Reasonably Happy with Paul Ollinger

✍️ Subscribe to Paul’s Substack ‘Money & the Meaning of Life’ here. ✍️Jennifer Wallace is a journalist and author specializing in psychology, parenting, and health. Her new book 'Never Enough: When Achievement Culture Becomes Toxic—And What We Can Do About It' delves into our modern dilemma of busyness, achievement, credentialing, and status-seeking. Katie Couric calls the New York Times best-seller 'Never Enough; “a wake up call for all of us.” A frequent contributor to the Wall Street Journal and Washington Post, Jennifer’s work explores the intersection of societal trends and individual well-being. In this conversation, Jennifer and I discuss:What Harvard can and can’t do for you (or your child)The 6 factors that contribute to a great college experienceWhy it matters that our kids know they matterStress, grind culture, and mental health\The importance of chores for children and teensThe family chore that young Jennifer put off until Sunday nightWhat Alanis Morissette was telling us in her song ‘Perfect'"Sometimes is never quite enoughIf you're flawless, then you'll win my love"-Alanis Morissette, Perfect👂Check out the book on Jennie's website here and follow her on Instagram here.👂🎤 See Paul’s stand-up and random thoughts on Instagram here. 🎤 This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit words.paulollinger.com/subscribe

Rik Emmett is a vocalist, guitarist and former member of the rock band Triumph, which earned 18 gold and nine platinum records in Canada and the United States in the late 1970s and early’80s. Triumph was known for its BIG live shows featuring lights, pyrotechnics, and lots of spandex (as was appropriate for the era!). Along with Rik's bandmates Gil Moore and Mike Levine, the power trio played loud, guitar-forward tunes with uplifting lyrics. 1981’s Allied Forces sold over a million copies in the US and included the songs “Fight the Good Fight” and “Magic Power,” which—if you haven’t heard it recently—merits a listen on your favorite music app. Eventually, disputes with the record label, the financial stress of touring / recouping advances, and intra-band competition lead to Triumph’s break-up. In his new memoir, Lay It on the Line: A Backstage Pass to Rock Star Adventure, Conflict and Triumph, Rik shares insights into the trials and tribulations of the rock n roll life and how he has found peace as a devoted husband, father, and grandfather. The band and has been inducted into both the Canadian Music Industry Hall of Fame and the Canadian Music Hall of Fame. In this episode, ’Rik and I discuss:How the pressure to churn out hits affects the songwriting processWhy he started sharing his songwriting royalties with his bandmatesTriumph’s performance at the 1983 US Festival, which was founded by Steve WozniakHow a start-up network called MTV used a Triumph promo video to help fill its scheduleThe cruel arc of celebrity and how an artist deals with "the whimpering disappointment of general disinterest."⭐ Rate and Review Crazy Money here. (Seriously, do it!)⭐ ✍️ Get Paul’s writing to your Inbox here. (Seriously, do this also!) ✍️👂Check out the book here and Rik's website here.👂 This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit words.paulollinger.com/subscribe

When Daniel Carcillo played in the NHL, he was known as an enforcer so tough and volatile that he earned the nickname “Car Bomb.” In his 12 seasons in the NHL, Daniel was a member of two Stanley Cup-winning teams (2013 and 2015 Chicago Blackhawks), led the league in penalty minutes, and was fined or suspended by the NHL 12 times. He also suffered about a dozen concussions and was diagnosed with early-onset dementia at 30 years old. As he told me, “I know I have CTE,” a progressive and fatal brain disease that he believes drove him to the brink of suicide until—as he describes it—mushroom therapy saved his life. Today, Daniel is a brain health advocate and the Founder/ CEO of Wesana Health, a life sciences company that leverages psilocybin-based medicine to treat traumatic brain injuries. In this episode, Daniel and I discuss:Whether winning the Stanley Cup made him happyThe culture of violence in the NHL.The epidemic of brain injury among athletes.How psilocybin, mushrooms, MDMA, Ketamine, and other non-traditional medicines are being used to treat depression, PTSD, and brain diseasePlease note I neither endorse nor disapprove of Daniel’s POV here. I think there’s a lot to learn in this space that could potentially benefit a lot of people who are suffering. Thank you to my friend Peter Fish for connecting me with Daniel.👂Check out Daniel’s Instagram here and Twitter here👂⭐ Rate and Review Crazy Money here. (Seriously, do it!)⭐ ✍️ Get Paul’s writing to your Inbox here. (Seriously, do this also!) ✍️ This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit words.paulollinger.com/subscribe

Over the past 30 years, Cal Fussman has interviewed a breathtaking array of the world’s most fascinating people, including Nelson Mandela, Clint Eastwood, Barbara Walters, Richard Branson, Muhammed Ali, Mikhail Gorbachev, Neil Young, Serena Williams, Tim Ferriss, Kobe Bryant, Al Pacino, Pelé, and hundreds more. He co-authored Larry King’s memoir and won a James Beard Award for a story about his journey to become a sommelier. Today he hosts the Big Questions podcast and speaks on big stages, all over the world. Cal was in Atlanta last week for one such event so we scheduled time for him to swing by my house (this is Paul typing 👋) for a dual interview to run on our respective shows. In between the scheduling and his arrival, Hamas terrorists killed over 1,000 people (and counting) in Israel in one day. As such, it didn’t feel appropriate to do our typical episodes. So we just talked and tried to make sense of this kind of human behavior. We do our best to avoid political analysis but some inevitably slips in. I want to emphasize that though this episode focuses on Israeli dead at the hands of these Hamas lunatics, the lives of innocent Arabs are equally valuable in the eyes of God…speaking of whom, I hope He’s enjoying His vacation. 👂Listen to Cal’s Big Questions podcast.👂⭐ Rate and Review Crazy Money here. (Seriously, do it!)⭐ ✍️ Get Paul’s writing to your Inbox here. (Seriously, do this also!) ✍️ This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit words.paulollinger.com/subscribe

Victor Haghani is the author of a new book called The Missing Billionaires: A Guide to Making Better Financial Decisions, which explores why family fortunes like the Vanderbilts' get destroyed in the hands of the heirs. Victor knows a lot about wild swings in wealth. As co-founding partner of the Long-Term Capital Management (LTCM), Victor saw the hedge fund's value soar over the first years of its existence then plummet spectacularly, losing 90% of its value in the first nine months of 1998. It was bailed out by a consortium of banks that injected $3.6 billion under the supervision of the Federal Reserve. In this conversation and his new book, Victor graciously shares candid insights from this harrowing experience, discusses the emotional roller coaster of his fund’s very public implosion, and reminds us of some facts many have forgotten: that the banks got their money back as did most of the original investors. Unfortunately, a few investors got washed out, as did the founders. Victor tells Paul how he balanced regret with the need to move forward. Victor graduated from London School of Economics then started his career in 1984 at Salomon Brothers where he eventually became a managing director in the bond arbitrage group made famous by Michael Lewis in Liars Poker. His participation in the failure of LTCM was a life-changing experience that led him to question and revise much of the way he thought about the economy, markets, and investing. Through a careful study of the academic literature on investing and many thought-provoking discussions with friends, colleagues, and investors of all backgrounds,Victor concluded that savers can and should do much better. He founded Elm Wealth in 2011 to help investors, including his own family, manage their savings in a disciplined, research-based, cost-effective manner and to capture the long-term returns they ought to earn. See more about The Missing Billionaires and Elm Wealth here and connect with Victor here.⭐ Rate and Review Crazy Money here. (Seriously, do it!)⭐ ✍️ Get Paul’s writing to your Inbox here. (Seriously, do this also!) ✍️ This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit words.paulollinger.com/subscribe

Farnoosh Torabi is an Iranian American journalist and one of the country’s most trusted personal finance experts. In her new book, A Healthy State of Panic she examines the role fear can have in leading us toward the relationships, careers, and financial situations we are meant to have. For over two decades, Farnoosh has a strived to help people become financially empowered and lead richer lives. She’s written multiple books, hosted a CNBC program, and worked alongside Oprah’s editorial team. She hosts the Webby-honored podcast So Money, which has been downloaded over 30 million times. In today’s conversation, we discuss how her family came to the U.S. from Iran and what it was like grow up in America after the Iranian Revolution and Hostage Crisis. Always being the new girl, Farnoosh learned how to navigate new schools, her mom's embarrassing clothing choices, her teenage unibrow, achievement anxiety, and the fact that she wasn’t allowed to watch Punky Brewster. We discuss the strength and courage of her young mother, the resilience of her old dad, and what she learned from her biggest professional mistakes. Farnoosh holds a degree in finance from Penn State and a master’s in journalism from Columbia University. Buy the book here. Learn more about Farnoosh on her website.You - yes you- stand still, laddy! And do this:⭐ Rate and Review Crazy Money here. (Seriously, do it!)⭐ ✍️ Get Paul’s Substack writing to your Inbox here. (Seriously, do this also!) ✍️ This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit words.paulollinger.com/subscribe

After 15 years of financial reporting, Ron Lieber reports that “No consumer decision inspires more confusion and emotion than the question of what to pay for college,” which is understandable since four years at many state schools now costs over $100k in tuition and four years of private school can run over $300k! The "Your Money" columnist for the New York Times, Ron is the author ofThe Price You Pay for College, in which he lays out critical, in-depth information about one of the most important financial decisions your family will ever make. He explains that not only is college ludicrously expensive, but the admissions process is purposefully opaque, so it’s hard to know if you/your kid will get in and whether or not you/your kid will be able to afford to go. By throwing himself head-first into this stormy, complicated sea, Ron helps the reader find the best college or university for them, understand financial aid, and not destroy their family's savings in the process. His new online course about merit aid will help parents like you find grants and scholarships for which your child is eligible. Ron Lieber is a proud alumnus of Amherst College. Among his previous books is the bestseller, The Opposite of Spoiled: Raising Kids Who Are Grounded, Generous, and Smart About Money, which he discussed with me on episode #4 of Crazy Money. It’s a great book about parenting and teaching your kids values through the lens of money. This episode originally aired in January 2021.⭐ Rate and Review Crazy Money here. (Seriously, do it!)⭐ ✍️ Get Paul’s writing to your Inbox here. (Seriously, do this also!) ✍️ This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit words.paulollinger.com/subscribe

Kids who grow up in stable, two-parent homes are less likely to live in poverty, have behavioral problems, and get in trouble at school. They’re more likely to go to college, attain stable employment, achieve higher earnings, and to get married themselves. So reports Melissa Kearney in her new book The Two-Parent Privilege: How Americans Stopped Getting Married and Started Falling Behind. A professor of Economics at University of Maryland, Melissa argues that single-parenthood makes economic autonomy more difficult to attain for parent and child alike. So if we want to address inequality, we must acknowledge that family structure contributes to it, even if the conclusions run counter to the prevailing societal notion that any family structure is as good as another. Put simply, if you want a more equal society, it’s time to recognize that equality starts at home. In addition to her faculty position, Melissa is also Director of the Aspen Economic Strategy Group and a non-resident Senior Fellow at Brookings Institution. She holds a BA in Economics from Princeton University and a PhD in Economics from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.Find the book here. Learn more about Melissa on her website here. ⭐ Rate and Review Crazy Money here. (Seriously, do it!)⭐ ✍️ Get Paul’s writing to your Inbox here. (Seriously, do this also!) ✍️ This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit words.paulollinger.com/subscribe

Garrett Gunderson is a NYT best selling author and the funniest financial speaker you may or may not have heard of. The son of a Utah coal-miners, Garrett wants to teach others how to become financially independent and have a laugh along the way. He has written several money books, including Disrupting Sacred Cows, Killing Sacred Cows, and What Would Billionaires Do? among others. His new book Money Unmasked comes out next month. We talk hair, comedy, good parenting, growing up half-Mormon, half-Catholic, frugal v. cheap, “financial dick pics,"pre-2008 Arrogance, driving a Bentley, the power of laughter, the dirty word his grandmother loved, and what he learned from the death of his business partners. As you’ll hear, Garrett andI have a lot in common, so this is a bit of a sprawling and sometimes “inside baseball” conversation about money and comedy. Speaking of which, his comedy special The American Ream will be out soon. Learn more about Garrett on his website and Pre-order the new book on Amazon here.⭐ Rate and Review Crazy Money here. (Seriously, do it!)⭐ ✍️ Get Paul’s writing to your Inbox here. (Seriously, do this also!) ✍️ This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit words.paulollinger.com/subscribe

In an automated world without constraints or time to think, our spending has been super-charged. Markets, apps, and e-commerce are all designed to separate us from our money as quickly and consistently as possible. So argues Julio Vincent Gambuto in his new book, Please Unsubscribe, Thanks!: How to Take Back Our Time, Attention, and Purpose in a World Designed to Bury Us in Bullshit. Paul and Julio discuss the book and their differences of opinion on how we have arrived to this subscription economy. Yes, Paul agrees, companies are intentionally removing friction from the transaction process to reduce the amount of thinking that goes into purchasing and subscribing to services. But he does not agree that this turns all of us into stooges who lack agency. Yes, Paul also agrees with Julio’s eventual conclusion that we all need to “redefine our relationship with money and how/where/when/why we spend and our needs, wants, and relationship with desire. Maybe it’s okay to not get everything we want right now.” Learn more about Julio on his website. Thanks to our mutual friend Ethan Herschenfeld for connecting metro Julio.⭐ Rate and Review Crazy Money here. (Seriously, do it!)⭐ ✍️ Get Paul’s writing to your Inbox here. (Seriously, do this also!) ✍️ This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit words.paulollinger.com/subscribe

“Parents Hire $4,000 Sorority Consultants to Help Daughters Dress and Impress During Rush” read the Wall Street Journal headline that nearly made my neck snap. As a middle-aged man whose kids aren’t quite college age, I was unaware of the #RushTok phenomenon on TikTok or the Bama Rush documentary that sparked a massive fascination with the sorority rush process at the University of Alabama. Trisha Addicks is the very rush consultant referenced in that WSJ article and featured in Bama Rush. She also happens to be my neighbor, so I invited her to come over and talk about how the whole process works. I had so many questions: Who are these families shelling out $4k for rush help? Why do they do it? How does one become a rush consultant? What’s the reason so many young women want to join sororities anyway? And how do you teach them the secret language including terms like PNMs, OOTD, the 5 B’s, and The Machine? The conversation really put the whole thing into perspective. In a world of private trainers, coaches, and tutors, a sorority consultant is just one more third party a family can hire to help their kid navigate life. And after you hear all she does for her clients, $4k might sound like a bargain. Trisha’s work and her company, It's All Greek to Me have been featured in the New York Times, the NY Post, CNN.com, NewsNation, UK Daily Mail, and many more. Follow her on Instagram here. ⭐ Rate and Review Crazy Money here. (Seriously, do it!)⭐ ✍️ Get Paul’s writing to your Inbox here. (Seriously, do this also!) ✍️#BamaRush #rushtok #sorority #sororityconsultant This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit words.paulollinger.com/subscribe

The new Netflix series Painkiller is based on a book my guest, Barry Meier wrote over 20 years ago. In Pain Killer: An Empire of Deceit and the Origin of America's Opioid Epidemic, Meier explores how Purdue Pharma’s drug OxyContin catalyzed a plague of addiction and death that has destroyed families and whole communities across the country.Between 1999 and 2020, 564,000 Americans died from an opioid overdose. In 2020, the most recent year for which statistics are available, opioids killed 68,000. That's 188 per day and each one of these deaths represents a son or daughter, a brother or sister or a mother or father, who is not coming back. Yes, people died of opioid overdoses before the 1996 launch of OxyContin, but it’s clear that Oxy and Purdue Pharma’s aggressive and deceptive marketing practices threw gasoline on a spark that has turned into a raging wildfire. In our conversation today, Barry and I discuss the Sackler family's legacy of ethically dubious marketing of pharmaceuticals and how they made tens of billions of dollars selling OxyContin using the same techniques, like pushing free samples, while knowing that the drug was quite addictive. We discuss how and why the FDA approved claims that OxyContin was less prone to addiction in the complete absence of evidence proving that it actually was. And lastly, we discuss the extent to which OxyContin kicked off this opioid epidemic for which there is no clear way out.The Netflix series stars Matthew Broderick, Taylor Kitsch, and Uzo Aduba and is very well done.✍️Get Paul’s Substack newsletter here.✍️🔥Follow Paul on Instagram. 🔥Visit Barry’s websiteBuy the book here. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit words.paulollinger.com/subscribe

Paul reads three of his latest pieces from his Substack, Money and the Meaning of Life, including:Dare to Suck: What you can learn about improvement from acting coach Lesly Kahn and author Mark MansonThe Secret to Being Very, Very RichNobody Needs a House with 8 Toilets🔥Paul publishes these essays (about) every other Tuesday. You should subscribe here. 🔥🚀 Follow Paul on Instagram here. 🚀 This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit words.paulollinger.com/subscribe

If your new college grad son or daughter is unemployed, sleeping in their childhood bedroom, and watching All My Children every day, fear not - Laura Belgray has been there and she turned out okay. As Laura explains in her new, laugh-out-loud (LOL) funny memoir, Tough Titties: On Living Your Best Life When You’re the F-ing Worst, sometimes it’s good to be unoccupied so that, when opportunity finally calls, you are there to answer the phone. The book, which her husband refers to as “Loser Sex in the City,” is a collection of hilarious, unfiltered stories about her life. Equal parts Nora Ephron, Tina Fey, Chuck Klosterman, and David Sedaris, Tough Titties is a celebration of failure, late bloomers, messy career paths, and lessons learned from indiscriminately blowing bartenders in the early 90s. So it’s no wonder that Kelly Ripa said of the book, “I didn’t want it to end!” Though slow out of the gates, Laura eventually found her thing and now celebrates the wonder of being paid for authentic self-expression. In this delightful chat, Laura and I discuss the primal fear of being disliked, how being a loser in 6th grade is related to her later success in adulthood.pre-Giuliani Times SquareB.S. social media wellness gurusMean Girls, Leg warmersWhy Deb Fishbone is a shallow, basic bitchGetting paid to watch TVLearn more about Laura on her website. ⭐ Rate and Review Crazy Money here. (Seriously, do it!)⭐ ✍️ Get Paul’s writing to your Inbox here. (Seriously, do this also!) ✍️And yes, I said “Titties.” Here, I’m going to say it again: titties. Also, I know that All My Children is no longer on the air. Feel free to substitute: TikTok, Roblox, or PornHub This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit words.paulollinger.com/subscribe

People magazine called Laura Wasser “the celebrity of celebrity divorce attorneys,” which makes sense considering she has—according to Wikipedia—handled cases for A+listers like Angelina Jolie, Kim Kardashian, Johnny Depp, Ryan Reynolds, Dr. Dre, Kevin Costner, Maria Shriver, and Jimmy Iovine, among many others. And while “celebrity divorce attorney” might conjure up images of a rapacious shark in Prada boots squeezing every dollar out of her clients’ exes, Laura preaches the gospel of divorce with dignity. Her book, It Doesn’t Have to Be That Way: How to Divorce Without Destroying Your Family or Bankrupting Yourself is a jungle guide for ending a marriage while preserving decency, values, and a couple’s wealth. As she writes, “…the more acrimony, argument, and angst, the more money your attorney makes. We profit from your inability to resolve issues.” In other words, don’t pay your lawyer $1,000/hr to determine—as famously captured in When Harry Met Sally—who gets the “stupid, wagon wheel, Roy Rogers, garage sale coffee table.” Her book is a plea to all those going through one of the most stressful human experiences possible to summon your best self and think about who you want to be when the dust settles. Laura and I talk about the fundamental language of divorce, including spousal support, child support, no-fault divorce, community property, and also the more philosophical dimensions of the process, like the concept of “fairness” and how one defines “winning.” Sincere thanks to my former Facebook colleague, Matt Jacobson for making the connection to Laura. I appreciate, Jake!Follow Laura on on Instagram and learn more about her practice here. ✍️Subscribe to Paul’s Substack here ✍️ This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit words.paulollinger.com/subscribe

If you’re trying to hide assets from your spouse or soon to be ex-spouse, beware! Whether it’s Cayman Islands bank accounts, bearer bonds stashed in a safe deposit box, “hidden" real estate, or hundreds-of-thousands in Bitcoin, Nick Himonidis and his team at NGH Group will probably discover your secret stash. Nick is an attorney, Certified Fraud Examiner, and Certified Crypto Currency Forensic Investigator, which is a fancy way of saying that he is a high-end, sophisticated, and technologically-proficient private investigator. He and his team have have uncovered many millions of dollars in undisclosed assets in single cases. In this conversation, Nick offers insights into how he and his colleagues go about their work, why you’ll probably get caught, and why—if you’re going to hire a private investigator—it’s vitally important TO YOU to hire one with a high degree of professional ethics. Learn more about Nick and NGH Group on their website. ✍️Get Paul’s writing to your Inbox here ✍️About Crazy Money:Unlike traditional personal finance or investing shows, Crazy Money is not about how to make a million bucks, how to beat the stock market, or how to save money by switching cable providers. It is about deciding what role we want money to play in our lives and how we can use it to achieve our best selves. Topics covered include: philosophy, happiness, contentment, meaning, dreams, purpose, success, mental health, Buddhism, Stoicism, the hedonic treadmill, morality, mid-Life Crisis, business, work, careers, authors, books, consumerism, values, capitalism, economics, investing, saving, spending, personal finance, charity, philanthropy, altruism, affluence, wealth, wealth management, culture, society, and status. Crazy Money is edited by Mike Carano. Are you really still reading? This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit words.paulollinger.com/subscribe

Having experienced divorce as the child of a wealthy family, Olivia Summerhill understands the massive impact parents fighting about money can have on their children’s lives. Today, Olivia provides financial consulting for ultra-high-net worth women going through divorce. Her typical client has a household net worth of $100mm or more, so she provides advice on everything from stocks, bonds, art, planes, country club memberships and cosmetic surgery! As importantly, she helps her clients clarify their values, financial priorities, and to visualize their lives post-divorce. The host of the Divorce for Wealthy Women podcast, Olivia is both a Certified Financial Planner and a Certified Divorce Financial Analyst. In this super-fun and sometimes-scary conversation, we discuss pre-nuptial agreements, shame around money, the concept of “fairness” in a divorce, and a book that she loved and I absolutely did not! She spoke to me from Seattle where it was 5:00 a.m.! (that’s three exclamation points in one episode description! I mean four! No, wait five…). Learn more about Olivia and her services on her company’s website. ✍️Read Paul’s Substack here ✍️🎤 See Paul’s upcoming shows here 🎤About Crazy Money:Unlike traditional personal finance or investing shows, Crazy Money is not about how to make a million bucks, how to beat the stock market, or how to save money by switching cable providers. It is about deciding what role we want money to play in our lives and how we can use it to achieve our best selves. Topics covered include: philosophy, happiness, contentment, meaning, dreams, purpose, success, mental health, Buddhism, Stoicism, the hedonic treadmill, morality, mid-Life Crisis, business, work, careers, authors, books, consumerism, values, capitalism, economics, investing, saving, spending, personal finance, charity, philanthropy, altruism, affluence, wealth, wealth management, culture, society, and status. Crazy Money is edited by Mike Carano. Are you really still reading? This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit words.paulollinger.com/subscribe

Will Vogt is a photographer with a front row seat to the American upper class. Raised on Philadelphia’s Main Line, Will attended boarding school, and spent lots of time in the tony enclave of Watch Hill, Rhode Island where his family summered. His new collection of photography, These Americans, showcases decades of intimate snapshots of his social circle. Entertainment news site Vulture says the work "depicts the wealthy at leisure with their guard down.” Indeed, Will has captured a very rare, candid and un-self-conscious picture of the American upper class doing their thing, which—in a few cases—is cocaine. In some others it’s weed and/or alcohol. Since the majority of these shots were taken in the 1980s, it is highly appropriate that Jay McInerney (Bright Lights, Big City) composed the introduction. He wrote that Vogt is “documenting the world of the descendants of those whom (F. Scott) Fitzgerald wrote about. And he is clearly a member of this tribe, albeit a self-aware and observant one.” See Will’s photos / order the book on his website. 🧘Watch Paul’s hilarious meditation videos here🧘 ✍️Read Paul’s brilliant writing here ✍️ This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit words.paulollinger.com/subscribe

Our higher education system is broken. But instead of trying to fix the underlying issues, the Biden administration is attempting to treat the symptoms with a massive giveaway to student loan debtors. In this encore episode (from August, 2022), I speak with Oren Cass. Executive Director of American Compass, whose article The Banality of Student Loans outlines the contradictions and self-defeating policies that have led us to this educational morass. Ask yourself:• Why is student debt treated differently than all other kinds of debt?• Why are taxpayers on the hook for payments to colleges and universities instead of the institutions themselves?• Why would you forgive hundreds of billions in loans without addressing any of the reasons we got into this mess in the first place?Oren and I discuss the “college for all” approach and why it is the wrong way to prepare the vast majority of young Americans for a career–especially those who need an economic boost the most. We talk about why the federal government should not underwrite student loans and who should. And Paul vents about “these damn young kids - don’t they know what ‘obligation’ means?” Speaking of expensive colleges, Oren graduated Williams College and Harvard Law School, magna cum laude. (Paul graduated from Rhodes College, sine honoribus.) ✍️Get Paul’s Substack newsletter here.✍️ Follow Oren-Twitter - https://twitter.com/oren_cassWebsite - https://orencass.com/ This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit words.paulollinger.com/subscribe

If you find marriage to be hard, you are not alone. If you feel as if your spouse should fulfill every single physical, emotional, sexual, and financial need in your life, you probably should be alone. This week, I talk to Eli Finkel, author of the book, The All-or-Nothing Marriage in which he presents data and anecdote about how the best marriages work and what we can learn from them. We discuss the evolution of marriage over the centuries, when and why love became part of the equation, how helping your spouse grow benefits you, the role of money in marriage, and why consensual non-monogamy will 99.999999999% for sure never happen in the Ollinger household. A survey of Eli's peers identified him as the most influential relationship scientist in the 21st century and the Economist declared him “one of the leading lights in the realm of relationship psychology.” On the other hand, his wife thinks it’s hilarious that he is a “marriage expert.” Learn more about Eli and his book here. ✍️Read Paul’s Substack here ✍️🎤 See Paul’s upcoming shows here 🎤About Crazy Money:Unlike traditional personal finance or investing shows, Crazy Money is not about how to make a million bucks, how to beat the stock market, or how to save money by switching cable providers. It is about deciding what role we want money to play in our lives and how we can use it to achieve our best selves. Topics covered include: philosophy, happiness, contentment, meaning, dreams, purpose, success, mental health, Buddhism, Stoicism, the hedonic treadmill, morality, mid-Life Crisis, business, work, careers, authors, books, consumerism, values, capitalism, economics, investing, saving, spending, personal finance, charity, philanthropy, altruism, affluence, wealth, wealth management, culture, society, and status. Crazy Money is edited by Mike Carano. Are you really still reading? This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit words.paulollinger.com/subscribe

Turney Duff was making millions on Wall Street until cocaine addiction brought him to his knees. His book The Buy Side: A Wall Street Trader’s Tale of Spectacular Excess is a funny, horrifying, then hopeful read and a New York Times best-seller (you should buy it here). Paul and the esteemed author share a lot of laughs as they discuss what money meant to Turney as he got rich, got lost, got sober, then got published. This darn funny conversation covers everything Turney's middle school science fair fiasco to insider trading. Also, prostitutes. Find out more about Turney and hear the Galleon rap here. 🔥 Follow Turney on Twitter 🔥 ✍️Read Paul’s Substack here ✍️🎤 See Paul’s upcoming shows here 🎤About Crazy Money:Unlike traditional personal finance or investing shows, Crazy Money is not about how to make a million bucks, how to beat the stock market, or how to save money by switching cable providers. It is about deciding what role we want money to play in our lives and how we can use it to achieve our best selves. Topics covered include: philosophy, happiness, contentment, meaning, dreams, purpose, success, mental health, Buddhism, Stoicism, the hedonic treadmill, morality, mid-Life Crisis, business, work, careers, authors, books, consumerism, values, capitalism, economics, investing, saving, spending, personal finance, charity, philanthropy, altruism, affluence, wealth, wealth management, culture, society, and status. Crazy Money is edited by Mike Carano. Are you really still reading? This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit words.paulollinger.com/subscribe

For your summer listening while driving, walking, gardening, pleasure, Paul reads three of his latest pieces from Substack (Money and the Meaning of Life), including:How to Stay Hungry When Your Life is FullMoney, Pain, and New CarsYou Deserve It, i.e. reflections on what it means to “deserve” somethingPaul publishes these essays (about) every other Tuesday.You should subscribe here. 🔥 Please feel no pressure to pay for a subscription, but do feel pressure to share his writing and this podcast with ALL of your friends. Also, you can also see where Paul (i.e. me) will be performing comedy here. 🎤 Shows coming up in Chattanooga, Charlotte, and Atlanta.About Paul:Paul Ollinger spent 15 years in sales leadership positions for Yahoo! and Facebook before bailing on the world of digital advertising to chase his comedy dream. He has headlined Carolines on Broadway, performed at legendary clubs such as the Hollywood Improv and the Comedy Cellar, and opened for everyone from Bill Burr to classic rock bands, Styx and Collective Soul. He plays comedy clubs, country clubs, and dirty bars all over the country. A graduate of Rhodes College, Paul earned his MBA at Dartmouth’s Tuck School. He lives in Atlanta with his wife, two tween kids, and French bulldog, Colonel Tom Parker. Follow him on Facebook. About Crazy Money:Unlike traditional personal finance or investing shows, Crazy Money is not about how to make a million bucks, how to beat the stock market, or how to save money by switching cable providers. It is about deciding what role we want money to play in our lives and how we can use it to achieve our best selves. Topics covered include: philosophy, happiness, contentment, meaning, dreams, purpose, success, mental health, Buddhism, Stoicism, the hedonic treadmill, morality, mid-Life Crisis, business, work, careers, authors, books, consumerism, values, capitalism, economics, investing, saving, spending, personal finance, charity, philanthropy, altruism, affluence, wealth, wealth management, culture, society, and status. Crazy Money is edited by Mike Carano. Are you really still reading? This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit words.paulollinger.com/subscribe

Bruce Feiler is a seven-time New York Times best-selling author of books such as Life is in the Transitions, Walking the Bible, and The Council of Dads, Bruce's 2008 account of his battle with bone cancer and the contemplation that his then three-year-old twin daughters would grow up without a father. The book birthed a documentary hosted by Sanjay Gupta, a drama series on NBC, and a wildly popular TED Talk. In his new book, The Search: Finding Meaningful Work in a Post Career World, Bruce argues that the truths about work with which so many of us Boomers / GenX’ers were raised no longer apply and that today’s economy is “meaning based” as opposed to “means based.” We discuss what implications this has for employers, workers, and those of us trying to understand just what is going on out there. We talk about why Bruce dedicated the book to Pat Conroy, why that means something to Paul, how our expectations of a linear world and career stress us out and why it is critically important to “stop chasing someone else’s dream (or, in Paul’s case the approval of Sheryl Sandberg). Special thanks to 2x Crazy Money guest and occasional listener, A.J. Jacobs for connecting me with Bruce.🔥 Visit Bruce’s website here. 🔥 👀 Read Bruce’s Substack, The Nonlinear Life here. 👀🔥 Read Paul’s Substack here. 🔥🎤 See Paul’s upcoming shows here. 🎤About Crazy Money:Unlike traditional personal finance or investing shows, Crazy Money is not about how to make a million bucks, how to beat the stock market, or how to save money by switching cable providers. It is about deciding what role we want money to play in our lives and how we can use it to achieve our best selves. Topics covered include: philosophy, happiness, contentment, meaning, dreams, purpose, success, mental health, Buddhism, Stoicism, the hedonic treadmill, morality, mid-Life Crisis, business, work, careers, authors, books, consumerism, values, capitalism, economics, investing, saving, spending, personal finance, charity, philanthropy, altruism, affluence, wealth, wealth management, culture, society, and status. Crazy Money is edited by Mike Carano. Are you really still reading? This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit words.paulollinger.com/subscribe

Janny Scott is the descendant of railroad barons and financial tycoons. She grew up on an 800-acre estate on the Philadelphia Main Line. In her book The Beneficiary: Fortune, Misfortune, and the Story of My Father, she shares the details of both the opulence and the tragic complications of her family’s vast fortune. While things appeared perfect from the outside, alcoholism, suicide, divorce, and idleness derailed many of her relations. In this conversation, we discuss what it was like to grow up on property the size of Central Park and how the presence of so much wealth affects her attitudes about money today. We also cover the tragedies that befell many of her ancestors as they struggled to find purpose amidst massive affluence. Janny worked for 14 years as a reporter for the New York Times where she was a member of the team that won the 2000 Pulitzer Prize for national reporting. Prior to the NYT, she reported for the LA Times and The Record of Bergen County (NJ). Her first book, A Singular Woman: The Untold Story of Barack Obama’s Mother earned her a nomination for the PEN/Jacqueline Bogard Weld Award for Biography and was named to Time magazine’s top ten nonfiction books of 2011. A graduate of Harvard College, Janny spoke with me from her home in New York City. This episode was released in October, 2020.👀 Follow Paul on Instagram here. 👀🔥 Read Paul’s Substack here. 🔥🎤 See Paul’s upcoming shows here. 🎤About Crazy Money:Unlike traditional personal finance or investing shows, Crazy Money is not about how to make a million bucks, how to beat the stock market, or how to save money by switching cable providers. It is about deciding what role we want money to play in our lives and how we can use it to achieve our best selves. Topics covered include: philosophy, happiness, contentment, meaning, dreams, purpose, success, mental health, Buddhism, Stoicism, the hedonic treadmill, morality, mid-Life Crisis, business, work, careers, authors, books, consumerism, values, capitalism, economics, investing, saving, spending, personal finance, charity, philanthropy, altruism, affluence, wealth, wealth management, culture, society, and status. Crazy Money is edited by Mike Carano. Are you really still reading? This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit words.paulollinger.com/subscribe

Kevn Kinney is the lead singer of Drivin N Cryin, a rock band that achieved legendary status in the Southeast during the late 80s and 90s but never quite broke into the national big time. DNC’s popularity peaked when their album Fly Me Courageous was certified gold. During that time, the band toured with Neil Young and Soul Asylum, but even after selling over 500,000 copies, they never recouped the expenses that went into the recording and production of music videos they weren’t really all that into in the first place. Despite the ups-and-downs, Kevn told me he has never been happier than he is now because he does what he does for himself and doesn’t worry too much whether other people like it. Kevn remains a prolific and respected songwriter and tours constantly. Over 38 years playing together, the band has “survived the pressures of fame, a shifting musical landscape, multiple lineup changes, and miles of backroads and highways” to arrive where they are “comfortable with their past and confident in their future.” I had a great time talking to Kevn in my basement where we discussed:Why we both don’t love jam bandsHow the song Straight to Hell went from being a “dumb song at the end of the record” to one he now has to play at every showWhy, unlike a lot of musicians, he loves actually appreciates Spotify and iTunesThe good part about touring at 62How artistic envy keeps artists downSome of the bands he has loved working with over the years, including: the Black Crowes, Collective Soul, Indigo Girls, REM, Edwin McCain, Blues Traveler, and many moreThe difference between Atlanta and Athens, GABig thanks to Michaeline and Ed Roland for connecting me with Kevn. 🎸See Kevin and the band’s live dates here.🎸🔥 Buy Kevn's new album, Think About It here. 🔥 👂Listen to Paul’s Drvin N Cryin / KK playlist on Spotify.👂👀 Follow Paul on Instagram here. 👀🔥 Read Paul’s Substack here. 🔥🎤 See Paul’s upcoming shows here. 🎤About Crazy Money:Unlike traditional personal finance or investing shows, Crazy Money is not about how to make a million bucks, how to beat the stock market, or how to save money by switching cable providers. It is about deciding what role we want money to play in our lives and how we can use it to achieve our best selves. Topics covered include: philosophy, happiness, contentment, meaning, dreams, purpose, success, mental health, Buddhism, Stoicism, the hedonic treadmill, morality, mid-Life Crisis, business, work, careers, authors, books, consumerism, values, capitalism, economics, investing, saving, spending, personal finance, charity, philanthropy, altruism, affluence, wealth, wealth management, culture, society, and status. Crazy Money is edited by Mike Carano. Are you really still reading? This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit words.paulollinger.com/subscribe

Justin Richmond is the producer and co-host of Pushkin's music podcast Broken Record with writer Malcolm Gladwell and Def Jam co-founder Rick Rubin. He is also the host of a new podcast called Started from the Bottom on which he interviews mega-successful people who came from disadvantaged economic backgrounds and neighborhoods from which few residents go to college and the professional world. Before hooking up with Gladwell and Pushkin, Justin was a producer for NPR’s flagship news program Morning Edition then became an arts reporter for the network. He began his career as an intern for The Tavis Smiley Show and Smiley & West. Despite not graduating from high school, Justin earned a B.A. in philosophy from the University of California, Berkeley, and a master’s degree from the Berkeley Graduate School of Journalism.👀 Follow Paul on Instagram here 👀🔥 Read Paul’s Substack here 🔥🎤 See Paul’s upcoming shows here 🎤About Crazy Money:Unlike traditional personal finance or investing shows, Crazy Money is not about how to make a million bucks, how to beat the stock market, or how to save money by switching cable providers. It is about deciding what role we want money to play in our lives and how we can use it to achieve our best selves. Topics covered include: philosophy, happiness, contentment, meaning, dreams, purpose, success, mental health, Buddhism, Stoicism, the hedonic treadmill, morality, mid-Life Crisis, business, work, careers, authors, books, consumerism, values, capitalism, economics, investing, saving, spending, personal finance, charity, philanthropy, altruism, affluence, wealth, wealth management, culture, society, and status. Crazy Money is edited by Mike Carano. Are you really still reading? This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit words.paulollinger.com/subscribe

Annual private school tuition can run over $60,000 in big cities like New York or Los Angeles. But even in smaller markets like Atlanta, 14 years of private school (pre-k through 12th grade) will easily exceed half a million dollars. (And that doesn’t include the expected contributions to annual fund and capital campaigns!) This massive commitment begs the question, “just what are you buying for your private school dollar?” On this week’s episode, Paul talks to three good friends and fellow parents to discuss how they think about the private v. public school decision. Each of them has experience parenting in both public and independent schools in Dallas, Los Angeles, and Atlanta respectively. Thank you to P.J. Brady, Charlene Fitzgibbon, and Abigail Land for their time, candor and good humor. 🔥 Read Paul’s Substack here 🔥🎤 See Paul’s upcoming shows here 🎤About Crazy Money:Unlike traditional personal finance or investing shows, Crazy Money is not about how to make a million bucks, how to beat the stock market, or how to save money by switching cable providers. It is about deciding what role we want money to play in our lives and how we can use it to achieve our best selves. Topics covered include: philosophy, happiness, contentment, meaning, dreams, purpose, success, mental health, Buddhism, Stoicism, the hedonic treadmill, morality, mid-Life Crisis, business, work, careers, authors, books, consumerism, values, capitalism, economics, investing, saving, spending, personal finance, charity, philanthropy, altruism, affluence, wealth, wealth management, culture, society, and status. Crazy Money is edited by Mike Carano. Are you really still reading? This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit words.paulollinger.com/subscribe

Oliver Burkeman is the author of 4,000 Weeks: Time Managment for Mortals, which Adam Grant calls “The most important book ever written about time management.” In it, Oliver argues that using your life (4,000 weeks = about 80 years) most meaningfully requires abandoning the illusion that we can—or should try to—get everything done. And that the attempt to do so just leaves us miserable and isolated. Soone of the keys to productivity is deciding what to ignore. Further, Oliver reckons, when you put your existence into the context of the enormity of the universe, you realize that many of our “plans” are just distractions from the knowledge that we will all eventually be dead and won’t be remembered for terribly long. So why shouldn’t we just spend our days taking hikes and cooking for our children? Hey, that’s not a bad question. Sign up for Oliver’s newsletter here. Listen to Monty Python’s The Galaxy Song here. 🔥 Read Paul’s Substack here 🔥🎤 See Paul’s upcoming shows here 🎤This episode was originally posted in August, 2021About Crazy Money:Unlike traditional personal finance or investing shows, Crazy Money is not about how to make a million bucks, how to beat the stock market, or how to save money by switching cable providers. It is about deciding what role we want money to play in our lives and how we can use it to achieve our best selves. Topics covered include: philosophy, happiness, contentment, meaning, dreams, purpose, success, mental health, Buddhism, Stoicism, the hedonic treadmill, morality, mid-Life Crisis, business, work, careers, authors, books, consumerism, values, capitalism, economics, investing, saving, spending, personal finance, charity, philanthropy, altruism, affluence, wealth, wealth management, culture, society, and status. Crazy Money is edited by Mike Carano Are you really still reading? This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit words.paulollinger.com/subscribe

Chef Frankie Celenza started his culinary career with an illicit George Foreman grill in his prep school dorm room. Today, Frankie is the Emmy award-winning host of the Tastemade's hit show Struggle Meals. Frankie believes you don’t have to spend a lot of money to cook (and eat) well. He wants more people preparing their own food because he believe it is a fundamental way to take control of their health, well-being, and finances. Not only that, but cooking is a social and enjoyable act of service and love, and one of the things that make humans unique. In this conversation, Frankie and I discuss: The benefits of attending boarding schoolWhat it was like to work with Mario Batali His thoughts on Netflix’s The Menu and Hulu’s The Bear His favorite books on food and cookingThe essential basics to outfit a kitchenWhether organic food is worth itCheck out the new season of Struggle Meals here ! 🍲🔥 Read Paul’s Substack here 🔥🎤 See Paul’s upcoming shows here 🎤About Crazy Money:Unlike traditional personal finance or investing shows, Crazy Money is not about how to make a million bucks, how to beat the stock market, or how to save money by switching cable providers. It is about deciding what role we want money to play in our lives and how we can use it to achieve our best selves. Topics covered include: philosophy, happiness, contentment, meaning, dreams, purpose, success, mental health, Buddhism, Stoicism, the hedonic treadmill, morality, mid-Life Crisis, business, work, careers, authors, books, consumerism, values, capitalism, economics, investing, saving, spending, personal finance, charity, philanthropy, altruism, affluence, wealth, wealth management, culture, society. Status.Crazy Money is edited by Mike CaranoAre you really still reading? This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit words.paulollinger.com/subscribe

Leah Rudick is an actor, writer, and comedian whose Wealthy Woman character videos have earned her almost one million followers on Instagram and TikTok. Thanks to her breakout social media success, Leah is now selling out comedy shows all over the country. In these videos, a clueless woman of wealth shares her point-of-view on everyday experiences like going to Cracker Barrel, flying Southwest Airlines, renting a car, or taking the bus. I (Paul Ollinger, hoster of show / writer of episode notes) find her videos hilarious. Leah was in Atlanta last week for a sold-out show at City Winer. She was kind enough to come by the house to chat money, success, and the very odd jobs that helped her pay the bills as a struggling actress. A native of Cincinnati, Leah began performing improv in New York City after graduating from Sarah Lawrence College. Her work has taken her to the Edinburgh Fringe Festival. New York Sketchfest, and the Los Angeles Comedy Festival. She has appeared on HBO’s hit High Maintenance and IFC’s Commuters.👩‍🦰Follow Leah on Instagram👩‍🦰🔥 Read Paul’s Substack here 🔥🎤 See Paul’s upcoming shows here 🎤About Crazy Money:Unlike traditional personal finance shows like Dave Ramsey or Suze Orman, Crazy Money is not about how to make a million bucks, how to beat the market, or how to save money by switching cable providers. It is about deciding what role we want money to play in our lives and how we can use it to achieve our best selves. Topics covered include: philosophy, happiness, contentment, meaning, dreams, purpose, success, mental health, Buddhism, Stoicism, the hedonic treadmill, morality, mid-Life Crisis, business, work, careers, authors, books, consumerism, values, capitalism, economics, investing, saving, spending, personal finance, charity, philanthropy, altruism, affluence, wealth, wealth management, culture, society. Status.Crazy Money is edited by Mike CaranoAre you really still reading? This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit words.paulollinger.com/subscribe

Morgan Housel is the author of the book, The Psychology of Money: Timeless Lessons on Wealth, Greed, and Happiness. As the back cover of his new best-seller reads, “Doing well with money isn’t necessarily about what you know. It’s about how you behave. And behavior is hard to teach, even to really smart people." While the book is partially about investing, it’s really about how knowing what you want from life will help you make better decisions about money. I really enjoy Morgan’s writing and found the book to be an elegant summation of many of the things I want to discuss on this show. This episode was originally posted in October, 2020. 🔥 Read Paul’s Substack here 🔥🎤 See Paul’s upcoming shows here 🎤About Crazy Money:Unlike traditional personal finance shows like Dave Ramsey or Suze Orman, Crazy Money is not about how to make a million bucks, how to beat the market, or how to save money by switching cable providers. It is about deciding what role we want money to play in our lives and how we can use it to achieve our best selves. Topics covered include: philosophy, happiness, contentment, meaning, dreams, purpose, success, mental health, Buddhism, Stoicism, the hedonic treadmill, morality, mid-Life Crisis, business, work, careers, authors, books, consumerism, values, capitalism, economics, investing, saving, spending, personal finance, charity, philanthropy, altruism, affluence, wealth, wealth management, culture, society. Status.Crazy Money is edited by Mike Carano.Are you still reading? Go do something. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit words.paulollinger.com/subscribe

Do women find men in expensive cars more attractive than men in less expensive cars? Some people believe that the answer to this question is so patently self-evident as to not require any thought. But my guest today conducted actual scientific research into this age-old stereotype. Rob Searle is a Welsh psychologist who co-authored a paper evaluating the status-enhancing effects of luxury vehicles on the attractiveness of both men and women to heterosexual members of the opposite sex. He asked participants to rate the attractiveness of an average looking man, first in a Bentley Continental GT, then in a much more modest Ford Fiesta. The findings were published in the British Journal of Psychology. And he discusses them in this episode of Crazy Money. The results build on the work of David Buss and others who found that perceived affluence does influence mating patterns.🔥 Read Paul’s Substack here 🔥🎤 See Paul’s upcoming shows here 🎤🔗Connect with Rob Searle on LinkedIn 🔗🚗 Summary of the study can be found here 🚗About Crazy Money:Unlike traditional personal finance shows like Dave Ramsey or Suze Orman, Crazy Money is not about how to make a million bucks, how to beat the market, or how to save money by switching cable providers. It is about deciding what role we want money to play in our lives and how we can use it to achieve our best selves. Topics covered include: philosophy, happiness, contentment, meaning, dreams, purpose, success, mental health, Buddhism, Stoicism, the hedonic treadmill, morality, mid-Life Crisis, business, work, careers, authors, books, consumerism, values, capitalism, economics, investing, saving, spending, personal finance, charity, philanthropy, altruism, affluence, wealth, wealth management, culture, society. Status.Crazy Money is edited by Mike CaranoAre you really still reading?-- Read my newsletter Money and the Meaning of Life here. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit words.paulollinger.com/subscribe

This week, Paul reads some of the recent essays from his Substack. In "Why Talking About Money and Happiness Matters” he reflects on the reasons Bono, Jonah Hill, and Brian Cox have all, in the past few months, engaged in public discussion on the nature of success and what it can and can’t do for us. In "Lessons from a Freshman Pimple,” Paul recalls the devastating experience of an early high school face blemish and why seeking others’ approval can lead us to bad decisions. In "The Real Reason They Call it F-You Money,” he describes the mind games new money plays on its owner and why we must understand how money can help us get what we want from life (and not the other way around).✍🏻 Subscribe free to Paul’s Substack here. ✍🏻📷 Follow Paul on Facebook here. 📷🤣 See Paul’s world-changing comedy on Instagram here. 🤣 This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit words.paulollinger.com/subscribe

Julie Saxon is the mother of two and a senior media executive. In 2013, her life was upended when her husband, Joel, was diagnosed with stage IV colorectal cancer. Thus began journey during which she had to keep the train on the tracks at work and at home while helping Joel fight for his life. But after 6 valiant years, 87 rounds of chemo, ten rounds of radiation, seven surgeries, and two clinical trials, he lost that battle. Joel lived longer than 99% of patients with his diagnosis, and—as I was listening to Julie tell the story— I couldn’t help but think how much her strength, support, and raw will had to do with his relative longevity. Julie and I met when we both worked in advertising sales at Yahoo! in the early 2000’s. Her story reminded me of how lucky we both were to work at a company staffed by so many incredible human beings. To this day, her Atlanta co-workers remain some of her closest friends. Not only did one of those colleagues introduce her to Joel, but he and the others were there to support her throughout marriage and its sad conclusion. Julie is now Chief Revenue Officer for a large digital media company. She and her two beautiful daughters live in Atlanta. I want to thank Julie for trusting me with this conversation. This episode was originally released in June, 2020. ✍🏽 Read Paul’s Substack here. ✍🏽🎤 See Paul’s upcoming comedy shows in Charlotte, Chattanooga and more here. 🎤🩺 Get screened for colorectal cancer. 🩺 This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit words.paulollinger.com/subscribe

This episode is about working for fun, love, and legacy. Peter Gladstone is the Co-founder of Mass Hole Donuts, bakers of gourmet donut holes that celebrate the people, traditions, and spirit of Boston and Massachusetts. After 20 years in consumer marketing with companies like Gillette, P&G, and the Boston Beer Company (aka, Sam Adams), Peter retired and is now building Mass Holes because, he says, it’s fun, and he wants to contribute to the culture of his hometown. When he’s not establishing his Boston institutions, he is a Senior Advisor at the Harvard Innovation Labs where he advises consumer-facing ventures. Peter and I (Paul, host of show and writer of notes) were classmates at Dartmouth’s Tuck School of Business. That is where I developed my appreciation for his creative mind and wacky and wicked good sense of humor. We talk about the difference between working to pay your bills and working on a passion project, the role of humor in the corporate world, how he and his team survived pandemic, and how he defines success now that he has “enough.” ✍🏽 Read Paul’s Substack here. ✍🏽🎤 See Paul’s upcoming comedy shows here. 🎤🍩Visit Mass Hole Donuts website here. 🍩🍪 See Mass Hole’s Instagram here. 🍪 This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit words.paulollinger.com/subscribe

Nicole Lapin is the New York Times best-selling author of Rich B***h, Boss B***h, Miss Independent, and Becoming Super Woman. A summa cum laude graduate of Northwestern University’s journalism school, she became one of the youngest anchors in CNN’s history at age 21. In this episode, we discuss her parents’ rancorous divorce, her dad’s death by overdose, and the resulting financial turmoil that set her on a mission to help women have more financial literacy and empowerment in their lives and relationships.LINKS 💰Listen to Money Rehab with Nicole here💰🐶 Follow Penny Lapin here 🐶💪 Subscribe to Paul’s Substack here. 💪🔥 Follow Paul on Instagram here. 🔥 This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit words.paulollinger.com/subscribe

Larry Thompson is an entertainment manger in Beverly Hills, CA. In his 50+ years in Hollywood, Larry has guided the careers of over 200 stars, including Drew Barrymore, William Shatner, Cicely Tyson, Joan Rivers, Sonny & Cher, David Hasselhoff, Barry White, and Cindy Crawford. Larry grew up in Clarksdale, MS, graduated from Ole Miss law school then drove across country to chase his dream in Hollywood. As a young lawyer at Capitol Records, he helped negotiate the break-up of the Beatles then proceeded to sign each of the Fab 4 to their own solo contracts. This is just one of many incredible stories Larry shares about the talent he’s worked with, including George Harrison, Barry White, Elton John, Farrah Fawcett, and Lee Majors. We also discuss how Larry helps talent see their own potential, avoid pitfalls, and how Larry got his own act together when success and ego distracted him from what was important in life. Larry is the recipient of the Heller Award for Lifetime Achievement from the Talent Managers Association and the author of the book, SHINE: A Powerful 4-step plan to becoming a star in anything you do.💪 Subscribe to Paul’s Substack here. 💪🔥 Follow Paul on Instagram here. 🔥 This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit words.paulollinger.com/subscribe

A year ago, Katherine Blanford was working as a nanny by day and doing comedy at night. Last summer, she made her network television debut on The Tonight Show with Jimmy Fallon and is now headlining around the country and opening for David Spade. She and I discuss the experience of having "heat" and cash in her pocket for the first time. We talk about artistic envy, the work ethic needed to succeed in comedy, what she learned about wealth and careers while working as a nanny, and of course, how much she loves the Ollinger family basement. 🔥 Follow Katherine on Instagram here. 🔥💪 Subscribe to Paul’s Substack here. 💪 This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit words.paulollinger.com/subscribe

Hey everybody. Happy 2023! This is a short, lightly edited greeting from Paul /me about where the podcast has been in 2022 and where we're going to take it in the year to come. I am grateful for your continued support and interest. I wish you and your family a safe, prosperous, and fulfilled year.Carpe Diem!✍️ Subscribe to Paul's Substack newsletter here.✍️🔥Subscribe to us on YouTube here. 🔥📧 E-mail Paul at [email protected] 📧 Crazy Money is produced and edited by Mike Carano. Topics addressed on Crazy Money include: Money, Happiness, Contentment, Meaning, philosophy, dreams, purpose, Success, mental health, Business, Work, Careers, Authors, Books, Values, capitalism, economics, investing, saving, spending, personal finance, charity, philanthropy, altruism, affluence, wealth, wealth management, culture, society. Status.If you haven’t found what you’re looking for in the words above, you’re probably not going to find them down here. Seriously, all the important stuff is up yonder. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit words.paulollinger.com/subscribe

The philosophical martial artist and actor, Bruce Lee is supposed to have said, “So you think, so shall you become.” On this week’s episode, we explore the power of positive expectations with David Robson, an award-winning science writer and author of the new book The Expectation Effect: How Your Mindset Can Change Your World. As you’ll hear, David makes a strong argument supporting Bruce Lee’s message: that positive expectations can meaningfully improve our lives. To be clear, this is not about the Law of Attraction. Robson bases the book on data gleaned from the scientific method. These studies provide ample evidence that our expectations can make us healthier, smarter, and significantly improve our aging prospects. (For better or worse–well, worse–the opposite is also true.)It’s important to note, as Robson and I discuss, that your expectations don’t just change your world. They also change the lives of others because our expectations of them–and theirs of us–have an impact on our respective lives. So we kind of owe it to each other to expect the best. In this chat we talk about how routine or process can help get us out of our heads before an important event. We explore the damage caused by guilt and shame, and why worrying about worrying (‘Meta Worrying’) or stressing about stress, might be the most dangerous thing we can do. Most importantly, he provides methods by which to break ourselves out of these bad habits when we find ourselves slipping into them. And that’s important because our expectations can change the world.🎧Listen on Apple Podcasts here 🎧✍️Get Paul’s Substack newsletter here.✍️🔥Subscribe to us on YouTube here. 🔥Follow David Robson:Twitter - https://bit.ly/3PEkgps (@d_a_robson)Instagram - https://bit.ly/3G7VuL8 (@davidarobson)Website - https://davidrobson.meAmazon - https://amzn.to/3PvliUC This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit words.paulollinger.com/subscribe

Kristin Keffeler is the author of a new book called The Myth of the Silver Spoon: navigating family wealth and creating an impactful life. Kristin is also the founder of Illumination360 where she works with ultra high net worth families, including many worth billions of dollars. Her specialty is helping the rising generations create their own identities having grown up with extreme family wealth.In this conversation, Kristin and I talked about how her own family's affluence led her into this field; the specific doubts and fears that teen and adult inheritors of generational wealth have to deal with. We talked about the negative messages that society sends to wealthy children, about the balance rising generation members must strike owning their family name, but creating their own. We talked about how all parents—especially wealthier ones—can model financial behavior for their kids. And lastly, we discuss what the NFL Hall of Fame can teach us about the likelihood of measuring up to our wildly successful parents or grandparents. ✍️Get Paul’s Substack newsletter here.✍️🔥Subscribe to us on YouTube here. 🔥Follow Kristin Keffeler:Website - https://illumination360.com/mythThe Myth of the Silver Spoon: The Book - https://amzn.to/3i6qFwN This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit words.paulollinger.com/subscribe

Richard Reeves is a senior fellow at the Brookings Institution and the author of a new book called Of Boys and Men: Why the Modern Male Is Struggling, Why It Matters, and What to Do about It. You might ask, “Why is this topic relevant to Crazy Money, a podcast about money and happiness, work and meaning?” Because the connection between education, gainful employment and life satisfaction is massive. And on these metrics, the modern male is not doing well. Consider some of these data points: Boys are 50% more likely to fail classes in math, reading and science than girls. By High School, 2/3 of the students in the top 10% of the class ranked by GPA are girls, while about 2/3 of the students in the lowest 1/5 of the class are boys. And education matters. One in three American men with only a high school diploma (10 million men!) are now out of the labor force. They're not unemployed–they're out of the labor force. They're not even counted in the unemployment numbers. And this matters because men without education and jobs do less well as husbands and fathers and thus perpetuate the cycle for their children. Yes, especially for their sons. Perhaps worst of all, men make up 75% of those who die by deaths of despair, i.e. by suicide, or acute substance abuse. The net of it is when you lose hope in the future, you will become increasingly volatile in the present. You've probably read Richard's writing in the New York Times, The Guardian, The Atlantic or the Wall Street Journal, his previous book Dream Hoarders, which The Economist named a Book of the Year.. I'm delighted to have him back on the show.🎧Listen on Apple Podcasts here 🎧✍️Get Paul’s Substack newsletter here.✍️🔥Subscribe to us on YouTube here. 🔥Follow Richard Reeves:Twitter - https://bit.ly/3EBSXIo (@RichardvReeves)Of Boys and Men: The Book - https://a.co/d/3SnjEhQWebsite - https://richardvreeves.com This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit words.paulollinger.com/subscribe

We don't think about it all the time, but BELONGINGNESS is the third most fundamental desire on Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs. Just above safety and physiological requirements, is our need to feel safe as part of a tribe. My guest this week is Geoffrey L. Cohen, the author of Belonging: the Science of Creating Connection and Bridging Divides. Geoff is a professor of Psychology and Organizational studies at Stanford University in Palo Alto, California. In this conversation, he and I talk about what it means to belong to a place, an organization, a family or a movement; We explore how belongingness and identity are intermixed, and what implications that has for discussing politics and other beliefs with people who have differing points of view. We talk about how to design diversity training so it doesn't alienate half the room (maybe we should call it “Belongingness Training”). We also talk about what groups you'd rather not belong to, because while belongingness is important, some tribes are better than others!🎧Listen on Apple Podcasts here 🎧✍️Get Paul’s Substack newsletter here.✍️🔥Subscribe to us on YouTube here. 🔥Follow Geoff Cohen:Twitter - bit.ly/3UVv5F4Website - www.geoffreylcohen.com This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit words.paulollinger.com/subscribe

Former hedge fund manager Hugh Hendry grew up working class in Glasgow, Scotland. His anxiety, detachment from money, and passionate observations of life led him to hypotheses and market positions others couldn’t see. In 2008, when the rest of the world was melting down, Hugh’s Eclectica Asset Management returned over 30%. As great as the money was, he says what drives him is a profound need to be loved. Today, Hugh develops property in St. Barths where he lives full time.In this conversation, Hugh shares anecdotes of Scottish thrift that will make you laugh, an honest description of how it feels to lose millions of other people's dollars, why closing his hedge fund felt “as if you've died in Mortal Kombat,” and why we should all be mindful of “the profound wrongness of today.” We spoke at the Stansberry Research conference in Boston in October.🎧Listen on Apple Podcasts here 🎧✍️Get Paul’s Substack newsletter here.✍️🔥Subscribe to us on YouTube here. 🔥Follow Hugh Hendry:The Acid Capitalist podcast - https://apple.co/3FX3D5vTwitter - https://bit.ly/3UKgfBgInstagram - https://bit.ly/3UDczkAWebsite - acidcap.com This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit words.paulollinger.com/subscribe

Barry Meier is a former investigative reporter at The New York Times and the author of the book, Pain Killer: An Empire of Deceit and the Origin of America's Opioid Epidemic, which explores how the Sackler family's greed catalyzed a plague of addiction and death that has destroyed families and whole communities across the country.Between 1999 and 2000, 564,000 Americans died from an opioid overdose. In 2020, the most recent year for which statistics are available, there were over 68,000 opioid overdoses in the U.S. That's 188 per day and each one of these deaths represents a son or daughter, a brother or sister or a mother or father, who is not coming back. People died of opioid overdoses before the 1996 launch of OxyContin, but it’s clear that Oxy and Purdue Pharma’s (owned by the Sacklers) aggressive and deceptive marketing practices threw gasoline on a spark that has turned into a raging wildfire. In 2023, Netflix will launch a miniseries based on Pain Killer.In our conversation today, Barry and I discuss the Sacklers’ family legacy of ethically dubious marketing of pharmaceuticals and how they made tens of billions of dollars selling OxyContin using the same techniques, like pushing free samples, knowing that the drug was quite addictive. We discuss how and why the FDA approved claims that OxyContin was less prone to addiction in the complete absence of evidence proving that it actually was. And lastly, we discuss the extent to which OxyContin kicked off this opioid epidemic for which there is no clear way out.🎧Listen on Apple Podcasts here 🎧✍️Get Paul’s Substack newsletter here.✍️🔥Subscribe to us on YouTube here. 🔥Follow Barry Meier:barrymeier.comnytimes.com/by/barry-meierPain Killer: The Book - https://a.co/d/b9cEPHS This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit words.paulollinger.com/subscribe

Where do you sit on the social hierarchy?You might not think about it daily, but if I asked you to compare your status to that of one of your friends, you'd probably know the answer: above some, below others, and probably on about the same level as most. Perhaps you'd follow up with questions like “Do you mean who has more money? Or who has more recognition in the community or who's more attractive or physically fit?” This request for clarification demonstrates the nature of status, and how we go about gaining it and retaining it, whether or not we are conscious of our efforts to do so.My guest this week is Will Storr. He's the author of a fascinating book called The Status Game. The author of six critically acclaimed books, including The Status Game, Selfie, and The Science of Storytelling, Will’s writing has appeared in The Guardian, The Sunday Times, The New Yorker and the New York Times. And his journalism has been recognized with awards from the National Press Club, the One World Press and Amnesty International. If I haven't yet convinced you of his status, I’ll also share that he's a great looking guy who grows giant yams. (You'll understand that reference about 20 minutes into the episode.)In this conversation, Will and I discuss why status matters; Whether the pursuit of status is a fool's game for small minded people with totally fragile egos; We talk about a totally bizarre source of status in Polynesia that demonstrates the arbitrariness and locally relative nature of status. We talk about whether it's better to be a big fish in a small pond or a small fish in a big pond. We talk about how the quest for status shows up in politics and religion and boy does it ever and lastly, we discuss how the thirst for status among even the most rich and famous among us, like Sir Paul McCartney, demonstrate the insatiable need for this elusive and addictive drug that is STATUS.🎧Listen on Apple Podcasts here 🎧✍️Get Paul’s Substack newsletter here.✍️🔥Subscribe to us on YouTube here. 🔥Follow Will Storr:Twitter - https://bit.ly/3D84YVg (@wstorr)The Status Game: The Book - https://amzn.to/3TnazNi This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit words.paulollinger.com/subscribe

This episode is Part Two of our Money in College Sports: NIL series. Until last year, college athletes were prohibited from collecting any compensation. But today, thanks to Name, Image, and Likeness (NIL) deals, the stakes are high and getting higher. To make sense of this issue, I speak with A J Vaynerchuck from Vayner Sports and Laine Higgins from the Wall Street Journal.A J Vaynerchuk is the co-founder of sports management agency, Vayner Sports where he has been a part of several NIL deals for some of the top athletes in the country. We talked about what brands are looking for when they partner with college athletes, how big the deals have gotten, the specifics of the deals he's done with Dr. Pepper and Kool-Aid, and we go down the road and think about just what college sports are going to look like in the next five to ten years.Laine Higgins is a former college athlete and is now a sports reporter for The Wall Street Journal where she covers, among other things, college sports. She and I discuss Title IX and its implications for the NIL deals, and what responsibility schools have for ensuring equal access for both men and women to these kinds of deals. We talk about how and why brands are structuring deals with athletes from non-revenue sports like volleyball, swimming, and track and field, and to what degree attractiveness and sex appeal drives followership on social media and thus, the potential value of an NIL deal. (Be sure to listen to that part because–even though I ask the question sincerely–I still manage to come across like a complete creep!)🎧Listen on Apple Podcasts here 🎧✍️Get Paul’s Substack newsletter here.✍️🔥Subscribe to us on YouTube here. 🔥Follow AJ Vaynerchuk:Twitter - https://bit.ly/3SZtPjt (@ajv)Instagram - https://bit.ly/3Vq0Rec (@ajv)Website - https://vaynersports.comFollow Laine Higgins:Twitter - https://bit.ly/3EJJWxh (@lainehiggins17)WSJ Articles - https://on.wsj.com/3VwSRrW This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit words.paulollinger.com/subscribe

The news from the economic world is pretty bad right now. Inflation up and the stock market’s down, which means we're all experiencing some degree of financial stress. Here to help us put it all in perspective is Ken Honda. Known as Japan’s Zen millionaire, Ken’s book Happy Money has sold over 8 million copies worldwide.In this, his second visit to Crazy Money, we talk about: What economic fear, uncertainty and doubt can do to our health and our relationships; How we can maintain peace of mind when those around us are losing their minds; How to be a good spouse during times of financial trouble; The games that shame and guilt play with our minds; How inflation can actually help us get clarity around our priorities, and lastly, we talk about a few of the lessons from Japan's lost decades of economic stagnation.🎧Listen on Apple Podcasts here 🎧✍️Get Paul’s Substack newsletter here.✍️🔥Subscribe to us on YouTube here. 🔥Follow Ken:Instagram - https://bit.ly/3el1xAQFacebook - https://bit.ly/3T8vhzHWebsite - https://kenhonda.com/Read Ken's book:Happy Money - https://amzn.to/3T86LPo This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit words.paulollinger.com/subscribe

Spencer Jakab is the editor of The Wall Street Journal's Heard on the Street column and the author of a fascinating new book called The Revolution That Wasn't: Gamestop, Reddit, and the Fleecing of the Retail Investor. In January of 2021, a large group of small investors from the WallStreetBets subreddit rallied around the stock of video game retailer GameStop, which they believe had been unfairly attacked by short-selling hedge fund Melvin Capital. The subsequent and totally unexpected rally in the stock made millions for several WallStreetBets members and crippled Melvin Capital which was lost up to a billion dollars *per day* during the worst of the short squeeze.On this week's episode, Spencer and I talk about the perfect storm of market, societal, and technological factors that catalyzed the Gamestop phenomenon, why the Robinhood stock trading app (which played a major role in this whole scenario) was designed to function exactly like a sports gambling app. We talk about how WallStreetBets and Robin Hood “investors” are different from boring old etrade or Schwab customers like me, the difference between investing and gambling and lastly, what Melvin Capital’s profound losses mean for hedge fund managers in the future. That is, in addition to market, political, and climate-based factors, these hedge fund managers also have to take into consideration the potential madness of crowds.🎧Listen on Apple Podcasts here 🎧✍️Get Paul’s Substack newsletter here.✍️🔥Subscribe to us on YouTube here. 🔥Follow Spencer Jakab:Twitter - https://bit.ly/3SqtqpIFacebook - https://bit.ly/3fnalq0Read Spencer's Book:The Revolution That Wasn't - https://amzn.to/3xUUC8g This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit words.paulollinger.com/subscribe

Up until last year, no college athlete could legally, officially accept compensation for playing a sport at his or her college. That changed last year with a Supreme Court ruling that now allows college athletes to be compensated for the use of their Name, Image and Likeness (NIL).On today's show, I talk to Darren Rovell, a sports reporter who spent 18 years on the air with CNBC and ESPN and now a senior executive producer at the Action Network. I also talk to John Staton, who is the Director of Operations at Classic City Collective, an organization of donors and alumni dedicated to helping the athletes at the University of Georgia, which John used to be. We discuss how the transfer portal effectively makes every college player a free agent. We talk about how many NIL deals are happening, who they're happening for and how big they're getting. We discuss how collectives interface with athletic departments. We talk about whether money might poison relationships in the locker room within teams, and just what this world might look like five years down the road. It has already changed college sports so much in just like a year and a half. Who knows what the future holds.💰If you enjoy Crazy Money, please leave us a rating here. 💰✍️Get Paul’s Substack newsletter here.✍️🔥Subscribe to us on YouTube here. 🔥Follow Darren Rovell:Twitter - https://bit.ly/3f50WUdInstagram - https://bit.ly/2yflj86Follow John Staton:Twitter - https://bit.ly/3xzBLzwInstagram - https://bit.ly/3Bs1zyy This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit words.paulollinger.com/subscribe