The Language of Money with Arlete

Money Files

Today I’m excited to introduce you to my client Arlete. You see when Arlete turned 40 she was expecting some magical financial fairy dust (I’m sure you’ve been looking for it too!).  However, even with this milestone birthday she still felt like she should and could be doing better with her finances.  

When you listen to Arlete’s story you’ll realize the language of money is universal. Arlete lives in Mozambique.  Although Arlete doesn’t manage dollars and buys everything with meticais, our work was still the same.  What was most true is that Arlete wanted a different relationship with her finances.  We used our coaching calls to identify her financial values and goals and then made a plan for how her money could help her be both intentional and financially secure. 

Here are just a few things you’ll learn when you listen in:

  • How Arlete has been able to make decisions and take action with her finances because she understands her numbers on a new level.  
  • How Arlete stopped identifying as someone who was just chosen to live paycheck to paycheck 
  • How Arlete views our work together as a  financial system and how that’s different than having a budget on a spreadsheet 

You do not want to miss this conversation.  This episode is for you if you want to stop believing the negative narrative you have about money or truly desire to see what’s possible when you have an accountability partner. I know you will find Arlete’s story to be relatable, real and true. 

After you listen, hit reply and tell me what part of Arlete’s story resonated with you most. 

And if you’ve been on the fence about whether financial coaching is right for you, let Arlete’s story be an example that your life – and your finances – can change in the next month, six months, and beyond. Let’s schedule a call so you can rewrite your money story and reach your financial goals. 

Listen to Arlete’s Money Files Episode

The Transcript

Keina:

[00:00:00] Hello everyone. My name is Keina Newell. I’m a financial coach and I work with professional women and solopreneurs to create new possibilities with their money. If you are tuning in right now, you are joining me for money files. So welcome. Thank you so much for joining me for another episode of money files today, I am joined by my client.

[00:00:20] I let and Arlete is actually from Mozambique lives in Mozambique. And she is going to tell you about the fact that money is definitely universal. So we didn’t actually get to talk dollars and cents and then form over us dollars. But we definitely talk dollars and cents in the form of changing your relationship with.

[00:00:43] So tune in just to hear about how our work has helped our lit shift, how she feels and manages her finances. Thank you for joining me for another episode of money files today. I’m with my client. I let, and I’m excited to have her here joining me. I feel like I say that every client is my favorite. I think just every client is my favorite.

[00:01:05] So are let thank you so much for joining me. How are you? Thank you so

Arlete:

[00:01:10] much for having me Keina well, and it is a pleasure. I’ve never had a financial coach, so I can say that you are my favorite 29. So coach,

Keina:

[00:01:22] do you want to just go ahead and introduce your.

Arlete:

[00:01:24] Yes. Sure. Where can I start? Well, I am, uh, I’m 40 years old, just turned this year, a wonderful mommy to four kids.

[00:01:35] So why and well, I had money issues and I started following you Keina last year. On Instagram through another page that I was following. And I guess just stopped maybe if I could see that stock to her page and signed up for your newsletters and everything. Um, and here I am today.

Keina:

[00:02:01] I love that to me. I think what we should also tell listeners is that you’re from Mozambique, which I think is incredible.

[00:02:08] Just the power. Oh, the internet off the

Arlete:

[00:02:11] internet. Yes, indeed. I am here all pulled away in Southern Africa. Uh, Mozambique and I never ever thought that one day I would have a financial coach who is all the way on the other side of the world, but. And it has been wonderful Keina the magic of the internet.

[00:02:35] Indeed. Never think people

Keina:

[00:02:38] well. And I think it just goes to say, I remember when you, you actually came to mimosas and money matters and I just remember your like little clip art pictures. And then we had a discovery call after that. And I was say beak, like, where did you find me? But it just also, I think it’s a reminder that like, money is universal and that regardless of what currency your money is in, there’s still this emotional side of money.

[00:03:07] In terms of just thinking about like, what type of relationship do you have with your finances? What relationship do use desire to have with your finances? Like I said, regardless of where you are in the world.

Arlete:

[00:03:19] Definitely, definitely Keina. And actually, I didn’t even realize. This whole thing, right. About money or finance being just one, one language, which everybody can relate to.

[00:03:34] And it was a main thing, you know, having our sessions and everything and realizing, oh yeah, she’s getting me, even though I’m talking about meaty guys and I’m not talking about dollars. Right. But we were on the same page, which is, which is amazing. It’s it’s really. Good to

Keina:

[00:03:51] know, let’s go back to, cause I actually went back through like some of the information that you shared with me very early on when we were working together.

[00:03:59] And one of the things that you put like in your application to work with me is like I turned 40 in January. And you wanted to be like more aware and prepare financially to better enjoy your life and your family, but just tell us, like, what was the significance of turning 40? Cause I think a lot of people can relate to this.

[00:04:20] I work with a lot of clients that end up finding coaching because they’re like at a pivotal place in their life. So what was the significance of turning 40?

Arlete:

[00:04:30] Well, I think it was just the idea that I had in my mind that once I turned 40, everything would be resolved. Let’s say, okay, I would have my friend and citizen place.

[00:04:45] I would have a good job. I mean, everything would just be unlined and perfect. And I wouldn’t have. Loads loads to worry about, and it just didn’t happen. Right. I get to 40 and I have to say, although all of the other parts were okay in doing maybe even exceptional, but the money part was, I was not happy.

[00:05:10] Really I wasn’t satisfied. And I knew that I could do better. I just didn’t know how to go about it. And I think it was for me, a miracle to have come across you, your page and, you know, at a distance having the opportunity to see how you work. And you mentioned, uh, me joining the. I mean, most of them money matters.

[00:05:36] And that to me was the moment in which I decided that. Okay. Okay. I’m going to go ahead because you had people. On there that were new and, you know, just were curious like me and you also had your other clients, right? Um, actual clients and clients that work with you before and hearing them tell their stories, which was very similar to my story.

[00:06:02] In many ways, I was like, oh, wow. Okay. They got it resolved. And they’re doing good. This is it. And once I hung up, I just knew I’m going in there and pulling out the page on kinos website.

Keina:

[00:06:18] I love, I love action takers. And also just what you were speaking to thinking about, like turning 40. I think a lot of people think that their finances will get in order if they can just change the circumstance.

[00:06:33] When I get a certain age, when I make a certain amount of money, if I just get my spreadsheet together, like they’re waiting for a certain point in time. For everything to fall into place. And I think that this happens in many areas of our life. We think there’s some like magic fairy dust that will happen when I turn 30, when I turned 40, when I get married, then everything will fall into place.

[00:06:56] And so I would just encourage you if you’re listening, not to give your results away to like a circumstance, don’t wait for. Turning a certain age. Don’t wait to make more money. Cause I think our luck could tell you that it’s not about that circumstance. There’s like there has to be some like inner work that happens

Arlete:

[00:07:16] most definitely Keina I mean this whole process.

[00:07:21] Mine the switch in my mind, in regards to where I want to be financially and everything it’s, it was a big, big switch. And really I realized that it’s not about getting to that 40 and having my finances in place and not even about getting to 45. It’s really just about how everything is, um, working in my mind and meat taking action on it.

[00:07:47] And this has definitely been, um, an experience to prove that to me, the, you make a decision and you take action on it, make another decision and you take action on it and just keep repeating until it becomes your habit. And then in the end, looking at. You got everything in order, you know, and that’s how it was for me.

[00:08:08] It was absolutely amazing. And you mentioned, um, the spreadsheet thing I had spent so many years just asking different friends, who I believed had their finances in order, like, can you share with me your spreadsheet? What are you using for your budget for budgeting, whatever. And they would share it with me.

[00:08:26] And yeah, it was the first spreadsheet with. All of your expenses and you put that in and everything and they will tell me, look, it’s just a matter of you knowing what you’re spending, you know, so you get everything in place and blah, blah, blah. And I tried, and I tell you, I tried more than three times and I was just like, oh no, this money managing thing is not for me.

[00:08:49] Would there ever be a day in which I will really have everything in order? And that day did come. It took some time, but it didn’t come.

Keina:

[00:09:00] So tell us, like, where were you when we started working together? Whoa, Lord.

Arlete:

[00:09:06] Wow. Well that looks, when I look back, it’s a completely different, our led in a completely different life and it wasn’t even that long ago, but basically I was living paycheck to paycheck.

[00:09:19] Okay. I had maxed out my credit card. And I didn’t even manage her, could not even manage to pay the minimum required monthly. I was late in paying important bills. For example, some of my kids’ schools. I sometimes found myself having no money whatsoever, not even in my pocket, not even in my bank account.

[00:09:41] And I had no idea where my money was going or what I was doing wrong. So I was really just stuck in this thing of okay. I’ll let you are not one of the chosen ones by the Lord to have money always with you in consistently with you. And you just got to go with it, you know, paycheck to paycheck. It was really, it was really stressful.

[00:10:03] It was really stressful when

Keina:

[00:10:06] like, cause you’ve already alluded to the fact that, um, You got to the place where money management is now for you, but like, what would you say was like a pivotal place for you and everything changed in working together?

Arlete:

[00:10:22] They one keynote. I remembered this. I remember you sent me, were working here and YouTube.

[00:10:30] Uh, I’m going to share with you the spreadsheet. And I was like, oh goodness, my gosh spreadsheet. And you gave me the spreadsheet and you said, just have to do this, this, this, this, this. And of course it’s all divided right in the different sections and everything. And when they get to the spending plan, I actually, I, I saw myself having an anxiety attack right there because I was like, oh my God, this is going to show that I have no more.

[00:10:55] But anyway, I put there my salary and I started putting the amounts that I wanted for every single thing that I felt that I have to do right. On a monthly basis or whatever. And in the end, when I take, like I sit back and I look at it and I remember you told me this number here. It has to come to zero.

[00:11:17] So when it comes to zero that’s when, you know, That everything is done. And I do all of my expenses and everything. I put everything in place, all of my monthly expenses, blah, blah, blah. When I look up, I still have this big amount left and I’m like, what? How can that be known? That’s not right. I can’t. I go back over.

[00:11:40] And you told me, well, that just means that you need to think, what are the other things, you know, think about the other things that you want to do, or you would like to do in your life. And I was like, really? And you were like, yeah. And I went in and I filled that in. And you said, there you go, you have your spending plan.

[00:12:00] And to me, I was three. I always dumped. Like where was that money all along, but really, it was just the outlook on it, right? The outlook, the managing and everything. And I guess that first day, that was just, that was when everything changed for me, everything changed for me. And like,

Keina:

[00:12:23] we continue to. Shift your spending plan over time.

[00:12:27] Like, that’s the one thing I always want people to hear is like your spending plan, your financial plan, it’s like a living document. Right. And it should be able to navigate and move with you. And I remember cause you have someone who like you are, you get your car wash and it was like, oh, I didn’t account for that.

[00:12:43] Right. And so like, we were able to go in and think flexibly about like what other things are happening. As I’m continuing. I think the thing that I saw as your coach was like, you were building this financial awareness of like, oh yeah, I also spend money on this. And so let’s like take into account where these other pieces fit.

[00:13:04] Like you’re in school, your kids are in school. And so being able to even like, save for those things in advance and being able to see, like, how did the numbers all work together? In your favor when you need to go to South Africa for your like shopping and you want to be able to go there and guilt free and not like, oh, we bought a lot of clothes, but we have to pay for them, you know, on a credit card.

Arlete:

[00:13:29] Exactly. Which used to be my life right before my life was going to South Africa and using the credit cards and any other way, because I didn’t have any money. Right. Or I wasn’t managing my money correctly. So this journey of actually being aware of exactly. Where I spend my money and how I spend my money and do I want to continue spending it that way has been really eye opening for me.

[00:14:03] You know, you mentioned the car wash and I remember things like, for example, uh, the tool gates. I remember I had a trip. I went to the other side of my province and I had. Toll gate. And when I was talking to you, we’re like, oh, maybe we should have a line for this. You know, do you go often there? And I was like, oh yeah, these are the little things that I really need to consider.

[00:14:27] And that is, is, it’s just amazing. You know, you being able to really look at every single thing of your lifestyle. And put that into your spending plan and just be at ease, you know, be at ease and be at peace that you have that money there is. It’s really good. It’s really, really nice.

Keina:

[00:14:50] How do you think, could you said you’ve tried spreadsheets before spoiler alert.

[00:14:54] I use a spreadsheet with clients, but what would you say was different about using a spreadsheet this time? What, what connected for you? The

Arlete:

[00:15:04] system. Okay. And I think you recall in our first talks, I told you that I am the person who works well with systems. I just need to know how it works and how to go about it.

[00:15:16] And before what it was is just having a spreadsheet. Right. I knew that I spent this much in that much in that. But I never made a connection with, for example, my bank accounts. Right. Um, I never knew how to make that connection, basically between my bank account and my, my spreadsheets, the thing of every time I make a money decision going to my spending plan and looking at what I have there.

[00:15:44] If I can still use an amount or not, I used to only base my expenses or my using money on what I have in my bank account. And I guess that’s why I always find myself short. Right. So no matter what, I would go into my bank account and following, oh, I still have lots of money. So yeah, of course I can buy this from my living room.

[00:16:03] Of course not having in mind or forgetting that look in two weeks, I have this payment. And actually this money that I’m buying this new thing for my living room is actually the money to pay that expense salary. Exactly. So I think having this system in place and I absolutely work perfectly now because I completely forgot, forget about my bank accounts.

[00:16:34] I have my money dates. Right. I forget about my bank account and I’m only managing my money through what I see on my spreadsheet because whatever expense it is, I go in there. I deduct, I see what I have left and if can I buy more bread today? No, I cannot. I used up all my money for bread. Okay. I cannot, it’s not actually that.

[00:16:57] Do I really, really want bread if I do really want bread, where else can I take the money from? You know, that won’t hurt me. And I go up in there and I say, well, I’m going to take it for my personal allowance and I’d take it from a personal allowance and all is good in the land of our legs.

Keina:

[00:17:14] I love it. And also like, just speaking about money being international and or universal, and just thinking about.

[00:17:25] A couple of things that happened. And us working together is like with your bank that you were with in the beginning, we also, you know, I learned some Portuguese in there and thinking about all these feeds that were happening at your bank. And so that was another consideration that like, when you were paying a bill, you were like being taxed.

[00:17:46] And pushed her to stay low. I don’t even remember. I don’t know if I’m saying the whole thing. Right. But it was like, we, I mean, we had so many conversations too around that. Right. And so to speak to the fact of earlier, when you were talking about. You know, I, I have money sometimes I’m just like paycheck to paycheck, but even those things add up, like, people are scared to look at their bank account, but like you could be missing things.

[00:18:10] And so I know we went through and we were like, hold on, wait, what is this? What is this? And just starting to get curious is. What are the fees? Do we need to go to another bank? Hey, can you have some money conversations with your friends to see if this is happening at their bank? Cause I don’t understand all of Mozambique, but we need to understand what’s happening at your bank.

[00:18:29] And if you’re, I won’t even say like losing money, but if they’re taking these things out, then we also need to consider that in how you’re paying for things, the numbers in your spreadsheet. So that, that way you’re not short at the end of the.

Arlete:

[00:18:44] That was definitely one of the biggest takeaways for me, Keina, I have to say because I never, ever paid attention to the feeds.

[00:18:53] Never, you know, and the thing of me paying, for example, if I go grocery shopping and I pass my debit card, But then all of a sudden there’s a sea of plus 100 and something MIPI guys, and then another fee of something else. And I’m not accounting for that. Definitely things will in the end will not make sense.

[00:19:15] Right. And that was spectacular knowing, um, that I should be on the lookout for this, and actually having an interaction with my account manager, asking her, look, there’s this amount here. And then there’s this other. These two fees have different names. What exactly do they mean? And hearing her stutter like, uh, uh, uh, what, because I think they were not used to clients asking about fees.

[00:19:45] I don’t think they’re used to clients actually being aware. What am I actually told? Trust them. Look, I’m looking with a financial coach. And she wants to answer. I want to understand all of it. And I remember her saying, she was like, oh my goodness. So now we are in trouble with you. Miss Arlette. I said, yes, you are.

[00:20:06] So you’ll be better. Make things clear. And those things actually also gave me the possibility. Decisions, right. Um, what are things happening in other banks? Should I move to another bank and just use this bank for, let’s say my savings. Okay. Should I just use this bank for transfers and nothing else? And I came to that decision and it has been great because I see that I’m not losing and I will say loosely, I’m not losing money, you know, from fees and fees and fees.

[00:20:43] Through the transactions that I make,

Keina:

[00:20:46] which even in America, I tell people like my clients, I’m like, Hey, are you paying for that bank to hold your money? Right? Because what’s really happening is you give the bank money. They go and use their money, your money to Dillon other people money. But I always encourage people on, like, if you don’t have to pay fees, Then we don’t want to be paying fees.

[00:21:06] We don’t need to give anybody $10 a month, $15 a month to hold our money that we’re letting them borrow. So I think it’s always something that’s really crucial to pay attention, to always like, feeling like, Hey, I can call and ask about that because to your point, it’s like, oh, I’m going to get curious.

[00:21:23] What other possibilities are there for me out there when it comes to banking and how do I desire to be in control of my money? I think when we can. Remove like overwhelm and fear and shame and all those things and replace it with curiosity. Like that’s one place that I think a lot of my clients create results from is because they start to become curious with what’s happening with their money.

Arlete:

[00:21:46] Exactly. Through the curiosity as well. One thing that I learned from you is the thing about being intentional with where I want my money to go and what I want my money to do. Right. And you talk about other than bank fees. I had other payments that I was making on, on little things that for me were like fun.

[00:22:10] Right? You sign up for, let’s say a interior design class or whatever, and you have to be $10 a month and you sign up for something else on network marketing and you have to pay $5 a month. And when you start becoming intentional and thinking about, okay, what do I really want my money to do for me? And balancing these things and looking at all of these other ways that your money is being used and you think to yourself, okay, do I really want this?

[00:22:42] Do I really need this? What is it that I want? And you decide, no, I don’t want this. And you get back that $10 a month and you say, well, I want to continue having this. And you’re okay with your $5 going where it’s going. And. Really this thing about being intentional has really, really stuck with me because you repeated that to me many times during our sessions.

[00:23:08] And we were like, look, garlic, you know, even if you overspend here or there, but you know, I think what I really want you to do is think about what do you want your money to do for you? You know, it’s the intentional part. And I take that with me as a big, big lesson.

Keina:

[00:23:27] Well, and as you say that, it makes me think about, I remember we had a conversation because you’ve loaned people money as.

[00:23:33] And we were talking about, well, one that came with fees at the bait and then two, which I think is a principle. My mother instilled in me, which was like, right. Like if I give away this money, be comfortable with that money not coming back. Like, yes, there are people that pay you back. But just also just knowing that if I say yes to this, is it impacting me?

[00:23:54] Am I able to do it? But being able to be in control and intentional with those choices as well. And yeah, it’s all about like the control. I’m not going to tell you like, no, you shouldn’t be loading anyone money or you should be loaning people money, but wanting you to know what’s happening and not just doing something because it looks like you can.

Arlete:

[00:24:14] That is another thing I was going to mention. It was about new lending money to friends and family. And now they’re like every time they asked me and I say, because I decided that really I was, well, I was robbing myself sometimes. And. Me telling them, you know, unfortunately at the moment I do not having money to lend to, you know, or when I started giving them this explanation, like, yes, sure.

[00:24:43] I can lend you money, but now you’ll have to calculate this fee and this fee, plus the money I’m lending you so that when it’s time for you to give it back to me, you give me back this amount. So. And of course I’m thinking they’re probably at a stage at which I was at some time ago when they see the difference in the numbers are like, what?

[00:25:04] No, I mean, what you’re targeting me, I said, I’m not charging you. It’s actually what I’m getting charged at the bank to transfer the money to. They charge me this fee and they tied me this fee, and you’re only going to give me back this amount and money is money, my friend. And it’s been interesting. It’s been very interesting and I’m just really liking this whole thing I have to say.

Keina:

[00:25:33] Well, I do, I do remember that if I go back to the notes that I wrote down, one of the things you said that you wanted was to be like, what did you say.

Arlete:

[00:25:45] Oh, I don’t think I wrote

Keina:

[00:25:46] it down, but I do remember you just wanting, you talked about like the desires, which I do think I talked about earlier was like being prepared financially to better enjoy your life and family.

[00:25:57] Like that was one of the results you wanted to create. Do you feel like you’ve

Arlete:

[00:26:01] created that? Oh, most definitely. Most definitely. And not only because I’m. Managing my finances as well, but now I also have a couple of tools of helping out. Right. My family, for example, my son, he’s about to go study abroad.

[00:26:21] And I sat down with him noise. I showed him my spreadsheet and I told him, um, or I went through it with him, you know, how he would go about it when he’s living by himself, how we should be and everything. And it was interesting to hear his questions, which were my questions in the beginning and just clarifying things to him and to meet that son.

[00:26:48] The most bonus of the bonuses that I could have, right. Being able to transfer and share with those that I love, um, this knowledge. And it’s definitely wonderful. Being able to see that I have accomplished. This part of my dream. So early on, right. ’cause when, when we did the exercise, when you were asking me also, what are your financial goals and everything?

[00:27:16] When I was saying it, I was seeing it. So, so far away, you know, not, not now and already a couple of months down here, here, I am being able to share it with those who are most.

Keina:

[00:27:31] I love it. What would you say are like the biggest shifts that you’ve had since we worked together?

Arlete:

[00:27:37] The biggest shifts? Well, I think it’s all in my mindset, right?

[00:27:43] So the whole thing about being intentional, being money conscious and this transferring on to other areas of my life as well, being my work. You know, my business and my relationship with others, you know, just really being conscious about the effect that every money decision will have on me. I think that has been a big, big shift, um, for me or the biggest Steven.

Keina:

[00:28:19] What like tangible things. Are you proud of when you think about your bank account or anything that’s happened while we’ve worked

Arlete:

[00:28:26] together paying off my credit card debt, I managed to pay that off. In full, uh, I think about a month or two, no, a month after we started working. And to me, that was wonderful.

[00:28:42] Um, I remember I had said that I wanted to see a certain amount by December 5th of this year. And I managed to save that amount before that. Yeah, I think that those would be the biggest ones. And also now the other one, also the thing of being able to save, because some of the bills that I have, for example, for one or two of my kids is their school is paid quarterly.

[00:29:11] And because I was living paycheck to paycheck. I had certain difficulties, but now, because everything is so well organized, um, I don’t even have to worry. So comes that quarter. I just make the payment. And it’s just, it’s wonderful for me,

Keina:

[00:29:29] as you said, the word organized. I remember that that was the other thing that you told me.

[00:29:32] It’s like, I’m a very organized person. And I think a lot of people that I work with would describe themselves as tight. Very organized, but when it comes to money, everything just seems off. So now I would imagine that your money aligns with like all the other areas of your life.

Arlete:

[00:29:48] Oh, yes. Yes, indeed. You know, and I have in my husband because my husband is the organized one, let’s say, um, in terms of money, because he always seems to have money for whatever it is that he has to do.

[00:30:02] And he will use, he was used to me being a bit, um, out of the lines. And now, uh, whenever he comes to me, he’s like, oh, can you pay this for me and blah, blah, blah, blah, blah. And I’m like, ’cause like, why do you have money? And I go, yeah. And he’s like, how come I said, because I’m working with Heena remember.

[00:30:28] Right. So he has been, um, very surprised and I am surprised, but also very happy, um, that this, this type of organization, the financial organization that has now to please us. ’cause I think that, you know, when you’re doing a puzzle and you just need one little piece to complete it so that it becomes this beautiful.

[00:30:55] So you can really say I finished this puzzle six months, but I finished. Right. And I think this was the piece that was missing in my puzzle. I. Absolutely wonderful. And a piece,

Keina:

[00:31:11] one of the results I wanted to talk about too, is that I remember, I can’t remember how many months into like us working together, but you work for a us organization that pays you into your bank account.

[00:31:28] So you get paid in dollars. Then we have to, you know, transfer the money to mentee cash. And so thinking about that, um, one, we had to like really, I wanted to make sure that everything felt very like flat-lined for you. And very even so like, this was the consistent, depending on like the, oh my goodness.

[00:31:47] I’m like at a loss for words right now. I want to say the currency rate. Why can I think of. I

Arlete:

[00:31:53] need you to give me the word currency

Keina:

[00:31:56] is the currency range, right? Thank you. The exchange rate, that’s the exact word I wanted. And so given the exchange rate, I wanted you to feel like I feel very solid with what’s happening.

[00:32:06] Yes. I get paid with dollars, but my exchange rate may not be as strong as I desire it to be. So we made sure that that was like flat line and very, even for you as a result of that, it means too that we weren’t always depleting your us dollars. And the benefit that came from that was at one point in time, I would say the benefit of us not transferring all your money, but also the fact that you had a spending plan was that your bank decided that they were unable to transfer money.

[00:32:35] At some point in time of us working together. Tell us like the experience of that. What would that have felt like in January versus us actually working together?

Arlete:

[00:32:45] Oh, my good miss Keina. That experience was one of like, oh my God, I’m so glad I took this decision of working with chemo because so my bank ran into problems, right.

[00:33:00] With our central bank and all of our accounts while our dollar accounts, we could not exchange any money or anything of the sword in at that time. I started. I remember my colleagues, all of them were desperate calling each other for help, but, well, look, I just need to work to pay my workers. I just need to pay my kids’ school and everything.

[00:33:24] And I was there like our lead. This could have been, you were, this could have been new because you were like this just in February, you know, and look at you today. And I was okay in the situation. Um, a month or two, if I’m not mistaken to get resolved. And I was okay. I mean, I was just like, yeah, well I have money.

[00:33:51] What can I say? You know, I have money in my medical accounts. I have money in my dollar, so I can’t touch my dollar account, but because of the money that I have in my medical account or the savings that I’m doing and how everything is aligned, I’m good. And now it was just, that was like another, you know, when you have another aha moment, like yes are like your, you took the right decision, you made the right decision.

[00:34:18] You’re on the right path and kudos to you and to Keina.

Keina:

[00:34:24] And I mean, I wanted to highlight that because sometimes people, I don’t think, think about it. Some of those benefits of, of getting their finances in order, I was on a call, another one, most of the money matters call last week. And I was telling someone like taking care of your finances is a form of self care.

[00:34:43] Whether it’s, I want to leave the job because I’m tired of like the employer or I know something that happens here, especially because I live in DC is like federal employees will be on furlough. They’re not getting a paycheck, they get it in a rears, but people will be really stressed out. Or like my former employer, I heard about like a paycheck system glitch.

[00:35:04] And so if you are thinking about like, dang, if my next paycheck didn’t hit my account, where would I be? Would I be stressed out? Could I go a month or two without receiving a paycheck? Like how would I navigate? And because, you know, we had taken the time to get your finances in order, we had started to say, Not only for like emergency funds, but even saving, like you were talking about you paid school quarterly.

[00:35:31] So we could read negotiate what those dollars were being used for, because we knew that when your, you know, your dollar account was freed up again, that we’d actually be able to like pay yourself back. But you had money in the bank that we could rename repurpose and it not feel like, oh my goodness, everything is going to like, just go up and smoke.

Arlete:

[00:35:53] Most definitely Keina. I think it’s all effect, you know, it has been spectacular. And during that time, I remember me actually going into my bank account to look at my balance and I was just staring at it because I had never had that amount in my bank account. I, before I think my balance, when I used to open it, my balance.

[00:36:22] I don’t know, 0.30. Right. And now it’s like, I go in, I have two bank accounts with like thousands in there. And to me, it’s, it’s great. And having that peace of mind of what you were just explaining, right. Knowing, or having this backup, let’s say, you know, knowing that okay. If tomorrow something happens.

[00:36:50] Will I be able to take care of myself. Will I be able to take care of those? Why most love, um, will I be able to go through with my commitments and today, if someone was to ask me the answer would be yes. Yes. MDs.

Keina:

[00:37:07] What do you think is going to be like one of the lifetime benefits? Maybe there’s more than one of you choosing to invest in financial.

Arlete:

[00:37:16] I mean, how can I say, it’s just being financially aware in every single area right of my life. He naming, this is something that I’m taking. And this session that you’re making my son, my oldest son asked me today when I was telling him, look, I’m going to be talking to Kenai and everything. He was like, so was the investment worth it?

[00:37:42] I was like, what? You’re still asking me, are you not noticing? And he was like, yes, I know how to spell. I want to hear from you. And I said, definitely worth. Because, I mean, it’s a whole new outlook. It’s a whole new plus that I’ve brought into my life. Right? It’s this thing of me actually knowing the value of the money that I have coming in and what I’m putting out.

[00:38:10] And there’s no way for me to explain that really into words, but I feel the difference in me. I feel, you know, the peace of mind that I was telling you that I’m feeling. I can’t imagine having. I felt this any other time in my life really? It’s just this tool that I have, not only for me, but to share, um, in many other situations with other people, I have a goddaughter who seriously, I kid you not use to ask me for money, the same amount every single month.

[00:38:51] And the last time she asked me, I told her, you know what? I want to sit down with. If you don’t mind, I want to teach you how to manage. And when I’m not saying that you’re managing it wrong, but I want to show you. So this is just a blessing to me, really.

Keina:

[00:39:11] I love that you’re, you’re paying it forward. Cause that’s my whole thing is like, I think that there’s a ripple effect.

[00:39:16] Like when you get your finances on order one, you can help people in your life. But like, Well, the more money comes to you or you just start getting curious about different things. What would you like? What advice would you give to listeners who are in a similar situation? Maybe they’re turning 40 and the magic fairy dust of finances hasn’t fallen into place, but what advice would you give to them?

Arlete:

[00:39:39] Well, What else can I say, please reach out to key now, but in reality, it’s just, I mean, you, you feel it inside of you when you know that it’s time, all of the questions that you have when you, if you ask yourself where you’ve been asking yourself, what am I doing wrong or what. Be doing right. And you haven’t found the answer yet.

[00:40:03] I think it’s a good idea to invest in a financial coach. For me, it was the best investment I ever made in my life. Seriously. And I told this to my son today. He was like, really? I said the S really, really. It was the best investment that I’ve made. And for anybody out there, if you feel things just aren’t making sense for you and you’re tired.

[00:40:31] I mean, you’ve come to that point in which you’re just like, look, I am. Things we need to pick up or they need to pick up. So it’s, it’s really a good idea. You can start off your, if you’re not sure, start off just like I did. Right. You sign up for the newsletters, you read everything that schema sends your way.

[00:40:53] Um, you join one of them in Moses, in money matters, um, sessions and listen to everybody. When I listened to them. And Keina remembers I didn’t have anything to see at all, but I just wanted to hear, I wanted to hear what everybody was saying. I want you to see if it made sense. I want it to feel what my soul was telling me about the whole thing and the whole situation.

[00:41:17] And I got the answer and I didn’t say a word other than hi, I’m our lead. And I’m from Mozambique. That’s all I said

Keina:

[00:41:22] is all you said, maybe you showed your face. I did. I showed

Arlete:

[00:41:28] it for two seconds just to say, hi, my name is Orlando. I’m from Mozambique. Good evening to you guys. Good morning over there.

[00:41:35] Goodbye. And I switched off my camera and I’m sure that someone is in a similar situation and I think they could give it a try, you know, give it a try and see what happens and go for the complimentary call as well. Keynote, we’ll ask you questions to really shake you up a bit. So that, you know, if you’re ready or not, I was shook when she asked.

[00:42:00] So how do I know you’re ready? So tell me why you’re ready and yeah, just go for it. Go for it. It’s worth it. It’s a worthwhile investment.

Keina:

[00:42:09] Yeah. Thank you so much. And I can tell you that I leaned with, with a gentle personality. I think I do. And just thinking about there so much that when we start talking about money, there’s shame, there’s guilt.

[00:42:21] There’s overwhelmed. And I think even just like, I mean, working with few or let, like there’s cultural differences here in Mozambique versus the United States and being able to take those things into account where like, whoever it is that I’m working with. I mean, there’s a lot of different people that I’m working with, you know, demographics and family values, et cetera.

[00:42:42] And so I want those things to be at the forefront of like how you want to manage your finances. We don’t have to listen to. A dominant culture, male, and thinking about like, you know, you need to eat beans and rice until you get all of your debt paid off. And for me personally, I only want to eat beans and rice, if they’re really good, not because I feel like I have no money.

[00:43:04] So I want to make sure that those things get to come through and how people spend their money and that you feel ultimately really confident and being able, like you were talking about having that ripple effect where you’re like, oh, I don’t know how I live life any other way. And I find joy. And being able to manage my findings.

Arlete:

[00:43:23] Definitely definitely. And thank you once again for being so open-minded through it. All right. Never in a moment that I feel judged. I think I judged myself more than knew and I, and I never, ever felt judged. And I remember one of the times in which I did not. Um, and in the beginning I did not manage my money and I was thinking to myself, oh my gosh, what am I going to tell Kim?

[00:43:54] And when he spoke to you, you were like, well, yeah, but it’s, it’s not worry. No biggie. We, what we need to do is just keep going. And I thank you for that. I thank you for keeping your mind open, especially this cultural difference being, you know, um, it’s really much, much appreciated. I learned a lot from you.

Keina:

[00:44:17] I love it. Is there anything I should have asked you, but then I

Arlete:

[00:44:21] don’t think so. I think you asked there, use the good conversation. I really enjoyed this. Thank you so much for inviting.

Keina:

[00:44:29] Well, thank you for coming and speaking to my listeners, but also just a chance to like celebrate yourself and memorialize.

[00:44:37] I think the work that you’ve done, cause it speaks volumes like yes, I show up, but also you equally show up to the same level at which I show up. Together. We get to create amazing financial results. So if you have been impacted by our lead story and you’re ready to take the next step, you can go to welfare, brunel.com and apply to work with me.

[00:44:59] I look forward to hearing from you. I just love it, that you made it to the end of this episode of money files. I hope some part of today’s story resonated with you and showed you the power of coaching today. I’m inviting you to take the first step and book a one-to-one call with me. We’ll discuss what you’re hoping to achieve with your money, where you need support and how I can help you reach your financial goals faster than you ever could alone.

[00:45:27] Go to www.wealthovernow.com and book. Once again, my name is Keina and thank you again for joining me. Also stay tuned for the next episode.

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