Debt payoff and financial recovery
Strategies, behavior change, setbacks, and building a plan people can sustain.
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Media + expert commentary
A trusted voice for real-world money conversations.
Sandy Smith brings lived experience, financial education, and a clear, relatable point of view to stories about debt, earning, saving, workplace finances, and financial confidence.
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Available forInterviews · Commentary · Guest writing
A long-standing voice in personal finance
Writing and speaking about money since 2009.
Sandy created Yes, I Am Cheap in 2009 to document her financial journey and share practical, honest lessons about getting out of debt and building a better financial life.
Since then, her experience and insights have led to media appearances, expert-source interviews, and contributions across national financial and news platforms. She translates complicated financial topics into useful guidance that audiences can understand and act on.
Featured, cited, or interviewed by
The New York Times
Yahoo Finance
Experian
Money
SmartAsset
MSN
Featured in The New York Times
Your Friend Group Has a Financial Culture. You May Not Have Chosen It.
Sandy was featured in this New York Times story exploring how social circles influence spending habits—and how people can become more intentional about the financial culture around them.
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Featured video appearance
Sandy is available for television, digital video, podcasts, panels, and live conversations that need a practical personal-finance perspective.
For reporters and producers
Clear expertise. Human answers. Practical context.
Sandy can provide timely commentary, personal perspective, and actionable takeaways for consumer-finance stories.
Earning more and workplace finances
Income growth, paychecks, employee financial wellness, and making work pay better.
Everyday money decisions
Saving, budgeting, credit, financial stress, and translating advice into action.
Selected media appearances
Recent features and interviews.
Yahoo Finance
June 7, 2026She went from $200K in debt to $1M in net worth by being “the cheap friend”
A feature on Sandy’s financial transformation and how the people around us can influence our money habits.
Read the featureThe New York Times
May 30, 2026Your Friend Group Has a Financial Culture. You May Not Have Chosen It.
Sandy shares how financial behavior can spread through social circles—and how intentional choices can reshape that culture.
Read the feature