Our Money Power

Welcome to this Special Episode of OUR MONEY POWER - which was recorded live in a packed room of powerhouse women at The Battery Club in San Francisco. We were so excited to do our first recording with a live audience as part of The Battery Club’s women’s history month program. It was great to have the enthusiasm and engagement from the live audience, who also got to ask questions in our wrap up.In this episode, I’m in conversation with Jamie Allison, the Executive Director of the Walter and Elise Haas Fund, a major foundation in the San Francisco Bay Area. The conversation was inspired by an article we co-authored earlier this year for the Chronicle of Philanthropy about the ways Melinda French Gates and MacKenzie Scott are shaking up the philanthropy world not only with the size of their giving — which of course is exceptional — but with the WAYS they are giving.MacKenzie Scott and Melinda French Gates are making bold money moves that are changing philanthropy for the better - and in doing so, showing the world what happens, when women stand in their money power!"When you say, are these women doing things differently, do women do things differently? Yes! And we have to, because we've been in a system where other people, men, have made decisions for us and didn't include us. And so, again, one of the things that these two women are modeling is taking their cues from people who have the lived experience, people who are proximate to whatever the challenges are and the potential solutions are."  - Jamie Allison

We’ve talked a lot on the OUR MONEY POWER podcast about the significant and pervasive wealth gap between men and women - which is even bigger when it comes to Black and Brown women. I wanted to dig deeper into the systemic and historical reasons this wealth gap exists in the first place and talk to someone who is actually offering solutions to close that gap. Shelly Omilâdè Bell, who goes by Omi, founded Black Girl Ventures to transform entrepreneurship by reimagining the way Black and Brown women founders get access to financial and social capital. Her innovative approach offers what she wishes she would have had herself in the early days of her own money journey.Through Black Girl Ventures and their partners, she is now building an ecosystem and community to unleash the flow of capital to those who have been historically shut-out. In the process, she’s realized that money itself is not enough - it’s about our relationships too, and their role in how we build wealth and stand in our own money power."The money conversation I'm having is about relationship building. It's about negotiating. Negotiate for yourself, advocate for yourself. And, you know, just remember that all money comes from relationships. So it's not even about the dollars or the cents or the math – it is really about how you get it and sustain it."  - Shelly Omilâdè Bell, Founder/CEO of Black Girl Ventures 

Earlier this year I learned about some fascinating research from the global financial services firm UBS. It explores how women in long-term relationships divide up responsibility for financial decisions. Almost half of women say they defer on money matters to their spouse or partner. But would they do that if they knew that 8 in 10 women, at some point in their lives, due to life circumstances, will be left to manage their own finances?I wanted to understand more, so I asked Carey Shuffman, Head of the Women's Segment at UBS, to join me in conversation. We talked about this persistent gender gap—which, by the way, is actually worse among Millennial couples. And we also talked about the ways shared financial leadership benefits both partners in a relationship. Carey says that we as women are more prepared than we think to be making money and investing decisions."You do not have to be an expert in all financial matters to take a meaningful role in your own financial life. That misperception really doesn't exist anywhere else. You know, you wouldn't read an entire legal textbook before calling a lawyer for a consultation, or if you decided you want to focus on your health and wellness, you're not going to study anatomy before exercising, right? And so there's this weird disconnect and misperception that you need to know how to calculate a bond yield or follow the markets really closely, read financial journals regularly to be meaningfully involved in your financial life...and the reality is that you don’t."   - Carey Shuffman, Head of the Women's Segment, UBS

Last year, venture capitalists invested more than $428 million in U.S. startups every day. And how much do you think went to companies led by women entrepreneurs? For every dollar invested, women founders got just three cents. And if you were a woman of color founder, it’s not even one cent.What would the world look like if we invested in women- and women-of-color led companies at the same rate we invest in our male counterparts? That vision is one that my guests today have championed for years. Barbara Clarke is Founder and President of The Impact Seat, and Cheryl Contee is their Chief Innovation Officer. They invest in early-stage startups with diverse teams, and their whole philosophy reflects an understanding that investing in women and women of color-led companies is not just for the sake of diversity - but if you actually want to make more money - then this is the way to go:“All of the studies show that diverse led firms are more innovative. They are more productive and they are more profitable. So if all that you care about is money, If you want ROI, you need DEI: diversity equity and inclusion. And you need that to show up in your portfolio to get the best returns and ideally build a better world.”-Cheryl Contee, Chief Innovation Officer, Impact Seat

We talk a lot about investing with our values on this podcast, as well as examining our own relationship to money. These are important steps to BEING in our money power as women.  We know also that we are much more likely to feel better about our relationship to money when it aligns with our values - and several of our previous guests have shared how we can do that when investing. Beyond our long-term investments, how about our daily spending habits? How might that actually connect to our money power? How does our relationship to money show up, and possibly get in the way, of other areas of our lives too?We are taking a fresh angle today on our money conversations through the lens of a master coach.  Our guest, Sharna Fey, has been coaching executive leaders, corporations and individuals for the past 25+ years and she shares how money conversations consistently show up in almost all of her coaching work - if not front and center - always seemingly just below the surface. And she also offers her techniques and tools for coaching folks to align their values with their money choices. “We use values in coaching. Like how you live into your values. We say that if you're living and honoring your values, you're living a resonant or fulfilled life. And so often money comes up in there, like how [and] what we spend our money on. What we spend money on is often what we're valuing some way.”  - Sharna FeyMy conversation with Sharna got me reflecting on my own values too, so we did something different this episode. We turned the tables in the second half of our conversation, and Sharna interviews and coaches me about my values and the OUR MONEY POWER origin story!I’m Kristin Hayden, and that is what is coming up on OUR MONEY POWER.

Just about every guest on Our Money Power makes the point that women are values-driven investors. We want to grow our wealth — and we want to know our money is having a positive impact on the world we live in.But many of us still don’t know where to start. What are the best products and tools for investing with our values? What questions should we even be asking? How do we take the first step? Our guest today, Catherine Berman, is what I like to call - a  “Disruptor for Good.” She is a passionate advocate for financial inclusion and wants to see more women investing, and investing with their values. She co-founded CNote, a platform that allows you to earn a competitive return while investing in women-led businesses and supporting communities that are not being served by the big banks and lenders. She says investing for impact starts by having those important money conversations:"There is a cultural norm of men sharing stories about wealth, financial tips, (and) financial best practices, that has been deeply embedded in our society. And we don't have that on the same side for most women. How do we make it more of a cultural norm to talk about our money, to talk about what we're doing with it, to talk about the things that bring us pride? I think that's another big piece that we need to solve for if we're going to really step into our power around money." - Catherine Berman 

The next time you are pulling out cash to pay for something, take a closer look at the signatures engraved on those bills. Chances are you’ll find the signature of today’s guest, Rosie Rios. Rosie was the United States Treasurer under President Obama, and her signature is on more than a trillion dollars of currency in circulation around the globe. Now that’s some real money power!But Rosie’s real legacy isn’t her signature. She helped lead our nation’s economic recovery after the 2008 financial crisis. And when we finally do see a woman on the $20 bill, we’ll surely have Rosie to thank for initiating that effort. She’s the one who asked why 51% of our population was absent from our money, our statues and monuments, and other public projections of power. She started the conversation about women on American paper currency, and now finally Maya Angelou, Sally Ride, Anna May Wong, and other history-making women will start appearing on American quarters next year."It’s not just about currency. It’s not just about a coin. It’s not just about a painting or a statue. For me, it’s just the beginning. All of these are just triggers for a much larger global conversation that still needs to happen." - Rosie Rios 

I sometimes get asked, what does it mean for women to stand in our money power? And on this podcast, we talk a lot about personal finance, about the importance of not just saving but investing and building wealth, and about breaking taboos that prevent many women from talking openly about the ways money can be an expression of our values.But money power can mean other things, too. My guest on this episode, Lisha Bell, used her voice and influence to move real money at PayPal, where she works as a product manager. In the Spring of 2020, after the murder of George Floyd, Lisha spoke up and started a conversation at PayPal that quickly led to a promise of solidarity—and more importantly, a $530 million commitment to support Black and minority-owned businesses and communities.Lisha’s not only an employee-activist, she’s also leading multiple investment initiatives meant to close the wealth gap for Black and Latinx women. She has an investment thesis that helps her align all her resources—financial and otherwise—with her values."It guides everything that I do . . . And keeps me focused and committed and recommitted. Until someone says, Lisha, we have equal representation, we have equal pay--if we had that, my job would be done, I would need a new investment thesis. But until then,  you gotta keep working on it. "   - Lisha Bell

Tuti B. Scott is a speaker, author, strategist and coach to leaders and teams. Tuti has been leading the way in building a community of women interested in investing with their values - particularly gender-lens investing. She is also the author of MOVING MONEY FOR IMPACT: A GUIDE TO INVESTING WITH A GENDER LENS. It’s an amazing -- and free! -- resource that really explains gender-lens investing in a way that’s approachable and accessible for everyone."Impact investing is investing with your values. Gender is just one methodology. It's a lens that you can put on, as is race, as is climate justice. And we're thinking clearly about intersectionality. We all come to the conversation with multiple identities and multiple passions. So it's just one of many layers that you can put on your investment."  - Tuti Scott

Let’s talk about your relationship status…What comes to mind when you hear this? Married, single, divorced, dating, or “it’s complicated”?  Our culture — — through the movies - music - social media -everywhere we turn,  we’re bombarded with messages of finding true love, and then sustaining it.But have you ever thought about your relationship status in regards to money? Is it a relationship that feels supportive and nurturing? Does it help you be your best self and live your dreams?Or is it stressful? Does it bring up feelings of scarcity, never enough, overwhelm and heaviness?How do we cultivate a healthy relationship to money? And how would paying attention and working to improve that money relationship change what shows up in our lives?Today, I’m in conversation with Jacquette Timmons, whose specialty is helping folks recognize and understand the role that money is playing in our lives. Jacquette was one of the first people to take a relationship-based approach to finance, and her work explores the ways our personal histories, values, and beliefs can either support or get in the way of our financial empowerment."If you think about any other relationship in your life that is of most importance and most significant, it is a relationship that is multi-layered, it is complex. It is nuanced and it is absolutely emotional. And all of those dynamics show up with money." - Jacquette Timmons

Does thinking about money and building wealth inspire you? Or is it a turn-off?Is dealing with finances just one more stressful thing you need to worry about in an already busy life? Or is it something that you actually enjoy? Something that brings meaning to your life?What motivates you to care about money?My guest today says the reason many women feel disempowered around our personal and family finances is because so much of the financial services industry doesn’t actually address OUR interests and OUR priorities. They aren’t even speaking directly TO us.Sam Saperstein is Managing Director of Women on the Move, a dedicated initiative at JPMorgan Chase focused on supporting women-run businesses, improving women’s financial health, and advancing women’s career growth. And for Sam, it’s important to ask why—even two decades into the 21st century—women are STILL less likely than men to own our financial futures."I think it's complicated. And I think sometimes it's boring. Do you know why it's boring? Women are not motivated by a number out there. You remember the commercials that used to have people walking around with a number over their head, like that was their magic retirement number? Women are motivated by life, by what money can do for them in their life, by their goals, by the freedom, by the flexibility, not by a number. " -Sam Saperstein

Who do you think make better investors--women, or men? Researchers have been asking that question going all the way back to the 90s, and, over and over, studies confirm that women get better investment returns, on average, than men. But the differences go beyond net gains and losses. Making money is not enough for most women. We want to invest with our values and create a better world through our money!Kristin Hull shares her experience as a conscious investor - and encourages women to start their journey now to invest with their values. She leads the way by example at Nia Impact Capital and through her shareholder advocacy. On this episode of OurMoneyPower, hear Kristin’s journey from teacher to asset manager, as well as what women and companies can do now to invest with their values.Women and people of color, we're controlling decisions for 1.3% of the assets managed in our $70 trillion industry. What would our economy look like if there were more people like us making those investment decisions? I can guarantee you that it'll be really different when we make that shift. - Kristin Hull

Did you know that for every dollar in wealth that men have accumulated—in their retirement accounts, their stock portfolios, in real estate, in the businesses they own—women have just 32 cents? And If you’re a Black woman or Latina, it’s even worse—like pennies on the dollar!Of course we don’t need the research to tell us what we already know and feel on a daily basis, that women, on average, earn less than men, put their money in savings accounts vs. investing it, and just have less to work with to build wealth. Even talking about our money, investments and salaries can feel taboo. And when it comes to investing in particular, many of us feel overwhelmed, intimidated or excluded in the process. All this to say, if money is indeed power—for many women, this important topic has never felt especially empowering.  That is what we are here to change with the OUR MONEY POWER podcast.And this is why I was especially excited to talk with Tracy Gray, who is a powerful advocate for women standing in their money power. Tracy is an engineer who helped build Space Shuttles for NASA, a practising Buddhist, and now a venture capitalist who is on her way to becoming the first Black woman to raise a hundred-million-dollar fund. She is a leading voice in a wave of women investing in women - and women of color in particular, and she’s got a lot to say about the ways our country, our planet, and the next generation of young women are better off when women step into our money power."I have four goddaughters, ages 15 to 32, and they know, I'm always talking to them about money. And I don't think I ever talked to them about sex. I start with money, right. Because if they understand their money, I'm not going to worry about all that other stuff." - Tracy Gray