The Day That Loyalty Backfired: The Day a Perfectly Sensible Plan Got Out of Hand

It began, as most things in Clarence Mills do, with a perfectly reasonable idea.There’s something deeply satisfying about making a smart financial decision—the kind that makes you stand a little taller and feel you’ve finally wrestled adulthood to the ground and pinned it there with calm, mathematical authority.And there’s something even more satisfying about believing you’ve beaten the system. Loyalty should be rewarded. Thrift deserves applause. Careful arithmetic ought to have its moment in the sun.In this tale, a modest adjustment gathers momentum. A harmless strategy develops legs. A simple plan acquires… velocity.Good intentions are present at every turn. So is caffeine.What begins as sensible and responsible grows into something rather more energetic than anticipated—complete with rising ambitions, questionable decisions, and a firm belief that one more small improvement couldn’t possibly change much of anything.And then the day unfolds.If you’ve ever made a perfectly reasonable plan and watched it gather speed…If you’ve ever believed you were cleverly outmaneuvering a rewards program…If you’ve ever found yourself wide awake long after prudence suggested otherwise…You may feel very much at home here.I’ll be right here Thursday morning with another Clarence Mills tale. And if you’d like the next one to arrive without any effort at all, you’re always welcome to follow along.