Owning Your Self-Worth: How Calling Off My Wedding Transformed My Life with Natalie Rowe

In this week’s episode of the Holistic Wealth Podcast, we’re exploring a topic that resonates universally: the importance of owning your self-worth. Self-worth isn’t just a nice idea—it’s the “command center of our lives”, shaping our decisions, relationships, financial and overall well-being. In this episode, our special guest is Natalie Rowe, and she shares her personal journey with self-esteem and how calling off her wedding, and reclaiming her self-worth transformed her life. 

 Natalie Rowe is a certified Human Resources Leader and holds a Master's degree in Economics. She is the founder and CEO of Transforming Minds International, an organization dedicated to equipping youth for their careers. She's the author of S.E.T. - Proceed and Succeed in Your Career;as well as chapter e-workbooks on Insightful Career Conversations for Parents and Teens. Natalie is also a financial and career coach. She is married with three sons and lives in Ottawa, Canada.

 How Self-Worth Impacts Our Lives
In this episode, Natalie shares her personal journey to highlight how self-worth impacts our lives. She states: “For much of my life, I struggled with low self-esteem. Family dynamics played a significant role in shaping how I viewed myself. As a young girl, I desperately craved the approval of a father who was a provider and protector but whose praise seemed always out of reach”. “On top of this, cultural influences compounded the issue. Growing up in a society that celebrated colorism and a specific body type sent insidious messages about my beauty and worth. Popular music and media reinforced the idea that I wasn’t enough—that my skin tone and natural features were less desirable. I internalized these lies, questioning my beauty and diminishing my sense of value”.

 The Consequences of Early Messages
The consequences of these early messages are often profound. Natalie highlighted her previous engagement – a choice that didn’t serve her. “I entered a relationship that progressed to an engagement, and the wedding plans were set in motion. The decision to call off the wedding just weeks before the wedding date was incredibly painful”. 

 The Power of Owning Your Self-Worth
Self-worth isn’t something anyone else can give or take away. It comes from within. Learning to affirm ourselves and reject the false messages from our upbringing and culture can be liberating. As Natalie states: “Owning my self-worth has reshaped how I approach decisions, relationships, and challenges. When we own our self-worth, we give ourselves permission to live authentically, make empowered choices, and walk away from situations that don’t align with our values or potential”.

 Self-worth can heavily influence spending decisions. Most, if not all money issues have their root in heart issues and mindset. People can easily go into debt to acquire what they believe to be the ornaments of success (car, clothes, lifestyle), and then fall in deep financial stress as a result. Equally, people can get into debt giving what they don't have because they believe being everyone's saviour will make them more likeable. However, when you are at peace with who you are, you don't put on appearances to make a statement, you rather live within your means, and make solid choices to grow your wealth, save for your children's education, and for retirement, buy insurance to cover your short and long-term financial risks, etc.