Women & Money: The Shit We Don't Talk About!
Women & Money: The Shit We Don't Talk About!
Divorced, Broke, AND a $2 Million Tax Bill with Barbara Huson
What if you found yourself divorced with three little girls, your gambler husband disappeared overseas, and a $2 million tax bill landed in your mailbox? Oh—and you knew nothing about managing money?
In this episode of Women and Money: The Shit We Don’t Talk About, we welcome Barbara Huson, a renowned financial expert, author, and advocate for women’s financial empowerment. With decades of experience and seven impactful books under her belt, Barbara shares her personal journey from financial dependence to freedom and offers actionable steps to help women take control of their financial lives.
Barbara talks about the critical difference between money and power, highlighting that true power comes from understanding money. She outlines a simple but transformative three-step process: read about money every day, talk about money every week, and save money automatically every month.
This episode is for any woman ready to stop feeling powerless and start making bold moves toward financial independence!
Episode Highlights and Timestamps
00:21 Barbara Huson's Journey Begins
01:05 The Turning Point: Taking Control
02:23 The Importance of Financial Conversations
03:12 Introducing Barbara Houston
04:09 Barbara's Personal Story
05:29 Facing Financial Realities
06:41 The Path to Financial Wisdom
09:24 The Four Pillars of Financial Success
14:31 Overcoming Fear and Embracing Change
17:32 The Fear of Women's Power
17:57 Redefining Power and Money
19:35 Steps to Financial Empowerment
21:13 The Importance of Financial Conversations
23:03 The Great Wealth Transfer
26:05 Addressing Emotional and Behavioral Barriers
30:16 Barbara's Journey and Books
If you’ve ever wanted to be financially fearless, this conversation will inspire you to take that first step. Tune in, learn from Barbara’s story, and walk away with practical tips to create your own financial freedom.
Got a unique financial story to share? Whether it’s about crushing debt, building wealth, an unexpected windfall, or just a wild money moment, we want to hear it! Or are you a professional who helps women with money? If you’re a financial coach, attorney, CPA, or work in any area that empowers women financially, we’d love to hear from you too! Your story could inspire our community of women. Fill out our intake form here!
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Barb: [00:00:00] Maggie, what if you found yourself divorced with three little girls, your husband left the country, and a two million dollar tax bill showed up in your mailbox, and you knew nothing about money?
Maggie: I'd be shitting my pants. I'd be so overwhelmed I hope I never get there.
Barb: What a story, right? Oh my goodness. Barbara Huson who was on our podcast, who said she grew up talk about money mindset, her father told her one thing about money, don't worry about it. So she didn't.
Maggie: Which makes so much sense, you know? And I know so many people who would say like, I should've, I shouldn't have listened, blah blah blah. But it's like, yeah, if your dad's telling you don't worry,
okay, I don't worry.
Barb: She said she came from a wealthy family, so money wasn't an issue. She married somebody who was very smart attorney, a stockbroker, blah, blah, blah. But, he had a little habit that got them into a lot of trouble. Just the fact that she found herself almost out on the [00:01:00] streets.
Right? People don't get serious about something until they're up against a wall. And what did she say? She looked at her three little girls and thought, I need to figure this out. Right? And what did she say? No one's coming to save her in that situation.
Maggie: No one's coming and I think, I'd love to have these stories of some of these that almost seem so extreme, but it just shows that no matter what, there's a way to come back to bounce back. Women are so resilient.
Barb: It's crazy.
Maggie: We honestly shouldn't be that resilient sometimes. it's amazing the things we have bounced back from come back from.
Makes you really feel like you could do anything no matter how in the depths you may feel.
Barb: Because we've had all these amazing stories. She had money blocks. She didn't even want to learn. She didn't think she could learn. And truthfully, she said it was messy.
Wasn't an easy road, think about that up, down, up, down, up, down in terms of how am I going to get through the day?
Right? And so it wasn't like, oh, I just did wave my [00:02:00] magic wand and someone gave me the money and I was able to move forward. No, She went through the trenches and wow, came out the other side as an expert in finance, a coach, an author. She shared so many nuggets of wisdom just on our podcast that I was taking notes because she kept it simple yet consistent in the work that she did to get through it.
Maggie: and I just think this highlights, underlines, bolds, you know, why we need to be part of that financial conversation. No matter what your scenario is, you have to be part of that conversation. Even if you don't want to be, you know, figure out why you don't want to be. Go to some therapy and understand those limiting beliefs or why those patterns are there . Because it's not about being a mathematician or loving numbers, you know, it's a mindset thing, and it just shows how much you need to be part of these financial conversations because you just never know what might be coming in the mailbox.
Barb: for sure. When she said, you said, Maggie, money is power and [00:03:00] she said, money's not power. Understanding your money is power.
Maggie: Yeah, so true. So let's let everyone else give a taste of what Barbara has to offer. And get your notepad.You're gonna need it.
Barb: Let's get started.
Gloria Steinem once said, we will never solve the feminization of power until we solve the masculinity of wealth. Barbara Provost and Maggie Nielsen are the team at purse strings that will help you navigate the ins and outs of financial independence so that you can be financially fearless. This is women in money, the shit we don't talk about.
Barb: We're so excited today to have Barbara Houston on our podcast. She empowers women through the outer, inner higher and deeper work of wealth. That's just [00:04:00] fantastic. We have so much to go into and ask her about, but Barbara could please just jump in, introduce yourself to our audience and share your story.
Barbara: So I am a financial therapist and wealth coach, if anyone had told me this is what I'd be doing, Maggie, when I was
Yeah.
Have told them they were nuts I didn't understand money. I grew up in a very wealthy family and I didn't understand money. I just wanted to spend it. And the only advice my father ever gave me about money was don't worry. Because under that was the unspoken assumption there'll always be a man to take care of you. And I thought that was great advice. I loved
And indeed, there was a man. And he was a lawyer. Then he went to work for H& R Block, who was my father. And then he became a stockbroker. So he was perfect, right? I found out very early in our marriage. that he [00:05:00] was a compulsive gambler. And throughout the course of our 15 years I find out every year that he was gambling my money, my inheritance away. And I was so terrified by and intimidated by anything financial. I just let him, I let him manage the money. He paid all the bills.
He did all the investings. I just signed whatever he told me to sign. And Then, after 15 years, finally got a divorce. And I decided money's not my thing. I do not want to deal with money. I have this theory if you don't deal with your money, your money will deal with you.
Year, I got tax bills almost 2 million. We're back taxes. My ex didn't pay for illegal deals. He got us in and my signature was on everything because you know, I just signed everything
Barb: Oh my gosh.
Barbara: I did not have anywhere near a million dollars. Nowhere near my exit left the country. They couldn't touch [00:06:00] him and my father wouldn't lend me the money I and that's when I knew I had to get smart. I didn't know what I was going to do, but I had three daughters.
Barb: Oh my gosh.
Barbara: baby. I was not going to raise those girls on the street. So I did everything they tell you to do. I read the books, I went to classes, and my eyes would glaze over and my brain would fog up. didn't know what I was going to do.
But I had those three daughters and I was not going to raise them on the street. And I swear to God, I believe when you are committed, you know, again. No, no back doors. When you're totally committed, the universe revolves to help you reach your goal. And
At the time journalist writing for the San Francisco Business Times. And I was hired as a I was hired as a, for a freelance project to interview women who were smart with money.
Those interviews changed my life. I not only [00:07:00] got smart about money, I wrote my first book Prince Charming Isn't Coming, How Women Get Smart About Money. now, books later,
Barb: Wow.
Barbara: as a financial expert.
Barb: That's amazing. Wait, let's unpack some of that story. So, did you know every single year that he was gambling and you just looked the other way?
Barbara: Many, many times. No, I didn't just look the other way. I saw it. I would confront him and he would speak in gibberish. I don't know. He would just talk in circles.
And I felt stupid. I felt incapable. And my parents, because they didn't teach me about money, sent that message that I'm incapable.
I really just felt trapped. I felt helpless. I felt powerless.
Barb: And he left the country and there you were with these three little ones. Wow. So, Isn't it kismet that you were interviewing women who were smart about money? I mean, if the universe [00:08:00] isn't telling you something, that's amazing.
Barbara: Well, I really believe when you're ready,
Maggie: Yup.
Barbara: peers, and I really do believe that commitment is the key, like a deep commitment, like no matter what happens, damn it, and I couldn't have done it. Like I had a teacher one time, a spiritual teacher, he said, if you can't do it for you, it for someone you love more than you.
And so I was terrified and my eyes would fog up, but all I had to do was look at my kids and I did not want to raise them to be like me,
powerless.
Barb: So, how do you go about managing a 2 million tax bill?
Barbara: Well, I got pitbull lawyers,
Barb: Okay.
Barbara: They got it down to a manageable sum that if I sold everything in my trust. I had to sell everything. I, there were three properties I couldn't get to. So I sold everything. They could pay off the tax bills. But I knew if I [00:09:00] didn't get smart, I'd get more tax bills. Something would happen.
Barb: Yeah.
Barbara: that level of commitment and looking at my daughters drove me. And I had some money coming in from those those properties. I knew if I really saved, if I really watched my spending, I could do it. And I did. And it was really tough.
But I did it.
But I still had problems.
And that's why I say getting smart about money, that financial success is a four pronged process.
There's the practical.
And I couldn't get it. My brain could not comprehend it. I felt so incapable and I believed, as my father told me, man, making and managing money is a man's job.
And I believed it. And our beliefs is what determines what we do. So I just was committed and I kept going to those classes. But what I did is I at the inner work of wealth. Going to [00:10:00] therapy.
Barb: Mm hmm.
Barbara: looking, and I remember in my first session at the therapist, I went in, and I, I said, I really want to get smart.
I really want to get smart about money. You've got to help me. I really want to get smart. And then what he did, is he moved his chair, and he said, now, pretend I'm no longer your therapist. But I'm a voice in your head. So talk to me like I'm a voice in your head. So I looked at him and I said, Okay, Daniel.
Okay, I didn't say Daniel. I said, Okay, I really, really want to get smart. I really do. And he looked me in the eye as a voice in my head and said, No, you don't. And it was like, I couldn't argue. It was like someone took the air out of my balloon. I, I, I couldn't argue. the moment I realized, Oh my God. I was terrified if I started taking charge of money, I'd lose everything. I'd better let my husband do that. I was terrified
of what my parents would think And I was really scared that a man wouldn't love me if I was financially [00:11:00] successful. Now, I didn't know all this.
That's why our unconscious beliefs.
It's so important. It's not enough to do the practical. If you get stuck, it's important to look at what your attitudes, beliefs and and decisions you made about yourself and money in the world. And then there's that other, which is what I call the higher work of wealth. And that's what really, after I got, you know, looked at the, the psychology, my emotional blocks,
I believe the higher work of wealth because I believe women, once we are financially stable, once we have food on the table, a roof over our heads, some disposable income to get our mani pedis or whatever we want, no longer motivated by money.
Yeah, we want to make money. But what motivates us is helping others.
And so what happened for me is I began to start understanding money. I realized what I want to do with this is use what happened to help others.
And so that's [00:12:00] what also motivated me to keep learning and going through that hard, hard stuff and all the challenges and the obstacles. And then I'll just, the fourth one, which was pretty new for me, was what I call the deeper work of wealth. And that's the mind body, the mind, the mind brain connection. And that's when I started using, I wrote a book, my last book was called Rewire for Wealth, where I brought in neuroscience and
How to train our mind to rewire our brain is what makes it so much easier for us to change our behaviors.
Barb: That's so interesting.
What's the fourth pillar?
Barbara: That's it. It's the outer work of wealth, the inner work of wealth, the psychological, the deeper work of wealth, the spiritual, and the deeper work of wealth, which is the mind brain connection.
Barb: it. Wow, you went deep on that from somebody who didn't know anything to that. That's amazing. [00:13:00] So,
Barbara: pretty amazing.
Barb: yeah, I mean, so tell us your journey. So you hired some attorneys that helped you with this tax bill. you made some financial changes, you kept your eye on the ball,
Barbara: No, it was messy, much
Barb: was messy. Okay, tell us the messy part.
Barbara: And it is for most women
Barb: Yeah.
Barbara: to get over this hump of fear. So while I was doing this, I was going to all these classes, these transformational classes. And so I was priming my mind to change. And I also found a book called A Course in Miracles. Which is a
Mm
And I started applying spirituality.
Maggie: hm.
Barbara: really working with my higher power. With God, Goddess, all that is. Whatever you want to call it. And so, I brought in all those tools. And as I did that, I don't know. It's just like the blocks and barriers started melting. But it was messy. It was messy and it was tough [00:14:00] for a while. And then. It became incredible.
Maggie: So it seems like your mindset played so much in overcoming this kind of daunting situation.
Barbara: Daunting! That's a really good word, Maggie. That was
Maggie: Yeah.
Barbara: situation. I haven't used that word to describe it. But yeah, mindset's everything. Mindset is everything. It was completely mindset. But it didn't come right away. I had to really work on myself and do the deeper inner work.
Maggie: And I appreciate that you share that it was messy as like, it always seems when you read a book or listen to these, some of these podcasts, you know, I did do a couple of things and bada bing, bada boom, I was there, you know, and, and it wasn't, it's not that way, you know, and. Hindsight's always 20 20, but I know when you're in it and you're deep in the trenches, it's, it's not comfortable but you know, you do have to put in the work.
Barbara: That's the key. The key to financial success is the willingness to go where you [00:15:00] fear. you ask me one thing, I would say, what is it, you know, I have my three daughters, now they're all grown, they're in their 30s, 40s, 50s. But they always call me. They always call me when they feel stuck or challenged or confused and they say, what should I do? Now they know the question I'm going to ask them and I always ask them the same thing and they don't like it But they still keep calling and I always say well, what are you most scared to do? And they tell me that that's where you need to go because success in anything. I don't care if it's weight or making money.
It always lies just outside your comfort zone So fear is the signal fear signals the path you need to follow
Maggie: think it's so true though, anything I feel like I've overcome, I'm just like, yeah, you had to, we had to step out on that skinny limb, you know, and, and really be out there. And,
Barbara: And people think if they're scared, that means they're not supposed to go there. Well,
Maggie: which [00:16:00] is. You've gotta learn the different voices inside you and learn how to trust yourself. 'cause there are some of your gut saying, no, no, no, that's not it. And then there's other ones that are like, we know we need to do this. You know? And you have to know what voice to listen to.
Barbara: and the way you know what voice to listen to, and this may sound simplistic, it's not if you try it, is how you feel. If it, if you feel scared and tight and frustrated, that's your ego talking. That's, that's the part that wants to keep you safe, and it's never safe. To you outside your comfort zone, you just feel like a calmness or yeah, I think maybe that's right Or if you just feel good the sign.
That's where you need to go
Barb: It's interesting. So much of what we're talking about is your inner self. Nothing about money in the bank.
Barbara: I'm gonna tell you something When I wrote my first book Prince Charming isn't coming. I interviewed I don't know over a hundred women [00:17:00] who were smart with money and I noticed something very It became very obvious after a while. And I remember interviewing a psychologist who specialized in money. Her name was Olivia Mellon. She recently died. I said, I think, I think I noticed something. I think I noticed that women who are I have trouble with money or afraid of their power and once they own their power, get comfortable with it, they get over it. I said, why? I said to her, why are women so afraid of their power? And she said to me something that gave me chills. She said, because powerful women have been burned at the stake. And I think that we have for centuries suffered horrible consequences. For demonstrating our power
Barb: even today.
Barbara: Oh, for sure.
For sure. So here's the thing, women have difficulty [00:18:00] with their power with, with their money because it's our fear of, or ambivalence of power that keeps us stuck. So when you stop focusing on the money. And you start looking at your power and my definition of a powerful woman is someone who knows who she is, who knows what she wants, and expresses that in the world And so in other words, That means saying no to what we don't want. It's speaking up and telling our truth.
But instead, we water ourselves down so we don't Make waves because that thing, we think that's how we keep ourselves safe.
So , this is about power. And
World needs powerful women more than ever. And that's why I do this. It's not for me about money. about empowerment.
Barb: You're so spot on. I have chills.
Maggie: yeah, I couldn't agree anymore. And you know, we always say money is power, and that is your power. No,
Barbara: money is not power. [00:19:00] Look at my marriage when I was married to my first husband. He had the power. I had the money. He didn't
have any money I had the money, but I gave him the power by letting him make all the decisions. Money is not power, understanding money is power.
Maggie: That's a good, that's a good catch. Yeah. And so, you know, you shared that you grew up, you know, relying on your father and later your husband to handle the finances. And so what advice would you give to other women who might still be dependent on others for their financial decisions? And how can they kind of start that journey into financial empowerment themselves?
Barbara: A couple things. learn, start educating yourself, and two, get support. So, let me tell you an easy way to yourself. And this is what I did. Because, someone told me to to get the Wall Street Journal. Oh, when I interviewed these smart women, all these smart women for my first book, they all, most of them subscribed to the Wall Street Journal. I, I, so I subscribed to the Wall [00:20:00] Street Journal. That sucker comes every day. I couldn't even understand a word it said, but I did something really smart. I took the finance section at the time, it was section C, and I put it on the kitchen counter. And every day I'd walk by it. I figured by osmosis. Well, I'll tell you, that is, so let me give you three. steps to get smart or smarter about money because it never ends. I still do these three steps and it's like this I call it this the the learning by osmosis but every day the first step every day read something about money even for just a minute or two because so much of getting smart or smarter money is familiarizing yourself with the jargon and the
Barb: Mm hmm.
Barbara: you know, even if it's just opening the business section of the newspaper and perusing the, the headlines or just taking a book at the end of the day and reading one [00:21:00] paragraph. Or when you're standing in line at the supermarket, you take a money magazine instead of people and you leaf through it. So every day, read something about money, even just for a minute or two. Every week. Talk about money with someone, preferably who knows more than you. Because I believe we women, it's our secrecy and silence
Barb: Mm hmm,
Barbara: we don't talk. So I just, anybody I found that knew anything about money, I'd say, Ooh, can I pick your brain?
Barb: mm hmm, mm
Barbara: don't need to ask them how much they make or anything like
you ask them questions like, how did you get smart? was this? What was the biggest mistake you made? What was the smartest thing you did?
What's the best advice you gave? What did you read? What did you do? So you ask them questions like that. And people, what I found, people really love to talk and
Barb: hmm, mm hmm,
Barbara: read a minute or two. Every week, have a conversation about money. then [00:22:00] every month, save automatically, automatically have money transferred from your account.
from your paycheck or your checking account to a savings account.
Barb: mm hmm.
Barbara: miss what you don't see. You know, it's the
Maggie: Right.
Right.
Barbara: saving. every day read, every week talk, and every month save. And you do this for three months and you will be amazed at the difference.
Barb: I'm writing that down.
Maggie: Yeah, those are some great tips. Super actionable. And so are you subscribed to the Wall Street Journal right now?
Barbara: Of course! I love
Barb: ha.
Barbara: love
Maggie: Now you're one of those women that you've talked to, you know, and so it's interesting to always see it come full circle. And I'm sure you pick up so much more now that you know the jargon, the lingo, the, you know, all this stuff you know, as you read it.
Barbara: Right. Do you read the Real Estate Journal, Maggie?
Maggie: I do read it some. I should read it more. I definitely don't read it every day.
Barbara: You don't have to read it every day. You're just even leafing through it.
Maggie: Yeah, I'll definitely leaf through and, you know, see, see the headlines, see what [00:23:00] I need to know about, for sure.
Barbara: You, you got this. You know this.
Barb: Well, and we're at a place, you know, today where women are coming into the largest transference of wealth in history. To the tune of almost 30 trillion. And we want women to be ahead of the game and know what to do with that big wealth transfer, not give it away, really leverage their monies in a way that make builds them a creative, a beautiful financial life.
And really learn about money, as you're saying, getting in front of it and really learning about money. What advice, what would you suggest women do? I know you just gave us three excellent tips. But with this great wealth transfer, what are some of your thoughts?
Barbara: So, it's not just a great wealth transfer. There's always been, when I was in my 20s, there was a great wealth transfer. There's always a great wealth transfer. So, this is really good and I love it. But I also want to encourage women to know they can earn it.
Can earn their wealth. So, whether it's transferred to them or whether they earn it, [00:24:00] key is other thing I said is, you educate yourself, but you also get support.
Mm hmm.
I created a community, a safe community where women, of like minded women, where we can talk about money as women.
Mm hmm.
about money as you know more than anyone, we talk about money very differently
Maggie: Yeah,
Barbara: And I used to teach, when I first got into this 40 years ago, I would teach co ed groups. No, I stopped that right away. Because women, when men would take over
Yep.
would stop talking and
I
intimidated. So, start finding a buddy or someone to do this with. start reading, to start classes, to start joining communities. where women talk about money. And in fact, Emory University did a study that they found that women learn best in groups with other women that parts of their brain [00:25:00] light up when they're talking about money with women and they don't have that when men are involved.
Barb: Mm
It
sounds reasonable to me. As you said, you know, women, they feel intimidated just having the conversation and then with there's men involved, the men, you know, start mansplaining and it's this conversation kind of goes south.
Barbara: And also for us, I remember, after my first book came out, Somebody from Harris Polling. I think it's called Harris Polling. Anyway, he was a pollster and they were doing this big study for a brokerage firm on women and money he, so we were having these conversations and he, he called me one time. He had just gone from a folk come from a focus group of women.
They talked about money and I said, well, how was it? And he said something that I had to laugh because this was new to him. He said, Oh my God. Okay. It's a really emotional subject for women.
Barb: Ha ha ha. You think?
Maggie: Welcome to the party!
Barbara: [00:26:00] look at the, look at the financial industry. They do not acknowledge that at all. I think the two biggest things women from really getting money, really getting it easily is one unhealed emotions like anger two is unhealed trauma.
So it's really important if you're like, I had a lot of unhealed trauma and it wasn't until I could address that as well as my other issues that I could really break that breakthrough.
Barb: Interesting. Well, and we always say, you know, the financial industry is a model that was built. Buy men for men to sell to men and it really hasn't changed. I mean today there's only about 17 to 19 percent of financial advisors are women And even if women get into the industry It's very difficult sometimes for them to stay in the industry because the model does not accommodate What women want and [00:27:00] need in a career?
Barbara: I know that's why I love that you have lists of female -oriented
financial professionals. Because it's very easy to get intimidated by someone who's always looking at your husband instead of you
Maggie: many of these experts understand, you know, that it is emotional, that it is so much behavioral finance. It's not just, you know, You know your returns and those numbers, but is everyone safe if is everyone protected will everyone be okay? If I'm not here, which are more of the questions on the mind of a woman, you know Making sure I don't care what the number is.
Are we protected? You know, that could be 14. It could be 82 I don't know what it is is are we protected? Are we safe? Are we gonna be okay?
Barbara: Yeah, and is it safe for me emotionally?
Safe because that primitive brain of ours are still afraid we will be punished.
Barb: Yeah. And that's what we're about at Purse Strings, a community where women can come together, have these conversations, learn from amazing women like you, Barbara, and your story. And so many women, you know, they [00:28:00] feel they're stuck. And we know the foundation of getting unstuck is learning about and understanding money and knowing how to leverage it and how to save it and how to take care of yourself by
really managing. I love that nuance that you put it there. It's not about having money. It's about really understanding money. It's beautiful.
Maggie: And so there is one question we do like to wrap up with and ask all of our guests, and that is what does financial freedom look like to you?
Barbara: Ah, it looks like freedom. It looks like choices. It looks like I can walk in a store. I can buy what I want and I don't have to check my checkbook first.
It also means generosity
because we women, most of us are giving by nature, but to give without spending less, saving more and investing wisely is always an act of self sabotage. Not only do you jeopardize your future security, but you diminish the impact you can make with your money.
Maggie: Think that's such a great nuance to put in there, is it's all [00:29:00] about, you know, filling your cup first before you can help fill everyone else's. And so we have to, you know, make sure that we're okay before we keep giving back instead of just giving to everyone else before we fill our own cup.
Yeah.
Barbara: true.
Yeah.
I have half my clients go into Codependency. Look at their Codependency and go to Coda meetings. Codependency Anonymous. Yes.
I went to codependency
Anonymous for years.
Barb: I didn't know it was a thing.
Maggie: yeah.
Barbara: Coda? Yeah. You have never heard of Codependency?
Barb: Well, yes, but in what realm? Tell us.
Barbara: So co dependence, I, I actually went to a treatment program
for co dependence. Co dependence is when you put everybody else's needs before your own. And
Okay.
friends or family, but perfect strangers.
Maggie: Yeah.
Barb: Okay.
Barbara: so what happens is you come last.
You ask us to put ourselves first and we get [00:30:00] terrified.
It's like terrified. it's not in our DNA to do that. So much of financial success and learning about money is really a healing journey.
Emotional blocks and those barriers and that codependency.
Barb: Mm hmm. So interesting. Barbara, tell us about the books that you have.
Barbara: well, my first book is out of print, so I have seven books.
Barb: Wow.
Barbara: First is The Prince Charming Isn't Coming. I knew, that's helped me learn how to manage money and invest. That was great. But I didn't, I was a chronic under earner all life
This was by the time I was in my fifties. And I wanted to overcome under earning. So, I interviewed women who made six and seven figures, and then my next book was Six Secrets of Six Figure Women. .
I started making six figures before I even finished writing that book. It was,
phenominal.
I never write about what I know. I only write about what I want to learn.
Barb: That's brilliant.
Barbara: teaching classes called [00:31:00] Overcoming Underearning to see if I could teach others what I had learned from these women. And that was my third book, Overcoming Underearning. Then I self published a couple books. I published, one was called Breaking Through Getting Past the Stuck Points and another was Finding a Financial Advisor You Can Trust. Then I wrote a book called Sacred Success. I wanted to really talk about how spirituality really helped me. So it's Sacred Success, A Course in Financial Miracles. And then my last one, when I really saw the power of neuroscience and the importance of our brain, I wrote Rewire for Wealth.
Maggie: Wow.
Barb: That's one I'm going to get. That's cool.
Barbara: I have to say it's, it's good. It was a bitch to write, but it's a good book.
Barb: It was worth it.
Maggie: It's worth it. And it's something that we need to keep talking about, make a little bit more mainstream. You know, it's not just these numbers and spreadsheets, but it's a behavioral finance and down to this neuroscience of it too. It all really affects which I also, you know, things. That's why we [00:32:00] don't need to be so hard on ourself.
There's a lot of work to be done and there's a lot to dive into and there's a lot to learn. So just a little bit every day, one step at a time and we'll get there.
Barbara: Beautifully put, Maggie.
Maggie: Thank you. Thank you. Well, Barbara, this has been so much fun having you on today and having you share your expertise. You know, the links to all your books and all your social media, of course, will be in the show notes so people can get your resources and reach out to you. But I appreciate you coming on and sharing your expertise and taking the time today
to be on the women and money, the shit we don't talk about podcast.
Barbara: The shit we don't talk about. It's a great tagline.
Barb: Thank you, Barbara. Thank you for sharing your amazing story. , it's going to make a lot of ripples and a lot of interesting, thought provoking ideas for women who don't think they can do it, but know that they can.
Maggie: All right. Well, until next time, be financially fearless and we'll talk to everyone again soon.
Barb: You've been listening to Women and Money, the shit we don't talk about. Now it's time to take what you've learned and make [00:33:00] bold moves towards financial independence. Stay in the know by joining our newsletter for exclusive tools, resources, and updates that keep you financially fearless. Head to thepursetrings.
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