👋 Hi Reader,

Hope your Saturday is off to a great start! Here are some highlights from today's newsletter:

• 🧠 How to make change work in your favor
• 💳 Big changes to BoA and United reward programs
• 🏦 Bank & brokerage bonuses worth $5,000+
• 🎸 Get access to Coachella tickets with Bonvoy points
• ⚾ Free 2026 Season of MLB.TV from T-Mobile
• ✍️ Thoughts on a simple life and more!

If you enjoyed reading, please forward this email to someone else who might too (and if that's you, make sure to subscribe here). Thanks!

Chris

🧠 How to Make Change Work in Your Favor

​

Maya Shankar shares science-backed tools that make change easier and more intentional. We explore why most people misunderstand change, how to anchor your identity to your deeper "why," practical tools to break out of rumination, and how to navigate uncertainty.

💰 Use Your Taxes to Grow Your Wealth

Today’s newsletter is brought to you by… Gelt​

Smart tax planning isn’t just about filing on time—it’s about building wealth. And with April 15th coming up, now’s the perfect time to switch to Gelt, the ultimate CPA firm that works with you year-round to get you truly ready for this year’s filing and keep you optimized.

I’ve been working with Gelt for a few years on our personal and business taxes, and I love that every client gets:

✔️ A proactive, year-round strategy to minimize tax liability
✔️ Guidance on credits, deductions, and tax-efficient growth
✔️ A platform that keeps your tax plan aligned with your goals

Even if you’ve already filed, there’s still time to make smart tax moves to optimize your situation. Skip the waitlist and schedule your consultation today to stop overpaying on taxes.

📋 My Past Week

Here's a quick recap of what I was up to last week:

• When we got to Utah for a ski trip this past week, there was almost no snow on the mountain but then it snowed >30" and we had a few amazing day of fresh snow. But even more fun is seeing our kids make so much progress skiing. I've been snowboarding for ~30 years and thought I'd switch to skiing and learn with the kids, but they're two weeks in and already surpassing me. Time to switch back to snowboarding!
• When we got to the SLC airport we had a chance to check out the new massive Delta SkyClub in terminal B that opened a few months ago. It's massive (34,000 sq ft) and was one of the nicest lounges I've ever been to. Defintiely worth a visit!
• I scaled back how much time I spent on my AI agent projects on OpenClaw last week, but did end up realizing I could replace a lot of the model usage I have for recurring tasks with a local model I can run on my Mac Mini. I just got it up and running on the flight home, so I look forward to playing with local models soon.

🛫 Travel, Points & Miles

💳 Two Major Reward Program Changes

United MileagePlus

United is making its biggest MileagePlus changes in over a decade and heavily rewarding their cardholders. Effective 4/2, cardholders will earn 3x more miles on flights and also get at least 10% off all award flights (15% with elite status). Most of their credit cards have increased welcome bonuses right now and it does appear the United debit card will also qualify for increased earnings (after $10k spend each year).

Bank of America Preferred Rewards

BoA is making big changes to Preferred Rewards and sadly the 75% credit card rewards boost now requires $1M+ in assets (up from $100K). For those currently earning 2.625% with a $100k-$999k balance, you'll drop to earning 2.25% (50% bonus). From this article on DoC, it seems changes for existing cardholders won't kick in until 3 months after your first renewal after 11/1/26, which could be as late as 2028. It also seems like Preferred Rewards for Business isn't changing, which could be a good alternative.

📣 New Airline, Hotel and Points Promos This Week

Business Class Award Flight Deals

• 🇦🇺 Australia: From 80K AAdvantage miles or Atmos points​
• 🇫🇷 France: From 58.5K Virgin points​
• 🇵🇹 Portugal: From 60K Aeroplan points​

Airline Promos

• Alaska: Up to 60% off award flights booked before 2/27 and completed by 5/12.
• Virgin: 40% transfer bonus from a popular bank until 2/28.
• Avianca: 15% transfer bonus from Amex until 2/28.
• Delta (Targeted): Earn 2x MQDs with ​targeted credit card spending offers through 5/17. Registration is required.
• United: 1¢ per point with up to a 100% bonus until ​3/30.
• Air France-KLM: 1.69¢ per point with an 80% bonus until 3/5.

Hotel Promos

• IHG: Up to 25% off stays across select destinations booked before 2/26 and completed by 4/30.
• Hotel Booking via Capital One Travel Business: $200 off $600 bookings made by 4/13.
• Wyndham: 2 free months of Insider Plus and 7,500 bonus points when you enroll by 2/28.
• Homes & Villas by Marriott: 10% off ​2+ night stays booked before 4/5 and completed by 6/30.

🤑 Latest Deals

🏦 Bank & Brokerage Bonuses Worth $5,000+

Bank

• ​$2,500 from Wells Fargo: Open or upgrade to a ​Premier Checking account at a bank branch before 4/14 and maintain a qualifying balance.
• ​Up to $500 from TD Bank: Open a new checking AND savings with qualifying direct deposits before 4/30.
• ​$300 from U.S. Bank (Targeted): When you deposit a qualifying amount to a U.S. Bank Smartly Savings account before 3/13 and complete qualifying activities.

Brokerage

• ​2% ACATS Transfer Match from Kraken: Join Kraken+, transfer a qualifying amount before 3/31, and hold for 1 year.
• ​Up to $2,000 from E*Trade (+ 3.75% APY for 6 months): Open a new Premium Savings Account with promo code SAVE26 before 3/11 and make a qualifying deposit.

🎸 Coachella Tickets from 1 Bonvoy Point (Feb 25-26)

Bonvoy members can redeem just 1 point for a chance to win Coachella 2026 packages (including guest passes, VIP access, and limited back-of-house access). Weekend 1 Access (4/10–12) launches 2/25 at 12p ET, and Weekend 2 Access (4/17–19) launches 2/26 at 12p ET.

⚾ Free 2026 Season of MLB.TV from T-Mobile

In light of the MLB season, T-Mobile customers can get free access to MLB.TV between 3/24 and 3/31. Claim this offer via the T-Life app.

🔗 $700+ Savings From Card-Linked Offers

Here are some card-linked offers I found this week with expiration dates in parentheses.

• Frontier Airlines: 10% off, up to $42 (2/26)
• Air India: 10% off $100 (2/28)
• Marriott Hotels: 15% back, up to $57 (3/12)
• T-Mobile/Verizon: $50 off $50 (3/22)
• Calm Premium: Free annual subscription (3/31)
• Popular Bank's Travel Portal: $100 off $600+ (3/31)
• Best Western: 10% back, up to $29 (3/31)
• Vail Ski Resorts: $100 off $500 (4/30)
• Sam's Club: $15 off a new membership (4/30)
• Market Basket: $15 off $75+ (5/15)

Note that some of these offers are targeted, so I recommend using CardPointers Pro (get 30% off here) to automate these offers.

🕵️ Top Finds

I've come back to this tweet a few times this week, because it really sums up how I'm starting to feel right now.

Sahil Bloom @SahilBloom I used to think success meant having a “bigger” life. More people. More goals. More things. I now believe that success means having an intentionally smaller life. Fewer friends, but deeper. Fewer goals, but clearer. Fewer possessions, but more meaningful. Simple is beautiful. 2:29 PM • Feb 15, 2026 165 Retweets 1442 Likes Read 226 replies

​

💬 Parting Thoughts

As always, thanks so much for reading! I’d love to hear your thoughts on today’s newsletter, and if you enjoyed it, please let me know why!

Chris