enRICHed: volume 183
all your money news to get $$$ today đ°
Sunday May 24, 2026
Volume 183
Hey besties!
Is it just me or does it feel like everyone has forgotten how to have a conversation lately? Between awkward networking events, painfully transactional coffee chats, and people responding to vulnerable texts with âLOL,â it kind of feels like meaningful communication is becoming a lost art form. But knowing how to ask good questions might be one of the most underrated life skills out there.
This week on Networth & Chill, I sat down with Danielle Robay, the journalist Forbes called the âQueen of Questionsâ and the host behind Reese Witherspoonâs Book Club podcast and her own show, Question Everything. Danielle has interviewed everyone from celebrities to entrepreneurs to cultural icons, and together we got into what actually makes someone memorable in conversations, networking, relationships, and career-building situations.
We talked about how to stand out in professional spaces without sounding rehearsed, the biggest mistakes people make in networking conversations, and why curiosity might genuinely be one of the most valuable skills you can build. If youâve ever walked away from a conversation thinking âwhy did I say that?â or wondered how some people seem naturally magnetic in every room they walk into, this episode is definitely for you.
New episodes of the podcast drop every single Wednesday so be sure to subscribe to my YouTube channel HERE or follow Networth and Chill wherever you get your podcasts!
As a reminder:
HYCU, pronounced haiku: how the news impacts you and your wallet, aka How You Can Use
The Prosperitea: think discount codes, non-boring finance articles, sales, and personal links from the week. The fun stuff đ
We love your comments, but please remember to keep it positive! And donât take investing advice from anyone who isnât your registered financial advisor!
Now that youâre up to speed, letâs get you enRICHed.
Paying ItâŠBack to Us đ€
Hereâs a refreshing change of pace: a company maybe, possibly, choosing to do something reasonable! Walmart executives said this week that they will probably put their brand-new tariff refunds toward lowering store prices, as shoppers are getting increasingly nervous about the rising cost of fuel.
Chief Financial Officer John David Rainey told investors on an earnings call that recently, visitors to Walmartâs gas stations have begun to fill up with fewer than ten gallons for the first time since 2022. Thatâs a big deal â it shows just how badly the average citizen is hurting between the war on Iran, tariff pricing, shrinkflation and stagnating wages.
The ripple effects from the White House into the wider American economy have been brutal, so thatâs why the government has been forced to win us back. After the Supreme Court said that President Trump canât just impose random extra fees on all these imports, the administration began issuing tariff refunds to companies last week. Companies that jacked up prices to offset higher import duties are now starting to get their money back, but Walmart is currently the largest retailer to float the idea that it will use their refunds for potential price cuts.
HYCU; If Walmart, the biggest retailer in the nation, is saying this, itâs very likely that other big companies will follow suit, just to try and stay in competition. Itâs a winâwin situation, anyway: you need cheaper groceries, medicine and mountain bikes; they need to keep you coming back to their store so they can keep making money. Lower prices is the answer to all of this. Keep in mind that this is not a discount, though. Itâs more like theyâre partially paying you back for the money you gave them to pay the tariffs. Itâs not a great deal, and itâs not even a permanent solution. Walmart executives warned that persistently high gas costs will eventually drive up the prices shoppers see at stores. So unless we find peace in the Middle East, I wouldnât get too comfortable just yet.
Electric Shock đ
Two of Americaâs biggest electric companies want to get married. On Monday, Dominion Energy and NextEra Energy announced their plans for a $67 billion merger, which if approved, would make them the nationâs biggest electric utility provider.
If regulators give their blessing, the new company would serve roughly 10 million customers across states like Florida, Virginia, and the Carolinas. Weâre talking about a gigantic corporation. Not only would they have a whopping $249 billion market cap, they would also become the energy sectorâs third-largest company, after Exxon Mobil and Chevron.
Why do they want to do this? Itâs, drumroll pleaseâŠAI. Hereâs the deal with AI right now: they need more data centers, and data centers need more electricity. Most people donât want this, of course, because weâre all on the same grid, which means our electric bills get more expensive because AI is chewing up all our power. NextEra is planning to build 30 more data centers to meet the demand, and thatâs before the proposed merger.
Dominion and NextEra Energy are saying that itâs better and cheaper for everyone to let them expand the existing power grid, rather than allow tech companies to build backup energy systems and âshadow networks,â which wouldnât be overseen by an energy company.
HYCU; You could say that this is a staticky situation, because many arenât buying the companiesâ pitch. The fact is that a merger is pretty much always advertised as a way to keep your prices down, but once the corporations consolidate, no oneâs stopping them from jacking the prices up once they remove the competition. Especially when they have promised to build more data centers (when no one likes them, let alone wants to live near one) this is a pretty tough sell. The reality is that consumers will probably pay for the AI boom in their utility bills. AI usage is already expected to triple its electricity use by 2030, and shadow network or not, the excess usage is going to show up in our invoices.
NICU Leave đ¶
We all know that parental leave in this country is pretty abysmal, but what happens when your child is born weeks too early? What if you had an emergency C-section, or something went awry during surgery, and your baby is struggling to breathe for days? Many couples have harrowing stories about their babies being rushed to the neonatal intensive care unit (NICU), but then having to answer meetings from the hospital because their PTO ran out, and they couldnât touch their paternal leave just yet. Well, that might be changing soon.
After many parents fought together for a change, Illinois will now become the second state to grant NICU leave, after Colorado became the first state in January to offer paid NICU leave. Illinoisâ will be unpaid, which kind of sucks, but it is better than nothing. Usually, itâs up to your employer if you get NICU leave or not â companies like Morgan Stanley and Pinterest do offer NICU leave for employees â but for these states, it can now be official.
And even if you donât live in these two states, this kind of time off could be available to you soon. Colorado Congresswoman Brittany Pettersen is drafting a federal bill that would offer up to 12 weeks of NICU leave on top of the unpaid, job-protected 12 weeks available under the Family and Medical Leave Act. This law, naturally, would mostly benefit people who can afford to take unpaid leave, but a win is a win, and having the unpaid law set in stone is a great starting point to negotiate for paid leave.
HYCU; Illinois parents will get a guaranteed 10 to 20 days of unpaid leave for NICU parents starting next month. If youâre wondering if your employer offers NICU leave already, sometimes they call it âcaregiving leave,â which can encompass all kinds of complications that come up with parenting, so double check your company policies to make sure. Almost one in 10 babies in the US spends time in the NICU, so laws like this are going to impact literally millions of parents who are faced with the crushing reality of signing onto work while your days-old infant is fighting for their life in the hospital. Mind you, we donât even have a federal law mandating paid family or maternal leave yet, so if any lawmakers reading this could also hop on that as soon as possible, just let us know in the comments.
Natasha asks: âHi! My stock portfolio grew from $30k last year to $900k now. Weâre not homeowners. Would it be stupid to cash half and put it as a down payment? How else can I cash in gains and minimize tax hits?â
Hii bestie!
Wow, thatâs incredible growth! Going from $30k to $900k in a year is absolutely wild, thatâs massive returns. You are sitting on some serious gains, and it makes total sense that youâre thinking about how to use this windfall strategically.
The down payment question isnât stupid at all⊠itâs actually pretty smart thinking. Real estate can be a solid wealth-building move, especially if youâve been wanting to buy anyway. The math here is interesting: cashing out for a down payment would trigger capital gains taxes, but if these are long-term gains (held over a year), youâd pay the capital gains rate rather than ordinary income rates. At a 15% capital gains rate, thatâs about $67,500 in taxes, leaving you with $382,500 for the down payment after taxes.
For minimizing the tax hit, youâve got some solid strategies to consider. If youâre planning to buy a home anyway, the mortgage interest deduction could help offset some of the tax burden. You could also spread the sales across tax years â maybe sell some this year and some next year to potentially stay in lower tax brackets, if you donât need the full $382,500 for a down payment. Another move is tax-loss harvesting if you have any losing positions to offset the gains.
The bigger picture question is whether this growth is sustainable or if it came from some really concentrated bets that got lucky. If itâs from a few high-flying stocks, taking some profits off the table makes a lot of sense - diversifying into real estate could actually reduce your overall risk while still building wealth. Good luck out there!
Want to be featured in our Question Bank section?
Rich Tip of the Week: How to productivity-maxx without burning out!
Sustainable fashion brand Everlane, known for their millennial-favorite basics, is now being sold to Shein. The 2010s optimism is officially over.
The United Kingdomâs 18th World Watercress Eating Championships took place this week, and Glenn Walsh defended his title for the 18th year. Someone needs to challenge this top dog and eat their leafy greens.
Pope Leo just hit us with a 6-7, which is a sentence that has never been said before.
SEE YOU IN THE COMMENTS BESTIES
Um hi Natasha - you're going to need to share your stock picks with the girlies, please. Congrats on the wins!
Thank you for the money advice