272. What if work was about purpose, not survival? With Louise Hill, Founder of GoHenry, and Ruth Handcock OBE, CEO of Octopus Money

3 Feb 2026 · 59 min · 24 chapters

Ask about this episode

Ask anything about it. ChatGPT or Claude reads this page and answers with the times it was said.

Connect VO and ask about every podcast you hear, including the moments you saved. Add to ChatGPT · Add to Claude

In short

Truth, Lies and Work Podcast Episode Summary

Episode Title

272. What if work was about purpose, not survival? With Louise Hill, Founder of GoHenry, and Ruth Handcock OBE, CEO of Octopus Money

Episode Description

A LinkedIn Live conversation focused on money confidence, risk, and the future of careers.

---

Key Themes and Discussions

Shift in Work Paradigm

  • From Ambition to Survival: The episode discusses how recent economic factors (rising living costs, layoffs, AI advancements) have shifted the perception of work from ambition to survival.
  • Job Hugging: The phenomenon where individuals stay in jobs not for love but out of fear and a desire for stability, termed as "the Big Stay".

Money Confidence and Career Choices

  • Importance of Money Confidence: Money confidence is emphasized as a greater determinant of career decisions than income levels.
  • Impact of Financial Security: The lack of financial security affects promotions, leadership ambition, and the willingness to take career risks.

Educational Influence on Financial Habits

  • Childhood Financial Education: Louise Hill highlights that money beliefs formed in childhood can significantly affect adult decisions, including career choices.
  • Statistics: Kids who received financial education are reported to be 46% more likely to start a business.

Socioeconomic Factors

  • Career Risks and Background: Discussion on how individuals from less affluent backgrounds tend to take fewer risks in their careers due to a lack of financial safety nets.
  • Social Mobility: Higher correlation between socioeconomic background and workplace progression, with those from less wealthy backgrounds progressing more slowly.

Employer Responsibility

  • Neglected Pillar of Workplace Wellbeing: Financial wellbeing is cited as the most overlooked aspect of employee wellbeing initiatives.
  • Actionable Steps for Employers:
  • Normalize discussions around money.
  • Create safe spaces for employees to discuss financial concerns.
  • Provide access to financial advisors and educational resources.

Future of Work and Financial Confidence

  • Career Purpose vs. Survival: Greater financial confidence could lead to more individuals pursuing careers aligned with their passions rather than merely surviving.
  • Innovation and Economy: A confident workforce is expected to drive innovation and positive economic outcomes.

---

Key Takeaways

  • Financial Literacy Redefined: It is not just about budgeting or numerical skills; it’s about confidence and understanding the implications of financial decisions.
  • Money as an Emotional Topic: Money discussions are often steeped in emotion, and addressing financial issues in a supportive environment can improve workplace culture and productivity.
  • The Role of Education: Incorporating financial education into school curriculums is essential for fostering a financially literate future workforce.
  • Leadership Impact: Leaders who openly discuss their financial journeys can create an environment that supports employee engagement and growth.

---

Guests

  • Louise Hill: Co-founder of GoHenry, a financial education platform aimed at building money confidence in children and teens.
  • [LinkedIn](https://www.linkedin.com/in/louise-hill-5197614/)
  • [GoHenry](https://www.gohenry.com)
  • Ruth Handcock OBE: CEO of Octopus Money, providing financial wellbeing and coaching services to help individuals make confident financial decisions.
  • [LinkedIn](https://www.linkedin.com/in/ruth-handcock-obe-71b3656/)
  • [Octopus Money](https://octopusmoney.com)

---

Audience

  • Leaders and managers focused on engagement and retention.
  • HR and People teams interested in diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) and social mobility.
  • Parents concerned about the long-term impact of financial conversations at home.
  • Self-employed individuals seeking better financial management strategies.

---

Additional Resources

  • Mental Health Support:
  • UK & ROI: [Samaritans](https://www.samaritans.org) — 116 123
  • US: [Suicide & Crisis Lifeline](https://988lifeline.org) — 988
  • Australia: [Lifeline](https://www.lifeline.org.au) — 13 11 14
  • International: [Find a helpline](https://findahelpline.com)

Connect with Truth, Lies & Work

  • [Website](https://truthliesandwork.com)
  • [Email](mailto:hello@truthliesandwork.com)
  • [LinkedIn](https://www.linkedin.com/company/truth-lies-and-work)
  • [Instagram](https://www.instagram.com/truthlieswork)

Conclusion

This episode provides valuable insights into the intersection of financial confidence and workplace culture. By understanding the emotional and educational aspects of financial wellbeing, organizations can foster a more engaged, innovative, and purpose-driven workforce.

Written by AI. May contain mistakes. Listen to the episode to check what was said.

Chapters

Tap a time to open that second in VO

The Concept of Financial Literacy

3:40 to 4:21

Exploring what financial literacy means and its misconceptions.

“That seemed like a lot, a much shorter intro when we were practicing it before.”

Impact of Financial Literacy on Careers

4:21 to 6:29

Understanding how financial literacy affects career choices and risk-taking.

“It's the knowledge, the understanding and the confidence that someone needs to make informed and effective decisions with the financial resources that are available to them.”

The Role of Safety Nets in Career Risks

6:29 to 10:49

Discussing how financial safety nets influence career decisions and social mobility.

“lives if they have different levels of financial literacy, different levels of confidence with money.”

Early Money Attitudes and Their Effects

10:49 to 11:48

Examining how childhood attitudes towards money shape adult financial behaviors.

“So just as you hear people, perhaps the first thing they talk about is often not the financial safety net, but it's often quite a big part to play.”

Changing the Conversation Around Money

11:48 to 14:00

Strategies for fostering open discussions about money and removing stigma.

“And because it doesn't get talked about enough, we're not going out there as employers and saying, actually having a month or two of salary in a savings account is a really good thing for your career.”

The Emotional Complexity of Money

14:00 to 18:00

Discusses the emotional aspects of money and how childhood experiences shape financial habits.

“Others I've heard is coming from the perspective you were talking about, Al, about kind of almost the shame of money.”

Gender Dynamics in Financial Literacy

18:00 to 22:40

Explores the similarities and differences in financial literacy and attitudes towards money between genders.

“We actually see the same when people get to the workplace.”

Financial Confidence and Career Choices

22:40 to 28:00

Examines how financial plans impact job satisfaction and decision-making in careers.

“We even had a couple of cryptocurrency traders, but it's okay.”

Planning for Long-Term Financial Goals

28:00 to 29:12

Learn how to assess your financial trajectory over the next 20 years.

“Step two, which is what most people don't get to, is what do I want to achieve in the next 5, 10, 15, 20 years of my life and am I on track to get there?”

Building Money Confidence in Teams

29:12 to 30:46

Discover how GoHenry fosters financial confidence among employees.

“When you work through that plan with someone, they look back and they're like, it's kind of simple.”
Show all 24 chapters

The Emotional Impact of Money

30:46 to 32:46

Understand how financial stress affects mental well-being and work performance.

“with money themselves, or a lot of them didn't feel confident with money themselves.”

Rethinking Workplace Financial Well-Being

32:46 to 36:17

Explore why financial well-being is often overlooked in workplace strategies.

“In terms of financial well-being, all this conversation we've had, you know, extends more than just being secure, doesn't it?”

Creating Open Conversations About Money

36:17 to 37:18

Learn practical steps for fostering discussions around financial issues at work.

“And I'm not going to make this podcast about pensions.”

Establishing Financial Education in Schools

37:18 to 39:43

Discover the importance of embedding financial education in school curriculums.

“So I think it is a case of the employer partnering with a service that provides that.”

The Role of Employers in Financial Confidence

42:00 to 43:30

Explore how employers can foster financial confidence among employees.

“You can learn all the theory you want, but you're never actually going to learn to do it until you jump in the water and have a go.”

Imagining a Financially Confident Society

43:30 to 46:00

Discuss the potential impacts of widespread financial confidence on innovation and society.

“So I think there would be many more new businesses created, which would be fantastic both for individuals' freedom and for the economy.”

Universal Basic Income and Its Implications

46:00 to 48:20

Examine the concept of universal basic income and its potential effects on work and productivity.

“So they said it would be true of the industrial revolution.”

The Purpose of Work Beyond Financial Security

48:20 to 50:20

Discuss the importance of purpose in work and the implications of financial security on job satisfaction.

“it was hugely dramatic and then you'd gone I disappeared.”

Unlearning Success Norms in Leadership

50:20 to 52:20

Learn about common success norms in leadership that need to be unlearned for better team dynamics.

“I'm trying to think of, so a success norm.”

Financial Well-Being for Self-Employed Individuals

52:20 to 55:00

Discuss strategies and initiatives aimed at improving financial well-being for self-employed workers.

Global Perspectives on Financial Education

55:00 to 56:00

Explore how different countries approach financial education and the gaps that exist.

“So Germany is an example, people have got into the habit of saving a little bit into an investment account each month, which is generally really positive for people's long term financial outcomes.”

The State of Financial Advice Accessibility

56:00 to 56:40

Discussion on the lack of access to quality financial advice for the mass market.

“But again, it's trying to recognize that people have really high levels of individual accountability on their finances in the US from, you know, health outcomes to personal tax.”

Global Financial Education Programs

56:40 to 57:20

Exploring the gap in financial education across different countries.

“The mass market, I think, globally is relatively underserved.”

AI's Role in Financial Democratization

57:20 to 57:55

Examining how AI can provide better financial advice for everyone.

“You know, it's one of those things that it shouldn't be for the wealthy or people with complex affairs.”
Hear the part that matters, and keep it.Open this episode in VO. Double tap your headphones to save a moment as you listen.
Get VO free

Transcript

Automatic transcript. May contain errors.

0:01Louise Hill:HubSpot makes impossible growth impossibly easy for their customers and here's a perfect example. Lee, your turn. Morehouse College needed to reach new students with fresh engaging content but with a massive 900 page website even the tiniest updates took 30 minutes to publish. Breeze, which is HubSpot's collection of AI tools, helped them write and optimise their content in just a fraction of the time. The results? 30 % more page views and visitors now spend 27 % more time on their site. If you're ready for impossible growth like this, visit HubSpot.com.

0:43Louise Hill:Hello everybody. Welcome, welcome. Over the last few years, work has shifted in some pretty fundamental ways. During COVID, a lot of people paused and reflected, myself included. We questioned what work was for, what mattered, and whether the way we're living and actually working makes sense. That reflection fueled what we came to call the Great Resignation. But since then, the context has changed. The cost of living crisis, high profile layoffs, advances in AI have made the job market feel far more uncertain. instead of people leaving in search of something better we're now seeing the opposite people staying put not because they love their jobs but because it feels safer to stay the media has called it the big stay or job hugging and what that really means is that a lot of career decisions today feel less about ambition and growth and more about risk management and survival when people don't feel financially confident.

1:46Louise Hill:That shapes everything. It affects whether they take risks, whether they speak up, whether they go for roles that stretch them, or whether they quietly sit tight and hope things don't get worse. And that has bigger consequences. It shapes who ends up leading, who feels able to innovate, and who actually gets to choose work they care about, rather than work they simply can't afford to leave. So today we're asking a simple but slightly uncomfortable question. What would change if more people felt financially confident enough to choose work for purpose not survival? And to explore that we're joined by two of the most influential and disruptive leaders in the UK finance industry.

2:30Louise Hill:First of all Louise Hill founder of GoHenry. GoHenry is that financial adventure education platform and is a debit card for kids and teens designed to help them learn how to earn, save, spend, give and invest from an early age. The idea is to build money confidence decision making skills long before career decisions ever enter the frame. This should help the next generation avoid the kinds of fear based choices that so many of us adults actually face. And joining us too is Ruth Hancock, CEO of Octopus Money, a financial well being and coaching service that combines personalised advice with technology to support adults and employees across the UK.

3:07Louise Hill:Octopus Money is on a mission to make investing and money advice accessible to all, believing that everyone deserves to feel confident about their future. This is Truth, Lies and Work Live, the award-winning podcast where behavioural science meets workplace culture, brought to you by the HubSpot Podcast Network, the audio destination for business professionals. My name is Leanne, I'm a Chartered Occupational Psychologist. My name is Al, I'm a business owner and together we're going to explore how money confidence is shaped and what that means for career choices, leadership and organizational culture.

3:38Louise Hill:Welcome, welcome, welcome. We are going to give our guests a moment to talk in a second. I'm so sorry. That seemed like a lot, a much shorter intro when we were practicing it before. But so welcome, welcome. Just quickly, we will do Q &A towards the end, but let's kick things off. Lee, I believe you've got some questions. I do. Louise, Ruth, welcome. So pleased to have you. Thank you for having us. Thanks. Can't wait for the chat. I want to dive straight in and I want to also make sure we don't assume we're using any terms that people maybe aren't familiar with. So Louise, can I start with you?

4:11Louise Hill:What do we really mean by financial literacy and what is commonly misunderstood about it?

4:19Ruth Handcock OBE:Well, financial literacy, in real simple speak, is money skills. It's the knowledge, the understanding and the confidence that someone needs to make informed and effective decisions with the financial resources that are available to them. And it really is a key determinant of lifelong financial outcomes and increasingly recognized as a core life skill. To the point where after years of campaigning by GoHenry, the government is now making financial education compulsory as part of the citizenship lessons in primary schools in England, starting in September, 2028. But, you know, in an increasingly digital world, more financial options than ever are there for everyone to navigate, whether that's shopping online, accessing music, games, entertainment through subscriptions, managing our income, managing investments.

5:23Ruth Handcock OBE:And so financial literacy is crucial in giving individuals the ability to make informed financial decisions. And there's strong evidence to show that leads to improvements in lifetime wellbeing. You asked me about misperceptions. I think the most common misperception is that you need to be good at maths or you need to be wealthy to have a good level of financial literacy and neither of those two things are true. It's not about complex equations. It's about creating strong money habits and then having the confidence to make informed decisions.

6:02Louise Hill:You mentioned there that financial literacy can have a direct impact on our money outcomes, on our life outcomes. How does that affect our career? So what does financial security mean in terms of shaping our career decisions, our promotions, even our leadership ambition?

6:22Ruth Handcock OBE:Well, two people can earn the same salary, but live completely different financial lives if they have different levels of financial literacy, different levels of confidence with money. So the difference is not usually income. It's that money and mindset. And how does that shape careers, it makes a massive difference. Somebody who does not receive financial education as a child, and I should probably say before I've sort of launched into this, we worked with development economics to produce a piece of research on how financial education directly impacts adulthood. And somebody who didn't receive financial education as a child is more likely to be unemployed or earning significantly less today than those who did.

7:12Ruth Handcock OBE:And 40 % of those who identified themselves as not having received any financial education said they had no savings at all. So to reply directly to your question, if you've got no savings at all and you're earning less, you're in a far less financially secure position and you're far less likely to take a risk to change your job, to go for a new position, to start a business. In contrast, kids who do receive a financial education are 46 % more likely to start a business. And that by itself would add 123 ,000 new jobs to the UK economy, resulting in an unbelievable£7 billion a year extra into the UK economy.

8:03Ruth Handcock OBE:So it's a sea change in people's life outcomes that directly affects their likelihood of changing jobs, starting a business or even going for a promotion if they think it's risky.

8:17Louise Hill:So leading on from that Ruth I want to ask you why are people from less affluent backgrounds less likely to take career risks even when they're highly capable? Is it down to to financial confidence? What's happening here?

8:32Ruth Handcock OBE:I think the bit that we don't speak enough about is the role of the safety net, actually. So if you put yourself in the position, and I certainly remember this in my 20s, of you are getting your paycheck, you pay your student loan, and you look at what's left, and it's just about enough to cover your rent. And you think, well, if I go for a new job, and it doesn't work out, how do I pay my rent? And very few people actually, particularly at that point in their career have thought, well, I must have some money in a safety net just in case. They probably can't afford to save three months salary, which is typically what many people think of as a safety net that allows you that little bit of freedom.

9:11Ruth Handcock OBE:So what you find is that those who have, frankly, parents who can provide that safety net will probably take more career risks than those who don't, because it's quite unusual that people post, particularly if they've done university education, have that safety net themselves. So sure enough, that actually rolls through to the career choices people make, which is you are just more likely to take a risk if you have a financial safety net, either from your parents or from your own savings. So you get this increasing correlation between socioeconomic background and progression through the workplace.

9:45Ruth Handcock OBE:And there's lots of research from wonderful organisations that look at social mobility in focus that says, if you come from a less wealthy background, you progress up to 30 % more slowly in the workplace, even if you even out for things like educational outcomes. and for me it's about confidence and I hear this from our customers time and time again is people just can't take a risk if they don't feel as if they could pay the rent perfectly logically but I think it really impacts the decisions people make in their careers.

10:22Louise Hill:So in terms of this social mobility is it then from what you've said it's less about discrimination and more from the fear of the individual to take those career risks so we are seeing a disproportionate number of people from higher socioeconomic backgrounds in senior leadership roles?

10:40Ruth Handcock OBE:I think there is a huge, huge complex basket of factors actually that play a role in career progression and its relationship with social mobility. So just as you hear people, perhaps the first thing they talk about is often not the financial safety net, but it's often quite a big part to play. There's all sorts of other things, which is comfort in certain situations in the workplace, confidence in themselves, having role models who've progressed in the workplace, having ever met someone who's done a senior leadership role. So all of that, I think, becomes a bit of a jumble of factors, actually, that do impact how quickly people from different social backgrounds progress in the workplace.

11:22Ruth Handcock OBE:But I think the financial confidence one is the bit we talk about least, is I think we jump to how confident you feel in this situation. And do you put your hand up in a meeting. And I hear endless people talk about that. I think people don't like talking about money and they don't like saying the reason I didn't go for the promotion is because I can't pay my rent if it goes wrong. Because, you know, some people feel shameful saying that they absolutely shouldn't, but they do. So it doesn't get talked about enough. And because it doesn't get talked about enough, we're not going out there as employers and saying, actually having a month or two of salary in a savings account is a really good thing for your career.

11:59Ruth Handcock OBE:I've never really heard a leader say that and I'd argue they should. So I'd love to raise that in the conversation. It's definitely not the only factor, but I think it's the one we've often overlooked.

12:11Louise Hill:Can I jump in and ask a question there, Ruth? It was something you both been saying there, like early money attitudes. And I remember when I was growing up, it was rude to talk about money at the table. It was very like, you know, you know exactly what I'm talking about there. These These are shaping some of what people, some adults are struggling with money at the moment. So is there any kind of research around that? What are your thoughts? This is a question from both of you.

12:34Ruth Handcock OBE:There is lots of research around it. There is a very well-cited Cambridge University study that showed that financial habits are formed, not start to be formed, are formed by the age of seven. and you know when you think about that children that age are soaking up everything around them learning at a huge pace if they are in a household that doesn't talk about money it's all very hidden that is the attitude and the habit that they grow up with if they're in a household where money is something that's feared and worried about uh in the same way that is something they then carry with them into adulthood.

13:15Ruth Handcock OBE:And that's why we campaign so hard for financial education in schools to start in primary school. It really needs to start young with open conversations, confident conversations about money. I could give you some anecdotal stories to add to that. When everyone starts working at Octopus Money, I often ask them for the reason that they want to work with us. And people have lots and lots of very personal reasons. Mine, for what it's worth, is always that when I was a kid, I grew up in a single parent family. My mum was always terrified that the washing machine was going to break and that she wouldn't have the money to fix it.

13:51Ruth Handcock OBE:And so I'm a saver because from a very early age, I was really terrified of the washing machine breaking, which is quite an extraordinary thing to care about as a sort of six-year-old. But loads and loads of people I work with have similar stories. Others I've heard is coming from the perspective you were talking about, Al, about kind of almost the shame of money. to people saying, well, you know, my dad got a better job when I was 15. He bought a new Volvo, but he parked it around the corner because he didn't want the neighbours to think he was getting above himself. And so all of these emotions that sit around money are complex.

14:23Ruth Handcock OBE:And depending on your background, they manifest in really different ways. I think the thing we found at Octopus Money is you sort of have two avenues you can go down. One is let's try and change culture such that there is less shame and fear associated with money. And I think to do that, you need to start with education and then you need to think about embedding those skills when someone gets into a workplace. So that's one angle. The other is meeting people where they are and giving people a safe space to talk about it if they don't feel they have the confidence to talk about it openly. And I think at least for now, we need a bit of both actually.

15:04Ruth Handcock OBE:We need to take some of the shame and fear away but we also need to make sure people have safe spaces and whether that's you know helping people figure out how they can do their own research to helping people figure out who they can talk to because we've got to recognize that the place people is start are starting is fear and shame and a lack of confidence and it's really hard to put your hand up in a seminar and say I don't know what a pension is but everyone's thinking it but no one does it um so how do you how do you give people the the space to ask those questions i just want

15:36Louise Hill:to ask a real quick question here ruth you said that when you're growing up six years old you're concerned you were really worried about the washing machine breaking so that made you into a saver so are the patterns so the person who's really bad with money who spends all their paycheck by day 15 of the month or you know wins a bit of money and puts it on the horses or buys a car is there a trend or something for both of you is there a trend or something that's happened in their childhood that might link to that?

16:02Ruth Handcock OBE:I suspect I'll have some anecdotes and Louise will tell you the actual answer I suspect it's way more complex than that and I could have turned into a spender just as easy as I could a saver but what's certainly true of most people I speak to is that they will point to situations in their childhood that change their attitude to money I think it's far less predictable because we as humans have very complex behavior as to whether a particular behavior observed by a person will will lead to a particular money habit um but i think there's uh there's certainly loads of anecdotal evidence that the environment you grow up in um impact how you feel about money because money is not about maths it's about emotion um and i think as soon as you start to recognize that money is about emotion you start to at least um begin to scratch the surface of understanding why people make the decisions they do i don't know louise whether you have um any other research that you've come across i i more rather than research ruth i think so many case studies sort of anecdotal case studies from families that we talk to where actually the parents watching their children learn and change behaviour has then triggered the parents to change behaviour as well.

17:21Ruth Handcock OBE:So typically that's around saving. But when a parent watches their child resolutely saving every week because there's something they really, really want to save up for, we have many, many parents will write in and say, I've never saved in my life before, but do you know what? I've watched him or her do this and I've started saving now. So yeah, I mean, Ruth's right. It is massively complex. I guess it boils out to both of our businesses try and talk to people in a way that is clear, understandable, no financial jargon when it's not necessary and make a safe space where people can have those conversations certainly one of the things we try and do is to trigger conversations in the home now that's that's that's something we we'd love to see and want to make happen with with

18:16Louise Hill:the services we offer Louise I want to ask you said that that these beliefs form by seven years old which is extraordinary I'm wondering how those early beliefs about what you said about about being good at um numeracy at math I think we've mentioned that how does that follow through what's coming to my mind is are we seeing a separation in terms of financial literacy in children between girls and boys are we seeing a gender difference there no there isn't and you know that's something

18:45Ruth Handcock OBE:we've looked at very carefully no there really isn't um where they spend their money there's definitely patterns but but in terms of who saves more or less it's very very close and we've we've you know we've been operating in the uk now for 14 years um so we've watched that very carefully And it hasn't shifted or changed in one direction or the other significantly over that period of time. We actually see the same when people get to the workplace. So when I look at who in the workplace books a session to have a conversation about their money, it's about 50-50 gender split. Again, people come with all sorts of assumptions about, oh, you know, it's women who don't know where to go.

19:27Ruth Handcock OBE:So they probably book more sessions in the workplace. It's absolutely not true. the need and the desire to get help in our experience exists quite evenly by age by gender it's a universal challenge we all deal with money every day.

19:44Louise Hill:Ruth I just quickly jump in and ask you there you said that the gender split is 50-50 but in both of your experiences is the kind of like the attitude as in like the shame of not having money is that generally a 50-50 split in your experience?

19:59Ruth Handcock OBE:I think it is hugely individual. And I think if you were to, you know, I studied science, if I were to go back and try and draw correlations between various aspects of people's personality and their money habits, I'm sure you would find trends. But when you first say to people, what are your goals in life? And how do you think about your money in relation to them? What comes forth is a jumble of life goals and experiences and opinions they formed at the age of seven and confidence with maths and confidence with their careers. And all that you really learn listening to hundreds and hundreds of customer calls is that money is really emotional and complicated for people.

20:42Ruth Handcock OBE:It is not as simple as put£10 a month away and you're going to be fine. It is way, way, way more complex than that. And it's about emotion and behaviors and the way you feel about yourself. If I give a case study, I listened to a call the other day of someone who logged on and said, and the coach said, well, why did you book this call? And she said, well, I think I'm a really bad parent because I'm terrible with money. and over the course of 45 minutes of talking through money her final statement was I feel as if I can look my children in the eye now because I feel as if I've got a plan and no one expects you to have a conversation with money and come out feeling like a better parent but that's what you experience so I'm sure there are some trends but it is drawn from the richness of people's lives which means that those trends aren't half as apparent as you might imagine they are

21:36Louise Hill:Sorry, Louise, any thoughts, anything to add to that?

21:39Ruth Handcock OBE:No, I don't think I can add to that. I think Ruth's absolutely right. I mean, we talk often to the kids and teenagers at GoHenry. They have their dreams and goals just like adults do as well. I think one of the trends we've seen developing over the last few years has been how many of them have set up what we call side hustles. So just how many of the kids are actually earning money from sources other than mum and dad. So not just pocket money, but obviously there are a few doing the traditional part-time job when they're old enough. But so many kids trading on internet marketplaces like Depop and Etsy, people actually making things and selling them on Etsy, social media and content creators.

22:41Ruth Handcock OBE:We even had a couple of cryptocurrency traders, but it's okay. It was with their parents' permission or their parents really doing it for them. But a huge number of kids actually running their own businesses. The one that's coming through at the moment seems incredibly popular is buying a 3D printer and then making things and selling them. So it's interesting to see the trends that come through there. But I think that has some interesting repercussions for the world of work as these kids grow up into adulthood and go out into the workplace. because if people have a side hustle, is that giving them that financial buffer to be able to choose a career with purpose, a career that they really want to do?

23:30Ruth Handcock OBE:Or if they find themselves in a career where they're not seeing progression and they realize they don't love it, does that give them the buffer to step away and choose something else or even move to making that business their full-time business?

Read the full transcript

23:46Louise Hill:Billion Dollar Moves, hosted by Sarah Chen Spellings, is brought to you by the HubSpot Podcast Network, the audio destination for business professionals. Join venture capitalist and strategist Sarah Chen Spellings as she asks the hard questions and learns through the triumphs, failures, and hard lessons of the creme de la creme, so you too can make billion dollar moves in venture, in business, and in life. Maybe start with episode 124, where you're going to hear how industry giants from Canva to YouTube define leadership. Listen to Billion Dollar Moves wherever you get your podcasts.

24:20Louise Hill:And I think we're seeing this with Gen Z have been described as the most entrepreneurial generation in history. I'm sure the Gen Alpha, by the sounds of it, Louise, we're already on with that. Even more so, yeah. Yeah. And we're also seeing those trends in terms of what Gen Z are asking for in terms of what they want from work. And it all seems to feed back to what you were saying there. I mean Ruth from your perspective again if you've got any anecdotes from from clients octopus money what changes when people feel financially confident and they feel confident enough to choose work that they really care about yeah so what we find when people have a financial

24:54Ruth Handcock OBE:plan so I'm a bit obsessed with it with a plan being the root of confidence um people find it very hard to get to a plan on their own but actually it doesn't take much um to help someone get to a plan. And once they have a plan, that sort of unlocks this feeling of control. And I now know what I'm doing. And I'm not scared anymore. And some of the things you find is people are way less likely to leave their jobs purely for salary. So lots of people switch jobs, not because they're unhappy, but because they think it's the only way they can get a pay rise. And people, you actually see less salary hunting when people feel financially resilient, which may mean they figured out that actually the amount of money they're earning they were happy where they were they were just thinking they should leave because it's the only way to to get a pay rise and if if they can figure out how the numbers add up then they're comfortable staying as they are um anecdotally you see people more likely to go for promotions um in the place that they're already working because they feel like they've got their stuff in order it's the confidence that that comes out of it.

26:02Ruth Handcock OBE:And then the real unlock, and, you know, we've all heard an awful lot about the correlation between financial stress and mental health. You just get this sense of less stress. So often one of the questions we ask when we first launch in a workplace is how stressed do you feel about money? And how many days do you think you couldn't concentrate on work because you were so worried about money. And you know, that, that latter stat can be north of 90 % in many, many workplaces. So if you're leading teams, and you ask people that question, probably 90 % of your team will say at some point, they were so worried about money, they couldn't concentrate on work.

26:43Ruth Handcock OBE:Now, if a plan can change that, what an incredible, one incredible thing to be able to offer a population so that they can live the life they want to live rather than feel that lack of control um so to me i do think it is the basis for many bits of your career we haven't even started talking about parenting and caring and all of those things again where it has a huge impact on people's confidence um but i but i do think the plan is the root of that but this question both of you louise and ruth you just said plan is the

27:17Louise Hill:root of that and i think a lot of people were thinking i have a plan as in a piece of paper showing me what my outgoings are and I have a big number that I wrote on the 1st of January going this is what I want to earn this year that doesn't sound like the kind of plan for both of you but what does a good plan look like?

27:33Ruth Handcock OBE:So I think it's I think there are two aspects which is you probably have a short-term plan and a long-term plan so most people think of a short-term plan as a budget so can I make sure that I can get through the month without spending more than I earn And that's normally where people start because we as humans find it very hard to think about the long term until the short term is in order. So just figuring out that how much am I spending, how much am I earning, a conundrum is step one. Step two, which is what most people don't get to, is what do I want to achieve in the next 5, 10, 15, 20 years of my life and am I on track to get there?

28:10Ruth Handcock OBE:so what we do at octopus money is not rocket science is we draw a line over the next 20 years saying if you carry on doing what you're doing this is what the next 20 years of your life look like this is the likelihood you can hit your goals this is what will happen if you take any time off this is how much money you might have when you retire this is the chances you can afford to go on that holiday that you really want to go on and actually if you make some different decisions and that might be things that people find a bit scary to decide on their own should i put a bit more in my pension? Should I start something called an ISA?

28:41Ruth Handcock OBE:I don't really know what an ISA is. Should I save a bit more? Should I save a bit less? Those are the kind of decisions that over the long term can make an enormous difference when you look 5, 10, 15 years out. That's the bit most people don't get to. That's the bit that influences whether you in the long term can live the life you want to live. And it has to start from the life you want to live. It's not just standing up numbers. It's what do I want to get to? And what decisions could I make with my money that would help me get there? When you work through that plan with someone, they look back and they're like, it's kind of simple.

29:17Ruth Handcock OBE:Now you lay it out like that. Really, you're just optimising for how much you save. And as we all know, if you save or invest, that money compounds over time. So it just gets you a bit closer to your goal. But it's really, really hard to get there on your own because people feel nervous that they don't understand what they're doing. They feel nervous about whether they've used the right data, they don't really understand how their pension works. But over the course of a half hour, 45 minute conversation, someone can walk away saying, oh, so if I just save an extra 10 quid into my pension, that's worth this much when I retire.

29:48Ruth Handcock OBE:Why didn't anyone tell me? That's how I think about a plan. Not rocket science, but quite hard to do with a blank sheet of paper on your own when you're not feeling hugely money confident.

30:00Louise Hill:I'm guessing, Louise, that's where you come in by...

30:03Ruth Handcock OBE:what is the blank piece of paper well we're yeah we're trying to um set some of that money confidence in place from a very early age but actually i was thinking as ruth was speaking you know when when i started the company back in what we launched in the uk and back in 2012 um we thought long and hard about what benefits we could give the the team that you know the people who worked at GoHenry. And at that point in time, we couldn't afford very much. But very quickly, it became very important to us because we are trying to teach money confidence. It would be a bit nuts if we were not trying to provide that to our teams as well.

30:44Ruth Handcock OBE:And talking to team members, we very quickly understood that most people didn't feel confident with money themselves, or a lot of them didn't feel confident with money themselves. we probably went about it in a different way to the way Octopus Money does but we put in place access to IFA so independent financial advisors and actually what we found when we first did that and I think it it speaks to the confidence point that Ruth was talking about when we did that So many of the team were actually fearful and embarrassed of booking that meeting with the independent financial advisor. And so what we found we had to do was put some webinars in place where there was a topic per webinar.

31:37Ruth Handcock OBE:people could send in questions anonymized questions ahead of time kind of hear the discussions about those topics and after people had gone through a series of those then they booked the call with the IFA and put together their their their planning for for them their family and their lives but um it it all comes back to that confidence point and and whether you are confident with money or not I love that answer I love that answer um just quickly we've

32:06Louise Hill:got a couple of people who've commented uh dean nichols could not have more apt surname could he nichol uh dean nichols said financial education comes from the family background and can make people worry very quickly which i think i think both of you've been saying i think i might have a question here from becca stimpson it says ruth earlier you said money is really emotional and complicated for people which i couldn't agree more with i work for mental health uk which is one of our core focuses is money so that statement the whole conversation really resonates oh it wasn't a question it was just it was a lovely bit of comment it was a bit of feedback thank you for that Becca if you've got questions then we will take those all at the end put the comments on in the in the LinkedIn live okay Lee I think you're going to want to talk about employers yeah Becca thank you for that perfect segue it's like you're looking at like my order yeah financial well-being we talk about it in psychology organizational life well-being is something that we all talk about but the pillars we seem to focus on I think around psychological social physical well-being as you've both said, Louise and Ruth, financial well-being isn't focused on quite as much or perhaps not in a way from your example, Louise, that kind of moves the needle with employees.

33:13Louise Hill:In terms of financial well-being, all this conversation we've had, you know, extends more than just being secure, doesn't it? It allows you to make choices in our lives, in our careers. So, Ruth, can I ask you first, in terms of financial well-being, why do you think it is the most neglected part of workplace wellbeing strategies? And what do you think we can do to change that?

33:37Ruth Handcock OBE:Yeah, I have come to the view that it is a bit of a no brainer for employers to care about this for a couple of reasons. One is, you know, going back to those stats I was talking about earlier, is there is a productivity benefit as an employer of caring about this because your employees are distracted and they are worrying. And if you can help them through that, there is just a positive benefit in how much those individuals feel not only able to focus on work, but actually feel part of a family and feel like you're looking after them as whole people. And then there's that other piece, which is your employees are less likely to leave you for a pay rise if you look after them.

34:17Ruth Handcock OBE:So if that's so obvious to me, at least, why haven't people done it? I think partly there is a, you know, there are waves of responsibility that employers feel. And I think over the last 20 years, we've gone through cycles of employers feeling like they need to look after the whole person to feeling a bit more transactional. And by industry and by, frankly, economic cycle, you'll find employers making different choices. And I think we're in a period where people want to retain talent. You talk about the great stay, but I think people really want to make sure that talented people want to grow with their organization, which if you're an employer, leads you to think, well, how do I make this employee feel as if I care about them, feel as if this isn't just, I pay you, you deliver a job.

35:09Ruth Handcock OBE:This is somewhere where I care about you as a whole person. And money is such a gigantic part of that. I think we started with health because there was a trend to employers filling a perceived gap in people's access to health services where people don't expect access to money services that's the really peculiar thing is people expect access to banking that's about transacting there's no expectation amongst UK society of getting access to long-term money help which is bonkers in my mind I think it is it is sort of something that everyone should get access to but the industry hasn't found commercial ways to provide it.

35:48Ruth Handcock OBE:So because people didn't feel that lack of access, employers didn't feel like there was a space to step into. Where now I think as employers have done it, and there are such spectacular case studies of how successful that is, both from an employee and an employer perspective, you see more employers making that choice as they should, I think. The final thing I'll say is, you know, there could be no one better than an employer to make it because they provide your salary and your pension. And I'm not going to make this podcast about pensions. You know, a pension is there has been this gigantic shift over the last 20 years of the pension being largely the responsibility of the state and your employer.

36:29Ruth Handcock OBE:So today, assuming you work for a private sector organisation, your pension is your responsibility alone. Your employer may contribute it, making sure you have enough money when you retire is your problem. And that shift has happened without us really being as explicit about it as that. So with that responsibility, we need to provide help and the employer is best placed to provide that help. At the moment, we've shifted the responsibility. We haven't quite provided the help to go around it. So I'd argue just sort of societally, there's an obligation on employers to provide that help around pensions.

37:05Louise Hill:Louise, what do you think? I'm thinking about the story you said earlier about the webinars you had to put in to encourage people to access the support is it just because it's a bit awkward like a manager's feeling awkward as well about talking

37:16Ruth Handcock OBE:to their teams about money yeah I think that is part of it and and you know the way we did it was not have um well obviously the managers the leaders introduced the why we were doing it and why we thought it was a good idea but it wasn't us providing the advice because frankly I'm not qualified to provide the advice and most managers, unless they are financial advisors, are not qualified to provide the advice in the same way that I wouldn't provide medical advice. So I think it is a case of the employer partnering with a service that provides that. But there is an element of course of leading by example.

37:57Ruth Handcock OBE:I mean, all of the team I would imagine at GoHenry have heard me on various podcasts and things saying what I wish I'd known about money when I was long younger, some of my financial mistakes and those sort of things, because it's a topic that we talk about as a business. But that isn't the norm. So I think it's about just creating an open environment where people feel they can speak openly. And if somebody is really struggling seriously with money stress, they do feel that they can speak to their manager and maybe get a bit of support. I should say the one correlation I've seen over the years in where a launch to a set of employees is really successful so we get about a third of employees normally sign up for a first session when we launch in a workplace which is astonishing in itself because it just shows you how many people are sitting worrying the biggest correlation with increasing that 30 % is having a leader like Louise who stands up and says this is something you should do if you give employees permission they will suddenly engage.

39:00Ruth Handcock OBE:So it is hugely influential when there are leaders who say, look, I didn't know this either, but having a plan is a really good thing, makes an enormous difference.

39:11Louise Hill:For any leaders, business owners that are listening, is there perhaps a first practical step you'd suggest they start with in terms of starting to work financial well-being support into the organisation?

39:26Ruth Handcock OBE:i think for me it is as a leader it's normalizing it so i think to the extent you feel able to talking about how you feel about money talking about the mistakes you've made talking about the fact that you don't find it easy and no one's born knowing what a pension is is really helpful because that just breaks the ice i think you've then got to combine education and knowledge um with safe space and there are many ways that you can you can deliver a safe space for people to talk about money that may be one-to-one as we do it it may be I've seen some organizations who set up um team dinners where you'll go and talk about how do you think about your money and it's all peers so actually if people feel more confident talking about it in front of their peers than they might do if their manager's in the room or there are all sorts of ways of doing it but I would just recognize it's personal it's emotional there's a huge need um and your people team which is where the questions probably end up feel terrified that they're going to get it wrong.

40:26Ruth Handcock OBE:So when someone comes to them in financial hardship, you as a leader need to give your people team the tools to be able to deal with that because it's a stressful time for them. They want to help, but they might not know what they can and can't say and actually what the right help to offer at that point is. So I think if you think upskilling, leading by example, and then creating a safe space, To me, those are the principles of the sort of support you want to put in place.

40:53Louise Hill:I love that. I love that. I'll be honest, I was bankrupt back in 2007 after a business didn't go well. And I learned more from that money I lost than the money I've ever made. So talking about changing things, this question, I'm going to start with you, Louise, and I want to go to Ruth. Louise, I'm always seeing you at number 10 or in Dowdy Street or something. When you become prime minister and you're redesigning this whole system, what's the first thing you're going to change to fix this then we'll come back to you Ruth

41:21Ruth Handcock OBE:oh my goodness the first thing I would change um we've just taken a big step forward towards that it would be making it a mandatory part of the curriculum in schools and making sure that it's you know that that's almost that's the first step there has to be the time in the curriculum The teachers have to be trained in it. There has to be the funding in place to deliver it properly. And very important from my perspective, it can't just be theoretical. It has to be practical education as well. You know, I've often talked about money skills being a little bit like swimming. You can learn all the theory you want, but you're never actually going to learn to do it until you jump in the water and have a go.

42:08Ruth Handcock OBE:So there has to be a practical element to it. That's that would be the first thing. I was going to say, Prime Minister Louise has already done it. She's got it in schools. The only thing I would add is to me, there's the education and there's the embedding. So I would try and create a desire or obligation on employers to provide help in the workplace because that's where the pension is, because it's a place where employees will trust the service you provide in a workplace in a way that they might worry in the big wide world that they're making the wrong choice so I think allowing employers to harness that power and opportunity they've got and creating trying to create an obligation for them to do that I think would be enormously impactful.

43:01Louise Hill:You've both said so many brilliant things about what that means for for a business for a workforce to feel financially confident that they might stay for meaning and not leave for a higher salary um I think yeah lower turnover more passion in our work more meaning can only be good I wonder and this is a very hypothetical philosophical imagine what if the world looked like question but Louise if we could get it to the point where the majority of us are financially confident what does that mean for things like innovation for leadership for our economy for our society does it have bigger

43:39Ruth Handcock OBE:impacts I think it has massive impacts yes I think you would get more businesses founded so you know I suppose having done what I did in launching GoHenry I know the risk appetite and that you have to have to leave a job and start set up a new business. So I think there would be many more new businesses created, which would be fantastic both for individuals' freedom and for the economy. And I think we would have a much more focused, empowered, excited workforce, which would drive innovation and economic output. Yeah, I agree, actually. I think it's confidence and then innovation. And we know that innovation is the driving force of, you know, if I think about it in a business sense of improved customer outcomes.

44:36Ruth Handcock OBE:So businesses do better things for customers when they are willing to break boundaries and try new things. It has always been true. And we rely on startups to do that. But we also rely on people having the confidence within bigger companies to try new things. And I just think that financial resilience is so deeply correlated with innovation and innovative mindset and activity that I think that unlocks improvement in business, it unlocks improvement in the startup economy. And it probably unlocks productivity and growth, really, because if you're solving more problems for customers in more innovative ways, then UK PLC should be pretty happy too.

45:22Louise Hill:i have a bit of a i have a question i don't know whether you've got an opinion on it i haven't actually seen either of you talk about this but um open ai sam altman i think we've all know what open ai is i think he's a big proponent of something called ubi which is universal basic basic income i think my understanding is that he's saying well why don't we just give everyone enough money to survive and then we can go and do all the things we want to do like ski use ai to build businesses whatever first of all what is that is that what i've understood is correct and secondly i like both of your opinions on on that what happens if that is that a good

45:53Ruth Handcock OBE:idea well that is a big old question my goodness we're into um we are into changing the world now well i mean my slightly my slightly flippant view and i've i've heard um sam altman talk about this whether that's exactly what he means i i can't tell you i guess when i look historically there has been no period of rapid change that has produced a life of leisure. So they said it would be true of the industrial revolution. It wasn't. They said it would be true of dot com. It wasn't. We as humans tend to find stuff to fill our time and we tend to want to be more productive. So do I think AI will allow us all to kick back and receive a free wage?

46:33Ruth Handcock OBE:There's nothing in history that shows me that that's the case. Although, goodness, I am not an AI expert. And I've certainly heard people say that I'm wrong if I look at that going forward and this one's different. If you put that to one side, I think my personal view is productivity and work is quite good for the human condition. So I think we experience positive mental health by feeling as if we are contributing to society. So do I think it would be lovely if everyone had a basic standard of living? Absolutely. Do I think using that as a way to increase leisure time is good for us as humans?

47:13Ruth Handcock OBE:I'm not sure. I think many people do work too hard and there are many people in many parts of the world for whom having more financial freedom would be immensely beneficial. But do I think uncoupling income and work is necessarily good for us? I'm less sure about that, actually. I think I certainly personally get a lot of satisfaction about having something to aim for and achieving it um and i i've i've yet to fully figure out in my own mind how um how some altman's view of the future um combines with with that view of what makes humans happy louise any thoughts yeah i i was going to go back to the um the word that was used in the title of this session purpose you know if work would

48:08Ruth Handcock OBE:are you still here i'm still here let me see i think we might have lost louise one second let

48:14Louise Hill:me just see if i can put her back in one second just about to learn what our universal purpose was

48:21Ruth Handcock OBE:it was hugely dramatic and then you'd gone I disappeared. Oh, dear. Do you want to start from your beginning?

48:31Louise Hill:I don't think we got your intro and I don't think we got two points.

48:35Ruth Handcock OBE:Yeah. So work gives people a huge amount of purpose. You know, that was the point, part of the title that we were talking about today. And I would fear that if all of us were able to go off and play golf all day, we would lose a lot of the energy and purpose and pleasure that we get from doing a job that we care about so you know the difference between getting financially confident and getting to a place where you are able to do a job that you actually care about and want to be in that's one thing removing that entirely that that yeah but I don't like the sound of that I think a lot of people would be very lost.

49:25Louise Hill:I agree I agree okay we've got time for just a couple more questions are you two okay for a time here have we got another five minutes? Fabulous. First we just want to say thank you to a couple of people who've commented Louise Webster she's obviously agreeing with both of you she's saying that focusing on beyond school which I think is encapsulated I'm guessing that's one of Louise's ventures beyond school she's bridging the gap between school and work so if anyone wants to learn more about that go and search for Louise Webster. And then Helen, now Helen, I'm so sorry, I'm not going to get your surname right here.

49:54Louise Hill:Helen O 'Riordan. I'm so sorry. I know that's not right. She just basically said she's set up for any women in or around London. She said the Women's Informal Investing Network in 2024 to talk about all this kind of thing. So obviously go and check that out. But there's no, we're not saying that it's good or bad. We're just saying that's what she's commented. I just want to make sure you're not, we're not sort of, you know, I'm trying to say. So I have a question here from one of our previous um previous guests um she's talking more around about the idea of uh leadership behaviors so she says looking back on your own journey what's one widely accepted success norm you've had to actively unlearn does that make any sense does there's one thing that can jump to your mind

50:38Ruth Handcock OBE:i'm sorry i totally put you on the spot here aren't i no it's a great question it is do you No, sorry, we're both jumping in. I'm trying to think of, so a success norm. I'm going to turn that slightly, not getting emotional. So somewhere, somebody wrote the rule book that leaders are not supposed to get emotional. And the team at GoHenry will tell you, and a few interviewers I've spoken to will tell you that I am very capable of getting quite emotional, particularly when I'm talking either about some of the incredible things our team have achieved or some of our case studies you know and talking about changes in in families lives and children's children's outcomes and I used to really really worry about that I used to think that it made me look weak and a worse leader and so I have made myself unlearn that I actually think it shows that I really really care I love that and I'm gonna go for one that's probably a bit more of a cliche actually which is I certainly spent the first half of my career thinking I was supposed to know the answers and you have this point where you think you are you are employed for your competence and you go into a meeting you'd be like yeah I know that I'm like thinking I don't know that but you feel as if you should show up and I think the bit that I've learned is vulnerability that just saying I don't know I'm not sure about that yet I don't know what the right judgment is I'm going to go away and find out but I'm relying on the people around me to help and I've definitely moved from feeling like I should be an island and I should be able to do everything to recognizing that I'm people are going to be better than me at most things and so the more open I am to help the better the decisions I'm going to make are so showing up with vulnerability i think is a is probably my best example i love this i love this that question i

52:39Louise Hill:forgot to say was from megan french dumb dumbart known as mfd to her friends she's got a great book called this isn't working just an awesome awesome person and a really funny funny woman so i definitely go and check her out i've got a couple more here in the comments we've probably got time to do both of these uh first of all um yes i think there is a question this is from richard lee who i think i'm connected to on richard quite newly actually i'm gen z and i'm one of these kids buying and selling on depop at 14 years old what the hell what what's depop do we know a trading platform

53:08Ruth Handcock OBE:yeah yeah yeah yeah various clothes and stuff yeah it is i am so old says the legend needs

53:16Louise Hill:to become a founder i've become i've built a community of 10 000 people are founders in the uk amazing what do you all think we can do to better the level of financial well-being for self-employed people oh interesting yeah I think I've come across some startups looking at this

53:33Ruth Handcock OBE:actually because I think it's really underserved area and both in terms of how do you how do you run your how do you get used to running your business but then also how do you look after your personal finances when all of the kind of legal and tax structures around being self-employed are quite um different so I definitely have a little bit of a scan of the market because I have come across a few founders looking at precisely this um this challenge because i think it is underserved and it's so positive that it's a market that's growing because it means more people are translating those side hustles into entrepreneurial careers which is absolutely awesome um so i do think it's a it's an area where you'll see more more startups popping up well i was going to say that i i know that um zero um run a whole um information well no not information program i'm trying to think what to call it but um they run a whole program that is accessible to any of their customers um that teaches and guides on money management for self-employed people and there's also a wonderful lady called Lucy Cohen who does something very similar so those are two places that you could go and have

54:48Louise Hill:a look for that we should also mention our friends perks led by Stella Smith who offers corporate level benefits to self-employed people and small businesses I believe that financial advisory is part of that package as well yeah it's like five pounds a month per person you get it's it's really be good we we use that um okay so i've got my own last question which we'll see if we've got time for this one is from uh alicia page she says uh essentially she's saying are there any countries out there that you think are doing financial well a financial education well i wish there were

55:25Ruth Handcock OBE:i wish there were there were different investing trends in different markets um we haven't talked about investing uh because again i don't want to make this about pensions but um but you do see some markets where people have got into investing habits. So Germany is an example, people have got into the habit of saving a little bit into an investment account each month, which is generally really positive for people's long term financial outcomes. In the US, you see a lot more workplace participation in financial advice, largely because people have more complicated tax affairs. So you can look to that market for some models that work really well.

56:04Ruth Handcock OBE:But again, it's trying to recognize that people have really high levels of individual accountability on their finances in the US from, you know, health outcomes to personal tax. So there's been an obligation or a requirement for employers to help people with that. I think the sad reality is I see few models in any markets where really good quality financial advice and planning is available in the mass market. There are many examples, the UK being one, where getting access to that help if you've got complicated financial affairs and or are wealthy. There are some absolutely phenomenal people who can help you.

56:41Ruth Handcock OBE:The mass market, I think, globally is relatively underserved. Don't know, Louise, whether you've come across any examples. No. I mean, we looked hard for other countries that had outstanding financial education programmes. Obviously, our interest was starting in schools. And the answer is not really. There are one or two. Singapore is quite good. Some of the Nordic countries have some things in place, but it's astounding to me how many have nothing or very little in place. I do think one of the things that actually AI has the potential to democratize is access to much, much better financial advice for all of us.

57:27Ruth Handcock OBE:You know, it's one of those things that it shouldn't be for the wealthy or people with complex affairs. It should be for every single one of us to be able to access high quality information that helps guide our financial decisions. And I'm very hopeful that AI will start to push forward many more players in that space that really can democratize it.

57:54Louise Hill:Fabulous. What an amazing place to leave it. I think, Leanne, anything else to say before we... Just to say, two fabulous organisations here that are trying to make changes and waves in terms of financial education literacy. So definitely go check out Octopus Money and go, Henry. Louise, thank you so much. I'm guessing it's the best place for people to find you if they've got any questions linked in. Is that where they should go? Yeah, absolutely. Great. So we'll leave links to that as well. We should mention that this video will be reposted on LinkedIn and YouTube and the audio will be live on our podcast stream later today.

58:29Louise Hill:Thank you so much. It's been such a pleasure to speak with you and I feel like I've learned so much and I think I need to go learn more about investing. You should go Henry when I was a kid. Okay, right. Well, we'll see you all very soon, by the way. Quickly, thank you, Georgia Hodkinson and Anna Lane. Sorry we didn't get to your comments, but thank you very much for that. And if you like this kind of thing, then hopefully more of this and obviously go follow these two amazing women. See you soon. Bye.

From the publisher

A LinkedIn Live conversation on money confidence, risk and the future of careers

Over the last few years, work has quietly shifted from ambition to survival.

Rising living costs, economic uncertainty, layoffs and AI have changed how people make career decisions. Instead of taking risks or pursuing meaningful work, many are staying put not because they want to, but because it feels safer to stay. The media has called this the Big Stay or job-hugging.

Why these two perspectives together

Louise and Ruth operate at different, but deeply connected, points in the system.

Louise works at the earliest stage, where money beliefs, habits and confidence are formed in childhood and adolescence.

Ruth works at the adult decision-making stage, where financial confidence shapes career risk-taking, leadership progression, entrepreneurship and long-term wellbeing.

Together, they offer an end-to-end view of how money confidence shapes working lives.

Why money confidence often matters more than income when it comes to career choices

How financial insecurity quietly shapes promotions, leadership ambition and risk-taking

Why people from less affluent backgrounds are less likely to take career risks, even when highly capable

How early money beliefs follow people into adulthood and the workplace

Why financial wellbeing is the most neglected pillar of workplace wellbeing

What leaders and organisations can do to reduce fear-driven decision-making without being intrusive

What you’ll learn in this episode

This conversation reframes financial literacy not as budgeting or products, but as freedom, confidence and optionality.

Money confidence influences:

Who feels able to negotiate, speak up or take risks

Who progresses into leadership roles

Who starts businesses or new ventures

Who opts out, plays safe or stays stuck

Why this matters for leaders and organisations

For leaders concerned about engagement, retention, wellbeing, DEI and social mobility, this episode highlights a hidden but powerful driver of workplace behaviour.

About our guests

Louise Hill
Co-founder of GoHenry, a financial education platform helping children and young people build money confidence from an early age.
🔗 LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/louise-hill-5197614/
🔗 GoHenry: https://www.gohenry.com

Ruth Handcock
CEO of Octopus Money, supporting adults and employees to make confident financial decisions about work, life and the future.
🔗 LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/ruth-handcock-obe-71b3656/
🔗 Octopus Money: https://octopusmoney.com

🎧 Who this episode is for

Leaders and managers worried about engagement, retention and risk-aversion

HR and People teams focused on wellbeing, DEI and social mobility

Parents thinking about the long-term impact of money conversations at home

Employees feeling cautious, stuck or unable to take career risks

Founders and policymakers interested in innovation and economic participation

💬 Connect with Truth, Lies & Work

Website: https://truthliesandwork.com

Email: hello@truthliesandwork.com

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/truth-lies-and-work

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/truthlieswork

Connect with the hosts

Al Elliott: https://www.linkedin.com/in/alelliott/

Leanne Elliott: https://www.linkedin.com/in/leanneelliott/

🧠 Mental health support

If this conversation brings anything up for you:

UK & ROI: Samaritans — 116 123 | https://www.samaritans.org

US: Suicide & Crisis Lifeline — 988 | https://988lifeline.org

Australia: Lifeline — 13 11 14 | https://www.lifeline.org.au

Elsewhere: https://findahelpline.com

More from Truth, Lies and Work

All 134 episodes
272. What if work was about purpose, not survival? With Louise Hill, Founder of GoHenry, and Ruth Handcock OBE, CEO of Octopus MoneyTruth, Lies and Work · 59 min
Listen in VO