The F. Word

In this episode, Priya marks the close of Season One with episode 82, and explains why she's pausing the podcast to focus on building a new piece of budgeting software. Instead of a typical topic breakdown, she revisits the five Season One episodes she thinks will do the most for your financial future than your next raise. She throws in a bonus favorite on dating below your ambitions, and crowns a new champion in her Best Bite segment.

Takeaways: 

• Building wealth is about thousands of small decisions that create a foundation strong enough to stand on.
• Treating homeownership as a default milestone can work against high earners who have other paths to build net worth.
• Understanding the life you can afford boils down to one number.
• Understanding how your financial advisor gets paid shapes the advice you get.

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The Stuff Our Lawyers Want Us to Say:

Stash Wealth is a Registered Investment Advisor. Content presented is for informational and educational purposes only and is not intended to make an offer or solicitation for any specific securities product, service, or strategy. Consult with a qualified investment adviser (that's us) before implementing any strategy. Investing involves risk, including the loss of principal. Past performance does not guarantee future results. There…we said it.

In this episode, Priya sits down with AJ Ayers, CEO and co-founder of BrooklynFI, to talk about the money shame that persists even after high earners have built real wealth. They dig into the single most expensive mistake people make with equity compensation, why doing nothing with a windfall is actually a strategy, and the exact savings framework AJ uses with clients who have lumpy or unpredictable income. AJ also shares the thesis behind her new book, Creative Money, and the one chapter she fought to include.

Takeaways:

• Money shame doesn't disappear once you get rich, or even after 10 years with a financial advisor - the goal isn't to eliminate it, it's to stop letting it freeze you.
• The most expensive mistake with equity compensation is doing nothing: waiting to exercise options or sell RSUs almost always costs more in taxes than acting early.
• If you experience a cash windfall, slow down and build the framework, because acting fast is what turns sudden money into a mistake.
• If your income is lumpy, save 50% of every dollar in a high-yield account for at least 15 months; that's the number that keeps a good year from turning into a surprise tax bill.

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Guest Bio:

AJ Ayers is the CEO and co-founder of Brooklyn FI, a national financial advisory firm specializing in equity compensation and tax strategy for tech professionals, founders, and creatives. She co-hosts The Liquidity Event podcast, and her first book, Creative Money: New Financial Rules for Artists, Innovators, and Misfits, is out this fall.

Guest Links:

ajayers.com 

Podcast: The Liquidity Event

Instagram: @brooklyn_fi and @ajayersnyc

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/ajayers/

The Stuff Our Lawyers Want Us to Say:

Stash Wealth is a Registered Investment Advisor. Content presented is for informational and educational purposes only and is not intended to make an offer or solicitation for any specific securities product, service, or strategy. Consult with a qualified investment adviser (that's us) before implementing any strategy. Investing involves risk, including the loss of principal. Past performance does not guarantee future results. There…we said it.

In this episode, Priya sits down with Pinterest executive Soniya Monga to talk about the wealth-building asset most high earners ignore: their own career. Soniya, who has spent two decades inside LinkedIn, Snap, TikTok, and now Pinterest, breaks down how "life as a portfolio" thinking changes the way you evaluate career moves, location, and even how you spend money. They also get into the real trade-offs behind delaying marriage and kids, and why comparison is an expensive financial habit.

Takeaways:

• At $200K-$400K, your career is your biggest asset.
• Chasing job titles early in your career can shrink your long-term earning potential.
• In tech, individual contributors can out-earn managers, so climbing the leadership ladder isn't automatically the highest-ROI path.
• Comparison isn't just an emotional tax, it's a financial one.
• Asking "would I still want this if nobody could see it?" changes most purchase decisions.

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Guest Bio:

Soniya Monga leads global agency and account partnerships at Pinterest, following senior leadership roles at LinkedIn, Snap, and TikTok. Over two decades in tech, she's built significant personal wealth through career strategy, equity, and leadership rather than entrepreneurship.

Guest Links:

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/soniyamonga/

LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/soniyamonga

The Stuff Our Lawyers Want Us to Say:

Stash Wealth is a Registered Investment Advisor. Content presented is for informational and educational purposes only and is not intended to make an offer or solicitation for any specific securities product, service, or strategy. Consult with a qualified investment adviser (that's us) before implementing any strategy. Investing involves risk, including the loss of principal. Past performance does not guarantee future results. There…we said it.

In this episode, Priya sits down with Allison Kahler, a former Bain consultant turned executive coach and host of The D. Tales  podcast, to talk about the financial side of divorce that nobody prepares high earners for. They cover why a prenup (or the lack of one) matters more than couples think, why keeping a bank account in your own name does not protect those assets in a divorce, and what to get in order before you ever tell your partner you want out.

Takeaways:

• Keeping a bank account in only your name does not protect it in a divorce - courts and mediators look at total assets, not individual account labels.
• Every marriage already has a prenup: if you never write your own, your state's default divorce laws become the agreement instead.
• Letting your partner "handle the money" is the exact habit that leaves people financially blindsided if the marriage ends.

  
  

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Guest Bio:

Allison Kahler is a former Bain & Company partner who spent nearly 20 years in consulting before shifting her focus to executive coaching and divorce support. After going through her own divorce, she launched The D. Tales, a podcast featuring real divorce stories and conversations with divorce professionals, and now helps others navigate the financial and emotional sides of separation.

As an executive coach and leadership advisor, Allison partners with senior leaders across Fortune 1000 companies, startups, and nonprofits on 1:1 coaching, leadership development, team effectiveness, and facilitation.

Guest Links:

IG: https://www.instagram.com/allisonjkahler 

Podcast IG: https://www.instagram.com/thedtalespodcast/

TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@allisonjkahler

Podcast: "The D. Tales with Allison Kahler" is available on all podcast apps, https://linktr.ee/thedtalespodcast

The Stuff Our Lawyers Want Us to Say:

Stash Wealth is a Registered Investment Advisor. Content presented is for informational and educational purposes only and is not intended to make an offer or solicitation for any specific securities product, service, or strategy. Consult with a qualified investment adviser (that's us) before implementing any strategy. Investing involves risk, including the loss of principal. Past performance does not guarantee future results. There…we said it.

In this episode, Priya sits down with Erin Lowry, bestselling author of the Broke Millennial book series, to talk about what it actually takes to build wealth instead of just looking like you have it. They dig into why high earners still feel like they're living paycheck to paycheck at $250K-$350K, how a scarcity mindset gets passed down even in financially stable households, and why investing - not saving - is the real wealth-building lever. Erin also shares her own decision to skip a traditional engagement ring, and what it taught her about spending in alignment with her own values instead of other people's expectations.

Takeaways:

• At $250K-$350K in an expensive city, the paycheck-to-paycheck feeling is real & the fix isn't a stricter budget.
• You can inherit a scarcity mindset even if you never had a scarce childhood.
• Saving for retirement is a misnomer. If your 401(k) money is sitting in a cash or money market fund, it isn't actually working towards your retirement goal.
• Building wealth isn't only about cutting spending - growing your income, negotiating your pay, and creating new income streams move the needle just as much as trimming expenses.

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Guest Bio:

Erin Lowry is the bestselling author of the Broke Millennial book series, including Broke Millennial, Broke Millennial Takes On Investing, and Broke Millennial Talks Money. She's spent over a decade translating complex financial concepts into plain language for millennials and Gen Z, and now hosts Funny Money, a live comedy show about personal finance in New York City.

Guest Links:

Website: brokemillennial.com

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/brokemillennialblog

Books:

• Broke Millennial 

• Broke Millennial Takes On Investing

• Broke Millennial Talks Money. 

Funny Money Tickets: https://brokemillennial.substack.com/p/funny-money-comedy-show

(Code LOL10 for $10 off) and Livestream here (code LOL3 for $3 off!)

The Stuff Our Lawyers Want Us to Say:

Stash Wealth is a Registered Investment Advisor. Content presented is for informational and educational purposes only and is not intended to make an offer or solicitation for any specific securities product, service, or strategy. Consult with a qualified investment adviser (that's us) before implementing any strategy. Investing involves risk, including the loss of principal. Past performance does not guarantee future results. There…we said it.

In this episode, Priya challenges the widespread obsession with passive income - specifically real estate - and makes the case that chasing a financial mechanism before understanding the actual goal is one of the most expensive mistakes high earners make. She breaks down the real spectrum of passive income, from index funds and REITs that quietly compound to Airbnbs and rental properties that can feel more like a second job.

Takeaways:

• Parking $100K in a savings account for three years while hunting for the right real estate deal means your money never started compounding - that delay is often one of the most expensive financial decisions a high earner makes, and it sounds completely reasonable on the surface.
• At $250K in income, your career is probably your highest-returning asset right now - a raise, a promotion, or better negotiated comp compounds too, and it deserves the same energy as a property search.
• Passive income strategies make sense after the basics are already working: retirement savings on track, consistent investing in place, and true excess capital available - not before.

 Follow Priya Malani:

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The Stuff Our Lawyers Want Us to Say:

Stash Wealth is a Registered Investment Advisor. Content presented is for informational and educational purposes only and is not intended to make an offer or solicitation for any specific securities product, service, or strategy. Consult with a qualified investment adviser (that's us) before implementing any strategy. Investing involves risk, including the loss of principal. Past performance does not guarantee future results. There…we said it.

In this episode, Priya tackles the retirement number most high earners have been quietly aiming for - $5 million - and asks whether it actually holds up. She walks through inflation, lifestyle replacement vs. salary replacement, the Fidelity healthcare estimate, and the variables that shift the math most: when you retire, whether you keep earning, and what strategy you're actually comfortable with.

Takeaways:

• You're not replacing your salary in retirement - you're replacing your lifestyle, and for high earners those are two very different numbers.
• Most high achievers don't stop working in retirement - they change how they work, and even $50-75K in flexible income can shift your retirement target by millions.
• Blindly maxing retirement accounts without knowing your actual number might mean you're compressing your current lifestyle for a target you don't even need.

Follow Priya Malani:

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The Stuff Our Lawyers Want Us to Say:

Stash Wealth is a Registered Investment Advisor. Content presented is for informational and educational purposes only and is not intended to make an offer or solicitation for any specific securities product, service, or strategy. Consult with a qualified investment adviser (that's us) before implementing any strategy. Investing involves risk, including the loss of principal. Past performance does not guarantee future results. There…we said it.

In this episode, Priya sits down with Sunny Israni - Wall Street veteran, Columbia Business School professor, and co-founder of AI automation startup LightSwitch - to cut through the noise on what AI actually means for your money. The conversation anchors on Elon Musk's claim that retirement savings will be irrelevant in an AI-abundant future. Priya and Sunny dismantle it methodically. But more importantly, they answer the question most high earners are quietly asking: what does building wealth actually look like when the rules are changing this fast?

Takeaways:

• How the people closest to AI - the ones who actually build it - invest.
• The vast majority of AI users use it as a glorified search engine - which means the real AI opportunity is still wide open.
• Outsourcing your financial security to a prediction about AI abundance requires technology, human adoption, and policy to all align simultaneously. 

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Guest Bio:

Sunny Israni started his career in fixed-income trading at Bank of America Merrill Lynch and built analytics infrastructure at Bloomberg that powered investment decisions across Wall Street. He is a CFA, a Columbia Business School professor, and co-founder of LightSwitch, an AI automation company for CPG brands.

Guest Links:

Personal Site: https://sunny.expert/

YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@SunnySaysYes

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/sunnysaysyas/

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/sunny-israni/

X/Twitter: https://x.com/sunnysaysyes

TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@sunnysaysyes

The Stuff Our Lawyers Want Us to Say:

Stash Wealth is a Registered Investment Advisor. Content presented is for informational and educational purposes only and is not intended to make an offer or solicitation for any specific securities product, service, or strategy. Consult with a qualified investment adviser (that's us) before implementing any strategy. Investing involves risk, including the loss of principal. Past performance does not guarantee future results. There…we said it.

In this episode, Priya strips the 401k back to first principles - what it actually is, how the employer match works, and when maxing it out might be the wrong call. The catalyst: a smart, well-educated client who went years without contributing because nobody ever explained what "match" meant. Priya fixes that, then goes further - covering the traditional vs. Roth decision, why flexibility beats tax optimization, and the one rule that is genuinely non-negotiable no matter what else is going on in your financial life.

Takeaways:

• A 401k is not an investment - it is a tax-advantaged container. The investments you put inside it are an entirely separate decision.
• Your employer match is the only guaranteed 100% return available to anyone.
• If you are in your 30s building toward near-term goals - a home, a career change, a sabbatical - maxing your 401k might actually mean over-allocating to retirement at the expense of everything else.
• Most people who try to perfectly optimize the traditional vs. Roth decision end up with regrets about optionality.

  
  

 Follow Priya Malani:

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The Stuff Our Lawyers Want Us to Say:

Stash Wealth is a Registered Investment Advisor. Content presented is for informational and educational purposes only and is not intended to make an offer or solicitation for any specific securities product, service, or strategy. Consult with a qualified investment adviser (that's us) before implementing any strategy. Investing involves risk, including the loss of principal. Past performance does not guarantee future results. There…we said it.

In this episode, Priya asks the question most high earners don’t realize they are avoiding: are you actually wealthy, or have you built a very convincing appearance of it? Drawing on the timeless learnings in The Millionaire Next Door, she breaks down two types of high earners - prodigious accumulators of wealth and under-wealth accumulators - then runs the real math on what a completely normal lifestyle on $320K in New York City actually leaves behind to build with.

 Takeaways:

• There is a version of success that looks like wealth, feels like wealth, and costs like wealth, but never actually becomes it.
• On a $320K salary in New York City, a normal lifestyle leaves roughly $25K a year to build with.
• Under-wealth accumulators don't feel broke - they just happen to be winning the wrong game.

 Follow Priya Malani:

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The Stuff Our Lawyers Want Us to Say:

Stash Wealth is a Registered Investment Advisor. Content presented is for informational and educational purposes only and is not intended to make an offer or solicitation for any specific securities product, service, or strategy. Consult with a qualified investment adviser (that's us) before implementing any strategy. Investing involves risk, including the loss of principal. Past performance does not guarantee future results. There…we said it.