Weird Finance

Stay in touch and sign up for Paco’s weekly email newsletter, The Nerdletter.

In this episode of Weird Finance, Paco talks to Joshua Evan Greenberg about his experience as a creative professional and his experience making music videos, creating commercials and building a brand incubator. Joshua speaks about his perspective on how to achieve key to creative euphoria, the decline of the creative services industry and the importance of having a strong foundation.

Joshua Evan Greenberg is an advertising & entertainment executive, primarily working as a producer. He's one half of 2talJuez, an immersive directing duo working across film, experiential, digital and innovation. Co-founder of brand incubator Caveat, that originally serviced clients as a hybrid creative studio. He's currently serving as interim COO for JamieMakeup, a cosmetics company set-up to create and distribute multitasking products from his wife, celebrity makeup artist, Jamie Greenberg. He's previously been the executive in charge of many awarded integrated marketing campaigns, which include World's Largest Pizza (Pizza Hut), The Finchers (ViewSonic), Step Into Summer (Havaianas), Project Dead Zone (Xfinity), Carnegie Deli Popup (Prime Video), Jurassic Box (Universal x Amazon) and Play The City (Grammys). His projects have crossed all platforms and have included the production of live streams, experiences, virtual reality, augmented reality, dynamic video, and social-first storytelling.

This episode also features The Price Report, a short segment with Michael “Frosti” Snow (@FrostiFresh), where he takes us on a journey, examining the cost of one thing in the hopes that it helps us better understand everything. This week we’re exploring the cost of candy.

A special thanks to the talented and generous Ramsey Yount for producing, editing, and sound designing this episode.

Thank you to Jenna Parker for lending your voice for our special PSA.

The theme music was written and performed by Andrew Parker, Jenna Parker, and Paco de Leon.

If you’d like to contact us about the show or ask Paco a question about finances, call our hotline at 1-833-ASK-PACO, email us at weirdfinancepod (at) gmail.com or submit your questions here. We’d also love your listener feedback about the show; here’s a short survey.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Stay in touch and sign up for Paco’s weekly email newsletter, The Nerdletter.

In this episode of Weird Finance, Paco talks to Berna Anat about becoming an influencer in the personal finance space, the complicated relationship between social media as a tool for both earning money and reinforcing scarcity and lack, the various ways influencers can make money, the pitfalls of relying on an algorithm for income and the pros and cons of being paid to be yourself.

Berna Anat is an award-winning author, speaker, producer and Financial Hype Woman, which is her made-up way of saying she creates financial education media that lives at @HeyBerna all over the Internet. After slaying her $50,000 debt, she saved up to quit life and has been traveling the world trying to make money fun again ever since. Berna’s 2023 debut book with HarperCollins, MONEY OUT LOUD: All the Financial Stuff No One Taught Us, is an Amazon and Bookshop.org Bestseller and has received starred reviews from Kirkus and Booklist.

This episode also features Loose Change, where we ask strangers to share their thoughts, feelings, and opinions about how we relate to money and one another. This week we’re exploring how frequently we think about money.

A special thanks to the talented and generous Ramsey Yount for producing, editing, and sound designing this episode.

Thank you to Andrew Howard & Ramsey Yount for lending your voice for our special PSA.

The theme music was written and performed by Andrew Parker, Jenna Parker, and Paco de Leon.

If you’d like to contact us about the show or ask Paco a question about finances, call our hotline at 1-833-ASK-PACO, email us at weirdfinancepod (at) gmail.com or submit your questions here. We’d also love your listener feedback about the show; here’s a short survey.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Stay in touch and sign up for Paco’s weekly email newsletter, The Nerdletter.

If you’d like to contact us about the show or ask Paco a question about finances, call our hotline at 1-833-ASK-PACO, email us at weirdfinancepod (at) gmail.com or submit your questions here. We’d also love your listener feedback about the show; here’s a short survey.

In this episode of Weird Finance, Paco talks to Robert E. James II and Stephen H. Gordon about the role banks play in closing the racial wealth gap, the importance of minority depository institutions (MDIs) in underprivileged communities, the need for increased financial education and skills in underserved communities, the value of diversity and inclusion in the banking industry, and the historical context and impact of the racial wealth gap in the United States.

Robert E. James II

Since October 2020, Robert James has served as Chairman of the National Bankers Association, the leading advocacy group for the nation’s minority banks. Robert leverages his experiences in banking, law, real estate development, and consulting to lead America’s only Black-owned multibank holding company, Carver Financial Corporation, and its operating subsidiaries, Carver State Bank in Savannah, GA and Alamerica Bank in Birmingham, AL, which was acquired in 2021. Robert, who was named to his current role with the holding company in 2021, has led the 95-year-old institution to several accomplishments over his fifteen-year tenure.

Robert graduated from Harvard Law School in 1995 and from Howard University in 1992. He is father of one teenage daughter, a member of the Alpha Lambda Boulé of Sigma Pi Phi Fraternity and Omega Psi Phi Fraternity, and enjoys cooking and travel.

Stephen H. Gordon

Stephen H. Gordon is the Founding Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Genesis Bank, a member of the National Bankers Association. Mr. Gordon has nearly 40 years of financial industry experience, including serving as Founding Chairman, Chief Executive Officer, and President of Opus Bank; Founding Chairman and CEO of Commercial Capital Bank and its holding company, Commercial Capital Bancorp, Inc; as well as Chairman and CEO of Fremont Investment and Loan and its holding company, Fremont General Corporation. Additionally, Mr. Gordon served as a Partner at Sandler O’Neill + Partners, L.P., a New York based investment banking firm, now Piper Sandler, and joined the firm at its founding in 1988.

Genesis Bank is a California state chartered commercial bank, organized by Mr. Gordon. The Bank focuses on serving the financial needs of small to mid-sized businesses and owners, and investors in income-producing multifamily and commercial real estate located primarily in the diverse majority minority markets of Los Angeles and Orange counties, California, as well as the western portions of the Inland Empire (Riverside and San Bernardino counties). Genesis Bank is designated by the FDIC as a Minority Depository Institution (MDI), and is only the second diverse, multi-racial MDI in the U.S. The Bank’s products, services, and solutions primarily include traditional commercial business, Small Business Administration (SBA), income property, and owner-occupied commercial real estate loan and deposit products, as well as treasury management services and solutions. Genesis Bank is headquartered in Orange County California.

This episode also features a segment called Stock Watch with Amanda Holden (@dumpster.doggy). In this segment, we’ll follow a stock-picking competition between a dog named Henry, a cat named Hugo, and a human baby. If you’d like to learn more about investing from Amanda, sign up for her online course, Invested Development.

Thank you to Jess Rona and Ramsey Yount for lending your voice for our special PSA.

A special thanks to the talented and generous Ramsey Yount for producing, editing, and sound designing this episode.

The theme music was written and performed by Andrew Parker, Jenna Parker, and Paco de Leon.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Stay in touch and sign up for Paco’s weekly email newsletter, The Nerdletter.

In this episode of Weird Finance, Paco talks to Damain Gomez about his 20 years of experience as a working actor in Los Angeles, from his first paying job to how he got his union status, his perspective on the strike and why he feels hopeful, the ups and downs of a career in the arts, and the value of creativity.

Born in San Francisco but residing in Los Angeles, Damian(@mrdamiangomez) has made a career for himself in the entertainment world. His immigrant parents taught him how to hustle for success, financial stability, and meaningful relationships. He’s worked with musical acts like Janet Jackson, Queen Latifah, J Lo, Black Eyed Peas, Justin Bieber, Jason Mraz, Hozier and many more. He’s been on film and TV for projects like La La Land, This Is the End, Crazy Ex-Girlfriend, Grey’s Anatomy, Modern Family, and more. He’s a dancer, actor, & writer by trade but a curious explorer of feelings and the world by heart.

This episode also features a segment called Ask Paco Anything. Thank you to our anonymous caller for their question about choosing a bank. If you’d like to contact us about the show or ask Paco a question about finances, call our hotline at 1-833-ASK-PACO, email us at weirdfinancepod (at) gmail.com, or submit your questions here.

A special thanks to the talented and generous Ramsey Yount for producing, editing, and sound designing this episode.

Thank you to Ariel Lazarus and Bill Bittner for lending your voice for our special PSA.

The theme music was written and performed by Andrew Parker, Jenna Parker, and Paco de Leon.

We’d also love your listener feedback about the show; here’s a short survey.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Stay in touch and sign up for Paco’s weekly email newsletter, The Nerdletter.

In this episode of Weird Finance, Paco talks to Hannah Williams about her own struggle with being underpaid because of a lack of salary transparency, the job she’s created for herself asking strangers how much money they make, the pros and cons of salary transparency and tips to start talking about salary and money with co-workers and friends.

Hannah Williams (@salarytransparentstreet) is a popular Gen Z Finance creator and CEO of "Salary Transparent Street," which tackles a major issue: salary transparency. With her viral series, Hannah encourages strangers to share what they do and how much they make. She's inspired to combat discriminatory tendencies in employment and close pay gaps that affect women, POC, workers with disabilities, and the LGBTQ+ community. Hannah uses her platform to educate her community on market research, salary negotiation, and labor laws to understand workers' rights. With this knowledge, she hopes to help workers grow professionally and build wealth.

Check out and submit your salary on the "Salary Transparent Street Salary Database". A revolutionary new salary database that allows users to share and receive unparalleled access to real-time salary information from over 5,000 users across the nation.

This episode also features The Economic Outlook with financial astrologer Susan Gidel. Susan, our resident economic cosmonaut, does what many humans have done before us for thousands of years: she looks to the stars to understand our economic present and predict our financial futures. For more guidance from Susan, sign up for her Red Letter Trading Days newsletter.

A special thanks to the talented and generous Ramsey Yount for producing, editing, and sound designing this episode.

Thank you to Jess Rona and Ramsey Yount for lending your voice for our special PSA.

The theme music was written and performed by Andrew Parker, Jenna Parker, and Paco de Leon.

If you’d like to contact us about the show or ask Paco a question about finances, call our hotline at 833-ASK-PACO, email us at weirdfinancepod (at) gmail.com or submit your questions here. We’d also love your listener feedback about the show; here’s a short survey.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Stay in touch and sign up for Paco’s weekly email newsletter, The Nerdletter.

In this episode of Weird Finance, Paco talks to Liz Tran about her philosophy on money, how her past experiences have shaped her relationship with money, how her biggest financial failure gave her the most confidence, the role of gratitude and receptiveness in getting what you want and Buddhist economics.

Liz Tran (@heyliztran) is an executive coach to the CEOs and founders of tech companies. Altogether, her clients have raised over $400 million in funding and created $4 billion in enterprise value. She's also the author of The Karma of Success, host of the podcast Reset with Liz Tran, and the creator of the Instagram account, @ResetNYC. In addition to her experience in venture capital and tech, she is also a trained meditation teacher and Reiki Master and studied yoga at the Samyak Ashram.

This episode also features Slow and Steady with Leo by Leo Aquino (@queerandtranswealth), an award-winning author, poet, and anti-capitalist personal finance expert.

Thank you to Michael “Frosti” Snow for lending your voice for our special PSA.

A special thanks to the talented and generous Ramsey Yount for producing, editing, and sound designing this episode.

The theme music was written and performed by Andrew Parker, Jenna Parker, and Paco de Leon.

If you’d like to contact us about the show or ask Paco a question about finances, call our hotline at 833-ASK-PACO, email us at weirdfinancepod (at) gmail.com or submit your questions here. We’d also love your listener feedback about the show; here’s a short survey.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

In this episode of Weird Finance, Paco talks to Pamela Rosario about her path to becoming a self-employed intellectual property attorney, the importance of setting up your business properly, the financial implications of working for yourself, and how to navigate and understand creativity in the context of intellectual property and the law.

Pamela (@pamelarosariolaw) is a Dominican attorney raised in NYC with over a decade of legal experience. She currently specializes in Intellectual Property, helping creatives and small business owners get the legal assistance they need to run successful and legally protected endeavors.

With "knowledge is your ultimate superpower" as her mantra, she believes it is your duty to protect yourself, your coins, and your business by arming yourself with all the information you'll need to intimately understand each aspect of your business. Being a business owner, working for yourself, and owning your ideas(!) are revolutionary acts and your very own form of activism.

Check out Pamela’s legal template shop, the more accessible/affordable option if you can't invest in a custom contract, here: https://pamelarosario.podia.com/

This episode also features Loose Change, a short segment with Chris Laughter, where he walks up to random strangers on the street to ask them their thoughts, feelings, and opinions about how we relate to money and one another. This week we’re exploring financial lessons learned and the people who taught them.

A special thanks to the talented and generous Ramsey Yount for producing, editing, and sound designing this episode.

Thank you to Ariel Lazarus and Bill Bittner for lending your voice to our special PSA.

The theme music was written and performed by Andrew Parker, Jenna Parker, and Paco de Leon.

Stay in touch and sign up for Paco’s weekly email newsletter, The Nerdletter.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

In this episode of Weird Finance, Paco talks to Angel Trinidad about their philosophies around goal setting, reprogramming her mindset around money and scarcity, how helping others through the tools we create can be the most meaningful work we do, the challenges of sudden wealth and the idea of abundance being shared enoughness.

First-generation, queer, Filipina American, Angelia “Angel” Trinidad (she/they) is the CEO and Founder of Passion Planner. After graduating from UCLA with a B.A. in Art and a Minor in Arts Education, she found herself depressed, spiraling down, and struggling to find direction. With the motto: “it doesn’t have to be perfect, it just has to start”, she took the leap and created Passion Planner, a paper life coach, from her parents' garage. Since then, Passion Planner has now helped more than 2,800,000 people dedicate more time towards their goals with less stress and more fun.

This episode also features The Price Report, a short segment with Michael “Frosti” Snow (@FrostiFresh), where he takes us on a journey, examining the cost of one thing in the hopes that it helps us better understand everything. This week we’re exploring the cost of happiness.

A special thanks to the talented and generous Ramsey Yount for producing, editing, and sound designing this episode.

Thank you to my friends, Samantha McVey and Anney Reese, the Stuff Mom Never Told You Podcast hosts, for lending us their voices for our special PSA.

The theme music was written and performed by Andrew Parker, Jenna Parker, and Paco de Leon.

Stay in touch and sign up for Paco’s weekly email newsletter, The Nerdletter. If you’d like to contact us about the show or ask Paco a question about finances, call our hotline at 833-ASK-PACO or email us at weirdfinancepod (at) gmail.com

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

In this episode of Weird Finance, Paco talks to Molly White about how she became one of the most vocal critics of web3, crypto decentralized finance, and web3, the limitations and false promises of these technologies, the parallels between the current AI hype and the previous crypto hype and how cannot be divorced from its societal impacts.

Molly White (@molly0xFFF) is a software engineer, writer, and critic of the cryptocurrency industry. She founded and maintains the website Web3 is Going Just Great, which highlights examples of how cryptocurrency and web3 projects are failing to live up to their promises. She also frequently writes about the cryptocurrency industry and about issues in the broader technology world in her popular newsletter. She is a fellow at the Harvard Library Innovation Lab, and an affiliate of the Berkman Klein Center for Internet & Society.

A special thanks to the talented and generous Ramsey Yount for producing, editing, and sound designing this episode. 

Thank you to Ramsey Yount and Jess Rona for lending your voices for our special PSA. 

This episode also features a segment called Stock Watch with Amanda Holden (@dumpster.doggy). In this segment, we’ll follow a stock-picking competition between a dog named Henry, a cat named Hugo, and a human baby. If you’d like to learn more about investing from Amanda, sign up for her online course, Invested Development.

The theme music was written and performed by Andrew Parker, Jenna Parker, and Paco de Leon.

Stay in touch and sign up for Paco’s weekly email newsletter, The Nerdletter. If you’d like to contact us about the show or ask Paco a question about finances, call our hotline at 833-ASK-PACO or email us at weirdfinancepod (at) gmail.com

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

In this episode of Weird Finance, Paco talks to Leo Aquino about their experience immigrating to the United States, their path to becoming a personal finance journalist, how being true to yourself can translate into earning more money, the impact of anti-trans bills on trans people's finances, and advice for taking small actions towards personal financial transformation and social change.

Leo Aquino (@queerandtranswealth)​​ is a poet, screenwriter, storyteller, and award-winning journalist covering anti-capitalist personal finance.

This episode also features The Economic Outlook with financial astrologer Susan Gidel. Susan, our resident economic cosmonaut, does what many humans have done before us for thousands of years: she looks to the stars to understand our economic present and predict our financial futures. For more guidance from Susan, sign up for her Red Letter Trading Days newsletter.

A special thanks to the talented and generous Ramsey Yount for producing, editing, and sound designing this episode. 

Thank you to Frosti Fresh for lending your voice for our special PSA. 

The theme music was written and performed by Andrew Parker, Jenna Parker, and Paco de Leon.

Stay in touch and sign up for Paco’s weekly email newsletter, The Nerdletter. If you’d like to contact us about the show or ask Paco a question about finances, call our hotline at 833-ASK-PACO or email us at weirdfinancepod (at) gmail.com.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.