Why Money Isn’t Math — It’s Emotion | Dan Pascone with Shari Rash | Ep #43

Posted on November 10, 2025 by Dan Pascone

Answer in Plain English (TL;DR)

Money is not just math on a spreadsheet—it’s emotion, identity, and lived experience. In this episode, Dan and financial planner Shari Rash unpack why so many single women and LGBTQ+ clients feel unseen by traditional financial advice, and how shifting from “Am I beating the benchmark?” to “Does this money support my life?” changes everything.

If you’ve ever thought, “I’m smart, I make good money, but I still don’t feel confident with it,” this conversation will feel like a mirror. Shari shows how representation, language, and mindset can turn accidental success into intentional wealth.

Key Takeaways

Money isn’t just numbers—it’s narrative. For many women and LGBTQ+ clients, the real barrier isn’t intelligence; it’s years of being talked at in a language that prioritizes performance, jargon, and products over feelings, goals, and lived reality.
Representation in planning matters. Most case studies, examples, and “typical” clients in our industry still assume a married heterosexual couple with kids and a legacy plan. Single women and queer clients often don’t see their lives in those stories, and that erodes confidence.
“Spreadsheet husbands” don’t equal shared understanding. Having a partner who tracks every dollar doesn’t mean both people understand their plan or feel empowered. Shari intentionally focuses on single women so they have a dedicated space to speak their language and build their own confidence.
Performance alone doesn’t create peace of mind. A portfolio that outperforms a benchmark isn’t helpful if the client still doesn’t know, “Am I okay? Am I on track? Can I live the life I want?” Shifting reviews to life, goals, and next steps is what calms the 3 a.m. money anxiety.
Simple tools plus clear language beat complex reports. Instead of thick printouts, Shari uses simple, human conversations and lightweight tools (like shared calendars and virtual meetings) to make planning fit real life—especially for busy, ambitious women.

Key Moments

00:00 – Intro: Why “money isn’t math, it’s emotion” and who this episode is for.
01:03 – Meet Shari Rash, Founder of GWA Wealth and specialist for single women and LGBTQ+ clients.
02:22 – Why representation in financial planning matters and how typical case studies miss whole groups of people.
06:58 – Finding a true niche and why Shari ultimately chose to focus on single women.
10:16 – The “spreadsheet husband” story and what it reveals about confidence versus control.
14:28 – How traditional planning conversations ignore clients without kids or a “next generation.”
17:44 – Why Shari structures reviews around “I’m happy with your plan” instead of benchmarks and basis points.
19:41 – The origin story of her podcast and how it evolved into Everyone’s Talkin’ Money.
24:25 – Lightning round: coffee vs. tea, sushi, Calendly, and what she’d tell her younger self about saving.

Episode Summary

In this episode of the Making Sense of Your Money podcast, Dan sits down with financial planner and GWA Wealth founder, Shari Rash, to explore why “money isn’t math—it’s emotion.” Shari shares how starting her career as one of the few women in the room shaped the way she listens and speaks to clients. When she took over a retiring advisor’s book of business, she noticed something important: conversations with women and LGBTQ+ clients sounded radically different from those with heterosexual men. Those clients wanted to talk about feelings, safety, identity, and confidence—not just performance and products.

That realization pushed Shari to intentionally build a firm focused on single women and members of the LGBTQ+ community, many of whom don’t see themselves in traditional planning examples. She explains how common it is for women to say, “My husband manages everything and has a spreadsheet,” or to rely on a well-meaning dad, uncle, or friend who speaks in stock tips and percentages. The result is a quiet sense of inadequacy, even when they’re doing a lot right. Shari calls many of her clients “accidental millionaires”—they’ve built real wealth, but every decision has had a question mark at the end of it.

Dan and Shari dig into what it means to design planning meetings around life, not benchmarks. Instead of leading with charts and basis points, she starts annual reviews with a simple message: “Your strategies are doing what they’re supposed to do. I’m happy with this.” That clears the way to talk about what really matters: upcoming life changes, how clients want to use their money, and what will make them feel secure and proud of their decisions. They also discuss how Shari’s podcast journey—starting with Money Chic to stay close to clients during COVID, then taking over Everyone’s Talkin’ Money—has created a bigger platform to normalize emotional, judgment-free money conversations.

Transcript

Dan: (00:00) I’m Dan Pascone, CEO of Tailored Wealth and host of the Making Sense of Your Money podcast. [music] Real conversations to help high earners make sharper decisions so their money works as hard as they do. This is episode number 43 and today I’m joined by Sheri Rash, founder of GWA Wealth and host of the Everyone’s Talking Money podcast.

Dan: (00:21) We dive into how she helps single women and members of the LGBT plus community build confidence in their financial lives, why money isn’t math, it’s emotion, and how shifting that mindset changes everything. [music] Before we dive in, make sure you’re subscribed on your favorite platform. And if you find the show valuable, I’d really appreciate you leaving a quick review. Thanks so much and enjoy.

Narrator: (00:43) >> Brought to you by Tailored [music] Wealth, helping business leaders live their version of a rich life. Welcome to another edition of the Making Sense of Your Money [music] podcast, where we cut through the financial noise and help business leaders to make smart, confident money decisions. [music]

Dan: (01:07) Sherry, thanks for joining the Making Sense of Your Money podcast today. Excited to have you.

Shari: >> Thanks for having me.

Dan: >> Yeah. Yeah. It’s going to be fun. Uh this is going to be an interesting conversation because you and I are both in the same industry, same field. In fact, we we learned before this call that we’re former colleagues, which is fun.

Dan: (01:21) But you have a really unique uh specialty and sort of client focus. So, I’m I’m excited to unpack that a little bit. So, just tell our audience a little bit about who you are, what you do, and uh I’m looking forward to chatting.

Shari: >> Yeah, I am a financial planner. Um founded my firm GWA Wealth about six years ago, created with the intention of serving single women and members of the LGBT plus community.

Shari: (01:45) Um, I’ve been in financial services my entire career and I also have a podcast called Everyone’s Talking Money.

Dan: >> Very cool. Very cool. We’re going to we’re going to talk about all of those things today, which is going to be fun. Tell us a little bit about um, you know, there’s a lot of financial adviserss and planners out there, but I love how specific you are to the subset of folks that you that you serve and that you help.

Dan: (02:11) So tell us what led you to serve single women in the LGBT plus community and then ultimately I want to hear a little bit about the work that you do for that group and what makes sort of the planning and wealth management side unique for that subset.

Shari: >> Yeah. So Dan obviously this doesn’t come as a surprise to you is that most people in financial services look a lot more like you than they look like me.

Shari: (02:35) So having grown grown up um and knowing no different that always just felt normal to me that you know being one of the only women in the room for my career before financial planning. I you know was the only female like I was wasn’t uncommon that I was 20 years old and my my colleagues were you know 25 years older than me.

Shari: (02:56) Um so I was kind of always used to being the only woman in the room and that and that just seemed normal. But throughout my career, I always kind of noticed that like I did things just a little bit differently when it came to my counterparts and I spoke just a little bit differently than they did.

Shari: (03:16) Again, what I wasn’t thinking too much about it. I just realized it. Then when I started my practice, um I I ended up taking over a a visor’s practice that was retiring and he a male older male in the industry and I I ended up taking over his practice >> and he did not necessarily have a total niche that he worked with. It was kind of anyone and everyone, >> right? but he is part of the LGBT community and a a fair amount of of his clients are as well.

Shari: (03:53) And but you know he unfortunately it was not during when he was building up his uh practice it was not really during a time where he could say hey this is who I serve >> right >> so that wasn’t necessarily his niche and as I’m meeting with clients and I’m speaking to them I just felt the conversations with women and my LGBT plus clients were just different than conversations with the heterosexual male.

Dan: (04:23) >> Okay.

Shari: >> And I So, it was a lot more about feelings and emotions when it comes to money versus just performance. And frankly, I enjoyed the feelings conversation a whole lot more. And then looking back on my career, my previous career, there were a lot of feelings conversations then, too. Was telling what’s going on with your business? Like, what are your pain points? What do your clients need? what are your struggles and helping to find solutions based off of that versus just like here’s my widget, my widget’s really

Shari: (04:56) great. So, that’s kind of the evolution of how I got to where I am now. Like, I had one conversation that was really enlightening, but that was kind of the evolution of how did I start working with it because I was just having conversations I really enjoyed and we got along really well and I wanted to serve those that were were under served by financial services.

Dan: (05:18) >> I love that. I love that. So, so much great stuff that you said there that I want to unpack a little bit. First off, I’m a true believer. I’ve seen this in my business as well. And you know, this can relate to a lot of different concepts, but typically the best ideas for your business come from just talking with your clients or your prospective clients, right? I mean, I’ve definitely found that it’s, you know, o over the years of talking with people, it helped to shape sort of our brand and who we serve. And I totally agree with you and

Dan: (05:46) I think it’s what a lot of folks in our field miss out on regardless of who they serve. But the emotions behind money is surreal, right? And I am a big big proponent of that. I’ve had a few guests on the podcast that have been able to unpack that. We had a uh financial therapist on a couple months ago and he really went deep on that and I thought that was really really enlightening.

Dan: (06:07) And to your point, there’s a lot of like data and models and you know just the the financial piece of wealth management and financial planning, but at the end of the day, it’s about your life and your life has a lot of emotions tied to it. So, um I’m I’m interested to to unpack that a little bit more. But first, I just want to understand you take over this practice uh which is not uncommon in our business and you sort of identify this niche and and it seems like it’s just like a group that you enjoyed working with and and frankly

Dan: (06:40) when you have a fairly unique niche, it it is good from a business perspective as well because you’re more specialized and you know people know who to look for and whatnot. But like ultimately was it just the fact that you enjoyed working with these folks and you felt like they had unique challenges? Was that what made you sort of specialize within the group that you do today?

Shari: >> Well, first I said, I’m going to work with women. I want to work with women.

Shari: (07:03) I’m a woman. >> It made sense, right? I laugh at, you know, the the other advisors, like male adviserss that are like, I want to work with women. And it’s like, really, do you or do you want to because there’s $30 trillion that are it’s is coming women’s way in in the next decade or two.

Shari: (07:26) But aside from that, but I was just like, “No, I mean, I want to kind looked at this career transition as I, you know, I used to travel a lot, woke up in a different city every day, thousands of nights in a hotel room, and I just looked at this transition as like, I’m making my life better. I need to make my life better.

Shari: (07:44) I want to work with people I like. Like, I don’t want the phone to ring and like I groan when I see who’s on it.” So that was just my thinking in general is like I’m doing this for like a life improvement. So yeah, let me look at the clients that like I really enjoy and like what are common denominators between them.

Shari: (08:02) But I wanted to work with women because women are underserved when 85% of the financial planning industry is male. like they’re they’re obviously if a woman is seeking out advice, she’s going to have a harder time finding someone that just is the same gender as her, right? So, like to me, like that made sense.

Shari: (08:24) Like I want to be a go-to for that I just feel familiar to someone, right? But then I realized after having a lot of conversations with just like women in general, there’s a lot of women that don’t want anything to do with their money. And I can convince them all day long or try to convince them till I’m blue in the face like no, you should participate.

Shari: (08:44) And like for a while that kind of became my mission of like trying to convince women that no, you should know what’s going on. You don’t need to watch CNBC every morning and figure out and know what the futures are doing, but you at least need to know where the money is. But it’s like if I heard it once, I heard it 15,000 times like, “Oh, my husband manages everything and he has this spreadsheet and he tracks everything and it’s so great and blah blah blah.

Shari: (09:07) ” And it’s like there’s comes to a point where like I need to know what the limitations are. So I’m like, “Okay, well maybe women isn’t the answer, right?” Like and also like how broad like 50% of the population is who I’m going to work with, right?

Dan: (09:26) >> Right. Yeah. So, like that’s not a very good niche. Although, like we still think that that’s a niche.

Shari: So, I’m like, okay, well, like let’s let me think about this more. And again, I went back to my client base and I’m like, well, who am I already working with when it comes to women? And I looked at like their ages. Are they single or married, gay or straight? Do they have children? What what about them? And then it wasn’t until I had a conversation with a husband and wife client that I have who I enjoy them. I like them.

Shari: (09:52) But the husband was just giving me He was putting out his peacock feathers, if you will.

Dan: >> Okay.

Shari: >> I managed the wife’s money. He managed his own money. So, like I work directly with the wife and he did his stuff on his own. And he’s made a couple of good stock picks, but Dan, as as you know, you only hear about the good picks.

Dan: (10:11) >> Oh, yeah. Oh, yeah.

Shari: >> You never hear about the bad picks. >> Oh, yeah. Oh, yeah. >> But so, he’s made a couple of good picks. And so, he fancies himself as an investing genius. and and it it that it was like no matter what I said like I was not going to be able to show him any different and then it was getting to the point where it was like super confusing for his wife because it’s like wait I like Shie Shar’s makes me feel good she’s having the conversations I want to have the performance does back it up too right my account’s growing you know

Shari: (10:42) we’re on track to achieve my goals but it’s kind of like a devil angel type of thing like I’m I’m really feeling pulled in two different directions cuz my husband says one thing and then Sherry’s saying, you know, could be saying the same thing, but like I don’t want to he’s telling me I should manage my own money.

Shari: (10:59) I don’t want to manage my own money. Like I could just feel the struggle and it was like, you know, that just not something I want to deal with and it’s not fair to the end user. So I’m like, you know what? Let’s just remove let’s just remove men from the entire scenario. Like I want to work with single women. I want to work with single women because one, likely they don’t know who they can turn to.

Shari: (11:23) They may be going to their dad or uncle or well-meaning friend for advice, but at the end of the day, that that dad or uncle or friend is speaking a completely different language to the woman. They’re speaking about performance. They’re speaking about stocks and oh, you just do this and d and it makes it all sound so easy.

Shari: (11:42) And she’s leaving this conversation going, I have no idea what they just said to me. I must be terrible at this. And no, you’re not terrible at it. You’re just speaking two completely different languages. So, I want to I my goal is to be for that single woman their her resource, her go-to that speaks her language so she can have confidence in her financial future.

Dan: (12:07) >> I love it. I love it. As a man, I think I can say this and I’ll I’ll caveat it with as a man who understands that I’m where I am personally and professionally because of a bunch of great women along the way. I think there are times when if we just remove the male from the equation in society, we would have been better off, frankly.

Dan: (12:26) So, that was uh that was funny. And I like your uh those of us that are in financial services uh have heard all too many times two things that you just said there. My husband’s got a spreadsheet. I’ve heard it a million times. And I’ve had a couple of great stock picks. So, I’m interested about this this one client scenario, and I love to unpack this a little bit.

Dan: (12:41) I imagine they had separate finances when when you started working with the the wife in this case.

Shari: >> They they run everything completely separately. They do everything separately, which is also which it works for them. So, great. So, that’s why she came to me cuz it’s like I know and here’s another thing that all of my clients say to me, I know enough to know I don’t know everything.

Shari: (13:05) like I I know I’m not going to do this for myself and and my clients are what I call accidental millionaires. They may not have a million dollars yet, but they are well on their way. They’ve done the right things, but everything they’ve done has always had a question mark at the end of it. Like, I think I’m doing the right thing.

Shari: (13:24) I don’t know I’m doing the right thing. Like, I’m saving. I’m I’m doing I think what I’m supposed to do. And now they’ve come to me going, “I’ve gotten this far on like a wish in a dream. I think I’m doing Can you just help me so I know I’m doing the right thing?” And that’s what she came to me with. I’ve done I think I’ve done well.

Shari: (13:42) And I’m like, “Yeah, you have. You you’ve done awesome.” Um, so let’s take what you’ve done and like let’s make it better. And so yeah, everything was separate. And then it was like after a few meetings, that’s when her husband came into the picture and then started planning all of this doubt because literally because he’s just thinking she can do what he does. Pick the stocks.

Shari: (14:04) It’s so easy or you can do this yourself and then and also speaking performance numbers when it’s like performance% doesn’t I don’t have 17% isn’t a feeling like I don’t know what that is if I is that good like am I doing well? Am I on pace to achieve my goals? And that’s what was missing from the conversation prior to her meeting me.

Dan: (14:28) >> Yeah, 100%. I mean, listen, 17% whether it’s good, bad, or indifferent, doesn’t do anything for your life. I mean, at the end of the day, just logically, that does nothing for you. There’s a whole lot more to our business as you know, than uh than performance. All right. So, help me now understand.

Dan: (14:45) Let’s go a level deeper. What are the unique challenges that specifically you found single women and the LGBT plus community face from a financial planning, financial wellness and overall wealth management perspective?

Shari: >> Well, the first is like they don’t feel like there’s representation for them. You know, whenever we come through scenarios, it’s always a husband and wife, husband and wife, husband and wife.

Shari: (15:09) No, no advisers when going through case studies or anything go single woman. And if it is, it’s it’s divorced or widowed. Well, what about never choosing to be married, right? What about what about that? Like that’s not represented. And then also, so for single women, a woman that is single, never was married, where is that representation? And we don’t see that a lot in financial services.

Shari: (15:30) Same thing for the LGBT community is that we don’t hear husband and husband, wife and wife. We don’t hear that come up. So just giving them a place of like this is your this is you you this is your scenario and also they might not have children. So like a lot of it is a lot of financial planning is children leaving a legacy passing money on to the next generation.

Shari: (15:54) Well what if there is no next generation? What do we do then? What are those conversations? So it’s just a lot of the conversations aren’t built for who my clients are.

Dan: (16:13) >> Yeah. Yeah. That makes a lot of sense. Um, I want you to go back to the piece around emotions and money because I think that’s a really really interesting topic we can talk for days about.

Dan: (16:13) What have you found like like highlight some of the successes that you found using this sort of mindset instead of leading with you know financial products or infrastructure whatever the case may be. Sounds like you know the initial offering is really about understanding what money means to you in your life which I’m really really passionate about.

Dan: (16:37) It’s frankly I always tell new clients it’s what gets me out of bed in the morning. So tell me a little bit about how you feel about that personally and then what experiences you’ve seen and throughout your client uh your >> Yeah. I mean for right now I’m doing annual reviews and I don’t have I I use Google like I love Google I use Google Drive Google Docs for everything.

Shari: (16:57) I create a re I don’t use reporting. I don’t one I work virtually with my clients. So I’m I’m never plopping a big report in front of them. I And that’s when I also realized there was a disconnect when I was like getting like these softwares and building these reports and I’m like this sucks. Like I don’t even want to do it.

Shari: (17:15) Like it’s so boring. Like and I’m like if I think it’s boring and I’m the one doing it and charging a fee for it, how do you think my clients feel like when they’re getting it presented to them? So I’m like that’s when I was like that that was like another like hit upon the head like all right something needs to change like so I create you know my annual review in a Google doc and yeah I put performance and all of that cuz that is important right but I don’t even send that to the client until after the fact.

Shari: (17:42) So all I’m doing it I’m using that to look at it and that’s shaping the conversation but here’s how my my conversations are going like how they’ve been going over the past couple weeks. Everything looks great. your strategies are doing exactly what they are supposed to be doing. I am very happy with what I am seeing.

Shari: (18:02) I’m going to make a couple of tweaks just cuz I think you know things could look a little bit better for example or I’ll say I’m not making any changes cuz I’m super happy with everything but I’m happy and then they’re like if you’re happy I’m happy and like that’s it like great what’s going on with your life? What’s what are we planning for? What’s next year look like? And that’s the conversation like are they gonna get the performance? Yeah.

Shari: (18:26) Do do they even do I talk about what a benchmark is? Nope. They have no idea what that is because all they know is that Sherry’s happy. My accounts are doing what I’m supposed to do be doing what they’re supposed to be doing and we’re going to keep on keeping on because at the end of the day that’s all that matters. If I were to say your accounts have done 17%, they outpace the benchmark by 50 basis points.

Shari: (18:48) Like what what what does that even mean? like no, no one’s leaving that meeting feeling fulfilled or feeling confident.

Dan: (19:06) >> Yeah, it’s it I couldn’t agree more. It’s it’s about what does your money do for your life? And you know, studies show that working with an adviser actually helps to improve your overall happiness.

Dan: I’ve actually dugging up some studies on that over last few months. And that’s that’s what what makes our business really fun, right, Sherry? Is being able to understand what are you doing next in your life? What goals do you have? What does your money mean to you? How do you want to use it to live the life you desire is is a question that I ask a whole lot. Okay.

Dan: (19:23) Very very cool. Well, that that that’s super interesting. So, I want to hear now a little bit about the podcast. Um, and we can we can relate on that one. What made you start the podcast? It seems like you’ve had a good degree of success with it. So, congratulations there. Tell me a little bit about the structure of it.

Dan: (19:38) What made you start it and uh what you like about the podcast?

Shari: >> So, I started my a podcast called Money Chic um back in in 2020. Um, and I started it >> as a way to just get be in front of my clients. That was the same time March of 2020 is when um these all of my clients transitioned to me.

Shari: (20:00) So, uh, if we all remember what happened in March of 2020, COVID hit. We were all sent off. >> Interesting time. >> Very interesting time, especially, you know, when Hi, I’m the new person taking over your life savings, watching your life savings. So, and these clients were very used to like kitchen table meetings and where I lived very restrictive like no one was leaving their houses like there was no way I was going into someone’s house and sitting at their kitchen table.

Shari: (20:25) So, we had to transition everything to Zoom. So, it was a major point of transition for my clients as well in two ways. Now, like it’s a new person and the way she is speaking with us is completely different than what we are used to. So, I’m all about efficiency and how can I make things like easier and add more value. So, I was working with um coach at the time and he was like, you know, you should start a podcast and just stay in front of your clients.

Shari: (20:53) So, it was a way for me to be in my client’s inbox. They could hear my voice twice a month and feel like they have a connection with me even though that we’re not on Zoom together. So, that’s how I created it. And I was, you know, kind of chugging along at it for for a handful of years. And then I decided last year that like it got to the point where like it was a it was always a labor of love.

Shari: (21:17) Um, and it means to stay in front of my clients, but it was like, all right, this is a lot of work. It’s not getting expensive. I need to do something more with it. So, I said, I want to expand the podcast. So I I was I I I you know I set off last year with that that intention and I was being interviewed on the Everyone’s Talking Money podcast which is now the podcast my podcast but I was being interviewed on it.

Shari: (21:43) Shauna Game was the former host and she was interviewing me and we just ended up becoming friends afterwards. Um >> cool.

Shari: So we were friends. we stayed in touch and she was helping me with my podcast and then earlier this year she said, you know, she’s had the podcast for 10 years and she wanted a change. She wanted to make a change and she wanted to know if I wanted to take over the podcast because, you know, she put so much effort into it for 10 years, built up a great audience, a great following, and didn’t want it to just go away. So

Shari: (22:11) that’s what happened. So I took over the Everyone’s Talking Money podcast at the beginning of 2025.

Dan: >> Very cool. That’s a great story. I love that. I mean, it’s interesting the the the unique bonds and the great contacts and and uh really colleagues and friends you form through through this type of medium.

Dan: (22:31) So, tell us a little bit about for those that haven’t listened. What’s the format like? Do you do it yourself? Do you bring on guests? Tell us a little bit about what what to expect from the Everyone’s Talking Money podcast.

Shari: >> Yep. So, it’s a lot of content. I release two episodes a week. It was three episodes a week. I had to drop it down just for my own sanity.

Shari: (22:50) And also I I I was worried that it was content overload. I wanted each because I work so hard on each episode. I wanted all episodes to get the attention it deserves. So two times a week, Tuesdays and Thursdays, I drop episodes and I have solo episodes where I’m just talking about some, you know, whatever is on my mind at that point in time when it comes to money.

Shari: (23:11) I’m I’m doing a series right now on money moves to make before year end. So, I was just talking about all the tax advantaged things we can implement before year end because we don’t want to think about taxes when we’re filing taxes. We want to think about taxes the year it’s happening. So, I just did an episode about that, but I also have a lot of interviews and I it’s not always just finance people that I’m talking to. It could be mindset.

Shari: (23:34) A lot of it is just removing the emotional baggage that we have with money, acknowledging it, how important mindset is when it comes to money. So, it’s a nice mixture of the emotional side of finance, but then also some of those personal finance best practices.

Dan: (23:55) >> I love it. Very valuable stuff. And it seems like you’re producing a lot of com content. I’m sorry.

Dan: So, kudos to you on that because I know how laborious that can be. I know it’s enjoyable for you. I know it is for me as well, but it takes a lot of work. So, congratulations. All right. So, we’re going to shift gears a little bit, Sherry. So, you are officially now entering the lightning round. All right. So, this is where we’re going to get to know you a little bit more.

Dan: (24:11) or we got a good sense for who you are from a business perspective. Going to get to know you a little bit more. So, the only thing I always ask of our guests on this is just the first thought that comes to your mind. Could be a one-word answer or a long drawn out thought or anywhere in between. You ready?

Shari: >> Yep. Let’s do it. >> All right.

Dan: (24:25) Coffee or tea?

Shari: >> Now, tea. I’m trying to reduce the amount of coffee I’m drinking.

Dan: >> That sounds good. Good for you on that. Um, one meal for the rest of your life. What is it?

Shari: (24:40) >> Sushi. Any type of sushi.

Dan: >> Okay. I had sushi earlier this week. I like it. I like it. I had sushi earlier this week.

Dan: What’s one tool or piece of technology, could be hardware or software, other than your phone or computer that you can’t live without?

Shari: (24:59) >> Kalanley. I love Kalan.

Dan: >> Yes, that’s a good one.

Shari: I um my calendar I’m super crazy about my calendar. I live off of it. I have so many different calendars for personal podcast work.

Shari: (25:18) So, everything’s blocked off. But anytime a client says like, well, one, I have my Calendarly link in my email. So, I’ll literally reply like schedule a call with me. um or they’ll go back to other emails to schedule a call, but I rarely get phone calls from clients because they just know, let me just schedule something so then we have both of our undivided attention.

Shari: (25:18) So, Kalan Lee is is the best.

Dan: >> Love it. Love it. I agree. Um do you have a favorite quote or phrase about money or success?

Shari: (25:46) >> Whatever you are, be a good one.

Dan: >> It’s an Abraham Lincoln quote. Yeah. >> Simple but very, very powerful. I love it. Um, do you have a routine or a personal hack that uh you subscribe to and uh you believe helps you to be successful?

Shari: >> I am terrible at routines.

Shari: (25:46) My routine is not having one. I wish I wish I could have a routine. I think one hack one hack I have and this is more of a personal hack again going back to the calendar is that um if it’s not on my calendar it doesn’t exist. So I’ve trained my family that we have a family email address. So, one, every personal thing goes to this family email address.

Shari: (26:07) I have four children, so like all the school stuff, sports stuff, everything goes to this personal email address. And then any sports events, birthday parties, whatever it is, goes on this family calendar and it’s connected to all of our phones. It doesn’t eliminate the five other people I live with asking me, “What do we have going on tonight or this weekend?” It doesn’t eliminate that, but my answer is look at the calendar.

Shari: (26:32) So that’s that’s my my personal hack which I think helps professionally because then it you know it also filters through my my my calendar is blocked when it should be blocked. Everything works well together and um I’m pretty good at, you know, creating my personal time and work time and having a work life balance that way.

Dan: (26:52) >> That’s super super important.

Dan: And yeah, your calendar doesn’t care if it’s personal or professional, but having it coordinated is so so important. All right. What’s one bucket list item that you’ve already accomplished?

Shari: (27:22) >> I don’t hm I’m not a big bucket list person, but I will say like after years, you know, 13 years or so of my previous career of, you know, flying thousands and thousands of miles, thousands of hotel rooms that I felt like I missed a lot.

Shari: So going into the second phase of my life, I really enjoy the fact that I can, you know, do anything for my kids and be there during the day. You know, I just was on my I have twin kindergarters. I was just on their field trip yesterday. I’m the president of the the PTO. Like I can do all of this stuff. So I feel like I being able to do that, I feel very lucky that I’ve been able to shape my life to achieve it.

Dan: (27:46) >> you and I have similar backgrounds and I spent many years not being able to do those stuff and uh yeah, for me now it’s coaching youth sports. So, I can very much relate to that one and uh good for you on that. All right, last one. If you could give one piece of advice to your younger self, what would it be?

Shari: (28:03) >> To save more.

Dan: >> I like it. Practice what you preach. [laughter]

Shari: Just because it’s there, you don’t have to spend it. Um, yeah, the to to automatically set aside, you know, a fixed amount of your paycheck to send it somewhere to save it. I did a really good job saving for retirement, but I did not do a good job of saving like the non-retirement money when I was young.

Shari: (28:28) So, that would be my piece of advice. Yeah, saving for retirement is important, but like set up an automation to save for like 3 years down the road or 5 years down the road.

Shari: automations are super powerful. And for all of you that are listening, we as financial experts, we’re not perfect either. So, a lot of what a lot of what we’re talking about is do as we say, maybe not as we’ve always done.

Dan: (28:50) And I I know I personally from being in this business have learned a lot along the way. I made many, many mistakes early in my career, so I can relate to that. All right. Really cool. Sherry, thanks for for coming on. So appreciate your your insights that you shared with us today. If our audience wants to connect with you, collaborate with you, uh what’s the best way to find you? Yeah.

Shari: (29:08) >> So, you can find me my podcast, Everyone’s Talking Moneypodcast. T A L K I N.

Shari: Um, everyone’s talkingmoneypodcast.com. Or my my firm is called GWAealth. So, gwawealth.com.

Dan: >> Very very cool. That is amazing. Thanks for coming on. That’s it for the episode. You can find our podcast along with our newsletter and our YouTube channel all for free as always at makingenseofyoumoney.com.

Dan: (29:33) And as we always say, prioritize your version of a rich light.

Resources & Citations

Frequently Asked Questions

Why do so many smart, successful women still feel insecure about money?

For many women, money insecurity isn’t about ability or intelligence—it’s about never having been spoken to in their own language. If most of the advice they’ve heard came from “spreadsheet husbands,” dads, or friends focused on performance and stock picks, it’s easy to internalize the idea that “I’m just not good at this.” A planning relationship that prioritizes clarity, feelings, and goals can help convert quiet anxiety into calm confidence over time.

What makes financial planning different for single women without kids?

Traditional planning often assumes a spouse, children, and a desire to leave a multi-generational legacy. Single women without kids may care more about lifestyle, flexibility, career pivots, aging well, and supporting causes or people they love in other ways. That means different decisions about saving levels, risk, insurance, estate documents, and how much to spend now versus later. The planning process should reflect those priorities instead of forcing them into a “standard” family template.

How is planning unique for LGBTQ+ clients?

LGBTQ+ clients may navigate different family structures, support systems, and legal considerations than traditional husband-and-wife case studies assume. They can also carry extra emotional baggage from experiences with institutions that didn’t fully see or respect them. A good advisor will use inclusive language, understand these dynamics, and help build a plan that reflects real-life partners, chosen family, and goals—not just what the default forms imagine.

What does it mean to say “money isn’t math, it’s emotion”?

The math—compounding, percentages, asset allocation—is important, but it’s rarely the main barrier. The real drivers are how you feel when the market drops, what you learned about money growing up, and the stories you tell yourself about what you “should” be doing. Treating money as emotional means making space to talk about fear, guilt, pride, and goals so the numbers can be organized around the life you actually want, not the other way around.

Should I care about performance, or just whether I’m on track?

Performance still matters, especially over long periods—but raw percentages don’t mean much in a vacuum. A better question is, “Is my plan doing what it needs to do for me to live the life I want, on the timeline I care about?” When your advisor can honestly say, “Your strategy is doing what it’s supposed to do, and here’s what that means for your goals,” returns become a supporting actor instead of the entire story.

How can I start feeling more confident with my finances?

Start by getting everything out of your head and into a simple system: a clear view of what you own, what you owe, what’s coming in, and what’s going out. From there, add automation (for saving and investing) so good behavior happens on autopilot. Finally, consider working with an advisor who speaks your language and understands your life stage so your questions, fears, and goals can drive the plan—not someone else’s idea of what your money “should” look like.

Disclaimer

The content in this episode and on this page is for educational and informational purposes only and is not intended as individualized investment, tax, or legal advice. Strategies discussed may not be suitable for every investor and are subject to eligibility, changing laws, and market risks. Before making any financial decisions, you should consult with your own qualified financial, tax, and legal professionals.

Next Steps

If this episode hit home because you’ve been “doing fine” but still don’t feel confident with your money, this is a great time to step back and look at the bigger picture.

Primary CTA – Explore Tailored Wealth’s approach: Visit yourtailoredwealth.com to see how a Life-Driven plan can connect your money with the version of a rich life that actually matters to you.
Secondary CTA – Go deeper on money and emotion: Head to makingsenseofyourmoney.com for weekly insights on mindset, taxes, equity comp, and investing, built for high-earning professionals.