She Turned Grief Into a $2M Investment Movement, With Natalie Levy

Natalie Levy left Wall Street, lost her mother and cousin to suicide, and built She's Independent Investments, a women-first angel group that's closing the power gap in impact investing. In this episode, she gets radically honest about the cost of masking, values-aligned returns exceeding 20X, and why giving money and investing it are completely different acts of power.CHAPTERS: 00:06:54 — The Mask on Wall Street: What it costs women to conform in male-dominated finance. 00:14:48 — Grief as the Catalyst: How losing her mother and cousin Z to suicide gave Natalie clarity. 00:23:34 — Birthing She's Independent: How community demand organically built a women-first investment group. 00:29:18 — Democratizing the Cap Table: The member-led model, Investment Observers, and real deal flow access. 00:41:33 — Values-Aligned Returns: Why resilient founders outperform and how Natalie evaluates deals.00:47:44 — Cash is Queen: The Book: Why accessibility matters and the first step for aspiring investors. KEY TOPICS:- The physical and psychological cost of masking identity in corporate finance - How grief and loss catalyzed a purpose-driven career pivot - Democratizing angel investing through a member-led, women-first model - The Investment Observer pathway for non-accredited investors - Values-aligned investing and the data on underrepresented founder resilience - Why the distinction between giving and investing matters for women's financial power Guest ABOUT NATALIE:Natalie spent years navigating male-dominated environments from the classrooms in engineering school and advanced mathematics coursework to derivatives trading on Wall Street to tech sales and investing. She spent years in search of a workplace culture that inspired and supported her, and witnessed countless individuals (often, women) lacking fulfillment who were working too hard while failing to reach the professional roles they had earned. Following the loss of her mother to suicide at the beginning of 2019 she made a life and career transition to honor the loss she experienced and the journey she experienced.Natalie launched She’s Independent to create a space in the world to support and celebrate women stepping into private investing and money flows.She’s Independent exists to offer a real path to access and equity. The investment community is a space offering real belonging and promoting impactful capital allocations together. So that we can live in a world that invests in, supports, and celebrates women.Resources Mentioned:Cash is Queen: A Conscious Journey in Angel Investing by Natalie Levy She's Independent Investments — https://shesindependent.comShe's Independent Events — https://lu.ma/shesindependenteventsVenture Deals by Brad Feld and Jason MendelssohnConnect with Natalie Levy:LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/shesindependent/Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/shesindependent_/YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@ShesIndependenthttps://lu.ma/shesindependenteventsFollow the Host, Rachel Bernier-Green:LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/rachelberniergreen/Website: www.instagram.com/jointhryvo/Instagram: www.instagram.com/jointhryvo/LinkedIn (Company): www.linkedin.com/company/jointhryvo/Twitter/X: x.com/jointhryvoFacebook: www.facebook.com/jointhryvoTiktok: www.tiktok.com/@jointhryvoListening Links:Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/0kmrlBqo4QHftlfmqo2Q32Apple: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-purpose-profit-shift/id1829627732Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@PurposeProfitShift----------------------------If this episode resonated with you, subscribe, leave a review, and share it with a fellow business owner who needs to hear this!