Are you a member of the Sandwich Generation? You know, when you are living a tug-of-war life between taking care of your children (or even grandchildren), and caring for your aging parents. Even if you have just the latter role, it is a tough challenge to care for an aging relative while keeping your own personal and business life intact. Currently…

Quieting your mind and finding that place of inner peace is easier said than done. Some reach it through the practice of meditation, some in a yoga pose and others taking a walk in nature. But have you ever had the opportunity to walk a Labyrinth? My guest, Debi Kermeen (www.LabyrinthInStone.com), co-owner of Labyrinth in Stone, has not only walked…

“Never give up your dreams no matter what obstacles you face.” This is but one of the insightful and inspirational statements found in the book Lessons for the Little Girl. (www.Amazon.com) My guest, Jaime Gill is the author of this beautiful and thought provoking book that was written for all females. It is an opportunity for every young lady and …

When the currency of heart-felt appreciation (money) easily flows from one person to another and back again it creates a Win-Win-Win situation where all parties involved benefit. According to Rajesh Setty of the Huffingtom Post, the concept of Win-Win-Win from a business perspective is a P.O.S.E. model. He describes this as Profitable On-Purpose Si…

My favorite Financial Personality fairytale character is Dorothy in Search of the Emerald City. She is determined to find her way home (translation: find her truth). While on her journey, with the help of her travelling companions, she discovers her own courage. My guest is an expert on this topic. Sara Victory (www.TheVictoryCompany.com) is known …

Sometimes the word passion can be over used. When a word becomes too commonplace, it loses its impact. Merriam-Webster defines passion as – “a strong feeling of enthusiasm or excitement for something” or “the state or capacity of being acted on by external agents or forces”. My guest, Leslie Hamp, is inspired by the power of passion and purpose. Sh…

Do you ever get down on yourself and wallow in a pity party? After you listen to the life story of my guest Alicia Bowens (www.AliciaBowens.com ), you may be inspired to never wallow again. Before you listen to this podcast, first say to yourself “there is always someone else who has bigger problems than I”. Besides being popular in high school, Al…

It seems to be harder and harder to buy a house these days. Even with low interest rates, lending companies are making it more challenging to qualify for a mortgage. If you have any dings on your credit score or have had some major financial challenges in the past, it becomes even more difficult. My guest, Ken Schreiber is a pre-divorce lending spe…

Have you ever given-in to someone’s request but you really didn’t want to? Do you feel that you don’t get the respect you deserve? Are you easily talked into buying something that you really don’t need or want? Do you always say yes to your children’s requests? If you answered yes to any of these questions, listen to our lively conversation about t…

How often do you listen to your intuition? Can you trust it or do you constantly second guess yourself? We all possess the power of intuition yet it is a gift that must be honed and trusted. One of the most challenging aspects of intuition is that the “intuitive hits” we get have no underlying proof or evidence of truth. We may instantly doubt the …

Have you seen the movie “The Big Short”? This factual film about the financial crash of 2007-2008 is very well done. It clearly explains all of the behind-the-scenes shenanigans that caused the crash. It has been nominated for 5 Academy Awards. I encourage you all to see it! My guest, Lauren Tratar, shares her ongoing story of multiple foreclosures…

Throughout these podcasts we have looked at money from many different angles. But up until now, we have not compared the views from different generations. My guest (and son), John Kammes (age 33) and I (I’m not telling) obviously have different life experiences and different perspectives. Our discussion covers about a 90-year span including the Gre…

Do you know what fascia is? It is present throughout our body, yet we know very little about it, if anything. Here’s a tip, it holds everything in our body in place! My guest, Jaja Svoboda, describes herself as a Stretchologist. Her skill set includes Thai Massage and advanced training in Myofascial Release. How does this relate to money? I had pre…

We all know that energy is all around us and within us but we know very little about it. On a very basic level, I likened it to the wind – unseen yet extremely powerful! My guest, Kathy Burkard is very familiar and skilled in the world of energy healing. She is both a Certified Healing Touch Practitioner and a Shamanic healer. The American Nurses C…

When you think of success money is usually top of mind, but so are family and friends. Strong relationships are important on both a personal level and a business level. All successful businesses know that “people hire people who they know, like and trust”. The owners of Santa Fe Restaurant (www.SantaFeRestaurant.com) in Glen Ellyn, IL understand th…

Did you know that our brains have neuroplasticity? “This means our brains have the ability to reorganize by creating new neural pathways to adapt to our needs.”* This is also described as NeuroReinvention. With this understanding, it only makes sense that we can retrain our brain for money success. My guest, Valencia Ray, M.D., shares from her new …

We all understand that most of our beliefs were formed when we were children. So what better way to pave the way to person’s financial success but to teach them how to manage money at a very young age. My guest, Akram Abedelal whole-heartedly agrees with this concept. With a degree in curriculum design and with 4 small children at home, he decided …

With so many people becoming disenchanted by corporate America, the number of small business entrepreneurs has been increasing. Some people start their own businesses while keeping their day job, and others may decide to take a leap of faith and do what they have always wanted to do. The world of entrepreneurship can be both exciting and scary but …

As a child, my favorite book was The Little Engine That Could. Because of that, my lifetime mantra has been “I think I can, I think I can, I think I can!” This overriding belief has served me well. My guest, Brian King LCSW, has also lived by this mantra. Against all odds, throughout his lifetime he has overcome obstacles. As we all know, almost al…

For this episode I have 2 guests, Karen Covy and her husband Vit Homolka. They will share their story about their successful relationship with one another and money. In fairytale terms, I describe this ideal financial partnership as The Royal Couple. Karen is a divorce attorney and advisor as well as a mediator and arbitrator. Vit is owner of A.A. …

Dr. Craig Woodward joins me once again to continue our discussion of the mind. The Conscious Mind is our “present awareness” – our conscious observation of all that we see, smell, taste, hear and touch. This is where our “thinking” happens. It is where our logical and conscious decision-making takes place. These decisions are led by the belief patt…

We all have two sides (hemispheres) of our brain: the left-brain and the right-brain. The functions of each side are quite different from one another. The left-brain is our logical and analytical side; while our right- brain is the feeling and creative side. In order to make good decisions with money it is important that we engage both sides of our…

Whether you are aware of it or not, we all have money stories. Think back to your childhood and how money was talked about and treated. You might have been told many times over “We can’t afford it!” or worse yet “We are poor”. You might have been told – “Money should never be talked about”. Whatever money conversations or experiences we had as a ch…

Wouldn’t it be great if you could just click your ruby slippers together and manifest lots of money in your life? Rarely is anyone an “instant” success. They have most likely had numerous challenges along the way to create the life they desired. One of my favorite Financial Personality characters, Dorothy in Search of the Emerald City, takes you do…

The Law of Attraction gets a lot of press these days as the solution to getting all you want in life. But there is much more to it than just “attracting”. It is but one step in the process of manifesting your dreams. The other parts of the process need to also be in place. My guest, Laurie Polinski (www.LauriePolinski.com) and I share the other ste…

In a previous episode, we talked about Money Consciousness and how our financial reality revolves around it. Now we will delve into one of two parts of the mind – the Subconscious. Think of it as the filing cabinet of our memories and beliefs. It’s also our processing engine, which is designed to keep us on autopilot. In other words, it runs much o…

Perfectionism is defined as: a personality trait characterized by a person’s striving for flawlessness accompanied by overly critical self-evaluations and concerns regarding others’ evaluations. Did I mention that she is also a control freak? I describe Penelope Pride as a Wonder Woman or Super Mom type. She might even be a female small business ow…

One of the last steps in divorce negotiations is dividing the financial assets. What often happens during this tug-of-war is that one of the spouses (often the wife) just wants the drama to end. So instead of standing strong in negotiating for their financial future, they may be more inclined to give up and give in. There is no denying that divorce…

Money and Divorce continued…. One of the most contentious parts of a litigious divorce is the splitting of marital assets. Sometimes, in the process of “discovery”, one spouse may not provide full disclosure. It is times like this when you might want to call on my next guest for help. Peggy Tracy, is a CFP®, CDFA and CFE. If I may translate – she i…

Money and Divorce continued…. Divorce is not only an emotionally charged process; it is also very private. So how are you supposed to know what to do? Who can you turn to for guidance? Before you even hire an attorney, I encourage you to listen to the advice of my guest, Family Law attorney and mediator, Theresa Beran Kulat. Theresa gives us the sc…

In the month of September we will focus on Money and Divorce. Why do I want to spend a whole month on this topic? There are three reasons: The more frequently spouses argue about money the higher the probability of their marriage ending in divorce. The primary issues in a divorce settlement are children and money. Grasping the impact of post-divorc…

Money is a positive energy that is meant to flow from one person to another. Are you participating in the flow of money? We are all taught that it is better to give than to receive. When taking this statement to heart it may lead us to resist being open to receive the flow of money when it comes to us. Our financial reality revolves around our Mone…

With a life-long habit of ignoring her finances, Alice down the Rabbit Hole finally faces the consequences. When she applied for a mortgage the bank told her she was a high-risk borrower because of her low credit score. Alice did not realize that credit impacts all areas of her financial life. Elizabeth Karwowski, founder and CEO of Get Credit Heal…

“Girls just want to have fun” is what Alice down the Rabbit Hole lives by. Money totally intimidates her, so she ignores it. Even when her financial situation becomes a mess, she hands it all off to someone else to take care of. With this “stick your head in the sand” attitude, Alice is an easy mark for unscrupulous people. She has already been tak…

We can all relate to the concept of “keeping up with the Jones”. It might be the neighbor next door who wants to impress you with their new furniture, latest electronic gadget or expensive car. He/she is often all about the “stuff” that they own. You also may recognize her in a friend who practices “retail therapy”. Shopping makes her feel good abo…

Cinderella is convinced that she can’t change her life but hopes that someone will step in and save her. My guest, Rhonda Kelloway LCSW, MSW, MBA, will dive deeply into the psyche of Cinderella. Rhonda has a unique mix of professional training, skills and personal background. She has advanced training in Somatic Experiencing and EMDR (Eye Movement …

Do you often put the needs of others ahead of your own? Were you always told that it is better to give than to receive? If you answer yes to either of these questions then you will want to meet our next Fairytale Character. The Old Woman in the Shoe is the second of ten characters to make an appearance. My son, John Kammes, joins me again as we sha…

Sometimes when you change your perspective on something, everything changes. As people finally embraced the truth that the world was round instead of flat, EVERYTHING changed. Ship captains no longer feared sailing off the edge of the ocean. Trade possibilities opened up between countries across the seas. And of course, Christopher Columbus set out…

It is time to revolutionize the way you think about your financial life, and have fun doing it! Learn about money thoughts and behaviors through the eyes of my Fairytale Characters. You will be introduced to the concept of a Financial Personality and also meet my ideal Financial Personality character, Goldilocks. I will be sharing snippets of Goldi…