Living Fully Conversations

One common misconception around generosity is that you have to have abundant financial resources in order to affect change. But philanthropy can go beyond writing checks -- we all have time, talent, and experience we can contribute to make the world a better place.

I met today’s guest, Amitabh Shah, in New York when I was speaking at the Harvard Club recently for my book tour. I was struck by his generous spirit and wanted to know more about what made him tick and the passion he has for impacting the world in significant ways.

Amitabh completed his MBA at Yale and passed up a Wall Street offer in order to devote his time to helping others. He believes that young people have the power and determination it takes to make a positive impact.

Amitabh himself was just 23 years old when he founded YUVA Unstoppable. YUVA, meaning “Youth,” mobilizes volunteers to help underprivileged children across India. One of the ways they do this is by providing necessities like water, bathrooms, and technology to some of India’s poorest public schools. All of these upgrades dramatically improve the lives of children and increase their access to education.

You can visit yuvaunstoppable.org for more information about Amitabh’s work.

During our conversation, we also get into:

—The differences in generosity culture between India and the United States

—How to give beyond writing checks

—Where Amitabh’s big-hearted nature came from

—The importance of gratitude

To learn more about turning meaningful wealth into a meaningful life filled with passion and purpose, connect with me on social media at @jcchristianson or send me an email at [email protected]

Music: "Day Is Gonna Come" by Royal Deluxe

Navigating the emotional and practical challenges of having aging parents is one of the difficult realities of life. Most people don’t want to talk about it -- after all, managing our own finances and lives can be demanding enough!

It’s a complicated situation, but waiting too long to have essential financial conversations with loved ones can lead to serious problems down the road.

Today’s guest, Cameron Huddleston, is helping people have these essential conversations with their parents. Cameron is an award-winning journalist with over 17 years of experience writing about personal finance. Her latest project is a fantastic book called Mom and Dad, We Need to Talk. In the book, Cameron draws on her own experience to offer clear, crucial advice for anyone dealing with aging parents regardless of income level.

For more tips from Cameron, head to her website: cameronhuddleston.com

We discuss:

—Why people are hesitant to talk to their parents about money

—Why parents aren’t initiating these conversations with their children

—How to ease the process of getting involved in your parents’ financial lives

—The most important question you can ask your parents today

To learn more about turning meaningful wealth into a meaningful life filled with passion and purpose, connect with me on social media at @jcchristianson or send me an email at [email protected]

Music: "Day Is Gonna Come" by Royal Deluxe

Beri Meric is the co-founder and CEO of IVY: The Social University, a community that unites rising leaders through a lifetime of learning, growth, and impact.

After attending Harvard Business School, Beri and his co-founder were inspired to bring the benefits of leading universities to entrepreneurs, creatives, and innovative professionals all over the world.

Beri’s mission is to spark a new renaissance promoting human unity, progress, and fulfillment through education and community. He believes that by helping as many people as possible to unlock their potential, he can make a big impact on the world.

To get more information about Beri’s work, visit www.berimeric.com. To learn more about IVY, visit www.ivy.com

Beri and I also discuss:

—What it means to be a global citizen

—Lifelong lessons he learned from his parents

—Advice for aspiring entrepreneurs

—How to make business a force for good

To learn more about turning meaningful wealth into a meaningful life filled with passion and purpose, connect with me on social media at @jcchristianson or send me an email at [email protected]

Music: "Day Is Gonna Come" by Royal Deluxe

Former NBA star Troy Murphy has made it his mission to assist clients in managing their newfound resources. He’s also committed to creating financially prepared, responsible, and savvy consumers.

Troy entered the professional sports world at age 20 to play for the Golden State Warriors and found himself and his teammates grappling with how to handle their new financial reality.

Unlike wealth creators in the business world, professional athletes spend most of their time focused on their craft without gaining real-world money management experience.

After retiring from basketball, Troy set out to become the resource he wished he’d had when he was a rookie. He recently launched his own financial advisory firm called Sweven Wealth. Sweven is tuned to the needs of athletes and 100% of their profit is donated to high school consumer awareness and financial literacy programs.

To check out Troy’s work as an investment advisor and philanthropist, head over to swevenwealth.com

Troy and I also discuss:

—How to define yourself outside of work

—Where he finds true fulfillment

—Practical advice based on his own money experience

—Who the greatest NBA player of all time really is

To learn more about turning meaningful wealth into a meaningful life filled with passion and purpose, connect with me on social media at @jcchristianson or send me an email at [email protected]

Music: "Day Is Gonna Come" by Royal Deluxe

While we’ve all heard that “money can’t buy happiness,” our society makes the accumulation of money and material possessions look like the ultimate aspiration.

My guest today, Margie Warrell, emphasizes the idea of what she calls “enoughness” in her work as an author, speaker, and advocate.

Margie is the author of four bestselling books and has been referred to as “an international authority on brave leadership” by the Wall Street Journal. You may have seen her byline as a contributor to Forbes or heard her speak live on leadership, courage, and risk. Margie is also a dedicated advocate for gender equality and founded Global Courage in 2010 to help advance more women to decision-making roles.

You can find out more about Margie and her work at margiewarrell.com

On this episode, we discuss:

—Heeding what Margie refers to as “the siren call of our soul”

—The line between being courageous and being reckless

—What it looks like to embrace faith over fear

—That your calling and career don’t have to be the same thing

—The price of playing it safe

To learn more about turning meaningful wealth into a meaningful life filled with passion and purpose, connect with me on social media at @jcchristianson or send me an email at [email protected]

Music: "Day Is Gonna Come" by Royal Deluxe

Craig Hall is an author, civic leader, and philanthropist who has started multiple businesses, including HALL Group when he was just eighteen years old.

Today, HALL Group’s business interests include everything from winemaking to early-stage investments in promising startups.

I was surprised to learn from Craig that entrepreneurship has declined dramatically over the last thirty years. Craig explores what he calls this “crisis of entrepreneurship” in his latest book, Boom: Bridging the Opportunity Gap to Reignite Startups.

He emphasizes that although new business ventures are booming in places like Silicon Valley, rural Americans, women, and people of color are facing more obstacles and benefit from fewer resources.

You can learn more about Craig and his work by visiting reignitestartups.com

Craig’s core beliefs as a philanthropist and perspective as an entrepreneur resonated with me as we talked about:

—Advice for people who want to become their own boss

—The impact of student debt and consolidation on the American Dream

—Maintaining a healthy sense of risk

—Caring about others as a way of life

To learn more about turning meaningful wealth into a meaningful life filled with passion and purpose, connect with me on social media at @jcchristianson or send me an email at [email protected]

Music: "Day Is Gonna Come" by Royal Deluxe

Today’s guest, Lucas Nivon, is the founder of Cyrus Biotechnology, a company whose mission is to help scientists harness powerful technology to create drugs that save lives.

Lucas attended Harvard in the early 2000’s surrounded by ambitious and inventive classmates -- people like Mark Zuckerberg. After completing his undergraduate degree, Lucas was inspired to explore the intersection of his two interests: science and technology.

This meant moving across the country to complete his postdoctoral work at the University of Washington in the lab of pioneering computational biologist and biochemist, David Baker.

During his work at the Baker Lab, Lucas decided it was time to scratch his entrepreneurial itch and start his own company, Cyrus Biotechnology.

Cyrus’s work is based on a powerful protein-modeling software called Rosetta. By offering molecular scientists a new, more accessible interface for using Rosetta, Cyrus shortens the platform’s learning curve and allows more scientists and companies to make use of the revolutionary software. You can learn more by visiting their website: www.cyrusbio.com and follow them on Twitter @cyrusbiotech

During this episode, Lucas and I discuss:

—How his peers’ entrepreneurial spirit shaped his own career path

—His knack for recognizing problems and what drives him to take enterprising action toward solutions

—How to balance the demands of starting your own company with life and relationships

—Tips for aspiring entrepreneurs who want to create a life of meaning and purpose

To learn more about turning meaningful wealth into a meaningful life filled with passion and purpose, connect with me on social media at @jcchristianson or send me an email at [email protected]

Music: "Day Is Gonna Come" by Royal Deluxe

On this episode of The Wealth Confidant, I talk with Bobbi Rebell, a Certified Financial Planner, award-winning journalist, and the host of two podcasts: Financial Grownup and Money in the Morning. She’s also the author of the best-selling book, How To Be A Financial Grownup. It’s a valuable resource for anyone looking to achieve financial freedom.

In her work, Bobbi offers helpful money management advice and inspires her audience to embrace and navigate financial adulthood—what she calls becoming a “financial grownup.”

If you’d like to learn more about Bobbi, head to her website, www.bobbirebell.com. I’m also excited to join her on an upcoming episode of the Financial Grownup Podcast to talk about my own money story and my new book, The Wealth Creator’s Playbook: A Guide To Maximizing Your Return on Life and Money, available now on Amazon.

In our conversation, Bobbi and I discuss:

How to help kids transition to financial independence

The economic hurdles millennials face and how their goals around money and wealth differ from their parents’

Advice for handling money in marriage

The importance of open communication around finances and inheritance

The risks and rewards of pivoting your career

To learn more about turning meaningful wealth into a meaningful life filled with passion and purpose, connect with me on social media at @jcchristianson or send me an email at [email protected]

Music: "Day Is Gonna Come" by Royal Deluxe

My guest today, Danielle Town, is a great example of someone who has put her money to work in a responsible way.

Danielle is a former corporate startup attorney and now co-hosts the InvestED podcast with her father, Phil Town, noted investor and author of the bestselling book, Rule #1.

Danielle’s own book, Invested, is a twelve-month plan for financial freedom. She writes about her longtime aversion to investing and what motivated her to begin putting her money to work in a responsible way following Warren Buffett-style value investing philosophy.

Danielle emphasizes that our feelings about money in the present can interfere with having a more prosperous future.

Check out Invested to find practical tips for making the complex world of investing approachable. You can learn more about Danielle and her work at her website, danielletown.com

On this episode, Danielle and I explore:

The baggage that money can create

That trust is vital to a positive investing experience

How she changed her relationship to money

The power of money and how to wield it for good

If you’ve been enjoying The Wealth Confidant, I think you’re going to love my new book, The Wealth Creator’s Playbook: A Guide To Maximizing Your Return on Life and Money, available now on Amazon.

To learn more about turning meaningful wealth into a meaningful life filled with passion and purpose, connect with me on social media at @jcchristianson or send me an email at [email protected]

Music: "Day Is Gonna Come" by Royal Deluxe

Not only is Mark Pattison a former NFL player, but he’s also a passionate philanthropist and a successful businessman.

Since his time playing for the L.A. Raiders and New Orleans Saints, Mark has climbed six of the Seven Summits. Once he climbs Mount Everest next year, he’ll become the first NFL player to complete this amazing feat.

Mark has used the principles, processes, and tools he’s learned from mountaineering, the NFL, and his business ventures to create a coaching program that helps clients get off the sidelines to find their elevated purpose.

I found a kindred spirit in Mark as we discussed the various summits we find ourselves traversing in life. On this episode, we explore:

The importance of gratitude and finding meaning beyond money

How vulnerability can lead to richer relationships and deeper connections

Why you need a roadmap on your journey to find purpose

That embracing fear and risk can lead to possibilities and answers

How going the extra mile can make you a champion in all areas of your life

You can learn more about Mark’s work by visiting markpattisonnfl.com

My new book, The Wealth Creator’s Playbook: A Guide To Maximizing Your Return on Life and Money is out on March 31st. It’s available now to pre-order from Amazon.

To learn more about turning meaningful wealth into a meaningful life filled with passion and purpose, connect with me on social media at @jcchristianson or send me an email at [email protected]

Music: "Day Is Gonna Come" by Royal Deluxe