this weekend i'm filming an ad for an app that pays you to walk 🚶‍♀️ 2026 is so crazy. all i’m thinking as i sit here chuckling to myself is can you even imagine explaining the creator economy to a pilgrim

also on the docket this wknd will be pitching myself to a brand i like for fun. what’s the worst they can say - no? there’s no permission structure for life, you can literally just do things diva!!

case in point (and not-so-humble brag), i'm in my 3rd highest income month since starting my biz (gunning for first🤞) from my core client work plus a whole stack of lil projects!

turning down work that doesn't feel big enough for you doesn't move you forward. doing more work does. little projects stack cash + reps! take em!

in today's counter-cultural programming:

💸 my weird hot take on gen z's "loud budgeting" era (savvie tip)
📱 rhode put pimple patches on a basketball (??)
🎁 what i'm loving this week

let's go ↓

new data this week says 42% of gen z now practice loud budgeting - openly telling friends what they can and can't afford instead of quietly opting out or quietly overspending to keep up. and it tracks: about half this generation is living paycheck to paycheck with cost of living squeezing hardest. of course the money talk got louder.

so here's my possibly minority opinion, especially coming from someone who makes #moneytok content… i actually don't think that all money talk is inherently empowering.

blasted into the wrong room, it can actually be quite rude, touchy, and quietly corrosive. it invites comparison, judgment, and weirdness that nobody signed up for over dinner.

when i hear your salary, especially when it’s out of context, my human nature creeps in with the yardstick, and suddenly i’ve departed the conversation and am just thinking about how much money you make. oh, just me?

but in the right rooms, it can be some of the most important information that you have about your role, your rate, and your next move. discussing these things 1:1, topically and in context, salary convos with a peer in your field before you negotiate, or a friend telling you what she actually paid... that's how financial literacy can truly move person to person, which is exactly how our most sacred traditions have traveled.

the distinction i'd like to draw here: being loud about your own boundaries is one thing. being loud about everyone else's numbers is a group project and we’re not in class anymore :)

sooo save the deeper money convos for the rooms built for them: in context with one person you really trust. both of you will be better for it ✨

i did two ad teardowns this week! a teardown of a brick ad for ContentJet's page where i’m on contract as a creative strategist, plus rhode’s statics on ours - and one idea from the rhode one won't leave me alone 👇

rhode won the clean-girl aesthetic hands down, but when they took a pivot from balletcore to basketball, they managed to still be unmistakably rhode in every frame. no headline or text. the photo does all of the talking.

and that's not just an ads thing. the version of you (or your brand) that got you here quietly becomes a mold, and sometimes the thing that grows you is the weird gig, the unsolicited pitch, the pimple patch on the basketball…back to that.

a question for the both of us: does your newest work repeat who you already are? or hint at where you're going? if everything you've made lately would've made sense a year ago... it might be basketball time :)

Most business owners don’t notice when it happens.

They start as the operator… and slowly become the center of everything.

The real risk isn’t being busy. It’s being required for everything.

BELAY’s new guide From Operator to Owner: How to Exit the Middle Without Losing Control shows you how to step out of day-to-day execution while keeping visibility, quality, and momentum intact.

BELAY matches you with U.S.-based Assistants who bring structure, follow-through, and operational clarity so work keeps moving without you at the center.

Download Operator to Owner for Free.

one little click on our sponsor keeps teague talk free for everyone. no pressure… but also, pressure 🤍

trending audio: beyoncé's "pen and paper" audio talking about writing partition on the spot. gave it a try w the old man👇

on the radar: the world cup has become a massive creator-marketing moment, and unilever alone activated 50,000 creators for it. if you’re watching, notice how many ads feel more like ugc than studio-made!

tool: a good olll google sheet. i know, creatives shudder at the thought of spreadsheets, but they really are iconic for a reason. the least glamorous dashboards i own but they’re still kickin!

trend: the netflix documentary chair thing: slow walk into frame, text: "me when netflix does a documentary about [your niche]" - if you’ve been thinking about doing this (me, to myself), hop on this one quickly before the internet moves on!

totally random: i'm exactly two weeks from my next sistrip w courtney aka vacayyy and have never been more motivated to hit inbox zero in my life <3

🎉 savvie hit 1k on tiktok!! we talk a lot about how little things stack.. followers included apparently :) if you're one of the 1,000, ily. if you're not yet… @withsavvie, come learn money stuff with us 💚

pick one:

💸 be okay saying a plan doesn't fit your budget: your own boundaries are always fair game
📱pitch yourself to a brand (or person) you love, just for fun
🍀 go on a walk. touch grass!

thanks for reading 💌

that's it for this week. nobody's coming to hand you a permission slip! the weird gigs you take, the bold pitches you send, and the out-of-character moves are all sitting there, available to you. take big swings. i'll report back from my paid walk.

xo,
callie 🤍

p.s. reply and tell me: what's the weirdest way you've ever gotten paid? 🤳

follow @withsavvie + @teague.media for more unsolicited performance marketing + life observations!