Money Tales

In this episode of Money Tales, our guest is Kadar Lewis, PhD. Kadar tells us he was a low-income student of color who was, fortunately, given scholarships to attend private schools when he was growing up. Often, he was the only black kid in his classes. This meant he was the low-income kid surrounded by money. It was everywhere, yet his family didn’t have much. Kadar considers that dissonance as the beginning of the money trauma he experienced throughout his life. One component of that trauma was denying the importance of money. But then he realized that we all need money to move, to function, and to fulfill our life dreams and purpose. That realization changed Kadar’s life and his relationship with money forever. Kadar, author of "Thrive at Work in Your 20s," is an educator and community leader dedicated to enriching the world with life skills and leadership education which help youth and young adults succeed at their highest levels. Since 2019, Kadar has served Los Angeles County as a program officer for The Ralph M. Parsons Foundation, which provides $20 million in grants each year to approximately 300 highly impactful and transformative local nonprofit organizations. An educator and organizational leader for 20 years, Kadar began his career as a classroom teacher in South LA, which catapulted him to leadership positions with ICEF Public Schools, Magic Johnson Foundation, and the Fulfillment Fund. He has led thousands of students through workshops and individually advised and mentored hundreds of young adults to achieve their educational, career and personal goals and dreams. Kadar earned a doctoral degree in Educational Leadership from Loyola Marymount University, a master’s degree in Educational Technology Leadership from Cal State LA, and a bachelor’s degree in Philosophy from Harvard.

In this episode of Money Tales, our guest is Dr. Suzanne Wertheim. Suzanne started her career as a professor of linguistics. When a university-based research contract fell through, Suzanne’s expected income level disappeared, dashing her plans to improve the fixer-upper home she had recently purchased. Suzanne got creative and pivoted to a new path, leveraging her expertise by applying social science to the real-world problems of diversity, equity, inclusion, and belonging. Suzanne is a national expert on language and bias. After getting her Ph.D. in Linguistics from Berkeley, she held faculty positions at Northwestern, University of Maryland, and UCLA. In 2011, she left the university system in order to apply her expertise to real-world problems. As head of Worthwhile Research & Consulting, Dr. Wertheim specializes in analyzing and mitigating bias at work. Using the tools of linguistic anthropology, she guides clients to more inclusive language, content, and workplaces. Her popular online course on inclusive language is available on LinkedIn Learning and Cornerstone on Demand.

In this episode of Money Tales, our guest is Julie Castro Abrams. Julie is a hard charging activist who very early on knew what she did not want to be– and that was a trophy wife. This is because when she was young, Julie saw her mother’s friends navigating divorces and ending up destitute as a result. Julie wanted to have a family and a career, and she also wanted to protect herself from the financial risk that her mom’s friends experienced. Julie successfully crafted the life she wanted, including finding a spouse who has had a strong enough ego to be an ally and support her role as the family’s breadwinner. Julie is the founder and Managing Partner of How Women Invest, an early-stage venture firm focused on high growth, tech enabled women-founded enterprises. The firm is a culmination of her lifetime of work propelling women founders to launch and find success with training, capital and networks. Julie brings her extensive experience identifying and supporting early-stage entrepreneurs and twenty years as a CEO and board director. She is bringing her extensive networks, leadership and entrepreneurship experience to disruption of the venture landscape. An active investor and advisor to start-ups, and as the leader of the nation's largest microenterprise and microfinance organization for 11 years, Julie has helped launch over 6,000 women into successful businesses. In her role as CEO of Women’s Initiative for Self Employment, an SBA Certified Development Financial Institution, Julie drove innovation in the US microenterprise and finance space. Investing in extensive research about the indicators of long-term success for women entrepreneurs, Julie brings deep intellectual prowess, extensive networks and experience to this transformative venture firm. Today she is advising the SBA, White House and Congress on national legislative initiatives to address economic opportunities for women. She serves on the California First Partners Project as an advisor regarding corporate board diversity. In her role as Founder and CEO of How Women Lead, she has been a driver of legislative initiatives and transformation in the US and California. Julie serves as an Advisor to financial services firms including the fin-tech start-up LENDonate and Nia Capital. She previously served as an advisor to Beneficial Bank and as the Governance Chair for the Association for Enterprise Opportunity and the Women’s Funding Network. As the CEO of How Women Lead, she is at the center of the movement to disrupt antiquated, unequal systems by propelling women into even greater leadership roles and increasing opportunities for all women. Julie has been an essential driver of the ecosystem for women on corporate boards in California. Julie has been a national leader in the movement and drove the successful passage of the groundbreaking Senate Bill 826, requiring public companies to have women on their boards. The recipient of many accolades, she has been awarded the More Jobs Genius Award, the Morgan Stanley Innovation Award, Cisco’s Innovation in Technology Award, the League of Women Voters’ Women Who Could Be President Award, the Stevie Award for Best Non-Profit Executive, and the Commission on the Status of Women’s Human Rights Award. She has also been featured in six books, including “Scrappy Women in Business”, “Women of Courage”, and “The Missing Mentor”, and she has been featured in Fast Company’s video series “30 Second MBA.”

In this episode of Money Tales, our guest is Kristin Keffeler. Kristin’s family’s money story launched when she was in her twenties. Her parents and oldest brother started a company, grew it, took it public and sold it, all within five years. In other words, during the period between starting and graduating from college, her family experienced a series of significant wealth events. As a result, Kristin’s money narrative got more complex. She was trying to sort out many things like how did she want to define success? Was her current career path good enough? How should she be allocating time learning to be a steward of the family wealth? Kristin was in a big soup of confusion around identity as she sought to understand who she was as an individual, separate from her family contribution. Kristin, MSM and MAPP, is a thought leader and consultant at the forefront of a global shift in family wealth advising, known as Wealth 3.0. She works with affluent and enterprising families, rising gen, and the professionals who support them. As the founder of the consulting firm illumination360 and the Chief Learning Officer for the Johnson Financial Group, she specializes in human motivation and behavioral change, family dynamics, family governance, rising gen education and development, and intergenerational collaboration. Drawing upon her research and years of private practice advising and coaching the rising generation in affluent and enterprising families, Kristin believes that members of the rising gen are uniquely positioned to create significant impact in the world and uses a lens of strengths to help them—and those who guide them—to ignite their potential. Her recent book, "The Myth of the Silver Spoon: Navigating Family Wealth & Creating an Impactful Life," captures this approach.

In this episode of Money Tales our guest is Dr. Akhtar Badshah. Born, raised, and educated in India, Akhtar was accepted to MIT for graduate school. As he explains, that was the easy part. To attend school in the U.S. he also had to win the visa lottery and receive a scholarship to make his dream come true. Fortunately, the stars aligned for Akhtar. From then on, his life was shaped by people asking him to do something different from what he had been doing all along the way. As a curious and mindful person, Akhtar often said yes. These yeses led him to the enviable position of leading Microsoft’s philanthropic efforts for ten years, where there was no shortage of money conversations. Akhtar is Chief Catalyst at Catalytic Innovators Group where he advises organizations and individuals to catalyze their strategy focused on social and philanthropic investments. He also conducts Purpose Mindset leadership Workshops with organizations to help individuals articulate their strengths and values and craft their purpose statement. Akhtar is the Distinguished Practitioner at University of Washington at the Evans School of Public Policy & Governance, the Business School, at the Bothell campus and a faculty advisor at the START Center in the Department of Global Health. He is the founder and curator of Accelerating Social Transformation, a mid-career professional development certificate course on social impact. Akhtar is a seasoned executive with over 30 years of experience in international development, managing a corporate philanthropic program and co-founding a global nonprofit for social enterprise. Akhtar led Microsoft’s philanthropic efforts for 10 years, where he administered the company's community investment and employee contributions. He was instrumental in launching both Unlimited Potential and Youth Spark – the company’s focus to bring digital technology to the underserved communities and youth all over the world. His most recent book “Purpose Mindset: How Microsoft Inspires Employees and Alumni to Change the World,” was recently published by Harper Collins Leadership. In May 2020, Akhtar and his colleagues launched Restart Partners funded by the Department of Commerce, WA State and supported by Facebook to increase confidence in mask adoption and vaccines and help restart the economy. Akhtar serves on the boards of Altruist Nonprofit Accelerator, CROP (Board Chair), Global Washington, Microsoft Alumni Network, National Museum and Center for Service, Restart Partners and The Indus Entrepreneurs, Seattle Chapter. He is an accomplished artist and a doctoral graduate of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Akhtar and his family are very active philanthropists in the Seattle area.

In this episode of Money Tales, our guest is Taylor Adams. Taylor is a 5th generation member of an entrepreneurial, enterprising family. The first chapter of his life was about reconciling his own personal ambition within the context of business and his family. Taylor talks to us about the professional anxiety that he felt at that time. He thought to be loved and respected, he had to be as successful, or more successful, than his father even though that mandate was never communicated to him. This led Taylor down a pathway of equating the idea of success with achievement and the acquisition of property, power, and prestige. After much self-reflection and work, Taylor realized that success and money are simply byproducts of value creation. For him, value creation is generated by being of service to others. The current chapter of Taylor’s life is all about where he can find purpose beyond himself. Taylor is an investment entrepreneur and multigenerational innovator who discovered a passion for human transformation while working within his own multigenerational family office. As a family office executive, Taylor leverages a principle based operating philosophy that combines investment management and philanthropic strategies with entrepreneurship and talent development to promote a culture of multigenerational value creation over multigenerational value consumption. His overarching purpose is to accelerate human progress by catalyzing a movement that transitions enterprising families away from the commonly embraced preservation paradigm, and toward an empowerment paradigm that prioritizes integrated strategies for multigenerational self-actualization and perpetual family flourishing.

In this episode of Money Tales, our guest is Bobbi Rebell, CFP®. Bobbi is a former business news anchor and globally syndicated personal finance columnist. Bobbi is also an author and her most recent book is titled, Launching Financial Grownups. Live Your Richest Life by Helping Your (Almost) Adults Become Everyday Money Smart. This topic is very dear to her heart because Bobbi has two twenty-something children and struggled with getting them started on their financial grownup journey. For her, this means living the everyday money related life that we encounter that no one seems to prepare us for. Bobbi is the founder of Financial Wellness Strategies and the author of Launching Financial Grownups: Live Your Richest Life by Helping Your (Almost) Adult Kids Become Everyday Money Smart. She is a financial wellness educator, speaker, conference host, and moderator, and works as a spokesperson for brands aligned with her values. Bobbi is also the host of the critically acclaimed Wellness for Financial Grownups podcast, which has close to 900,000 downloads. In 2021, she launched a new venture, GrownupGear.com as a fun way to promote adulting and being a financial grownup. In 2023, Bobbi launched a new financial education venture focused on financial wellness, called Financial Wellness Strategies. Bobbi is frequently quoted in the media as a money and parenting expert. Media outlets have included The Wall Street Journal, The New York Times, Consumer Reports, AARP, The NY Post, New York Magazine, The Washington Post, USA Today, Newsweek, Time, CNBC, Architectural Digest, Health, Brides, Parade, Business Insider, Money, Cosmopolitan, Bottom Line, Yahoo Finance, Marketwatch, The Street, MSN, Today.com, Oprah.com, Fox News Channel, Fox Business, Cheddar, The Street, as well as hundreds of appearances on local television, radio and podcasts. Earlier in her career Bobbi was a global business news anchor and personal finance columnist at Reuters and held various journalist positions at top news outlets including CNBC, CNN and PBS. Bobbi is a graduate of the University of Pennsylvania and received her Certificate in Financial Planning from New York University. Her first book “How to be a Financial Grownup: Proven Advice from High Achievers on How to Live Your Dreams and Have Financial Freedom” was released in 2016. She lives in New York City with her family.

In this episode of Money Tales, our guest is Tom Brickman. Tom’s forty and he hit F.I.R.E within the past year, meaning he’s achieved financial independence and can retire early. This was not by accident. Tom was a hustler from the very beginning, helping neighbors with garage sales, taking out trash, mowing lawns, doing whatever he could do to earn a buck. He ultimately put his attention toward real estate, scooping up homes that no one else wanted and turning them into desirable rental properties. Tom shares that he needed to be creative along the way to support the cash needs so his hustling experience came in handy. At one point Tom even supplemented his income by buying bras and purses on the cheap and reselling them over eBay. Today, Tom is a married dog dad living in Dallas, Texas. He owns twenty-two rental properties, runs a resale business, and provides one on one coaching and covers financial literacy and real estate for building wealth through TheFrugalGay.com.

In this episode of Money Tales, our guest is Izzy Gesell. Izzy is a former special education teacher, restaurant owner and stand-up comedian. He knows some great money jokes. Here are a few he shared with us: Why did the robber take a bath before he stole from the bank? He wanted to make a clean getaway. Why can’t you borrow money from a leprechaun? Because they’re always a little short. Why is money called dough? Because we all knead it. Years ago, someone Izzy knew approached him about buying a deli. The person described it as a goldmine. Izzy thought to himself, “I've eaten deli food all my life. How hard could it be?” Izzy quickly learned that all mines have shafts. Unfortunately, the deli didn’t make it. As Izzy tells us, he walked away from this business experience with important money insights and takeaways. Today, Izzy is an “organizational alchemist” who helps people navigate their internal logjams and emerge more confident, spontaneous and effective. Through keynotes, workshops and coaching sessions, Izzy delivers meaningful material in an enjoyable way. His unique approach to personal and organizational development is rooted at the intersection of improv, facilitation and coaching. Among the first to use improv theater concepts as tools for personal and organizational learning, Izzy is the author of “Playing Along: Group Learning Activities Borrowed from Improvisation Theater,” “Instructional Moments: Facilitating with Applied Improv,” “The Resilient Caregiver: A Path to Managing Stress & Change Through Humor & Play” & a coauthor of “Humor Me: America’s Funniest Humorists on the Power of Laughter”. Izzy’s video course for LinkedIn Learning, “Leading with Applied Improv,” was their first on the topic and their first shot as a live-action workshop. His other LinkedIn courses are “Humor in the Workplace” and “Building Your Team.” Izzy has earned the CSP (Certified Speaking Professional) designation from National Speakers Association. Less than 15% of NSA 4,000 members are CSPs. Izzy also has a BA in Psychology, an MS in Education and a P…. that’s 1/3 of a PhD.

In this episode of Money Tales, our guest is Heather Rader. Heather almost fell out of her chair one night when she was out with a friend and she found out what he was making. The friend, who was also a coworker on their sales team, was telling Heather about how he and his wife were about to buy a new house. This caused Heather to ask her colleague about his compensation. She learned he was earning almost double of what she was. This was a big shock because Heather was consistently the top salesperson in the organization. Heather shares what actions the conversation triggered her to take for herself and other high performing women on her team. As founder of a 100% woman-owned winery in the famed Napa Valley, Heather is all about making beautiful wine that empowers authentic community, connection, and inspirational travel experiences while giving back. In that spirit, her winery Spirit Horse Vineyards helps support a rescue horse ranch in Napa, where they support a leadership program for foster children to help the next generation THRIVE. Offering unique access at the highest levels of tennis and wine, Heather has created luxury travel experiences for world-class individuals and corporations at the top of their game through her company Tennis & Vine. She has led groups to the storied courts of Wimbledon, where her father-in-law played Rod Laver in the '62 finals, as well as the sizzling Italian Open, which he won 3 times. Prior to her career in luxury wine and travel, Heather garnered 25+ years of experience in digital marketing and sales for multiple Fortune 500 companies and start-ups, including the National Football League. Heather is passionate about food, wine, tennis and travel, and using them as a catalyst for inspiration and connection.

In this episode of Money Tales, our guest is Dr. Michele Mikeska Jaffe. Michele comes from a family of hard workers. Hard work was a sacrifice that you did for others, money was the fruit of that work and displaying wealth was taboo. These messages stuck with Michele through her early adulthood. When she was in her late twenties Michele discovered that she could actually enjoy the money she was making. This ah-hah resulted from her love of travel. She realized at that time that her income afforded her the ability to explore the world. Michele became comfortable using money for things that could be deemed frivolous or luxurious but, to her, were highly enjoyable. At that same time, she says this pivot felt almost like a betrayal to her family. She went to Greece anyway and had wonderful vacation. It was this individuation that caused her to form her own perspectives about money. Michele specializes in supporting individuals, couples, and business families with the impact of wealth on their identity and relationships. After years of working as entrepreneur and a design director in innovation consulting, the extensive experience Michele gained in creative, conceptual solutions and strategic engagement is now informing her work as a relationship and wealth psychologist. Michele’s doctoral research brought her in touch with the core issues that affect financially diverse marriages and family systems. She is the Executive Director of The Family Business Network – USA, a peer-to-peer member association spanning 65 countries that brings together over 4,000 business families. Michele has been a featured speaker and content creator, as well as featured in peer-reviewed journals. On a personal note, Michele is a yoga, music, and nature lover. She’s a fierce proponent of good food, good design, and good company. She’s pretty competitive in a family card game and loves an interior design magazine. Michele lives with her husband and two daughters in Berkeley, CA. Her website is www.drmichelemikeskajaffe.com. See all episodes >

In this episode of Money Tales, our guest is Cindy Arledge. When Cindy’s parents died, they left behind a complicated estate. Cindy says there was 17 trusts that co-owned four pieces of commercial real estate and the beneficiaries spanned multiple family members. Cindy was determined to realize her parents’ legacy and see her daughters receive the property that her parents wanted them to have. Other family members felt differently, so Cindy ended up buying out all of her nieces and nephews to settle the estate. This cost millions of dollars. Cindy borrowed against the real estate to make things work. For over 15 years, Cindy and her husband have carried substantial debt to be able to give her daughters their inheritance. Ironically, today, her girls aren’t interested in the real estate. This made Cindy put her ego aside and understand it's not about what she wants or what her parents wanted. It's about what her daughters want. Real legacy isn’t property or assets, it’s empowering each generation to be able to identify their gifts and talents so they can use them in a way that benefits the world. Cindy brings a fresh new approach to an age-old problem: how to transfer wealth without destroying your beneficiaries’ ambition and drive, and their relationships to each other. Motivated by the most painful experience of her life – losing a relationship with one of her brothers over the shared inheritance – Cindy developed a process to help business owners preserve family relationships through emotional and financial storms. While in the waiting room, the time between her parent’s death and the distribution of their estate, Cindy sought to understand what had happened to her family. In the process, she discovered a growing number of wealthy families who know how to retain wealth for 100 years, and longer. She was dismayed to discover that 7 out of 10 families lose wealth during the first transfer, and less than 10% retain wealth past the third generation. Shockingly, 97% of the time wealth loss was caused by the family. In other words, wealth loss is code word for family feud. By reverse engineering the root cause, Cindy built a framework that is both common sense and practical to apply. Cindy calls this process Legacy Planning. Utilizing a lifetime of learning, Cindy crafted a systematic approach that includes aspects of spirituality, personal development, psychology, leadership training, financial literacy, and conscious capitalism. Cindy holds an MBA and is a second-generation commercial real estate investment entrepreneur, best-selling author and matriarch of the family. Her vision is to see legacy planning become a recognized industry and help at least one million families create a Legacy Plan. Cindy’s favorite role is that of grandmother, or "Elmo". She enjoys each day as a gift with her husband, Gerald and their four-legged family members. They live in the DFW metroplex where they enjoy time spent with family and friends. See all episodes >

In this episode of Money Tales, our guest is Aubrey Johnson. As a young person, Aubrey had insecurities that extended into adulthood. As he tells us he felt greed and craving for acceptance which led to comparative thinking--- wondering how he measured up to the next person. This line of thinking was toxic and didn’t allow Aubrey to think for himself. It also played out in his money decisions. Aubrey shares that he often found himself comparing his finances, where he lived and the car he drove to his peers. Meeting his now wife changed Aubrey’s trajectory. He tells us that she helped him learn the importance of thinking for yourself and marching by the beat of your own drum. Today, among other things, Aubrey is host of the Road to Rediscovery podcast. He believes every person has a story to tell. Some stories serve to entertain, others to teach. Aubrey first conceptualized The Road to Rediscovery to provide a platform for ordinary yet extraordinary people to share their stories in the hopes of helping others who may be suffering through dark times of their own. Stories allow people to relate to one another and the act of sharing these words, thoughts and ideas is a gift. Aubrey feels it’s an honor to be alongside his guests as they tap into incredible wells of inner strength to share their stories with others. Above all, Aubrey wants his listeners and guests to know they’re not alone. By walking this road together, we are all stronger. Aubrey is originally from Cincinnati, Ohio, and currently lives in North Dallas, Texas. See all episodes >

In this episode of Money Tales, our guest is Barbara Sloan. Barbara experienced homelessness at times between the ages of 15 and 19. She thought about money a lot during that period and reflects that one of the amazing things her dad instilled in her was a strong work ethic. Barbara often had two or three jobs going at once. She was always working and, though she never had a plan, she knew that she was able to provide for herself. Barbara ultimately made her way to the service industry, which opened her eyes to all sorts of new money opportunities and considerations. Barbara is the author of the book "Tipped: The life changing guide to financial freedom for waitresses, bartenders, strippers, and all other service industry professionals." A homeless teen who danced for dollars and definitely did not graduate from college, Barbara is now a money coach that spent two decades working in every imaginable position in the Service Industry all over the country. In addition to owning and running a badass women-owned Construction company in the heart of Manhattan, she helps Tipped workers achieve Financial Freedom, like she did. She is passionate about all of the amazing aspects of Tipped work and passionate about all of the terrible aspects of Tipped work. Barbara lives in New York City with her wife of 10 years, an esteemed corporate finance exec, and together they are a couple of adorable money nerds who point out every dog they see. See all episodes >

In this episode of Money Tales, our guest is Tiffany Schade. Tiffany started her career in corporate America and then shifted to becoming a wife and mother. She really threw herself into those roles, and at a certain point during her marriage, Tiffany realized it was her responsibility to get more involved with the family finances. As she tells us, she worked on both her self-confidence and financial confidence. That helped Tiffany achieve the clarity she was looking for, which led to her launching her own business and deciding to leave the marriage. Tiffany is the founder and CEO of Sacred Child Beauty and is bringing benevolence to the beauty industry as a change-maker of cosmetics. Her line of clean, non-toxic, cruelty-free, and highly pigmented products is suited for people of all identities to look and feel their best. Tiffany’s passion for pigment and craft started at a very young age, which brought her to U.C. Berkeley where she studied fine art and developed a unique eye for form. From there, she launched a career working with some of the globe’s largest and most successful cosmetics companies like Sephora and Estee Lauder. The experience enabled her to gain perspective and realize what was missing from the industry: a clean line of cosmetics that perform. A wearer of many hats, Tiffany sought to combine her background as a certified holistic health coach with her love of lipstick and all things luscious. She formulated five core products and seven lipstick shades with customer health and welfare at the forefront. As someone with sensitive skin and very high standards, Tiffany stays involved in every step of the process, from formulation to finished packaging, to ensure each product lives up to its full potential. There’s a transparency about her products and the way she does business that sets her apart from others in the industry. Her extensive knowledge about what people look for in cosmetics led to the birth of Sacred Child Beauty and a growing team of dedicated employees who believe in her mission and share her passion for the company. A Sacred Child is a gift from the cosmos, linking the sky, the earth, and everything in between in a celestial loop of life and love. Just as the name implies, Tiffany’s goal is to bring quality cosmetics, inclusivity, and healthy, intentional living to the beauty-sphere. Coined “a company with a conscience,” Sacred Child Beauty will make its mark on the world (without leaving a blemish on the earth) thanks to its doting, yet daring mother, Tiffany Schade. See all episodes >

In this episode of Money Tales, our guest is Lloyd Greif. After a decade-long investment banking career at Sutro & Co. Incorporated, Lloyd left to start his own boutique investment bank, Greif & Co. Some people would be skittish to make this leap. Not Lloyd. As he tells us, he was a top producer firm wide, and as the leading rainmaker within the organization, he was routinely generating 40% to 60% of the total revenue for their division. Lloyd had the relationships, contacts and chutzpah to know that that success he had at Sutro would carry over, even if he was starting Greif & Co. during a recession. Lloyd’s extreme work ethic is legendary, and he had no doubts that he would pull off the new venture. Lloyd is a highly accomplished investment banker of four decades’ standing. The fact that he routinely lectures on negotiations at all three of his alma maters – UCLA, USC and Loyola – speaks to his knowledge and expertise. He exclusively represents entrepreneurially owned and operated middle market companies, hence Greif & Co.’s reputation as “The Entrepreneur’s Investment Bank.” Lloyd is a zealot for his clients, always putting their interests first, religiously avoiding conflicts of interest, and going to the mat for them. He is also renowned for getting tough, extremely complex deals done no matter the obstacles. A proven successful economic cycle rider, Lloyd founded his eponymous firm during the recession of the early 1990s and has persevered through three other economic downturns. The son of Holocaust survivors, Lloyd grew up in a one-bedroom apartment that he shared with his mother and older brother. Lloyd worked full-time to pay his way through school, earning three degrees—in Economics (BA―UCLA), Entrepreneurship (MBA―USC, Beta Gamma Sigma), and Law (JD―Loyola Law School, Order of the Coif). Running the midnight-to-9am store stocking crew at Ralphs Grocery Co. before going to school was not an infrequent occurrence for him. Lloyd founded Greif & Co. in 1992 following a successful, decade-long investment banking career as Vice Chairman of Sutro & Co., the oldest investment banking firm in the West, where he was head of the investment banking division and a member of the five-person Management Committee that ran the firm. Previously, Lloyd was a business operations and strategy consultant with Touche, Ross & Co. (Deloitte Consulting LLC). In 1997, Lloyd founded the Lloyd Greif Center for Entrepreneurial Studies at USC’s Marshall School of Business. The Greif Entrepreneurship Center is consistently ranked among the top 10 entrepreneurial studies centers in the world. Lloyd is past chair of the Board of Directors of the Los Angeles Economic Development Corporation and the Los Angeles Police Foundation, a member of the Board of Directors of the California Chamber of Commerce, a member of the Board of Leaders of the USC Marshall School of Business, a member of both the Young Presidents’ Organization (YPO) and World Presidents’ Organization (WPO), a member of the Board of Overseers of Loyola Law School, past member of the Board of Trustees and Treasurer of the Florence Academy of Art, and a member of the Board of Advisors of the National Museum of American Illustration. In 2002, Lloyd received the Entrepreneurial Spirit Award from the Boy Scouts of America, in 2000 received the Corporate Excellence Award from Loyola Law School, in 1999 and 2012 received commendations from the City of Los Angeles for his “dedication and outstanding contributions to the Los Angeles community,” and in 2019 received the Alumni Service Award from the University of Southern California. A frequent public speaker, he is an internationally recognized authority in the field of mergers & acquisitions and corporate finance and has been featured in such books as The Entrepreneurial Journey, Strategies for Small Business Success, The Entrepreneurship Movement and the University, Loyola Law School: A Sense of Purpose and A Sense of Mission,

In this episode of Money Tales, our guest is Olivia Summerhill. Olivia grew up in an ultra-high net worth family. She says they were very privileged and had everything they ever wanted: extracurricular activities, private tutors, private school, and big family gatherings at fancy resorts were the norm. From the outside it all looked perfect. However, Olivia tells us that when she was young, the family’s large custom home in the gated community was the façade of perfectionism. The family was keeping her parents’ impending divorce a secret inside the house. This is when Olivia witnessed money being used to exert power and control and she witnessed the devastation and emotions of both of her parents. This experience shaped Olivia’s purpose and the career choices she’s made. Olivia is the founder of a financial consulting company, The Summerhill Firm, helping affluent women maintain their lifestyles and thrive post-divorce by educating and empowering them financially. Having over a decade of experience in wealth management and private banking, Olivia dedicates her time to protecting women. Her niche serves famous and high-profile women who need help navigating the financial complexities of divorce. She also consults with financial advisors and family offices to help their clients avoid divorce mistakes. Olivia is often highlighted in Forbes, US News, MSN, and other national media. She hosts a money coaching podcast called 'Divorce for Wealthy Women.' Among numerous other designations in finance, Olivia is a Certified Financial Planner, Certified Divorce Financial Analyst, Certified Divorce Specialist, and Certified Money Coach. See all episodes >

In this episode of Money Tales, our guest is Evelyn Starr. Evelyn is an entrepreneur. She started her business when she was pregnant with her second child, and her goal was to be productive outside of the confines of corporate America. Because she and her husband planned their personal finances carefully, they could rely on a single income to cover their expenses. This gave Evelyn freedom to grow her business on her terms and achieve the balance she was seeking. Evelyn is an author, brand expert, and marketing consultant with over 25 years of marketing strategy and research experience. Evelyn uses her keen powers of observation and insight to help her clients wow their customers and grow their businesses. She specializes in working with Brands in Adolescence, brands that have stalled after their initial success. Her clients have ranged from small businesses like Laird Superfood and Harbor Sweets to global brands like Hasbro and Gillette. Evelyn’s book, Teenage Wastebrand: How Your Brand Can Stop Struggling and Start Scaling, was published in April 2021. Before founding E. Starr Associates in 1999, Evelyn worked for some of New England’s most recognized brands including Dunkin’, Veryfine Products and The First Years. As leader of the Care & Safety category at The First Years, she launched one of the company’s most successful products, the Hands-Free Gate, which won The National Parenting Seal of Approval in 2002. Evelyn earned an MBA in Marketing from Boston College’s Carroll School of Management and graduated with honors from Vassar College with a BA in Economics and French. Living in the Greater Boston area, her passions include travel, reading, writing, yoga, tea, dark chocolate and nurturing the entrepreneurial spirit in both her husband and her two children.

In this episode of Money Tales, our guest is Jaclynn (Jax) Brennan. Jax has been on both sides of the wealth spectrum. When she was young, Jax’s family went from having wealth to having nothing. She says this experience has allowed her to be comfortable taking incredible risks and leaps as a founder of a growing business. If her entrepreneurial endeavors don’t work out, Jax has the confidence of knowing that she could always fall back on her talents and get a corporate job. Meanwhile, as an entrepreneur she’s scrappy, tenacious, and knows how to stretch a dollar to maximize opportunities. Jax is a creative executive and expert on the connection between business and branding. With over 12 years of experience as a Creative Director for a variety of luxury fashion brands and having helped lead over 22 major corporations in executing branding strategies, she is an authority on taking brands, organizations, and entrepreneurs to the next level of success. Jax is also the CEO and Co-Founder of Fyli, a female mastermind membership community focused on educational masterclasses, accountability, peer-to-peer mentorship, leadership advancement, and funding opportunities for early-stage female founders. At Fyli, she oversees all corporate partnerships, including Soho House and Bumble, investor relations, curriculum structure, and team culture. Having coined the term “creative duality”, which explores the strategies and new frontiers of branding using conceptual thinking for multiple categories in the fashion, photography, sports, art, medical, real estate, and consumer goods industries. Jax has used this method to design Serena William’s first jewelry collection. She has also used it to launch multiple ready-to-wear collaborations with Lord & Taylor and Bloomingdales, and executive produce the documentary series, “Connecting Thread” for Refinery29. Jax’s initiatives are authentic, approachable, and meant for everyone - women; men who are supportive of women; female entrepreneurs; women who are starting their career; new mothers who may feel left out in their careers; women who are interested in fashion, lifestyle, beauty, travel, health and wellness; anyone who needs hope, inspiration, support. Learn more at https://jaclynnbrennan.com and https://fylitribe.com See all episodes >

In this episode of Money Tales, our guest is Rocco Orlando. Rocco tells us that when he was coming out of college, he noticed he was an entitled pretentious person who was taking shortcuts through life because so many doors were open to him. In short, Rocco was becoming someone he disliked. His antidote was to join the army. While Rocco qualified as an officer, he chose to enlist as a private. This allowed him to start at the bottom with the intention of growing up. His plan worked and he gained valuable money insights along the way. Rocco began his career as a military officer, serving 10 years in the United States Army, most notably as a Captain with the elite paratrooper unit, the 173d Airborne, based out of Bamberg, Germany. He served multiple combat tours in the Afghanistan theater, sharpening his leadership abilities, while also developing a strong skillset for excelling in high pressure environments. Over the course of his professional career, Rocco has been involved in the project management of over 5 million square feet of office space across the country, ranging from complete ground up construction projects to managing and overseeing landlord turnkey solutions. Rocco’s project and construction management expertise ranges from the Fortune 500 to regionalized occupiers. Rocco’s most recent success has been managing the overall national expansion project for one of the fastest growing insurance companies in the world, with more than 30 projects closed over the last 6 quarters alone. See all episodes >