Jan. 30, 2025

8. The Most Important Person for Your Success

8. The Most Important Person for Your Success

In this episode of the Energetic CFO Podcast, Tiffany Vogel dives into the most important investment you can make—yourself. Through heartfelt storytelling, personal anecdotes, and valuable insights, Tiffany illustrates how prioritizing your personal growth can lead to transformative results in your business, relationships, and overall life.

From navigating the challenges of being a mom and business owner to sharing lessons learned from investing in masterminds and personal growth programs, Tiffany shows how empowering yourself can create a ripple effect of success. If you're ready to take ownership of your life and business, this episode is a must-listen!

What You’ll Learn in This Episode:

  • Why investing in yourself is the highest ROI decision you can make.
  • The importance of balancing life, business, and personal growth.
  • Lessons learned from masterminds, retreats, and coaching programs.
  • How to spot the right investments and avoid the wrong ones.
  • Practical ideas for small, meaningful investments in self-care and mindset.
  • The difference between investing in frameworks and empowering yourself to make decisions.

Take Action:

  1. Identify one small way to invest in yourself this week (e.g., a massage, personal development book, or journaling session).
  2. Reflect on your long-term goals and consider how personal growth aligns with your vision.
  3. Join Tiffany’s waitlist for her upcoming in-person retreat in April at the Helen, GA Airbnb by reaching out to her at Tiffany@EnergeticCFO.com.
  4. Connect with Tiffany to discuss how she can help you make empowered financial decisions.

Connect with Tiffany:

If this episode resonated with you, please share it with a friend who might benefit. Don’t forget to subscribe, leave a rating, and let Tiffany know how she can support you on your financial and personal growth journey. Stay tuned for next week’s episode!

Transcript
WEBVTT

00:00:02.035 --> 00:00:07.504
Welcome to the Energetic CFO Podcast, where we empower you to take control of your financial future.

00:00:07.804 --> 00:00:11.724
I'm your host, Tiffany, an advocate for financial literacy and business success.

00:00:12.205 --> 00:00:19.605
In this podcast, we'll explore a wide range of financial topics from money mindset and budgeting to building wealth and achieving financial freedom.

00:00:20.074 --> 00:00:25.434
We'll break down complex financial concepts into simple, actionable steps so you can apply them in your own life.

00:00:25.914 --> 00:00:29.795
Whether you're a new entrepreneur or a seasoned business owner, this podcast is for you.

00:00:30.254 --> 00:00:36.204
Join me as we dive into the world of finance and discover the tools and strategies to help you achieve your financial goals.

00:00:36.695 --> 00:00:37.564
Let's get started.

00:00:38.043 --> 00:00:40.484
Welcome back to the energetic CFO podcast.

00:00:40.573 --> 00:00:51.183
I'm your host, Tiffany Vogel, and I am usually so excited to be here to chat about money, mindset, business, finance, all the fun things.

00:00:51.183 --> 00:01:14.623
Well, fun to me, maybe not so fun to you, but my hope is to make it fun and something that's approachable for most business owners, because I know this isn't something that is always taught in school for sure, and when you become a business owner, you don't always know these things, and it's just like assume that you know, and especially for women, like I think there's so much shame in not having all the answers.

00:01:14.634 --> 00:01:19.384
So that is why I'm here, and I'm so excited to chat with you more today.

00:01:19.834 --> 00:01:24.924
I, gosh, I am so ready for some spring weather.

00:01:25.373 --> 00:01:29.004
I'm tired of being cold, and I have a heated jacket.

00:01:29.323 --> 00:01:37.983
A good friend of mine bought a heated vest and a few years ago we were chatting about it and I was like, what, why do you have a like light up button on your jacket or your vest?

00:01:38.433 --> 00:01:40.813
And she told me about it and I was like, this is genius.

00:01:40.864 --> 00:01:42.474
Like I love the heated blankets.

00:01:42.924 --> 00:01:44.414
Why do I not have a heated jacket?

00:01:44.864 --> 00:01:50.743
So I invested in one, I think it was last Christmas and it is like the best couple hundred dollars I've ever spent.

00:01:51.194 --> 00:01:53.483
My big problem is I keep forgetting to charge the battery.

00:01:53.543 --> 00:01:54.784
So it's charging now.

00:01:54.884 --> 00:01:56.114
So we'll have juice for tomorrow.

00:01:56.563 --> 00:01:59.924
But it has been so cold, and I just, I don't want to go outside when it's this cold.

00:02:00.373 --> 00:02:04.054
And this morning, we're on our way to get the boys ready for school.

00:02:04.504 --> 00:02:12.294
We decided Eric was taking them, and I was gonna stay home and have like my morning routine time to meditate and do all the things I do.

00:02:12.524 --> 00:02:19.663
And Otto tells me, my four year old, that he wants me to go with them to school.

00:02:20.114 --> 00:02:23.473
And I told him, well, my dad's taking you, and I normally take them.

00:02:23.584 --> 00:02:25.123
But today Eric was doing it.

00:02:25.574 --> 00:02:29.114
And he was very distraught because he wanted a girl to drop him off.

00:02:29.304 --> 00:02:31.593
And I don't know what makes me so special compared to that.

00:02:31.604 --> 00:02:34.873
But you know, when the kid asks, I try to deliver.

00:02:34.873 --> 00:02:38.653
So I told him, okay, we're running late.

00:02:39.104 --> 00:02:41.324
I have to go get dressed and you have to get your jacket on.

00:02:41.764 --> 00:02:42.623
And it was a whole thing.

00:02:42.693 --> 00:02:44.104
Like he did not want to put his jacket on.

00:02:44.104 --> 00:02:49.813
So I get one sleeve on, run back, get dressed, grab my heated jacket, throw it on, get it turned on.

00:02:49.843 --> 00:02:51.294
Because normally I like to preheat the thing.

00:02:51.294 --> 00:02:53.183
So when I go outside, it's like nice and toasty.

00:02:53.633 --> 00:02:55.144
And he.

00:02:55.593 --> 00:02:57.633
Like comes up to me with no jacket on.

00:02:57.633 --> 00:02:58.924
I'm like, grab your jacket kid.

00:02:58.954 --> 00:03:02.514
Like if you're a parent, you know this struggle and it's every day.

00:03:02.574 --> 00:03:07.794
And having snow days did not help the situation because we got so far out of our routine.

00:03:08.243 --> 00:03:16.394
So I get, I'm getting my coffee ready to take with me and getting him in his jacket, and he starts to have a meltdown.

00:03:16.394 --> 00:03:18.044
And I'm like, great, this is what we need.

00:03:18.044 --> 00:03:19.003
Like we're already.

00:03:19.454 --> 00:03:22.943
Running late, and then me having to get dressed last minute was like, not planned.

00:03:23.394 --> 00:03:25.424
And, he's melting down now.

00:03:25.433 --> 00:03:27.864
Dad's already getting the car loaded up with the other kid.

00:03:28.313 --> 00:03:30.503
Like, 15 degrees outside.

00:03:30.574 --> 00:03:33.524
And, in Georgia, mind you, like, what is this?

00:03:33.554 --> 00:03:34.604
I'm not okay with this.

00:03:35.054 --> 00:03:37.783
And I, I look at him like, what's wrong, buddy?

00:03:37.783 --> 00:03:39.854
And he's like, I want a jacket like yours.

00:03:40.304 --> 00:03:42.973
And like, I am not dropping whatever it was.

00:03:42.973 --> 00:03:44.274
It was at least 100.

00:03:44.663 --> 00:03:52.223
on a jacket for a four year old to have a heated jacket for one, and then for two, for him to grow out of it in a year or less.

00:03:52.674 --> 00:03:57.743
Because you know, like, if I gave him this heated jacket, he would just be messing with it to the point of probably breaking it.

00:03:57.753 --> 00:03:59.554
So, it was just funny.

00:03:59.704 --> 00:04:04.843
So, I'm like, yeah, let me talk to dad, which is always my answer, because He usually forgets.

00:04:05.294 --> 00:04:10.413
So this is such a long story that is not remotely related to what we're talking about, so I'll make it short.

00:04:10.503 --> 00:04:16.254
He decides maybe we can make a pretend jacket that has a button like mom's out of rubber bands.

00:04:16.704 --> 00:04:26.004
So I'm hoping he forgets by the time he gets home from school, but I might be making like a heated jacket pretend button on his coat out of rubber bands.

00:04:26.264 --> 00:04:30.803
So if you have any thoughts or ideas on how to make that happen, shoot me an email.

00:04:30.814 --> 00:04:32.134
Hopefully we can figure it out together.

00:04:32.584 --> 00:04:45.413
But, it's, you know, I've realized I'm so thankful for being in the position where I can start my workday later so that I can take him to school and be the girl to drop him off.

00:04:45.624 --> 00:04:50.064
Yeah, I'm his girl and it's just such a fun place to be and I know I won't be his girl forever.

00:04:50.074 --> 00:05:17.483
So I'm soaking up while I can and fortunately he let me take him to his class and dad took brother to his class So we were able to do drop off a lot faster than normal and get back home but it's just such sweet moments and I just have so much appreciation for the position i'm in to be able to Take him to school and you know, have those moments and deal with him yelling at me because he's cold, even though he won't put his jacket on all the things.

00:05:17.494 --> 00:05:23.774
So today, I want to chat about the most important person for your success.

00:05:24.223 --> 00:05:28.663
And we talked last week about the most important document in your business and really your life.

00:05:28.663 --> 00:05:33.254
I mean, we talked about the P and L and if you didn't listen, I would definitely check it out.

00:05:33.704 --> 00:05:38.894
It's, it's important to know it, even if you're not in business, because knowing your personal financials.

00:05:39.298 --> 00:05:48.048
Can help you make strategic decisions and know that you're buying the right things and spending money where it really moves the needle for you.

00:05:48.108 --> 00:05:51.769
Like for me, buying a coffee out every day is not important to me.

00:05:52.098 --> 00:05:56.559
So if I was doing that, it would be out of alignment with my goals and intention.

00:05:57.009 --> 00:06:04.728
And when Eric and I first got together, he was buying a coffee and a bagel at Dunkin Donuts every morning, thinking it was saving him time.

00:06:04.848 --> 00:06:07.319
And we did the analysis and it just did not make sense.

00:06:07.733 --> 00:06:13.653
financially or time wise because he spent more time in the drive thru line than he would have if he just made it at home or at work.

00:06:13.673 --> 00:06:30.144
So it's just interesting when you have that clear picture and I want to help you find that clear picture today not from a financial perspective, but from I mean, I guess it is financial but from an intentionality really and start thinking about this.

00:06:30.593 --> 00:06:44.644
I view the most important person in your life, business, every aspect to your success is yourself and the highest return on investment thing you can do is investing in yourself.

00:06:45.093 --> 00:06:50.595
Personally, this year, financially, we were not in a place for me to really spend a lot of extra cash.

00:06:51.045 --> 00:07:00.345
We, I mean, we're in startup on these businesses, the real estate's holding firm, but we have this Airbnb that has a stupid large mortgage payment each month.

00:07:00.795 --> 00:07:08.634
And with seasonality and Airbnb, we're in the middle of winter and people don't really want to go sit in the mountains in the cold.

00:07:09.084 --> 00:07:11.644
So we're breaking even in essence right now.

00:07:11.665 --> 00:07:16.064
So you know, income is, lighter than we'd like it to be at the current moment.

00:07:16.084 --> 00:07:21.764
And over the past year, you know, we were building this Airbnb and putting every extra penny into that.

00:07:22.214 --> 00:07:24.545
So investing in myself was big.

00:07:24.995 --> 00:07:43.875
Seemed off the table, but after a lot of reflection and conversations with Eric, we realized for me to grow into the person that I want to be for my family, for my business, for myself, for my marriage, for everything, I had to make some big investments and on the P and L, it didn't make sense.

00:07:44.324 --> 00:07:49.485
And I would just want to say, like, sometimes it doesn't make sense from a financial perspective.

00:07:49.504 --> 00:07:56.214
And that's where I think most financial coaches can miss it is there's a human factor in finance.

00:07:56.665 --> 00:07:59.935
That has such a key part that can be overlooked.

00:08:00.375 --> 00:08:07.475
And if you're not taking that human part into it, you're missing everything.

00:08:07.524 --> 00:08:12.894
I mean, it's like, if you want to lose weight, we all know exactly what we have to do to lose weight.

00:08:13.345 --> 00:08:14.714
I mean, it's calories in, calories out.

00:08:15.074 --> 00:08:18.324
But to do that, there's a human behavior part.

00:08:18.774 --> 00:08:22.345
You have to say no to the cookies, and Pregnant woman over here.

00:08:22.375 --> 00:08:23.625
That's a really hard thing to do.

00:08:24.074 --> 00:08:27.975
So having the discipline is more important.

00:08:27.985 --> 00:08:32.884
So when you're doing a weight loss program, it's not as much about the education of the program.

00:08:32.904 --> 00:08:34.595
It's the mindset behind it.

00:08:35.044 --> 00:08:42.914
And for me growing in the business and growing as a person, I knew I had to invest in my mindset.

00:08:43.174 --> 00:08:43.725
So.

00:08:43.794 --> 00:08:50.534
In 2024, I don't want to total up the amount that I spent on personal growth, but it was, it was a lot.

00:08:50.985 --> 00:08:52.754
And it was worth every single penny.

00:08:53.205 --> 00:09:00.164
I joined a mastermind that was a very, very hefty price tag much more than I've ever spent on a mastermind.

00:09:00.615 --> 00:09:04.615
And it was for a group of women who are business owners and moms.

00:09:04.615 --> 00:09:07.673
And the majority of us have very young kiddos.

00:09:08.124 --> 00:09:10.673
And the season of life is just so different.

00:09:11.124 --> 00:09:19.754
I, you know, realized a lot of our businesses stagnated when we had our first son because our attention has shifted.

00:09:20.203 --> 00:09:28.803
And we can't put as much time and energy into the business as we could before because we have, you know, little humans running around that need a lot of things.

00:09:29.254 --> 00:09:33.923
And I never wanted to take my eye off the business, and I did.

00:09:34.374 --> 00:09:44.474
And I realized that investing in myself is the way to find that whole picture of Tiffany, so that I can show up as the mom and the business owner and the wife that I want to be.

00:09:44.923 --> 00:09:50.264
So, this group of women, it's so great because we were all in a very similar stage of life.

00:09:50.714 --> 00:09:55.474
We all have big businesses and big aspirations and financial goals.

00:09:55.923 --> 00:10:07.333
And we get to come together a few times a year and just sit down and dig into our businesses and take care of ourselves because self care is so hard in this season of life.

00:10:07.783 --> 00:10:10.053
and work on our mindset.

00:10:10.504 --> 00:10:14.514
And I just got back from the retreat with them a couple of weeks ago.

00:10:14.964 --> 00:10:15.903
And it was just so good.

00:10:15.913 --> 00:10:20.464
It was just so good to be around women who are in a similar boat as I am.

00:10:20.913 --> 00:10:30.004
So that investment was a hundred percent worth it and led me to meeting my coach, who is absolutely fantastic and has transformed my life.

00:10:30.453 --> 00:10:32.193
She has hosted a couple of retreats.

00:10:32.259 --> 00:10:36.418
One of which was the Costa Rica trip I just got back from.

00:10:36.869 --> 00:10:44.619
And, Eric joined me for a call with her, and just looked at her and said, Thank you for whatever happened in Costa Rica.

00:10:45.068 --> 00:10:46.708
Like, Tiffany's not the same person.

00:10:46.798 --> 00:10:49.288
And, he just had so much gratitude for her.

00:10:49.739 --> 00:10:56.389
And I realized, when I signed up for that mastermind initially, it was such a stretch.

00:10:56.839 --> 00:11:08.693
And, to ask Eric to, you know, make this investment and then to make the subsequent investments in the coaching and all these retreats and I mean traveling internationally is not cheap.

00:11:09.144 --> 00:11:18.033
You know, I'm just so thankful, one, that he's so supportive and two, that I was willing to see myself as this most important person to invest in.

00:11:18.484 --> 00:11:24.563
So yeah, I mean, it's, it's been life changing and had I not made that decision to put myself first.

00:11:25.014 --> 00:11:30.224
and invest in myself, I wouldn't be sitting here recording this podcast or growing the business that I'm growing.

00:11:30.634 --> 00:11:35.433
I'd probably be sitting in the corner defeated because things in life were not working out the way I wanted them to.

00:11:35.884 --> 00:11:48.624
And investing in my mindset and my self care, mental health, like pretty much all the things you can think of has completely transformed the person sitting here talking into this mic for you to listen to.

00:11:48.653 --> 00:11:49.903
So thank you for being here.

00:11:50.354 --> 00:11:54.163
But I just want people to know.

00:11:54.614 --> 00:12:02.833
That sometimes it might not make sense to make the investment and to join the group, join the mastermind, go on the retreat, invest in the coach.

00:12:02.864 --> 00:12:11.764
But at the end of the day, if you are investing in yourself and doing the work, not just spending the money, you have to do the work as well.

00:12:12.214 --> 00:12:17.583
You will get a tenfold return on that investment of time and energy and money.

00:12:18.033 --> 00:12:32.874
And I've seen so many people join coaching programs in particular and not do what the coach says or push back and have resistance and, you know, buttheads every step of the way and then wonder why they're not reaching the success that they want.

00:12:33.283 --> 00:12:38.063
And it's really, you have to show up and be all in when you make that kind of decision.

00:12:38.514 --> 00:12:46.573
Over the past, I would say four or five years, we've invested in a lot of coaching programs, maybe not coaching programs.

00:12:46.573 --> 00:12:48.144
I would say like online courses.

00:12:48.594 --> 00:12:56.984
And The ones that have been business focused, not personal growth, some of them, I have gotten a return, like a higher return than the investment.

00:12:56.984 --> 00:13:05.764
Some of them have been sunk cost investment where we haven't, you know, covered the cost of it through what we learned in that program.

00:13:06.214 --> 00:13:07.854
And it's not the coach's fault.

00:13:08.033 --> 00:13:08.774
It's us.

00:13:08.803 --> 00:13:11.153
We just weren't in a place to make that investment.

00:13:11.604 --> 00:13:18.224
So I just want to say like be strategic in the investments you're making, but, Those investments were for the business.

00:13:18.264 --> 00:13:20.744
They were not for our personal growth.

00:13:21.193 --> 00:13:29.724
And I thought that if I spent the money and took the time to do the things that it would lead to success.

00:13:30.173 --> 00:13:32.073
And I mean, that's what they promise.

00:13:32.124 --> 00:13:35.644
And that's, you know, they're salespeople at the end of the day and doing what they needed to do.

00:13:36.094 --> 00:13:38.333
But I wish I invested more in myself.

00:13:38.783 --> 00:13:59.553
And not in frameworks and programs and, you know, coaches like that, because the investments that I have made for my mental health and my growth and my development, the return has been exponential, but the investments that we've made in methodologies and frameworks has not paid off.

00:14:00.004 --> 00:14:07.933
I realized I have been trying to build my businesses as if I am all these coaches.

00:14:08.333 --> 00:14:10.203
And I got lost in the sauce.

00:14:10.653 --> 00:14:21.313
And part of the realization I had, I've had really over the past couple months, but really got cemented in Costa Rica, and at the Mastermind, was that I have to show up authentically as me.

00:14:21.764 --> 00:14:25.673
And if that doesn't fit into a framework, that's okay.

00:14:26.124 --> 00:14:29.894
You may have noticed, and you'll see the next couple episodes, I follow a framework.

00:14:30.183 --> 00:14:38.344
I recorded them before I left for Costa Rica and Austin, and I was hesitant to release them, but I think there's some really good content in there.

00:14:38.344 --> 00:14:50.374
So I want to get it out there, but I, I've just decided I am going to do these podcasts in a way that feels authentic to me and it's free flowy.

00:14:50.823 --> 00:14:56.293
and might not be what the experts and the gurus say I'm supposed to do, but it feels right for me.

00:14:56.744 --> 00:15:04.344
And that's because I have invested so much in myself and I'm willing to take this risk and show up authentically as me.

00:15:04.793 --> 00:15:11.303
Because that's more important to me at the end of the day than following a framework and getting more clients.

00:15:11.754 --> 00:15:20.323
I just want, I mean, at the end of the day, this podcast is really an outlet for me to express myself and to help people.

00:15:20.774 --> 00:15:27.014
And I just was not feeling like the frameworks I was following were helping me accomplish that goal.

00:15:27.464 --> 00:15:34.053
So I'm kind of beating to my own drum at this point, but would not do that if I hadn't have invested in myself.

00:15:34.053 --> 00:15:37.563
And I mean, there's been some investments in ourselves that didn't pan out.

00:15:37.614 --> 00:15:44.474
We joined a mastermind, a co ed mastermind, Eric and I joined together and it was, it was terrible.

00:15:44.854 --> 00:15:59.323
The wives that were in the room that were decision makers and really showing up and power houses were not treated equally as the men, even though some of us were doing more than our husbands in the business.

00:15:59.774 --> 00:16:00.433
And.

00:16:00.884 --> 00:16:04.134
Almost treated like we were the admins, which did not feel good.

00:16:04.583 --> 00:16:10.433
And then I had someone make really inappropriate comments to me that were quite upsetting.

00:16:10.533 --> 00:16:16.094
And when confronted, it was unaddressed and just did not feel good.

00:16:16.114 --> 00:16:17.774
It was not a safe place to go.

00:16:18.153 --> 00:16:30.653
So we wound up dropping out of the group early, but I will say having that experience taught me what to look for in coaching and masterminds in any kind of container that I'm going into.

00:16:31.104 --> 00:16:42.203
And I have realized how to spot a safe place to the point where when I got to Costa Rica, I met this woman in the car with our driver, never met her before.

00:16:42.244 --> 00:16:43.994
Oh, we met on zoom once.

00:16:44.024 --> 00:16:45.984
And then I watched a recording of a zoom call with her.

00:16:46.004 --> 00:16:50.644
So I don't know this lady and we get in the car and just start chatting.

00:16:50.663 --> 00:17:00.104
And I'm sitting over here, spilling my life story and stuff that only a handful of people know, but I knew my coach hosting this retreat.

00:17:00.553 --> 00:17:08.324
That she would only bring people who were safe and who were, I don't know, like a match to me energetically.

00:17:08.773 --> 00:17:10.084
And I knew I could trust her.

00:17:10.534 --> 00:17:15.364
So I, you know, I'm spilling my life story to this lady and she's sharing a lot of her stuff.

00:17:15.413 --> 00:17:19.713
And it was just really interesting the difference between those two groups.

00:17:19.844 --> 00:17:25.054
So even if you kiss a lot of frogs to find your place, that's okay.

00:17:25.503 --> 00:17:29.963
It's still worth the investment because you're figuring out what works for you and what's best for you.

00:17:30.413 --> 00:17:45.253
So I just really want to challenge people, challenge you to think about when you're investing in your business, is it investing in yourself or is it investing in somebody else?

00:17:45.354 --> 00:17:47.324
Is it investing in a framework?

00:17:47.773 --> 00:17:49.074
Is it investing in the business?

00:17:49.074 --> 00:17:51.784
Like where is that investment really going at the end of the day?

00:17:52.233 --> 00:18:09.124
And I mean, for me, I worked really hard over the last year to build a fractional CFO firm by following a roadmap that someone laid out exactly what you need to do to get clients to deliver, copy all of these things, and you will have a successful business.

00:18:09.203 --> 00:18:11.784
And I did that for a year, and it was not successful.

00:18:12.233 --> 00:18:20.463
And what I have realized for myself is I don't want to be the service provider for a business and their finances.

00:18:20.913 --> 00:18:24.564
I don't want to tell them what to do month after month.

00:18:25.013 --> 00:18:29.403
My purpose on this earth is to teach people how to do it for themselves.

00:18:29.854 --> 00:18:41.824
So, and they might not want to do it for themselves forever, and that's okay, but I want to empower and educate people so that they know When their CFO or accountant says something to them, they know what it means.

00:18:41.854 --> 00:18:44.773
And they don't just get the glazed over look and trust that professional.

00:18:45.223 --> 00:18:46.344
It's like in healthcare.

00:18:46.794 --> 00:18:49.253
our dog got really sick.

00:18:49.703 --> 00:18:51.443
Over the summer and into the fall.

00:18:51.874 --> 00:18:55.463
And he was scratching non stop.

00:18:55.493 --> 00:18:59.213
And he's had allergies his whole life, so like it's not out of the norm for him to be itchy.

00:18:59.663 --> 00:19:24.564
But it just got progressively worse and worse to the point where he was bleeding from scratching himself so much and crying because he's scratching and it hurts and it was gut wrenching and I took him to his dermatologist because the dog has a dermatologist because of the allergies and Said you know his shots that he gets are not working anymore And it was just met with well keep doing it because There's no reason it should stop working.

00:19:24.564 --> 00:19:26.253
Maybe reduce the amount you're giving him.

00:19:26.294 --> 00:19:28.693
Which made no sense, but we tried it.

00:19:28.713 --> 00:19:29.634
It didn't work.

00:19:29.834 --> 00:19:33.384
And I continued reaching out to them, and I felt just kind of dismissed.

00:19:33.834 --> 00:19:38.413
And we took him to his local, well we took him a couple times to the emergency vet.

00:19:38.864 --> 00:19:41.173
Because he had an ear hematoma.

00:19:41.243 --> 00:19:42.953
So his ear filled up with fluid.

00:19:43.403 --> 00:19:45.423
And had to get a drain put in, twice.

00:19:45.453 --> 00:19:46.374
One on each ear.

00:19:46.824 --> 00:19:49.463
And now he's got cauliflower ears, so he looks like a boxer.

00:19:49.503 --> 00:19:57.864
But we went through, it was six months of trying to figure out how to help this poor dog while also having young kids and businesses and all the things.

00:19:58.314 --> 00:20:02.723
And finally I looked at Eric and I was like, I am exhausted of dealing with this.

00:20:02.723 --> 00:20:04.334
Like, I don't feel heard.

00:20:04.663 --> 00:20:05.854
I don't know what to do.

00:20:06.273 --> 00:20:11.753
I did some Googling and came to the conclusion that I think he has a yeast infection.

00:20:12.203 --> 00:20:17.284
So Eric took him to the vet and was like, I need you to test them for yeast.

00:20:17.294 --> 00:20:18.624
And they're like, Oh, we don't think it's that.

00:20:18.624 --> 00:20:20.423
And he's like, no, you're going to test him.

00:20:20.874 --> 00:20:21.683
And they did.

00:20:21.834 --> 00:20:35.804
And they found out he had a terrible yeast infection and put him on, I think it was like a month of antibiotics and antifungals, and we finally have his stuff under control, his allergy medicine still was not working.

00:20:35.804 --> 00:20:37.733
So we got him on a different plan for that.

00:20:38.183 --> 00:20:45.743
And it's, it's frustrating that it took Eric going in there and demanding that they test him for this.

00:20:46.193 --> 00:20:52.614
And he wouldn't have known to do that if I hadn't have done the research on Google to figure out that we think it's a yeast infection.

00:20:52.933 --> 00:20:57.493
And fun fact, if your dog smells like Fritos or corn chips, they probably have a yeast infection.

00:20:57.683 --> 00:20:59.084
So who would have known?

00:20:59.354 --> 00:21:03.193
But there were signs on his skin that the dermatologist and the regular vet should have caught.

00:21:03.644 --> 00:21:41.814
So all of that to say, when it comes to your business, your finances in particular, because that's, you know, what we talk about here, but anything in your business or your life, You want to make that final decision and not trust a quote unquote expert because you don't know just because they have a couple letters after their name or a certificate on the wall does not mean that they were the A student or that they're, the best person for you and you won't know if that's the right person unless you really dig into it and know the facts behind the numbers, if you will, for this example.

00:21:42.263 --> 00:21:47.384
it took me hours of research to figure out what was going on with him and I should have been able to trust these experts.

00:21:47.834 --> 00:22:03.104
And when it comes to your business and finances in particular, you want to know enough to be able to question if something seems off and not have to have a suffering animal for six months before you finally get to a breaking point that you spend the time figuring it out.

00:22:03.134 --> 00:22:06.634
And I think in business, like you don't want to go years down the road.

00:22:06.983 --> 00:22:12.913
And look up and say, Oh, I need to know like what happened years ago that led me to this point.

00:22:13.364 --> 00:22:18.624
Like, let's learn about it now so we can make those empowered decisions as we're growing.

00:22:19.074 --> 00:22:29.064
And that is my mission here, is to help business owners, not as a CFO, to tell you, Hey, here's what's going on in your business in perpetuity forever.

00:22:29.403 --> 00:22:34.713
My goal is to teach you the fundamentals of finance in a way that's easy to understand.

00:22:35.153 --> 00:22:46.163
And yes, we use spreadsheets because That's how I live and breathe, but it's teaching you how to take your data and make it into something powerful and impactful in your business.

00:22:46.564 --> 00:22:58.074
And just having a different pair of glasses to put on as you're looking at your business and giving you the questions to ask your CPA to start thinking about this a different way.

00:22:58.074 --> 00:23:07.943
Because my intention is to empower not to do and let you make the decisions because as the business owner or running your own personal finances.

00:23:08.394 --> 00:23:13.213
You know way more than a CFO or a coach or anyone will ever know.

00:23:13.663 --> 00:23:19.134
And you know, your motivations and your goals and what risk level you're willing to take.

00:23:19.144 --> 00:23:27.594
And I mean, it's easy for me to look at a spreadsheet and tell you exactly what you need to do, but I'm not in your shoes and I don't have to deal with the consequences of it.

00:23:28.044 --> 00:23:32.384
So my intention is to teach you, here's how I would look at this.

00:23:32.834 --> 00:23:49.054
and weigh these options and assess this and give you that information so that you can make the decision and teach you how I'm approaching it and my mindset so that you are the one making the decision in the future and not relying on another expert.

00:23:49.503 --> 00:24:21.443
I see so many women come to me who their dad or their uncle or some man in their life and not that that's a bad thing but some man in their life has been managing their finances and then they get in a serious relationship or get married and then their husband takes over and they don't know what to do with that information and they're just trusting these people in their life which is a fine thing like there's nothing wrong with trusting people but I want to be able to make the financial decisions for myself or at least be a part of the conversation.

00:24:21.894 --> 00:24:31.094
So that if heaven forbid something happens to the man that's in your life that's doing the finances for you, that you're not left scrambling trying to figure it out.

00:24:31.544 --> 00:24:41.564
I think back to I don't know where I heard this, so bear with me, but there was a story about a woman passed away and she had been married to her husband for 60 years and they were, they were very old.

00:24:42.013 --> 00:24:47.044
And he was so lost because he didn't know where the checkbook was or the coupon drawer.

00:24:47.104 --> 00:24:50.844
Like, there were all these things that she did that she never conveyed to him.

00:24:51.294 --> 00:25:06.193
And what I would hate is for a person to have that go to person in their life that's doing all the finance and accounting and managing all the money, and for something to happen to them and they're left lost of where the checkbook is.

00:25:06.644 --> 00:25:08.273
and how to manage the finances.

00:25:08.284 --> 00:25:18.163
So that is my heart and my intention here is to help empower people in a way that is not painful because I know most people don't enjoy finance.

00:25:18.334 --> 00:25:20.294
I love it, but I get it.

00:25:20.364 --> 00:25:21.364
It's not always fun.

00:25:21.814 --> 00:25:28.433
And I think my husband's been like the biggest lesson for me of not everyone enjoys this or looks at the numbers the way I do.

00:25:28.884 --> 00:25:36.364
So I'm bringing it down to a level that's understandable and fun as much as we can make it fun.

00:25:36.814 --> 00:25:39.743
Thank God I don't do accounting because that would be much harder to make fun.

00:25:40.054 --> 00:25:42.294
Tax law is not, it's not entertaining.

00:25:42.294 --> 00:25:47.064
It's a good bedtime reading material so you can fall asleep, but finance can be fun.

00:25:47.193 --> 00:25:51.153
And that is my goal is to make it fun and help you to see.

00:25:51.469 --> 00:26:07.128
Where's the best place to make these investments in your life are, but hands down, I can tell you if you're making an investment in your own personal growth, that is going to be the highest ROI investment you can make, because then you can show up more effective.

00:26:07.578 --> 00:26:09.098
In all areas of your life.

00:26:09.318 --> 00:26:13.578
And I need to total up how much I've spent on personal growth over the last year.

00:26:13.598 --> 00:26:14.269
It's a lot.

00:26:14.519 --> 00:26:19.419
I, if I had to guess, I would say probably in the 70 range.

00:26:19.868 --> 00:26:26.469
I should totally look, but it's been worth every penny because my nervous system is more regulated than it's ever been.

00:26:26.469 --> 00:26:27.469
I'm less stressed.

00:26:27.919 --> 00:26:30.528
I was on a path of thyroid issues.

00:26:30.979 --> 00:26:35.509
And was fortunately able to get that under control before it became a real issue.

00:26:35.959 --> 00:26:37.169
But my health is better.

00:26:37.358 --> 00:26:39.999
My marriage is much, much, much, much better.

00:26:40.449 --> 00:26:41.989
Our finances are better.

00:26:42.199 --> 00:26:44.689
I mean, you think about the wheel of life exercise.

00:26:45.138 --> 00:26:53.449
And looking at that, I looked at mine from the beginning of last year to this year, and I've improved in every area.

00:26:53.898 --> 00:26:55.868
And some of it, nothing has changed.

00:26:56.128 --> 00:27:02.919
Like for example, we want to make some changes to our house and some renovations just to take it to the next level.

00:27:03.368 --> 00:27:16.259
And we've talked about just moving instead of trying to fix this one up, but I have realized this house has everything I need and it's not aesthetically where I'd like it, but functionally it is.

00:27:16.459 --> 00:27:18.318
And we have a great pool.

00:27:18.769 --> 00:27:43.798
That we swim in all summer long and we have so much space for the kids to run around outside And I would hate to give that up because of a desire for a more aesthetically pleasing house But in working on my mindset over the last year I'm realizing the aesthetic desire for me was more for other people than for myself and in Taking ownership of who I am and what I want in life.

00:27:43.798 --> 00:27:51.009
I realized that is not a priority for me What's a priority for me is being able to take my son to school and be the girl to walk him in.

00:27:51.459 --> 00:27:57.969
And when the time comes that I have to build a rubber band button for a jacket for him so he can be like me.

00:27:58.419 --> 00:28:00.439
That's the time investment I want to make.

00:28:00.519 --> 00:28:06.588
And I would rather work fewer hours to have that time with him and my other son.

00:28:06.598 --> 00:28:07.348
He's great too.

00:28:07.378 --> 00:28:10.318
The four year old is just like connected to me in a deeper way right now.

00:28:10.318 --> 00:28:13.868
The two year old just screams, I want daddy and daddy is tired of it.

00:28:14.318 --> 00:28:19.108
But that's the investment I want to make now, not in my house.

00:28:19.558 --> 00:28:26.608
And I would not have that clarity if I didn't make the investments in my own personal growth this year.

00:28:27.058 --> 00:28:42.439
So yeah, it's, it's life changing and cannot express enough gratitude to the women in my life that have helped me get to this point because it probably saved my marriage saved my business, my finances, like everything.

00:28:42.439 --> 00:28:52.769
So if you are interested in taking a step and investing in yourself from a financial perspective, I'd love to chat and see how I can help you with that.

00:28:53.219 --> 00:28:54.888
Take that step for yourself this year.

00:28:55.338 --> 00:29:06.429
I'm also going to be building out a wait list for our in person retreat that will be in late April at our Airbnb up in Helen, Georgia.

00:29:06.878 --> 00:29:08.699
And if you're interested in that, let me know.

00:29:08.699 --> 00:29:16.888
And I can get you the link to the wait list, but just want to leave you with like, what is one investment in yourself that you can make this week?

00:29:17.318 --> 00:29:19.068
And it does not have to be something grand.

00:29:19.078 --> 00:29:23.598
It could be going to get a massage because you just are overwhelmed and want the rest or.

00:29:24.048 --> 00:29:25.679
Having someone come clean the house.

00:29:26.128 --> 00:29:33.898
I know that's not technically a, you know, investment in yourself, but if it gives you some time to be able to go do something for you, that is a worthy investment.

00:29:34.348 --> 00:29:48.788
And maybe think about this year and what investments you want to make into yourself through business mental health, whatever it is that's the area you really want to focus on this year, what are a couple investments you can make to really push that to the next level.

00:29:49.239 --> 00:29:51.108
That is all I have for you today.

00:29:51.118 --> 00:29:52.699
Thank you so much for joining me.

00:29:52.778 --> 00:29:59.159
And if you like this episode, please share it with anyone you think might also benefit from it.

00:29:59.608 --> 00:30:12.038
Leave us a rating, a review, all the things that all the people say on all the YouTubes and podcasts and all the things, you know, I probably don't need to repeat it, but thank you for your support and I will catch you next time.

00:30:12.528 --> 00:30:16.229
Thanks for joining me on this episode of the Energetic CFO Podcast.

00:30:16.638 --> 00:30:19.328
Remember, small steps can lead to massive rewards.

00:30:19.729 --> 00:30:24.628
By taking action, staying disciplined, and seeking knowledge, you can achieve your financial dreams.

00:30:25.778 --> 00:30:29.429
If you enjoyed this episode, please be sure to share, like, and subscribe.

00:30:29.719 --> 00:30:32.169
And don't forget to leave a comment with your thoughts and questions.

00:30:32.608 --> 00:30:36.278
Until next time, keep learning, keep growing, and keep thriving.