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3 Things I Wish I Knew When I Was Broke | Vivian Tu | TED

09:20Added Aug 30, 2026

Finance doesn't have to feel like a foreign language. Wall Street trader-turned-financial educator Vivian Tu @YourRichBFF helps millions of people make sense...

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Contributed by 刘嘉琪

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  1. 00:04Picture this: you're 22,
  2. 00:06you just moved to New York City, and you’re out at a bar with friends.
  3. 00:10A couple of tequila shots, a lukewarm beer later,
  4. 00:14you go to the bartender to close out your tab.
  5. 00:17But then she says the three scariest words known to man:
  6. 00:25“Your card declined.”
  7. 00:28It feels like everyone in the bar overhears.
  8. 00:32On one particular night out in 2016,
  9. 00:35I had to wait until 12:01
  10. 00:38for the direct deposit from my paycheck to actually hit my bank account
  11. 00:42to be able to pay my bar tab.
  12. 00:45At the time, I was living paycheck to paycheck.
  13. 00:48And if I’m being honest,
  14. 00:50the embarrassment I felt that night would stay with me for years.
  15. 00:56Even though I had a fancy job on Wall Street,
  16. 01:00my personal finances were a mess.
  17. 01:03During the day, I would enact trades on behalf of hedge funds
  18. 01:06worth billions of dollars.
  19. 01:08And at night,
  20. 01:10I would go home and wonder if one more pad thai order
  21. 01:13would set me over the financial edge.
  22. 01:17Sadly, this is not a unique experience.
  23. 01:22Many young people still feel hopelessly lost
  24. 01:25when it comes to our money.
  25. 01:28And this is in part due to the existing financial system.
  26. 01:33Personal finance education is not taught in K-12.
  27. 01:37The past five decades of policy implementation
  28. 01:39has led to a deep divide between the haves and the have-nots,
  29. 01:43and if we're being honest,
  30. 01:46the financial-services industry, as it currently exists,
  31. 01:49is really only set up and incentivized to help,
  32. 01:53well, the already wealthy.
  33. 01:56But here's where the story starts to get really good.
  34. 02:00There has never been a better time to get financially literate
  35. 02:05than right now.
  36. 02:06Knowledge that was once locked behind expensive advisors
  37. 02:11is available at your fingertips.
  38. 02:1410 years after bar night,
  39. 02:15I have become the financial educator I so desperately wish I had had back then.
  40. 02:21I built my career teaching financial literacy,
  41. 02:23like a friend, across social media.
  42. 02:26And as it turns out,
  43. 02:28that boiled-down language and those silly jokes
  44. 02:31and those funny memes,
  45. 02:32they didn't make me any less credible.
  46. 02:35But they sure did make me more understandable.
  47. 02:40What started as just videos on social media has turned into a podcast,
  48. 02:45not one but two books,
  49. 02:47and if all goes according to plan, a full-blown tech startup.
  50. 02:51The financial world has finally opened its doors wide.
  51. 02:55But here are the three things
  52. 02:58I wish I had known to do all those years ago,
  53. 03:00when I was so desperately broke
  54. 03:03and wanted so desperately to be very, very rich.
  55. 03:07One, learn the language.
  56. 03:09The financial language.
  57. 03:11Two, build community around money.
  58. 03:15And three, find modern solutions for modern problems.
  59. 03:20So let's dive into that first point.
  60. 03:22It's safe to say learning finance really is like learning a new language.
  61. 03:26401(k), IRA, 529, FICO, APY, AGI.
  62. 03:31Hello, can someone please help me?
  63. 03:36But my ask of you is really simple.
  64. 03:39Don't be afraid to be smart by looking dumb.
  65. 03:44Ask what the words mean!
  66. 03:46Don't be afraid to utilize resources like Investopedia or NerdWallet.
  67. 03:50And most importantly,
  68. 03:52find a financial mentor that speaks your language.
  69. 03:55Someone who has the industry chops to back up those smarts,
  70. 03:59someone who never promises you anything that's too good to be true,
  71. 04:03and certainly someone
  72. 04:04who never gives you that weird feeling in the pit of your stomach.
  73. 04:08Here are some of the ways that I have connected with people
  74. 04:10looking for financial guidance.
  75. 04:13First off, I nicknamed Jerome Powell "Fed Daddy"
  76. 04:16to explain rates lowering.
  77. 04:18(Video) Fed Daddy just announced we’re lowering interest rates,
  78. 04:21and a lot of people don't even know what that means,
  79. 04:24much less what it means for them.
  80. 04:25Translating headlines into action items.
  81. 04:27(Video) The federal government didn't clock in today, but I did.
  82. 04:30So here's how the government shutdown is going to impact you and your wallet.
  83. 04:34And even breaking down how celebs, like Kendrick Lamar,
  84. 04:37get rich and stay rich.
  85. 04:39(Video) Kendrick Lamar's family dancing in the "Not Like Us" music video
  86. 04:42wasn't just a clapback, it was a genius investment.
  87. 04:45When you understand the language, you understand what matters.
  88. 04:49And the response to turning finance into fun-nance has been incredible.
  89. 04:56And this leads us into our second point.
  90. 04:58While it's on financial educators to meet the next generation
  91. 05:01where and how they already live,
  92. 05:04it's on the next generation to build their own financial community.
  93. 05:09For years, we have been told
  94. 05:10talking about money is rude, tacky, taboo.
  95. 05:15But the last time I checked,
  96. 05:18Bob and Steve seem to have no problem trading investment tips
  97. 05:23as they're teeing off at hole three.
  98. 05:26It turns out, it’s really only a faux pas
  99. 05:29when we do it.
  100. 05:31It's time to change that.
  101. 05:33I, like so many young people,
  102. 05:35clock in daily for a full shift at the looking-at-my-phone factory.
  103. 05:41And whether you spend all of your time scrolling TikTok
  104. 05:45or reading Reddit threads,
  105. 05:47it's clear:
  106. 05:48having conversations around money
  107. 05:51takes the power away from the people up top
  108. 05:54and gives it back to us.
  109. 05:57The internet has led to the creation of spaces like Fishbowl and Glassdoor,
  110. 06:01where people can share true, real numbers, honest struggles
  111. 06:05and genuine victories without shame or judgment.
  112. 06:08And frankly, many of these conversations are still too raw to be had IRL.
  113. 06:14This online anonymity is empowering people to work together,
  114. 06:19with their digital accountabili-buddies,
  115. 06:22to make smarter financial choices.
  116. 06:25And my hope is that, as this generation gets more comfortable
  117. 06:29creating community around money talk,
  118. 06:32the generation after us --
  119. 06:34they're going to grow up seeing money discussed so openly and authentically
  120. 06:39that they will enter adulthood
  121. 06:40with a level of financial confidence
  122. 06:43that their parents could have only dreamed of.
  123. 06:46And speaking of the future, you’ve probably heard the phrase:
  124. 06:50modern problems require modern solutions.
  125. 06:52It's never been more true.
  126. 06:54If I’m not getting a pension like my dad,
  127. 06:56and I can’t make a household’s ends meet on one income like my dad,
  128. 07:01and I certainly don't plan on working the same job for 40 years like my dad,
  129. 07:05why am I taking my dad's financial advice?
  130. 07:09Or worse,
  131. 07:11using my dad's financial advisor?
  132. 07:14My dad doesn't actually look like that, by the way.
  133. 07:16He's going to be so mad if I don't say that.
  134. 07:18Sorry, Dad.
  135. 07:19Robo-advisors are making sophisticated investment strategies
  136. 07:23accessible to everyone.
  137. 07:26Online banks are offering competitive rates
  138. 07:28without the burden of the overhead of brick-and-mortar branches.
  139. 07:33And innovative apps are turning complex financial tasks into simple,
  140. 07:38actionable things that you can do from the palm of your hand.
  141. 07:41These new platforms are just as regulated and licensed,
  142. 07:44and more often than not, they offer lower fees.
  143. 07:47And it’s not just startup hubs or VCs that are taking notice.
  144. 07:52Creators and educators are now turning into founders.
  145. 07:56For my story,
  146. 07:57what started as just content has turned into an app powered by AI --
  147. 08:01working in conjunction with certified human experts,
  148. 08:05to provide guidance in plain English, like a friend,
  149. 08:08and more importantly, continues to educate first and foremost.
  150. 08:13New-age financial brands aren't just a replacement
  151. 08:16for traditional financial services;
  152. 08:19they're purpose-built for the way we live now.
  153. 08:23Designed to help you save smarter, invest easier,
  154. 08:26and build wealth faster than ever before.
  155. 08:30The future of finance isn't coming.
  156. 08:32It's already here and it's working for us.
  157. 08:36So to wrap us up,
  158. 08:38a decade has passed since my horrific bar tab incident,
  159. 08:42and I so desperately wish I could go back in time
  160. 08:45and provide past-Vivian with some of the solutions
  161. 08:48available to today-Vivian now.
  162. 08:52This shift towards financial accessibility isn’t just changing individual lives;
  163. 08:56it's building an ecosystem where everyone has a fair shot
  164. 09:00at prosperity.
  165. 09:02And my dream is that, a decade from now,
  166. 09:05the evolution in financial education will mean:
  167. 09:08there are fewer declined credit cards at bar night,
  168. 09:11a shrinking wealth gap
  169. 09:13and a financial future that is brighter than ever.
  170. 09:17Thank you.
  171. 09:18(Applause)
3 Things I Wish I Knew When I Was Broke | Vivian Tu | TED — Transcriptly