How Financial Therapy Can Help You Breakthrough Limiting Beliefs.

Introduction

Welcome to the True Wealth podcast! I am Seun Adeyemi, your host, and today we have an exciting episode in store. We are joined by Natasha Knox, a financial planner at Alafio Financial Wellness and a Certified Financial Planner (CFP). Natasha’s unique approach to financial planning through financial therapy has garnered significant attention. In this interview, we dive deep into the world of financial therapy and how it helps clients achieve their financial goals.

Meet Natasha Knox

Natasha Knox is a financial planner at Alafio Financial Wellness with a career spanning over five and a half years. Her journey into the financial industry started unintentionally at Freedom 55, where she spent 13 years before launching Alafio. Today, Natasha is known for her compassionate and client-focused approach to financial planning.

Understanding Financial Therapy

Financial therapy is a specialized approach that blends financial planning with aspects of mental health and emotional well-being. Natasha describes it as a spectrum, ranging from purely transactional financial interactions to deep-rooted therapy sessions.

On one end, we have standard financial planners who consider the numbers and investment strategies. On the other end, we find therapists who may address clients’ emotional issues but rarely touch upon financial matters. The sweet spot in the middle is where financial therapy thrives – a space that acknowledges the emotional impact of finances while providing comprehensive financial planning.

The Power of Mental Health in Financial Decisions

Natasha emphasizes the crucial role mental health plays in our financial decisions. Money often becomes a major stressor and point of friction in people’s lives, affecting their financial choices and overall well-being. Many financial planners, including Natasha, adopt a more holistic approach, addressing their clients’ emotions and beliefs about money.

The Process of Financial Therapy:

Before delving into financial therapy with her clients, Natasha takes several steps to ensure the process is beneficial for them:

Intake Form and Assessments: Natasha uses an intake form that helps her gauge what clients are seeking – whether it’s purely financial planning or financial therapy. Additionally, she employs assessments to understand clients’ background, beliefs, and emotional history related to money.

Building a Family Tree: By creating a genogram that spans two generations, Natasha uncovers patterns and family dynamics that might influence clients’ financial behaviors.

Coaching Methodologies: Natasha uses specific coaching methodologies or internal family systems approaches to help clients identify and address deep-seated issues related to money.

The Impact of Financial Therapy

Natasha’s financial therapy approach has had a profound impact on her clients. By addressing emotional and mental aspects tied to money, clients gain fresh insights into their financial behaviors. Often, the therapy uncovers unexpected sources of financial stress, leading to more meaningful and transformative discussions.

Client Participation and Privacy

Although financial therapy involves exploring sensitive aspects of a client’s life, Natasha finds her clients surprisingly open to sharing their experiences. Before delving into financial therapy, Natasha ensures that clients are interested and willing to engage in this process. The level of involvement varies, and some clients prefer to focus solely on traditional financial planning.

The Significance of Traditional Financial Planning:

Natasha highlights that while some clients seek comprehensive financial therapy services that explore their family history, attitudes, and behavioral biases, others simply want a traditional financial plan. She emphasizes the importance of consent and tailoring her approach to meet her clients’ specific needs and desires. By understanding their goals and expectations, Natasha aims to provide the necessary financial guidance without delving into areas unrelated to their requests.

Uncovering Limits, Beliefs, and Biases:

Natasha explains that many clients who approach her have already recognized their limitations and biases around money. They seek her assistance in overcoming these challenges and finding ways to move forward. Through her financial therapy approach, Natasha helps clients identify triggers, patterns, and underlying sources of their behaviors, enabling them to make more informed decisions and progress towards their desired outcomes.

Success Stories and the Journey of Growth:

Although Natasha cannot divulge specific details due to client confidentiality, she shares that success in financial therapy is a process rather than a single moment. When reflecting on clients’ stated goals after a year of working together, she often finds that they have made progress and achieved what they desired. Natasha emphasizes that the journey towards financial well-being is not linear but rather a spiral, with occasional setbacks or moments of reverting to old behaviors. However, these instances provide valuable insights and opportunities for further growth and understanding.

The Collaborative Approach and Shaping Clients’ Understanding:

Natasha explains that her approach is not to view clients as broken or problems to be solved but as individuals seeking growth, exploration, and development. She believes that people’s behaviors make complete sense to them in their respective contexts. By fostering self-awareness and understanding, Natasha helps clients identify the areas they want to change and facilitates the desired transformation. She highlights the importance of identifying triggers and patterns to help clients work through their challenges effectively.

Collaboration with Therapists and Setting Boundaries:

Natasha mentions that many of her clients who are interested in financial therapy are already engaged in therapy for other aspects of their lives. However, when it comes to collaboration with external therapists, Natasha prefers to stay within her area of expertise. While she acknowledges the value of therapy, she focuses primarily on the financial aspects and refers clients to therapists if their concerns are unrelated to financial matters. Natasha also mentions having a therapist on her team who offers coaching and consulting services, providing clients with a well-rounded support system.

Conclusion:

In this enlightening conversation, we explored the fascinating world of financial therapy with Natasha. We learned about her personalized approach to financial planning, integrating elements of therapy to help clients overcome emotional barriers and make progress towards their financial goals. Natasha’s emphasis on collaboration, growth, and self-understanding sets her apart as a financial planner who recognizes the interconnectedness of money and emotional well-being. To learn more about Natasha and her services, visit her website at alafia.ca.