Transforming Financial Mindsets: Linda Grizely's Journey to Empowerment and Abundance

Transform your financial mindset and embrace a new path toward financial freedom with our special guest, Linda Grizely, a renowned money mindset mentor. Linda shares her inspiring journey from a lower middle-class upbringing with a scarcity mindset to achieving financial empowerment through reframing her beliefs about money. We unpack how internal beliefs about self-worth and financial potential and societal stereotypes about wealth can significantly impact your financial behaviors and success. Get ready to shift your mindset and discover the power of financial self-awareness.

Join us as Linda introduces her transformative Money Mindset Mastery course, designed to address the psychological barriers to financial success rather than providing specific financial strategies. We discuss the critical separation of financial planning and mindset mastery to comply with regulations and highlight the value of understanding personal motivations and perceived obstacles. Whether through group sessions or one-on-one mentoring, Linda emphasizes the importance of community support in achieving lasting financial mindset changes and helping individuals recognize and overcome mental roadblocks to realize their financial dreams.

In our final segment, we explore the intricate dynamics of financial legacies and how our upbringing shapes our money habits. Through personal anecdotes and practical advice, we examine the continuous journey of transforming one's financial mindset and the importance of balancing saving and spending. Learn about the distinct roles of mentors and coaches in personal and financial growth, and gain insights into how educational resources can reshape your relationship with money. Don’t miss this enlightening episode. 

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Chapters

• 0:00 Money Mindset Shift With Linda Grizely
• 9:41 Money Mindset Mastery Course Overview
• 22:13 Healing Financial Legacy Through Mindset Transformation
• 33:57 Podcast Appreciation and Farewell

Transcript

Cassandra: 0:25

Hey everyone out there. I'd like to welcome you to it Is your Way In your Way podcast, and I'm your host. My name is Cassandra Crawley Mayo, and, for my new listeners out there, let me share with you briefly what this podcast is all about. It's for individuals who are ready to move forward in their lives.

Cassandra: 0:44

However, there are self-imposed barriers that's preventing you from living your best life on your terms. For example, you have individuals out there who are just stuck. They wanna open up their business, they wanna be promoted, they wanna change jobs, they wanna forgive somebody, they wanna get out of a relationship, they wanna move. It's just so many things that you wanna do, but you just can't seem to move the lever. It's kind of like if I had the money, I would do this, if I had this, and it's always an excuse. It's those procrastinating, self-imposed barriers, those imposter syndrome. It's just so many things. And we also talk about topics that are related to business or personal development, and also topics that will enable you to do some self-reflection over things in your life, and today we have a phenomenal topic about shifting your money mindset, and who better to talk about this is my special guest, Linda Grizely. Thank you, Linda, for being my guest. It's a pleasure to have you on my show.

Linda: 1:49

Thanks so much, Cassandra. I'm really glad you have me here. I think that our topics really align with each other.

Cassandra: 1:55

Yes, exactly. This is what I'm going to do for my listeners, Linda. I'm going to give them a little bit of your background so they can kind of get to know you a little bit before we delve into the interview. I'd like to welcome Linda Grizley again, your money mindset mentor. She is passionate about guiding women through transformative journeys.

Cassandra: 2:18

In her career as a financial planner, linda witnessed clients facing self-imposed obstacles that hinder their financial growth. She often thought if only they could break free from these internal barriers or, more realistically, they need to get out of their own way. Reflecting on this, linda thought about her own experiences with money. Growing up in a lower middle class household, she had inherited a scarcity mindset. She experienced diverse money situations as her life progressed and observed many narratives. Through these vast life experiences and self-realization, she set out on a journey of self-improvement and unwittingly rewrote her money script. Now she empowers others to overcome internal obstacles to financial success, At Mindset and Money. She enables women to shift their money mindset, dismantling internal obstacles blocking their financial success. Wow. So, linda, let me ask you, before you change the narrative to a money mindset, what was your life like growing up as it related to money?

Linda: 3:39

So, as it said in my bio you read, I grew up in a lower middle class household, so we weren't super poor, but I knew that we lived paycheck to paycheck and I knew that there were friends that had more and did more than me.

Cassandra: 3:58

I'm sorry, that's Max. Max, my fur baby is howling because he wants to be on this podcast and he always finds a way so I'm hopeful get his footprint on, he will be quiet in a minute. Thank you, listeners, and Linda—commercial break.

Linda: 4:18

All right. Well, thanks for that lovely message there, max. Yeah, so anyway. So I knew that, I knew that people had more than me, but I didn't really like talking about it. We didn't talk about money, so there was not really a whole lot of lessons about money. Going on and living paycheck to paycheck became a way of life for me also, so I would earn money to make money when I needed something, when I would do odd jobs and things, and then I would spend the money, but there was no savings involved. And then, even as I got older and I got jobs, like, I always just ended up spending the money that I got from the job. And if I got a different job there, I made more. I just I just spent more, right? So there was not, not any saving or planning engraved in my money mindset, right?

Linda: 5:10

And the other part of that was is that I was always looking to earn more, always like striving to get more which is in some ways good, but in other ways that's that scarcity mindset where you feel like there's never really going to be enough.

Cassandra: 5:23

Right.

Linda: 5:24

So that's the mindset that I eventually had to overcome and to get into a more space, like a positive space where you feel like there's enough money to go around and that you're going to be okay. A lot of that self-discovery on my part through my life journey. Yeah, why? I now have a course. That's a, you know, structured way for people to learn and move through their money mindset journey so that they don't have to do it the long, hard way like I did.

Cassandra: 5:58

Right. So what is money mindset? What does that mean?

Linda: 6:04

So it's, it's your beliefs about money, and that can be internal or external beliefs. So an example of an internal belief is like I'll never make that much money, like I'll never make $100,000 a year, or I'm not worth that much or I'll never be rich. So those are all things about you that are internal. And then external beliefs would be something like rich people are greedy, or you know people that are wealthy are mean, or whatever it is that you tell yourself about people, other people in the world or the environment around you that might be negative towards money, because a person can have a lot of money and be very philanthropic and give money to charities and help lots and lots of people. So not you know, it's just those stereotypes that that sometimes are in there and that's your mindset, it's. It's it's both internal and external. It's all the things that you think about money and your beliefs about money, maybe that other people have ingrained in you.

Linda: 7:15

So, your money story is everything that you've lived in your life that has to do with money. So it could be the way that you related with money when you first had a job. It could be the way your parents related with money or whoever you live with and what their relationship was. So, for instance, if you lived in a household where your parents were arguing about money all the time, well then you probably never want to talk about money and you probably think that money is scary, so you're going to avoid it more than someone who grew up in a household where they talked about money and money was a good thing and just all those things that come into play, that build that experience of money in your head.

Cassandra: 7:56

Right Now you are. You're doing twofold You're a financial advisor, financial planner, and you're also a mentor. Now, why the financial planner? Does it have anything to do with your background, your backstory and why you decided to move into that profession?

Linda: 8:19

yes, it does. Um, so I became a financial planner in a weird way, I was looking to make a career change and I was focusing on non-for-profits and was looking to be either an executive director or a like planned giving person. We're looking for like big gifts and things like that in the nonprofit space and I wanted to help have an impact on the most people possible. Okay, so I took a course called, or a program, a certificate program called the Chartered Advisor in Philanthropy Program through the American College of Financial Services, which serves those major fund development people in non-for-profits as well as financial advisors and even tax advisors, because it has a lot to do with planned giving, which can be charitable, but it could also be tax planning and it can also be financial planning.

Linda: 9:17

Okay, so once I put that that certification or pending certification actually on my LinkedIn, I started getting calls from recruiters from financial services people. I started I I am always just up for a conversation, so I was like I'll have these conversations, I'll see what they say, and it really started to make sense that I could help people through financial planning. So that's how I actually originally got into financial planning. And then doing the money mindset mastery course is a separate, complete separate business from that. Um, I have to keep them separate for regulatory reasons because, financial planning is highly regulated.

Linda: 9:53

So in the money mindset mastery course, I focus just on what's in people's minds. It's not about their numbers at all. I don't talk to them about their budgets. I don't talk to them about any financial stuff. It's all about what is going on in your head and how can you recognize what that is and work through that so that you can achieve more.

Cassandra: 10:35

Okay, so if I say what qualifies you to do what you are doing?

Linda: 10:50

So I am a certified coach. I'm a certified Maxwell leadership coach and really it's about my, my background and what I went through in my journey, even though everybody's journey is extremely different my knowledge in financial planning, but also my ability to coach people through these transformative journeys and the course that I have is based on um psychological assessments that I did not create. They were created by psychologists of over 40 years worth of of data that they've collected and they created these assessments. So the assessments are not mine. Um, I pay to have a subscription to them and the people that go through my course work use them. They do these assessments, they get the written feedback from that company and then we talk through that and they journal through that and work on figuring out what all this data means to them and overcome those obstacles that they have that are stopping them from moving forward financially.

Cassandra: 12:02

Okay, the clients you have in your financial planning business, are there any commonalities with your clients that come up that you've recognized? That you see, and also because of that, parlayed you into this mindset, that they is, their mindset, different than the other mindset you think, or, uh, the similarities there everybody has their own unique mindset and, yes, there is a lot of correlation between financial planning and your money mindset, which is you, is what brought me to create the course.

Linda: 12:45

I could see that they were in their own way, their way was in their own way, yeah, yeah, better than I could say it, but they need to get out of their own way. Um, because they weren't seeing what I was seeing. So, um, and a lot of that was because of things that other people had told them or things they had learned, things that worked for other people. they're people ; they're themselves, not other people and they have their own set of circumstances.

Cassandra: 13:12

Yeah.

Linda: 13:12

So just helping them to understand that, you know that they, that these can, that these other things that they believe in can be roadblocks to their own success, and so they do. I mean, they do correspond with each other sometimes. So sometimes money mindset clients will become financial planning clients and vice versa, but they're really two separate things.

Cassandra: 13:37

OK, because you know a lot of my listeners. You know when they say they're stuck on something, they want to do this, but they just hadn't made the move. And then some says, well, I don't have the money. So, even though you know in your money mindset mentoring program, they can come to you and say, well, you know, I really want to open a business or I really want to write a book, but I don't have the money to invest in that. How would you, how would you approach them if they said that to you?

Linda: 14:12

That's a deep will because everybody have their own thing. But to me, what is the reason for writing the book? Right? Is the reason for writing the book to have recognition?

Linda: 14:27

In being an author and in your knowledge, is the reason for the book to share your message and hope that you're helping and inspiring other people, is the reason for the book to be a lead magnet for a business, and there's so many different reasons why people write a book, right. So, depending on what that is and also figuring out what that rate, that return on investment, be Right. So, that return on your investment, what is it that you want to get out of it and is it worth the investment that you put in? If you?

Linda: 14:57

don't have money like how are you how?

Cassandra: 14:59

are you?

Linda: 14:59

going to figure out what. What would make it be a good return on investment for you putting that money in. And you know how can we, how can we budget for that, how can you budget for that?

Cassandra: 15:09

Right, right, that that's good. Because of a lot of my listeners and even my clients, they're like, well, I can't afford it, you know, or it's like, and maybe they can't. But I always say, when the students ready, the teacher will appear because things can kind of open up. And I loved it when you said let's, let's take a deeper dive. Why do you want to do this? Is it worth the investment? You know, to say I want to, to do this and always using money as an excuse and I, and I know you know, money can be, you know, but I also know that, as you indicated, the mindset, the scarcity mindset, where did that come from? You know? So if they could change their thinking, and even in my understanding, just reading about you, Linda. You don't do one-on-one mentoring, you do group right. So you do this in a group setting. Why do you do it in a group setting opposed to one-on-one?

Linda: 16:15

So I have added a one-on-one option, but for people that want a more private experience, but they still go through the group to the community program, right? So there's a community program and we do group calls in the community program. The reason is because I feel like when you do it one-on-one, it almost feels like there's something wrong with you, like I have this problem with my money mindset and I need to, I need to figure out what it is. It's not a problem. Everybody has a money mindset and everybody can improve. So you're constantly it's constantly changing, there's constantly things that are going to come up and evolve with your money mindset. So there's nothing wrong with you. Um, I mean, there you know, people that I might need to refer to a therapist or a counselor, like is they have, you know, an addiction, like spending issue or something like that they might actually need therapy.

Linda: 17:13

But, generally speaking, just talking about mindset, everybody has one. So, going through a group program, the people see that even though nobody's story is exactly the same and nobody's issue is exactly the same. Then they can see, though, that, like, everybody has this and everybody is going through a journey, and they can see how other people react to things. So, telling the stories like one person telling their story, another person might be able to relate to their story, you know. So one of the questions I ask is about like what? What was, what were the conversations that happened in your house when you were growing up around money?

Linda: 17:54

Were there conversations, were they good conversations? Were they bad conversations? And then like, what were your experiences with money? So, like someone said, someone said one time like my mom went out and bought, like herself, new clothes all the time, but I was allowed to go shopping once a year for school, and so by the time the new school year came around, all my clothes were way too small anyway. So it was like a big deal when I got to go shopping for new clothes, but yet she was bringing home new clothes all the time. When I got to go shopping for new clothes, but yet she was bringing home new clothes all the time.

Linda: 18:23

So that said that she said that that made her feel unworthy and it made her realize that she was doing that now as an adult, like she's treating everybody else to everything but she's not doing anything, she's not buying herself anything. So you know, mostly we find people who are like buying things all the time for themselves, and that's mostly the issue, right, how?

Linda: 18:43

I spend so much money, but for her it was like spending all this money on other people but I'm not buying anything for myself and I realized that she was. She had brought that whole mindset around that money that she wasn't worthy of spending the money on in her life. And then other people that were listening were like, oh my gosh, I can relate to that.

Linda: 19:02

This is what happened in my household and this is how I'm doing it now, so they could see like everybody has those things that they bring with them that are the mindset that they were, that they don't even know they had, about what their experience was with money okay, now when they go through your I'll call it a cohort class with your group.

Cassandra: 19:25

Um, how do you measure and how many weeks is the program?

Linda: 19:31

So it was originally set up to be an eight week program.

Cassandra: 19:34

Okay.

Linda: 19:35

And now, because it's in the community and it can really be done at your, at your own pace, like you don't have to come, like every day at the same time in eight weeks, ok, ok.

Linda: 19:45

So there's, the one of the first things we do is a financial health score assessment and then we we go through the eight weeks of program and then we take that same assessment at the end so that you can compare your score, that same assessment at the end so that you can compare your score.

Linda: 20:02

And in reality I don't expect a huge change in eight weeks, but there is a change in eight weeks, just by the way people feel about their money. But then they can stay in the cohort, they can revisit any lesson, then they can come back and take that financial health score assessment again. They're allowed to be in there for a year right now, and listen to what I'm working on., like you know, to be in there for a year right now and then I'm working on, Then I can allow people to come in and stay in and maybe pay a smaller fee because I still have to pay for the assessments and things that I'm doing. But they can revisit and retake the quizzes and the assessments, and get their new scores and compare as time goes on Right.

Cassandra: 20:39

Because the reason I asked that, because I was wondering how do you measure success, you know, in this eight week or year, whatever long the program is, and is it qualitative, quantitative, or in other words, maybe, how do they measure, maybe, their success?

Linda: 21:02

Right. So taking, the assessment and getting that score, that's your quantitative right, that's your number. So hopefully your number is improving. But then qualitative, like just the idea that you can feel more confident in talking about money, is one thing. Another thing is that you're going to recognize your behaviors when it comes to money. So being able to be like, okay, I see what I just did there, like that was something that you know was from my money mindset, and then being able to change those behaviors, so, I would say just having more awareness overall of what you're doing with money and how you're feeling about it.

Cassandra: 21:46

Yeah, this is so, so good, because you're making me think about my backstory and how my parents used to say, well, money doesn't grow on trees. I'm like, okay, why do they say that? My dad used to say you have to save money. When you get money, you have to put it in the bank. And I'm like, okay. So then, you know, as I got older, I was like, okay, I'm saving everything. But I wasn't buying anything, cause I was saving everything, you know. And then, you know, I remember, when I wanted to buy my dream car, I said, you know, I think I'm gonna put a little bit of this into my dream car account. And you know, and it all came from what he told me.

Cassandra: 22:26

But yet then my mom would say you're so stingy, you're just like your dad, you don't want to spend any money, keep all your money to yourself. And I would feel bad, like, well, she says more blessed to give than receive, you know. So all of that is kind of going in my mind like, oh, wow, you know. So then like you were talking about the individual, didn't feel worthy, and I'm like, oh, I'm feeling stingy. Well, maybe I should give this and maybe I should give that. So it's very interesting.

Cassandra: 22:56

You know where it comes from, you know you're thinking, so I applaud you for doing this session and I applaud you for being a financial planner or financial manager because, as you indicated, when you were growing up, you had a scarcity mindset as well. So now I'm certain your mindset has changed significantly, and you also talked about that. With that said, how do you heal the family's financial legacy? Because that's my legacy, like okay, you got to invest, you got to save money, doesn't go on trees, yeah. So how does that heal in that process?

Linda: 23:38

So I'm not sure exactly what you're asking, but everybody has a different idea of what their legacy is going to be right. Some people's legacy they want it to be financial. Some people want to be remembered for certain things, not financial. But the main thing is that you don't want to perpetuate the cycle of a negative money mindset.

Linda: 24:02

So you don't want to perpetuate a cycle of scarcity or poverty, right, okay, and I'm not sure if that really answers the question that you were looking for. Yeah, it does.

Cassandra: 24:12

Because, as I was reading some information in regards to you talked about healing a financial legacy. And so you hit the nail on the head when you said, well, and in growing up you know it was a scarcity thing, you know, so you don't want to take that on to the next generation because you're managing money a little more effectively. And then you are aware of how and what you say and what you do with money can impact you, and then it impacts the next generation than the next. So you said it. It was like well, how do you heal that financial legacy? And that legacy could be just being scarce. You're having a scarcity mindset and it doesn't really have to be like that.

Linda: 25:00

Right. So even just that phrase money doesn't grow on trees that's actually probably a scarcity mindset, you know, thinking that there's not going to be enough money and and then over saving too much and not spending it on yourself that's a scarcity mindset also but, there's balance.

Linda: 25:16

There has to be balance because you don't want to go to the opposite end of the of the spectrum there and be spending too much. You have to figure out what your, what your balance is and how you can live, yet save at the same time and not be stingy, which is also another bug there.

Linda: 25:37

But, yeah, you know it's finding that balance and, like I said, it's an ongoing journey. It doesn't. It's not like you go through a course and all of a sudden you're magically changed and fixed. It's not like that. It's transformative, like that it's transformative and it starts with something.

Cassandra: 25:54

It starts with letting go of any negative money stories you have but you have to recognize what they are first before you can let go of them. You know you intertwine. You said in your bio we talked about you being a mentor and then you talked about a coach.

Linda: 26:16

Is there a difference between a mentor and a coach? You think yeah, it's. To me, being a coach is even though people that now like to do life coaching and they don't necessarily tell people what to do. But to me, a coach sometimes, like in sports, is somebody who's just like telling you what to do but helping you a mentor is more someone be able to do it. And who's been there, who's been in your shoes and is helping you up along the way and helping you to see it for yourself, rather than telling you what to do.

Cassandra: 26:48

OK, ok, awesome, Because when you were growing up, you had that scarcity mindset. Now that you have progressed you've got, you're certified in certain things in regards to financial, you did the money mindset. What would you say? Your mindset is now as a result of the education and the learning that you've gained from back then to now.

Linda: 27:36

So my mindset is very different than it was. I mean, I'm still the same person with the same beliefs and everything. It's just that I see a bigger picture now. I've done a lot of internal work in uncovering what my internal obstacles are. My way, that was in my way and I know that my way is still in my way Because you know you're constantly working through those things. It's, never ending thing.

Linda: 27:59

But, I'm always challenging myself to think bigger. What's next? How can I think bigger? How can I expand my mind and my original mentors were just books. So I started with um and I started late in life on this. But I started with the John Maxwell books and really had some eye opening experiences in there and then have just read other books, that um, that really helped me to see, um, the bigger picture. Like think and grow rich, which is a classic from the 30s, you know, and then the Tipping Point and the Seven Habits of Successful People or whatever that book is called, the Seven Habits. But I mean those books really helped me and they really helped me to see the things that I already was doing, so ingraining in my mind like I'm doing the right thing, keep doing this, but then also like oh hey, I hadn't thought about that. I want to see how that plays out if I start thinking that way.

Cassandra: 29:00

Okay, so let me talk a little bit about limiting beliefs, because I believe that, you know, because the purpose of this podcast with all of them, though would like my listeners to kind of change their mindset and don't think that, you know, I can't do this because of money, and there's some things they're probably right, but I believe what you do is you, you can transform their thinking. I believe what you do is you, you can transform their thinking. And when we talk about limiting beliefs, you know I always had had a formula for limiting beliefs that I call the ABCs. Number one you got to acknowledge that you have it, and the B was where did that belief come from? And the C is kind of like, okay, can we change the narrative? Like, you know the validity of it, can you change that? And I also think you know limiting beliefs also come from, like you said, background stories, education, things like that. So what are some examples of limiting beliefs about money rather than just scarcity?

Linda: 30:17

Well, I think one of the things you just said was I can't do this because of money. Well, and I think that just saying I can't do this is a limiting belief right there. So the question is how do I make this happen? I want to do this.

Linda: 30:32

I want to do this. How do I make this happen? Because there are ways to make things happen without the money. You know what resources do you have. Who do you know? Who are your connections? Start building your network, start talking to people, start researching different ways to make something happen. I feel like if you put your time and energy into it, you're going to figure out a way to make it happen. Im not saying it's going to happen overnight, but just saying I can't. Just puts up that roadblock immediately and you're done Like you can't. If you say you can't, you can't, you're not going to go anywhere. But so other examples would be gosh. Like even thinking about like you're, never gonna, you're never going to be able to save money. You know, like I'm never going to have um $10,000 in the bank or whatever the number is, like I could never save that much money. Well, you got to start somewhere. So just start as small as you can.

Linda: 31:31

You know you, you take out, like you think about, what you spend on a cup of coffee or whatever the thing is, and maybe you eliminate that, that extra thing from your life and you take that money and you put it into a savings account. The sooner you get started, the better. It's going to compound over time and it'll grow, um, but you have to make those small shifts in order to make a change, right. So, um, never say that you can't do something, just say that I need to figure out how to make this happen and then figure out how to make it happen.

Cassandra: 32:04

Okay, okay that's good that, that way it helps them kind of get out of their way, right, yeah, yeah, how are we gonna make it happen, okay, okay, that's good that way it helps them kind of get out of their way. So, linda, how can my listeners get in touch with you?

Linda: 32:21

So the best way to find me is mindsetandmoney. com, and I have a special offer a freebie download and a little money mindset quiz as well as an offer for my course, if you put in slash pod, so money. Sorry, mindsetandmoney. com slash P-O-D is where you can find that offer and they can reach out to me on my website. They can find my contact information there, Okay, okay.

Cassandra: 32:50

Well, all this great work you're doing, do you have anything in mind that you wanted? What's next for Linda?

Linda: 32:59

Um, what is next for Linda? I'm, working on some stuff right now. I'm working on my signature. I'm working on my signature topic for my keynote speech that I hope to be presenting soon. Ok, yeah, so that's what's next for me.

Cassandra: 33:16

OK, well, that's good. And I ask that because, you know, after we've accomplished Certain things or goals or dreams we've had, you know then OK, so kind of like what's next? You don't want to always like sit on that, like okay, I've done that. It's kind of like when I wrote my book, I'm like, okay, wrote the book, I'm done, that's it. And then something inside said no, you're not. You know, I'm like, what do you mean? You know it took forever to write the book. So it's, it's still going to be more for you to do as long as you're living here on Earth.

Linda: 33:52

Oh, absolutely, yeah, I'm going to keep thinking bigger. We'll see what comes, right, right.

Cassandra: 33:57

So, linda, thank you so much, and I tell my listeners if there's anything that Linda shared, which I know it is because it's helped me to, to revisit my mindset on this money thing me too, to revisit my mindset on this money thing, please share this with them. and it'll be on every podcast platform and also listeners. You know that I always say bye for now, I don't say goodbye, I just say bye for now and stay tuned for the next podcast that airs every Wednesday live at 1 pm Eastern Standard Time. So, linda, again, thank you so much, bye for now. God bless you and my listeners. God bless you as well.