Awf The Record

What happens when you’ve built the career, earned the degree, bought the house, and still haven’t found the relationship you want?
Professional matchmaker Tennesha Wood joins Jeannette Reyes and Mona Kosar Abdi for a reality check on the modern dating market, especially for high-achieving Black women. Tennesha breaks down what men and women are actually asking for, why accomplishments don’t automatically translate to compatibility, and how rigid standards around income, height, looks, and “type” may be shrinking the dating pool.
They also get into the strategy behind Tennesha’s matchmaking process, why attraction can grow, the importance of self-awareness and accountability, how to communicate in high-achieving relationships, when dating should become intentional, and why finding love may require the same level of planning you’ve given every other major goal in your life.

KEY POINTS

00:00 – Introduction
01:47 – A reality check on what’s actually happening in today’s dating market
03:34 – Why dating can be harder for high-achieving Black women and where to meet compatible partners
04:51 – What successful men and women are actually looking for in relationships
09:01 – How unrealistic checklists and the search for perfection can keep people single
12:22 – Why focusing too heavily on looks can be a dating red flag
20:00 – Why your usual “type” may not actually be your best match
22:17 – The role of accountability and self-awareness in being ready for a relationship
24:00 – Why height, income, and other preferences may unnecessarily shrink your dating pool
32:31 – How career success can become your identity and affect the way you date
49:03 – Why finding love may require the same intentional strategy you use for your career and other life goals

QUOTES 

“You're not going to get everything on your list.” – Tennesha Wood

“Who your type should be is who your values align with.” – Tennesha Wood

“If you're not at a place where you understand what you did wrong in your last relationship or how you could have changed or improved it within yourself, then that's not going to bode well for the next relationship either.”  – Tennesha Wood

GUEST RESOURCES: 

Tennesha Wood 

Website | www.thebroomlist.com 
IG | @tenneshawood

RESOURCES: 

Keep in touch with Awf The Record:

YouTube: @AwfTheRecord
Instagram: @awftherecordpodcast
TikTok: @AwfTheRecord

Mona Kosar Abdi
IG |  @monakabdi 

Jeannette Reyes
IG |  @msnewslady 

Keep in touch with Awf The Record:
Watch on Youtube: @AwfTheRecord
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Visit our website: www.AwfTheRecord.com
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What do you do when you become your family’s financial safety net? In this segment of Awf The Record, Jeannette Reyes and Mona Kosar Abdi talk with Vivian Tu about the pressure of being the person everyone turns to when money gets tight, especially in immigrant families and communities of color. Vivian explains why constantly giving from your own savings can keep you from building the future that would allow you to help more meaningfully later. She breaks down the difference between giving a gift and creating a loan that turns into a family fight, why a “gift fund” can help create boundaries, and how to decide whether a request is an emergency or an expectation. Honest, practical, and deeply relatable, this conversation is about learning how to say no without abandoning the people you love.

GUEST RESOURCES: 

Vivian Tu
Website | https://www.yourrichbff.com/ 
IG | https://www.instagram.com/your.richbff/ 

RESOURCES: 

Keep in touch with Awf The Record:

YouTube: @AwfTheRecord
Instagram: @awftherecordpodcast
TikTok: @AwfTheRecord

Mona Kosar Abdi
IG |  @monakabdi 

Jeannette Reyes
IG |  @msnewslady 
Keep in touch with Awf The Record:
Watch on Youtube: @AwfTheRecord
Follow us on Instagram: @awftherecordpodcast
Follow us on TikTok: @AwfTheRecord
Visit our website: www.AwfTheRecord.com
 Follow Mona on TikTok and IG
Follow Jeannette on TikTok and IG

In this episode of Awf The Record, Jeannette Reyes and Mona Kosar Abdi welcome  Vivian Tu, aka CEO and Founder of Your Rich BFF and Ask Dolly, for a no-fluff conversation about why so many people still feel broke even when they are making good money. Vivian breaks down the money blueprint most of us inherited, why working hard is no longer enough, and how asset ownership, investing, budgeting, and career strategy can help people build real financial security.
From fake wealth on social media to salary negotiation, dating with financial clarity, family money boundaries, trad wife culture, credit scores, debt, and the cost of adulthood, Vivian brings the group chat version of financial advice: honest, sharp, funny, and deeply practical. This conversation is for anyone trying to stop chasing a lifestyle that does not actually exist and start building a life that can hold them.

KEY POINTS

00:00 - Introduction: Vivian Tu breaks down the new rules of money
01:15 - The old money blueprint no longer works
03:30 - Social media is making fake wealth look normal
08:18 - Budgeting starts with knowing what you can actually afford
10:00 - Career security means being loyal to yourself first
11:38 - The “up and out” rule has changed in this job market
14:41 - Raises require receipts, confidence, and self-advocacy
17:56 - Major life milestones now require tradeoffs and timelines
24:19 - Family planning and benefits are part of the money conversation
27:04 - Money in relationships requires honesty, equity, and autonomy
39:13 - Rich people spend based on value, not performance
41:30 - Debt, credit scores, and family money need better boundaries

QUOTES 

“Let me be entirely clear. Those people are broke. The vast majority of the showy, loud, portrayed wealth that you're seeing on social media is fake.” – Vivian Tu 

“It's not how good you are with money; it's how good you are at playing this game.” – Vivian Tu 

“Debt has been made into like this swear word when real rich people know that debt is leverage.” – Vivian Tu 

GUEST RESOURCES: 

Vivian Tu
Website | https://www.yourrichbff.com/ 
IG | https://www.instagram.com/your.richbff/ 
App link | http://askdolly.com/Awf

RESOURCES: 

Keep in touch with Awf The Record:

YouTube: @AwfTheRecord
Instagram: @awftherecordpodcast
TikTok: @AwfTheRecord

Mona Kosar Abdi
IG |  @monakabdi 

Jeannette Reyes
IG |  @msnewslady 
Keep in touch with Awf The Record:
Watch on Youtube: @AwfTheRecord
Follow us on Instagram: @awftherecordpodcast
Follow us on TikTok: @AwfTheRecord
Visit our website: www.AwfTheRecord.com
 Follow Mona on TikTok and IG
Follow Jeannette on TikTok and IG

How do you date again after someone used vulnerability as a strategy? In this segment of Awf The Record, Jeannette Reyes and Mona Kosar Abdi talk with Reesa Teesa about trust, dating, and the psychological aftermath of being deceived by someone who seemed to say all the right things. Reesa reflects on how her ex “beat her to the story,” sharing false details about past relationships, therapy, and heartbreak before she could even ask the questions that might have protected her. She also opens up about why her circle is smaller now, why dating still scares her, and why she believes background checks should be part of modern dating. Honest, sharp, and deeply relatable, this conversation is about what happens when someone learns your wounds, flips the truth, and makes you question how easily trust can be weaponized.

GUEST RESOURCES: 

Reesa Teesa
IG | @reesateesa
Amazon book | What (TF) Do I Do Now?: Reclaiming Myself, One Piece at a Time 

RESOURCES: 

Keep in touch with Awf The Record:

YouTube: @AwfTheRecord
Instagram: @awftherecordpodcast
TikTok: @AwfTheRecord

Mona Kosar Abdi
IG |  @monakabdi 

Jeannette Reyes
IG |  @msnewslady 
Keep in touch with Awf The Record:
Watch on Youtube: @AwfTheRecord
Follow us on Instagram: @awftherecordpodcast
Follow us on TikTok: @AwfTheRecord
Visit our website: www.AwfTheRecord.com
 Follow Mona on TikTok and IG
Follow Jeannette on TikTok and IG

In this episode of Awf The Record, Jeannette Reyes and Mona Kosar Abdi sit down with Reesa Teesa to talk about life after the viral Who TF Did I Marry? series, the red flags she missed, the shame that kept her silent, and the healing she is still walking through in real time. Reesa opens up about dating from potential instead of reality, realizing she had married a pathological liar, and why the fear of admitting “I’m getting played” felt scarier than the truth itself.
From background checks and desperation dating to miscarriage, loneliness, faith, book deals, TV development, and learning how to edit the dream without giving up on it, this conversation goes far beyond the viral story. It is honest, funny, painful, and deeply human, reminding women that being single is never worse than being married to the wrong person.

KEY POINTS

00:00 - Introduction: Reesa Teesa’s story became a viral cultural moment
02:15 - Reesa reflects on life after going viral
03:50 - Reesa summarizes the story behind Who TF Did I Marry?
05:26 - Reesa explains why accountability shaped the story’s reception
09:27 - Reesa pushes back on the “it could never be me” mindset
12:30 - Reesa explains how dating potential made her vulnerable
15:14 - Reesa admits that facing the lie meant facing her own fear
18:16 - Reesa breaks down how a pathological liar builds a false foundation
22:39 - Reesa explains how money became part of the manipulation
24:46 - Reesa explains how he “beat her to the story” and damaged her trust
28:46 - Reesa opens up about the book, healing, and loneliness
40:19 - Reesa talks about the TV series, business, shame, and life after virality

QUOTES 
“I tend to date off of potential and not reality.” – Reesa Teesa
“There’s a difference between being alone and lonely.” – Jeannette Reyes
“Being single is nowhere near as bad as being married to the wrong person.”  – Reesa Teesa

GUEST RESOURCES: 

Reesa Teesa
IG | @reesateesa
Amazon book | What (TF) Do I Do Now?: Reclaiming Myself, One Piece at a Time 

RESOURCES: 

Keep in touch with Awf The Record:

YouTube: @AwfTheRecord
Instagram: @awftherecordpodcast
TikTok: @AwfTheRecord

Mona Kosar Abdi
IG |  @monakabdi 

Jeannette Reyes
IG |  @msnewslady 
Keep in touch with Awf The Record:
Watch on Youtube: @AwfTheRecord
Follow us on Instagram: @awftherecordpodcast
Follow us on TikTok: @AwfTheRecord
Visit our website: www.AwfTheRecord.com
 Follow Mona on TikTok and IG
Follow Jeannette on TikTok and IG