7 minute read
PATRICIA ALLEN CRPC®
from Fearless
POWERHOUSE GLOBAL MAGAZINE (PGMAG)
INTERVIEW WITH:
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PATRICIA ALLEN CRPC® (PA)
PGMAG: Patricia, welcome to today's interview.
PA: Thank you for having me. I’m happy to be here.
PGMAG: Please share a brief about who you are and what you do.
PA: I am a Women’s Financial Empowerment expert, Wealth Advisor, award winning author and speaker and I specialize in helping women master the feminine approach to building wealth while having their hearts and minds free from worry of the what ifs of life. I was the only girl of 7 children raised by a single woman who had no education or skills. We lived between hunger and welfare checks. As a single parent of 2 and on welfare myself I learned at an early age the importance of saving and how to manage my money wisely. It wasn’t easy but during those hard times I developed a strong desire to become financially independent.
I started my financial services career 25 years ago out of a passion for helping women gain more confidence in their financial abilities. As a financial advisor I wanted to be an example of what a woman could accomplish when she set her mind to it. I wanted to be an inspiration to those who struggled to understand their money. That was when I made it my mission to create a warm safe environment where women are encouraged to share their fears and concerns, are inspired to become more engaged in their financial affairs, and empowered to live a financially independent life regardless of the challenges they may face.
PGMAG: As a financial planning expert, what should people avoid when planning for their financial future?
PA: First and foremost people should avoid delaying and planning for a successful financial future. The women who have a financial plan have achieved the most success with their finances; they no longer worry about running out of money, or having to downgrade their lifestyle in retirement Warren Buffet has been quoted as saying: "I believe a successful retirement rarely happens by accident. It happens by design. Over the years I have seen that the investors who have written plans are the ones most likely to reach their goals. “It’s important to have a plan… an idiot with a plan can beat a genius without a plan” Secondly, people should avoid taking financial advice from others who are not qualified. I suggest that they seek professional help and be willing to pay for it. Many people don’t want to pay for financial advice because they think that only rich people need a financial advisor. Just think about it, the rich are rich because they know what they don’t know and are willing to pay an advisor to help them achieve all of their financial goals.
And lastly, people should avoid negative thinking and questioning their ability to achieve financial abundance. A few ways that they can foster an abundance mindset is by recognizing the power of their thoughts and how they speak to themselves, speak gratitude and forgiveness and recite empowering “I am” and abundance affirmations in the morning and evening.
PGMAG: Please touch a bit of light on 'safe money strategies'.
PA: As you may recall I mentioned earlier that I help women master the feminine approach to building wealth while having their hearts and minds from worry of the what ifs of life. The what if’s of life are unforeseen threats or events- ones that come out of nowhere. I am referring to potentially life-altering experiences that you rarely contemplate when everything is working just fine. While not all unexpected events are negative, generally, the big ones that affect your financial future. This possibility of unexpected financial hardship means you may need to change the way you think about preparing how to handle them if they come your way. So what are some of the what ifs of life?
What if you get sick or become disabled”? What if your divorce doesn’t end well? What if getting laid off from your job destroyed your stability? What if your spouse died? What if you outlived your money? The safe money strategies that I often refer to as your “lifeboat strategies” are designed to grow, protect and preserve your assets and income.
Those strategies include having the proper amount of life, health, disability, long term health care (LTC) and business insurances. If you have these insurances through work, check to see if they are portable- and if they are not consider getting additional coverage on your own. People should understand the terms and details of any work provided insurance and benefits.
You should also have your estate planning documents in place, like your wills, trusts, POA’s to protect your income and assets –Another safe money strategy is to have at least 2 years of cash in liquid assets. And at least 2 preferably 3 forms of guaranteed lifetime income and one of them usually includes Social Security.
PGMAG: Please educate us a bit on 'Retirement Planning', and why it is important to do so.
PA: That’s a great question because many people fail to ask it. And it’s usually because they don’t understand what it entails, so they assume they don’t need it. The retirement planning process starts with aligning your values and goals and making decisions on what actions to take pre-retirement and during retirement.
Once you determine what your values are, what’s important to you then we can begin to talk about your goals. Retirement planning and retirement income planning is important because it establishes your retirement budget, based on your income sources which are determined in your financial plan. Your retirement plan also determines the lifestyle you want to have when you decide to slow down and enjoy the fruits of your labor.
PGMAG: What is your message for those women who are struggling with 'low self-esteem'?
PA: The way you value yourself has a profound effect on the way you value the material things around you – and in the long term will affect the way you live. Our perception of ourselves has a direct correlation with our net worth, and it also includes how worthy we think we are. If you don't believe you have value and worth then your bank account balance will reflect that. You can’t take care of others if you don’t take care of yourself. Taking care of yourself financially is one of the many ways to ensure you’re okay so you can be there for others — whether it’s taking care of your family, elderly parents, being there for clients or volunteering for your favorite charities. Your true self-worth is up to you. Increase it. Don’t allow your life’s pursuit to be caught up in being all things for everyone else. When you realize your self- worth, you’ll stop giving people discounts.
PGMAG: What are the top three books that changed your life?
PA: Anita if you don’t mind may I share with you the top five books that have changed my life? Thank you. They are The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People and First Things First by Stephen Covey. Maximum Achievement by Brian Tracy, The Power To be Your Best by Todd Duncan and lastly Long Walk To Freedom by Nelson Mandela.
PGMAG: Finally, if you knew what you know now, what would you do differently?
PA: Hmm…that’s a hard one because I’m not sure if there’s anything I would do differently. When I look back on my life I have viewed it as an ongoing master’s class where I have learned from my failures and grown more because of them every day. That’s why I believe that everything that has happened to me has happened for me and that’s how and why I am where I am today, living the life of my dreams.
PGMAG: Thank you once again for your time.
PA: You’re so very welcome. It has been my pleasure
PGMAG: Please share your links with us
PA: Link to my website PARIS Financial Planning Contact Me Link
Link to FREE Download 5 Wealth Building habits of Financially Savvy Women https://bit.ly/2Zvmvlh
Link to my book: Welfare to Wealth ~ The Money Story I Never Wanted To Tell
http://www.amazon.com/ dp/1721821538
Thank you! Patricia Allen, CRPC®
