In the latest installment of Wealthsimple Magazine’s recurring series “Money Diaries,” Abbi Jacobson, who played Abbi Abrams in Broad City, discussed the role that money has had in her life.
Abbi says the idea for her first business came at the age of eight years old, when she would buy school pencils in bulk and sell them at craft shows she and her mother went to.
“My cost on the pencils was maybe a nickel each, and I sold them for a quarter. That’s like a 500 percent markup,” she says.
However, her entrepreneurial attitude didn’t stop there. When she was a kid, Abbi’s father would create a point system for her and her brother to do chores. Each chore was worth a certain amount of points, and those points could then be turned into cash. Of course, Abbi did as many chores as she could.
Then during her high school and college years, she obtained her first real jobs as a waitress and caterer.
She says, “My first couple of years in New York, working full-time as a waitress, I was always so broke it was a little scary.”
Although Abbi said she could have always asked her parents for help, she would rather handle the situation herself by learning to live cheaply.
“I bought big sacks of potatoes and made potatoes every night for dinner. I had a constant cycle of roommates in a small apartment in Queens, which is where my character lives on Broad City. In the end, I’m happy to have had all those jobs. I’ve channeled so many of the experiences I had waitressing into our show.”
After becoming a successful actress, Abbi says she loves being able to afford nice gifts for her friends and family. Not only that, but she also treats herself with healthier food, which means no more potatoes!
However, Abbi says the most important thing she spends her money on is donating to charity.
“Wherever you are financially, giving to charity is one of the more rewarding and valuable ways you can spend your money. You feel good about yourself and you get to see the organizations whose missions you believe in continue to thrive, continue to fight the good fight. Whatever chunk it takes out of your income, that’s small potatoes.”
To read Abbi’s full interview with Wealthsimple Magazine, click here. Also, make sure to tweet us your thoughts on Twitter at @CelebMix!