Ideas in the Wild: How Author Eva Yazhari Aims To Help People Bring Meaning and Purpose to Their Investing
Everyone is trying to find their meaning and purpose in life. We are becoming more conscious and more intentional with our decisions. Perhaps we have thought about making meaningful choices with food, lifestyle, and overall health, but when it comes to money, we often separate our purpose from our finances.
How would it feel knowing that every dollar we invest is a reflection of us? It’s the feeling of watching a child grow up strong and happy, or the feeling of accomplishment after a completed project. It’s the peace of knowing, with every breath we take, exactly what we own in the world.
In The Good Your Money Can Do, Eva Yazhari introduces her concept of impact investing and shares the story of her mindset shift toward investing with awareness. I recently caught up with Eva to learn about her journey writing the book and the lessons she’s learned along the way.
What happened that made you decide to write the book? What was the exact moment when you realized these ideas needed to get out there?
My decision to write a book came from a longstanding desire to share the possibilities of impact investing with a broader audience. For a while, I’ve observed many of those in my networks looking for ways to live with more purpose, especially when it comes to their finances. Every day, I encounter people who wish that their money — be it their retirement savings, investment accounts, or savings — were more aligned with their values.
More than ten years ago, I left my career on Wall Street and pivoted towards impact investing. For those who don’t know, it’s a growing industry where your investments generate both a financial return and a positive social or environmental impact. I found such inspiration and purpose in this work, that I began re-thinking how I interacted with money in other areas of life. Now, I want to share this knowledge with others who are looking to get more from their money and inspire others the way that impact investment has inspired me.
I also drew inspiration for this book from the remarkable work of other conscious leaders and industry pioneers. It may come as a surprise to some, but there is a thriving ecosystem of entrepreneurs, business leaders, artists, and others that are re-thinking capitalism in a conscious, purpose-driven way. Interviewing these leaders every week for my podcast and uncovering the various facets of conscious living through my weekly magazine has been incredibly motivating. There are so many fascinating people building sustainability into every corner of every industry. I consider this book my contribution to this movement and hope that those who read it will find as much fulfillment and purpose in impact investment as I do.
What’s the biggest lesson you’ve learned going through the journey you share in the book?
I knew that choosing to spend and invest in a way that aligned with my values was better for the world, but I didn’t expect it to fundamentally alter all aspects of my life in the way that it did. The biggest lesson from my experience is that impact investing is one part of a larger paradigm shift. I don’t think many people realize that re-framing the way we use money is incredibly empowering. Every transaction, every investment we make has some kind of impact on the world, even if we don’t consider it at the moment. When you think about money in that way, you realize that every exchange is an opportunity for a positive impact. The power in that is immense.
That was the most surprising part of the process for me. Seeing the concrete impact I was having with my investments opened up my eyes to all the opportunities for good everywhere else. I never could have predicted how much purpose impact investing would bring to my professional and personal life, and how empowered I would feel as a result.
Feeling connected to my values across every part of my life ties into what I like to call the abundance mindset. Rather than viewing the world from a perspective of lack, I appreciate what I have and where I am, and continue to look for ways to expand my positive impact on the world. While impact investing is just one part of that worldview, I think in many ways it was the catalyst for me, and I hope it has the same effect for my readers.
How will you apply this lesson in your life moving forward?
I think that more than anything, a conscious lifestyle is about growth. It’s a process that requires constant fine-tuning
and re-calibration, but at its core, it’s about finding new ways to have an impact. Right now, my primary focus is introducing impact investing and conscious living to a wider audience.
I feel that we are at a global crossroads. I think that the events of 2020, from the devastating effects of the pandemic to our national reckoning with racial injustice, have brought more awareness to structural inequalities and existential threats like climate change. I think that more than ever before, people are looking for a way to get involved in creating a better future. At the same time, many more are searching for purpose.
I was already writing my book before the onset of last year, but it heightened my sense of urgency to get it out there. I think that there is no better time to re-think our approach to money, and I hope that the readers of this book find inspiration and empowerment within its principles. Hopefully, together, we can bring conversations about impact investing from the fringe to the mainstream.
