So Money with Farnoosh Torabi

Episode 1915: Investing in the Age of the AI Bubble with Amanda Holden, Author of How to Be a Rich Old Lady
Date: December 8, 2025

Episode Overview

This episode dives into a nuanced conversation about navigating investing during the current “AI bubble.” Farnoosh Torabi invites Amanda Holden—investment educator, industry veteran, and author of How to Be a Rich Old Lady—to share her straight-talking guidance on building authentic, long-term wealth when everyone seems to be chasing the latest tech hype. The discussion cuts through market anxiety, addresses systemic barriers to wealth, and empowers listeners—especially women—to invest, diversify, and protect themselves amid market unpredictability.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. The Genesis of “How to Be a Rich Old Lady”

• Amanda’s Book Title Story (05:01–06:30)
  • Amanda shares her creative struggles with the publisher over the book’s title. While the publisher pushed for words like “invest” in the title for clarity, Amanda wanted something bolder. Her original pitches included How to Buy Nipple Tassels at 80 and Naked Rollerblading When You’re 80.
  • Quote:
    “I wanted to name the book how to buy nipple tassels when you’re 80. That’s what I wanted…To which Simon and Schuster was like, absolutely not.” —Amanda (05:46)
  • Farnoosh applauds Amanda’s “anchoring psychology” negotiation, making How to Be a Rich Old Lady the perfect compromise.

2. Wealth Building for the Financially Overwhelmed

• From Surviving to Thriving (08:26–10:27)
  • Amanda speaks directly to listeners who feel like just breaking even or paying off debt is a major success.
  • She calls “building a strong financial foundation” (emergency fund, tackling debt, positive cash flow) an investment in oneself, not just a precursor to traditional investing.
  • Quote:
    "These are actually very big jobs. …Nobody ever is going to have their entire financial life figured out in one day or even one year.” —Amanda (09:08)
  • She especially emphasizes not listening to internet voices who say to invest every last dollar before stabilizing your foundation.

3. Skepticism of “Get Rich Quick” Advice & Systemic Critique

• Finance Industry Red Flags (11:22–14:09)
  • Amanda unpacks how the finance ecosystem—and capitalism more broadly—can scam or exploit people, especially with high-priced “investing” bootcamps that target vulnerable women.
  • “Make money fast...it’s the original scam. All scams were born from this original scam.” —Amanda (11:22)
  • She urges listeners to understand the system’s design so they don’t blame themselves for setbacks and champions financial literacy as a tool for empowerment.

4. Investing Basics: The “Quick and Dirty” Guide

• Separating Account Types from Investments (15:13–21:29)
  • Amanda clarifies a pervasive misunderstanding: Accounts (401k, IRA, brokerage) are just containers—what matters are the investments inside.
  • Quote:
    “There are accounts like 401ks and Roth IRAs, and then there are the investments inside of them.” —Amanda (15:18)
  • She endorses a simple, proven approach for most investors:
    • Focus on three main types of funds: U.S. stocks, international stocks, and bonds, generally via low-cost index funds.
    • Adjust your “asset allocation” (stock-vs-bond mix) based on age and goals.
    • Robo-advisors can do this for you for a small fee, handling automations and rebalancing, or you can DIY.

5. Robo-Advisors: Pros and Cons

• Rebalancing and Automation (21:29–25:00)
  • Farnoosh and Amanda confirm the chief advantages of robo-advisors: easy automation, portfolio rebalancing, and sometimes access to a real person.
  • Amanda notes emerging platforms (e.g., M1 Finance) offer hybrid options—DIY with simplified rebalancing—that might soon become standard.
  • Quote:
    “If using a Robo Advisor is going to get you to invest more..., then it’s worth it.” —Amanda (22:32)

6. Women, Risk, and Being a “Better” Investor

• Risk Tolerance is More About Income Than Gender (29:27–34:14)
  • Contrary to stereotypes, Amanda argues that women’s lower risk tolerance is usually a function of lower investable assets, not innate caution.
  • When women do invest, they often outperform men—primarily because they don’t panic-sell in volatile markets.
  • Quote:
    “Risk tolerance is actually largely a function of income and not gender.… When women do invest, [studies show] they are better investors than men…because they are able to stay calm, cool and collected when the market starts to overreact.” —Amanda (32:30)

7. Navigating Market Volatility, Bubbles, and Diversification in an AI-Obsessed Market

• Why Nobody Can Time the Market (30:20–32:07, 34:37–42:59)
  • Amanda recounts a story of a CPA who warned clients to go to cash, revealing the folly and potential legal/ethical issues with reactionary advice.
  • Quote:
    “If anybody tells you they know what’s going to happen in the next year, they just don’t. We can’t know.” —Amanda (30:27)
  • Farnoosh and Amanda discuss the anatomy of bubbles—now with AI as the locus of hype.
  • Amanda reflects on parallels between today’s AI exuberance and the dot-com bubble, warning that most AI companies lack clear profit paths.
  • The S&P 500 index is currently top-heavy in large tech stocks—7 companies make up 40% of the index—and so it's not as diversified as advertised.
  • Quote:
    “For the last 15…20 years, US stocks have outperformed all other categories by a lot. …But it also tricks us into believing this is how it’s always going to be, which history also tells us that is not the case.” —Amanda (39:10)
  • She encourages listeners to look beyond just the S&P 500 and consider “overweighting” small- or mid-cap funds, or adding international exposure, for true diversification.

8. Pragmatic Strategies and Emotional Resilience

• What To Do When the Crash Comes (Because It Will) (44:24–45:29)
  • Resist reactionary selling; market timing is impossible.
  • The most important move is staying in long enough to enjoy the market’s historical average returns—including all the bad years.
  • Quote:
    “Everybody’s thinking about what do I do to not miss the crash. But what is actually way more important is that you participate in all the upside…You cannot achieve the average if you are consistently performing worse than the average.” —Amanda (45:16)

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• On the true "scam":

  “Make money fast...it’s the original scam. All scams were born from this original scam.”
  —Amanda Holden (11:22)

• On account confusion:

  "There are accounts like 401ks and Roth IRAs, and then there are the investments inside of them."
  —Amanda Holden (15:18)

• On prioritizing foundation:

  "Nobody ever is going to have their entire financial life figured out in one day or even one year.”
  —Amanda Holden (09:08)

• On women's true risk tolerance:

  "Risk tolerance is actually largely a function of income and not gender."
  —Amanda Holden (32:30)

• On diversification:

  "If you only own an S&P 500 index fund, then you…are taking a lot of single stock risk and single industry risk."
  —Amanda Holden (41:55)

• On riding out the market:

  "If you’re going to play the game, you gotta play the whole game. You gotta be along for the ride.”
  —Amanda Holden (44:24)

• On what really matters:

  “What is actually way more important is that you participate in all upside…You cannot achieve the average if you are consistently performing worse than the average.”
  —Amanda Holden (45:16)

Important Timestamps

| Topic | Timestamp | |-----------------------------|----------------| | Book title story & negotiation | 05:01–06:30 | | Foundation before investing | 08:26–10:27 | | Skepticism of high-risk “investing” schools & system critique | 11:22–14:09 | | Key investing fundamentals | 15:13–21:29 | | Robo-advisor utility | 21:29–25:00 | | Women’s investing behavior & outcomes | 32:30–34:14 | | Market timing & crash psychology | 30:20–32:07; 44:24–45:29 | | Dangers & nuance of current AI bubble | 34:45–42:59 |

Final Thoughts & Recommendations

Amanda and Farnoosh challenge listeners to take power over their investing journeys—starting with a real foundation, seeking true diversification, and avoiding the seductive but risky path of chasing fads.

• Investing isn't about finding the next hot stock—it's about playing the long game, understanding what you own, and refusing to let market drama cloud your discipline.
• Amanda’s new book, How to Be a Rich Old Lady, tackles both the how-to and the emotional/psychological side of investing, centering equity, inclusivity, and system-level critique.

Recommended next steps:

• Get Amanda’s book (out Jan 13, 2026).
• Revisit your own mix of stocks/bonds.
• Don’t be seduced by get-rich-quick promises.
• Remember: True investing success is boring, steady, and accessible to everyone—even (especially) if you don’t start out rich.

For more, visit Amanda’s website and check out her “Invested Development” course. See you Wednesday on So Money!