I AM Radio: Bold Money Moves with Martha Underwood

In this episode, we are joined by a leader in technology and innovation and the Founder of Prismm, Martha Underwood. Martha has also signed on as talent for I AM Series to share her expertise, particularly regarding the connection between money and power. 

Martha's story unfolds over 32 minutes of soulful, cup-filling conversation and inspiration.  We discuss building relationships and "collecting people" who, in turn, become part of our communities and success. Martha shares her mother's mantra to "be of service" and help one another - a mantra that defines how she moves through the world. 

We also discuss why she founded Prismm, a tech platform that enables the effortless transfer of generational wealth. Women in particular need this tool because most commonly they are responsible for managing caregiving, end-of-life planning or response, family money or wealth, and record keeping; often at the most transitional moments in their own lives and health.

Finally, we talk money mindset. Martha has been an inspiration and advisor in this space as often we channel her bold energy when it comes to making financial decisions or asks, and acknowledging the relationship between wealth and power. *Hmmmm, this feels I AM Docuseries worthy* Granted, she admits that she was not always as bold. It's something she too had to "rewrite." She notes, "When we accept and own that power, women change society for the better."

We are unstoppable, "we are to the moon!" she says, as we wrap our time together.  Hell yes, we are!

Prismm
Prismm is a digital vault for all life's most important documents and accounts. The platform makes end-of-life planning simple and is the most accountable tool to, safely and securely, manage everything from bank accounts to health records. It's peace of mind.

And no surprise here, but women are utilizing Prismm for all the platform has to offer! More than just an end-of-life planning system, it is a one-stop shop management tool for families. Think of stashing everything from grade cards to vaccination records in one secure location. *Ancient file cabinets in the basement and external hard drives be damned! Signs up for a subscription rn.*

Follow Martha, and open your Prismm account:

Prismm and LinkedIn

 

This is an IT ALL Media Production. If you like what you hear, follow along at ITALLMedia.co and @itallmedia on Instagram and TikTok.

We are a women-centered media company rewriting the narrative on modern womanhood through story and collaboration.

We're glad you're here.

Transcript

0:00

Welcome to I Am Radio. I'm your cohost, Kacie Lett Gordon. And I'm your other, one might say better, half, Katie Louise Mullins. We are the creators of the beloved FIA podcast and the women behind It All Media. Join us every Thursday for your weekly dose of I Am Radio. We'll be joined by fellow creatives, experts, organizers, powerful women in media, and our favorite of all, real women. As we chronicle, Our journey as two first time entrepreneurs turned filmmakers. With that, cue the dancing hot dogs and concession ads. Sit back, relax, and enjoy the show. Welcome back to another episode of I Am Radio. We are so grateful to sit down with one of our experts for the I Am Docu Series, Martha Underwood, founder and CEO of PRISM. And Martha, when I say that she is the queen of talking about women, power, and money, I mean it and this episode buckle up because we are going to cover off on so much. So drink some coffee a red bull Whatever you need because the next 20 to 30 minutes are are going to be full of gems martha. Welcome to the show Thank you for having me happy to be here. We had the chance to meet uh, maybe almost two years ago now and this is we love to give the meet cute stories of of Along the way of building this because so often we, you know, meet people and Katie and I, I think are proud collectors of people because you never know where there's going to be opportunities to collaborate and come back together. And as we started working on this series and talking about the dynamics of women and wealth and the intersection of that within power, your name. And the work you're doing with prism, which is a platform really around the intergenerational transfer of wealth. And if you're sitting here listening, like, what does that mean? We'll tell you, but. You came top of mind. And so, you know, two years later, it was a LinkedIn message and a plead to come join us on this series. And you came back with an emphatic, like, hell yes, let's do it. So thank you for, um, for being willing to, to jump back in. Absolutely. And. Now, I really know that you are my people because you said collector of people. Um, and my sister and I always say that because building relationships are so, so, so important and the ability to, you know, build this relationship with you and the team around women, empowerment and money and things that we care about is, is just phenomenal. I feel like. Go ahead, Katie. Sorry. No. I was going to say, so innately feminine, too. Like the collaborate, like just the collaboration in nature. I remember the first phone call that we had with you and I had the good fortune of meeting you in person and it was just like this excitement and you were like, I know how I can help you. I know, like we knew how to help you, you know, so it was just like this jump in and I think it's so innately feminine that women collaborate in the way that we do, um, and just collectively rise together. Yeah, and I think that that's something that, um, we're embracing more. Right. Because I know coming up, you know, in corporate America, it was a little dog eat dog with, you know, the another woman that might be in a top level position because she's like, I worked so hard to get here. No one else is going to take this. Right. But I think over the years and over the decades, we realized that we're stronger together and that there's room for all of us. I also take what my mom always said is just be of service and to help each other. And women, um, because we're so communal and we're so nurturing, it's easy for us. Once we say, okay, we're going to create this community of women. It's easy for us to then have the lens to say, how can I help Katie? How can I help Casey? How can we do this? How can we collaborate so that we're all successful? And I think that that's, what's going to take us, you know, far. And it's going to provide examples for the young girls coming up. Again, wielding power differently. As more of us get into positions of power to, to your point, like we, it is dog eat dog in a lot of, in a lot of worlds out there, whether it's corporate, whether it's politics, whether it's financial tech, you name it. But I've seen that there seems to be a collective reckoning of as many of us step into those positions, realizing that one, our male counterparts are collaborating, that they're not. Walling off and they're helping each other, but to the fact that we then now have an insider look at the systems. We are looking and when we say systems, you're looking at the company infrastructure, the power systems, how things get decisions get made and how things move up the ladder and you're realizing if I want to change this or look, have it look anything differently than it does today. There's no world. I'm doing it alone. And so there's, there's certain, I think, you know, yes, there's an element of like our feminine energy. And then there's also like a, well, shit, this is going to be too much for one person to do. So let me call my friend over here. And I, I think that that's where it was so resonant when we chatted to Katie's point is you said. Our question we always ask is how can we help and you said, I, you know, right now I can help you in a really urgent and immediate way. And I know there will be a first full circle moment where you can bring, you know, value or help or connections to me. And that also, it wasn't transactional. It was something that, you know, that foundation said like, okay, we're in it for the long haul. We're here, which is what guys do. Like the guys don't necessarily compete when it comes to business. They collaborate. And then they, they might compete on what, how much money we made or whatever, but they're collaborating and they're sharing the knowledge because to your point, we cannot do it alone. Right. But I think that you talk about the system. We as women have been conditioned to be competitive. Like you got the mean girls, who's prettiest, who's this and who's that. And it's just like time out for all of that bullshit. Like, we don't have time for that because the men aren't doing that. They're talking, they're strategizing, they're sharing knowledge, and that is our, really that's our duty. When we get to positions of power as women. Is we have to share that knowledge and realize that, you know, you might have a skillset that I don't have, or you might have a need that I have a connection to someone that can feel that need right now. And here's your, it's your turn. Men know how to wait their turn sometimes. They're just like, okay, I'm grooming you for this position to get into this CEO position. So I'm going to put you as a COO first, or I'm going to put you in this C suite position first. So you can learn this. I'm going to make you a market president over here. So you can just kind of get used to it. And then I'm going to ease you into it. And they're used to waiting their turn and kind of figuring it out. And sometimes we can get caught up as women's like, I've worked so hard, you know, I need to get this now or what can you do for me now? Because this thing is urgent where the beauty and the secret sauce really, or the cheat code is in the, let me just be a service and let me help you where I can. And. I know it's going to come back to me when I really need it because your need is much more important than what I need right now. And the more and more we embrace that, the farther we're going to get because you're going to remember, or you're going to be in some room and you're like, damn, I'm talking to this person. Damn it, this, he can help Martha. I'm going to come to the top of mine immediately. Right. And vice versa. And so that's what I witnessed being in some of the, the highest rooms, you know, with C suite guys, where I'm sitting here and like, he, he didn't even ask for himself, he just got his boy in and now they're going to collaborate and, and they're going to expand and then they're going to help their other friend get in and then they're going to be running this shit. Right. And that, and that's where I kind of said, this is a playbook that we, I need to adopt more often and just really help. And that, that's just kind of been my playbook for the past 15 years. Like, let's just bring. other women in that can do the job and can help us amplify my skill set, amplify my influence, so that we can do more for other women that, that is looking to come into whatever space that we're in. When we talk about intergenerational transfer of wealth, That sounds, it sounds mighty. It sounds big. And I can imagine for a lot of women that are hearing this right now, maybe sounds daunting to even say, what does that mean? Can you break it down of what is intergenerational transfer of wealth? Why is the biggest transfer of wealth happening in our history and the work you're doing to facilitate that process? Yeah, so The way people get wealthy or the quickest way is through inheritance and that's when you start, you know inheritance through families So wealth being transferred from one generation to the next is intergenerational wealth the process has become so complex and so convoluted across the board that people are overwhelmed and I think, you know, the system, I always say the system was built that way for people to be overwhelmed because there is a benefit to the quote unquote, those in power for us to stay ignorant about the process of wealth transfer from one generation to the next, because of where those dollars can go. We're about to enter the greatest wealth transfer. Actually, we are already entered into the great wealth transfer because you got the boomers who are the wealthiest generation about to pass about 73 trillion down. To the next generation, which is generation X generation X is called the sandwich generation because they also have children and families that they're taking care of. And they're also caregivers to their boomer parents. Um, and so talk about that complex process about transferring wealth from your boomer parents and managing your, your family life. Most of that falls on the women. Who have, you know, the daughters, the aunts, you know, the wives who also have the mothers who also have their children and their families to take care of, but they're anticipating the passing of their mom or their dad and having to figure out. Where are their assets, financial, their, their belongings, real estate, all of that. And how do I make sure it gets passed on properly and doesn't get tied up in probate or get sent up to the state where those dollars are lost? And so that's the, the problem that PRISM is tackling and helping families with is simplifying that complex problem to make sure, one, you know where those dollars are, two, you know who the beneficiaries are. And three, you have a centralized location to manage it. Um, because again, we have enough to manage with work and lives and children and partners and all of the other things that this is just another heavy burden that we don't realize is just kind of like right here on our shoulder that can fall on us at any moment. I feel like, uh, I personally witnessed my parents going through that, um, when my mom's parents passed away. It took almost two years, um, for them to find everything within the house, accounts, all the, um, and I think one of the interesting things that you said about prison that I loved is it's not just prison, Where the money in the accounts are, but also like doctors, uh, medical history, uh, children's grade cards were in there if anything should happen and that particularly women were really using this as a tool to document, um, so much that was happening in lives. It's so important to have that, that information and intel. Um, and I just remember what a, what a weight it really was on my family. Um, And I, and I mean, it stopped them from moving and retiring earlier than they hadn't like anticipated because of everything they had to give in order just to track all of this down. And, and you just think about all the stuff that we as women have to deal with anyway. You got Gen X women dealing with menopause, teenage kids. Right. You're dealing with midlife crisis in husbands and in wives, right? You're trying to reinvent yourself or find yourself again, because maybe you're about to become an empty nester because your kids are going off to college. And then you have this big thing over here where you love your parents and, you know, they've been going along, but you know, they're going to transition life soon and you're going to have to manage all of that that's heavy. And you don't know when it's, when it's going to happen. It can hit at any time. And so I, I've really created it for myself because, you know, I love my mom and dad and I'm like, I got two teenage boys. I'm always traveling. We got travel football. I mean, we got football, we got travel baseball. We got seven on seven. We got track. We got all of these things. Got my husband's career and. And then I have my older parents that I love dearly that have assets, maybe in other, still in other countries, they have assets everywhere. And I'm like, what if something happens to them? And I, and by the way, I don't live in Miami where they live and they don't want to move to Alabama. I don't blame them, but they're not moving to Alabama and I'm not moving back to Miami right now. And so how do we make sure that if anything happened to them, that I can get access to that information. Right. And then as a mom, Using it just, just yesterday, I loaded the new blue form, right, for myself because I had to take the younger one to get his, you know, his vaccinations to get up to date and then get his physical, you know, for him to get cleared for ball. And so all of these things that fall on women that we just do because who else is going to do it? We just get it done. Right. But. There comes a time where it really gets overwhelming for us and we're like, damn, like, where is all of this stuff? As you were talking, I could feel my heart rate literally increasing of just, you started listing all the things and then your parents, and I mean, that's a hyper, in most cases, losing a family member, losing a parent is a highly emotional time. Anyways, right. That is take all the logistics out of it. It's emotionally daunting. Yeah, we're going through periods of time to your point, menopause and the lack of conversation around that. And the, the emotional and hormonal changes that are happening, the physiological changes, parenting teenagers. I'm in the toddler stage right now. And while it is physically demanding, I have watched my older siblings who are Gen X go into that teenager parent and like, That is demanding in a whole other way, so much more mentally and emotionally demanding. Managing a marriage, managing the evolution of ourselves as we grow up. Like I'm looking at all this and I could physically feel my body responding as you then started to talk about. And so often when we think about transfer of wealth or the idea of an inheritance, It can be glamorized in a lot of ways, like you're about to come into a lot of money. That is probably, and I know Katie, we've talked about your family of being able to manage that process. That is like the 100th millionth thing that is actually coming to mind. It is so much more, um, I mean, and I think Katie, you talked about like your parents had like a coming out of that phase. Like there was a transitional phase of how intensive that was on their. Individual health on their marriage on their relationship with other family members that there's still it's not like you're one and done and so the ability to incorporate this and this goes back to all the things we're talking about, whether it's health, whether it's money, whether it's power, women are so conditioned to either one, put your head down and just do it, suffer through it. That's your best quality of life. Sorry about it. Or it is so taboo to want to proactively tackle these things. So it feels Shameful. It feels like something we're not allowed to touch. And we go back Camille Wilson, the founder of menopause made modern. She said, we can't manage what we don't talk about. That's right. And yet we are responsible for being the CEO and COO of all of these areas. And yet we're told, but don't talk about it. That's right. I think the other thing I like really love about this, cause I was thinking, Oh my gosh, I need this. I need this product right now. Like just even like, I'm such an organized, like I can find my like vaccination records and like under five minutes, you know? But it's like one of the, but to have that digitized and I was like, yes, please. That sounds amazing. But I also think it takes away some of that weight. Like I know my parents, my mom's like, I want to fill out this book that says like where all of our bank accounts are. And I think like when you have to think about end of life. It's super daunting, um, and that's an emotional journey in and of itself. And so instead of waiting until you get to this point in your life to tackle this as somebody who is, I mean, it's just something we do. We just put our accounts here and get ourselves organized and it doesn't feel like this. Um, This epic moment where we're documenting. It's not like a mortality discussion. Exactly. It's instead just good practices. Yes. That's it, Katie. And that's what we're after because, you know, when talking to people, they're like, this is so depressing. And yeah, it can be, but if you flip it and say, you know what, this, it isn't, this is life. Like we know it's going to happen. And I think society has conditioned us to think about it that way. So we don't do it right. So that it is chaotic. Right. Because again, look at where the money goes. Look at where the money flows. If you don't do anything, ultimately it goes to the government. And when you look at the cycle that all of these people, these billions of people on earth working so hard because we have to have money to pay bills and live life and enjoy life, but we work so hard just for it to all fall apart in the end, because we were conditioned that. Oh, don't talk about death or don't talk about planning for this. I don't talk about transitioning it and women who you have, you know, you have to deal with it. Don't talk about it, just make it happen. And things are going to slip through the cracks. And when it does, I'm like, well, she didn't do this or do that. And then you're judged for it because it just becomes overwhelming. Right. And we want it to just be like, I'm just prepared. This is just another part of life, and I've worked hard for this, I've planned for this, I know what my sons are going to get, I know what my daughters are going to get, I know what my aunts and my uncles or whoever is going to get, and it's there, and you just have it second nature, um, and that's the key for it, and, and, and I think women are going to lead the way in that sense, because again, typically the burden falls on us. And we have to figure out a way to make it easier for us to manage all of it. Yeah, and we talk about the gender pay gap and we talk about women's roles and with, you know, financials. But the truth of it is, well, one, I can speak for a lot of my circle. the women in relationships, whether it's, uh, you know, um, a cisgender relationship or same sex relationship, they are generally the breadwinners, which in my circle and that, you know, granted, there's an asterisk there, but I think it's something like 70 percent of women will be breadwinners in their family over the course of their life. Everything from hourly wage workers to, you know, salaried or, or whatever else that's one. But then two to your point. We may not be the one getting the public accolades of being the ones that are bringing in the dollars, but we are the ones that manage it. Correct. And so that to me, the fact that, I mean, it, you know, take all the moral and like emotional and just do good of society that this is about. Financially, it is a really savvy business decision for prism to go after and say, Hey women, let us just like take another little thing off your mind because ultimately you're the one that's managing it and deciding around this anyway. Anyway. I mean, when you think about it, we've been the ones doing that forever anyway, because you even think, you know, you think about the boomers and I talked to a lot of older, you know, couples and the guys are like, yeah, I just bring my check home and give it to my wife. And she manages it. She pays the bills. Everything is paid. Like, if something happens, I don't know. And this is what really brought it home. I was talking to Bill Cassidy, I believe, a senator out of, or congressman, I can't remember, out of Louisiana. Bill Cassidy. And we were talking about it, and he said, Wow. I need this for myself because I don't know where anything is. I give everything to my wife and I'm sitting here like it's universal to where the men just for the most part, like you say, Astrid, you know, not everyone, but for the most part they bring their check home and they give it to the wife and the wife is handling it. And so how do we help ourselves? Manage all of this through the toddler years, through the teenager years, you know, through the college years, because they're still going to call and be like, mom, I need this. I need that all of those things. Um, and so again, that's why I said I was not only thinking of myself. I was thinking of all of my friends who are in this life stage and how we get on the phone. And we actually have something that we call conversations in the closet, like a whole text string to where we will talk about it outside. Like, These are just our conversations in the closet where we're like, man, you know, this becomes overwhelming for us. And how do we ask for help or how do we find tools to help us? Um, because a lot of the times the men just don't understand, right. They just have their needs met. And women are conditioning on both sides, right? We've been conditioned to do it and they've been conditioned that it will be taken care of. And so, yep, yep, yep. I, um, I feel like we would be remissed to not talk about. Your involvement in the IM docuseries and what really spoke to you because so much of what you're doing, it's, it's savvy from a founder in business and investment perspective. It's savvy as a, a woman or an individual that is wanting to. better organize and plan for their life. But there's also, to your point, when we look at the systems of how all of this is organized and who it benefits and who are the main characters versus supporting characters, there's a massive rewrite around women. and power and money. And so as we shared with you the docuseries and you thought about your own lived experiences, your own expertise, I would love to hear what was really resonant and what do you hope as you bring in your expertise and those experiences to the series that our audiences are taking away that, um, it's okay. To be successful, make a lot of money and to have influence and be powerful. Um, I think that the series will kind of highlight that because as we women move into this new phase of being able to yield so much more economic power, I think we also need to look internally with how we view that power and how we view money and our, our esteem around it. Right. Because. Even for myself, you know, people would say, well, Martha, you made it or whatever. So I'm like, nah, no. And I kind of shy down and I shrink and I don't talk about it. And I don't talk about. You know, my journey with how, with starting at IBM and they were like, Martha, here's a 250 stipend to get a financial advisor. And I took advantage of that and work through this guy who was a little strange at first, but learn from him and then move to a woman financial advisor who then helped me soar and really be able to, to say, well, Martha, you were smart with money. You made a lot, you've gotten into high level positions and that is okay. I think that that message above all, because we have the skillset, we have the brilliance, we're geniuses. Um, we have the foresight. We have the intuition that we don't just see one lane. We can see 10 lanes, right? And we don't just think in quarter increments. We think in yearly increments, like how is this going to impact me next year? Three years from now, five years from now, how is it going to impact my children? And we take that with us when we start looking at how much. Economic power we have and how do we spread those dollars? Right. And so what's going to be key for us in the message that, you know, I really am, I'm looking to help spread is we, as women should not fear. That power that comes with the economic, um, advancement that we are kind of coming into because there's no time for shrinking, right? There's no time for not putting forth our, our best ideas. And taking the risk and collaborating with other women who have that economic power to advance just everyone. Because when we come into that power and we accept it, it doesn't just benefit women. It benefits men too. It benefits us as a society. And so that's what was very appealing about it and the authenticity around it. We just talking to real women that's not afraid to talk about some of the challenges to say, man, I went through bankruptcy, you know, or I, you know, didn't know what a credit card was, or I didn't know how to invest, or I didn't know I should have been putting this amount of weight in my 401k. Like all of those things that we're not afraid to talk about. But once we got that knowledge, we took it to the next level. And was able to amass the, the economic power needed to help us get, you know, the things that we need is just women and as a society as a whole. And that, that is just invaluable. It really is invaluable to be able to partner with other women who get it, who get it and can tell the story. And can tell the story that's key to your, um, your boldness when we came to you and you said, how can I help and your attitude around money? And wealth and the ability to wield power and influence. It's things that we, it's mantras we, we carry, but within any of us is a shadow, right? And, and the fear around that. And I think over the past couple months, as we've, you know, really delved into these conversations with you and any of the times we walk away. your voice sits in our head as we go to ask individuals for money, as we go to think about, like, we told you our budget, it wasn't a lot of times in both men and women, they want to make you small, they want to say, Are you sure you really and yours was okay, let's do it. And that We say, you know, there's certain people in our lives where we say, like, let's just embody that energy. And like you often we're embodying Martha Underwood energy. So it is, it feels very full circle that we get to sit down with you today and have this conversation that you're walking with us. And for those of you that want to learn more about Prism and Martha's work, we will include all of that and more in the show notes. And this is not just a, an end of life planning tool. This is a life. Planning tool. And so for anyone listening, go, go give it a check out. Yeah. And they can find us at get prism. com. That's g e t p r i s m m. com and at get prism across all social media platforms. And you know, and I appreciate what you said about, you know, the boldness, because I wasn't always as bold. Right, you kind of need to build that boldness and as women, we always have that little voice in the back of our mind saying, just don't do that or don't say this or don't do that or don't say this, you know, it's just like you got the angel and the devil on your shoulders. Like, do I do it? Do I don't? And what I've come to realize is. That you have to just do it or you'll regret it. And the many times that I just went for it and I got it, I was like, Holy shit. Oh, okay. That was brilliant, Martha. And, and the thing is, we just have to trust ourselves more. And, and it didn't happen overnight. Look, I'm 48 and I'm just now really like past, I'd say five to seven years. Trusting myself and trusting the God given talents to say, no, this was put on my heart for a reason. This person was put in my life for a reason. And, you know, and Katie came on, she talked about the article that I sometimes talk about where I think it was 2004, 2005, where essence magazine did a little blurb on me where I got to meet Susan Taylor when I got laid off from IBM, but I had started investing in real estate. Right before the crash. And I realized then, you know, we were talking about building wealth and I realized I can't just rely on one job because they can tap me on my shoulder at any time. And now I'm like, okay, what do I do here? And so now here it is almost 20 years later. I'm creating a platform to help people keep that wealth in the family. It just come full circle and it made me realize that we're all on a path and we just need to be bold enough to walk that path. And that's what I, I try to remember all the time and tell myself all the time, is, Martha, you're on the path. You're, you're here. The path is in front of you. You just need to be fearless enough and bold enough. To continue to put one foot in front of the other and make it happen because it will all come and the universe and God and everyone will conspire to make it all happen. And so I'm happy that my boldness translates, you know, and can transfer over to you to help you be bold because like we're, we're, we're to the moon. Right. It's like, we're taking it all the way to the moon and like, who can stop us? I don't think there's a more beautiful way to wrap up a podcast that just feels like the inspiration we need to go into this weekend. Thank you, Martha. Oh, you're welcome. It's my pleasure. We'll see you next time on I am radio, check out prism, Martha Underwood and more in the show notes.