meta_pixel
Tapesearch Logo
Log in
Rock Bottom With Ned Fulmer

Why Prenups Matter & Financial Rock Bottoms | Your Rich BFF Vivian Tu

Rock Bottom With Ned Fulmer

Fulmer Media

Curiousity, Inspirational, Mental Health, Bottom, Rock, Comedy, Ned, Interviews, Society & Culture, Personal Journals, Health & Fitness, Fulmer, Empathy

3.6 • 2.4K Ratings

🗓️ 28 January 2026

⏱️ 55 minutes

🧾️ Download transcript

Summary

Financial educator and bestselling author Vivian Tu (Your Rich BFF) sits down with Ned to share the devastating rock bottom moment that changed everything: discovering her New York City apartment was infested with thousands of German cockroaches. Breaking her lease cost $8,000—wiping out every dollar she'd saved from her grueling 70-80 hour weeks as an equity trader on Wall Street. After a year and a half of work, she had less money than when she'd arrived in the city. This financial catastrophe came on the heels of workplace harassment from a new manager who made racist comments and belittled her daily, ultimately pushing her to leave Wall Street entirely for a career pivot to BuzzFeed. What seemed like total failure became the launching pad for building one of the most influential personal finance platforms in the world, with millions of followers learning accessible money management from someone who truly understands struggle. Vivian breaks down why financial literacy education has failed so many people—it's not the message that's wrong, it's the messenger. For decades, money advice has come from "tall, handsome white men in Patagonia vests" or judgmental figures who treat debt as moral failure. She offers a radically different approach: practical, shame-free guidance that recognizes money as a tool, not a measure of your worth as a human being. This episode covers essential money topics everyone needs to hear: why prenups are actually romantic (the government writes one for you whether you like it or not), the "Is It Worth It?" equation that helps you understand purchases in terms of hours worked instead of dollars, why budgeting actually increases joy rather than restricting it, and the uncomfortable financial conversations couples must have at every stage—from the first date through marriage, kids, aging parents, and estate planning. Vivian also tackles the myth that small luxuries like lattes are keeping people poor (spoiler: $1,800 a year won't buy you a house), explains why 50% of Americans have credit card debt and shouldn't feel ashamed, and shares why asking for help from actual humans—not corporations and apps—is the missing ingredient in both financial health and mental wellbeing. Her new book Well Endowed hits shelves February 3rd and offers a comprehensive guide to building a life where your finances support your actual goals and values—not someone else's definition of success.

Transcript

Click on a timestamp to play from that location

0:00.0

All of my savings were gone. I had nothing to fall back on. I was living, you know, paycheck to paycheck.

0:05.5

And I then, shortly after that, actually got that new manager who was awful.

0:12.9

I remember one day I came into the office with a long cardigan on and he looked at me, touched his hands together and bowed and said, is that a kimono?

0:24.2

Whoa.

0:24.8

For context.

0:25.7

Oh my God.

0:26.8

I'm not Japanese.

0:29.2

Still inappropriate, even if I was.

0:31.6

When I tell people about these like low moments in my life, it actually is really helpful because people think that they're

0:40.0

so alone in making these financial mistakes or like these blunders that wipe them out financially.

0:45.7

But to hear someone who is now in a position of stability having made those exact same mistakes,

0:51.6

it's actually, I think, refreshing that nobody's perfect. You are going

0:56.3

to make financial mistakes. I have made a dozen. And ultimately, it's how do you improve? How do you

1:03.8

move on from this? And how do you get out of Rock Bottom? Hello, and welcome back to the Rock Bottom podcast.

1:12.5

I'm Ned Fulmer.

1:13.7

My guest today is Vivian 2.

1:17.2

Vivian is a former BuzzFeed coworker of mine and better known as your Rich BFF author of the New York Times best-selling book, Rich A.F.

1:29.8

And her new book, Well Endowed, hits shelves everywhere February 3rd.

1:35.6

Vivian, welcome to the show.

1:37.6

You have such a wonderful community of people that you have built, that you've shared,

1:43.5

really practical, accessible financial

1:46.3

tips on how to build their life and build wealth and that money mindset.

...

Please login to see the full transcript.

Disclaimer: The podcast and artwork embedded on this page are from Fulmer Media, and are the property of its owner and not affiliated with or endorsed by Tapesearch.

Generated transcripts are the property of Fulmer Media and are distributed freely under the Fair Use doctrine. Transcripts generated by Tapesearch are not guaranteed to be accurate.

Copyright © Tapesearch 2026.