Building Financial Confidence with Kalee Boisvert

Transcript:

Sofie: Hello everyone and welcome back to Claim Your Potential, the empowerment podcast. I’m your host, Sofie, and today we are joined by Kalee Boisvert as our guest to talk about how to better our relationship with finances. Kalee’s journey began at a young age, fueled by a desire to understand and improve the financial challenges she witnessed within her own single parent household. Her passion for financial empowerment led her to become a dynamic financial advisor and advocate for helping women take control of their financial destinies. In her upcoming book, Make Money Your Thing, Kalee shares valuable insights, strategies, and a roadmap for women to shift from feeling disempowered to feeling in control and confident about their financial decisions. Please welcome, Kalee Boisvert. Thank you so much for being with us today, Kalee.

Kalee Boisvert: Thank you so much for having me, I’m excited.

Sofie: I’m excited to have you on and I’d love to start our episode with hearing a little bit about your journey and what inspired you to focus on helping women change their relationship with finances?

Kalee Boisvert: Yeah, that’s a great question. So for me, it started quite early on. So I was raised by a single mom and we didn’t have a lot of money growing up so how money kept showing up in my childhood was, you know, lack of money or like a scarcity. And I realized though at the time that it didn’t seem to be that everyone had that same situation. Like I looked around at my friends and things like that and they were getting, you know, all the toys that I had asked for and wanted and so it got me thinking and I realized like okay if not everyone is kind of plagued by this same money scarcity, then maybe there’s more to this. And so, I had this like fascination with money that started about like, you know, if I learned more about it, maybe if I can figure it out, I can change the situation. I can make things differently. So that’s how it all kind of started or where the seed was planted for me and then I just continued on like, I kept feeling that pull. So my education took me through, you know, doing my business background, focusing on finance; I landed in a career in the finance industry. And I, you know, that’s where that desire came back. I had my daughter and I went on mat leave and that was really when the sort of thought process started. You know? I had my daughter; I’m going to be going back to work and it just really has to be something that I’m passionate about that matters to me. And so I was working in the finance industry supporting people with their finances but what was always so important was wanting to help women specifically. So when I came back from mat leave, I really leaned into that more fully of just wanting to fully support women with their finances, create like a safe comfortable place for women to talk about money. And so I started doing just women only events on different money topics and investing topics and I would do them on a monthly basis and more and more women would show up and then Covid hit and, um, you know, I wasn’t able to do that in-person experience anymore but I took it online and from that is when I realized like I wanted to write this book, Make Money Your Thing, because from like the experience I’d had up at to that point and just wanting to share with a larger audience what I was doing because again there was getting so much – I was getting so much positive feedback and realizing that like women are really interested. Women want to be part of these conversations, women want to learn more, and so that’s why I created this book just to reach a larger audience. And for women to just yeah – I get that element of feeling, ah, just it’s just a little confidence boost I think they need like that’s what I tell people. There’s not a difference between men and women with money, it’s just that women almost don’t believe in themselves and that’s what needs some working on and so the book I strive to give women a little bit of a confidence boost and then hopefully they’re willing to take the actions, do the things and just feel a little bit better about their finances.

Sofie: Yeah, and you mentioned your Make Money Your Thing book and I’m curious, could you give us a glimpse into some of the key insights and strategies that Make Money Your Thing offers to guide women in their journey toward financial empowerment?

Kalee Boisvert: Absolutely, like I think the book, I wrote it for women of all ages and all different backgrounds because I didn’t want to feel like I was leaving any, you know, anyone out and it’s but it’s really women focused. Like the stories I share are about women. Um, I’m a single mom myself so this is very important for me, for women to feel that financial independence element, feel okay, feel in control. So the book takes the reader essentially like on what I see as like a journey to building confidence so you might start out feeling like, money isn’t my thing. So those statements that I hear women making all the time, money isn’t my thing, I’m not good with numbers, I’m not good with math, they’re almost writing themselves off before they even give themselves a chance. So you know you start there and then I take the reader to do some of that inner work to hopefully change some of that inner dialogue and have a little bit more of a positive money belief going into it because if you don’t do kind of that inner work, you’re never going to want to finish the book or take the steps to build the confidence. So it starts there and then from there again, it’s just building confidence. So it’s taking women through like knowing your numbers, talking a little bit about investing, talking about spending more time on your money, feeling in control – some of the steps that women can actually take and then by the end of it just having this more, this unshakable confidence where you feel equipped for anything that comes your way that you’re now more ready to handle it because of some of the tips in the book. So that’s kind of the journey that I take the reader on. By the end of it, I really want them to be saying like, “money is my thing. I’ve got this.” Like just feeling, you know, a little bit better even is going to be like a massive difference because when you’re feeling like that you do tend to want to take the steps, take the action, this inspired action and that’s the best thing you can be doing for your money. So that’s kind of the journey the reader goes through and again, yeah, I really hope by the end of it, they’re inspired to do something. They’re like I’m ready, I’m going to, you know, start investing. I’m going to open that account. I’m going to look at my expenses and have more of an understanding of that like whatever that looks like. That’s what I’m really hoping for women. So it’s – it’s kind of like meeting you where you’re at but giving you a little bit of a boost so you can kind of take the next steps.

Sofie: Yeah, and you mentioned how you want women to feel like, you know, what money is my thing and I feel like in order to get there we first have to understand perhaps some of those common financial mistakes that women tend to make or that people tend to make in general. And so, from your experience, what are some of the most common financial mistakes that women tend to make and how can they begin to overcome these challenges?

Kalee Boisvert: Yeah, absolutely, that’s a great question. Yes, it’s the stuff that I think is like very avoidable but frustrates me when I see it, right? I’m like, oh why are we doing this to ourselves, um, so you know if this is you or you’ve been doing some of these things by all means is not to feel, you know, this isn’t a guilt trip. It’s not like oh no, all hope is lost because I’ve been doing that all along or something like that. This is just, again, an awareness and when you see these things you’re doing, hopefully that inspires you to make some change So one of them would be that negative self-talk like that’s a huge thing and women do it so much more than men when it comes to money. So women saying the things, “I’m not good with money. I don’t understand this stuff.” And when you’re saying those things it sends the message that that is just going to be the reality. Like I’m so of the belief of the energetics of things and when you’re putting those things out there and constantly saying them, that is going to be your reality unfortunately. So can you takes a moment to shift the inner dialogue or what you’re saying even out loud or what the some of the thoughts are that come up for you about money and shift them to even just slightly more positive. Something that feels a little bit better so maybe something like, you know, what I haven’t paid enough or much attention to my money up until this point, but I’m willing to start making change. I’m willing to start changing this. I’m excited to feel better about my finances, to look at my money differently. Like anything that resonates with you that you can feel a little bit lighter and a little bit more open to the possibilities. That’s what I would highly recommend. So the negative self-talk we have to get rid of it and if you can replace it with kind of the next best positive step until you can be saying things like, “money is my thing, I love money.” Like you might not be there yet, but just little shifts if you can slowly get to that. So that would be the first thing. The second thing was really about women not getting their money to work for them. So just sitting on piles of cash. Like hoarding cash. So yes, the first step to building wealth and whatnot is saving money. That is so important, but women have more of a tendency to men to kind of just feel like, okay I’m accumulating this cash and you know that is it. I’m too scared to invest it or put it to work in the stock markets or through, um, exchange trader funds etfs or mutual funds or things like that. You have to have your money working for you. If you want to study like the lives of, you know, wealthy people and what they do and how they’ve gotten that way, there is an element of they’re making their money work for them. They’re not just sort of saving it and socking all the way under their bed because you’re going to even lose money that way, um, as a result of inflation, right? Your dollars are going to become less and less and less so you have to be putting your money to work. So if you have the saving part down, that is fabulous, but the next step is putting it to work, getting that money that you’ve worked hard to earn, to do some work for you. So getting invested and that takes a little bit of kind of like jumping in, diving in I would say because you’re never going to be an expert. You’re not supposed to be the next Warren Buffett so Warren Buffett, you know, has been doing what he does for decades and decades and he spends all day studying companies so that is not what you’re looking to achieve but you need to jump in. You need to start doing some investing getting your money working. You’re never going to know it all, but you just have to get started when it comes to investing. So that’s my second piece of kind of the mistake and piece of advice and then the third would be women sort of giving up control or not staying engaged so women who maybe they get married or have their partner and they say like, “I’m going to defer to him. Um, he knows better than I understand this stuff, you know? I’m going to let him manage the finances, things like that. We can’t do that like we cannot be doing that because I see the other side of that so often unfortunately in my business when a divorce happens and the woman was not actively involved and then it’s overwhelming, there’s a lot to do and sometimes finding out things that she didn’t even realize were going on with her finances because she was not engaged. So we have to stay engaged. You have to stay in control of the finances. You have to be an active participant. If you’re in a partnership then just it’s ah a matter of you both, you know, being involved, having the conversations, communicating, being in the know. If you’re single, same thing, even if you’re working with an advisor you want to make sure your advisor is keeping you engaged, having conversations, having check-in meetings where you just feel like, yep, I know what’s going on. So that is my piece of advice for that, that we have to stay engaged. We have to be responsible for this. We can’t be constantly looking outside of ourselves and saying, “I’ll just get you to handle this. You’ll do better than me,” because I say this in my book, nobody will love your money as much as you do. So if that’s the case you have to advocate for your money. You have to represent its best interests because you’re the best person for that.

Sofie: Oh my gosh, yes. I love that every – all three of those, I was like yep oh yep, oh there she goes. Oh yeah, um, just with how true those are I think of the three for me, the last one really stands out there mostly because I see all the time that lack of confidence that women have when it comes to money and so then, you know, as you said it’s kind of handing the reins over to their partner or perhaps a financial advisor and saying you know what, you do what you think is best with my money. You know? I trust you. I don’t know what I’m doing. I’m going to take a step back and yet, you know, it’s such a disempowering feeling not having control over your own money, not having control over what’s done with it, over not having control over what, you know, there someone is investing in on your behalf. You know? Maybe it’s something that doesn’t even align with your personal values, um, and so definitely, you know, if you are using a financial advisor, checking in with them I think when I hear the word financial advisor so often, I think of them as that person that you can just give one hundred percent trust to and then not have to think twice about where the money goes. But in reality, I feel like there’s so much more work that comes with the financial adviser because it’s a constant check in and constantly talking through, “hey, I noticed that you put some of my money into this, into this stock, I don’t agree with what that company’s doing, hold on. Can we find a way to, you know, put this somewhere else? Like I don’t – I don’t want to do that or it’s just all that checking in that’s required.” So most definitely, I think that that’s something that a lot of women especially face and, you know, we feel like I mean we are very trusting people. I feel like and so I want to believe in the goodness of others, but sometimes people aren’t always great and when it comes to your own money, you got to, you know, you really got to keep control of it and understand where it’s going and, um, as you said, no one manages or keeps safe your own money better than you because that’s your money.

Kalee Boisvert: Yeah, exactly. Yeah. Everything you said is so true and yes, we want to be able to trust everyone and that would be the ideal scenario but sometimes there’s just those like really sad stories where it was people were not trustworthy and I think women almost like go, you know, it’s a dumb question. I just won’t ask it or like when they’re working with an advisor and it’s like no, you got to lean in and ask the questions, right? Anything that comes up, um, don’t feel scared, don’t feel like you’re bothering someone or, you know, you’re asking like a thousand questions. That’s fine. Like there’s nothing wrong with that and if they have a problem with that, that’s their problem, right? Like it’s we are like it’s just I feel it too, I’ll walk into a bank and I get this feeling like a sinking feeling when I walk into a bank of like, oh like I just – I don’t feel I feel like disempowered or not good enough or something about going to a bank. Every time I’ve ever gone, I’ve had a really negative experience where it feels like you’re being talked down to and I’m like I’m a financial professional and I feel that way so I can’t even imagine what people are feeling every day and I’m like it sucks and, you know, dealing with this but we have to kind of stand in our power, in our knowing and ask those questions and um and switch that around.

Sofie: Yeah, and I feel like so much of this, you know, is really rooted in that feeling of oh my gosh, I’m so overwhelmed by the thought of taking control of my money and talking about money. And so do you have any steps or advice that, you know, you give to your clients who for women that may feel that that sense of oh I’m so overwhelmed with this. What advice do you have for those women that that have that feeling and where can they start to take control of their finances without feeling so overwhelmed?

Kalee Boisvert: Yeah, that’s a great point and question. I think it, you know, goes back to your right like when we feel overwhelmed what happens. It’s almost like that fight, flight, or freeze response and I would say it’s the freeze that we go to where it’s like okay, I’m overwhelmed and you shut down and you don’t do anything and you can do that for a long time when it comes to your money, right? Like, I’m just not going to think about it. I’m not going to look at it because when they do, it’s like no, it’s too much, um, again, freeze shut down so we need to get past that. And I think, you know, again, I say taking action is the most important thing you can do for your money. So if there’s, you know, one piece of advice I’m giving it’s that you need to take some action and so if you’re in the freeze mode, you’re not going to be taking action. You’re not going to do anything because you’re – you’re terrified and that’s okay but so it’s to get yourself out of that. Do one thing – so what is one thing you can do and it could be a little small step. So if it’s like maybe the one thing is like you don’t know how much money you spend on an average or on a monthly basis or typical month. Like you know that phrase that people say of like, “I have no idea where my money goes.” Okay, well then can you just schedule a little bit of time to go through one month of transactions, write it down or put it in a spreadsheet, whatever works for you but take a look see where your money’s going. Decide, huh, I didn’t realize I spend that much money there, maybe I’m going to switch this or do that. Like that spending just that thirty minutes to maybe an hour it’s going to take you. It feels so good. It does feel like okay, I got this, I know what I’m spending, I know how much I need. I did it just the other day, I do these check-ins for myself all the time and every time I do it – it feels good. I’m like, oh okay now I know, you know, what I need for the month how much I can put away to savings, all those things. So it’s just one thing. Maybe I say something like, you know, you’re paying a lot on interest on your credit card if you’re using your credit card to be putting purchases on and not paying off the balance and you’re like well how much am I paying on interest. So maybe your one thing is to just go investigate what is my interest rate on my credit card, you know? And what does that look like when I miss a payment? How does that accumulate? Just one little thing. Maybe you hear a phrase, like a financial jargon piece that doesn’t make sense to you. You’re like Etf, what is that? Then you just kind of go digging into doing some research and reading about it, finding out what it is. So just one little thing that it’s like maybe it’s something you don’t know that you want to figure out. Maybe it’s something you’ve been putting off, but just focus on the one. Don’t focus on the whole thing because the overwhelm will come back. So don’t focus on everything again and think you have to be this expert and do this complete massive overtaking and redesign of your financial life. No, it’s one thing because it’s all just a combinations of steps that will get you there. You will be faced with money decisions every day; I would say everyone is on a daily basis. So you’re kind of given this opportunity to make decisions every day and there’s a lot coming at you so don’t overwhelm yourself more than need be. Take on one thing at a time and it will feel good and it will get you feeling ready to take on the next thing and the next thing it gives you that momentum. So that’s my piece of advice if you’re feeling that way of overwhelmed. What is one little small thing you can do today?

Sofie: Yeah, and I feel like so much of it is, you know, just asking questions, right? It’s I mean, I remember I asked my stepdad and I felt so stupid doing I but after I asked, I was like I’m so happy I asked him. And I asked him, “can you explain the concept of buying and selling stock to me.” And it to me, I was like that’s such a silly question to ask because it seems like such a straightforward answer but he talked for like thirty minutes on it and I said, “well, clearly this is not a straightforward answer if I just had a whole thirty minute conversation on the basics of just buying and selling stock.” So it’s as you said, it’s one of those things where if you have a question on something, ask it, look it up, do the research and no question is silly or stupid or are not worth asking because especially when it comes to money, you want to get it right.

Kalee Boisvert: Yeah, yeah, and you didn’t learn all this stuff I’m assuming. Like most people we don’t learn this in school. I don’t remember learning anything about money in school and I did like my business degree and I still don’t remember learning about like very specific financial, personal financial elements. So if you didn’t learn it along the way, then of course you’re going to feel like overwhelmed and this is a lot because you’re like starting from scratch with very complex topics. So it’s okay to feel that way. Absolutely, but you can make a change now. You can do some of these things where you just, again, feel a little bit better. Leads you to an action which leads to another one and then it’s kind of like you’re going from there.

Sofie: Absolutely and to connect everything together for our listeners, what is one thing that our listeners should take away from this episode?

Kalee Boisvert: I would just say like giving yourself permission to feel good and okay right now with your money. Ah, you’re not going to take the steps, you’re not going to do the things if you’re still holding onto things like guilt. You know? Shame, overwhelm, those are all very common feelings in our financial lives and so if you felt that way, completely understandable, but you have to give yourself permission to feel good right now exactly where you are. And that’s going to open up the next steps and everything else, but you have to decide today is a clean slate and I’m changing this and I’m changing how, you know, I’ve gone about it for this long or whatever it is. And so you have to give yourself that permission and to feel okay and to, you know, forgive yourself and let go of past money things that you think. You know you shouldn’t have done this or should have done that or whatnot. You have to let go of all those things so it’s – just give yourself permission. Give yourself permission to be on this journey to make money or thing.

Sofie: Yes, I love that. I feel like so much of the theme of this podcast is really that – that sentiment of give yourself permission to just do it. Right? Give yourself the permission to you know, take control over your money. Give yourself permission to take control over, you know, your own empowerment. And so absolutely, I think that rings so true here and for listeners that would like to, you know, keep this conversation going and connect with you, how can our listeners get in contact with you?

Kalee Boisvert: Yeah, you can reach out to me on my website. It’s just Kalee Boisvert dot com. So my first name, last name, dot com. Instagram same thing, Kalee Boisvert and you can check out my book Make Money Your Thing. It’s out now and you can look on online, it’s all the places you’ll see it. Probably the easiest place to get a hold of it. But yeah, please reach out like if you connect, any questions you have again. All questions are good questions.

Sofie: I love that, oh my goodness. Yes, I already am thinking of about ten more questions that I would love to ask, but I will not bore listeners with that. So I’ll probably be reaching out to you privately to ask some questions but I want to say thank you again so much for coming onto the podcast, Kalee. It’s been an absolute pleasure and I know that I am definitely walking away with just a sense of calm and empowerment when it comes to taking control of my money and I know that a lot of our listeners are as well. So thank you so much for sharing all of your amazing wisdom with us.

Kalee Boisvert: Yay! Thank you so much for having me.