March 29, 2021 • bachelor insider
'Talking It Out': Financial Expert Dr. Lynn Richardson Shares Ways for Couples to Approach the Taboo Topic of Money
Financial expert Dr. Lynn Richardson stopped by “Talking It Out” to impart her expertise to co-hosts Mike Johnson and Bryan Abasolo.
During their conversation, Dr. Richardson explained how couples should approach the taboo topic of money.
“I’ve been married for 26 years to a man who I love. In fact, he’s the better half of me. So, I would say that I have some experience in this area,” she began “As a Black woman, in particular, I can be perceived to be independent and strong and all of that stuff. But my husband and I have had a great relationship in terms of money. Even when we didn’t have any, we didn’t get upset with each other about it. It just was what it was.”
Dr. Richardson went on to say that “the best policy is honesty.” She elaborated, “When we got together, he had excellent credit, I had bad credit. I was the one with bad credit and I told him, ‘Listen, I have bad credit. I messed up in college. I had too many credit cards, couldn’t pay anybody.’”
Speaking more about the power of transparency in romantic relationships, Dr. Richardson said, “If you don’t have any [money] and your credit is jacked or whatever it is, just be honest about it and say, ‘Hey, we might not even be at this place yet. But I like you and I would like for this to go further and I just want to share this with you. I’ve had this in my background, I’ve had that with my finances.’”
Dr. Richardson also told Mike and Bryan that discussions about money don’t have to be uncomfortable. “The most important thing in a relationship is the heart and the intention,” she said.
Listen to the latest edition of “Talking It Out with Mike & Bryan” below.