August 5, 2021

People of EarnIn: Jason Campbell

Inspired by his parents’ triumph over $30k in debt, Jason lives a debt-free life and he’s teaching his son to do the same. Here’s his story:

Family Money

I grew up in a family where my parents had three kids and they were very deep in debt, like $30,000 in debt. When I was 14, they took me with them to a financial freedom class from Dave Ramsey. The first thing Dave said was, if you can afford it, only use cash. It kind of stuck with me and ever since then, I just don't use credit cards.

Because of that class, my parents ended up turning it around. They did what’s called the snowball effect. They combined everything that they would pay on their minimum payments for all of their cards, put it on one card, and just continued to pay it off until it was done. They’d close one account and start with the next one until they were completely out of debt.

My mom is now debt-free, owns three homes and she just travels the world, doing her thing. She's a very inspirational person for me to aspire to be. I’m really lucky to have her as my mom.

I Don’t Pay for Money

When I was 14, my parents took me with them to a financial freedom class from Dave Ramsey. The first thing Dave said was, if you can afford it, only use cash. It kind of stuck with me and ever since then, I just don't use credit cards.

My biggest thing is interest. If I pay somebody $28, I'm paying them $28. If you pay $28 on a credit card, you end up paying 36. Why am I paying to use my own money just later on down the road? I don't like paying more money for my money.

I always use the Thomas Jefferson quote: the best way to double your money is to fold it in half and put it back in your pocket. If I don't have the cash for it, I just won’t buy it.

I bought a truck for myself in 2005. I bought it brand new. I saved up $17,000 and bought it.

I still, in 2020, drive that 2005 truck. It's got 198,000 miles on it. It's still going and I will drive it until the wheels fall off, basically. That's just how we live our lives. We're not extravagant. I don't want to keep up with the Joneses. I just want to be the Campbells.

Financial Tips For My Son

If I could share one financial tip with my 14 year old son, honestly, I would teach him to not use money that he doesn't have.

I want to get him in a relationship where he knows that plastic is not just swipe and go. A lot of kids who are blessed with their parent's credit cards or debit cards don’t realize where the money came from.

I have a Chase First account for him. I put $10 a week in there, and I assign him chores. He tells me if the chores are completed, and if they’re done, he gets his money. He can go out and spend his money as his own little debit card.

There's times where my son’s like, “Hey dad, can we get this?” And I'm like, “Listen, let's have a conversation about whether you really need this.” I like to let him know, “You did two hours and yard work for this $20. Is that XBox game really worth four hours of your time?”

If it's not affecting your life to the point where you can't live without it, you don’t need it. Get what you need, get your basic foundation. My step dad always told me, “You can't have a champagne lifestyle on a beer budget.” Live within your means.

How Earnin Helps

I learned about Earnin because I used to work at a Pizza Hut as a delivery driver as a part-time job just to kind of make ends meet. People told me that you can make money in tips, but you don't get your paycheck until two weeks later. They suggested Earnin which was called ActiveHours athe the time.

I went and put my information in and I was like, “Hold on, wait a minute. They'll basically give you your money, you give them a little bit of a tip, and then you move on and then they'll just take it out later? That's really cool.” The way that they do the Lightning charge thing is amazing. You just spin the wheel, hit the button, move on, and the money's there.

So I started using it whenever tips weren’t good that day. I'd need to buy groceries or something for my son or my wife or school projects, money for clothes - whatever I needed, I would just use the app. I'd get my money straight in.

I have my health insurance, my 401k, and taxes all coming out of my paycheck. Even when you're an established person and budget everything out, sometimes, when you get to the end of the week, you’re still short. That happens. Things come up - like car repairs. So if I'm still short, I'll use Earnin.

Did you enjoy reading Jason’s story? Check out our other People of Earnin stories like Donald, Angela, or Tyler!


Jason was compensated post interview for his time, however the opinions presented are his own.

EarnIn is a financial technology company, not a bank. Bank products are issued by Evolve Bank & Trust, Member FDIC. The EarnIn Card is issued pursuant to a license from Visa USA Inc.

1Subject to your available earnings, Daily Max and Pay Period Max. EarnIn does not charge interest on Cash Outs.

2Fees apply to use Lightning Speed. Lightning Speed may not be available to all Community Members. Cash Outs may take up to thirty minutes, actual transfer speeds will depend on your bank connection. Restrictions and/or third party fees may apply, see Earnin.com/TOS for details.

1Restrictions on use of Services and/or third party fees may apply, see earnin.com/privacyandterms for details.

2Balance Shield cash out is subject to your available earnings and daily pay period max. Other restrictions and/or third party fees may apply. For more information visit earnin.com/privacyandterms.

3Tip Yourself Account funds are held with Evolve Bank & Trust, Member FDIC and FDIC insured up to $250,000. Tip Yourself is a 0% APY and $0 monthly fee service. Other restrictions and/or third party fees may apply, see earnin.com/privacyandterms for details.

1Fees may apply to use Lightning Speed. Lightning Speed may not be available to all Community Members. Cash Outs may take up to thirty minutes, actual transfer speeds will depend on your bank connection. Restrictions and/or third party fees may apply, see  Earnin.com/TOS for details.

2Restrictions and/or third party fees may apply, see Earnin.com/TOS for details.

3Balance Shield cash out is subject to your available earnings and your daily pay period max. Other restrictions and/or third party fees may apply, see Earnin.com/TOS for details.

4Tip Yourself Account funds are held with Evolve Bank & Trust, Member FDIC and are insured by the FDIC up to the standard maximum deposit insurance amount per depositor, per FDIC-insured bank, and per ownership category. Tip Yourself is a 0% Annual Percentage Yield and $0 monthly fee service. Other restrictions and/or third party fees may apply. For more information/details visit earnin.com/tos.

5Up to two days early is based on comparison with traditional banks. Exact timing is dependent on your employer’s payroll policies. For more information on eligibility and requirements of Earnin Express, visit Earnin.com/TOS.

6Your Max on Earnin Express is up to 80% of your payroll or $1000, whichever is less. The 80% is dependent on you routing your full paycheck to Earnin Express. For more information on eligibility and requirements of Earnin Express, visit Earnin.com/TOS.

7Learn how we collect and use your information by visiting our Privacy Policy.

1Disclaimer: Restrictions and/or third party fees may apply, see earnin.com/privacyandterms for more details. Lightning Speed may not be available to all Community Members. Cash Outs may take up to thirty minutes, actual transfer speeds will depend on your bank connection.

2Disclaimer: Lightning Speed may not be available to all Community Members. Cash Outs may take up to thirty minutes, actual transfer speeds will depend on your bank connection. Restrictions and/or third party fees may apply, see earnin.com/privacyandterms for details

3Disclaimer: Community Member must have had at least 1 successful debit with EarnIn. Limit to 1 Max Boost per pay period. A boost will not adjust a Community member's daily max. Restrictions may apply, see earnin.com/privacyandterms for more details

*Disclaimer: Balance Shield Cash Out is subject to your available earnings and daily pay period max. Other restrictions and/or third party fees may apply. For more information visit earnin.com/privacyandterms

1Restrictions may apply, see earnin.com/privacyandterms for more details. Tip Yourself Account funds are held with Evolve Bank & Trust, member FDIC and FDIC insured up to $250,000. Tip Yourself is a 0% Annual Percentage Yield and $0 monthly fee service. Your Tip Yourself Account and any Tip Jars are not Savings Accounts. For more information/details visit earnin.com/privacyandterms

2Disclaimer: NO PURCHASE NECESSARY TO ENTER OR WIN. Must be 18 years of age or older and a legal resident of the U.S. or DC. Games begin each Sunday starting 12/6/20 at 9:01 p.m. ET and end the following Monday at 9:00 p.m. ET with the last Game ending 12/19/21. To download the App, view the Official Rules, odds disclosures, prize details, and alternate means of entry, visit https://www.Earnin.com/wewin/game-rules/. Void where prohibited. $10,000,000 grand prize payable over 29 years. Sponsor: Activehours, Inc. (d/b/a Earnin), 200 Portage Ave, Palo Alto, CA 94306.

3Disclaimer: Restrictions Apply. See Earnin.com/wewin/pool-rules/ for more information

1EarnIn does not charge a hidden or mandatory fee for use of its services. Restrictions and/or third party fees may apply. For more info: visit earnin.com/TOS.

*Survey conducted in February 2020 with 889 participants.

* Earnin does not charge hidden fees for use of its services. Restrictions and/or third-party fees may apply. For more info, visit earnin.com/TOS.

1EarnIn is a financial technology company, not a bank. The Deposit Account, Secured Account, and EarnIn Card are issued by Evolve Bank & Trust, Member FDIC. The EarnIn Card is issued pursuant to a license from Visa USA Inc.

2Subject to your available earnings, Daily Max and Pay Period Max. Restrictions and/or third party fees may apply, see EarnIn.com/TOS for details.

3Internal analysis conducted by EarnIn in January 2021, represents total users who Cashed Out at least once from January 1 to December 31, 2020

4This research was conducted online by FTI Consulting’s Digital & Insights team, on behalf of Brigit, MoneyLion & EarnIn. FTI Consulting researched n=4,735 of Brigit, MoneyLion and EarnIn’s Direct to Consumer (D2C) Early Wage Access service consumers between the dates of April 21st, 2021 – May 18th, 2021, and results were weighted in equal proportions to ensure equal representation among the consumers of each participating company. Due to the standard convention of rounding, some totals may not add up to 100%

5Internal survey conducted in February 2020 with 889 participants.

6EarnIn does not charge hidden or mandatory fees for use of its services. Restrictions and/or third party fees may apply. For more info visit earnin.com/TOS

7$4.68 ATM fee = $3.02 ATM + $1.66 bank fee https://www.bankrate.com/banking/checking/checking-account-survey/

8Internal data June 2022- Dec. 2022.

* EarnIn does not charge hidden fees for use of its services. Restrictions and/or third-party fees may apply. For more info, visit earnin.com/TOS.

1Calculated on the VantageScore® 3.0 model. Your VantageScore 3.0 from Experian® indicates your credit risk level and is not used by all lenders, so don't be surprised if your lender uses a score that's different from your VantageScore 3.0. Learn more: https://www.experian.com/assets/consumer-information/product-sheets/vantagescore-3.pdf

2Subject to your available earnings, Daily Max and Pay Period Max. Restrictions and/or third party fees may apply, see EarnIn.com/TOS for details

3Actual response times vary

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