Transcription
Tiffany Dufu:
The intervention there was I had someone in my life who I was sharing this story with who said, "No, no, no, that's about you and that's worth something."
Bobbi Rebell:
You're listening to Financial Grownup with me Certified Financial Planner, Bobbi Rebell, author of How to Be a Financial Grownup; and you know what, being a grownup is really hard especially when it comes to money. But it's okay. We're going to get there together. I'm going to bring you one money story from a financial grownup, one lesson, and then my take on how you can make it your own. We got this.
Bobbi Rebell:
Hey friends, well this episode is dropping on a very special day for our guest. One year ago today, Tiffany Dufu's book, Drop the Ball, Achieving More by Doing Less, was released. She is also, by the way, the Chief Leadership Officer at Levo. The book has been a massive hit and, frankly, changed a lot of people's lives, including my own because it gives us permission to focus on the things that matter the most to us and to be okay with just letting somethings go or delegating it, allowing yourself to prioritize and not apologize.
Bobbi Rebell:
Tiffany's money story will inspire you, but also make sure to stay tuned for the money tip that she shares later on. It's going to make you happy. It's going to make you happy for her, and it's going to make you happy because if you're not doing it already, you're going to do this. Here is Tiffany Dufu.
Bobbi Rebell:
Tiffany Dufu, you are a financial grownup. Welcome to the podcast.
Tiffany Dufu:
Thank you so much for having me.
Bobbi Rebell:
And you have a lot going on in 2018 with your job, your book, Drop the Ball, which is one of my favorites. I re-read it again this weekend because I gave away my original copy. I actually bought it again. I highly recommend everybody buy the book, Drop the Ball, and maybe buy it twice and gift one to someone else. Tiffany, give us an update on you and what you're up to.
Tiffany Dufu:
Well, my life's work is advancing women and girls, so I'm always up to moving forward the causes that I really care about. The one year anniversary of Drop the Ball is coming up on Valentine's Day, so I've got a lot of promotion in relationship to that. Of course, I really value Levo which is the fastest growing network for millennial women and I'm always moving forward that platform, and hope that myself and many more people will support women candidates in 2018.
Bobbi Rebell:
You are also a very prominent public speaker, something that you sort of fell into accidentally and with a little help from your husband. Tell us about your financial grownup moment.
Tiffany Dufu:
Oh sure. You know, we all have these moments where we realize our own value and mine happened seven years ago. I was running a national women's leadership organization called the White House Project, and as I was closing that organization down, I needed to reach out to all of the individuals who had booked me to speak at their events. So, as president of the organization, I would do a lot of public speaking and I would negotiate with the organizer of the event for them to give a donation to the White House Project. I was also a non-profit fundraiser for many years, so I never had a problem asking for money for organizations that were doing really great work and counted the White House Project among them.
Tiffany Dufu:
But, when I called to let everyone know, "Look I won't be able to speak at your event, I'm closing down the White House Project, I will no longer be president of the White House Project," they were all like, "Silly you, of course you're coming to speak at our event. Is everything that you know about women in leadership out of your head? No, you still know that."
Bobbi Rebell:
Right, they wanted you.
Tiffany Dufu:
That's right, and your name is on our marketing materials and you're going to show up. It was my husband who said, "Tiffany, you've just launched a business. You've just launched a public speaking practice, and the money that you negotiated for the donation, that is now resources that you can use. That has now become your speaking fee." It was a really important moment for me because if you had of told me you could start a public speaking practice and you could charge thousands of dollars for people to hear you stand on a stage as a business model, I would have said, "Oh that's ridiculous." Like no one would pay that amount of money to see me come and speak.
Bobbi Rebell:
But they were.
Tiffany Dufu:
Because, yes-
Bobbi Rebell:
They were already paying the money, it was just going to your non-profit.
Tiffany Dufu:
That's it. But you see the psychology of women, even one that supposed to be an expert on women in leadership, I thought, well that's easy, they're giving a donation to the cause, but that really was an important moment for me.
Bobbi Rebell:
And that really has turned into a big part of your many income streams. You have a diversified income stream now because you obviously have your primary job at Levo League, but you also have your book, and you have your speaking.
Tiffany Dufu:
That's it. I have what I would call a portfolio career.
Bobbi Rebell:
Which is definitely a wave of the future. So, what is your lesson for our listeners, many of whom are millennial women?
Tiffany Dufu:
I think it's know your value. Really understand what you have, whether it's gifts, talents, skills, abilities that the market wants and to monetize that.
Bobbi Rebell:
But how do you do that? Even you were already ... people were paying the money to hear you speak and yet, you didn't really equate that with you as an individual. It was directed as it was okay because it was going to an organization that you believed in; but yet, until that moment with that conversation with your husband, you weren't seeing that as money for you.
Tiffany Dufu:
That's right.
Bobbi Rebell:
What is the lesson for how people can kind of make that transition both mentally in their mind and also in actuality?
Tiffany Dufu:
Well I think the important part of that story is having an ecosystem of support. Right? So, the intervention there was I had someone in my life who I was sharing this story with who said, "No, no, no. That's about you and that's worth something." And quite frankly, in many different areas of my life, the people who have prompted me to shift my own consciousness around my value have been the people who are closest to me who really have my best interest at heart. So, at the end of the day, making sure that you've got an ecosystem of support, that you've got a crew, that you've got people who can say no, no, wait. What you're doing is actually really valuable. I think it's important because you believe them.
Bobbi Rebell:
Absolutely. Everything is about your network, your support system, and having that ecosystem in place. Before I let you go Ms. Tiffany Dufu, I want to get a money tip from you because I know you are so on the ball, even though you like to drop the ball, you're on the ball when it comes to money. Give us a personal money tip, something that you and your family used that our listeners can put to work right away.
Tiffany Dufu:
Well, my time is my money, so anything that saves me a tremendous amount of time, for me is a money tip. One of the stories that I write about in Drop the Ball was me picking up my dry cleaning for several years before delegating that chore to my husband. The first time it was his turn to do it, he had it delivered for free.
Bobbi Rebell:
Had you ever had it delivered?
Tiffany Dufu:
No. I didn't even know that my dry cleaners delivered. I didn't even know.
Bobbi Rebell:
That's crazy. So, the miracle there is you both dropped the ball on that-
Tiffany Dufu:
That's right.
Bobbi Rebell:
... and it just got done. So, it didn't fall into anyone's column because ... For those of you who haven't read Tiffany's book obsessively like I have, she and her husband have a whole system that they setup with different columns of who does what. The most critical column is the column that basically has to do with nobody, which is the best thing.
Tiffany Dufu:
That's it. That's it.
Bobbi Rebell:
And if you can put things in that, you know, they just disappear magically, that is the best way to get things done. So, thank you so much Ms. Tiffany. This was wonderful.
Tiffany Dufu:
Thank you.
Bobbi Rebell:
Okay friends, here is my take on all of that. I was a bit surprised first of all that Tiffany did not realize that she could get the dry cleaning delivered for free. That is something that we can all delete from our to-do list, so let's all just drop the ball there. It's also a good reminder that we should all take a step back and think about how we spend not just our money, but also our time.
Bobbi Rebell:
Financial Grownup tip number one: Figure out how you value time. What is your time worth financially? It could be a formula based on what you're paid at your job. It can be what you charge clients. It can be what it cost you in things like childcare if you're a parent, to watch your kids when you're going to go be doing something else. Or, it can just be a gut feeling based on the fact that time is always limited, and in theory, at least, we can always earn more money. So time is always in limited supply.
Bobbi Rebell:
Financial Grownup tip number two: Outsource things where the math does not work in alignment with your values and priorities. It may be something that is worth a delivery fee. Maybe a yearly fee somewhere like Amazon, or monthly fees on grocery delivery services like Fresh Direct, or meal services like Plated or Blue Apron, that will free up your time for something that delivers more value for your time. The reverse is also true. Sticking with the food example, if you're focused on saving money and you have the time, it may make sense to shop for groceries yourself in person and do all the cooking yourself rather than have a preset meal. But, make that calculation and definitely make sure that you are using things like delivery services that are already built into the price as Tiffany discovered with her dry cleaning.
Bobbi Rebell:
Okay, thank you all so much for listening to this latest edition of Financial Grownup, the feed that continues to be wonderful. I am so excited to keep bringing you guys inspiring stories. Please continue to rate and review the podcast on iTunes or anywhere you listen so more people can discover us. Anything you can do to support the podcast by telling friends about it is truly appreciated. I hope everyone enjoyed the show and that we all got one step closer to being financial grownups.
Bobbi Rebell:
Financial Grownup with Bobbi Rebell is a BRK Media Production.
