Why is talking about money and class so awkward?! (w/ Jonathan Menjivar)

How to Be a Better Human

TED

Self-improvement, Education

4.2 • 1.3K Ratings

🗓️ 23 September 2024

⏱️ 39 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

🧾️ Download transcript

Summary

How often do you know your friends’ exact salaries? For most of us, the answer is almost never. Yet, in our everyday lives and interactions, we notice the many small cues that make our class differences obvious. So why does talking about money create such an uncomfortable, cringey feeling? How can we cohabitate knowing that in class, we are unequal? And does being rich make you a bad person? Host of the podcast Classy, Jonathan Menjivar, and Chris Duffy break down the answers in this episode.

Transcript

Click on a timestamp to play from that location

0:00.0	Ted Audio Collective.
0:02.0	Audio Collective.
0:04.0	You're listening to how to be a better human.
0:10.0	You're listening to how to be a better human. I'm your host Chris Duffy. I'm going to be
0:15.2	honest with you I am nervous about this episode. I'm nervous because we're talking
0:20.4	about a topic that feels very intimate and personal but it's also a topic that I don't feel like
0:25.2	I have very much practice talking about, or even hearing other people talk about publicly.
0:30.8	And that's class and money.
0:33.0	I once read a study where respondents said that they would rather have people see nude photos
0:37.1	of them online than their bank account information.
0:40.4	And I'm not sure that I agree with them.
0:42.1	I'm not sure which one I'd prefer to have leaked.
0:44.4	But I have to say I do understand that it's a tough call.
0:46.9	Because how much money we make and have and what we spend,
0:51.2	ooh, that is a lot to think about putting out there publicly for everyone to see.
0:57.4	The fact that this topic and these conversations are a little awkward and messy and uncomfortable.
1:03.0	That's exactly why I am so glad that we have Jonathan Menhvar on the show with us today.
1:08.0	Jonathan is a public radio producer, and he's the host of the podcast Classy, which unpacks these issues really thoughtfully and compellingly.
1:16.0	Here's a clip from Jonathan's show.
1:18.0	So many of us have this class anxiety that we're letting munch on our insides like a little parasite.
1:25.6	And it's not just former working class kids like me.
1:28.4	This class discomfort goes in all kinds of different directions.
	...

Transcript will be available on the free plan in -106 days. Upgrade to see the full transcript now.

Previous episode | Next episode

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

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