The Art of Allowance Podcast | Parenting | Families | Money Smarts | Financial Literacy

Returning guest Evan Wilson joins host John Lanza to talk about how his allowance system has evolved since his initial podcast appearance five years ago. He discusses helping his kids become savvy investors by adopting an ownership mentality, thinking about risk on the money-smart journey and wanting his kids to experience investing ups and downs when they are young. Evan and John also address leveraging compound interest, building wealth, starting the money conversation early and transitioning from money jars to debit cards. Evan Wilson is the founder and general partner of Wilson Investment Partnership. There he invests in great companies, especially those that put customers first. Before becoming a full-time investor, Evan was a research analyst and CFO. For seven years he also co-hosted The Money JAR Podcast by Junior Achievement, which focuses on the intersection of kids and money. Evan is a husband and father of two who lives in Portland, Oregon.

Guest Dr. Ashley LeBaron-Black returns to the podcast to talk with host John Lanza about her research focus of family finance. Ashley first defines the terms “financial well-being” and “financial socialization.” She then highlights the importance of family modeling and open discussion on the money-smart journey. Ashley also emphasizes the essential nature of experiential learning and the shortcomings of classroom financial literacy. Both she and John then address the concept of money scripts, the ability of some kids (dubbed “financial phoenixes”) to overcome poor modeling and the need to go beyond rational-based instruction. Dr. Ashley LeBaron-Black is an Assistant Professor of Family Life at Brigham Young University who received her PhD in Family Studies and Human Development from the University of Arizona. Her research focus is family finance, including couple finance and financial socialization. Ashley has published 33 peer-reviewed articles and is an Associate Editor for the Journal of Family and Economic Issues. She is also Chair of the Family Financial Well-Being Focus Group for the National Council on Family Relations.

Guest Colin Ryan speaks to college-age kids nationwide and shares humorous anecdotes to help them grapple with money. He also encourages parents to see their children as the heroes of their financial stories, understand their kids' unique perspectives and personalize conversations to foster connections. During his podcast appearance, Colin and host John Lanza discuss the idea of “earning by saving,” the role of modeling and technology’s impact on financial well-being. They also chat about personal finance's emotional and psychological facets, finding success and contentment in a consumer-driven society, social media's power, vulnerability's importance and the value of connecting through shared experiences. Colin Ryan is a comedic financial speaker, an author and an award-winning storyteller who has been featured everywhere from NPR and PBS to The Moth Radio Hour and Reader’s Digest. He was named one of the top ten finance presenters in America and has spoken to over one million students and adults. He is also the author of A Comedic Guide to Money and the founder of the Public Speaking for Leaders Podcast. As a speaker’s mentor, Colin is dedicated to helping talented leaders and public figures become fun, memorable and impactful communicators. He now lives in Durham, North Carolina, with his wife, Lindsey, and their dog, Remy.

Self-professed "money disaster" Joe Saul-Sehy shares his experiences with and insights on raising money-smart kids with host John Lanza. Joe recounts his own credit card debacle, which influenced how he approached money with his twins. He shares how he introduced them to money when they were young, his family's allowance system, his "circling back" strategy and how he tackled money conversations. He also discusses money tracking, the difference between saving and investing and responsible debt management. Additionally, Joe and John touch on the loneliness epidemic, the importance of financial coaching, having the freedom to make money mistakes and not making a purchase without a payment plan. Joe Saul-Sehy learned from failure. Destroying his credit immediately after leaving home, he had to gain financial experience the hard way. Ironically, he learned many lessons as a financial advisor. (Yes, he was telling other people how to manage their money!) After 16 years in the industry, he moved to financial media and created Stacking Benjamins, one of the most streamed podcasts in the personal finance sphere. He also co-authored the book Stacked: Your Super-Serious Guide to Modern Money Management. Joe lives in Texarkana with his spouse, Cheryl, and cat, Cooper, and records shows in his mom’s next-door basement.

Host John Lanza speaks with Vince Shorb about the importance of financial education, the need for financial literacy programs in schools and the challenges of scaling these programs. They address the underappreciated role of parents in financial literacy education and the importance of teaching kids to save, earn money and control expenses, while highlighting the power of compounding and the psychology of money. They also discuss similar grandfatherly advice influenced by The Great Depression. Vince shares his early money lessons and how his parents encouraged his entrepreneurial spirit while emphasizing the importance of resilience in making financial decisions. Vince Shorb, CEO of the National Financial Educators Council (NFEC), has helped transform financial education by developing engaging and effective programs that significantly impact diverse communities. The NFEC’s over 2,500 programs help empower community champions to help citizens work toward financial self-sufficiency and security.  

Looking for some fresh perspective on your family's money-smart journey? Kevin Kelly's approaches to finances are sure to be conversation starters. Kevin is the Senior Maverick at Wired, an award-winning magazine he co-founded in 1993. He is also the co-chair of The Long Now Foundation, a membership organization that champions long-term thinking, and the founder of the popular Cool Tools website, which has been reviewing tools daily for 20 years. What's more, Kevin has authored multiple best-selling books about the future of technology. His newest one, Excellent Advice for Living, contains 450 modern proverbs for a pretty good life.  Kevin is someone who podcaster and author Tim Ferriss has described as the real-life “most interesting man in the world.” I love his writing and the radical optimism for which he is well known. (If you can't tell, he is one of my intellectual heroes.) I hope you enjoy our wide-ranging discussion, which touches on topics from billionaires and dying broke to protopias and traveling Asia.

How can parents encourage their kids to harness the power of patience on the money-smart journey? My latest Art of Allowance Podcast guest, Will Rainey, offers parents strategies for teaching investing and saving. Will is an award-winning investment consultant who has advised governments, insurance companies and some of the world's largest pension schemes. During his "mini-retirement," he began writing and speaking to help parents teach their children all about money. Will wrote Grandpa's Fortune Fables, a children's book that encourages kids to plant money seeds that will, with patience, sprout into massive money trees. His company, Blue Tree Savings, has also helped thousands of parents begin money conversations with their kids. What's more, Will has been invited to speak at Fortune 500 companies, and his work has appeared in the Financial Times, Forbes, iNews and the National News.

My latest podcast guest, Megan McCoy, offers strategies for partners to address their differences and realign their intentions on a money-smart journey. We also dive into negative financial self-fulfilling prophecies, why financial opposites attract, avoiding financial fights, the power of delayed gratification and the problem with financial education in the classroom. Megan holds a Ph.D. in Human Development and Family Science with an emphasis on Marriage and Family Therapy from The University of Georgia. She is currently an Assistant Professor at Kansas State University’s personal financial planning program, where she teaches courses at all levels focused on financial well-being, financial therapy and couple dynamics regarding financial therapy. What's more, Megan is a licensed Marriage and Family Therapist, an Accredited Financial Counselor® and a Certified Financial Therapist-I™.  Megan's research interests focus on financial therapy, financial well-being and financial communication. She has published over forty articles in top-tier mental health, family science, financial counseling and financial planning journals. Megan has been featured as a financial well-being expert for The Today Show, The New York Times, NPR, BBC, The Wall Street Journal and many other media outlets.  

As your tweens start to get curious about money, are you wondering how to have conversations about what it means, what it’s worth, and what it can do for them? In this special episode, I speak with Samantha Paxson. Sam is trying to raise her 11yo son, Finn, to be money-smart. I heard Sam talk about her son's burgeoning interest in investing (yes, at age 11!) when she was on stage at the CU Relevant conference, at which we were both speaking. I immediately thought you'd enjoy it if we turned the tables and let my guest ask me questions. Like we did in episode 59 with Kelly Mindell, Sam Paxson comes today with bunch of questions that will be relevant to parents of tweens and teens who are on their own money-smart journeys. And once again, I've invited my former guest and fellow money-smart movement co-conspirator Robin Taub, a youth money-expert in her own right, to join me as a co-host. Samantha Paxson is Chief Experience Officer for Co-op Solutions. She is the architect of the company’s enterprise change management, go-to-market and experience strategy. An accomplished speaker and thought leader, Paxson founded Co-op THINK, an innovation content platform empowering the evolution of mission-driven financial services. Over her 20-year career, Paxson’s focus has been on the intersection of technology, purpose and experience. Paxson is a graduate of the University of Southern California with a degree in Journalism and Social Sciences, and holds an MBA from USC’s Marshall School of Business. She is also a board leader at  USC Credit Union. In short, Sam knows the financial industry. My co-host today is Robin Taub, a CPA,  keynote speaker and bestselling author. Her latest award-winning book, The Wisest Investment: Teaching Your Kids to Be Responsible, Independent and Money-Smart for Life, gives parents the information, strategies and inspiration they need to teach their kids about money. She holds a Bachelor of Commerce (with High Distinction) from the Rotman School of Management at the University of Toronto. Robin puts her money where her mouth is and has two (mostly) money-smart young adults, a son and a daughter.

Are you curious about strategies for setting your kids up for financial success from an early age? Chelsea Brennan, founder of Smart Money Mamas, is on a mission to help moms build meaningful wealth without the hustle. As an ex-hedge fund manager turned financial educator, Chelsea now invests in helping thousands of moms heal their money mindset to own their financial power and grow lasting holistic wealth. Her proven strategies positively impact her clients, their families, and their communities by developing the building blocks for a lasting and powerful financial legacy for future generations. Chelsea is a National Financial Education Instructor. She has been featured in Forbes, Business Insider, Yahoo Finance, Scary Mommy, and Boss Mom. When she isn’t working on getting more money into the hands of mamas, Chelsea can be found reading fantasy books, doodling, or going on adventures with her husband and 2 young boys in Connecticut.