Tired of feeling like your money controls you instead of the other way around?
Morgan E. Nichols, CEO of Life Branch Wealth Partners and founder of Motivated by Morgan, is a nationally recognized speaker and financial educator who specializes in youth empowerment and values-driven financial planning for families.
Morgan breaks down how parents and teens can build stronger money habits through mindset, responsibility, and intentional financial education. You’ll learn simple, practical ways to introduce financial discipline, create healthy savings behaviors, and build long-term stability rooted in your family’s core values.
Get ready to transform your financial future, empower the next generation, and discover how financial literacy is about far more than just numbers—it’s about dreaming bigger and reaching higher!
Key Takeaways:
- 1:51 Financial Literacy: More Than Just Numbers Morgan emphasizes that financial literacy is about empowering future generations to dream big and seize opportunities.
- 5:14 Connecting Your Values to Your Finances Morgan highlights the importance of understanding your personal values and aligning them with your financial game plan for true success.
- 8:19 Teaching Youth Financial Responsibility Learn practical advice on how to guide children towards financial ownership, using examples like paying for cell phones and discretionary expenses.
- 13:43 The Importance of an Emergency Fund Morgan stresses the critical need for a cash reserve covering three to six months of essential expenses to provide peace of mind.
- 15:43 The Power of Accountability Discover why working with a financial advisor is like having a personal trainer for your finances, providing the guidance and accountability needed for significant progress.
- 17:48 Life Branch Wealth Partners: Your Full-Picture Financial Guide Morgan details how Life Branch Wealth Partners provides comprehensive financial planning, managing investments, and fostering generational impact.
- 20:30 Legacy Starts Younger Than You Think Morgan challenges the traditional view of legacy, explaining that it begins in your 30s or even younger, encompassing not just money but also the lessons and values you impart.
- 21:12 “Intentional Legacy” Book for Deeper Dive Morgan introduces her co-authored book, “Intentional Legacy,” which offers stories and concepts for anyone looking to understand comprehensive financial advising.
- 25:48 Financial Literacy Found Me Morgan shares her inspiring personal journey, illustrating how unexpected turns in life can lead to fulfilling passions and purpose.
“Legacy isn’t just measured in wealth — it’s measured in the confidence and wisdom we equip our children with.”
Connect with Morgan:
- Email Address: Morgan.Nichols@ampf.com
- Website: LifeBranchWealth.com
- Contact Number: (817) 488-0905
Connect with Corwyn:
- Contact Number: 843-619-3005
- Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/cmelette/
Shoutout to our Sponsor: Mellifund Capital, LLC
Need funding for your next real estate flip or build? MelliFund Capital makes it fast, flexible, and investor-friendly. Visit MelliFundCapital.com and fund your future today. Again, that’s MelliFundCapital.com, M-E-L-L-I-L-U-N-D, Capital.com.
Support this podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/corwyn-j-melette/support
CORWYN:
Financial literacy, guys, is not just about numbers, it’s about empowering the next generation to dream bigger, to reach higher and create a future filled with opportunity.
Good morning, good morning, great morning, guys. Welcome to another fabulous episode of Exit Strategies Radio Show. Hey, I’m your host, Corwyn J. Melette, broker and owner of Exit Realty Lowcountry Group in beautiful North Charleston, South Carolina. Hey, look here, if this is your first time, you know what it is, you should know by now, but if not, you’re going to find out, which is if this is your first time listening to this show, our mission here is very simple. That is to empower our community through financial literacy and real estate education. Guys, we are legacy building. That is what we do. I love it, I love it, I love it. Shout out to those who listen faithfully, Pastor Vanderbilt Evans, that guy even today will still jack me up if I don’t put that senior on his name and his wonderful bride, Ms. Evans. Look here, love you, love you. My mama all the way out there in Monkey’s Corner and all the way back down to Hollywood, what you know no good. Thank you all so much for tuning in and look here, cannot leave out my home, the M&M, Mary Mullins. Guys, thank you all so much for tuning in. We love you, love you. So look, today, y’all know I like to talk about money and I like to talk about when you know how to get your money right. Like when your love language, you know, there’s a book, The Five Love Languages. Y’all probably read that. If y’all ain’t read it, go read it. Will help you in plenty of your relationships. But look here, you need to have your relationship right with your money. You have to understand that some of y’all talk to your money kind of rough and that’s why it keep leaving. Some of y’all talk to it gentle and real nice like, and that’s why y’all got a little bit. And see, what we’re going to talk about today is how you can manage it, how you can move it, how you can get it to do the things that you want it to do. And we are very fortunate today, very fortunate today to have an expert in that field. So financial literacy, guys, is not just about numbers. It’s about empowering the next generation to dream bigger. Yeah, big dreams, right? To reach higher and create a future filled with opportunity. So I guess today is none other than Morgan E. Nichols. For my people from hometown, y’all know what Nichols is. Y’all, that’s what we do. That’s what we used to hang out, right? But Morgan Nichols, and she’s passionate about equipping students and families with the tools they need to build wealth confidence as well as have community impact. Now, Morgan serves as the CEO. Y’all know what I like to say about that when I say CEO. That is the boss of Life Branch Wealth Partners. Now, she has created a platform called Motivated by Morgan, which is dedicated, guys, and this is key. She comes from the heart to financial literacy, mindset growth, and youth empowerment. She’s a national speaker, workshop leader, and advocate for financial education in schools and communities across the country. She’s known for her ability to connect with audience of all ages, all ages, guys, to authentic storytelling and practical strategies. I’m super excited for this conversation. And she’s been featured in non-profit schools and community organizations to promote money management and wealth building skills. So look here, if y’all ain’t already rolled out platinum carpet out. We don’t want no red. We don’t want no gold. We need platinum because we talking about some real serious stuff here. Y’all welcome Morgan Nichols to the show. Morgan, how are you doing today?
MORGAN:
I’m doing well. I’m not sure if all of that background is quite what I thought it would be, but here I am.
CORWYN:
Well, look, it’s amazing when somebody else got to talk about you. It’s amazing how much you really done done. I know. So Morgan, thank you so much for being on with us today. So if you don’t mind for our listeners, just that high level background, if you will, of who you are and what you do.
MORGAN:
So many people would know me by the term of a financial advisor. So, but I think that can be lost in translation sometimes. There’s so many different types of advisors that are out there. And so I joined this industry because I work with families to understand what’s most important to them as people and how that really aligns with their finances. I realized at a young age, my parents were both first generation college and they loved helping people manage their finances. I ended up going into the field as well. And I realized with time that this was first nature to me, but it wasn’t first nature to everybody. So being able to come alongside people, help them manage that and build a team that’s really feels empowered to do so.
CORWYN:
So that’s something very pronounced right there, what you just made mention of, like you said, it was common for you, if you will. It was second nature, I think is the word that you use. And I think what I also heard you say is that you found that it wasn’t necessarily for everyone else. So would you say that’s your motivation for serving and working in the areas and arenas that you do?
MORGAN:
Well, I think the financial literacy part of that is just so important because if you don’t get the education then and know what to do, just that education just continues to help you get ahead. But what I found over time was it’s not just knowing what to do with your dollars, but also knowing like who you are as a person and what are you valuing most and how are we making sure that with the game plan we put into place, my top values and yours may be a little bit different. So if I try to give you guidance based on my values, it may not align perfectly with yours. So I need to understand you, understand what’s most important to you and then help you have a game plan to make sure we’re achieving what’s most important. So whether that’s an education for family, whether it’s saving for retirement so you can retire guilt-free, many different things in that area.
CORWYN:
So what you touched on right there, I want to sit this, I want to define it, I want to pick it up and move and sit it down for a moment and continue on. But you talked just then about a psychology of money. There’s a psychology, if you will, that goes with money, how we individually respond, use, talk to and all that stuff that I jokingly introduced a little earlier. But you are a huge advocate for financial literacy in youth. So I want to start in the basement. I want to start with what that looks like, the methods and the tactics that you’ve employed to bring this to you. And then I want to kind of walk that through as far as how you’ve seen that play out within the family dynamic and then into adult or for the children that you’ve been able to impact or what you hope for it to look like. So let’s start in the basement. How have you worked within the communities to try to get financial literacy, if you will, to our youth?
MORGAN:
So within the community, I mean, I am involved in non-profits where I try to continue to provide guidance in different things that these organizations are putting into place. And for those who are looking for ways to give back, help understand the benefits of different methods there. When it comes to youth, I tend to find it’s a lot of working with my clients and their children. I have many clients that I work with, multiple generations of a family. And so when we’re starting to understand, people don’t always like to hear what their parents have to say. Sometimes they like to hear information from another resource or another guide. So when we can help them understand when they start earning some money, how are they building some cash reserves or how are they putting those savings into place, especially when individuals get their first job and as they go into their careers, setting the habits you put in place early on play roles long into the future. And so we try to help really get that set up from the beginning.
CORWYN:
So let’s say that, and matter of fact, I’m going to speak, I’m very open, transparent. I got a 14, I’m about to be 15 year old son at home and he needs to have a job. So, yeah, because I don’t think I see him missing meals. So with that understanding, how do you advise your clients to say that they are starting out? You may mention of, hey, first job and we got to get these habits and things in place early. What does that look like for you as far as how you would advise a client or help them to structure their kids’ savings, if you will, early?
MORGAN:
Absolutely. It’s a common issue that I’ve seen with many families where mom, dad or single parent, they’re working really hard in their job to provide the basics and to prepare for their own future. And then they have children and those children get older. And you’re right. Your son’s not maybe missing a meal, but he also wants to sit on the couch, maybe, and not be really adding to the household. And it’s that balance of when do you start cutting certain expenses off and giving that next generation the responsibility to find a way to keep it going. I think of things, one of the common ones that will come up is the cell phones, right? Having a cell phone is expensive. And then if you want to buy the extra apps or the extra subscriptions, and at one point, do you say, you want a cell phone, but here’s the monthly cost. If you want to keep your cell phone, you need to figure out how to pay for it. Or I’m willing to get you clothes that cost X. This is in my budget. If you want something else, you need to come up with a difference. And part of that is the children will learn what is it that they are willing to do and what aren’t they willing to do. And that comes in the perspective of how bad do you really want it? And what is more important, the working hard or the foregoing? But what I’ve found is when parents will hold on to expenses for too long, that really, maybe their children should be taking some sort of ownership in or finding a job to help pay for, it can end up hurting their future. And so there’s that point of figuring out when does that next generation take some ownership. And also in that, they learn what it means to have a job and to find ways to cover expenses and have responsibility. And some of those habits can really set them up for success as well.
CORWYN:
Let’s take a short break.
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CORWYN:
So sometimes on this show, we refer to working with the whole man. So the whole person, whole being. You work with the entire family, is what I’m gathering. You are engaged with, hey, look, this is how you may want to try to assist your children and getting them set up and giving them the proper mindset. But as you deal and work with the whole family, so this kind of transition is over. Parents, you know, included in this, how do you advise them? So if you don’t mind, if you’ve got like an example of a family that you’ve been working with or have worked with, and as you’ve seen them grow and find success in following the financial strategies that you’ve outlined, tell us what that looks like.
MORGAN:
So typically, I’m working with a lot of parents. Typically, there’s those early years where you’re just trying to put food on the table and you’re just trying to make sure that you’re not growing the debt balance and that you can be cash flow break even. But then what we find is as you, I mean, naturally, as you get older, you realize even if you want to work forever, it doesn’t necessarily mean your body or your mind or your spirit is going to be in the place to work at the same amount that it’s used to. So we always know there’s different things out there. You have social security, you may have some other benefits, but there is going to need to be money that you save that helps you maintain a certain standard of living long term. And so one of the things that we really focus on, it’s not always going from where you start to having the problem solved right away or having the answers right away. But if we can see directional progress and you continue to see the peace of mind of what you’re putting in place and how those savings are adding up and also making sure that you’re saving into the right types of strategies. For many people, there’s free money. And if you have a 401k and the employer matches, if your employer matches 3%, that’s 3% free income that you can go ahead and take advantage of. So don’t leave that on the table. Or I like to look at instruments like a Roth IRA. If you have a Roth IRA, you put those dollars in today, but those dollars grow tax-free into the future. So it’s how are we not only putting money away, but putting it away strategically and understanding we need that long-term money. But I always like to encourage people to really make sure that they have three to six months of their ongoing expenses. The expenses, now this isn’t the money that you go spend maybe on ice cream or on that new pair of shoes. But the expenses you can’t get out of the utilities, the rent payments, expenses like that in some sort of cash type vehicle. Because what we want to see as we move forward is that ability to have peace of mind that we aren’t going to have to take on debt or pull from our retirement accounts to manage some of the short-term items that come up.
CORWYN:
That’s huge. That’s very real and raw. Our listeners obviously are very broad and diverse, as I may mention, of behind stage. And the reality is that sometimes we can’t see beyond just the immediate, can’t see beyond that. So it’s more difficult to engage with someone at a professional level to help us manage our finances because we can’t see how to. And it’s interesting, we can’t see how to manage it, but we don’t seek somebody to help us and assist us in managing it better because we can’t see how to manage if that makes any sense. It’s like I need a doctor, I’m sick, but I’m not going to the doctor, so to speak. It’s the whole thought process with that. So how do you normatively see this play out? And what I mean by that, Morgan, is are your clients able to really, I guess, move the needle? Are they seeing, I say, great results? I mean, obviously, from start to finish and the journey technically doesn’t end until you quote-unquote cross over and leave here. But are they really moving the needle and creating a distance between where they started and where they are? And what does that feel like for them?
MORGAN:
Yeah, if we had a crystal ball on when our end time was, we could all plan things so perfectly, but that’s not how it works. And it’s probably a good thing that’s not how it works. I like to really, you know, you were drawing an analogy earlier and I really pull back to the concept of working with a personal trainer. Personally, I love to do Pilates, but if you told me to wake up every morning and go do Pilates in my home, I’d be hitting the snooze button and I’d be sleeping and running out the door to get to work. But I go up and I show up at a class and I have to be there for a whole hour and I have to do everything the instructor tells me to do. And I get benefit out of the training, not just out of having the one piece of here’s what you have to do. So what I find is, you know, I was working with a client just last week and I wasn’t quite sure if it was, you know, she was putting the right things in place, but I was trying to make sure like, was she getting value out of all of the conversations? And she used the same analogy. It’s that accountability, that check-in, that progress of, okay, this is what I’m doing. If I’m meeting with someone and they’re coaching me, then what happens if you get a bonus at your work? Does all of those dollars go to enjoyment or to paying for Christmas gifts or whatever that may be? Or do we carve off a small portion of that to go towards long-term goals? And when you can track the progress over time, I have seen my clients make significant progress. I had clients that at one point were not on track and they really started saving aggressively into their 401ks, being mindful about how they spent their discretionary money. And over time, they’re now in this position that they can retire when they want and they’re not going to have to change their lifestyle. And those are the stories that just, that really warm my heart, just seeing the benefits of the discipline. But meeting with somebody that can help guide you through that progress over time, just makes all the difference. Because if you’re relying on yourself, sometimes you let it sit to the side.
CORWYN:
Very fair. Very fair. So one of the other things that, well, matter of fact, let me back up and even frame it this way. Because so Life Branch, this is your mission, forgive it, but ministry, if you will, as far as what you do. But let’s talk about Life Branch. Like as a whole, what does the company do? How do you guys serve people? And ultimately, how can we get people to move the needle at a larger scale?
MORGAN:
So Life Branch, we’re Life Branch Wealth Partners. And so we rebranded back in 2024 to this name, really with the concept that we’re there for all of different life seasons as life branches out, different seasons of life, honestly, the different generations. And just that focus in everything we do, we’re really about financial confidence for life and the generational impact. Because we know decisions we make today, our children see, our grandchildren see, and we want to really help empower them for the future. So we do everything from helping people manage their investments to really wrapping our arms around our clients full picture and helping them with financial planning, really understanding, what do you own? What do you owe? What are our goals? And how are we moving that needle to get closer to that financial piece, that financial freedom?
CORWYN:
So you actually just touched on what we probably hallmark as our legacy moment, because you teach this. I mean, this is your thing. You emphasize financial literacy being more than, quote unquote, just dollars and cents. It’s about instilling vision and confidence in people for the future. So you’re in the trench. Thank you for doing the work that you do, because what it is, is a building block, which sets everyone else up to, quote unquote, into the race, if you will, at a higher level, at a higher platform. One of the things that our show is about, when we talk about legacy, we’re talking about inheritance, chosen so forth and so on. And if you establish, okay, this, but this generation adds to it. So now the next generation, they start here, and then they add to it and so forth and so on. And it helps people to, quote unquote, reach higher levels because every generation is added on to. So I love the concept, but I love the rebranding, the purpose in it, because you’re servicing the whole family. You’re servicing the whole person. Oh, hey, this is what we’re here for, not just today, but also tomorrow. So you do this. Let’s talk about, if you don’t mind for a moment, just like the tools and the resources that you connect people with. Obviously, again, you’re managing, helping people manage their entire financial portfolio, helping establish it, helping them grow it, and then obviously helping them in managing as well. But what tools and resources do you advise someone maybe to explore in order to kind of start getting their mindset right for engagement with you and your team as to how you can help them going forward?
MORGAN:
Yeah, I really have two things on that front. First of all, I would like to hit on something you said about legacy. And because legacy is huge, and I think there’s a huge misnomer about legacy, this thought that, well, legacy starts in your 70s. We got to get our wills in place. We got to get our estate planning documents. And I truly think your legacy, it starts in your 30s, or even younger, because it’s not just about the money. It’s all the lessons along the way. I’m a mom to a three-year-old daughter, and I have to think about every time she sees me, how do I show up? How am I showing up for her? What am I? You know, it’s funny. They’re parents. They repeat things you say, and then you’re shocked about it sometimes. So it’s they’re watching you. How are you showing up? What are you teaching them? A big thing I found as well is I actually wrote a book earlier this year. I co-authored it with another advisor on our team, Kelly Bays, and the book is called Intentional Legacy. And what we really found was there was a little bit of a misnomer that what is financial advisors? What do financial advisors really provide their clients? And what’s the difference of just having your investment account managed versus having somebody who’s going to look at your whole picture? So we really tried to pull stories into this book, as well as some of the concepts that we work on with our clients. So anyone who hasn’t really worked with an advisor, but might be wanting to dig deeper and have someone who can help in a very wrap-your-arms-around-the-whole-situation style, that’s what we do. And so we have a copy of our book that is a huge part in helping people get to know us before sometimes they even fully meet us.
CORWYN:
Thank you. Right there. That piece right there. And that’s so, so cool. So where can people get this book?
MORGAN:
It’s a good question. That’s a good question. So we actually have a website. It’s intentionallegacybook.com, where you can request a copy and we’ll go ahead and you can get a PDF version, but we can also send a copy to you. So again, that’s intentionallegacybook.com. And then our website is lifebranchwealth.com. And that’s a great place to learn a little bit more about our team and how we serve our clients. We actually serve clients in over 40 states. So we cover clients pretty much coast to coast.
CORWYN:
What I just heard in there is, you know, the nuances from one place to another, meaning I imagine in one part of the country versus another, the focus, emphasis, and things that are important differ. If I’m in Silicon Valley, hey, it may be about just merely, I need as much money as I possibly can get. How do we get there? Whereas someone that may be in the Sunbelt out in the Midwest, maybe not so much, maybe they just need strategy and other stuff. That’s real cool. That’s real cool.
MORGAN:
Yeah, we’ve really built our team of advisors to also service all levels of those who are starting out as well as those who, you said Silicon Valley, but may have extensive employee stock. We’re dealing with lots of tax strategy and complications versus needing just to have something very getting started and making sure we’re on a strong foot.
CORWYN:
Okay. All right. So what I just heard is levels to this. So we got this person that, okay, we’ll get you here. And these, okay, I get it. I love, I love that. So for our listeners, guys, y’all need to go get this book. Now I done hit the website. I done checked it out for y’all. I need to go ahead now and go and get this book and make sure you connect. So Morgan, I think you’ve got this out. People can reach you guys and get in contact with you guys through where, if you don’t mind repeating the website where people can connect with you at.
MORGAN:
Absolutely. So our website is lifebranchwealth.com and you can reach out to us there.
CORWYN:
Awesome. Awesome. So Morgan, I sometimes ask this, you know, that hindsight question, and you may mention in the beginning that quote unquote, this is how you grew up. So this wasn’t foreign to you as all this, how you did things. Right. But I’m going to ask you this question nonetheless, because typically we all have a degree of a hindsight model. So looking back, if there was anything that you could change or modify that you believe would have furthered you or otherwise change your trajectory to have you closer to where otherwise you envisioned to be, what would that be? What would you have done? If anything, what would you have done differently in order to achieve more, have greater success?
MORGAN:
So I’m going to take a little bit of a spin on your question, because I would say this was not where I thought I was going to start. I thought I was going into the air force. I thought I was going into the military. And so I was ROTC in college. I was fully prepared to go that route. And I will more sit there and say life takes turns. We don’t always understand them in the process, but we learn something through everything we go through. And for me, the military, the ROTC experience just ingrained in me such integrity and discipline and a lot of great values and learning how to show up certain ways that all of that leads into who you are as a person. And you use it as building blocks, even if the first place you think you’re going ends up going a different direction. And so I ended up here when I had to reconsider. I said, no, this is where I want to be because this is what I really enjoy. And so that’s probably how I would answer that.
CORWYN:
Awesome. I love that. So what I heard was financial literacy found me. I love it. I love it. I love it. So, Morgan, I want to take some time now and say thank you for taking time out of your busy schedule to be on with us today. I really appreciate it from the bottom of my heart. Thanks for being a part of the Exit Strategies Radio Show family, because you have knocked it out of the park today for our listeners for sure.
MORGAN:
Thanks for having me. It’s been a great pleasure.
CORWYN:
Awesomeness, awesomeness. Now look here, for you, our listeners, guys, before we close, look, this is your action item. This is how we’re going to make this thing here go. Start financial literacy conversations today at home, at school, across and within your community. The sooner young people understand money, guys, the sooner they can build futures that are rooted in confidence and inspire freedom. Y’all know how I feel. Y’all know what I say. Y’all always give you those two things, and I deliver it to you this way, which is to tell you that I love you. I love you. And we’re going to see you guys out there in those streets.
