Podcast Summary: How to Give Back Without Being Rich + Building a Smarter Retirement Plan

The Stacking Benjamins Show — December 17, 2025

Episode Overview

This episode brings together the core Stacking Benjamins team—Joe Saul-Sehy, OG, regular contributor Jesse Kramer, and neighbor Doug—for an engaging conversation that blends personal finance insights with the warm camaraderie and humor for which the show is known. The main focus is twofold:

1. Charitable Giving Without Wealth:
   An in-depth interview with John Studzinski, Vice Chairman at Pimco and founder of the Genesis Foundation, explores how anyone can give back meaningfully, regardless of their financial status. Studzinski challenges traditional notions of philanthropy and redefines the idea of giving to include talents, time, and connections—not just money.

2. Building a Smarter Retirement Plan:
   A practical roundtable discussion dives into new research and thinking around optimal retirement portfolio design, primarily reflecting on recent comments from Vanguard about balancing equity exposure, behavioral tendencies, and income needs as we age.

The episode aims to broaden listener perspectives on generosity and retirement, while maintaining the show’s trademark mix of actionable advice and levity.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. Rethinking Charitable Giving — with John Studzinski

Moving Beyond "Philanthropy"

• Language Matters:
  Studzinski dislikes the word “philanthropy,” as it conjures images of wealth, institutions, and a removed elite. He prefers “giving” as an accessible, universal act.

  “If you’re trying to motivate a young person or a person who's not a philanthropist, they immediately say, that's not me. It's associated with large sums of money, establishment, bricks and mortar. ... I like to look at it as the context of giving.” (John Studzinski, 07:29)

The True Meaning of “Talent” in Giving

• Biblical Reference & Practical Application:
  Drawing on the parable of the talents, Studzinski frames "talent" as a blend of skills, time, and personal qualities—not just monetary means. He encourages everyone to “unearth” and share their unique abilities.

  “We all are given talent by God that we bury. ... Some of the most interesting talent—certainly as it relates to giving—is probably at this point buried.” (John Studzinski, 09:03)

Giving: Transaction vs. Partnership

• Charity vs. Philanthropy:
  • Charity is often transactional—giving as a quick solution or for tax benefits.
  • Philanthropy is a long-term partnership, about walking alongside someone to empower them.

  “Charity is transactional...Philanthropy is a partnership—you're not just giving someone a fish, you're teaching them to fish and walking with them while they learn.” (14:32)

Impact Starts "One Person at a Time"

• Focus and Humility:
  Studzinski recounts Mother Teresa’s guidance that effecting change isn’t about scale; changing one life can be enough.

  “Mother Teresa always said, don't be too ambitious...focus on changing the world one person at a time.” (John Studzinski, 16:17)

Giving Without Money: The “Portfolio of Talents”

• Time, Skills, Convening Power, and Tenacity:
  • Organizing, connecting, volunteering, advocating, and using technology are valuable forms of giving.
  • Money, while important, is not the only—or even most transformative—resource.

  “It's actually wrong. And you're doing yourself a disservice by giving money [only]. It's relatively cold and transactional...if you give your time and volunteer, or your power of convening...you can accomplish a lot.” (John Studzinski, 17:59)

Discovering Your Talents & The Importance of Mentorship

• Mentors Multiply Giving:

  • Powerful, accessible talents often emerge when acting on problems you care about or when others help you recognize your strengths.
  • Mentoring is reciprocal and beneficial to both parties.

  “Every time you mentor someone, you learn a lot about yourself...It helps unpack your own thought processes.” (John Studzinski, 28:28)

• Mentorship Approach:

  • Authentic mentorship relationships often start with mutual recognition or mentors reaching out to those they see as promising.

  “A lot of mentors actually choose their mentees because they're people they see as having promise.” (John Studzinski, 31:14)

Building a Generous Society

• Common Good & Community:
  The philosophy should be “our goals, our Father, our good”—emphasizing collective benefit and interconnected progress.

  “Whether we like it or not, the notion of common good is probably one of the fundamental parts of civilization.” (John Studzinski, 32:50)

2. Smarter Retirement Planning — The Vanguard Perspective

The Problem with “Optimal on Paper” Portfolios

• Behavioral Realities Trump Theory:
  While an all-stock (equities) portfolio might maximize long-term returns, individual risk tolerance and behavioral responses to losses often make this unsustainable.

  “If you can't stomach sharp market swings, the ‘best’ strategy on paper isn't always the right one in practice.” (46:26)

Don’t “Blow Up” Your Plan

• Emotional reactions to volatility cause people to sell low or chase returns, undermining success.
• Set expectations realistically: If you expect a -10% drop but see -20%, you're likely to make poor decisions.

Solving for Your Goals First

• Assess what rate of return gets you to your personal goals. If you can succeed with moderate exposure (e.g., a 50/50 portfolio), don’t take unnecessary risks.

  “A lot of times we're surprised by the fact that we don't actually have to be as aggressive as we think to reach the goals we want.” (Jesse Kramer, 46:26)

• But consider: Higher returns can open up more opportunities for legacy, charity, or spending.

  “Why wouldn't you want to…open up other opportunities down the line, like giving or spending more?” (OG, 50:09)

Human Capital Theory & Risk Tolerance

• The older you get, the less “human capital” (future earnings potential) you have, and the more important it becomes to protect what you’ve built.
• As you approach retirement, dollar losses feel more real and threaten short-term goals.

  “The older you are, the more likely you are to mess up your portfolio.” (OG, 50:09)

The Role of Annuities for Risk-Averse Retirees

• Even conservative, low-cost annuitized annuities can help simulate the "steady paycheck" feeling, easing anxiety and allowing higher equity allocations with greater confidence.

  “For very conservative people…a low-cost immediate annuity could work because it creates a pension stream that…brings up that paycheck feeling.” (OG, 57:01)

Practice “Portfolio Fire Drills”

• Regularly walk through scenarios: What if your portfolio drops by $20,000? $200,000? What concrete decisions would you make?

  “Put yourself in that position at a time...Do the fire drill ahead of time.” (OG, 60:27)

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• On the False Divide Between Giving and Receiving:

  "Is there such a thing as pure altruism? If you think you’re going to do good, does that mean you get nothing in return? ... You might still get something in return in terms of a sense of goodwill."
  (John Studzinski, 14:32)

• On Asking for Mentorship:

  “You have to know someone pretty well to ask them to be your mentor. And you have to know yourself pretty well to know what you actually need and what you’re looking for.”
  (John Studzinski, 31:14)

• On Giving Starting with Ourselves:

  "People have to understand, we all have lots of talent. ... These are what I call life talents: the ability to lead, to manage, to smile, to use humor, to listen.”
  (John Studzinski, 23:20)

• On the Impact of Focusing on One Person:

  "If you can have an impact on one person's life, that might be your goal. … Human beings are not necessarily subject to metrics.”
  (John Studzinski, 16:17)

• Funny Moment:
  The hosts riff on whether they’d get in a ring with Mike Tyson for $100 million, drawing parallels to making financial sacrifices for charity.

  “For $100 million, would you get in a ring with Mike Tyson? … No, because you would have a TBI in about 30 seconds.” (Doug, 41:01)

Timestamps for Key Segments

| Segment | Timestamp | |--------------------------------------------------|-------------------| | John Studzinski redefines “philanthropy” | 07:29–08:25 | | Parable of the Talents and “unearthed” ability | 09:03–10:49 | | Charity (transactional) vs philanthropy (partner)| 14:32–16:11 | | Impact “one person at a time” (Mother Teresa) | 16:11–17:06 | | Giving is more than money—portfolio of talents | 17:58–21:30 | | Finding/using your talents & mentorship | 23:20–29:11 | | Building a generous society, common good | 32:50–34:09 | | Vanguard and portfolio glide-path discussion | 42:32–51:43 | | Emotional vs logical investment choices | 51:43–53:13 | | Role of annuities for retirement confidence | 57:01–59:09 | | Fire drills and real-world risk assessment | 60:27–61:44 |

Tone & Takeaways

The episode captures Stacking Benjamins’ signature warmth, humor, and approachability—even as it dives into the deeper, more philosophical side of personal finance. John Studzinski’s thoughtful approach to giving energizes the discussion, reminding listeners that generosity is as much about our time and talents as it is about money.

In the retirement segment, the hosts emphasize practical wisdom over theoretical “perfection," encouraging self-awareness and planning tailored to personal risk tolerance and life stage.

Actionable Wisdom for Listeners:

• Don’t wait to be rich to give back; cultivate and share your “life talents” now.
• Grow your generosity muscle—mentorship and focused, one-at-a-time change are powerful.
• When investing for retirement, prioritize your own behavioral comfort zone, and practice mental “fire drills” for market swings.
• Consider structures like annuities if a steady paycheck feeling will help you stay the course.

Closing Note:
Find John Studzinski’s book A Talent for Giving: Creating a More Generous Society That Benefits Everyone for more on these themes. And remember: whether it’s money, time, or a smile, “we all have something to give.”