MoneyZen: Liberating Yourself from the Pursuit of More. An interview with Manisha Thakor, founder of MoneyZen.

Manisha Thakor has worked in financial services for over 30 years with a focus on women’s economic empowerment. She has written two personal finance books for women in their 20s and 30s. Her latest book MoneyZen: The Secret to Finding Your “Enough,” will be released in early August, 2023. Manisha shared that she was exposed to financial concepts at a very young age. Her father worked in the finance industry and taught her and her brother the power of compounding interest in a fun way. He showed them how to use his HP 12C financial calculator to calculate the dollars they would accumulate by saving rather than spending their babysitting and lawn mowing money. Her mother also taught her that money gives women voices and choices.She was recruited into a two year investment banking training program after college, the traditional route for people interested in a finance career, and realized after 6 months that she detested it!  Instead, she was drawn to investment management, finding that she had a deep passion for understanding the markets and understanding personal finance.Though she enjoyed the work, Manisha became trapped in the "never enough" mindset. She had been an awkward, ridiculed, chubby kid in her early years, and, no matter how successful she was, she continued to be driven to receive more accolades in her career, and more outward symbols of material wealth and achievement.“Shockingly, a large percentage of successful people or just driven people are driven by small "t" traumas to some extent, and on the surface, just like my experience, it can seem ridiculously small, but have a ridiculously huge impact in terms of how you live your adult life.” - Manisha ThakorKey takeaways:- Understand the multifaceted reasons behind your “never enough” mindset. So many of us have a sense of scarcity, around our money, or work, or accomplishments, or other areas of our lives. Manisha noted that, before we can fix it, we need to understand the root cause. In her case, she attributes the root cause to small “t” traumas of bullying and not fitting in that happened when she was very young yet continue to live on in her psyche.- Learn to listen to the wisdom of your body. It took a physical wake up call from her body for Manisha to finally slow down. Her high stress levels combined with some other vulnerabilities sent her to the hospital, ultimately requiring her to take several months of bedrest and time off from work under doctor’s orders. - Identify the equation you’ve been living your life by. For each of us, that equation may be different.  In Manisha’s case, she realized she was believing that her self worth = her net worth. Once she recognized this, she was able to put practices in place to flip the equation to “financial health + emotional wealth = money zen.”- Know that, when you implement change in your life, it will be three steps forward, one step back. Manisha found herself back in the “never enough” head as she began to market her new book, “Moneyzen: The Secret to Finding Your Enough”. Because you can always do one more podcast, one more interview, one more marketing activity. The key is to recognize when you’re falling back into old ways of being, don’t beat yourself up for it, but instead tap into the new equation you’ve chosen to live your life by. About the guest:Manisha Thakor has worked in financial services for over 30-years with a focus on women’s economic empowerment. A nationally recognized thought-leader around the issues of financial literacy and education, Manisha has been featured in national media such as The Wall Street Journal, The New York Times, Barron’s, CNN, and CNBC. She has written two personal finance books for women in their 20s and 30s. Her latest book MoneyZen: The Secret to Finding Your “Enough” comes out on August 8th 2023. Manisha earned her MBA from Harvard Business School, her BA from Wellesley College and holds the CFA and CFP designations.Purchase Manisha's book, MoneyZen: The Secret to Finding Your "Enough"Linkedin:- https://www.linkedin.com/in/manishathakor/Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/ManishaThakor/Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/manishathakor/?hl=enTwitter: https://twitter.com/ManishaThakorWebsite:- https://moneyzen.com/Email address: [email protected] the MoneyZen quiz. Interested in booking a free consultation? Schedule a call.Stay connected:Connect with Laura on LinkedIn@Rotters5 on TwitterConnect with Laura on FacebookSubscribe to my YouTube channelSubscribe to my newsletterGet your free copy of Unlock Your Money Blocks Workbook : Your step-by-step guide to unlocking your blocks to financial freedom.Disclaimer: Please remember that the information shared on this podcast does not constitute accounting, legal, tax, investment or financial advice. It’s for informational purposes only. You should seek appropriate professional advice for your specific information.