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5 Money Lessons My Mom Taught Me (That Changed How I Think About Wealth)

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A tribute to the woman who showed me what financial intentionality looks like in real life

My mom didn't teach me about money through a course or a textbook. She taught me through how she lived and the lessons she passed down became the foundation of everything I do today.

Today, February 18th, would have been her birthday. And I wanted to honor her the best way I know how: by sharing what she taught me, so you can carry it forward too.

My mom was an accountant, a business owner, a director of operations at a nonprofit, and she retired as a director of financial aid at a college. She had an undergraduate degree in accounting and an MBA. She reinvented herself more times than I can count. And every single time, she did it with intention.

These five lessons are woven into the Intentional Money Method™. They're woven into my book. And today, I'm sharing them with you, along with one thing you can actually do with each one this week.

Lesson One: Reinvention Is Always on the Table

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Where Your Money Beliefs Come From (And How to Change Them)

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The first thing I learned about money had nothing to do with a bank account.

I was about ten years old. My mom was a single mom, and she had hurt her back badly enough that she could not go grocery shopping. So she sent my brother and me to the store with a list and a set amount of cash. I remember standing in the aisle doing math in my head, trying to figure out if we had enough for everything on the list. We did not. We had to make choices about what to put back.

That experience taught me something I carry to this day: money is about choices. It is about trade-offs. And your feelings about those trade-offs start forming long before you ever earn a paycheck.

I share this because when I sit down with a new client and we start talking about money, the conversation almost always goes deeper than numbers. It goes to a place that feels more like identity. She will say something like, "I have always been bad with money." Or, "I do not deserve to have more than I need." Or, "Money just st...

When Abundance Mindset Becomes Financial Self-Sabotage

financial empowerment for women financial planning tips intentional money method money beliefs money mindset women and money

I need to tell you about a conversation I had that has been sitting heavy on my heart.

A woman came to me $47,000 in credit card debt. She makes good money. She is smart, capable, and successful in her career. And she could not figure out how she got there.

As we dug into her spending patterns, a theme emerged. Every purchase was justified with some version of: "I'm claiming abundance." "The money will show up." "You have to spend money to make money." "I'm investing in myself." "Scarcity mindset is what's really expensive."

She had taken courses she never completed. Bought business coaching programs while her business barely broke even. Purchased a luxury car because "successful people drive nice cars." Invested in a mastermind she could not afford because she was "afraid of staying small."

Every decision made sense in the moment. Every purchase felt like an act of faith in her future self. Every swipe of the card felt like choosing abundance over scarcity.

And now she is drownin...

The Best Money Books for Women in 2026: 10 Reads That Will Change How You Think About Wealth

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By Leah Hadley, CDFA, MAFF, AFC

I still remember the first financial book that made me feel like someone was finally talking to me. Not at me. Not over my head. Directly to me as a woman trying to figure out her financial life. It was David Bach's Smart Women Finish Rich, and it landed in my hands at exactly the right time.

Since then, I've read dozens of personal finance books, and I keep coming back to the ones that do more than just explain compound interest. The books that stick are the ones that help you understand *why* you think about money the way you do and then give you practical tools to do something about it.

Whether you're rebuilding after a major life transition, trying to get a handle on investing for the first time, or just ready to stop feeling anxious every time you check your bank account, there's a book on this list for you. I've included a mix of classics and newer voices, covering everything from mindset to strategy to building real wealth.

Here are the 10 mo...

Women’s Empowerment Network: How Building Your Support Circle Changes Everything

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I spent the first half of my life trying to blend in with the wall.

Making myself smaller, quieter, less visible. If you had told the teenage version of me that I’d one day run a financial planning practice, lead a community of women, and write a book about money, I would have laughed. That girl didn’t believe she had anything worth saying out loud.

What changed? Community. Specifically, the women’s empowerment networks that showed me what I was capable of before I could see it myself.

That’s not a soft, feel-good sentiment. It’s the most practical career and life advice I can give you. The right support circle of women will change your trajectory. It changed mine.

The Communities That Shaped Me

Girl Scouts: Where Personal Growth Begins

I grew up a Girl Scout. And I know that might sound quaint, but the truth is, that’s where I first experienced what happens when girls are given space to lead without being told to tone it down. We learned how to set goals, manage money (hell...

Setting Financial Boundaries With Adult Children Without Guilt

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You love your kid. You also have a retirement to fund. And somewhere in the middle of those two things, you have been quietly saying yes when you probably should have said something else.

I hear some version of this almost every week.

"I want to help my kid. But I'm starting to feel anxious. Resentful. Like I'm stretched in every direction and there's nothing left for me."

If that lands for you, take a breath. Nothing has gone wrong. That feeling of tension is often where awareness starts. And awareness is where everything changes.

Supporting adult children financially is an expression of love. I truly believe that. But when that support has no shape, no limit, no clarity around it, it stops feeling like generosity and starts feeling like a slow drain. On your finances. On your peace. On your relationship with your kid.

Setting financial boundaries with your adult children is not about loving them less. It is about creating something sustainable for both of you.

Why This Is Esp...

How to Start Legacy Planning Conversations With Your Family: A Compassionate Guide

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Legacy planning conversations are some of the most important discussions families can have, yet they are also the ones most often avoided. In a recent masterclass inside the Empowered Sisterhood, I taught a values based approach to these conversations and shared how to prepare both assets and loved ones for the future with clarity and compassion.

Legacy planning sounds straightforward on the surface. In reality, these conversations touch deeply emotional areas of family life. Anyone who has ever settled a loved one’s estate knows how difficult it can be when clarity is missing or communication never happened.

This subject is especially meaningful to me right now. When my mom passed away unexpectedly, I experienced firsthand how powerful clear communication can be. She shared her wishes openly, helped me understand what I needed to know, and made sure I felt prepared. That clarity was a tremendous gift in the middle of grief, and it reinforced the importance of intentional legacy plan...

Building a True Money Partnership: How Women Can Create Trust, Transparency, and Confidence with Their Finances

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When it comes to feeling confident with your money, most women aren’t just looking for investment returns. They’re looking for relationship returns.

A true money partnership between a woman and her financial team goes deeper than numbers or market performance. It’s about trust. It’s about being heard and respected. And it’s about having people beside you who help you align your money with your values, your goals, and your bigger vision for your life.

In The Empowered Sisterhood, we talk a lot about reclaiming your financial power. One of the most powerful ways to do that is by building a financial partnership that feels genuine and grounded in mutual respect.

Let’s look at what that kind of partnership really means and how you can start creating it today.

Trust Is the Heart of Financial Empowerment

Trust is the foundation of any healthy relationship, and that includes your relationship with your advisor.

When you trust your financial team, you feel comfortable asking questions...

Why Saving Still Matters: How to Build the Habit That Actually Protects Your Future

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Investing gets all the attention.

Stock market highs make headlines. New investment strategies go viral. Everyone has a hot take on what to do with your money right now. And somewhere in all of that noise, saving quietly gets dismissed as the boring option for people who are not ready to do the exciting stuff yet.

That is exactly backwards.

Saving is not a stepping stone to real financial planning. It is the foundation that makes everything else possible. Without it, your investments are fragile, your options are limited, and every unexpected expense becomes a financial crisis.

I see this play out regularly with the women I work with. The ones who feel genuinely secure in their finances are almost always the ones who have built a consistent saving habit alongside everything else. Not instead of investing. Alongside it.

Here is why saving still deserves your attention and how to build a habit that actually sticks.

The Brain Trick That Works Against You

One of the biggest obstacle...

How to Keep The Winds of Change from Blowing You Off Course

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by Liesel Darby, Mediator & Divorce Coach

What do the following have in common?

You’re in the grocery store, looking for your favorite brand of stone-ground mustard, only to find that they no longer carry it. The replacement brand is twice the price, and you don’t like the packaging either.
You’re accustomed to your second shift schedule, but you have just been informed that you are moving to first shift for the foreseeable future. This throws a wrench in your Pilates class schedule.
Your spouse has just announced that he is leaving you for the neighbor down the street that you have been casually saying hi to on your evening walks if she’s out in the yard.

If you answered “things that make you go hmmmm,” you are partly correct. Actually, these are all examples of change, albeit in varying degrees of the impact it will have on a person’s life. New mustard brand versus your world being turned upside down by divorce are not on the same par, for sure. If you’ve been around in this...

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Leah Hadley, AFC, CDFA, MAFF

Leah Hadley, AFC® CDFA® MAFF™, is a bestselling author and financial planner with over 20 years of experience helping women build wealth with intention. She is the founder of Watch Her Thrive and Intentional Wealth Partners, and the author of Intentional Money: The Modern Woman's Guide to Building Wealth, Purpose & Peace.

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Investment Advisory Disclosure:

Leah Hadley is a Licensed Investment Adviser Representative and the Founder of Intentional Wealth Partners, a Registered Investment Adviser. Advisory services are offered exclusively through Intentional Wealth Partners.

Watch Her Thrive is not a Registered Investment Adviser and does not provide individualized investment advice, financial planning, or securities recommendations. All content provided through Watch Her Thrive is for educational and informational purposes only.