Acorns CEO: The Scariest Part of Investing Is the First Step, with Noah Kerner

Over half of young Americans avoid looking at their money to cope with stress, and the CEO of Acorns says he was one of them. In his twenties, even a guaranteed 2.5% return felt too scary to touch, and it cost him a decade of growth.

Noah Kerner is CEO and chairman of Acorns, the automated saving and investing app whose customers have invested more than $33 billion, often starting with spare change.

👉 Acorns: https://affordanything.com/acorns

In this episode we discuss:

• Why avoiding your money feels like relief, and what it quietly costs you
• How to make saving so small you can't talk yourself out of it
• Why so many people feel pessimistic about money despite a long bull market
• How the app you use can change what you do when markets drop
• Why the best investing strategy is usually the boring one
• How to tell patience from prediction when betting looks like investing
• How a founder copes when his body forces him to stop working

If you've been putting off looking at your accounts, or you're tempted by faster ways to grow your money, this conversation offers a calmer path forward.

⏱️ TIMESTAMPS

Note: Timestamps may vary slightly depending on dynamic ad placements.

(00:00) Over half of young people avoid their money

(03:07) Why we avoid money

(05:43) How families pass down fear

(07:54) Automate investing with spare change

(13:32) Why strong markets feel scary

(15:57) How apps shape money habits

(21:07) Why betting feels so tempting

(27:08) Patience versus prediction

(28:44) Buy now, pay later pitfalls

(31:40) Build businesses that help people

(34:56) Noah’s path to Acorns

(41:16) Give small shareholders a voice

(46:36) When health forces work aside

(51:10) Business risks and team building

(55:11) Paula’s three key takeaways

🔗 RESOURCES MENTIONED

👉 AVOIDING YOUR MONEY COST HIM A DECADE. FIND OUT IF YOU'RE AN AVOIDER TOO: https://affordanything.com/fiire

👉 Acorns: https://affordanything.com/acorns

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