Jennifer Risher: Talking About Money (EP.145)

From YouTube channels to get-rich playbooks, whole industries are devoted to the subject of building wealth. But few books present a clear and honest view of what it’s like to have a lot of money. Today we welcome author Jennifer Risher onto the show to share her insights on living with wealth. Early in the episode, we explore how Jennifer and her husband ‘hit the lottery twice’ by being given stock options for both Microsoft and Amazon before they went public. Jennifer then shares details about the key premise of her book: people with wealth never talk about their money. Informed by her experience of having sudden wealth, we discuss why gaining wealth doesn’t significantly change people despite it leading to feelings of isolation. After talking about how wealthy people rarely feel that they have enough, we unpack the many benefits that come from talking about your wealth. As Jennifer explains, using examples from her life, communicating your feelings about money is a solution to many relationship issues that arise from having wealth. Linked to this, we dive into how you can raise balanced children whose outlooks aren’t spoiled by affluence. Later, we touch on the role of giving, Jennifer's top advice for newly wealthy people, and how Jennifer views work now that it’s optional for her. We wrap up our conversation by hearing about how the wealthy make a positive impact on society. In this episode, we dispel many myths about being rich. Tune in for more on why we need to be talking about wealth.

Key Points From This Episode:

• Details about author Jennifer Risher, today’s guest. [0:00:17]
• Jennifer shares why she wrote her book and the problems that it addresses. [0:02:43]
• Exploring the question: how much does wealth change you? [0:06:55]
• What wealth has given to Jennifer and what it hasn’t. [0:09:10]
• Jennifer describes the feelings that came with suddenly becoming wealthy. [0:10:14]
• The process informing Jennifer’s decision that she had ‘enough.’ [0:13:41]
• Hear Jennifer’s advice for couples who have different definitions of ‘enough.’ [0:16:49]
• How few wealthy people don’t feel that they have sufficient wealth. [0:19:03]
• The important role that financial advisors play aligning wealth with people’s values. [0:20:13]
• How Jennifer’s book is opening up the conversation on wealth. [0:23:09]
• Challenges around raising children in a state of affluence. [0:25:36]
• Why modelling virtuous behaviour is key in raising balanced children. [0:28:40]
• What Jennifer learned from speaking to other wealthy couples. [0:30:23]
• How having wealth can impact your relationships. [0:34:06]
• Overcoming the taboo of talking about money. [0:38:52]
• Ways to view work when working is optional for you. [0:42:28]
• Jennifer unpacks her biggest lessons on giving. [0:44:00]
• Jennifer shares her advice for newly wealthy people. [0:50:35]
• What the wealthy can do to improve society. [0:51:59]
• Hear how Jennifer defines success for herself. [0:53:34]