I’ve been waiting for Eugenié George’s Our Money Stories to come out since she talked about writing it on Nerd’s Eye View (a financial planning industry blog written by Michael Kitces). What drew me to Eugenié, and got me excited about her book, was her insistence that history - and in particular the historical and present day experience of structural racism - are as relevant to financial wellness as spending patterns are.

What she writes is true: 

“Most money books are still how a man sees the money game. And the strategies ignore all historical context with how women view money or create value systems… of course we will use actionable steps that use math to help us look at our money, but we must start thinking about our cash flow as an individualized process.”

This book is designed as a holistic financial wellness resource, specifically for women of colour who have been methodically excluded from pathways to mainstream financial success. In 40 interviews with women from the African-American, Asian-American, Latinx-American, and Native American communities, Eugenié dives deep into how personal experience, family history, and racism entwine to create each woman’s unique money story, and how recognition of this story is the necessary first step towards financial wellness specific to that woman. 

Part two is about explaining what it means to be financially well, and emphatically refuses to isolate financial wellness as a singular aim. Successive chapters examine how any money story is affected by physical, nutritional, emotional, social, spiritual, intellectual, financial, and environmental wellness. 

In part three, Eugenié outlines the six No B.S. Week Financial Wellness Plan, a series of weekly projects that include Money Date 101 (my favourite), Your Money Story, Financial Wellness Plan, The Money Plan, Your Net Worth, and Money Brain Dumps and Money Goals. 

The last section of the book is a guide to finding your financial BFFS: the people and resources who can help you implement the financial wellness plan you’ve spent six weeks crafting. Although some of the roles are specific to the U.S., the insistence on finding community, support, and mentors is universally good advice. 

Who should read Our Money Stories?

This is worth reading for anyone - either because it speaks to your own desire for financial wellness in a way that traditional books have not. Or because traditional books are designed for you and you can grow from learning exactly how much you’ve benefited from this at the expense of everyone else. 

If you only have time to read one chapter:

Definitely read Chapter 26: Week 1: Money Dates. This is a master class on intentionally examining and building on your relationship with money, and is the antidote to the kind of perfectionism too many budgeting systems instill (I’m looking at you, Ramsey). 

The best thing about this chapter is that Eugenié describes four different kinds of Money Dates: 

1. Planning Dates, for looking at your numbers

2. Guidance Dates, for examining your blind spots

3. Inspiration Dates, for dreaming about what you want 

4. Education Dates, for - you guessed it - educating yourself

If you only have time to read one paragraph:

“It is essential that you organize your money environment. I have to put on my momma bear hat and tell you that you have to put in some work. You have to learn about all aspects of your money because if you don’t, someone will be in ownership of it without you even knowing.”

(Chapter 29: Week 4: The Money Plan, no page numbers because I read it on my Kindle!)

If you only have time to read one sentence:

“By looking at our past, establishing awareness with our ancestry, and building a new money story, we will be able to break barriers in our lives.”

(Chapter 1: Introduction)

I hope every single one of you is finding a (safe) way to enjoy the summer. Hopefully on, in, or beside the water, with a book in your hand and a drink within easy reaching distance. And since you’re staying two metres away from everyone else, and prefer reading to shouted conversations (just me?) here’s a selection of interesting, informative, or inspirational reads: 

• Encouragement from Jacquette Timmons to find good trouble to get into, inspired by Representative John Lewis

• A realization that the FIRE movement is about so much more than that last bit about “Retire Early” from Christine Benz

• Exhortation from Peter Bregman to let yourself feel your feelings when grief strikes

If these three great reads aren’t quite enough for you, check out:

• Megan Bartelt’s article on staying invested in your employer’s shares

• A comprehensive guide to financial aid for Canadian postsecondary students by Cameron Yee

• A beautiful meditation on what budgeting isn’t from our friend, Chris Enns. 

Still reading? How about:

• Cracking open policy expert John Stapleton’s rundown of the CERB clawback and what an equitable treatment for low income, elderly, and disabled Canadians should look like

• A family anecdote about spilled milk that Tiffany Aliche turns into a great way to avoid overthinking mistakes and heading directly to solutions instead 

• Fascinating research that shows how our beliefs about stress influence its impact on our health

• A thorough checklist to roadtest your incapacity plan - before you need it!. 

Happy Reading!

What Does "Good Trouble" Look Like in Your Life?

From Jacquette Timmons

“The people who tend to leave the greatest legacy often never set out to do that. They were just doing what they felt called to do."

Read the full article here.

Confessions of a Former 'FIRE' Skeptic

From Christine Benz

“I’ve concluded that the “retire early” part of FIRE is a bit of a distraction from the really important part of the movement: the value of mindfully allocating our precious time and money in a way that aligns with our values, life goals, and joys. From that standpoint, even those of us who don’t plan to retire early can learn something from FIRE, and young investors with their whole lives ahead of them can learn even more.”

Read the full article here.

Let Yourself Be Unproductive. At Least for a Little While.

From Peter Bregman

“Feel the sadness, the loss, the change. Sink into the discomfort of not moving forward, not getting things done. In a strange way, not progressing may be its own form of productivity. Something fruitful is happening, we’re just not controlling it.”

Read the full article here.

You can read this month's entire list below:

My (private) company is doing a tender offer. Should I participate? | Meg Bartelt

“So, if you want to stay concentrated in your company stock, it’s not necessarily a bad idea. You in fact kind of have to do that to have a chance of a big windfall. But you also have to understand that this (very) probably won’t happen, and you’re more likely to have less money in the end than you would have had you sold the stock and invested in the “low-cost, broadly diversified portfolio” that we financial planners are always nattering on about.”

Financial aid guide for university and college students in Canada | Cameron Yee

“If you’re overwhelmed by the thought of student debt, this student financial aid guide can help you understand your options, how the programs work, and how to apply and qualify for them, too. Remember, you have nothing to lose from applying!”

Budgeting doesn’t mean spending less on things | Chris Enns

“Budgeting is about doing money on purpose.”

The CERB clawback summer reader| John Stapleton

“No surprise here. If you have more RGI housing, more social assistance recipients and more low-income seniors, you also have the greatest number of clawbacks and people therefore have less money to spend in their local communities. Double whammy!”

A Simple Trick to Avoid Overthinking | Tiffany Aliche

“Become a paper towel person.”

In Stressful Times, Make Stress Work for You | Kari Leibowitz and Alia Crum

“those who had the highest levels of stress were 43 percent more likely to die only if they also believed that stress was bad for their health. In contrast, those who experienced high stress but didn’t view it as harmful were the least likely to die.”

Road Testing your Incapacity Plan - All About Estates | Suzanna Walter

“Not having a plan or having one which is inadequate can be a costly and contentious matter and can lead to family discord.”

The purpose of my regular Great Reads feature has always been to reduce the mind-boggling number of smart and interesting articles, blog posts, podcasts (and occasional comic strips) produced in a given month to a manageable selection that might be of help or interest to my clients, friends, and colleagues. 

I’ve been curating this list since 2013, and that means it’s always been a reflection of what happens to strike my fancy or get me riled up...which means that it’s too-narrowly informed by my view of the world and the many biases I carry, both consciously and unconsciously. 

For years, I’ve told myself that I’m trying hard to find diverse perspectives to fill this list. I have actually done a terrible job of it. This is the first month in seven years the list is full of Black, Latinx, and Indigenous women and it wasn’t that hard to find them, which means I could have been doing a better job of amplifying black and brown voices for years and just...didn’t. Because racism. I don’t intend to go back to the old, comfortable, white-centered way of putting my reading list together, but when I slip up, you should call me on it. 

This month, there is much brilliance to share, including:

• Jacquette Timmons’ reminder to repair the source of stress instead of trying to fix its symptoms

• Rianka Dosainvil’s truth that finance is inseparable from culture

• Eugenié George’s personal financial wellness plan that puts financial health in its rightful place, entwined with physical, emotional, and spiritual well-being

In addition to these articles, there’s: 

• A damning summary of all the ways our institutions are designed to disenfranchise the many Indigenous people in Canada

• Another article from Jacquette Timmons about finding motivation in times of crisis, (if motivation is the right thing for the moment you’re in) 

• A list of practical action you can take to support Black Lives Matter here in Canada 

• How the personal finance world upholds systemic racism, and what to do about it

• Help identifying and getting free from financial abuse

• An unflinching look at the source and remedy of white discomfort when confronted with racism

• What community leaders in Hamilton, Ontario propose as a practical anti-racist solution

• An urgent call for radical change to how we treat our elders at the end of life

What Do You Do When Things Fall Apart?

From Jaquette Timmons

“I’ve come to view managing stress in the same way: Oftentimes, where and how the stress reveals itself is not the source of the stress.

“Unfortunately, conflating these two points can cause you and me to make a critical mistake when it comes to effectively managing stress. This happens when you seek immediate relief from the stress, but don’t invest the effort and time to identify the root cause of the stress…

“Overwhelmed with debt, so you focus on cutting expenses. This is logical and certainly provides immediate relief. But the root could be that you need to earn more money...

"With regards to this week’s events, it’s akin to looking just for the quickest, shortest way to alleviate the physical, emotional and financial pain of racism, but without wanting to admit systemic racism permeates our society.”

Read the full article here.

Why We Can't Talk About Money Without Talking About Culture

From Rianka Dorsainvil

“The truth is every aspect of your finances is directly impacted by your identity and culture. If cultural background is ignored, you’re less likely to step into making positive and impactful financial decisions for your life. Every culture has different ways of viewing personal finances. Even within one culture, you might find that there are different ways that money is discussed or used.”

Read the full article here.

Your Financial Wellness Plan

From Eugenié George

“We forget how our habits, beliefs, ancestry, gender, and societal circumstances create our habits consciously and unconsciously. From interviewing 40 Women of Color. It was clear that many of our ideas are still generated by our ancestry.

“But for some reason, most of us separate every category in our lives: Health, wealth, relationships, career, etc. And most of us exclude how money plays a role in our mental health and wellness.”

Read the full article here.

You can read this month's entire list below:

Banking While Brown: Indigenous People and Structural Racism in Canada | Nikki Sanchez

“Although we are in an era of so-called 'reconciliation,' the colonial practices that were first enacted in order to clear and claim a country have never ended. These practices include (but are not limited to), resource extraction, predatory capitalism, patriarchy, hetero-hormativity, and assimilation into European cultural norms, also known as white supremacy.

“While Indigenous resistance challenges each of these processes, they change forms through settler colonial time.

“As an example, while compulsory residential school attendance officially ended with amendments to the Indian Act in 1951, it transformed into the Sixties Scoop. The mass apprehension of Indigenous children from their families to white foster care and adoption that lasted into the mid-1980s and continues today.

"There are many more examples of this shape-shifting. Continued economic disenfranchisement, racially motivated violence, overrepresentation in prisons, under funding of Indigenous students per capita, and of course, racial profiling, are the modern manifestation of everything from the Doctrine of Discovery to the Indian Act."

Do You Have "All the Time in the World," But Are Unmotivated? | Jacquette Timmons

“Look, there’s no one way to go through this or any crisis. And, I suspect we may need to continue to recalibrate as the reverberations of this continue to unfold. In the process, if you find yourself experiencing time differently from those around you; if you find yourself with “all the time in the world,” but feeling unmotivated, come back to this post and choose to do one thing. It may be the thing that helps you move the needle.”

What You (Yes, You) Can Do to Support the Black Lives Matter Movement| Lara Buchar

“We know it’s easy to feel helpless in the wake of these traumatic and violent events, but if the weekend’s protests have taught us anything, it’s that now is the time to take action. We’ve rounded up the many ways that you can amplify forces for change in Canada right now, from making a donation to signing a petition and more.”

How the Personal Finance Sphere Upholds Systemic Racism | Tanja Hester

“Remember that words mean things, even if they don’t mean those things to you. Learn to spot language of oppression, leave it out of talks of money and personal finance, and don’t put the burden on those already oppressed to point this stuff out to you. Do the work yourself.”

How can you protect yourself from financial abuse? | Erin Pepler

“Often, it can be hard for individuals to identify financial abuse because of patriarchal societal norms. ‘A lot of survivors discuss this grey area,’ says Docherty. ‘They’ve been socialized to believe that [men controlling the household] is normal behaviour in a relationship, so when does it blur into abusive behaviour?’”

Does talking about racism make you uncomfortable? Too bad | Nam Kiwanuka

“Discomfort should not mean silence. Looking away won’t change the real-life consequences that others experience. So the next time you feel uncomfortable and would rather look away, ask yourself: Why is your discomfort more important than the very real wounds that are being inflicted on others?”

Defunding The Police Will Save Black And Indigenous Lives In Canada | Sandy Hudson

“Instead of relying on police, we could rely on well-trained social workers, sociologists, forensic scientists, doctors, researchers and other well-trained individuals to fulfill our needs when violent crimes take place. In the event that intervention is required while a violent crime is ongoing, a service that provides expert specialized rapid response does not need to be connected to an institution of policing that fails in every other respect. Such a specific tactical service does not require the billions of dollars we waste in ineffective policing from year to year.”

Can A Broken System Be Fixed? | Audrey Miller

“Our entire approach to aging, living and dying need to be re examined.”

I had the pleasure of sitting in on a talk by Bonnie Foley-Wong of Pique Ventures on the concept of Integrated Investing for a small group of other advice-only planners. I now have a huge crush on her because of her passion for making a difference in the world through investing, without playing the tired old game of measuring impact exclusively with dollars. 

So there’s that kind of awkward bias acknowledgement out of the way :D.

Her book, Integrated Investing: Impact Investing With Head, Heart, Body, and Soul was just as pleasurable. As a financial planner who reads...um...excessively, I end up seeing an inordinate amount of investing books, and get frustrated with the default thinking implicit in all of them, which is that he (it’s almost always a he) who makes the most money wins the game, period. 

To avoid that kind of limited perspective, Foley-Wong starts by taking us right back to first principles, like “what are the essential resources humans need to thrive” and “why, precisely, do we invest” before articulating her principles for integrated investing: linking, coordinating, and combining inputs and information from multiple sources to choose a course of action, including analysis, emotions, physical cues, and intuition. 

Bonus: my copy included a wallet sized tool she calls the Cost/Benefit Analysis for All Stakeholders that prompts a reflection on the positive or negative impact a venture has on essential resources for customers, partners, suppliers, employees, communities, and the planet. I, of course, don’t carry a wallet most of the time, so I took a picture of it instead! 

Who should read Integrated Investing?

Anyone who wants to invest with purpose beyond “earning a good return”, “funding retirement”, or “leaving an estate for my children” - all good reasons, by the way - but fundamentally dissatisfying to someone who sees themselves as part of a reciprocal community with responsibilities beyond personal or family security.

If you only have time to read one chapter:

Read Impact Investing: Taking Care of the Village. This is an invigorating chapter that acts as the heart of the rest of the book. It expands the concept of investing away from the out-dated Keynesian model that many of us have been trained to see as the default: the sky is blue and therefore we invest to maximize profit and the only kind of profit we measure is the return shareholders receive.

Instead, Foley-Wong articulates the many ways we can use our resources (which may or may not be our money) “to create long-term future benefits, outcomes, or returns to increase and improve access to essential resources for us, our families, our neighbors, our communities, and future generations.”

If you only have time to read one paragraph:

“Our current economic and financial system rewards people who play the game. Investment industry professionals place too much emphasis on metrics that reward game players--people constantly looking for rational reasons and measurable evidence to support the investment decisions being made. The rules and predominant culture of investing lean in favor of this approach. People who have earned high incomes or have significant financial wealth can more easily plan in the investment game. Smart, entrepreneurial, creative people who have not played the game and lack the same kind of scorecard are left out, despite the fact that they have experience, expertise, and insights to contribute.”

(Chapter 3: Impact Investing: Taking Care of the Village, page 49)

If you only have time to read one sentence:

“The first thing people ask me when they are thinking about investing is, ‘What should I invest in?’ But the first question they should be asking is, ‘Why am I investing?’”.

(Chapter 4: Investing With Your Values, page 58)

You may have found, like me, that your ability and desire to read anything except for the back of the cereal box has diminished significantly. That’s okay - the written word will still be ready for you when you’re ready for it. 

I happened to be ready for it this month, and found some real gems I’d like to share, including:

• A guide from psychologist and executive coach, Dr. Moira Somers. She discusses having respectful, productive, and tender money conversations with those closest to us, especially now when they’re, like literally close to us, and tenderness takes extra effort. 

• The fine distinction between a forecast and an expectation from Morgan Housel, and how it can help us get through a time when we really have no idea what will happen next.

• An analysis of how COVID19 is underscoring the already critical need for high-quality, affordable, and flexible childcare, planned for and treated like the essential service it is.

If that’s not enough, there’s a whole list of other reads to dig into (Nine! I counted!), including:

• The point/counterpoint of virtual museum tours you can take and 

• Why they might not be as satisfying as you hope

• Lessons from the Barrie Tornado on structuring social assistance so those in need get actual help 

• How journalism may be getting a little more comfortable reporting on evolving, provisional stories

• A reflection on how Warren Buffett (and the response to him) has changed

• An overview of provincial economic responses to COVID19

• Timely reminders that not every call has to be a Zoom call

• Uncertainty and humility should always go hand-in-hand when it comes to your investments (and life), and

• How the many big and small losses we’re all experiencing can teach us about what’s important when it’s time to plan for the future

Families, Money and the Tincture of Tenderness

From Dr. Moira Somers

Time spent with family while we practice physical distancing presents us with the opportunity to have tender money conversations.

“The end result of this financial stress is often an increase in conflict. With everyone feeling a little more ragged and tense than usual, it is all too easy to let loose with harsh pronouncements and critical commentaries. Researchers have been telling us for some time that marital conflicts about money have the potential to be especially damaging. Financial disagreements are associated with nastier fighting techniques and poorer relational outcomes. That’s why the tincture of tenderness is essential today.”

Read the full article here.

When You Have No Idea What Happens Next

From Morgan Housel

“Forecasts rely on knowing when something will occur. Expectations are an acknowledgment of what’s likely to occur without professing insight into when it will happen.”

Read the full article here.

Caregiving Beyond the Crisis

From Tammy Findlay

“Hopefully one of the lessons we will learn from this pandemic is that we should be using our public resources to care for each other all of the time, and not just when there is a crisis.”

Read the full article here.

You can read this month's entire list below:

In Uncertain Times, Humility is Essential | Christina Benz

“If there are many uncertain variables swirling around, your job is to ensure that your plan can still work even if those variables don't play out as you're expecting them to.”

Tired of still life in quarantine? Visit the world from your sofa | Albina Retyunskikh

“If, by this point, daily visits to Puerto Backyarda and New Kitchen are feeling repetitive, take comfort that there are ways to escape, at least virtually, with famous tourist sites offering online visits—almost all of them, free.”

COUNTERPOINT: Coronavirus and your social life: It’s not the same | Cleo Levin

“Beyond whatever technical issues there are, fundamentally, these activities aren’t satisfying because they’re based in a denial of the present moment.”

The constant shifts of the coronavirus pandemic may be making journalists more comfortable expressing uncertainty | Kevin Lerner

“Journalists pursue facts and their readers rely on accuracy, which are smaller, related concepts that are easier to measure.”

COVID-19 and compensation lessons from the Barrie Tornado | John Stapleton

“I would have given anything to have been able to change the property compensation model we were handed by the government.  Poor people lose little property but do lose access to programs. Rich people lose property and don’t qualify for programs that disallow wealth. Those two simple facts mean that compensation programs must always adjust their designs to meet need in order to work well.”

This version of Warren Buffett | Josh Brown

“Berkshire Hathaway as a quasi-religious institution for capitalists just fading away like this…it’s so anti-climactic. Unsettling.”

Comparing provincial economic responses to COVID-19 | Marc Lee and Arman Hamidian

“This post looks at provincial/territorial economic responses on top of the federal supports (although the response in the territories has been fairly limited). What follows is not intended to be a comprehensive inventory of all provincial measures, but it highlights the major initiatives and key differences across provinces.”

Another pandemic woe: Zoom Fatigue | Scott Rosenberg

“Our thought bubble: Not everything needs to be a Zoom meeting. Phone calls still work fine too.

"The bottom line: Once you tire of certain things, it means that you are tired of life.

"Samuel Johnson famously said that about London. No one has ever said it about videoconferencing.”

When Something Is Taken Away | Alex Riley

“Investing doesn’t need to be overly complex in order to meet your identified financial planning goals. In fact, your investments should be boring; it is your life that should be interesting.”