Rewriting Your Money Story: How Beliefs Shape Your Wealth

Summary

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Podcast Summary: "Rewriting Your Money Story: How Beliefs Shape Your Wealth"

Top Advisor Podcast | Host: Bill Cates
Date: January 19, 2026

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Episode Overview

In this engaging episode, Bill Cates, acclaimed speaker and author of “The Hidden Heist: Stop Robbing Yourself of Lasting Wealth,” explores how our beliefs and inherited stories about money can quietly undermine our financial success. Drawing from his latest book and decades of experience coaching financial advisors, Bill shares personal anecdotes, practical insights, and actionable strategies to help listeners “rewrite” their money story and move toward lasting wealth—with clarity and confidence.

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Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. The “Hidden Heist” Concept: What’s Stealing Our Wealth?

• Limiting Beliefs & Unhelpful Emotions: Bill introduces the idea that our own subconscious beliefs and emotional baggage around money act as a “hidden heist,” quietly robbing us of future financial well-being.
  • “The hidden heist are limiting beliefs, mistaken assumptions, unhelpful emotions that every human seems to have around money.” (B, 01:41)
• Universal Nature of Money Anxiety: Even high-net-worth individuals experience anxiety and shame about money.
• Often Unconscious Patterns: Many of these limiting beliefs are unexamined and therefore persistently hold people back.

2. Money Stories: How Beliefs Are Formed and Passed Down

• Definition & Examples of Money Stories:
  • The narratives we inherit and develop—e.g., “money doesn’t grow on trees,” “I’ll never have enough,” or “money is the root of all evil.” (02:54–03:10)
  • The most damaging: Tying self-worth to net worth.
    • “The biggest one really is that attaching our self worth to our net worth. And so many people fall prey to that.” (B, 03:20)
• Origins:
  • Family, upbringing, parental attitudes (resentment or admiration for the wealthy, silence about money, risk-aversion).
  • Cultural influences and media further reinforce these stories.
    • “Scientists or social scientists estimate by about age 7 or 8, we’ve formed our beliefs around money.” (B, 05:25)

3. Social Media & Modern Money Messages

• Confusing Signals: Platforms like TikTok and Instagram are filled with both helpful and misleading financial advice, targeting young people and creating further uncertainty.
  • “Unfortunately, a lot of kids are learning money on TikTok right now, unfortunately, and ... with some very interesting advice and not always the right advice.” (A/B, 05:40–05:43)
• Complexity Over Fundamentals: Overexposure to advanced concepts (trusts, offshore accounts) can distract from the basics.

4. Bill’s Personal Money Story

• Inherited Beliefs from Depression-Era Parents:
  • Risk aversion, savings focused but investment-shy.
    • “My mother, super conservative. No risk whatsoever. ... My father was a pretty good saver, but he wasn’t an investor. Treasury bills, bank CDs. So he never accumulated much in the way of wealth.” (B, 06:29)
  • Dad’s term: “Conspicuous consumption” (B, 07:36)
• Breaking the Mold:
  • Entrepreneurial path, exposure to financial acumen via his career.
  • Ongoing awareness of residual money anxiety:
    • “My anxiety around money never really fully goes away. That’s part of my wiring now. I’m aware of it. ... when that song plays on my personal radio, I just reach over, I turn the volume down.” (B, 10:00)

5. Debt, Leverage, and Financial Literacy

• Debunking “Cash-Only” Mindsets:
  • The role of healthy debt and leveraging low interest rates when appropriate.
    • “The whole key here ... is how we become aware of our money story and then how we fix it is through education, through financial literacy.” (B, 09:09)
  • Example: Financing a new car at a low interest rate, keeping money invested.
• Dave Ramsey Debate: Acknowledge different advice works for different personalities.

6. The Power (and Reality) of Compounding

• Einstein’s “Eighth Wonder”: Compounding as a central wealth-building concept.
  • “Those who understand it earn it. Those who don’t understand it, pay it.” (B, 11:13)
  • Practical example: $100 saved at age 18 + $50/month = over $1.2 million by 65. (11:43–12:13)
• Notable Quote:
  • “Anyone can become a millionaire with a little bit of discipline, a little bit of education. That’s the miracle of compounding.” (B, 12:46)

7. Why Use Storytelling & Parables?

• Choice of Story Format for “The Hidden Heist”:
  • Stories are memorable, accessible, and engaging for a broader audience.
  • Parable structure inspired by classics (e.g., “The Go-Giver,” “The Alchemist”).
    • “I wanted something with some twists and turns. ... So I decided a bank robbery. Money. Okay. And so the tension is the bank robbery. The comic relief is the fact that these bank robbers are kind of bumbly.” (B, 14:10)
  • Lessons are reinforced directly in the appendices.
  • Positive reader feedback—great for both adults and kids.

8. Financial Education in Schools—The Missing Lesson

• Broader Social Failure: Most curriculum ignores personal finance, even as an elective. Curriculum designers themselves often lack sound money stories.
  • “We learned the Pythagorean theorem ... but ... a lot of people don’t know much about it. Just think of the people who are designing the curriculum. They’ve got broken money stories.” (B, 15:18–15:53)
• Mission Statement:
  • “There is enough money. ... Everyone could be doing much better financially, which will alleviate a lot of problems.” (B, 15:54)

9. How to Start Rewriting Your Money Story

• Step 1—Awareness: Recognize and challenge limiting beliefs.
  • “Stop believing what you believe.” (B, 16:45)
• Step 2—Education: Learn the fundamentals of how money works.
• Step 3—Take Action: Begin saving, understand the difference between saving/investing, and, if possible, work with a financial professional.
  • “Find the right financial advisor ... that will help you with your own money stories and then help you make the proper decisions moving forward and so you don’t fall prey to your anxiety.” (B, 17:45)

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Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• “Money doesn’t grow on trees. Well, don’t tell that to an apple farmer.” (B, 02:59)
• “You can’t become what you resent.” (B, 04:22)
• “My anxiety around money never really fully goes away. ... when that song plays on my personal radio, I just reach over, I turn the volume down.” (B, 10:00)
• “Anyone can become a millionaire with a little bit of discipline, a little bit of education. That’s the miracle of compounding.” (B, 12:46)
• “Stop believing what you believe. ... It becomes our story. It becomes true, and it doesn’t always serve us.” (B, 16:45)
• "We learned the Pythagorean theorem ... but ... a lot of people don't know much about [money]." (B, 15:18–15:53)

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Key Timestamps

• 01:41 – The “hidden heist” explained
• 02:54 – Examples of common “broken” money stories
• 04:22–05:25 – How family and early environment shape money beliefs
• 06:26–07:51 – Bill’s personal family influences and breaking free
• 09:09–09:30 – Role of financial literacy in rewriting money stories
• 11:06–12:46 – The power of compounding, myth-busting about Einstein
• 13:28–15:05 – Why Bill chose the parable/story format for his new book
• 15:18–15:54 – Why financial education is missing in schools
• 16:45–17:45 – Steps to begin rewriting your money story
• 18:00 – Final thoughts: Wealth is possible for everyone

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Actionable Takeaways

• Becoming aware of and challenging your unhelpful money beliefs is the gateway to financial progress.
• Education is key—seek out reputable resources, know the power of compounding, and avoid quick-fix financial schemes.
• Storytelling can be a powerful tool for learning and unlearning financial habits.
• Consider working with a financial professional who respects your values and can help you rewrite your money story.

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Further Resources

• Bill’s Book: The Hidden Heist
• Guide: The Ordinary Millionaire
• Speaking/Keynotes: KeynoteHeist.com

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Transcript

[A]

Today I'm joined by Bill Cates, csp, cpae, a hall of fame speaker, best selling author, entrepreneur and adventurer. Bill has built and sold two publishing companies, trained financial advisors for over 30 years, and authored eight books, including his newest release, the Hidden Heist. Stop Robbing Yourself of Lasting Wealth. He also hosts the Top Advisor podcast, ranked in the top 5% globally. Bill's mission is clear. To help you rewrite your money story with clarity, confidence, and lasting wealth. Bill, welcome to Meet the Experts.

[B]

It's great to be here, Corey. And just real quick, make sure people didn't realize it's not Bill Gates. Right. It's Cates with a C. I missed it by one letter and a couple of bucks.

[A]

A couple of bucks?

[B]

Couple of bucks.

[A]

But it looks like you've brought a few things here. So I want to start, you know, before we even dive in and talk about the new book. What's the deal with this suitcase full of money here and how much are we really talking about?

[B]

Well, we're talking about money today, so I figured I'd bring some money. And this is a million dollars in stacks of 10 grand.

[A]

That's a steal.

[B]

Yeah. And you know, it's. A lot of people don't realize it doesn't really look like that much when it's in a briefcase, but I got guards out the door. We're being real careful about this, and I just thought it was a nice prop to get us started talking about money.

[A]

Absolutely. Well, you certainly gets everybody's attention. They're probably leaning in now.

[B]

I hope so.

[A]

Well, I'm super excited to have you here because you've got the new book, the Hidden He. Stop Robbing Yourself of Lasting Wealth. So I want to dive into that because I think everybody loves a good heist story. So what exactly do you mean by the hidden heist?

[B]

Yeah, the hidden heist are limiting beliefs, mistaken assumptions, unhelpful emotions that every human seems to have around money. Money intersects all aspects of one's life, and we all have that anxiety. I mean, I've met people, wealthy individuals, who have fear and anxiety and even shame around money. And it's so all those. Sometimes we're unconscious of those things. And that's why I call it kind of the hidden heist, because we're not always aware that it's there, but it's robbing ourselves, our future selves and sometimes our current selves.

[A]

Yeah, I think that this is such a huge topic and timely right now because we're also in an era where you can make money so many different ways. And financial literacy not being taught, particularly if you don't have the advantage of a generational pass down of how to do things. Now I know in one of your keynotes you talk about most people's money stories are broken. Can you break that down for us? What is a money story and what's some examples of a broken one?

[B]

Yeah, so the money story is the story we tell ourselves, our thoughts, our beliefs. It could be about anything.

[A]

I deserve to, I deserve to buy this thing even though I know I can't afford it. I've worked hard.

[B]

Yeah, yeah. Money doesn't grow on trees. Well, don't tell that to an apple farmer. So there's a lot, you know, money is a scarce resource.

[A]

Yes.

[B]

I'll never have enough. It's too late.

[A]

Root of all evil.

[B]

Money is root of all evil, which is not what the Bible says. Actually, the Bible says the love of money is root of all evil. And I think what it really means is the attachment to money, thinking that money is going to buy you happiness. I think there's actually nothing wrong with loving money if it's used for the right purposes. The biggest one really is that attaching our self worth to our net worth. And so many people fall prey to that. When we become aware of it, it becomes a little less hidden and now we have something to do it. So when I'm doing my keynote speeches, I get the audience talking with each other, talking with me. I bring somebody up on stage and it's very revealing, it's often very poignant and also a lot of fun.

[A]

I was just thinking legendary Les Brown used to say, you know, people say money won't buy happiness, but everyone wants to find out for themselves.

[B]

I've also heard a similar one. Yeah, money doesn't, it doesn't solve your problems, but you arrive at your problems in style.

[A]

Yeah, that's another good one to look at. So why do you think so many of us grew up with these broken money stories? I mean, is it really just something, you know, we inherit from our families or is there more to it?

[B]

Well, it's. Yeah, so it starts with the family. Usually it starts with parents, guardians, whoever brings the upbringing and the messages we get. And some families don't talk about money at all. Some have resentment towards rich people. Some admire rich people. Some teach children how to deal with money and budget and balance a checking account and all that. Some ignore it. Money is often an unspoken topic in a family. And so I'll give you one example, Michael is a guy interviewed for one of my money stories. And his father resented wealthy people and thought wealthy people were greedy and that. So he grew up with this resentment towards wealthy people. But how is he going to build his own personal wealth if he resents that? You can't become what you resent and cognitive dissonance kicks in. Now, he did some work on himself, and he got past that. And he's an entrepreneur. But we have those scientists or social scientists estimate by about age 7 or 8, we've formed our beliefs around money.

[A]

Wow.

[B]

And then we start to get those things confirmed by other messages, like the media, movies, television, friends. Unfortunately, a lot of kids are learning money on TikTok right now, unfortunately, and.

[A]

Instagram with some very interesting advice and.

[B]

Not always the right advice. And so their brains are scrambled and confused and they're trying to figure it out.

[A]

And complexity. Right. You've got people online talking to millennials and Gen Z's about trusts and complex processes for wealth building and shielding and Wyoming corporations and all which kind of.

[B]

Things which could come into place at some point.

[A]

Right.

[B]

But it's not the fundamentals by any stretch. And all of this leads to anxiety. You know, when I say people have anxiety around money, most everyone goes. Because everybody experiences that. And one of my roles is to help alleviate that.

[A]

Well, let me. This is a good lead in. I mean, let's make it personal for a second. Let's talk about your own journey.

[B]

Sure, yeah.

[A]

Did you grow up with a broken money story?

[B]

Tell us about that a little bit. Yeah. I mean, my parents grew up in a depression, so very conservative. My mother, super conservative. No risk whatsoever. She would say to me, don't quit a job until you have the next job lined up. No risk at all. Now, my father was a pretty good saver, but he wasn't an investor. Treasury bills, bank CDs. So he never accumulated much in the way of wealth. How I became an entrepreneur, I'll never tell you. I broke that mold somehow, but I. So I grew up with that. And my mother had a lot of anxiety around money. I think somehow that anxiety transferred over to me. And then what happened? Over time, as I became more successful, I started to feel like I needed to prove my success to the outside world. I bought a house that was a little bit bigger than I needed. Maybe I thought my net worth was measured by my square footage or a fancier car than I really needed. My dad used to. Anyone, he said, anyone who would drive a Cadillac when I was growing up, they didn't have Lexus and all that stuff was a Cadillac.

[A]

Cadillac and Lincoln.

[B]

Right?

[A]

Yeah.

[B]

He called that conspicuous consumption. And so I grew up with that message. Now I was able to break that mold. And I, you know, I drive a Cadillac. Well, I drive a Cadillac right now my dad's rolling over in his ashes. Probably know that I'm guilty of conspicuous.

[A]

Ashes, I've never heard of. That's a little different. Okay, gotcha.

[B]

Anyway, so yeah, we all have that stuff. We become aware of it and then we got a chance at actually, I.

[A]

Mean, you know, the thing that pops in, like, when I think about personally too. There's a. I talk to you all the time that like, think they need to pay cash for everything. And they're just, they're scared to, they're scared to whatever. Like the car. Oh, I can't. I can't lease a car or I can't. We got to be able to buy it. And I come from that. My grandparents, you know, he was, he was the Lincoln guy, not the Cadillac guy. Yeah, but save, save, save, save, save. Need to buy cash, give it a 10 year save, save, save, save. Repeat that. A lot of people miss out on a lot of different points of leverage when it comes to financial management.

[B]

You can. That's the whole thing around debt is. And you know, Dave Ramsey is a big voice out there around no debt, cut up your credit cards, you know, all of that. And for some people, that actually probably is really good advice because they can get in trouble with debt.

[A]

Right.

[B]

But I'll give you an example. With my last car, I was going to buy a used car, let somebody else absorb the depreciation, maybe it's a year old, still has warranty on it. Still most of the bells and whistles. But 10 grand less.

[A]

Correct.

[B]

But then the interest rates for a new car were 3%. So I take money out of my investments to pay cash. I'm missing the chance to make money on that money. So that is a good use of debt. So the key is being the whole key here, Corey, is how we become aware of our money story and then how we fix it is through education, through financial literacy. And when you know how money works, you become aware of what you've been doing wrong. And then you can become aware of what you can do. Right.

[A]

What I love is, is that, you know, you're standing here today as a product of not having the best story, a story that could have kept you from really finding great success as you have done. How did you kind of flip the script? Like, what Was. Was there a point for you where you were like, maybe I love my family, but maybe they got it wrong?

[B]

Yeah. So what happened for me is for the last 34 years, I've been in the business of working with financial advisors. So I've been in the world money every day. Every day I have helped them bring in billions. And the more I learned about how money worked, the more I started reflecting on my own situation. And compounding, for instance, I didn't learn about the miracle of compounding until I was about 40, 45 years old. I missed 20 years of opportunity to make that very simple and powerful concept work for me. So it was just being around the world of finance, getting educated, seeking financial advice, professional advice. I'm a big advocate for getting a financial professional. And so that's mostly how I overcame mine. But I gotta tell you, my anxiety around money never really fully goes away. That's part of my wiring now. I'm aware of it. So what happens is when that song plays on my personal radio, I just reach over, I turn the volume down. That's that. That's that part of me. I don't have to listen to that. And that's what a lot of people have to do, is you become aware and then you start making different choices. What you pay attention to.

[A]

No, I love that. You were. You had some interesting stats, I think, just about how compounding works.

[B]

Yeah, yeah, Compounding. Albert Einstein is quoted as saying. I'm going to say quoted, because I have the caveat here as saying compounding is the eighth wonder of the world. Those who understand it earn it. Those who don't understand it, pay it. And so what he's talking about the difference between compounded savings and investment, which is the good thing, versus compounding debt, which is the bad thing. And just ask anybody who's got student loan or credit card debt, they know that. Now, real quick, Einstein didn't actually say that. There's no evidence that he said that. So if anybody says, oh, he's just quoting Einstein. Yeah, yeah, okay, I'll quote him. But it's, you know, whatever.

[A]

But.

[B]

But it's true, right? This whole thing of compounding. So let's say a couple examples. Let's say you're 18 years old and you get $100 bill for graduation. And instead of buying a new pair of shoes and even get a new pair of sneakers for bucks, anyway, you invest it, you save it, and then you start saving, let's say $50 a month until. Until you're like 65 right. You would have $1.2 million.

[A]

Amazing.

[B]

That's how compounding and time they are. Your best friend, another example. My daughter's 33 at the taping of this. If she took $100 and then she's got a job. So if she put $200 a month, by age 67, she'd have a little over a million dollars. So I've got a guide. It's called the Ordinary Millionaire Theordinary millionaire dot com. And anyone can become a millionaire with a little bit of discipline, a little bit of education. That's the miracle of compounding.

[A]

You mean you don't have to just go on the Internet and get a biz op that's going to, you know, make you a million dollars in two weeks and we'll all be on Bali. In Bali.

[B]

Please don't.

[A]

Please don't.

[B]

Don't believe that. Yeah. Look, there are a lot of people giving them money advice. Some of it's probably okay.

[A]

Yeah.

[B]

But a lot of it. A lot of charlatan. There's a lot you have. So check.

[A]

They want the money to flow to them, but.

[B]

Exactly.

[A]

Let me get back to the book.

[B]

Yeah, please.

[A]

So the Hidden Heist isn't just a book. It's not your standard nonfiction. This is a parable. So with a bank robbery as the backdrop here. So why did you choose to go to storytelling route for this book? And why use a heist to teach a money lesson?

[B]

Yeah, there are a lot of books out there that teach money lessons. A lot of straightforward educational. Fine, they're good. A lot of good ones. But I know that a lot of people learn sometimes through stories. And so I knew that this was a good parable book in the making, a good storybook. And there's a lot of good parable books out there like Bob Berg's and John David Mann's the Go Giver and the Alchemist and the Greatest Salesman in the World. And there's a lot of bad parable books out there. And most parable books are kind of light, happy, a little bit of challenge, which is good. You need a challenge. That's what creates the story. But you kind of know what's going to come. You know, it's like, get to the point already.

[A]

Sure.

[B]

Right. I wanted something with some twists and turns. I wanted something people really wanted to read the story and get the lessons. So I decided a bank robbery. Money. Okay. And so the tension is the bank robbery. The comic relief is the fact that these bank robbers are kind of bumbly and some of the other characters are kind of funny. So there's a lot of comic relief there. And through that, the lessons come out. And then. And by the way, I'm kind of a straightforward guy. So at the end, we have appendices that, in case you missed the lessons in the story here, they are straightforward. So we're kind of feeding it to everybody in both ways. And people are telling me that they love the story, that don't expect the twists and turns, especially at the end. I gave one to my personal trainer, my fitness trainer. He says, can I have three more for my kids? Because they need to hear this story as well. So it's a great gift for kids.

[A]

Let's talk about kids for a second. So this type of stuff really should be taught in schools. Why do you think. Why do you think this is so often overlooked?

[B]

Yeah, I mean, we learned the Pythagorean theorem, we learned the, you know, whatever, all the different stuff. Right. And we don't. It is getting a little better. A lot of school systems are starting to put personal finance into the high schools. Unfortunately, in most cases it's an elective. So it doesn't mean everyone's going to get it, but it's a topic that people just don't talk about. And a lot of people don't know much about it. Just think of the people who are designing the curriculum. They've got broken money stories. They don't have a lot of good education around this.

[A]

That's a very good point.

[B]

It just isn't talked about. And the fact is, there is enough money. There's enough resource in this planet because money flows. It's not a scarce resource. Everyone could be doing much better financially, which will alleviate a lot of problems. Does it buy happiness? Maybe not, but it certainly alleviates a lot of stress and a lot of problems. And so it really is something I believe that does need to be taught, and that's. I'm on a mission. I believe that everyone deserves to make educated decisions, financial decisions that are in their best interest.

[A]

I love it. This has been such a great conversation. But before I let you go, for persons that are watching this, listening to this, what is the very first step that they can take to start rewriting their money story and ultimately move forward towards financial freedom? And how does the hidden heist guide them on that path?

[B]

Yeah, great question. So the hidden heist is all based on the concept of that we have beliefs working inside of us, with us. Some of them help us, some don't. So the first thing is to become aware of beliefs that don't serve us. I like to say stop believing what you believe. Right. Because when we believe what we believe, it becomes our story. It becomes true, and it doesn't always serve us. Now, how do we become aware of that? As I mentioned, we start to create education, start to learn about how money works. I would say yes. Invest in the Hidden heist because that will start you on your journey in a fun way, in an entertaining way and an educational way. Learn how money works and then start doing something. Start saving. Understand the difference between saving and investing, because there is a difference. Start doing that and then I'm a big advocate for finding a financial professional. Find the right financial advisor, the right financial professional for you that will help you with your own money stories and then help you make the proper decisions moving forward and so you don't fall prey to your anxiety that will cause you to make bad decisions.

[A]

I love it.

[B]

So, yeah, wealth is possible for everybody if you get on the right path.

[A]

Phenomenal. Fantastic. As our mutual friend Dr. Willi Jolly would say, buy one for yourself and one for somebody else. Right?

[B]

Yes.

[A]

So we want to keep adding those hidden heists. Exciting. I can't wait to get my hands on it and read it myself. Bill Cates, thanks for joining us today.

[B]

Thank you, Corey.

[A]

To get your copy of Bill's new book, the Hidden Heist, visit TheHiddenHeist.com and to learn more about his keynote presentation, visit Keynote Heist.com.