So Money With Farnoosh Torabi

It's a jam-packed Ask Farnoosh Friday with questions related to President Biden's tax change proposals, whether it's OK to paint your house versus pay off student loans, how to curb the impulse to spend on outings and vacations once you're vaccinated and finally, advice for investing in art.

Our discussion around women and wealth continues with guest Rachel Rodgers, founder of HelloSeven and author of the the highly anticipated book We Should All Be Millionaires (out May 4). In her book Rachel teaches women how to make the kind of money that will give them the authority to make meaningful changes in their communities and close the opportunity gap that exists today. It’s not just about being wealthy, it’s about having a mindset of wealth.More about Rachel: She is a business coach, mother, wife, intellectual property lawyer and CEO who says that according to the “State of Women-Owned Businesses” 2019 report, women own 51% of all businesses in the US but only bring in 4.2% of the revenue. For women of color, those numbers are even less.Follow Rachel on Instagram @RachelRodgersESQ

Guest Catherine Alford shares advice from her new book, Mom's Got Money: A Millennial Mom's Guide to Managing Money Like a Boss, an instruction manual to help moms use the skills they already possess to become extraordinarily confident managers of their money.More about Catherine: She is a nationally recognized financial educator who started her business with a $10 domain name and grew it into a multifaceted, six-figure digital media company. She is the creator of www.CatherineAlford.com, and the co-founder of www.MillennialHomeowner.com. Through her work, she offers a suite of digital products and services include financial writing, public speaking, and influencer marketing all with the goal of helping women become more financially confident.Over the years, her writing and expertise have been featured in dozens of media outlets including Good Morning America, Yahoo Finance, Forbes, U.S. News and World Report, Real Simple, The Huffington Post, Kiplinger, Investopedia, Business Insider, and many more. She curr

In this week's Ask Farnoosh, one listener, who is close to erasing $100,000 worth of debt, wonders how to now move onto her savings goals when she's so exhausted from her debt payoff. Another listener wonders how high-earning women invest (or should invest) their money, and is there any benefit to keeping all of your investments at one brokerage? Farnoosh weighs in.

We are in conversation with an entrepreneur named Canada’s Most Admired CEO in the growth sector. Kirk Simpson, is the co-founder and CEO of Wave Financial, an accounting software business, that was recently acquired by H&R Block for over $500 million CAD.Like many founders, Simpson's journey didn’t come without its share of struggles and financial hardships. And today in this climate of economic difficulty and struggle for small businesses, his lessons can hopefully shed some optimism and insight to what it takes to see a business through to an acquisition. But that’s not to say that Simpson's work and his team’s work at Wave Financial is complete. This episode is brought to us by Wave Financial at waveapps.com.

What compels us to spend on certain brands over others? Guest Leslie Zane runs Triggers Brand Consulting, the first female-founded brand consultancy in the U.S..A Harvard Business School graduate, Leslie is known in the industry for her expertise in applying brain science to branding. She was the first person to include a man in an advertisement for a baby care product. Farnoosh and Leslie discuss the "triggers" that get us to spend on certain products and services over others. Plus, Leslie's advice for women workers in today's rough job market, her own upbringing as the daughter of a Holocaust survivor and the biggest investing mistake she made.Helpful links:Triggers® Brand Consulting – https://triggers.com/Leslie's article in Harvard Business Review - https://hbr.org/2021/02/advertisers-skip-the-platitudes-in-2021 

We're discussing dating, finding love and the economics of today's modern romances with Jon Birger, author of Make Your Move: The New Science of Dating and Why Women Are In Charge. Farnoosh and Jon discuss the perils of dating apps, the best places to find love today and why we ought to redefine the idea of an "equal" partner.

Did you read the article in New York Magazine this week about the young woman who made $6 million in her start=up company's IPO? And how she's very, very troubled by it? Farnoosh and co-host Georgia Lee Hussey, founder of Modernist Financial, analyze the situation! And answer your money questions including: Should I finance IVF? and What's the best investment for a 20-something earning a steady paycheck?

Jannese is a nationally-acclaimed Latina Money Expert, Educator, Speaker, Writer and Business/Wealth Coach. She became an accidental entrepreneur after a job loss led her to create a successful Latin food blog, Delish D’Lites. Now, she helps her clients and listeners build successful online businesses that allow them to pursue financial independence and freedom. Jannese is on a mission to educate marginalized communities on topics like entrepreneurship, investing, and building generational wealth through her personal finance podcast, “Yo Quiero Dinero.” The podcast has been featured by BuzzFeed, Business Insider, NextAdvisor (Time), Grow Magazine (CNBC), Bankrate and more.

Entrepreneur and writer Rachel Sklar joins the podcast to share the behind-the-scenes of selling her company The Li.st, a global community of high impact women in media, technology & entrepreneurship, why being a single parent has proven to be her greatest joy in life and Rachel's experience buying and selling bitcoin.Learn more about Rachel and her work at RachelSklar.com. You can follow her on Twitter and IG @rachelsklar.

Listeners ask about how to best afford moving to a more expensive city, splitting rent when you earn less than your partner and how to get more comfortable with spending. Guest co-host is Brittney Castro, CFP and Founder of Financially Wise Inc.

Though nearly half of working women in the United States are now their household's main breadwinner, most women still aren't raised to think like breadwinners. Financial expert Jennifer Barrett wants to change that. In her new book THINK LIKE A BREADWINNER Barrett aims to break barriers down and help close the gender gaps—in wages, wealth and leadership—for good.More about Jennifer: She is the Chief Education Officer at Acorns, a financial wellness app with more than 8 million users, and the founding editor of its popular money site, Grow.

At a time when we are more physically distant than ever before—how can we reverse the growing trends of disconnection to forge meaningful connections in business and in life? Guest Susan McPherson is the author of THE LOST ART OF CONNECTING: The Gather, Ask, Do Method for Building Meaningful Business Relationships.In the book Susan argues that we need to foster value-based connections by going back to basics. Technology she says, is a tool, not a means to an end. To forge lasting relationships, we need to reconnect with people as human beings—especially right now. Making a genuine connection sparks learning, knowledge sharing, reduces burnout, spurs innovation, and creates a sense of purpose and well-being. The book offers a practical three-step framework to harness our shared humanity and shape our interactions daily—whether on Zoom or in real life.More about Susan: She has a lifetime of experience building genuine connections in and out of work. She is the founder and CEO of McPherson Strategies, a communic

This week's Ask Farnoosh answers listeners questions related to paying off student loans and whether it's OK to invest at the same time, what to do with a $10,000 cash bonus from work, maybe invest in crypto? And what's wise: buying or leasing a car? Farnoosh weighs in.

Tiffany Aliche, aka The Budgetnista, is back on So Money, sharing insights from her new #1 bestselling book Get Good with Money: 10 Simple Steps to Becoming Financially Whole.

Happy Monday! Delivering a special BONUS episode, in partnership with Fannie Mae, providing timely advice and support for struggling homeowners and renters impacted financially by COVID-19. The pandemic has hurt so many millions of Americans from being able to pay their bills, including their housing payments. It’s been especially challenging for people of color who have been disproportionately impacted economically.Joining to provide some solutions is Danielle McCoy, Vice President and Fair Lending Officer at Fannie Mae. She and Farnoosh discuss Fannie Mae's #HeretoHelp education effort, the ins and outs of forbearance, and why it might be a real option for homeowners right now. They also tackle some of the myths surrounding forbearance and how it impacts one's credit. Also: important advice for renters that may need some financial assistance right now, how to know if you can qualify for free financial counseling and the best ways to negotiate with your landlord.To learn more about the strategies discussed,

Guest Charlie Grosso is the founder of Hello Future, a nonprofit organization that bridges the education gap for adolescent refugees. The organization teaches the essential skills needed to become entrepreneurs and community leaders, starting with digital literacy and basic digital skills and later, storytelling, media literacy, critical thinking, problem-solving and financial literacy.More about Charlie: She is Chinese-American and has 20 years of experience as an entrepreneur, having founded her first business at the age of 20. On the show, she describes the challenges of navigating her personal pursuits with her family's cultural expectations for her future, as well as how she's been able to stitch together so many wonderful and different career paths from being a photographer to documentarian to now, running an education non-profit.Learn more at www.hellofuture.io and charliegrosso.com

We cover a lot of ground on Ask Farnoosh, answering questions related to a strange 401(k) at work, the pros and cons to placing a smaller down payment on a home, using an inherited Roth IRA to pay for a home purchase and where to turn for free credit counseling. Plus, Farnoosh's thoughts on this year's Equal Pay Day and the latest reviewer to win a free 15-minute money session.

By the end of 2020 roughly 3 out of every 10 small businesses that were open in New Jersey at the beginning of 2020 had closed. Today we're spotlighting a local bakery in Montclair, NJ (my town) for a behind-the-scenes look at how it managed to stay afloat in the pandemic.Rachel Wyman is the owner of the Montclair Bread Company, a bakery that specializes in artisan bread, classic pastries and specialty donuts. It is also a beloved community gathering hub. In our conversation, Rachel shares the tumult of the first few months of the pandemic, having to furlough a majority of her staff and quickly rethink her business plan. We touch on the importance of having multiple revenue streams and ways to build a loyal community of customers.Rachel grew up in Maryland and as a child watched her grandmother make wedding cakes. After graduating from the University of Florida with a French degree, she studied baking and pastry at the Culinary Institute of America in Hyde Park, NY, where she discovered a passion for baking b

The pandemic drove many incoming freshman students to defer their first year of college and take an unexpected 'gap year.' But what if this became the norm? Guest Abby Falik is a social entrepreneur and founder of Global Citizen Year, an organization that supports students between high school and college, helping them to approach higher ed with more intention and purpose. On the show Abby and Farnoosh discuss the benefits of slowing down the approach to college enrollment, how colleges and universities perceive the students that take a so-called "gap year" and why Abby thinks some colleges will be forced to close in the coming years.More about Abby: She is the Founder & CEO of Global Citizen Year, an award-winning social entrepreneur, and an expert on the changing landscape of education. She is a frequent speaker and writer, and has been featured in prominent forums and news outlets including the Aspen Ideas Festival, the Fast Company Innovation Festival, The New York Times, The Washington Post, and NPR. Lear