May 15, 2025 • 14 mins
Got a question? Send me a text.
Does your financial plan feel more stressful than supportive? Many women entrepreneurs try to follow rigid financial formulas that don’t align with their lives or businesses. Traditional plans often focus on distant futures without considering your evolving goals, wealth consciousness, or business changes.
A financial plan should be simple, clear, and flexible, evolving as you do. Build your plan around your values—not someone else’s template.
Key takeaways:
- Keep your financial plan clear, simple, and personal.
- Build your plan around your values, not external advice.
- Balance achievement with rest and celebration.
- Allow your plan to evolve as you grow and change.
Trust yourself to make decisions that support your unique goals and values.
Want to learn more or connect with me?
Step 1: Join my FREE Facebook Community.
Connect, share, and learn how to master your money with other women just like you.
➡️ Join here: https://www.facebook.com/groups/941450038160915
Step 2: Grab your FREE Human Design chart
Curious what your Human Design chart reveals about how you're uniquely designed to make aligned financial decisions?
➡️ Get your chart here: https://generatealifewelllived.com/receive-your-human-design-chart
Step 3: Ready to transform your relationship with money and build true financial confidence?
Let’s create a plan that feels aligned, intentional, and empowering—just for you.
➡️ Schedule your free clarity call here (https://tidycal.com/eringray/30-min-call-with-erin)
Money doesn't have to feel overwhelming. Let's create a plan that feels nurturing and custom to you.
From my soul to yours,
Erin
Mark as Played
Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Erin Gray (00:00):
Your financial plan is meant to create more peace
and help give you direction andstructure, and if you've ever
felt stressed out more becauseof your plan than supported by
it, I want you to know that youare not alone.
You know, I see this often withwomen who are trying to and I'm
(00:23):
air quoting do the right thingfinancially, and then the plan
that they're following is eithertoo rigid, it's too vague, or
it's just too far in the future,so it just simply doesn't
reflect how they actually live,run their life and their
business.
And so in this episode, I'mgoing to help you take a step
back and really ask is yourfinancial plan truly supporting
(00:47):
you and your life and yourbusiness, or does this just
another source of pressure foryou?
Do you want to create a systemto stop avoiding your money?
Maybe you're feeling guilt andshame when it comes to your
finances.
Welcome to your Money yourRules.
Comes to your finances.
Welcome to your Money yourRules.
(01:07):
I'm Erin, a former certifiedfinancial planner and CFO, and
yet I used to avoid my money andhad fear, no matter how much we
had.
I can't wait to teach you how Iovercame my money avoidance and
started consistently managingmy finances in a really simple
way.
It's time to get comfortablewith money.
So let's break down what apeaceful what I believe a
peaceful financial plan reallylooks like, and then how to
(01:29):
adjust yours so it serves youbetter.
Before we dive into this week'sepisode, I know that maybe you
are tired of feeling stressedabout your money, about your
finances, and you're doneconstantly worrying about if
you're saving enough or you'reinvesting the right way.
You know, maybe your financialplanner might be suggesting you
(01:50):
know to do one thing and yourbody is saying or asking of you
another, and you don't actuallyknow what to do.
I think so often we hire peopleto help us and advise us, but
somewhere along the way weforget to ask ourselves does
that feel good for me?
And so if you are stuck in thatcycle of either not enough or
(02:15):
you want to feel more in controlof your money and you are
unsure because you're gettingadvice from several different
people, but then when you askyourself, it just feels a little
off right.
And so if you don't know whereto start, I want to help you
stop feeling overwhelmed andsecond guessing your financial
decisions.
(02:36):
You know, one of the biggestpassions of mine is to really
help women come back home tothemselves and to trust
themselves again, especiallywith money and the decisions
that they make.
So I am here to help you tocreate a financial plan that
feels simple, that feelsempowering and really freeing.
Together, we're going to createa customized plan that helps
(02:59):
you align your values with yourgoals and then build wealth and
the financial confidence thatyou deserve.
You don't need to figure thisout on your own, and you can
totally do that if you want to.
You don't need help fromanybody, and I will say it's a
lot more fun when you get to doit alongside someone who is
(03:20):
encouraging you, who is furtherempowering you, who is
encouraging you to make your owndecisions that feel good for
you and your body, versustelling you what to do.
So I would love to guide you inhelping you feel more empowered
, make decisions that are morecalm and peaceful, and that you
(03:41):
can use your money in a way thatlights your soul on fire and
creating the life that you want.
In order to book a session, allyou need to do is go to my
website,generatealifewelllivecom and
schedule your one hour call.
So let's talk about what I thinkplans.
(04:01):
I don't like using the wordshould be, but let's talk about
what they should be.
I think financial plans aresupposed to be clear and simple
and not complex, so if yourcurrent financial plan feels
overwhelming, you probably don'tneed more details and things
(04:21):
added to it.
You need more clarity.
So often I'll see a financialplan and I'll ask the client,
like does this even make senseto you?
Do you?
Have you looked at thisthoroughly?
And most financial plannersfrom what I have seen this is
what I used when I was afinancial planner use what's
called a Monte Carlo simulation,where it runs through all these
(04:45):
different scenarios, and it's atechnique where it's used to
understand the impact of riskand uncertainty, and they use
these simulations in likeinvesting and in business, and
it basically runs through allthese things and it gives you a
percentage of you reaching yourgoal.
What I don't think, though, thatthese plans take into account
(05:05):
is how you're going to change asa person over the next 40 to 50
years.
You know it doesn't take intoaccount your wealth,
consciousness and how you'regoing to grow, that it doesn't
take into account what isimportant to you now, what might
not be important to you 10 to15 years from now, and so what I
(05:27):
like to ask, or some questionsthat you might want to ask
yourself, are what are my?
I think I like to look at it aslike what is some of your short
term and then also, what are weplanning for the long term?
Looking at it both, both ways,right.
So what are my priorities thisquarter?
What is my minimum enoughnumber each month?
(05:47):
I think we need to start askingourselves some very simple
questions and real worldquestions in order to give
ourselves direction.
You know, a lot of these plansare looking as if we have a
certain amount of money thatwe're going to earn.
You know it literally takes inthe data that you give it right
(06:08):
now, today, which does notaccount for how much you're
going to, you know 2X, 5x, 10xyour business over the next
couple of years 10 years, 15years, whatever it might be.
It's not taking that intoaccount.
It's not taking into accountthat it literally thinks that,
okay, your retirement is goingto be some set you know number,
and then that's the total amountof money that you're ever going
(06:30):
to have for the rest of yourlife, which I don't think that
that really comes from a placeof sufficiency and abundance
Like I, I really think that oursoul came here to expand and to
grow and to think that we aren'tgoing to want to continue to
work after some point.
I don't know if that's actuallyrealistic and I don't like
(06:54):
using that word realistic but sooften like we're just getting
started, you know, and to thinkthat we're going to just wrap it
all up and call it done at acertain number.
I don't know if that, if thatactually feels true, I think
plans really need to be builtaround your values, not
(07:17):
necessarily somebody else'sformula.
You know, one of the biggestsources of stress that I see is
women trying to force themselvesand their finances into
somebody else's template.
You know, I know I've talkedabout on a previous podcast, you
know you can look at.
For some of you it may, it mayresonate of, you know, saving or
(07:39):
investing.
You know 20 to 30% living offof 50 to 80% depending.
You know, but that only worksif that fits in your reality and
with your values, you know.
So you always have to come backto are my financial decisions
(08:01):
reflecting my actual goals andwhat I want to create, not what
you think you should be doing?
I've said this before and Imight never wear Fendi or Prada,
right?
I will 100% drop that amount ofmoney on travel and airline
tickets, and so you have toreally get clear on what do you
(08:23):
enjoy, where do you want tospend your money?
Where do you want to um tideand circulate your money?
And it's going to lookdifferent for everyone else.
I mean, might have someone whoreally wants to live in a very
large house.
You might have someone who'slike you know what?
I'm totally fine with livingwhere I live.
(08:43):
I just want to travel moreoften.
There is no right or wrong here, and I think you really have to
get clear on what it is thatyou want and what do you want to
create so that you can startallocating your money in that
way.
Versus.
This is what someone says thatI should do, and so I'm just
following the formula.
(09:03):
You know, if you think about it, if, if your plan is all
situated or focused around themasculine right Of, of goals, of
reaching the next thing, right,where are you allowing yourself
to have celebration, breathingroom, receiving like that very
feminine energy, and when youstart to trust yourself, when
(09:28):
you start to feel supported byyourself and then supported with
your money, right, you're veryyou're.
You're more likely to stayconsistent with it versus coming
from the place of like this iswhat I should do, and so often.
You know, I had a client when,um, this is probably several
(09:49):
years ago we were talking aboutsome of the money that she had
received and I said, well, whatdo you actually want to do with
it?
And she said you know, I want toopen up a yoga place, a yoga
retreat place.
And I said, well, why aren't youdoing that?
And she said well, because myfinancial advisor thinks that.
I said.
I said this is the thing thatwe have to learn how to trust
ourselves as women.
(10:10):
I know that your financialadvisor might be suggesting to
put it in the market and youreally have to start getting
very clear.
Why are you suggesting that Iput it in the market?
Because obviously you know alot of times when our advisors
invest for us, they receive apercentage, which I am totally
for, because they are advisingus and everyone should be paid
(10:30):
for their contribution and theirvalue that they are providing
to us.
But if that isn't in alignmentwith your goals, why are they
suggesting that?
Suggesting that, so she endedup doing it no-transcript, doing
this that this would be part ofmy financial plan, but she's
(10:52):
thriving because it's comingfrom a heart and a soul centered
place, not from a place ofshould and have to.
So I really want you to thinkabout does your plan give you
that, that space for that joy?
For the rest, for thereceptivity that we need to have
?
Like, money is both masculineand feminine.
(11:12):
We like all the energy, right,we are masculine and feminine.
I'm talking about from anenergetic perspective, right,
and so really allowing you know,if we are just constantly
looking at what's the next goal,what's the next goal?
What's the next goal?
Like, receiving is an actualdoing activity, right, when we
receive, we have to be present.
(11:34):
And so, really focusing on,like, what does my plan include?
Does it allow for some of thatmore feminine energy?
And they need to be, you know,and I think also plans need to
be flexible and evolving.
Like I said at the verybeginning, you know who you are
today is might be vastlydifferent five years from now.
(11:55):
You know, if I remember havingfinancial plans years ago, my
life looks nothing like what Ithought it would five, 10 years
ago, because I'm not the sameperson anymore and you won't be
either, so allowing them to beflexible, to evolve as you
evolve.
You know your business is goingto change.
Your life changes, because youare changing as a person, right,
(12:17):
and so your plans can changetoo.
So when we look at, when we arecoming from the mindset that
our financial plan has to beexactly like this and it is so
rigid and it has all of theserules that we think you know,
think we have to follow, ratherthan this plan that grows with
(12:38):
us and molds with us as we moldas people.
You know you're allowed to pivot, you're allowed to refine,
you're allowed to say you knowwhat?
That was really important to mefive years ago, but that isn't
really something that is on myradar anymore, and so it's
allowing yourself to make thesechanges and to really start to
(12:59):
question what do you value andwhat do you love, and is this an
alignment with my soul and whatmy heart wants, or is this what
I think I should do?
So if you're feeling stressed,or if you're second guessing
where you are financially, oryour financial plan or your
(13:20):
planner, or you're unsure whereto start, I can help you.
We can create a simple,empowering financial system that
aligns with your goals and yourvalues and feels good in your
body.
In order to book a session, youcan head over to my website,
generatealifewelllivedcom andclick on the link.
(13:40):
Work with me and schedule yoursession.
I look forward to seeing you.
I would love it if you wouldleave a review for this podcast.
It helps the show grow and Ilove hearing from you.
And if this episode resonatedwith you and you have a business
bestie who is also avoiding hermoney, will you share this
episode with her?
My mission is to help morefemale entrepreneurs feel safe
(14:04):
and empowered with their money.
Okay, I'll see you in the nextepisode.
Your financial plan is meant to create more peace
and help give you direction andstructure, and if you've ever
felt stressed out more becauseof your plan than supported by
it, I want you to know that youare not alone.
You know, I see this often withwomen who are trying to and I'm
(00:23):
air quoting do the right thingfinancially, and then the plan
that they're following is eithertoo rigid, it's too vague, or
it's just too far in the future,so it just simply doesn't
reflect how they actually live,run their life and their
business.
And so in this episode, I'mgoing to help you take a step
back and really ask is yourfinancial plan truly supporting
(00:47):
you and your life and yourbusiness, or does this just
another source of pressure foryou?
Do you want to create a systemto stop avoiding your money?
Maybe you're feeling guilt andshame when it comes to your
finances.
Welcome to your Money yourRules.
Comes to your finances.
Welcome to your Money yourRules.
(01:07):
I'm Erin, a former certifiedfinancial planner and CFO, and
yet I used to avoid my money andhad fear, no matter how much we
had.
I can't wait to teach you how Iovercame my money avoidance and
started consistently managingmy finances in a really simple
way.
It's time to get comfortablewith money.
So let's break down what apeaceful what I believe a
peaceful financial plan reallylooks like, and then how to
(01:29):
adjust yours so it serves youbetter.
Before we dive into this week'sepisode, I know that maybe you
are tired of feeling stressedabout your money, about your
finances, and you're doneconstantly worrying about if
you're saving enough or you'reinvesting the right way.
You know, maybe your financialplanner might be suggesting you
(01:50):
know to do one thing and yourbody is saying or asking of you
another, and you don't actuallyknow what to do.
I think so often we hire peopleto help us and advise us, but
somewhere along the way weforget to ask ourselves does
that feel good for me?
And so if you are stuck in thatcycle of either not enough or
(02:15):
you want to feel more in controlof your money and you are
unsure because you're gettingadvice from several different
people, but then when you askyourself, it just feels a little
off right.
And so if you don't know whereto start, I want to help you
stop feeling overwhelmed andsecond guessing your financial
decisions.
(02:36):
You know, one of the biggestpassions of mine is to really
help women come back home tothemselves and to trust
themselves again, especiallywith money and the decisions
that they make.
So I am here to help you tocreate a financial plan that
feels simple, that feelsempowering and really freeing.
Together, we're going to createa customized plan that helps
(02:59):
you align your values with yourgoals and then build wealth and
the financial confidence thatyou deserve.
You don't need to figure thisout on your own, and you can
totally do that if you want to.
You don't need help fromanybody, and I will say it's a
lot more fun when you get to doit alongside someone who is
(03:20):
encouraging you, who is furtherempowering you, who is
encouraging you to make your owndecisions that feel good for
you and your body, versustelling you what to do.
So I would love to guide you inhelping you feel more empowered
, make decisions that are morecalm and peaceful, and that you
(03:41):
can use your money in a way thatlights your soul on fire and
creating the life that you want.
In order to book a session, allyou need to do is go to my
website,generatealifewelllivecom and
schedule your one hour call.
So let's talk about what I thinkplans.
(04:01):
I don't like using the wordshould be, but let's talk about
what they should be.
I think financial plans aresupposed to be clear and simple
and not complex, so if yourcurrent financial plan feels
overwhelming, you probably don'tneed more details and things
(04:21):
added to it.
You need more clarity.
So often I'll see a financialplan and I'll ask the client,
like does this even make senseto you?
Do you?
Have you looked at thisthoroughly?
And most financial plannersfrom what I have seen this is
what I used when I was afinancial planner use what's
called a Monte Carlo simulation,where it runs through all these
(04:45):
different scenarios, and it's atechnique where it's used to
understand the impact of riskand uncertainty, and they use
these simulations in likeinvesting and in business, and
it basically runs through allthese things and it gives you a
percentage of you reaching yourgoal.
What I don't think, though, thatthese plans take into account
(05:05):
is how you're going to change asa person over the next 40 to 50
years.
You know it doesn't take intoaccount your wealth,
consciousness and how you'regoing to grow, that it doesn't
take into account what isimportant to you now, what might
not be important to you 10 to15 years from now, and so what I
(05:27):
like to ask, or some questionsthat you might want to ask
yourself, are what are my?
I think I like to look at it aslike what is some of your short
term and then also, what are weplanning for the long term?
Looking at it both, both ways,right.
So what are my priorities thisquarter?
What is my minimum enoughnumber each month?
(05:47):
I think we need to start askingourselves some very simple
questions and real worldquestions in order to give
ourselves direction.
You know, a lot of these plansare looking as if we have a
certain amount of money thatwe're going to earn.
You know it literally takes inthe data that you give it right
(06:08):
now, today, which does notaccount for how much you're
going to, you know 2X, 5x, 10xyour business over the next
couple of years 10 years, 15years, whatever it might be.
It's not taking that intoaccount.
It's not taking into accountthat it literally thinks that,
okay, your retirement is goingto be some set you know number,
and then that's the total amountof money that you're ever going
(06:30):
to have for the rest of yourlife, which I don't think that
that really comes from a placeof sufficiency and abundance
Like I, I really think that oursoul came here to expand and to
grow and to think that we aren'tgoing to want to continue to
work after some point.
I don't know if that's actuallyrealistic and I don't like
(06:54):
using that word realistic but sooften like we're just getting
started, you know, and to thinkthat we're going to just wrap it
all up and call it done at acertain number.
I don't know if that, if thatactually feels true, I think
plans really need to be builtaround your values, not
(07:17):
necessarily somebody else'sformula.
You know, one of the biggestsources of stress that I see is
women trying to force themselvesand their finances into
somebody else's template.
You know, I know I've talkedabout on a previous podcast, you
know you can look at.
For some of you it may, it mayresonate of, you know, saving or
(07:39):
investing.
You know 20 to 30% living offof 50 to 80% depending.
You know, but that only worksif that fits in your reality and
with your values, you know.
So you always have to come backto are my financial decisions
(08:01):
reflecting my actual goals andwhat I want to create, not what
you think you should be doing?
I've said this before and Imight never wear Fendi or Prada,
right?
I will 100% drop that amount ofmoney on travel and airline
tickets, and so you have toreally get clear on what do you
(08:23):
enjoy, where do you want tospend your money?
Where do you want to um tideand circulate your money?
And it's going to lookdifferent for everyone else.
I mean, might have someone whoreally wants to live in a very
large house.
You might have someone who'slike you know what?
I'm totally fine with livingwhere I live.
(08:43):
I just want to travel moreoften.
There is no right or wrong here, and I think you really have to
get clear on what it is thatyou want and what do you want to
create so that you can startallocating your money in that
way.
Versus.
This is what someone says thatI should do, and so I'm just
following the formula.
(09:03):
You know, if you think about it, if, if your plan is all
situated or focused around themasculine right Of, of goals, of
reaching the next thing, right,where are you allowing yourself
to have celebration, breathingroom, receiving like that very
feminine energy, and when youstart to trust yourself, when
(09:28):
you start to feel supported byyourself and then supported with
your money, right, you're veryyou're.
You're more likely to stayconsistent with it versus coming
from the place of like this iswhat I should do, and so often.
You know, I had a client when,um, this is probably several
(09:49):
years ago we were talking aboutsome of the money that she had
received and I said, well, whatdo you actually want to do with
it?
And she said you know, I want toopen up a yoga place, a yoga
retreat place.
And I said, well, why aren't youdoing that?
And she said well, because myfinancial advisor thinks that.
I said.
I said this is the thing thatwe have to learn how to trust
ourselves as women.
(10:10):
I know that your financialadvisor might be suggesting to
put it in the market and youreally have to start getting
very clear.
Why are you suggesting that Iput it in the market?
Because obviously you know alot of times when our advisors
invest for us, they receive apercentage, which I am totally
for, because they are advisingus and everyone should be paid
(10:30):
for their contribution and theirvalue that they are providing
to us.
But if that isn't in alignmentwith your goals, why are they
suggesting that?
Suggesting that, so she endedup doing it no-transcript, doing
this that this would be part ofmy financial plan, but she's
(10:52):
thriving because it's comingfrom a heart and a soul centered
place, not from a place ofshould and have to.
So I really want you to thinkabout does your plan give you
that, that space for that joy?
For the rest, for thereceptivity that we need to have
?
Like, money is both masculineand feminine.
(11:12):
We like all the energy, right,we are masculine and feminine.
I'm talking about from anenergetic perspective, right,
and so really allowing you know,if we are just constantly
looking at what's the next goal,what's the next goal?
What's the next goal?
Like, receiving is an actualdoing activity, right, when we
receive, we have to be present.
(11:34):
And so, really focusing on,like, what does my plan include?
Does it allow for some of thatmore feminine energy?
And they need to be, you know,and I think also plans need to
be flexible and evolving.
Like I said at the verybeginning, you know who you are
today is might be vastlydifferent five years from now.
(11:55):
You know, if I remember havingfinancial plans years ago, my
life looks nothing like what Ithought it would five, 10 years
ago, because I'm not the sameperson anymore and you won't be
either, so allowing them to beflexible, to evolve as you
evolve.
You know your business is goingto change.
Your life changes, because youare changing as a person, right,
(12:17):
and so your plans can changetoo.
So when we look at, when we arecoming from the mindset that
our financial plan has to beexactly like this and it is so
rigid and it has all of theserules that we think you know,
think we have to follow, ratherthan this plan that grows with
(12:38):
us and molds with us as we moldas people.
You know you're allowed to pivot, you're allowed to refine,
you're allowed to say you knowwhat?
That was really important to mefive years ago, but that isn't
really something that is on myradar anymore, and so it's
allowing yourself to make thesechanges and to really start to
(12:59):
question what do you value andwhat do you love, and is this an
alignment with my soul and whatmy heart wants, or is this what
I think I should do?
So if you're feeling stressed,or if you're second guessing
where you are financially, oryour financial plan or your
(13:20):
planner, or you're unsure whereto start, I can help you.
We can create a simple,empowering financial system that
aligns with your goals and yourvalues and feels good in your
body.
In order to book a session, youcan head over to my website,
generatealifewelllivedcom andclick on the link.
(13:40):
Work with me and schedule yoursession.
I look forward to seeing you.
I would love it if you wouldleave a review for this podcast.
It helps the show grow and Ilove hearing from you.
And if this episode resonatedwith you and you have a business
bestie who is also avoiding hermoney, will you share this
episode with her?
My mission is to help morefemale entrepreneurs feel safe
(14:04):
and empowered with their money.
Okay, I'll see you in the nextepisode.
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