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August 5, 2021

How Financial Therapy Supports Small Business Success

By Wendy Wright, LMFT, Financial Therapist

I’ve been a small business owner since 2014, and at the start, I didn’t quite know what I was getting myself into. As a mental health therapist and serial entrepreneur, I take pride in my ability to create and help others to heal and grow. Yet, like so many in my field, I hadn’t earned a business degree and wasn’t able to embark on my small business journey with the confidence I craved. I was anxious that I was going to be part of the statistic that says 50 percent of small businesses will fail in the first 5 years. And as a driven professional with my small business being my sole income, that felt like a lot to risk!

Luckily, several years into my business, I was fortunate to be accepted into the Goldman Sachs 10,000 Small Business Program, a mini MBA program that catapults small business scholars into a better understanding of the world of business. Things took on more dimension and clarity. I left feeling motivated and invigorated. The experience brought so much value to what I wanted to accomplish within my business and community.

Fast forward to 2020 and the COVID-19 pandemic. Workaholism is on the rise with the hope of gaining financial security in the face of so much uncertainty. I too found myself backsliding into a scarcity mindset and was suffering from noble poverty. I knew I needed to continue to work on myself and my relationship with my business to find balance again. Enter financial therapy!

Financial therapy is a process of healing our money stories and improving our relationship with money. It’s exploring our thoughts, feelings, and behaviors around money. As a workaholic therapist with significant student loans who comes from one saver parent and one spender parent, I knew there was work to be done, specifically related to wealth, worth, and work-life balance.

Wealth

Financial therapy is offered with compassionate curiosity, inviting us to do the work of uncovering what wealth means for us. Is wealth about having financial security? Taking vacations without guilt? Paying for our kids’ college? Getting out of debt? Perhaps our process begins with simply being more comfortable talking about money. By exploring how wealth is defined and measured for us each as an individual, we can invite wealth into our lives through saving, strategizing, and embracing money tools that work for us, moving us one step closer to our money goals. 

Worth

There are several studies out there that say happiness is defined by a specific yearly income. But what if I told you our hardship over happiness isn’t actually about money? For some driven professionals, it’s about our worth being wrapped up in what we do. What we contribute. How we help. The idea that we are only as good as what we do. What if our low sense of worth prevents small business owners from raising our rates or collecting payment for a job well done? Money is one piece of our worth story. Financial therapy uncovers the complexities that shape how we show up in our personal and professional lives.

Work-Life Balance

If workaholism is defined as a money disorder, then I’m one of thousands of professionals looking to maintain a better work-life balance. Folks who are fighting against the urge to work 24/7 and feel guilty when we take a break. Small business owners who skip social events to work long hours or weekends. Entrepreneurs who struggle to stop thinking about their business at all hours of the day and night. It doesn’t have to be this way. Financial Therapy uncovers that inner dialogue about worth and work that can signal the beginning of healing our money story. Work-life balance is possible! Financial therapy can be part of the magic that makes it happen.

If you relate to any of these experiences, financial therapy may be the missing piece you’ve been seeking to achieve the next level of your small business success. I know the process has been invaluable to me as a driven professional. The team at Financial Therapy Solutions would be honored to help you on your journey to financial freedom!

Supporting Small Business Owners to Redefine Wealth, Worth, and Work-Life Balance

Khara Croswaite Brindle is passionate about giving people “aha moments” that create goosebumps and catalyze powerful action. She is a Licensed Professional Counselor and Financial Therapist in Denver, Colorado. Khara’s greatest joy is engaging driven entrepreneurs, Millennials, mental health professionals, and perfectionists to move from workaholic to well-balanced with streamlined strategies that fit their busy lifestyles. Khara has worked with a variety of clients on trauma and life transitions for the past 10 years. In her work as a Financial Therapist, Khara helps driven professionals find stability and freedom in their finances to reduce workaholism, battle burnout, and rediscover joy in what they do.

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what it's like working
with Wendy

Wendy offers a wonderful blend of business knowledge, talk therapy, and financial recovery that can help just about anyone heal their relationship with money. In our work together, I’ve seen her wisdom from such varied life experiences and her true passion for helping clients. Wendy will help you gain clarity and confidence in how you deal with money, all in a way that feels like talking to a friend. Congratulations to Wendy! We’re thrilled to have you as part of the Financial Recovery Institute family.
Karen McCallFounderFinancial Recovery Institute
Wendy is one of my most trusted referrals. She is able to work with a wide array of diagnoses and specializes in financial therapy and education, which is a perfect fit for many of my clients. Wendy and I have collaborated on challenging cases, which has only reinforced my confidence in her abilities. She is a talented clinician, highly professional, and an excellent collaborator. She is not afraid of a challenge and rises to the occasion with expertise and grace.
Dr. Katie SpencerFounderNorthbound Consulting
I’d highly recommend working with Wendy. Her mastermind group was fundamental in helping me build my counseling business. It has helped me get past beliefs about money that were unhelpful and limited my progression.
Kathryn EllwoodOwnerSalt Counselling
Wendy helped me look critically at my relationship with money so I could overcome limiting beliefs. She also helped me get more comfortable talking about money because she’s so open about it. I’ve actually had people tell me I’m easy to talk to about project rates and fees—that’s thanks to Wendy!
Ali WeeksOwnerMoxie Writing Co.
Working with Wendy has been one of the best decisions I have made for my career. I was able to dig deep into my money bias and see that I was getting in my own way of success. I always saw myself starting my business a few years down the road, but during the workshop, I took the leap and stopped waiting for the “right” moment. If you’re wanting to grow your business, understand your relationship to money, or just gain more confidence in the mastermind you are – work with Wendy. You won’t regret it!
Sarina PonteOwnerBridgewood Recovery
As soon as I start talking money with Wendy, I can exhale and feel my whole body relax. Her empathic, compassionate lead makes me feel good and confident about my relationship with money and how it shows up in my business. I’m always eager to talk money with Wendy!
Jenn UhenFounderThe Pledgettes
I loved Wendy’s energy when I first met her. I knew she was a good fit for me and I felt like her presence would also resonate well with my husband, which it did. We deeply explored the sensitive topic of money and our relationship. Wendy held the space for us to feel the entire spectrum of emotions. My husband and I felt more empathy and, from that place, we were able to have more effective conversations, identify goals, and create strategies for achieving them. We are both grateful for the container Wendy created and support she offered on a challenging journey.
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