Money conversations that create transformation, with Debbie Todd

Money conversations that create transformation, with Debbie Todd

Her big leap from a big position to a bigger life’s purpose

 

Debbie had a prestigious and lucrative career. Until the 2008 global financial crisis awakened her to her heart’s calling to start living her true God-given gift--helping families to get in charge of their money. We chat about discovering your purpose and healing your relationship with money.

 

Finances should be a family affair. #inchargeshow @drvaleriebaker

 

Listening to your calling

What was your call to adventure?

You remember that little global financial meltdown that happened in 2008?

I was doing very well, had a lot of prestige.

But all around me, my friends, my family, my neighbors were just hurting.

They were losing their jobs.

Around their kitchen table there was so much stress.

In my heart, I would come home and I was aching.

I knew in my heart I needed to start my own CPA firm and spend my time focusing on helping families who couldn’t afford to pay me a lot of money.

Help teach them. Give them the tools they didn’t learn.

God gave me this gift, and I needed to use it to help families.

Not necessarily help the corporate world get richer.

 

Look at yourself in the mirror

It must have been hard to walk away from such a big job, from the prestige that came with it, the money?

It was really challenging.

It took me 18 months to make that decision.

Because it is a lot of pressure from our peer groups and from society to follow certain norms.

But I would come home at night and I would look at myself in the mirror and I’d go “This is not what you are supposed to be doing, and you know it."

We can’t lie to ourselves.

 

Having faith

What gave you the courage to finally honor what you knew?

This is going to be a real vulnerable walk for me.

What really drove me was my faith.

I knew in my heart, being a Christian, how important it was to fulfilling my purpose.

I knew years ago that God had blessed me with this talent of helping people with their money situation and getting folks out of crisis.

I knew it wasn’t meant to just better the corporate world.

How could I be going to my job, sitting in this fancy office, moving millions of dollars around, and then come home and know that my neighbor is still out of work and didn’t have a clue how to help themselves out of it.

 

Lifelong mentors

My single biggest mentor was my grandpa Fred, who is a retired bank president.

Years ago he saw in me an ability that I didn’t even see in myself.

He encouraged me and prodded me. He said, “Debbie you can do this."

He is passed.

I still think about him to this day.

I look up to heaven and I say “Grandpa Fred thank you for all you did for me, and for giving me not only the encouragement to take the steps I needed to take, for believing in me and for what my purpose in life was."

It was really hard for me to realize that I need to step back and follow what was in my heart.

That’s when I started to truly live.

 

Money versus the heart?

Whether you believe in higher power, the universe, the cosmos, or in my case Jesus Christ, every single one of us has a purpose of why we are here.

By relaxing, wrapping our arms around who we are and what we can do, and that gift that we have to share, that is when life opens up.

The money doesn’t matter.

It’s the heart.

Money, habits, how you feel about money, how money impacts your life, is probably one of the most emotional heart-centered things of your life.

It’s not just about the dollars, it’s about how you feel and your fears.

 

Aligning yourself with your heart

We can lie to others and rationalize to ourselves.

But in our heart we know what we are supposed to be doing.

Have a conversation with that person looking back at you in the mirror.

That’s my heart check.

If I can look at myself and go “Yeah, we’re on the right path.”

Has the path been all roses and sunshine and puppies – no!

But I wouldn’t trade what I am doing now for all the prestige that I had before.

Because it’s not about me.

 

Inner challenges in the corporate world

You mentioned that you were working in this male dominated world. As a woman, what inner challenges did you experience in yourself?

As a woman, I always felt that I had to do it better, faster, cleaner.

And still be feminine and smile.

I worked with bond lawyers and financial advisors all across the country.

Even though I knew they respected me, when I would walk in I would get that “oh there’s that little woman” scenario.

It was that sense that I have dared to enter into the ‘man cave’.

The men would be in there talking, and I would walk in and they would suddenly stop.

I would always sense that pressure to be as good or better than them.

Because I had to compensate for the fact that I was a woman.

 

Walking the path less travelled

I was born into a military family.

I was the oldest of four children.

We moved a lot.

And we didn’t have a lot of money.

I always felt like I needed to perform.

I should be doing more.

I was the first one in my immediate family to go to college.

I knew that I needed to go to college and change my path.

That was challenging for my siblings because they never went.

I was challenged to fit in with my family.

Because I had travelled a path that they weren’t walking.

 

From stress to purpose

I was able to jump into the “Stress Junkie” mode.

I started out in the CPA firm and believe me you work a lot of hours.

I was a mom. We have five daughters.

There was a huge amount of stress in balancing my professional career, my heart center to help people with finances, and balancing my family life.

I had to come back and realize that all of that isn’t important.

Some of the corporate stuff isn’t important.

It’s about relationships. It’s about following my purpose.

 

Our favorite tips from Debbie

Follow you heart

Have a conversation with yourself in the mirror to find your true purpose

Trust your inner knowing and be honest with yourself

Understand your money issues may come from your life experiences

Travel the path less travelled

 

“Instead of using our experiences as something to say, well I can’t do that because this is my experience, you look at that and say, what did that experience teach me, what tool did that experience give me that I can use now?” #inchargeshow @drvaleriebaker

 

Resources and Links:

Visit her website: www.1hourimpact.com for tip and tools, or to contact her about the virtual classrooms Coming soon: A fun way for kids and parents to learn, laugh, and take charge of their money

 

Did you enjoy the show? Let us know your biggest takeaways in the comments.

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Follow the links to take the quizzes we discussed on the show:

www.yourtrueselfie.com

www.inchargequiz.com

In the free report at the end of each quiz, you’ll get an invitation to join our Facebook community. I hope you accept it.

I look forward to connecting with you soon!

Until then,

Stay in your heart.

xx

Valerie

 

In this episode we chat about: money, finances, finding your purpose, living your destiny, finding your gift, living from your heart, money and emotions, healing money issues, empowering, taking charge of your finances, family conditioning, social conditioning, women in finance, CPA