1 00:00:42,029 --> 00:00:46,720 Suze: November 3rd, 2024. Welcome everybody. This is the Women and 2 00:00:46,729 --> 00:00:51,038 Suze: Money podcast and everybody smart enough to listen. And Suze 3 00:00:51,037 --> 00:00:52,040 Suze: O here 4 00:00:52,680 --> 00:00:56,220 Suze: and today is a Suze Story 5 00:00:56,919 --> 00:01:01,299 Suze: and today's story is actually about me, 6 00:01:02,080 --> 00:01:07,059 Suze: about me and why I've done some of the things 7 00:01:07,069 --> 00:01:11,378 Suze: that I have done in my life as well as 8 00:01:11,389 --> 00:01:15,300 Suze: therefore how it affects all of you. 9 00:01:16,110 --> 00:01:22,160 Suze: It all started back around 1999 somewhere in there where 10 00:01:22,169 --> 00:01:25,169 Suze: I met a woman by the name of Eve Ensler. 11 00:01:25,639 --> 00:01:31,500 Suze: And Eve Ensler had produced a play called The Vagina Monologues, 12 00:01:31,510 --> 00:01:34,750 Suze: which was one of the most brilliant plays out there. 13 00:01:35,069 --> 00:01:38,430 Suze: And if you hadn't seen it, it was really something, 14 00:01:38,440 --> 00:01:42,809 Suze: it was really a teaching vehicle of how women feel 15 00:01:42,819 --> 00:01:46,930 Suze: about who they are and owning the power of their 16 00:01:46,940 --> 00:01:50,129 Suze: body in every type of situation. 17 00:01:50,930 --> 00:01:55,910 Suze: And over the time that passed Eve and I started 18 00:01:55,919 --> 00:01:59,110 Suze: to become friends and we ended up going to Washington 19 00:01:59,120 --> 00:02:03,680 Suze: DC where we addressed, I think it was Congressman, maybe 20 00:02:03,690 --> 00:02:07,080 Suze: a few senators. I'm not exactly sure, but we addressed 21 00:02:07,089 --> 00:02:13,830 Suze: and talked about domestic abuse and I wanted everybody to 22 00:02:13,839 --> 00:02:19,470 Suze: understand that, in my opinion, I really believed that women 23 00:02:19,880 --> 00:02:25,258 Suze: stayed in an abusive relationship because they didn't have the 24 00:02:25,270 --> 00:02:30,259 Suze: money to leave. They just didn't have the ability to 25 00:02:30,270 --> 00:02:31,380 Suze: get out. 26 00:02:32,008 --> 00:02:37,029 Suze: Now, that was my understanding at the time, obviously, since then, 27 00:02:37,038 --> 00:02:41,750 Suze: over 20 some odd years, it's become more expansive than that. 28 00:02:42,429 --> 00:02:46,589 Suze: But that's kind of where I started. And so I 29 00:02:46,600 --> 00:02:49,119 Suze: was thinking about that and working with it in my 30 00:02:49,130 --> 00:02:55,850 Suze: own way. And then in the year 2006, a woman 31 00:02:55,860 --> 00:03:00,209 Suze: by the name of Tarana Burke started what was called 32 00:03:00,220 --> 00:03:05,330 Suze: The Me Too Movement and she started it to raise 33 00:03:05,339 --> 00:03:09,270 Suze: really awareness about sexual abuse. 34 00:03:09,880 --> 00:03:16,929 Suze: And given my opinion that sexual abuse, physical abuse, psychological 35 00:03:16,940 --> 00:03:22,460 Suze: abuse all starts with financial abuse, which I've talked to 36 00:03:22,470 --> 00:03:24,460 Suze: all of you about before. 37 00:03:25,550 --> 00:03:28,889 Suze: It really attracted my attention. 38 00:03:29,520 --> 00:03:34,220 Suze: And I was like, Suze, you gotta do something about this. 39 00:03:34,869 --> 00:03:40,729 Suze: And that's when I decided in the year 2007 to 40 00:03:40,740 --> 00:03:45,779 Suze: write a book called Women and Money - Owning the Power 41 00:03:45,789 --> 00:03:50,199 Suze: to Control your Destiny. Now, what was so interesting about 42 00:03:50,210 --> 00:03:54,250 Suze: me writing the book called Women and Money was that 43 00:03:54,259 --> 00:03:55,539 Suze: prior to that 44 00:03:56,020 --> 00:03:59,059 Suze: I always said to everybody, I'm not just going to 45 00:03:59,070 --> 00:04:00,490 Suze: write a book just for women. 46 00:04:01,639 --> 00:04:07,179 Suze: Money has no race, no sexual preference. It's for everybody, 47 00:04:07,600 --> 00:04:10,710 Suze: it's just as important to teach men about money as 48 00:04:10,720 --> 00:04:13,779 Suze: it is to teach women about money. So I'm not 49 00:04:13,789 --> 00:04:16,869 Suze: just going to focus on women. 50 00:04:18,088 --> 00:04:23,109 Suze: And as I thought more about what Tarana was doing 51 00:04:23,378 --> 00:04:25,148 Suze: and the Me Too movement, 52 00:04:26,149 --> 00:04:30,329 Suze: I said, you know, Suze, you're not thinking about this correctly. 53 00:04:31,260 --> 00:04:34,630 Suze: Women are very, very different than men. 54 00:04:35,410 --> 00:04:38,459 Suze: Women have the ability to give birth, 55 00:04:39,488 --> 00:04:43,868 Suze: in most cases. Women have the ability to feed that 56 00:04:43,880 --> 00:04:47,828 Suze: which they have given birth to, in most cases. So 57 00:04:47,839 --> 00:04:51,149 Suze: it is a woman's nature to nurture 58 00:04:52,019 --> 00:04:58,618 Suze: and that's not exactly true for men. So women will 59 00:04:58,630 --> 00:05:03,279 Suze: do anything to protect their children. 60 00:05:04,230 --> 00:05:07,969 Suze: And as time was going on, and I was working 61 00:05:07,980 --> 00:05:12,169 Suze: with these ideas in my head, I was thinking about 62 00:05:12,178 --> 00:05:16,729 Suze: all the people that I had given financial advice to. 63 00:05:17,309 --> 00:05:21,230 Suze: And what was so fascinating to me is that women 64 00:05:21,238 --> 00:05:24,849 Suze: always took care of the household money 65 00:05:25,260 --> 00:05:27,920 Suze: and they let the man in the house. If there 66 00:05:27,928 --> 00:05:31,839 Suze: was a man in the house, take care of everything else. 67 00:05:32,010 --> 00:05:36,119 Suze: And I couldn't quite figure out why was that? What 68 00:05:36,130 --> 00:05:39,959 Suze: was going on here? Women were working everything but yet 69 00:05:40,420 --> 00:05:45,219 Suze: they still really took care of the household expenses. And 70 00:05:45,230 --> 00:05:47,119 Suze: that's when I realized 71 00:05:47,609 --> 00:05:52,170 Suze: that women took care of the household expenses because the 72 00:05:52,178 --> 00:05:57,510 Suze: house held everything that they loved, namely their children. 73 00:05:58,670 --> 00:06:02,690 Suze: And so I started to think about this and the 74 00:06:02,700 --> 00:06:07,369 Suze: more I thought about it I realized, oh yeah, I 75 00:06:07,380 --> 00:06:12,700 Suze: need to write a book just for women, for women 76 00:06:12,709 --> 00:06:13,928 Suze: to pick up 77 00:06:14,649 --> 00:06:18,549 Suze: because I needed to make sure that women didn't put 78 00:06:18,559 --> 00:06:22,709 Suze: themselves on sale. They knew how to own the power 79 00:06:22,720 --> 00:06:27,988 Suze: to control their destiny. They knew how to say their name. 80 00:06:28,890 --> 00:06:31,230 Suze: And what I mean by that is I had been 81 00:06:31,238 --> 00:06:34,500 Suze: doing a lot of speaking in those days. And what 82 00:06:34,510 --> 00:06:37,579 Suze: was fascinating is that as I would go to all 83 00:06:37,589 --> 00:06:41,738 Suze: of these events and the moderator would stand up and 84 00:06:41,750 --> 00:06:46,230 Suze: thank all the women who volunteered, who maybe worked 24 85 00:06:46,238 --> 00:06:48,730 Suze: hours a day, seven days a week to put on 86 00:06:48,738 --> 00:06:52,000 Suze: this event. And they would call out their names so 87 00:06:52,010 --> 00:06:53,660 Suze: that they could stand up. 88 00:06:54,170 --> 00:06:57,190 Suze: The women just nodded, they didn't want to stand up. 89 00:06:57,260 --> 00:07:01,829 Suze: They didn't want to take pride, they didn't even want 90 00:07:01,839 --> 00:07:06,079 Suze: to say their names out loud. So, a good chapter 91 00:07:06,089 --> 00:07:11,630 Suze: in that book was all about, say your name, be 92 00:07:11,640 --> 00:07:13,559 Suze: proud of who you are. 93 00:07:14,760 --> 00:07:18,299 Suze: And I decided that I should write a book called 94 00:07:18,309 --> 00:07:19,779 Suze: Women and Money. 95 00:07:20,649 --> 00:07:24,268 Suze: But what was fascinating as I toured with that book 96 00:07:24,799 --> 00:07:26,470 Suze: everywhere I went 97 00:07:27,140 --> 00:07:29,359 Suze: and it was the number one New York Times best seller. 98 00:07:29,369 --> 00:07:33,059 Suze: So I went everywhere with that book. I would stand 99 00:07:33,070 --> 00:07:34,519 Suze: up and men would come. 100 00:07:35,279 --> 00:07:39,369 Suze: And as the men were there, I would say, I 101 00:07:39,380 --> 00:07:42,179 Suze: know you think that this book may be just for women. 102 00:07:42,709 --> 00:07:46,410 Suze: But if you take this book and hold your hand. 103 00:07:46,420 --> 00:07:48,700 Suze: And I would do this over the wo of the 104 00:07:48,709 --> 00:07:51,920 Suze: word woman on the front of the book. I would say, 105 00:07:51,929 --> 00:07:55,500 Suze: do you see men? This book is for you as well. 106 00:07:56,399 --> 00:07:59,500 Suze: Because if you are in a relationship with a woman, 107 00:08:00,049 --> 00:08:06,500 Suze: it is very, very, very important that you understand how 108 00:08:06,510 --> 00:08:10,679 Suze: a woman thinks, feels and acts, which is very, very 109 00:08:10,690 --> 00:08:16,049 Suze: different about how you think, feel and act. So the 110 00:08:16,059 --> 00:08:19,690 Suze: two of you have to come together as one, you 111 00:08:19,700 --> 00:08:25,540 Suze: have to understand everything that she's up against, that you're not, 112 00:08:26,049 --> 00:08:29,920 Suze: you have to understand what she has to go through 113 00:08:29,929 --> 00:08:33,640 Suze: to make as much money as you. You have to 114 00:08:33,650 --> 00:08:39,119 Suze: understand men, the difference in being a woman and a man. 115 00:08:39,590 --> 00:08:43,760 Suze: And when you can understand things from a woman's perspective 116 00:08:43,929 --> 00:08:46,919 Suze: and feel what she has to go through, 117 00:08:48,030 --> 00:08:54,130 Suze: then you could have a successful personal relationship because unless 118 00:08:54,140 --> 00:08:58,728 Suze: you understand that you're never going to be one with 119 00:08:58,739 --> 00:09:01,409 Suze: your money. And as all of, you know, if you're 120 00:09:01,419 --> 00:09:03,119 Suze: not one with your money, 121 00:09:03,969 --> 00:09:06,909 Suze: you're not one with who you are. And if you're 122 00:09:06,919 --> 00:09:10,020 Suze: not one with who you are, there's no way your 123 00:09:10,030 --> 00:09:13,239 Suze: relationship with yourself could ever work out, let alone your 124 00:09:13,250 --> 00:09:19,159 Suze: relationship with somebody else. So it was very important at 125 00:09:19,169 --> 00:09:21,530 Suze: that time and still is to this day 126 00:09:22,460 --> 00:09:27,239 Suze: that a man understood what women go through 127 00:09:28,000 --> 00:09:32,339 Suze: and women were open to letting men know what they 128 00:09:32,349 --> 00:09:33,340 Suze: go through. 129 00:09:34,419 --> 00:09:38,159 Suze: So there, I was 2007 130 00:09:39,130 --> 00:09:46,640 Suze: empowering both men, women, whoever to understand their own power, 131 00:09:46,650 --> 00:09:50,770 Suze: especially when it came to who they are and what 132 00:09:50,780 --> 00:09:51,750 Suze: they had 133 00:09:52,489 --> 00:09:56,250 Suze: then as time went on and maybe you can remember 134 00:09:56,260 --> 00:10:00,559 Suze: this things started to gain in popularity. The me too 135 00:10:00,570 --> 00:10:08,869 Suze: movement actually became very popular in 2017 when all these people, 136 00:10:08,880 --> 00:10:11,909 Suze: strong people, business women 137 00:10:12,799 --> 00:10:17,099 Suze: had been abused by their boss or somebody wanting to 138 00:10:17,109 --> 00:10:21,900 Suze: give them a job or whatever it was. And again, 139 00:10:22,210 --> 00:10:25,709 Suze: I was saying to myself, I've got to go on 140 00:10:25,719 --> 00:10:29,619 Suze: and I've got to start speaking about this. Again, women 141 00:10:29,630 --> 00:10:35,640 Suze: need a voice. They need to be heard because if 142 00:10:35,650 --> 00:10:38,260 Suze: you don't have a voice, everybody, 143 00:10:38,770 --> 00:10:43,469 Suze: if you can't say what you're thinking, if you can't 144 00:10:43,479 --> 00:10:48,750 Suze: do what you're feeling, if you can't take the action 145 00:10:48,760 --> 00:10:51,630 Suze: that you know, you want to take so that you 146 00:10:51,640 --> 00:10:56,349 Suze: can save yourself on every single level, then there's no 147 00:10:56,359 --> 00:11:01,270 Suze: way that you can own the power to control your destiny. 148 00:11:01,950 --> 00:11:05,179 Suze: So that's when I started to go around and talk 149 00:11:05,190 --> 00:11:09,770 Suze: about it really, which is women, you need a voice. 150 00:11:09,780 --> 00:11:13,609 Suze: You have got to stand in your truth. 151 00:11:14,369 --> 00:11:18,159 Suze: And I was out there talking about it and really 152 00:11:18,169 --> 00:11:23,270 Suze: wanting women in particular to understand this point. 153 00:11:24,619 --> 00:11:29,858 Suze: And here we are now in 2024 154 00:11:30,679 --> 00:11:32,020 Suze: on November 3rd, 155 00:11:33,010 --> 00:11:34,359 Suze: two days away 156 00:11:35,140 --> 00:11:39,780 Suze: from the last time you can cast a vote in 157 00:11:39,789 --> 00:11:41,559 Suze: this year's election. 158 00:11:42,440 --> 00:11:46,659 Suze: And here we find ourselves everybody. 159 00:11:47,609 --> 00:11:51,250 Suze: And this includes the man listening. This isn't just a 160 00:11:51,260 --> 00:11:55,830 Suze: woman thing, it's an everybody thing. 161 00:11:56,690 --> 00:12:00,039 Suze: And that's because what happens to the women in your 162 00:12:00,049 --> 00:12:06,869 Suze: life affects everybody's life, not just the woman's life. 163 00:12:07,719 --> 00:12:10,460 Suze: And here we are once again 164 00:12:11,510 --> 00:12:16,559 Suze: where women need to have a voice, they need to 165 00:12:16,570 --> 00:12:25,130 Suze: speak up and get back control over their destinies, their bodies, 166 00:12:25,140 --> 00:12:29,789 Suze: their ability to be free and make decisions for themselves, 167 00:12:30,489 --> 00:12:33,150 Suze: whatever it may be. 168 00:12:34,130 --> 00:12:39,710 Suze: And so this story, this story still goes on the 169 00:12:39,719 --> 00:12:43,659 Suze: story that started so many years ago 170 00:12:44,700 --> 00:12:48,599 Suze: when women got the vote, when women got all kinds 171 00:12:48,609 --> 00:12:52,260 Suze: of things, the right to have an abortion and now 172 00:12:52,270 --> 00:12:54,359 Suze: that right is taken away 173 00:12:55,309 --> 00:13:00,608 Suze: and health benefits are taken away. And so many things 174 00:13:00,619 --> 00:13:04,950 Suze: have been taken from us. And the only way to 175 00:13:04,960 --> 00:13:06,849 Suze: get that back, everybody 176 00:13:07,559 --> 00:13:12,549 Suze: is to use your voice. And I don't know a 177 00:13:12,559 --> 00:13:17,119 Suze: more powerful way for all of you, every single one 178 00:13:17,130 --> 00:13:22,059 Suze: of you to use your voice more than making sure 179 00:13:22,070 --> 00:13:25,309 Suze: than on November 5th or before that, if you can 180 00:13:25,869 --> 00:13:29,080 Suze: to go in to that voting booth 181 00:13:30,700 --> 00:13:32,468 Suze: and vote 182 00:13:33,140 --> 00:13:37,539 Suze: and I did, I used my voice and I voted.