Financial Feminist

If you’re thinking about quitting your job in 2026 and finally starting your own business, this episode is your practical roadmap. I’m joined by lawyer-turned-entrepreneur Sam Vander Wielen, who left corporate law with multi-six-figure student loans, built a multi-seven-figure digital products company, and learned firsthand what entrepreneurship can and cannot do for your happiness. We’re talking about how to financially plan your exit from a 9-to-5, what legal steps you need (LLC, contracts, trademarks), and how to stop tying your worth to income, vanity metrics, or job titles. If you want a sustainable, smart plan for quitting your job and building a profitable business in 2026, this conversation will show you how to do it without burning your life down in the process.

Sam’s links:

Get Sam’s book: https://www.samvanderwielen.com/book/ Listen to Sam’s podcast: https://www.samvanderwielen.com/podcast 

Sign up for Sam’s newsletter: https://www.samvanderwielen.com/easy-emails 

Visit ⁠https://herfirst100k.com/ffpod⁠ to see the show notes and read the transcript of this episode!

0:00 Intro

01:15 The Happiness Myth

04:30 Why We Tie Happiness to Milestones

07:30 What a Business Can (and Can’t) Give You

11:00 Money as a Tool for Safety and Choice

15:00 Sam’s Corporate Law Wake-Up Call

20:00 The Stability Myth of Corporate Jobs

25:30 Planning a Real Exit From Your 9–5

30:30  Legal Basics for Starting a Business

36:00 Why Entrepreneurship Doesn’t Fix Your Life

41:30 Redefining Success Before You Leap
Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Millionaires don’t just buy things––they buy time. And if you’ve ever felt like you’re constantly busy but somehow never getting closer to the life you actually want, this episode is for you. In our second installment of the millionaire mindset series, I’m breaking down what I call time wealth. The idea that real wealth isn’t just about how much money you make, but how much of your life you get to keep. I’m sharing exactly how millionaires think about time, the sneaky ways you’re leaking it without realizing, and the small but powerful shifts you can start making right now to buy back your evenings, your energy, and your future—even if you’re not rich yet.

Visit https://herfirst100k.com/ffpod to get your free time audit worksheet!

Catch up on episode 1 of millionaire mindset: https://herfirst100k.com/financial-feminist-show-notes/millionaire-mindset-taking-risks/

00:00 Intro

00:44 What the millionaire mindset series is about

01:22 Time wealth: buying back your time

02:11 Time is your greatest asset, not money

05:15 Time leaks: where you're wasting time

05:36 Decision fatigue - spending too much time deciding

10:00 Doing $10 tasks with $100 goals

12:43 Reactive living - letting others' urgency dictate your day

14:26 Unpaid emotional labor

15:50 How millionaires audit their time ruthlessly

19:58 Delegating before you're ready

25:23 Habit stacking to maximize your time

30:17 Saying no early and often

33:25 Time wealth is self-respect

35:14 This week's wealth move
Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Try Mimi’s app, Activations, with a free 14-day trial and exclusive discount at

activations.com/podcast/financial-feminist

If you’ve ever felt like you’re doing all the “right” money things on paper but still feel anxious, stuck, or behind, this episode is for you. In today’s conversation, I’m joined once again by Mimi Bouchard––trailblazing entrepreneur, motivational speaker, and author––to break down how to shift your money mindset in 2026 by changing your identity, your beliefs, and the way you relate to yourself long before the numbers change. We talk about the psychology of money, why not all of your thoughts are true, how to stop bracing for financial disaster, and how small, daily mindset shifts can completely transform your financial behavior. Tune in to learn how to rewire your brain to see opportunity, rebuild trust, and start showing up like your future wealthy self so you can create lasting financial security and freedom this year.

00:00 Intro 

01:40 How your brain filters opportunity

03:50 Why mindset matters more than being good at math

06:10 How beliefs drive behavior before numbers ever do

08:30 Not all of your thoughts are true

11:50 The "why not me?" mindset shift

17:30 Women and the fear of wanting more

20:50 Identifying limiting beliefs in everyday moments

28:20 Bracing for impact - the low-grade money anxiety trap

35:10 The bounce back rate vs. perfectionism

42:50 Building trust with yourself around money

47:30 Adding positive habits instead of restricting

50:30 Getting comfortable with having more money

Visit https://herfirst100k.com/ffpod to see the show notes and read the transcript of this episode!
Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

If you’re making good money and still feel broke, stressed, or behind, something is off and it’s not you. Today, I’m joined by my friend Vivian Tu, former Wall Street trader, CEO and founder of Your Rich BFF, and New York Times bestselling author of Well Endowed, to talk about what it really takes to get rich and stay rich. We’re calling out why paying your bills and saving is not the finish line, how optimization culture keeps high earners trapped in a constant game of “never enough,” and how to start using your money as a tool to buy time, freedom, and real security instead of status symbols. This episode is about ditching performative wealth, building systems that quietly grow your money, and finally feeling powerful, calm, and in control of your financial life.

Vivian’s links:

Website: https://www.yourrichbff.com/

Grab your copy of Well Endowed: http://richbffbook.com/ 

Visit ⁠https://herfirst100k.com/ffpod⁠ to stay up to date and find any resources mentioned on our show!

00:00 Intro 

00:51 Money traumas from childhood & the Chinese buffet story

03:17 How money narratives dictate everyday decisions

06:16 Knowing the price of everything but the value of nothing

08:14 Money as a tool to buy your best life

10:47 What comes after financial basics (Finance 2.0)

13:01 Building infrastructure vs. working harder

15:38 Strategic spending: "Do I want this or do I want people to know I have it?"

18:33 The sleep investment story

24:48 Why HENRYs (High Earners Not Rich Yet) feel stressed

28:21 The B-plus life trap & lifestyle inflation

31:24 Wasted opportunity, potential, and time

33:20 Kids will make you poorer - childcare costs

36:10 The prenup with built-in raises for childcare

37:34 Unpaid labor & the "good mom" trap

38:53 Cooking as unpaid labor vs. celebrity chef art

40:06 Speaking kindly to yourself about money

42:31 Making peace with your own financial timeline

45:07 The all-or-nothing mindset is killing progress

49:56 15 minutes is better than no minutes

50:17 Book takeaway: Chase security, stability & freedom
Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

If you’re over 35 and constantly feeling like you’re behind financially, you’re not alone. In today’s episode, I’m joined by Jean Chatzky––longtime financial journalist, bestselling author, and founder of HerMoney––whose work has shaped generations of women’s financial literacy, including my own. Jean opens up about starting over at 40 after divorce, job loss, and losing a parent. She shares exactly what she learned about saving, investing, and rebuilding confidence when time feels limited. We talk about why so many women feel behind no matter their age, the biggest money mistakes women 35+ make, how to course-correct without panic, and how to use tools like retirement accounts, HSAs, and investing strategies to build a future that still works, even if you didn’t start early.

Jean’s links:

Investing Club: https://join.investingfixx.com/ 

Website: https://hermoney.com/ 

HerMoney Podcast: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/hermoney-with-jean-chatzky/id1098802558

How She Does It Podcast: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/how-she-does-it/id1691787429 

Visit ⁠https://herfirst100k.com/ffpod⁠ to stay up to date and find any resources mentioned on our show!

00:00 Intro: Never too late to save

00:42 What "owning your money" means

02:00 Jean's story: Starting over at 40

03:49 What to prepare for & do differently

06:36 Biggest mistake: Too much cash, not enough invested

10:56 Why Gen X women feel behind

16:32 Financial boundaries with aging parents & adult children

21:06 HSAs as investing vehicles

27:15 Why "feeling behind" is universal

34:20 Quick-fire Q&A

42:29 Advice for women feeling paralyzed

45:51 Where to find Jean
Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices