit score, that
31:16doesn't have to be your final chapter. A
31:18three-digit number doesn't define the
31:20rest of your life, and not understanding
31:22credit before does not mean that you
31:24can't start learning it right now, but
31:25you have to start. Start by pulling your
31:28reports. Start by learning what's on
31:30them. Start by cleaning up inaccurate
31:32information. Then, once you have your
31:34foundation and it's strong, start
31:36thinking about high-limit credit cards.
31:38Start thinking about business credit.
31:40Start thinking about 0% APR funding and
31:42building banking relationships. But, in
31:44order for you to do that, [music] you
31:46have to have a plan in place, and you
31:48have to understand that business is
31:50really about serving other people, and
31:52it's about being valuable to others.
31:54That's how you actually get paid for
31:56something. And if you can't do that,
31:58you'll never be able to leverage credit
32:00properly. And when you learn how this
32:02actually works, don't keep the
32:03information to yourself. Go back and
32:06teach somebody else. And if this video
32:07helped you, then do me a favor and hit
32:09the like button. Also, subscribe to the
32:12channel because I'm going to keep
32:13breaking down credit, funding, banking
32:15relationships, financial strategies, and
32:18honestly, the psychology of credit and
32:20money, and how these things work,
32:22especially in our communities. As
32:24always, thank you guys so much for
32:26watching this video. I truly appreciate
32:28it, and you guys have a wonderful day.

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