How to Build Wealth Without Sacrificing Your Life

Summary

Podcast Summary: The Amy Porterfield Show

Episode Title: How to Build Wealth Without Sacrificing Your Life
Host: Amy Porterfield
Guest: Vivian Tu (“Your Rich BFF”)
Release Date: February 3, 2026

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Overview

This episode centers on building wealth as a woman entrepreneur in a way that is both strategic and grounded in real life, debunking “hustle harder” clichés and get-rich-quick promises. Amy Porterfield sits down with Vivian Tu, former Wall Street analyst, top digital media saleswoman, viral creator and CEO, and author of Well Endowed, to have a candid conversation about money mindset, scaling for sustainability, and the nuts and bolts of making meaningful financial decisions. The tone is frank, supportive, and anti-shame: “There’s a whole pie on the table, and we don’t need to fight each other for the crumbs.”

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Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. Money Mindset and the Realities of Making More

• Amy on financial worry and income:
  “When you make a lot of money, it’s a lot easier to manage it... a lot of worries around money go away when you’re making good money... Every financial worry I’ve had, every time I’ve been in debt... so much of it changed when I started making great money.” (03:36)
• Healing limiting beliefs:
  Amy shares her journey from blue-collar upbringing—“a lot of scarcity”—to healing “money wounds,” emphasizing the importance of working on your relationship with money before you earn big so you can steward wealth well.

2. Vivian Tu’s Career Pivot: Wall Street to Creator CEO (09:06–12:56)

• Wall Street experiences:
  Vivian recounts sexist challenges—“You’re too girly to work on Wall Street”—and cultural/family pressures as the only child of Chinese immigrants.
  • “I don’t have to just survive. I get to thrive. I get to do whatever the fuck I want to do.” (16:14)
• Turning adversity into entrepreneurship:
  Her viral financial literacy TikTok was launched as a joke for seven friends—“Very first video, January 1st of 2021, ended up going viral. 3 million views by the end of the week...” (11:41)

3. Authenticity as a Key to Growth

• Vivian attributes her rapid rise to being “100% me,” underscoring that embracing her personality and style was an asset, not a liability.
  • “I am who I am, and I’m proud of it. And I think that I succeeded because of all of those traits, not in spite of them.” (13:14)

4. Navigating Success, Family Expectations, and Breaking the Mold

• Growing up with survival and scarcity mindsets, both Amy and Vivian reflect on how breaking traditional paths (e.g., leaving Wall Street) can create family tension but ultimately lead to fulfillment.

5. Scaling, Hiring, and Letting Go of Scarcity (22:48–25:43)

• Vivian: “If you are hiring too early, you are going to cut yourself off at the knees. But if you’re unwilling to spend money, there will be a point where you can’t scale any further... But if you can get it right, it’s the unlock code.” (24:45)
• Start by doing everything yourself, then hire out of necessity or when an opportunity requires it.

6. Modern Marketing Playbooks & Innovating for Today’s Economy

• Traditional rules don’t always apply: “It’s harder now than it was before... you cannot play by the same rule book anymore. The rubric has changed, the course has changed.” (26:25)
• Email isn’t everything: Adapt to new platforms like SMS, AI automations (ManyChat, Insta auto-replies), deep-linking for mobile, and other tech-driven strategies.
  • “People get stuck in, ‘I have to do this because it worked for someone else.’ No you don’t. But you have to fill that gap.” (28:08–30:25)

7. Practical Money Moves: Separating Finances, Investing, and Strategic Spending

• Separate business and personal accounts:
  • “As soon as you start to make real money, I really encourage people to set up a business entity that is fully separate from yourself.” (31:09)
• Don’t hoard cash—invest wisely:
  • “Once you have your personal emergency fund set, what you really should be doing is investing that money... Your body and your mind is actually really bad at making money because as a human being... you can only work so many hours a day...” (32:33–34:32)
• On financial advisors vs. planners:
  • “Most people don’t need a financial advisor... What I actually recommend most people utilize is sitting down with a certified financial planner...” (36:06–40:15)

8. Strategic Spending: The “Is It Worth It?” Equation (41:01–43:27)

• Assign time value to purchases:
  • “Value those yoga pants in my time instead of money. You take your average hourly take home pay... $100 leggings? That’s five hours of work. Is it worth it?” (42:22)
• Spend on experiences that matter and apply a “pause” before impulsive buys.

9. Redefining Wealth: What Matters Most? (43:48–45:25)

• “We have been taught to value the wrong things... richness is security and stability—making your son’s T-ball game, helping a sibling, taking that bucket-list trip.”

10. Women, Competition & “Crumb vs. Pie” Mindset

• On why women hesitate to talk about money or celebrate others’ financial wins: negative PR and internalized scarcity.
  • “There are more men named John in the Fortune 500 top CEOs than there are women... We’re literally fighting over a crumb when there’s a whole pie on the table.” (47:50, 50:49–51:42)
• Both Amy and Vivian admit even they struggled to celebrate strangers’ wins before reaching a certain level of personal achievement, encouraging listeners to accelerate that journey.

11. Scaling Sustainably & Paying Yourself

• Pareto Principle: Focus 80% of energy on highest-earning 20% of your business ("book"). “It’s not your job to go and take the less lucrative business and try to make it lucrative. It’s your job to take the lucrative business and make it even more lucrative.” (53:43)
• Pay structure: “Pay yourself the largest salary you can afford without your business taking a hit, but the smallest salary that you can comfortably live on.” (56:48–57:28)

12. Anti-Hustle Wealth Building: Scaling Without Sacrificing Your Life

• Vivian admits, “I have been running a marathon at a sprint’s pace,” but her focus now is on investing and building systems (like AskDolly) that decouple income from constant labor.
  • “How do I make it so that it’s sustainable? So people can get access to me even if I’m not going to be available around the clock?” (59:57–61:48)
• AI, technology, and community can help move from hustle to sustainable scale.

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Notable Quotes

• Vivian Tu:

  • “I don’t have to just survive. I get to thrive. I get to do whatever the fuck I want to do.” (16:14)
  • “If you are hiring too early, you are going to cut yourself off at the knees. But if you’re unwilling to spend money, there will be a point where you can’t scale any further.” (24:45)
  • “You feed the rich and you starve the poor poor... it’s your job to take the lucrative business and make it even more lucrative.” (53:43)
  • “We’re literally fighting over a crumb when there’s a whole pie on the table.” (50:49)
  • “Pay yourself the largest salary you can afford without your business taking a hit, but the smallest salary that you can comfortably live on.” (57:26)
  • “Your body and your mind is actually really bad at making money... when you actually go and take that money and make investments, your money works hard to make you more money.” (34:01–34:32)

• Amy Porterfield:

  • “My goal is to help women make as much money as they want to make.” (05:26)
  • “When you make a lot of money, it’s a lot easier to manage it... a lot of worries around money go away when you’re making good money.” (03:36)
  • “We need to start looking at that place where we want to take over versus that little crumb that we think that’s all we get.” (50:49)

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Timestamps for Key Segments

| Timestamp | Segment/Topic | |-----------|----------------| | 03:36 | Amy’s view on financial worries and making more money | | 09:06–12:56 | Vivian’s career shift from Wall Street to creator CEO | | 16:14 | On thriving, not just surviving, as a first-gen child of immigrants | | 22:48–25:43 | Scaling your business: hiring out of necessity and timing | | 26:25 | The new “course” for women in wealth-building | | 28:08–30:25 | Innovating marketing tactics (email, text, automation) | | 31:09–32:33 | Segregating business and personal finances | | 36:06–40:15 | Financial advisors vs. financial planners | | 41:01–43:27 | Strategic spending: “Is It Worth It?” equation | | 47:50, 50:49 | “The crumb vs. the pie” and why women hesitate to talk about money | | 53:43 | The 80/20 rule for focusing your business | | 56:48–57:28 | How to pay yourself as an entrepreneur | | 59:57–61:48 | Building scalable, sustainable wealth—escaping constant hustle |

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Memorable Moments

• Vivian’s viral video origin story (“was just for my seven friends”) and candid retelling of workplace discrimination.
• The “Is It Worth It?” equation—putting price tags in terms of hours worked.
• The “More men named John than women” in Fortune 500 CEOs stat—illuminating the scarcity vs. abundance mindset for women in business.
• Vivian’s openness about being “tired” from sprinting, acknowledging that even high-achieving women struggle with balance.

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Final Thoughts & Call to Action

• Focus less on playing by outdated rules—innovate and own your journey.
• Wealth isn’t just a Lamborghini or a title—it’s freedom, security, and the ability to design your life.
• Start talking about money, especially as women, to undo old narratives and tap the abundance waiting for us.
• For practical resources: check out Vivian’s Well Endowed wherever books are sold, and her tech startup “Ask Dolly” for on-demand financial guidance.

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Additional Resources

• Book: Well Endowed by Vivian Tu
• Ask Dolly: askdolly.com
• Vivian Tu (“Your Rich BFF”) on Instagram: @yourrichbff
• Amy’s Free Training: amyporterfield.com/training

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This summary captures the spirit and substance of a powerful, real-world conversation between two financial freedom trailblazers. Both emphasize: it’s about having the courage to want more, building smart, and doing money your way—without losing your life to the grind.

Transcript

[A]

Before we get started, did you know that there are only three marketing systems that drive predictable revenue in your business? And here's the thing. You're already doing them, but you're likely running them separately when they should be working together. And when they do, your revenue grows without you having to actively manage every piece. Meaning your business actually becomes primed for growth rather than dependent on your smarts, your efforts, your decision making. Essentially, you. I'll teach you the three integrated systems that built my business so you can experience the same compounding results in yours, not by adding more, but by aligning what you've already built. I'd love to see you there. So head to amyporterfield.com training to save your seat for free. Amyporterfield.com training all right, let's jump into today's episode.

[B]

I was just so hurt because I had felt like I had earned my seat. Here. I don't have to just survive. I get to thrive. There is no such thing as a get rich quick scheme. But my last year at Buzzfeed, I made $625,000. How if you're unwilling to spend money, there will be a point where you can't scale any further. You cannot play by the same rule book anymore.

[A]

We need to start looking at that place where we want to take over versus that little crown that we think that's all we get.

[B]

We're literally fighting over a crumb when there's a whole pie on the table.

[A]

My guest today is a dear friend of mine.

[B]

One of them goes, that one over there. She's big money. And it was my guest today.

[A]

Her name is Amy Porterfield.

[B]

Amy Porterfield, the ever amazing, bestselling author.

[A]

Of two weeks notice, Ms. Amy Porterfield. Today we're talking about money and something I probably have never said on this podcast because it kind of sounds a little cringy, but I think it needs to be said. When you make a lot of money, it's a lot easier to manage it and to manage your spending and to invest it and all of that stuff. Like, a lot of worries around money go away when you're making good money now, you probably are like, duh, Amy. Like, don't turn me off. Stay here. But I think it just needs to be said because every financial worry I've had, every, every time I have been in debt in my early years of business and wanting to buy something but can't afford it or putting it on my credit card, even for my business, and I got $40,000 in debt in my first two years of business. It wasn't all about business. Hobie was shifting his career as well, but it doesn't matter. We were $40,000 in debt. So when I look back at all of that, part of me is like, did that all go away when I started making a lot of money and my business was a multimillion dollar business? Well, the truth is, a lot of the worry has gone away. Absolutely. I've still had some things that kind of like, ooh, that I'm going to take a hit for that, or I didn't think of that, but it's very rare. So why am I telling you this? Because this kind of sounds like duh. And good for you, Amy. You're making a lot of money, so you don't have as many financial worries. Like, that's not what I'm saying. All this for. The reason I'm bringing this up is to say my goal is to help you make more money. Like, hands down, that is it. Yes, I teach online marketing. Yes, I teach business building. But at the end of the day, I want you to make as much money as you want to make. I was going to say as much money as possible. No, that's not it. As much money as you want to make. And I've been talking a lot on the podcast about what is your enough. Actually, knowing what that number is is very important so you don't keep pushing beyond it. Pushing beyond it and feeling like you are never there. So that's a conversation for a whole other day. But what I want to say here right now is my goal is to help you build your business market smarter so that you can make as much money as you want. Now, until you get there, though, I think talking about your money mindset and how you're navigating the money that you do have and the money you are bringing in and the money that you are spending is so incredibly important. Because here is one thing that I did do on my way to making millions, and that was I healed many limiting beliefs about money. I was raised in a family, very blue collar. My dad saved, saved, saved. He never talked to us about investing. He. He never really talked to us about anything but put all your money in the bank. He just wanted his girls to be responsible. Back in the day, that was responsible. And so I wasn't raised with any kind of intelligence around money. Definitely. We never talked about entrepreneurship or making money on your own. And I didn't have a lot of education in it. And then I had a lot of scarcity. Around it. So over the years as I've started to make more money, I, I started to heal all of that and work on all of that. So that when I started to make some great money, I had done a lot of work. So I made sure that I invested the money wisely and I held onto the money that I wanted to keep and I spent it in a way that made me feel accomplished and confident and like it was worth it. Because I remember when I wasn't making a lot of money, but I had started my own business, I would walk into people's houses. This is so like it could be yesterday. My son Cade was in football and let's say he was around like 7 or 8 years old. And we would go to people's houses for pizza night after football games and I would go with Hobie and Kate and we'd walk into the house and the house was just beautiful. I don't even think it was anything super fancy. But I was living in a condo, a three bedroom condo with Kade and Hobie in Carlsbad, California. And I was a few years into my business. It wasn't like it was my first or second year. As few years in I was making some money, but I didn't have much to show for it yet. And so because it was still like, is this money going to keep coming in and am I spending it wisely? And I didn't have a lot of it yet. I just knew how to make money by then. So I'd walk into these houses and they were just beautiful. I had no idea how much they spent for it, if they were deeply in, in debt or if they'd pay cash. I didn't even think of that. I just thought, why am I working so hard and I don't have anything like this and they have this big beautiful home. What am I doing wrong? I am working my butt off and I don't have any of this. And so just that instant lack of abundance. Instead of being inspired by what someone had, I felt like I was doing something wrong because I didn't have it like that right there. I had to heal that and, and I healed it on my way to making more money. So my whole point here, I think I'm being way too long winded, is let's start focusing on wealth. No matter where you are right now, you're not making any money. You're starting to make some good money. You're making lots of money wherever you are. If you feel, and I think we all can relate to this, that There are some things you kind of need to clean up around either your spending or your investing or. Or your mindset around money. Do it now, because when. And I did use the word when you start making a lot of money, you'll be ready to steward that money well. And my goal is to help women make as much money as they want to make. So today, we are talking about money in a way that feels doable. Not finance bro advice, Nothing around shame. And definitely we're not getting into a bunch of spreadsheets and having to crunch a bunch of numbers today. We're not doing that. I have a really special guest. I'm a huge fan of this woman. Her name is Vivian Tew. She is also known as Urich bff. Now, Vivian is someone who just breaks down money in such a doable way, but still strategic. What I love is she is an entrepreneur. She is a businesswoman. She's making things work. She deals with a lot of stuff that you and I deal with, building our businesses. And at the same time, she gives you practical advice that you can absolutely apply right away. She has a new book called well Endowed. Don't even get me started on how good that name is. Well Endowed. And it's all about building wealth while still enjoying your life. And listen, if you've ever thought I'm. I'm making money, but I still feel so behind. Or something's just off here. Well, this episode is for you. So let's welcome Vivian to the show. Vivian, thanks so much for coming on the show. It's great to see you.

[B]

Of course. Thank you so much for having me.

[A]

Well, I have so much to get into with you, but I want to start at the beginning, because you went from Wall street to being a creator and CEO, and my audience is full of creators that have left nine to fives. And so one that had to have felt like a massive shift. But I'm curious, why did you make such a change in your career?

[B]

Yeah, if I'm honest, it wasn't intentional at all. I was really thinking that I was going to climb the corporate ladder. I was going to work on Wall Street. Like, my ultimate goal was to become the head of the desk. But I. You know, life throws you curveballs. I was really lucky. When I started my career on Wall Street, I had a woman mentor manager. She is still one of my mentors to this day. She was at my wedding. We're still really close. Um, and I felt like for the first year and a half, I was cutting my teeth. I was Working hard. Everything was tough, but it was fair. And I felt like I was learning a lot. So I was happy. About a year and a half in the head of my desk got let go. As shakeups happen, the new guy who came in ended up firing half of the team. Half of the team ended up leaving. So within a month's time, it looked like a very different desk than the one that I had initially joined. And I was rotated away from my manager into a new, you know, seat to be some new trader's junior.

[A]

Okay?

[B]

And as soon as I got to his. His desk, I was like, wow, I can't do a thing right. He didn't like little things about me, how, you know, I wore my makeup, how my nails click clack on the keyboard. And, you know, he even said things like, you're too girly to work on Wall Street. And one day I came into the office with a cardigan on, and it was a long cardigan from Ann Taylor. And he touched his hands together and bowed at me and said, is that a kimono? And I felt this ball just well up in my throat to the point where I was like, I didn't have anything smart or sassy to say back. I was just so hurt because I had felt like I had earned my seat here. I had worked so hard. I had defied all these odds, right? There's these tiny percentages of students who get recruited, who get to join the desk, who go full time. And now this guy hated me, and for reasons that I couldn't fix. So I scurried over to my mentor's desk, and I was like, I'm quitting today. And she said, she's such a real one. She was like, you don't have another job lined up. Don't you dare do that. And I said, okay, fine. Fair enough. So I sat myself back down. But we ended up talking about it that evening, and I told her what had happened. And she was so supportive. She was like, well, let me try to hook you up with a couple of people I know. I ended up leveraging her network and starting a job in media at buzzfeed.

[A]

Okay.

[B]

And when I got there, all of my new friends were like, okay, well, you came from Wall Street. You're going to rebalance my 401k. You're going to help me with my health insurance. Are company stock options worth anything? Quickly now. And as a joke, I started your rich BFF to help answer their questions. Like, all of this was for them. It was for, like, seven friends. I had at work. This was never meant to be seen by anybody else, but very first video, January 1st of 2021, ended up going viral. 3 million views by the end of the week and I had a hundred thousand followers by Friday. It was crazy.

[A]

That is insane. That just doesn't happen. First video, your first video went viral. What was it about? What was the video about?

[B]

We were mid pandemic and it was just very quickly, like I was like, hey guys, like I'm seeing a lot of bullshit going around on the Internet right now. Do not put all of your money into Tesla calls. Do not YOLO your stimulus check into some meme coin you've never heard of. Don't do that. Like, there is no such thing as a get rich quick scheme. But if you want to learn about financial literacy, I can teach you. It's not that difficult. And that was just my entire value proposition. I told them why they should trust me over some 15 year old in his mom's basement. And people did.

[A]

Okay, a few things here. Number one, you've been real since day one. Would you agree that who you are is just who you are? And I so admire that. So I feel like that's very clear, which I want my audience to hear, which, which is I think why you rose up so quickly. You are a hundred percent you. Would you agree with that?

[B]

Yeah, unfortunately, when people meet me, like in real life, they always say they're like, wow, you're like exactly who you are on camera. Like on our screens, like in person. I'm like, yeah, like, unfortunately, I only have one like, version of me and it's the version I present. And I'm silly and I dress very girly. I don't make any apologies about that. I look the way I look. I like to wear fun earrings. I, you know, I am who I am and I'm proud of it. And I think that I succeeded because of all of those traits, not in spite of them. Because for so long, no one who looked like us was having these conversations. And all of a sudden talking about money was as fun as gossiping about Justin Bieber on a, at a Saturday brunch. Absolutely. People were willing to do that.

[A]

Okay, so 100% agree with you. The other thing is, this is cliche, but it's so true. You had something really bad happen to you that was really terrible what he said and just how he acted in general. And you literally turned it into what you have today. And I want my listeners to hear that because these failures, failures and the things that they think are so terrible or they're afraid to get started because what if it doesn't work? Look what happened to you from a really shitty situation that you parlayed into this.

[B]

And, Amy, can I tell you, there were even factors that, like, you can't see on the surface because of who I am. I am the only daughter, only child to two Chinese immigrant parents who came to this country with the American dream. They, I feel like throughout their entire lives, frankly, have been talked down to, taken advantage of. They very much had a survival mindset. And this idea of being able to send their daughter to the University of Chicago, like, this fancy school for her to then get a job at J.P. morgan, a fancy company, to have a prestigious career was honestly, you couldn't tell my mom anything. She was so proud. And when I left Wall street, when I had this terrible thing happen to me, my mom and my dad, if I'm honest, they had little sympathy. They said, okay, and suck it up, buttercup. Like, stick it out. This is what you went to college for. Like, this is what you're supposed to be doing. This is how you, like, you know, make it in America. And I said, mom, I really am so unhappy. And she was like, okay, like, don't worry about that. You got a job to do. And, you know, me being a Chinese American, I was born here. I have a sense of entitlement. Not in the bad way where I'm, like, mean to waiters, but a sense of entitlement that, like, I don't have to just survive. I get to thrive. I get to do whatever the fuck I want to do. Am I allowed to curse?

[A]

Go for it.

[B]

Yeah, I'm allowed to do whatever I want to do. And my life can look exactly what I want it to look like. And I shouldn't have to tolerate being disrespected. And my parents didn't get it at the time. We ended up having, like a two to three month fight where we, like, didn't talk. But it ultimately ended up being, you know, a really dark moment that turned into the best thing that could have possibly happened for me in my career.

[A]

And now how do they look at you and your career?

[B]

If I'm honest, I still don't think they fully understand what I do for a living.

[A]

If you ask my dad or mom, the things that come out of their mouth are wild. So, yeah, I get that. But they. They've got to see how much you succeeded. And they're proud. I have no doubt.

[B]

Yeah.

[A]

Yeah.

[B]

I think my mom's Proudest moment was actually one of my YouTube videos was ripped from YouTube and uploaded to a Chinese social media website. And somebody had basically like stolen my content and was using it to sell, like, learn English courses. Oh, no. But like, when the bootleggers got on my content, my mom was like, oh, you're, you're legit. Oh, she like, bootleggers are picking up your content. And I, you know, it made me laugh.

[A]

That is so funny. What am I gonna do? Yeah, she's paying attention. She's like, okay, now you've made it.

[B]

You've made it. Okay.

[A]

Love that so much. So take me back to when you left your Wall street job and, and went into what you're doing now. Like when you. Because then after Buzzfeed, you went on your own.

[B]

Yeah, after I worked at Buzzfeed for almost four years and it was like three and nine months, I would say I ended up leaving to take your HBFF full time. And it was so bittersweet because. Amy, can I tell you, my last year at Buzzfeed, I made $625,000. How.

[A]

Wait, that is insane. How. That wasn't your salary.

[B]

I know. I worked in digital media, strategy, sales. And it's so funny. I showed up like, you know, bright eyed, bushy tailed, had never worked in media, didn't know a thing, didn't even know what a CPM was, didn't know anything about media. But within that three years time, I became the number one seller. And like, I feel very grateful that like buzzfeed saw that I was compensated for my work. I felt really appreciated. I loved my manager, still have a great relationship with him to this day. Like, it was a very different leaving experience.

[A]

Yes. From most.

[B]

When I left Wall Street, I was like, screw you guys on the way out. Yeah. But when I left buzzfeed, I was so torn. Cause I had this cherry seat, great manager, good pay, great benefits. Like, I didn't have any complaints. So I was really scared to leave.

[A]

Absolutely. Especially with making that much money. Most people would have just stayed or, or tried to do both, but would not have left. So that's huge that you did that. And wait, take me back. I have a question I'm, I'm wanting to ask, but I'm putting it on hold because what do you think it is about your personality, your character that you knew nothing about that Buzzfeed position you got and you learned all of it and became the best. Like, what is your way of thinking that got you there?

[B]

So I just feel like I Am not smarter or I think different than other people. Yeah, I do think I'm faster. Faster?

[A]

What do you mean? What do you mean by that?

[B]

Every facet, I'm faster. So in the time that people are like worried about doing something, then they finally analyze all the options and they maybe take a step forward or consider or ask a friend. I've already tried three strategies, realized the first two didn't work and the third is great.

[A]

And yes, I love this. You're just, you're just doing things and you're not afraid if it's, if it doesn't work, you're going to the next thing. Is that how you're thinking?

[B]

Yeah. And I also think that like I had learned how to work really hard and I credit that to my Wall street experience. I was at, in the office, at my desk 5:45 in the morning and I wouldn't leave until probably 6 or 7. And then if I had client events that night, I'd be out entertaining until 9pm So I knew what it was like to work a 14 hour day. And what I realized is that in a sales role, if I moved faster than other people, if I sent more outbound emails, if I responded sooner to inbound emails, I could just get more done than everybody else. So in the, you know, in the amount of hours that people were working, they were getting X amount done. But I was able to get twice as much done because I just moved faster. And then I would be okay tacking on an extra hour or two at night because, you know, I was used to working longer hours and so I just had a higher output. And when you, when you take more shots, you get more baskets.

[A]

Exactly. I just like, I kind of get chills on that one where people are listening and a woman's listening right now that she's like, it's just not working. Why can't I just get to where I want to go? And going faster isn't going to work for everyone. But there are some people listening right now that they're like, wait a second, I can go faster. Especially now with AI, you could really go faster. So I love that you just said I'm not smarter, I'm not more strategic, I'm faster. And that is something. Do you agree that most people, they could figure that one out?

[B]

Yeah, 100%. I think most people can figure it out. And frankly, it's one of the number one traits I look for for now when I'm hiring for my team. Like I love someone and there are certain roles that I hire for that. I'm like, I need you to be slow and steady, analytical, look at all the options. Great. But then there are certain jobs that I'm like, I want you to get 20 smaller tasks done today, and they gotta be ticked off. 1, 2, 3, 4, 5. Like, quick. And I don't want you to overthink it. And I feel like speed is one of those really underrated traits that gets people to where they want to go faster because you get to know faster, you get the failure faster. But if you get the failure faster, you know it's not going to work. And if it doesn't work, then you know what else to try.

[A]

So true. We're going to come back to hiring. I'm so glad you brought that up, because I'm curious about your team and what that looks like. But the question I was going to ask a while ago, but this conversation is too good that I had to dig in a little bit deeper, is when you left buzzfeed and went out on your own, what was the one, like, money belief that you had to completely unlearn or change or adapt to? As a entrepreneur on our own, you.

[B]

Know, I think the biggest money belief was that, like, holding onto money would be the best idea. Turns out my most limited resource now isn't money. It's time. And I think I did a good job. And I'll give you both sides of this, this coin. I know a lot of peers who, as soon as they have their first viral video, they're out there hiring agents and publicists and all this stuff. And you're giving away a portion of your pie in the entertainment space. You give 5% to your lawyer, 10% to your agent, and 10% to your manager. That's a quarter off the top. And I know people who hire for those roles far sooner than they actually have the need for them. Whereas what I did was I was trying to run this car until the wheels fell off. And it wasn't until I was getting contracts that were too hard for me to read that I first hired an attorney. Then when I realized I was getting so many emails into my inbox that, oh, I can't get through all of these all day if I want to still be making content and shooting and ideating and editing, then I hired the manager. Then when I realized, oh, the opportunities coming into the inbox aren't just traditional creator stuff. It's podcasts, it's books, it's tv, then we hired the agents, then I got enough news coming in, I gotta Hire the pr. Then we got the business manager who handles all the finances. And now I have an incredibly robust team. But all of that costs money. All of it costs money. Yep. Like everybody takes a cut. Everybody, you know, needs to get paid. And I think that if you are hiring too early, you are going to cut yourself off at the knees. But if you're unwilling to spend money, there will be a point where you can't scale any further. And so I think it's a very, very thin line to walk. But if you can get it right, it's. It's the unlock code. Okay.

[A]

I love this because I work with women that are making, let's say, anywhere from about 150k to 200k a year in their online business or all the way up to multi millions. And something you just said was so valuable because a woman listening right now, let's say she's making 1,5200k annually. What you just said, I feel as though that's what she should do. Until you are. Can't do it anymore and you see the opportunity of what you can do, you figure it out. You write your own copy, you answer all your own emails. You're your salesperson. Like, we do it all right? And because you, and also you don't have the money to hire a bunch of people anyway. And so you don't hire until you absolutely see the need or I think when you're making multimillion. Some of the hires we make, we're like, okay, in a year from now, we're trying to get here, let's hire someone now that could help us get there. But that's when you have a whole lot more money. So I love that you're like, you feel that pain and then you hire in those early years.

[B]

Yeah, exactly.

[A]

I think it's really smart. Okay, so speaking of women, my primary audience is women. And one of the things I've noticed that many of them are experiencing as they're building their business is, is that they feel like financially they're doing a lot of things right, but for some reason it's just not working for them. Like they're, they're looking at their bank account and they're like, this isn't what I thought it was going to be or shouldn't be. And I'm just curious, what do you think are some of the reasons why women feel financially behind even when they think they're doing all the things right?

[B]

I think it's two things. One, it's scarcity mindset. I Grew up? Yes.

[A]

Ever.

[B]

Forever. Like to the point where like, I still sometimes feel like I don't have the money to like buy a nice pair of XYZ and my husband has to be like, you're joking, right? Like, you have to, you have to get this whatever it is. So one, I think it's a mindset thing. But two, I also think that I want to be honest here. It's harder now than it was before. It is much harder. It feels like many women today are playing by the blueprint that was written by the generation before and they're thinking, oh, I did everything that they did. How come I don't have the same outcome? I am so sorry to tell you, you cannot play by the same rule book anymore. Like the rubric has changed, the course has changed. It's not 101, it's 301. You have to make sure that you are actually doing more because if you do the same thing that you've always done, you're going to get the same outcome. And frankly these days you're getting a worse outcome. So I think it has to do with innovating. Like just because something worked for someone a decade ago does not mean it'll necessarily work for you. Yes. Should you do all of those things and test them out? Sure. But you have to actually come up with your own secret sauce. You can't follow someone else's playbook when.

[A]

You'Re thinking about playbooks, especially in business. What's like something that you think it's, it's antiquated. We still keep trying to do this, but it's not working. And instead we need to X, Y, Z, like, because you're in business like me. What are you seeing? Because this is a big conversation with my audience, the online landscape marketing, because that's my specialty, has changed dramatically. So give me an example of what you might see.

[B]

Ooh, here's a good one. Okay, so I feel like there are so many people who are like email marketing. Email marketing? Yes. Let's not pretend like email marketing is not important. But these days there are so many new fangled tools that have literally only been developed in the past couple years that could help make that more powerful. Did you know that most people are not reading your emails on their laptop anymore? It's actually 8020 mobile desktop. So when you embed a link, you better have that be a deep link so it opens up the app that you're trying to lead them to instead of just some mobile browser URL where They're not logged in. They're not going to do the thing. They're not going to actually, you know, convert. There's 1, 2. Did you know you can just text people now? Instead of giving people your email, give them, like, take their number. You can now text people. That is another option. Let's be honest. People are checking their texts or way more frequently than they're checking their emails. And last but not least, you don't even have to be the one to necessarily send these out anymore. There are so many great resources, whether it be like, a manychat or even the embedded Instagram response feature. You can now have technology on your side, responding on your behalf, being there where you can't be. And I just think that, like, people get so stuck in, well, I have to do this because someone else did it. It worked for someone else. So I have to know. You don't. If you choose not to do that, great. But you got to find something else to fill that gap. I actually learned this kind of not the hard way, but for my first book launch, I went and spoke with a bunch of other authors, and I was like, what worked to help get your book on the New York Times bestseller list? How do I sell more copies? And I took all of these different ideas, and one of them was to create a smaller, like, team of super, like, like, locked in, dedicated super fans that would help you promote your book. And if I'm honest, I felt like that didn't really move the needle for me in the way that it should have. But what did move the needle was going live and providing freebies and hosting other seminars. And so it just felt like what works for someone doesn't necessarily work for you. You have to be willing to innovate.

[A]

Yes. And just really be bold enough to say, I'm going in this direction and I'm going to figure it out till I'm going to do all the things until I figure it out. So I think we're living in a time that there's so many opportunities to test that. I love that you're, like, have the courage to. To do what you think is going to be best for your business. Totally. Great advice. So when you think about a woman that starts to make some real money and. And my whole platform is helping women make a bunch of money through their marketing. And so let's say she's starting to make some good money, what do you think is, like, a big mistake a lot of smart women make once they start earning some real money?

[B]

What do you See, well, they. First off, they don't actually segregate their business finances and their personal finances.

[A]

Okay. This is a big one.

[B]

This is a huge one. You're going to get yourself in trouble. Yeah, like, I am so real about this. Sure, you can have a, you know, sole proprietorship, but as soon as you start to make some real money, I really encourage people to set up a business entity that is fully separate from yourself. Make sure that you have it fully classified the way you want it. I actually started your rich BFF as an llc. Then I ended up dissolving it. Now it's an S corp. It's registered differently. You know, everything changes depending on where your business is at. So I would say, one, segregate your finances. Make sure they are fully separate. Like, your dry cleaning bill should not be on your business credit card. It doesn't make sense to do that. Got it. But two, I would say when they start taking money out of the business and paying themselves, a big thing that women specifically do is, is they want to see that money. They want to see it, they want to be able to touch it. And so they put it into a savings account, and then it just sits. And the average savings account right now, like a brick and mortar, you're earning annual interest like 0.39%.

[A]

Whoa.

[B]

So, Amy, that's. If you give me $100 by the end of the year, you have a hundred dollars 39 cents.

[A]

That's terrible.

[B]

Terrible.

[A]

Yeah.

[B]

So there's an improvement to this, which is the high yield savings account. You can certainly put it in, and that's earning people closer to three and a half, 4%. So you give me a hundred dollars, by the end of the year, you'll have $103 and 50 cents. That's decent. But once you have your personal emergency fund set, what you really should be doing is investing that money. You see this happen with creators who make it big, celebrities who make it big. They make money through labor. Whether that's acting, whether that's music, whether that's their online presence, their likeness, their whatever. They make money through work. Then they take that money that they have now made, use it as capital to make investments for regular people. This could easily be investing in the stock market, investing in bonds. If you're closer to retirement, whatever for. You're seeing it in celebrities is what they're doing is they're investing in, like, startups. They're investing in companies that want to put their, you know, name on stuff. Ryan Reynolds, Mint Mobile. We're talking Back in the day, you know, we had the George Clooney Casamigos brand. We're talking so many celebrities, right? Like are doing these things that are road beauty. I'm just thinking through like the top of my head. But. But they're making these strategic investments and what that allows for them to do is something that you teach. I think so beautifully is scale.

[A]

Yes.

[B]

Your body and your mind is actually really bad at making money because as a human being and not a robot, you can only work so many hours a day. And some of y' all are gonna be able to get your hourly rate up to astronomical numbers. Congratulations. Good for you. But unless you plan on working around the clock for the rest of your life, that money won't keep coming in. When you actually go and take that money and make investments, your money works hard to make you more money. And I think that is a huge thing for business women that. Yes, you should.

[A]

Hey, before we continue, I've got a question for you. Your online business is working, so why isn't your revenue growing with it? I really want to talk about it. So what I'm going to do is host a free training this Tuesday called the Revenue consistency formula. It's exclusively for six figure female founders who are tired of working harder for the same inconsistent results. I'll walk you through why your revenue stays inconsistent no matter how many launches you DO and the three marketing systems that drive 90% of your growth. And why piling on more disconnected tactics with will never get you there. Here's the truth. An intentional marketing model beats scattered tactics every time. The Revenue Consistency formula is not about starting over or adding more. It's about aligning your messaging offers and lead generation so they're finally working together to generate predictable revenue. Save your spot this Tuesday. Go to amyporterfield.com training this training is live and I hope to see you there. Amyporterfield.com forward/training so investing. If someone's listening right now and they're like, you know what? I just, I've dabbled a little bit, but I haven't really done it fully yet. Where would they even start with something like that? Do they need to hire a financial advisor? What do they need to do?

[B]

Listen, I think most people actually don't need a financial advisor because financial advisors really make sense when you have a complex financial situation. So the best example I always give is Drake. This man makes money 8,000 different ways. He tours, he actually has streaming sales. He sells merch. He, you know, has his own clothing line, ovo he has child support payments for Adonis. Probably pays some sort of. She's not his spouse, but some sort of support for his baby mama.

[A]

I love that you know all this about Drake.

[B]

Yeah, way too much about Drake. Um, he tours in multiple different cities. He works in multiple different countries. His financial situation is very complex. He probably needs a financial advisor. Yeah. Now imagine you are a high powered New York City attorney. You make $600,000 a year. Your financial situation is actually really, really simple. You just make a lot of money.

[A]

Yeah.

[B]

You have one W2 job. You're not side hustling because you certainly don't have time. You get paid from one entity and it's one piece of tax paper at the end of the year. Those people, I think would be better off utilizing either a robo advisor that can help them invest based on what their needs are, or frankly, just doing it themselves. And I'm so passionate about helping people figure out their finances. I want to do a little quick plug for a business that I'm actually currently rolling out. It's called Ask dolly. Okay. Ask dolly.com. dolly is short for a dollar, but it's essentially a financial companion in your pocket. Any question that you can have, you can ask Dolly. Exactly. And you'll get almost an immediate answer. And then if there's something a little bit more complex, we connect you with a live human CFP that can help you as well. Okay. You break down headlines, you get a wellness report on your money. It's essentially going for your annual physical and then constantly being able to text your doctor in your pocket. Except now it's for your money instead of your body.

[A]

Okay. Any woman owned business that helps you make and keep your money. Heck yeah. So ask dolly.com. we'll make sure to put that in the show notes as well. I love this. So, yes, if you. And yes. And so you know how you use the example of the high powered attorney. Well, if. Would you say the same thing if someone's making 600k but they're their own boss and they have their own online business? Same thing.

[B]

I would say that it depends. Okay, so if you have your own online business and your source of revenue is largely all sales.

[A]

Yep.

[B]

That feels like a little bit more of a simpler situation then. Hey, I have an online business and I speak. I get brand revenue from advertising. I do sell a product myself. I also have written a book. I also have a podcast. I'm looking at you, Amy. But like, I think it depends just the number of income streams you have got it. That is really going to be the differentiator between whether or not I think an advisor is worth it. You can always have those first conversations with an advisor free of cost, and see if it's something that you actually need.

[A]

Ooh, that's good.

[B]

Yeah. And I think that's probably helpful. What I actually recommend most people utilize instead of a financial advisor is sitting down with a certified financial planner. Planner and advisor are different.

[A]

How so?

[B]

An advisor actually will manage your money and essentially select investments on your behalf, clear them with you, and then they'll make them. A certified financial planner is one licensed by the CFP board. They're fiduciaries, but they guide you on your financial journey. They're more often going to charge a flat rate, so you're not giving up a percentage of your earnings forever. And on top of that, they can help you say, hey, if you're trying to buy a house in three years, you want to get married in the next nine months. You are doing all this, but you want to retire by this age, and this is how much you make. Let's build a roadmap to actually help you get there.

[A]

Okay. I love that. I think that would be a great way to spend your time and increase your knowledge around this topic.

[B]

Yeah. Okay.

[A]

A planner versus advisor. Okay, that's really helpful. Okay, let's switch gears a bit, because I've heard you talk about strategic spending, and I like to spend money, and I. And so I thought, well, we got to talk about this. So first, I want you to kind of share a little bit about this strategic spending. And. And it sounds so good in theory, but I think my audience might say, like, what's the actual test you use to decide if something is worth buying? So take us on that journey.

[B]

So let me give you the background. The reason why I think strategic spending is so important is because we have absolutely been brainwashed by consumerism.

[A]

Oh, amen.

[B]

And I am. I apologize. I'm so sorry. I was part of that. When I worked at buzzfeed, I learned all the tricks of the trade because I. We were putting ads on the Internet, and I now know how pixels work. I understand how tracking works. That is why those boots have followed you around for three months. It's not because it is some sort of cosmic, you know, sign that you should get them. It's because somebody put a tracking pixel on you, and then they followed you to every single website you've been on since. That's why we need to have this conversation around strategic spending. One of my favorite things to do as I'm spending money is I call it the your rich BFF is it worth it equation. Okay? And imagine this. You go into a store and you see something that you want. Maybe it's a $100 pair of yoga pants. What I like to do is actually value those yoga pants in my time instead of money. Because I feel like we as humans have a really hard time conceptualizing money. Not that we don't know the value of a dollar. I don't want to sound like your dad, but it's more so because we can't equate it to anything. But you know exactly what an hour of your time feels like. So you take your average hourly take home pay. This is post taxes. Okay, so say your hourly take home after taxes is $20.

[A]

Okay?

[B]

The leggings, the yoga pants are $100. You have to work five hours to afford those yoga pants. Is that worth it to you? If you are on a health kick, you love working out, you go to Pilates, you know you'll use them. Maybe it is worth it to you. But if you got a dozen other pairs of black yoga pants in your closet, maybe it's not. Alternatively, when you go on a vacation, you go on a, a long weekend, a trip, and it costs you $2,000. You look at your $2,000 and you divide it by your hourly take home pay, and you're like, how many hours would I have to work at my job to pay for this? What does that look like to you? For me, it's helped. This equation has helped me justify spending on experiences, Going out to eat, going on vacation. I don't feel guilty about that ever. But it also has helped me give pause when I get served a really good ad and I'm like this amazing dress that I have absolutely nowhere to wear to. Maybe I can. Maybe I can just pump the brakes a little bit on this. I don't need it. And it's just a helpful reframing of that mindset.

[A]

Absolutely. Okay. And that's the thing. I just need. I need a little pause in there. So I love this exercise. And in your new book, well Endowed, you talk about, you talk about this because I know you talk about directing cash toward what matters most. So how do people figure out what does matter most to them? Is it through this equation?

[B]

No, not necessarily. That's a very personal conversation. I actually introduced this in the first chapter. I got the book right here.

[A]

There it is.

[B]

Basically, I feel like we have been taught to value the wrong things. We have looked at the lime green Lamborghini and the Birkin bag and seen richness, when in reality, for most of us, richness is security and stability. It's the ability to make your son's T ball game. It's the ability to take care of an ailing parent. It's the ability to help out a sibling who might need it. It's the ability to take that bucket list trip with your partner when you reach a milestone in your relationship. And I think when it comes to actually valuing stuff, that's a deep, deep conversation that you need to have with yourself, but also the people in your life. And one of the main emphasis that I put on in this book is you should be talking to the people in your life about money. Whether it's, hey, you and your boo, she get a prenup. Hey, your kids should actually understand where their summer lawn mowing money is going. Hey, we should set up a family estate plan so that we can leave wealth for generations past ours and you know, be able to take care of people once we are six feet under. I think it's all about understanding what in your life would bring you the greatest joy and what you can live without.

[A]

What in your life would bring you the greatest joy and what you can live without and really spending some time figuring that out because you're right. When you then put that with your equation, it's a whole lot easier to make those decisions. So no, I really love that you just touched on something that I would love to know your stance on this. One of the things I want to encourage my audience to do more, women especially, is to talk about money. And I'm in a lot of masterminds. So I'll say this is how much I made, this is how much I spent on ads. Here's how much I'm taking home, all of that. I want us to just talk about earning money more and how we're using it. But why do you think that I'm, you know, online marketing when I first came on the scene was pretty much all men. So I know how men think in this industry versus women. Why do men talk about money so freely, so openly, not even a care in the world where I've noticed women are definitely more close lipped about talking about the money they earn or the money they want to earn. Why do you think that is? And do you see that?

[B]

Yeah, I think it's two things. One, it's the PR spin one and two, it's how we respond. So the PR spin is this. I feel like whoever men has as their publicist is doing an incredible job. And the women, we need to fire our publicist. Because when men want to be powerful and successful, we call them ambitious. When women want those same things, we call them greedy or power hungry or gold diggers. And that is a crazy PR spin, because it's the exact same thing, right? Yes. And so, one, we've already naturally, you know, shown our young women that it's bad to be those things. Those are negative words. And we've shown our young men it's good. So obviously they're going to gravitate towards them in different ways. As for the response, I feel like, because we have seen historically that there it is harder for a woman to rise to the top. We have created this level of, like, tokenism where all of us women look at each other and think of each other as competition because only one of us can succeed. Only one of us can make the C suite. Only one of us can become CEO. Whereas, you know, who doesn't have this weird, like, thing going on?

[A]

Men.

[B]

No. Men named John. There are more men named John in the Fortune 500 top CEOs than there are women. What, specifically John.

[A]

That is so weird.

[B]

John doesn't have this problem. Michael doesn't have this problem. But women as a subset do. And that is insane, because they don't look at each other and they think, oh, only one John can be CEO. Only one Michael can be CEO. No, they think there's enough room at the top for all of us to succeed. Yes. And the problem becomes when women see each other succeed, unless there's some sort of personal relationship, it feels like a personal slight.

[A]

Ooh, I agree.

[B]

Yes. When you win, it's actually a loss for me. And that is very challenging to overcome. Because when men come out with X, like, like, you know, pieces that are like, oh, I made $10 million in my business last year. All the other men are like, wah, rah, rah. Like, how do I be like you? When women come out with that same exact, you know, profile piece and say, I made $10 million last year, the other women don't think that they can do it too. Instead, they say all of these critical things of like, oh, well, that's because she doesn't have a family to go home to, or because that's because she abuses her co workers and she is seen as a bitch and nobody likes her because they feel like they can't do it themselves. If we gave all women that feeling of agency and power that we instill in our young boys. There wouldn't be this tight lippedness about the money. Because money in our society, it's not just money. It's a marker of success. And that is why we have been told not to talk about it. Because it feels like your success is my loss. That's so.

[A]

It's so sad, but I a hundred percent see it. And you're right. I love that you said, unless they're your really good girlfriend. Yeah. Like, my girlfriend succeeds. I was like, go, girl. That's so exciting. But if it's a stranger, it's interesting you kind of touched on this. This lack of abundance isn't necessarily our fault. I think we've been conditioned with it. Because what you said, well, if she just got to the top, she got on the COVID of Forbes. There's only so many women that will ever get on the COVID of Forbes. I lost my chance, or now it's even harder for me. That's so sad.

[B]

Let's talk about the numbers. Right? Like, these female founders are looking at each other and literally it's like fighting each other tooth and nail because they know for a fact that all women teens get less than 2% of all funding. Geez. Okay, but like, the 98% is really where we should be aiming for. Yes. Not trying to chew each other out for the two. Yes.

[A]

That is so true. We need to start looking at that place where we want to take over versus that little crumb that we think that's all we get.

[B]

We're literally fighting over a crumb when there's a whole pie on the table.

[A]

Whole pie on the table. Yes. I love that shift. That is powerful. That is so powerful. If you start to really adopt that and look at it that way. So for my listeners, the next time you feel that, like that kind of cringy feeling you don't want to admit when a stranger but a female has kind of gotten to the top, I want you to look at beyond her and go for another piece of that. Just like her versus she's already taken up the space. Yeah, that's. That's powerful. I think some people listening might say, like, no way. I always celebrate women. But I think if you dig a little deeper, I mean, I've been around women succeeding for 16 years now. But that little feeling that you mentioned, for sure, I've had it. And it hasn't been 10 years ago. It probably was two months ago. So I think it's in us. We have to just be honest yeah.

[B]

If I'm being honest, I feel like I had a really hard time celebrating other women who weren't my friends. So successes until pretty recently. Because now I'm at a point in my career and my life where I feel like I have succeeded same. I'm over the hump. And because I'm over the hump, when I see other people win, I'm like, yes, come join me.

[A]

Yes.

[B]

Not stay out. There's only four of us allowed in this room.

[A]

Oh, that's big. Yeah.

[B]

And I look back and I feel bad.

[A]

You do.

[B]

For past me because I was just so deeply insecure and I have the self awareness to be able to say that. But I think you. It's really hard to get there until you kind of come into your own. But I hope we can all do that a little faster.

[A]

A little faster. I love that you and I are both like, we wish we got there faster in those listening. You can. I think it makes all of us more powerful as women if we do. But yeah, I see that it took me longer as well. And I'm hoping the women that maybe haven't gotten to where they want to get to yet, but they can see what we're talking about here and not wait till they get there. So. Yeah, I love this conversation for sure. Okay, so let's shift gears just a little bit. I want to go back to the woman who. She's starting to make some money. A lot of women in my audience, they have their own businesses, let's say, I don't know, making from 200k a year to over a million. But they are so stressed and they want to scale their business. So I want to ask this through a money lens. They want to scale their business. They're making money, but they're super stressed. So what are some money moves that kind of give them relief before they go all in to try to scale this business? Because if you're scaling on shaky money ground, it's very hard.

[B]

Yeah. I would say make sure that you are actually putting 80% of your effort into 20% of your book.

[A]

80% of your effort into 20 percent of your book. And what do you mean by the word book?

[B]

So book is like your book of business.

[A]

Gotcha. Okay.

[B]

Yeah. Your book of business. I learned this when I was working at buzzfeed when I was in sales. And my. And this is like kind of a crass phrase and I don't love it, but we'll say it because I think it helps paint the picture. You feed the rich and you starve the poor poor. So basically, I feel like when you are starting your business, you're like, I need to get as many clients as possible. I need to make sure that I am servicing all of them equally. I'm treating them all great. It's not going to happen. You only have so many hours in the day. But realistically, most businesses will find that there will be sources of income that rise to the top. Maybe that is a course you're selling. Maybe that is a brand partner that just continues to renew with you and grows bigger. Maybe it's, you know, you're finding that, hey, my podcast business is a lot more lucrative than my book business. Like, if you are finding that some part of your business is more lucrative than another part, it's not your job to go and take the less lucrative business and try to make it lucrative. It's your job to take the lucrative business and. And make it even more lucrative. Because that's actually a sign. It's literally a green flag saying, hey, you're already doing better. Naturally, your audience is naturally more aligned to this. You should put more effort here. You don't want everything to be even. You don't want everything to be equal. You actually want to put all of your effort and energy into things that you know for a fact are going to pay off. And so I would say doing that actually helps you to build your financial foundation so you can build the rest of your business. And because you will have an anchor, is what I like to call it grounding you financially if you can get the big fish. Yeah. Then you know for a fact that you have days to go hunting for smaller stuff.

[A]

Yes.

[B]

But if you're trying to go hunting every single day of the year and you don't catch those big fish, your business could be in a really tough spot.

[A]

It makes perfect sense. So when we were talking about hiring earlier, I love your whole take on that, but for this one, if you're going all in with that 80%, I think it's easier to hire when you know exactly where you're making your money and what you want to grow.

[B]

Exactly.

[A]

Right. Yeah. So I could see that coming back and really working. Well, in terms of what we talked about earlier, you know, when you were talking, it made me think, how do you pay yourself? So if someone is building their business, and let's say again, they're making 200k a year or more, how do they figure out how to pay themselves? And what does that look like? Because this is a question. I get Asked all the time.

[B]

Yeah. Personally, my strategy is to pay myself the smallest possible salary that allows me to maximize any sort of tax advantage, retirement account benefits that I'm. I have set up. And then if I do need additional money for my personal life, I can take a distribution and avoid self employment taxes because I own the company. Yeah. But more importantly, I think the conversation we're trying to have here is how do you know how much to pay yourself and how much to like, reinvest in the business?

[A]

Yes, that's a better question.

[B]

Yep. And so I would say it is a very fine balance to walk. But you can't water your plants from an empty watering can. If you are not confident your car is going to make it to your office, you are not confident that you are going to be able to make rent. I promise you, you've got more stuff on your mind than just making your business the greatest it can be. I would say pay yourself the largest salary that you can afford without your business taking a hit, but the smallest salary that you can comfortably live on.

[A]

Ooh, that's good. Okay.

[B]

And then any additional dollars, think about where you want to strategically put them. We're talking, we're going back to strategic spending. Yep. When you are actually thinking about deploying those dollars, what is going to actually give you the most value? So I think about this especially as I hire employees. My producer of my podcast can also serve as my assistant. Yep. He can help schedule calls, but that is a cheaper hourly rate than her doing the post production editing work on my podcast.

[A]

Yes.

[B]

And for me, I am going to personally try to limit as much administrative work that she has to do because I'm paying her one way or the other. I'd rather her do the most expensive tasks in the same way that when you're, you know, thinking about how much to pay yourself, think about when you are actually taking money and keeping it in your business. What are the most expensive tasks you can put towards it? That way the cheaper ones will actually kind of take care of themselves. But also you can hire cheaper resources to take care of those cheaper tasks.

[A]

Absolutely. Okay, that is good. I, I'm so glad I asked that question because it comes up again and again and I think my listeners get a little bit stuck there in terms of how to pay yourself, what to pay yourself, what should that look like? So I think that was a really great framework and I love asking you these questions because you do have a business. It's not like your, your business is dramatically different than a lot of the listeners. You deal with the same kind of things. So, so valuable. Okay, I've got one final question for you, and that is you said the goal is to get rich and stay rich, right? Did I get that right?

[B]

Yes. Okay.

[A]

So what's your, like, anti hustle take on building wealth without sacrificing your life? Because you and I are the same in the sense of when I work for Tony Robbins, I was the first one there. I stayed as long as I needed to. I volunteered for everything I got in there. I learned what I needed to learn and made a lot of money. So I have that hustle just in me, naturally. But it can also burn you out so quickly. So what does it look like to get rich and stay rich when. Without burning yourself out?

[B]

Listen, I, I, I want to be honest. I feel. Good question, but I'm kind of a hypocrite. Okay. Because I feel like I have been running a marathon at a sprint's pace for a couple years now.

[A]

I get it.

[B]

I'm tired, girl. I'm tired. I don't want to lie to you, but I do think that I am thinking of strategic ways to actually make my business run more effectively with or without me. And I think that's really, really key. I mentioned this earlier. Your, your labor earns you capital, your capital helps you make investments, and your investments make you rich enough so that you can relax. And in this case, I would say at the beginning of my creator career, I was largely laboring, so that included doing brand partnerships. I was traveling to speak, I was, you know, doing podcast ads, I'm writing a book that's all labor. And I still do a lot of labor right now. But for me, it feels like the next iteration of your rich BFF is how do I make it so that it's sustainable? Like, how can people get access to me even if I'm not necessarily going to be available around the clock? And I think that's scaling. Right. Like, I want to be able to provide a service to my audience through Ask Dolly. Yeah. And that is how I'm going to actually make sure licensed CFPs are helping my audience. We can get them answers 24 7. They can get all of these things that I am taking care of, that I have taken care of and done for the past almost five years. That's crazy. But now it's available to everybody on demand versus me. Feeling like, oh, if somebody asks me this question in my comment, I have to respond to it personally or I have to make a video about it. I Want to make sure that they can get their question answered and I don't have to be awake at 1am.

[A]

Yes, that's it right there. Scaling without you. Running a mile a minute and every single day. And I again, I think AI is going to help many of us get there. And I love the idea of Ask Dolly. That is so good. And so you have that. That's brand new. We'll put in the show notes just to remind everybody to check it out. But you also have a book coming out called well Endowed. So first of all, the name is so freaky good. When I saw it, I was like, the audacity. I loved it.

[B]

So my mom. My mom is really proud of me. Just in case everybody, you know, wants to know. She has no idea what this actually means.

[A]

I'm dead. I'm dead. But I love it so much. So who. Who is this book for? Why'd you write it?

[B]

Yeah. So let's address the elephant in the room, which is the fact that I titled my book a dick joke.

[A]

Yes.

[B]

Yes. The reason why is because if you actually think about the phrase well endowed, it's not necessarily about the family jewels. It comes from the phrase endowment. Like, when you are well endowed, you have a strong endowment. And an endowment essentially is just a pile of money that helps your, whatever, your company, your institution continue its mission on for years and years and years. And it promises a brighter future. This is why colleges have endowments. This is why charities have endowments. I want every single person who reads this book to be able to have an endowment for their future. So in this book, I focus on the biggest purchases of your life, whether that be a car, a house, insurance, how to use those to maximize your wealth, not just buy a thing. I talk to you about how to manage money in your family, in your relationships and your friendships, how to set your kids up for financial success, whether they are regular human kids or fluffy furry ones. And the really, really big key here is the trusts, the wills, setting a power of attorney, all that estate planning to make sure that you get the life that you want and the one that you deserve, the one that you've worked for. So this book is for literally everybody. And I truly think that reading it will make you feel more confident, more capable, and just more ready to take on your financial journey.

[A]

Yes. Amen to that. Do they go anywhere where books are sold or do you want them to go to one specific place? You tell me.

[B]

Anywhere books are sold, you can grab a copy. Just search well endowed. Vivian 2. And it should come up on Google if that's easiest for you. But, you know, if, if possible, support your local indie bookstore. And if you need something simple, even Amazon, Barnes and Nobles, Target, Walmart, they all have it.

[A]

They all have it. Vivian, I can't wait to get my hands on your book. This is very exciting. And really, I'm such a huge fan, and I love how you break it down in such a simple way, but I love that you're making good money, you're a female entrepreneur, and you're willing to share how you did it. So thank you so much for being here. This is such a treat.

[B]

Of course. Thank you so much for having me.

[A]

Take care.