129. Fan Favorite: The Psychology of Learning & Mastering Points Travel

Point Me To First Class

Devon Gimbel MD

Finances, Education, How To, Travel, Credit, Expenses, Card, Cards, Society & Culture, Professionals, Tips, Personal, Places & Travel, Business, Points, Rewards

5 • 1K Ratings

🗓️ 18 August 2025

⏱️ ? minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

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Summary

In this week’s episode, we’re re-airing a fan favorite that so many listeners have loved and revisited. If you missed it the first time, or just need a refresher, this is one you don’t want to skip.

I love discussing discrete award travel topics like individual rewards credit cards and how best to leverage them, or the specific airlines and hotels that offer the best value for points. But today, I’m covering something that never gets talked about in the points travel world and yet is one of the secrets to becoming more proficient when it comes to points travel: The Dunning-Kruger Effect and how it relates to award travel competency and success.

The Dunning-Kruger Effect is a type of cognitive bias that causes people to overestimate their knowledge or abilities, particularly in areas where they have little to no experience. While this may be an unfamiliar concept, you can probably already see why having some background on the Dunning-Kruger Effect makes all the difference when you’re learning something new, like points travel.

Tune in to discover how the Dunning-Kruger Effect is impacting how you approach the hobby of points travel. I’m showing you the different stages of the journey when learning the ins and outs of points travel, and how to keep moving through the stages until you reach a point of confidence and competence.

On September 20th, 2025, I’m opening up enrollment for Points Made Easy. Enrollment will only be open for one week and this is your last opportunity to join the course this year, so get on the waitlist here: https://pointmetofirstclass.com/pointsmadeeasy

Get full show notes and transcript: https://pointmetofirstclass.com/psycholoy-points-travel/

Want to shape the show? Take the Point Me To First Class listener survey and share what you love and want more of! https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSeAPfb3wIaphMn_NoQzm_fljydsivTELQwh7pYoxrI2uTFoKQ/viewform?usp=header

Transcript

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0:00.0	Welcome to Point Me to First Class, the only show for employed professionals, entrepreneurs, and business owners who are looking to optimize their higher than average expenses to travel the world.
0:10.7	I'm your host, Devin Gimble, and I believe that your expenses are your greatest untapped asset, if you know how to leverage them.
0:17.8	Ready to dive into the world of credit card points and miles so you can travel more, travel better, and travel often. Let's get started.
0:29.7	Hello, everyone, and welcome back to the Point Me to First Class podcast. In the world of credit
0:34.4	cards, points and miles, and award travel, it sometimes feels like everything is changing all the time, especially this year.
0:41.9	But there are a few foundational elements of this hobby that have stood the test of time and are just as important as always, including today's topic.
0:50.3	Longtime listeners, the podcast, might recognize what we're diving into today because for the first time ever, I'm pulling a fan favorite episode out of the podcast fault and re-airing it.
0:59.9	When this episode first came out, I heard from so many of you that this framework completely changed the way that you think about earning and using points.
1:07.0	And it's just as relevant, maybe even more relevant today.
1:10.5	That's because the concept we're talking about doesn't depend on a specific credit card offer
1:14.6	or flight award sweet spot to get the most out of your points.
1:17.6	Instead, we're focusing on something even more important.
1:20.6	The psychology and learning process behind becoming truly competent and confident in points travel because collecting points and learning
1:29.1	how to use them is just the beginning, understanding where you are in the points competency
1:34.1	learning curve and what to do next so that your wish list travel moves from daydream to
1:39.5	reality, that's priceless. So whether this is your first time hearing it or you're coming back for a
1:45.0	refresher, settle in because mastering today's episode will unlock upgraded award travel competency
1:50.3	for a lifetime. One of the things that I am constantly thinking about is how to make learning
1:57.3	about and using points easier for you. And that includes everything that I teach
2:02.4	inside the Points Made Easy course, as well as the topics that I cover on this podcast. And as
2:08.0	much as I love talking about individual rewards cards and what they're best for, or covering
2:13.3	specific award flights or hotel stays that offer tons of value for points, I also think a lot
	...

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