IAM1562 – Coach Helps Clients Achieve Financial Fitness and Empowerment

Annette Harris is a certified Financial Fitness Coach. She has been a noteworthy leader in the financial and human resources industry for over 13 years. She is a U.S. Army veteran and the Founder of Harris Financial Coaching. She volunteers with local and national nonprofit organizations to help enhance the community's financial literacy.

• CEO Story: Annette worked 2 years ago to get her family debt-free, and so she did. While finishing her studies, her husband encouraged her to start her own business in line with her passion. Since young, she has so passionate about finances. Consulted her mentor, and was given a blessing to go for it since Annette already lived the truth of being debt-free. She can now be seen as a figure to whom other black women can look up. And so she registered her business the next day.
• Business Service: Coaching services. Consultation and trying to fit together with their goals.
• Secret Sauce: Holistic view of client's finances and goals, not just the current but including the past situation. Open and comfortable conversation with the client.
• CEO Hack: Collaborating with other coaches. Build the network.
• CEO Nugget: Be a lifelong learner. Do your research to gain credibility.
• CEO Defined: Freedom to be creative in your own right. Achieve the dreams that you have set for yourself. Freedom to reach out to who you want to reach out to.

Website: www.harriswealthcoach.com

Blog: www.harriscashcoach.com

Instagram: harriscashcoach

Facebook: harrisfinancialcoach

Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCgP-ESGUFRnNp_Bg4_ylpOA

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Transcription

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00:24 – Intro

Do you want to learn effective ways to build relationships, generate sales, and grow your business from successful entrepreneurs, startups, and CEOs without listening to a long, long, long interview? If so, you've come to the right place. Gresham Harkless values your time and is ready to share with you precisely the information you're in search of. This is the I AM CEO Podcast.

00:52 – Gresham Harkless

Hello, this is Gresh from the I AM CEO podcast. I have a very special guest on the show today, AV Annette Harris of Harris Financial Coaching. Annette, it's great to have you on the show.

01:02 – Annette Harris

Thank you for having me today. I'm excited to be here.

01:04 – Gresham Harkless

Yes, I'm excited to have you on as well and hear about all the awesome things that you're doing. Before we jump into the interview, I wanted to read a little bit more about Annette so you can hear about some of those awesome things. Annette is a certified financial fitness coach. She has been a noteworthy leader, leader in the financial and human resource industry for over 13 years and she is a U.S. Army veteran. Thank you for your service. The founder of Harris Financial Coaching.

She volunteers with local and nonprofit, national nonprofit organizations to help enhance the community's financial literacy. Annette, great to have you on the show. Love everything that you're doing. Are you ready to speak to the I AM CEO community?

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01:40 – Annette Harris

I'm ready.

01:41 – Gresham Harkless

Let's get it started then. So kind of kicks everything off. I wanted to rewind the clock a little bit here. A little bit more on how you got started. What I call your CEO story.

01:49 – Annette Harris

Absolutely. So I got started. So about two years ago, I worked to get my family debt-free. Paid off a mortgage in eight and a half years, had our vehicles, and paid off furniture. Everything was done so we had no debt. So after that I had a little bit of time on my hands with finishing my education and my husband was like, Annette, you really should start a business. Think about what you want to do to give back to the community. So did a little soul searching, trying to figure out, okay, what can I do? What am I good at?

Finances have been my passion since I was a teenager, 18 years old. My mother was like Annette, you need to enroll in this personal finance course. I just fell in love with it since then. So I started again, did a little soul search, and I was like, you know what? I think I want to teach people about finances and teach them my story, as an African American female who became debt-free and show them how they can do it, too, and how they can understand their finances.

So what I did was I actually talked to a mentor of mine, and I told him what I wanted to do with my business, and he was like, Annette, you need to do it. Like, you've already lived this truth, and you can be seen as a figure that other black females can look up to and we had that conversation one night. The next day, I was registering my business.

03:17 – Gresham Harkless

Nice. I absolutely love that. I especially love it, I'm such a big believer in that. So many times, the thing that is our passion, our gift, the thing that we kind of set our soul on fire, for lack of a better term sometimes. We often will get that, like when we're very, very young, and you have that opportunity to kind of just kind of run with it. So I love hearing about the personal financial class that you took, and then just how you took the baton and started running from there.

03:43 – Annette Harris

Absolutely. It came full circle. I mean, with my personal business and also in my career as well, because, as you said, I work in human resources, so it's like I'm constantly talking to employees about their benefits, their pay, things like that. So it's like, I've always been in a profession of service, and I was like I just want to continue that path.

04:05 – Gresham Harkless

Yeah, absolutely. I'm not sure how much those conversations go into finances, but it's like the elephant in the room. I feel like a lot of times where it's something that kind of is a filter or is influencing everything, but sometimes it may not be that conversation. So I just love everything that you're doing, because, first of all, it creates, I think, sometimes a narrative.

You don't always hear about being able to pay off debt and do those things and you accomplish things. It makes it real. I think when you can hear somebody's story, not only does it make it real, but it also makes it kind of tangible that you can also do the same.

04:38 – Annette Harris

Absolutely. The conversations go into finances all the time.

04:43 – Gresham Harkless

I do that. Okay.

04:45 – Annette Harris

Retirees with just the conversations I have with people when I'm filing their taxes. I do that for volunteering. It's just always about them saying I didn't realize that, or I'm glad you said that. It's like that light bulb went off when we had to have these conversations.

[00:05:01.77] – Gresham Harkless

Yeah, and that's why it's so important and I love that. Just because again, like when you have your gifts, you have the thing that you're really excellent at your craft. So many times you can approach it and sharpen your craft in so many different ways and have so many different conversations. So I love that you've been able to do that.

05:17 – Annette Harris

Awesome.

05:19 – Gresham Harkless

Perfect. Perfect. So I wanted to drill down a little bit more and hear a little bit more on how you're working with your clients. Could you take us through what that looks like and how you're serving the clients you work with?

05:27 – Annette Harris

Yeah, so I work with clients. We have conversations. I say I provide coaching services, but it's having those conversations with them. So clients reach out to me, and we do a consultation together, to see how we can fit together with each other and their goals. So some of them say, hey I just want you to work on my budget, tell me how to pay my bills. That's not what I do. I help you set those goals.

We set up these meetings, touch points, whether or not they're weekly, semi, monthly, or monthly meetings. We define what their goals are for them in their life, and what they're currently struggling with so that we can address those issues. Some people may not be struggling. They're just like, hey, I just want to manage my finances better, want to plan for retirement for me, plan for my children, education in the future. We have these monthly check-ins on, like, how can you start planning for that?

Then we also, I also work with clients on their resumes. So I took a little bit of my HR expertise and recruitment and worked with them on building their LinkedIn profiles and their resumes. So that kind of comes into financial coaching because it helps them. I provide them with career guidance on how to get them to that next level in their life and with their finances. Like, what do you need to do to earn more money? It's not always a side hustle. It's like, what can you do professionally? Do you need more education? Like, do you need a tune-up on your resume just to get you to that next level so you can achieve those goals?

07:01 – Gresham Harkless

Nice. I love that. Again thinking full circle, like we were kind of talking about how finances go into different aspects of your life, and sometimes you even put to. Well, I didn't at least put two of them together. That is your finances and your career. You understand it when you say it, but sometimes you're like, okay, if I want to retire by this amount and saying, like, okay, well, maybe I need to have this increase in pay. You don't think about some of those things. But I love how you seem to have, for lack of a better term, a holistic look at how finances can influence and what things kind of need to be talked about or at least have space to discuss.

07:36 – Annette Harris

Yes, absolutely. Another thing is I work with clients on weighing those options. Like, what does that look like? You said you want to go to another career, you want to make more money, but what are you currently making right now at your current job? How satisfied are you with that current job? Do you want to travel a little bit further? You're stuck in traffic for an hour, but your current job is 20 minutes away from your house. How much are you spending on gas and that time away from your family? So it's making those life choices in addition to the financial changes that you want to make as well.

08:13 – Gresham Harkless

Yeah. I can see why. It's definitely a lot more than saying, hey, can you just balance my checkbook? Because I think when we make those decisions, there's so much that's involved. Like you said, it's not just a career. It's sometimes a different route to work, a different amount of time, less time, maybe with your family. Just considering all those things is so important. When we're ultimately making that decision or taking that step or even saying, like, what can we do to get to where we want to be?

08:37 – Annette Harris

Absolutely. Again, that's why we have multiple conversations because we have that initial one, and that light bulb goes off, and they're like, you know what? I need to think about that. Let's come back. When we come back to our next meeting, let's revisit, like, what soul searching did you do or what conversations did you have with your friends, with yourself, with your spouse, or even with your children?

08:59 – Gresham Harkless

Yeah, that makes so much sense, and it almost makes me wonder, and this might even be part of your secret sauce, the thing you feel kind of sets you apart and makes you unique, but I almost feel as if I wonder how many times these conversations are maybe not had. Maybe people aren't even considering that. So, for one, I feel like you have this ability to, of course, hold that space so that those conversations actually happen.

Of course but I feel like the words you use, and I definitely, you know as well, too, is that word holistic, where you're not just having those conversations, but you're having them holistically. To look at the whole human and how finances can impact that. Do you feel like that's part of your secret sauce is something that you've been able to kind of do?

09:36 – Annette Harris

I think it is a part of it. Just again, having them take a look at their life in general, not just going forward or where they're currently at, but also like your past. We have conversations about their upbringing, like, how were you raised? How are finances, man managed in your household? There are individuals like, hey, this is where my current situation is. I always think back this is how my mother or father handled things. I don't want to continue that cycle.

So I work with them to try to break that cycle and also be open to having those conversations. I know for me and a lot of the individuals I talk to, it's a lot of African American females, and they say, Annette, like, I didn't have these conversations growing up. I feel really comfortable talking to you about this. Whereas and that's part of my secret sauce because there aren't a lot of black females that are out here talking about finances.

There are not a lot of financial coaches that are military veterans as well. A lot of financial coaches try to get that training. But it's. The military system is very complex. When you're working with the VA, disabled veterans, things like that, where you aren't as comfortable talking to a financial coach that doesn't have that experience, or if you are a black female, talking to someone who's a different race. I mean, there are some that will reach out, but they're like, they just don't know my story or my background demographically.

11:10 – Gresham Harkless

Yeah, absolutely. Which is, again, why I think it's so powerful. Your story and what you've been able to accomplish. So I wanted to switch gears a little bit and ask you for what I call a CEO hack. So this could be like an app or book or a habit that you have, but what's something that makes you more effective and efficient?

11:25 – Annette Harris

So my CEO hack is that I love collaborating with other people in my space. I reach out on a weekly basis to other coaches about whether or not it's fitness, whether or not it's wellness. They're recruiting military veterans who have their own small business. I'm just constantly trying to, like, build my network and our tribe together and see how, like I said, it's a holistic view of how everything plays together.

So I create blog posts with other coaches. I attend business events with them. So with that, what that does for me is it helps me span my network so that I can reach more clients. Not even just clients, because I do a lot of volunteering as well. Just reaching more members of the community.

12:19 – Gresham Harkless

Awesome. So what would you consider to be what I like to call a CEO Nugget? So this is a little bit more word of wisdom or a piece of advice. I like to say it might be something you would tell your younger business self if you were to hop into a time machine or potentially your favorite client.

12:32 – Annette Harris

I would say to continue learning. I'm a lifelong learner. I am always trying to gain different certifications. In trying to gain those certifications, you have to do your research in order to build your credibility. I have also gone to school from 2003 until 2021, getting different degrees. So you name it. From religion to IT to business finance to human resources. I have degrees in all of those subjects and even more like, I could go on, but it's just that I want to learn more and be able to just be as educated as possible in the profession that I'm currently in, and it also has fed over into my business.

13:19 – Gresham Harkless

Yeah, I think there's much to be said about setting a goal and actually accomplishing it, no matter what it is. So what would you consider to be my answer to my absolute favorite question, which is the definition of what it means to be a CEO? We're hoping to have different quote-unquote, CEOs on the show saying that. What does being a CEO mean to you?

13:37 – Annette Harris

Being a CEO to me means freedom. Freedom to be creative in my own right. Working for an employer, there are certain things that you can or cannot do. But being a CEO, you can be as creative as possible and just achieve the dreams that you have set for yourself. It's also in addition to, like, freedom of being creative. It's the freedom to be able to reach out who you want, reach out to who you want to reach out to.

You can market your services to basically any demographic that you want any group of people. It's just it's you're able to be a contributor to society on a larger scale as opposed to working for an employer or things like that. So I just want to impact lives. I'm able to do that through my business and through my volunteering.

14:36 – Gresham Harkless

Perfect. Well, I appreciate your time and that and of course, I appreciate all the awesome things that you're doing. So what I wanted to do now was pass you the mic, so to speak, just to see if there's anything additional that you can let our readers and listeners know and of course, how best people could get ahold of you, find out about your blog and all the awesome things that you're working on.

[00:14:53.76] – Annette Harris

Absolutely. So, again, if people want to reach out to me, they can reach out to my website. It's harriswealthcoach.com and that's my main site where I provide resume services, LinkedIn services, and financial coaching services. One thing we didn't talk about is I also do group coaching as well. So I am open to that.

Small groups of five, things like that, just to have those conversations and it kind of helps people become more comfortable with talking about finances when they see what others are going through. Then my blog is totally separate. That's harriscashcoach.com and again, that is the conversations there range from personal finances, health, wellness, travel, things like that. Because I love to travel, but I am on all social media@HarrisCashCoach.

15:46 – Gresham Harkless

Awesome and to make it even easier, we're going to have the links and information in the show notes as well too, so that everybody can reach out to you, connect with your blog, found about all the awesome things that you're working on. But I absolutely love that word that we kind of landed on at the end, that word, freedom.

I almost feel like everything you do can provide that type of freedom, especially when you have that knowledge, that awareness, and then exactly how to execute whatever you need to execute to get to your goals. So thank you so much for providing freedom in so many different ways for so many people. I appreciate all the awesome things you talked about today and I hope you have a great rest of the day.

16:19 – Annette Harris

All right, thank you.

16:20 – Outro

Thank you for listening to the I AM CEO Podcast powered by Blue 16 Media. Tune in next time and visit us at iamceo.co I AM CEO is not just a phrase, it's a community. Be sure to follow us on social media and subscribe to our podcast on iTunes Google Play and everywhere you listen to podcasts, SUBSCRIBE, and leave us a five-star rating grab CEO gear at www.ceogear.co. This has been the I AM CEO Podcast with Gresham Harkless. Thank you for listening.

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