Name: Nondini Naqui
Job Title and Description: President & CEO of Society of Grownups
College Name/Major: Anthropology and Spanish double major from Wellesley College; MBA from University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill in Sustainability and Marketing
Website: www.societyofgrownups.com
Twitter Handle: @societygrownups
Instagram Handle: @societyofgrownups
What does your current job entail? Is there such a thing as a typical day?
NN: There’s really no such thing as a typical day. Sometimes the roof is leaking and I’m up there trying to help fix it, and that same day might end in an all-staff meeting. Overall, I do spend a lot of time with the team thinking about the business and making sure we’re creating the best possible experience for our Grownups, which is extremely empowering. Although I’m really focused on the business strategy day-to-day, in true startup fashion, I pitch in wherever I’m needed. I have never felt bored.
What was the inspiration behind Society of Grownups?
NN: Society of Grownups is a learning initiative dedicated to fostering financial literacy and is a place where people can go to talk openly about money. One of the biggest things that inspired Society of Grownups is the fact that money is the last taboo. As a society, we actually don’t talk about money—for me, this is something that has persisted throughout my life, both personally and professionally.
When we started to develop this concept, we went out and talked to people in their 20s, 30s and 40s and realized that in a very short period of time, this group is experiencing a lot of major life changes and making financial decisions that have long-term life consequences. Things like getting married, having a child or buying a home. Ultimately, the core insight that inspired Society of Grownups was, “What if we focused on how to engage with people in those moments when they need us the most?”
Our aim is to open up the conversation around money and remove the taboo. It’s a need that I’ve experienced myself, and that I’ve seen among my own peer group and really our country as a whole. That’s what made me feel Society of Grownups was something that absolutely needed to happen.
What is one mistake you made along the way and what did you learn from it?
NN: We’ve made a lot of mistakes along the way as an organization. You are inevitably going to get some things wrong. We tested out classes that we thought Grownups would be interested in only to learn they didn’t resonate at all. But Society of Grownups is a learning initiative—it’s all about testing and iterating and continuing to learn from our mistakes so that we’re creating the best possible experience for our Grownups.
What has been the most surreal moment of your career thus far?
NN: It’s been exciting to see the concept of Society of Grownups come to life. You have a vision and a dream for what something is going to be, and then when people actually come in the doors and you see the concept resonating…that is the most surreal moment. The fact that we’ve had a real impact on Grownups’ lives is one the most gratifying parts of everything we’ve done so far.
What words of wisdom do you find most valuable?
NN: There’s a quote by the Dalai Lama that I look at pretty regularly. It says, “There are only two days in the year that nothing can be done. One is called yesterday and the other is called tomorrow, so today is the right day to love, believe, do and mostly live.” It’s extremely powerful.
What advice would you give to a 20-something with similar aspirations?
NN: When I was 20, I wish someone had said to me, “You feel overwhelmed right now and you’re not sure where you’re going, but have the confidence that you’ll be able to figure it all out.” My advice would be to not be afraid to take chances or step off the path. You have to get more comfortable with experimenting and putting out a hypothesis, and you have to be willing to fail.