Episode 1597: Interview with Linda Grizley About How Our Money Beliefs Create Our Reality

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Scott Maderer: [00:00:00] Thanks for joining us on episode 1,597 of the Inspired Stewardship Podcast.

Linda Grizley: I'm Linda Grizzly. I challenge you to invest in yourself, invest in others, develop your influence and impact the world by using your time, talent, and your treasures to live out your calling. Having the ability to put yourself first in your budget is key, and one way to be inspired to do that is to listen to this.

The Inspired Stewardship podcast with my friend Scott Mader.[00:01:00]

Scott Maderer: Welcome and thank you for joining us on the Inspired Stewardship Podcast. If you truly desire to become the person who God wants you to be, then you must learn to use your time, your talent, and your treasures for your true calling in the Inspired Stewardship Podcast who will learn to invest in yourself.

Invest in others and develop your influence so that you can impact the world.

In today's podcast episode, I interview Linda Grizzly. I asked Linda how she lived to discover that money was more than numbers. Linda also shares how mindset is more important than math when it comes to your money, and I also asked Linda to share with you why putting yourself last costs more than it's worth financially and emotionally.

I have a great book that's been out for a while now called Inspired [00:02:00] Living. Assemble the Puzzle of your Calling by Mastering your Time, your Talent, and your treasures. You can find out more about that book over an inspired living book.com. It'll take you to a page where there's information and you can sign up to get some mailings about it, as well as purchase a copy there.

I'd love to see you get a copy and share with me how it impacted your world. Linda Grizzly is a motivational speaker, financial educator, and realist with a heart. Linda helps women who feel behind financially or emotionally reconnect with their self-worth and start making money decisions that actually reflect who they are and what they want.

After years working as a financial planner, Linda noticed something no spreadsheet could fix Her clients weren't just struggling with numbers. They were stuck in shame, self-doubt, and outdated beliefs about what was responsible, and she understood it firsthand. Raised with a scarcity [00:03:00] mindset. A single mom at 16 and later rebuilding her life post-divorce.

Linda lived the pressure of trying to catch up while constantly putting herself last. That lived experience combined with a no fluff approach to growth became the foundation of her signature framework. A mindset first approach that helps women trade guilt for clarity, self neglect for self-trust, and hustle for alignment.

Today, Linda speaks teaches and coaches women through the process of transforming their relationship with money so they can stop just surviving their life and start choosing it. Welcome to the show, Linda.

Linda Grizley: Thanks, Scott. I'm really excited to be here and have this conversation with you.

Scott Maderer: Absolutely. I talked in the intro about some of the work you've done as a speaker, an educator, all of the coaching work you do, and yet I also think of intros and bios and those sorts of things as like the Instagram photos [00:04:00] of our life.

We always make sure we frame everything just right and get the dirty laundry out of the picture and all of that. So take us back a little bit and share some about your journey and what's brought you to the point where this is the message, this is the calling, this is what you're putting out in the world.

Linda Grizley: Yeah. So the funny thing about that is, is that I don't actually, I put my dirty laundry out there and that, that's part of what I'm bringing to the space. Like I didn't grow up thinking that I'd be a financial planner and a financial educator or a speaker. I was a teen mom. I dropped outta high school at 16.

There you go. There's some of my dirty laundry right there. And for a long time I was just trying to survive. I did get married young too, and then divorced after being married half my life. But survival teaches you things and it teaches you to listen and observe and just figure things out.

And every step of my journey was always about just figuring it out and [00:05:00] just Hey, what's next? How do I get through this and how do I think bigger? I went back to school in my forties, got my bachelor's degree when I was, what, like 45 or 46 built my own business. And I've always just been about like in the beginning it was just figuring out and getting by and then after, after I figured out the whole mindset part of it.

Then it was all about like, how do I think bigger? I was always doing things and moving towards things that I really didn't even know what they were or what was possible. So I think that's the part that, that of my journey that really brings me where I am.

Scott Maderer: So how do you think, talk about how that helps you relate to the message that you share of talking to other folks now and working with women.

How do you think your background and [00:06:00] your history has affected the way you work with people today?

Linda Grizley: I think in my career as a financial planner, which I'm not anymore, I'm not doing financial advising, but I found that people would come in, women this mainly would come in and they would be ashamed or embarrassed, shy about their finances and they would be like I know I don't have it figured out and I know I haven't done this right.

And I, they just felt like they had done everything wrong or that they were so far behind. I was always telling them, you're not, you're just like everyone else. Yeah, there are some people that are ahead, but the majority of people are just regular people like you and me who are just figuring it out as we go.

And so I, that's really what drove me to switch to education because I wanna provide a space for women where they feel comfortable to show up where they feel like. Hey, I'm going along with this trusted partner who's gonna teach me things, [00:07:00] not try to take advantage of me. 'cause that was another thing.

They were always worried that they would, they talked to a financial advisor that they would be taken advantage of. They're gonna, they're gonna teach me things. They're gonna tell me like how it all works. And so that they can better understand it so that if they do decide to work with a financial planner or advisor, they won't be ashamed.

They won't feel like they don't know what what they're talking about.

So it's really, I'm really serving the people that, that I once was. I was that person starting out. I was that person scraping by. I was that person, midlife divorce. I was that person who was trying to figure things out.

I was that person who didn't go to a financial advisor because I didn't think that I deserved one or needed one or whatever so all of those people that I used to be, and the person that I am now that's who I'm serving.

Scott Maderer: So one of the things I like to highlight is what our particular faith journey or spiritual walk, whatever it looks [00:08:00] like for us, and how that has influenced and affected the walk we're on in our career and in our life.

How has your spiritual walk intersected with your life and business journey?

Linda Grizley: Faith for me has been, has shown up in. The leaps that I've taken. So I like I use the term figure it out all the time. 'cause that's what I was been doing my whole life was just figuring it out. I, there was no roadmap.

There was, I had no mentors. I had nobody telling me how things were how to do things or how life should be or what, how I could make my life better. Books became my mentors at some point, but really it was, faith to me was like just that inner feeling that said. There's more and you need to just keep trying.

There's several leaps that I took in my life where I was just like, you know what? I'm doing this. And I [00:09:00] think it wasn't because I had certainty that I would succeed, but it was because I believed in the possibility of something better and belief that if I put good out into the world, it would come back to me.

Scott Maderer: You've used that expression, figure it out several times. And I think I I run across that a lot with people as well, where it's just you I have to figure it out. Nobody taught me this. You hear those things. Why do you think in this. And I don't think it's even just America. People say that's typical of American, but I work with people all over the world and I hear the same thing from people in Germany and the UK and all sorts of places.

So why do you think we've set up a system where it is everyone feels like they just have to figure it out. Where do you think that comes from?

Linda Grizley: I think it's just come from our culture and the way everybody was brought up. And I think everybody was just so focused on working hard and getting by for so long.

That's the way it was. But if you think [00:10:00] about it, Scott, now in today's world there are coaches for everything and people sometimes will make fun of the fact that there are coaches for everything. Oh, you're gonna be a coach. Everybody is a coach. What's with all the coaches?

That's exactly what it's about. It's about finding someone who used to be you, who's in the situation that who used to be in the situation you are, so that they can help you. So you don't have to figure it out the hard way. You're still figuring it out, but you have help. You have a guide and a mentor, and I think the best explanation I ever had or saw for this was someone said, it's like a maze.

You're entering a maze and you're going through your maze that you're in, and you're bumping into walls and you're figuring it out. But if you have someone who's been through that maze and knows the way, and they can help you, you still might bump into a wall here and there, but you're gonna bump into a lot less walls and you're gonna get to the end faster.

[00:11:00] And I think that is the part of it that really starts to make sense.

Scott Maderer: So you've taken a approach you mentioned earlier the mindset idea or the belief based or how we look at things. Where does that come from when it comes to mindset? Why do you think mindset is so important when we talk about money?

Linda Grizley: A couple of things. The first thing is my own personal money journey had a lot to do with my mindset around money and what I thought my worth was. So there's that part because that was a huge part of me making great strides and changes in my life. But the other thing is that money is such an emotional thing.

There's so much psychology that goes into money. And when you think about the, when I think about the people the women who I met with who made good money and still felt broke, or still felt behind, or [00:12:00] were ashamed by their things. Their math wasn't the problem. Sometimes it was math, but usually the math wasn't the problem.

The mindset was, or the emotion around it was Right. And they had to really in, in working in financial services. The best way to be successful was to really talk to clients about like their own personal journey and stories, which is not taught to you in any financial planning class now. Actually the CFP board started adding financial psychology to its curriculum just in the last couple of years.

So it's starting to get in there. But if you think about money. It's like breathing money is with us every single moment of our lives. Even when we're sleeping, we're spending money. You're spending money on heating or cooling your home. You're spending money on powering your lights, your devices, like [00:13:00] money is always there, just like our breath.

So it's such an important thing. And when you start to think about money in that sense that it's that integrated into your life it can become scary, but it also just totally shifts your perspective on your relationship with it.

Scott Maderer: What do you see, what do you see people doing instead of recognizing the emotional side of money? You kinda mentioned it's usually not the math. And I get asked that a lot too what's the app or how do I do the math to make this work? What do you see being the key that moves people from thinking about it as a math problem, to recognizing that it's more of a mindset and behavior and belief problem?

Linda Grizley: One of the things that I start off with in, in some of my courses or in coaching is uncovering a [00:14:00] person's just general money. Personality. And then there's stories about money. So what's your money personality? And there's no wrong answer. Like it's you are what you are, but you have to learn how to work with that.

And then your stories about money. How, what did, what were your first experiences? How did your parents deal with money between them? Did they fight about it? How did they deal with money with you? Were were you given an allowance and did you have chores? Were you just just handed money or were said, Hey, you go figure it out and tell me what you wanna do and I'll pay you.

But you gotta figure it out, right? There's lots of different stories that people have about money. Nobody's as the same. Everybody's as 100% unique to them. It can't be the same. It's as different as your DNA.

Scott Maderer: How does understanding that story help us change the way we make decisions and use our money?

Linda Grizley: So it [00:15:00] helps you understand why you do the things you do with money. In that sense helps you to put more value on the way you're using your money because you're understanding why you're doing something the way you're doing it. So for instance, in my I have this money personality quiz, which we'll get to later, but in there it talk, it says if you're a saver and you're somebody who always saves money, you might be.

Not spending things on yourself because you're afraid like you don't think you're worthy of that, or like you would never spend that much money on yourself, but in reality, you might be buying 10 things for $10 because you can justify that because they were on sale or whatever. But really the thing you want is one thing for a hundred dollars, but you would never spend that money on yourself.

So you might still be spending the same amount of money just doing it differently because of your mindset and your [00:16:00] personality around money. That's just one example, but I hope that frames it a little bit differently. But it's helping you to understand that process that your mind goes through when you're making money decisions.

Scott Maderer: So talk a little bit more about the quiz and the approach you take for helping people discover how they frame the way they think about money.

Linda Grizley: It's just a quick 10 question quiz, and the money personalities that are there are not something I created. I they're out there.

You can Google it people, there's all different versions of it. People call it different things. But I identi, I identify five different ones and I have a way I explain the results very quickly. Just say here's what you are and here's how it shows up. And then here's what you can do to try to put some intention around the way you spend money or don't spend money.

So the funny personalities that I identify are a saver, a spender, an avoider, a risk taker, and a security [00:17:00] seeker. So those are the five. And there's, like I said, there's no wrong answer. It's not like you're like, oh no, I'm a risk taker, or, oh no, I'm a spender, or, oh there's none of that. It's just, oh, I get it now.

This is why I am doing this. This is why this is happening. And it lets you use you to figure it out. So for instance. People that try to budget, most budgets fail. Most people cannot stick to their budget, cannot do it. And this is also why I created my me money method, which I don't wanna go into whole pitch on that but when you understand why and you put your why of money, your why of money, and your personality of money into your budgeting.

You make it so that it works for you. It's mind blowing because it finally makes sense. 'cause you're trying to put a square peg into a round hole if you're just trying to make a budget and you're not thinking about what your money personality is.

Scott Maderer: [00:18:00] And what happens when you talked earlier about somebody that kind of puts themselves last often when it comes to the money or doesn't think about where they show up.

And I think a lot of us, especially women, but I think a lot of people do that where they're more likely to spend money on other people. They think about everyone else first, and they don't put themselves into the equation at all. What happens over time when people are constantly putting themselves last on the list?

Linda Grizley: I believe that when you are putting yourself last, you're erasing yourself.

You are not, you are taking away the person that you are over time. And I think that you talked about like spending money on other people. Like you can be a spender and not spend money on yourself.

Your money personality can be a spender. [00:19:00] It, you still might not be spending money on yourself. You could just be giving, you could be treating friends or picking up a tab or even being charitable. That doesn't mean that you're not a spender, just because you're not spending it on yourself.

You still could be that. Just wanted to throw that in there too. 'cause you mentioned that.

Scott Maderer: Yeah. I actually have a client that is very tight for his own stuff, but will spend literally drop a thousand dollars on a dinner for a bunch of friends and it's, we actually had that conversation about, okay, you know what, what's going on here?

Let's talk about it. Let's see where it's coming from. And it's not even, is it good or bad? It's just. Is this on purpose, or is this something you feel obligated to do or feel like you where's it coming from? And in his case, he continues to drop money on his friends, but he also is spending some money on himself now.

It's [00:20:00] okay, that's what, and he can do that. He can afford it so it's fine, but it's it's not a. Yeah. It wasn't that he got rid of the spinning on the friends. He is just oh yeah, I can't actually do some things that I wanna do.

Linda Grizley: Nice.

Scott Maderer: Yes, you can. I'd be curious to know and I don't, you don't have to say it if you know it, but what his story was and how like his history and how he ended up that way.

Linda Grizley: I had a client who, when we in one of my money mindset courses, she, we were talking about like our money stories and how our parents and the first experiences with money, and she said. My mom always was dressed to the nines and shopped for herself, but I got to go shopping once a year for back to school, and by the time I was going back to school, all my clothes didn't fit.

They were all worn out and she's and now it is like this light bulb went off. She was like, I don't spend money on myself, but I spend money on other people. And she was like, I get it [00:21:00] now. I was brought up. I believe that I'm not worthy of spending money on. And it was like just so mind blowing for her to realize that's what she had been doing.

And this woman, let me tell you, was in her early seventies.

She was not a spring chicken. Like she was like, I'm just now figuring this out. I cannot believe this. Because no one asked her, no one had the conversation.

It's just really getting people to open up and understand. I actually had a conversation with someone just a couple of weeks ago where they were asking me questions and I was like, holy cow, you just uncovered something in my money mindset that I hadn't even thought about.

Scott Maderer: Yeah,

Linda Grizley: it was because you just, the questions and the conversation just. Just open up for you to discover. It's amazing what can happen.

Scott Maderer: And I will give a little bit just to share about the gentleman that I'm talking about. So he's a serial entrepreneur and he started and run [00:22:00] several businesses and they're all kind of online businesses and in his family.

The kind of the way to provide value. Everyone else in his family is professional doctor, lawyer kind of person. And he's always been told that it's not, this is not a real business. This isn't really how you do things. And that his business has no value. And so some of his purchasing for other people is almost signaling, Hey, I can do this.

Linda Grizley: Wow.

Scott Maderer: I am worth something. I am, I've got value because it's a virtue, single signaling in a way. And again, not good or bad, but it was kind once he realized, it's wait a minute. I'm trying to prove to everybody else that I've got. Value, and I don't have to prove that to anyone else.

It changed the way he looked [00:23:00] at it and some of the decisions he was making around it. That's the very very short version. It goes back further than that, but that's it's. That's the core of where it was coming from.

Linda Grizley: Yeah. But it makes sense, right? Yeah.

Scott Maderer: Because it's you don't have a real business.

It's yeah, he was the business was multi multimillion dollar revenue kind of business. I'm going, it's real it's been paying you good money. I don't think I, I don't think I'd laugh at it, but. Yeah. To to his family, to his friends in the circle he was in. It wasn't real, interesting. Yeah.

Good

Linda Grizley: story. So I've got a few questions that I like to ask all of my guests, but before I ask you those, is there anything else about the work you do around finances and coaching and education that you'd like to share with the listener?

So I do all my marketing focused [00:24:00] on women because that's who I am and that's who I've been.

But it's open to anyone who feels that they are behind or should know more, or has guilt or shame, and feel like they need a safe space to go show up as their authentic self. But mainly, I wanna say. You don't have to wait until you get it all together to start right. I tell people, it's like saying you wanna get in shape before you go to the gym, before you start an exercise program, because pick up where you are and start.

It's whether you're rebuilding, pivoting, or just finally ready to look your finances in the eye. Just do it. Now you're on time, like today is the first day of the rest of your life. That's the message that I would say

Scott Maderer: I always explain to people. I said, it's it. When I hear people say that about their money, it's do you also clean the house before the maid comes over?

Because it's the same thing. It's

Linda Grizley: [00:25:00] Exactly.

Scott Maderer: So my brand has inspired stewardship and I run things through that lens of stewardship, and yet I've discovered over the years that's one of those words that can mean a lot of different things to a lot of different people.

So for you, when you hear the word stewardship, what does that word mean to you?

Linda Grizley: It means a couple of different things. Number one, it means honoring where you are. That means your life, your place on earth, right? It means honoring all of that. Stewarding what? What has been given to you, but it also means honoring your time, your story, and your resources, and using them with intention.

So I'm taking my story and what I've learned, and I wanna help other people with that. It's really just taking what you have and taking good care of it.

Scott Maderer: This is my favorite question that I like to ask everybody. Imagine for a moment that I was able to invent this magic [00:26:00] machine, and with this machine I was able to take you from where you are today and transport you into the future, maybe 150, maybe 250 years.

And through the power of this machine, you were able to look back and see your entire life. See all the connections, all of the ripples, all of the impacts you've left. What impact do you hope you've had in the world?

Linda Grizley: I want to have inspired and empowered people to make the world feel a little less scary.

Help them and to do more, to think bigger and just help them to get to that next level, to be the person that they really want to be.

Scott Maderer: So what's on the roadmap? What's coming next as you finish out the year and go into next year?

Linda Grizley: So right now by the time this comes out, my courses will be launched.

So right now I'm building on, I'm building courses. I'm building a me money course. Financial [00:27:00] Foundations a fin do it yourself. Financial planning. I'm money redoing my money, revamping my money mindset course, so I'm creating spaces for women to learn, gather, and grow. There'll be an online community and I'm gonna be doing public speaking to spread the word.

I really, my goal is to impact and help the most people that I can, because I wanna be someone for them and be the person that I never had.

Scott Maderer: Awesome.

You can find out more about Linda Grizzly over at Linda Grizz. That's Linda GRI z.com. Of course, I'll have a link to that over in the show notes as well so you can find it. That there, Linda? Is there anything else you'd like to share with the listener?

Linda Grizley: On my website you can find that personality quiz that I talked about, and that's just on the resources page.

So head on over there. There's some other freebie things you can have on there. There's a [00:28:00] confidence quiz and a bunch of other just financial tools that may be useful to you.

Scott Maderer: Awesome. Thanks so much for sharing that.

Thanks so much for listening to the Inspired Stewardship Podcast. As a subscriber and listener, we challenge you to not just sit back and passively listen, but act on what you've heard and find a way to live your calling. If you enjoyed this episode please do us a favor. Go over to inspired stewardship.com/.

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