#165 - Let's Talk Money & Personal Finances with Melly Lee

First of All

LET'S TALK ABOUT MONEY, Y'ALL. Now if talking about money openly and honestly ever felt taboo, this episode. is. for. YOU! To get into the nitty gritty of money relationships, habits and strategies, Minji brings back a wonderful returning guest - photographer and blogger Melly Lee - to unpack this broad and emotionally charged topic. The two dive into their histories with money as a spender vs saver, someone who struggled with mountains of debt vs someone who was deathly afraid of debt, and as individuals who never received a substantial financial education. They share beliefs about money that they inherited and how those beliefs manifested in some TOUGH (and expensive) lessons - in work, in friendships, in family dynamics, and more. Most importantly, they share how they've both started reprogramming themselves to feel empowered with money despite gender inequalities, self-sabotaging tendencies, and lack of guidance. This is for the many generations of kids/adults who've had to figure this all out on our own and are learning financial literacy and the creation of true wealth.

Links:
https://fromzerosavings.com/
https://www.instagram.com/mellylee_/

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• Twitter (@minjeeeezy)
• Instagram (@minjeezy)
• Clubhouse (@MinjiChang)

▫️ Music featured in this episode include "Uzutrap" by Uzuhan and “We Could Happen” by AJ Rafael
▫️ Follow the show on Instagram and Twitter and support our Patreon
▫️ This podcast is part of Potluck: An Asian American Podcast Collective

Produced by @marvinyueh & @AnnaSun
Supported by @JulianaDeer
00:00:00 - Intro. We made it!! Show me the money!
00:03:34 - Exposure does not pay the bills!
00:06:08 - From freelance → to → tech
00:08:31 - Making more money means better money management, right?
00:11:16 - Paying for college + student loans
00:15:22 - Money education started with red envelopes
00:18:20 - Money talks are taboo whilst money views are inherited
00:21:40 - Saver v spender
00:31:18 - Need to reprogram ourselves
00:34:42 - BREAK + Support FOA + [Quarantined Comics Podcast]
00:36:49 - Hard lessons Melly learned
00:43:38 - How Minji’s beliefs manifest her life
00:50:41 - POV’s about money passed down but no guidance
00:53:20 - Melly starts to take a hard look at finances
00:56:44 - Getting audited by IRS
00:58:56 - Cost of a bad accountant
01:04:27 - Retirement, budgets, & investments
01:17:02 - Be gentle with yourself
01:21:19 - Women were not raised to be financially literate!
01:27:22 - FOA Q’s for the guest
01:31:16 - Outro + Music by AJ Rafael - “We Could Happen”
01:34:31 - [They Call Us Bruce Podcast]

Mentioned in this episode:

Watch The Tiger's Apprentice, now on Paramount+!

Join the Chinese Zodiac warriors in the Paramount+ Original Movie The Tiger’s Apprentice! Tom Lee is just an ordinary teen, but his life changes forever when he discovers he is part of a long lineage of magical protectors known as the Guardians. With his new friend Hu, a mythical tiger, and the other Chinese Zodiac warriors, Tom trains to take on an evil force that threatens humanity. Stream The Tiger’s Apprentice February 2 exclusively on Paramount+. Head to paramountplus.com to try it free!