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The Road to Authenticity and Personal Power With Galit Tsadik
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Galit Tsadik is the founder and CEO at FINancial Sharktress. She believes her ultimate personal power to live the life you love comes from taking control of your money. If you want to break free, if you want to be healed from your financial pains, as well as reach newer, higher goals.
In this episode, we go over just how Galit became her true self in the face of expectation. When she was under the shoulds, everything had felt like a facade. From being in an Orthodox Jewish home where there was one role for a woman - to be a mother and a housewife. To her career, where everything felt like a facade and feeling that she needed to be a different person entirely to be taken seriously in her field.
Join me in listening to how Galit is now living her authentic life and has gained her own personal power. To connect with Galit, visit website https://financialsharktress.com.
Watch Galit's Story
Transcript
Jennifer:
Welcome to the I Don’t Give a Should Show – a podcast exploring ALL the ways that women SHOULD all over themselves. How many times do you find yourself acting out of obligation or doing what everyone ELSE expects from you without stopping to consider why? Where do all those beliefs that are driving you come from? If you’re tired of feeling resentful, overwhelmed, stuck, exhausted or pissed off you’re in the right place.
Shoulding all over yourself is a real thing, but it doesn’t have to be in the driver’s seat.
I’m your host Jen Sherwood, and I spent waaaaay too many years trying to prove that I was good enough and worrying what other people thought while avoiding conflict at all costs. Today, I don’t give a should – well not as many anyway and neither should you. I’m talking to women like you who figured out how to stop shoulding and start LIVING.
Today, my guest is Galit Tsadik, and she is the founder, and listen to this, I want you to hear this loud and clear - the CEO at the FINancial Sharktress. She believes her ultimate personal power to live the life you love comes from taking control of your money.
If you want to break free, if you want to be healed from your financial pains, as well as reach newer, higher goals. I'm telling you to reach out to Galit, you have to get to know this woman, she is amazing and believes so strongly in the power of this.
Thank you so much for being here today - I'm so happy to have you.
Galit:
Yes, thank you so much for having me.
Jennifer:
I'm super excited for this.
What our listeners don't know is that very recently, I was a guest on your podcast, and we had such a good time. I don't have to be, I like to be careful when I do these, but I like to hear the story for the first time.
I've gotten a little taste of your backstory, but I don't actually know the story. I'm just really excited to hear, you know, your journey and what brought you here today.
Without further ado, what was it like for you when you were living under the shoulds?
Galit:
Ah, it was oppressive.
It didn't feel authentic - it didn't feel like me. It didn't feel like how didn't feel like I was accomplishing anything, honestly.
Jennifer:
When you say because the word authenticity gets used a lot - it's actually a word I'm a big fan of.
For you, when you say it didn't feel authentic, like what was that like for you?
Someone using the word oppression makes me think of someone's parents, community, or whatever was telling you who or what you were supposed to be, but what did it feel like for you?
Galit:
Yeah, it just felt like I was always putting on a facade. I had to be a different person in order to be taken seriously because in my field of finance - you "should" be an older white male.
Jennifer:
Right? Or at least that's how it was.
Galit:
I was nothing like that, and it went so far as when I first started my business, I had to put my ex, who was an older white-appearing male, on my website in order to look legit. That was actually told to me by, you know, people that I respected, people who have authority. My accountant had me add him as a 1% business owner so that I could technically have this guy on my website who knew nothing about finance but looked the part so people would trust him.
We went even as far as the first video that I shot to promote my business had him in it, looking over a graph that he absolutely did not understand and had no idea what he was talking about. We just needed that, you know, that shot of this older white male in the office looking at paperwork and supervising.
Jennifer:
I should not, I mean, my mouth is gaping open, I should not be as surprised as I am at this moment. In my mind, I'm jumping forward ahead about who your clients were then versus who your clients are now, like who was it?
But you know what, actually, I'll let you answer that, and then I'll walk this back a little bit because I am curious. I imagine you put this gentleman on your site, and business starts to come, but the business that came were the people that you wanted, were they the people you wanted to work with, or was it when you became more authentic that the people you wanted to work with showed up?
Galit:
Completely when I became more authentic, the initial people that I started working with are, I think there may be one client left from that, you know, from that array of initial first clients, and it really was people that were not looking to pay me what I was worth.
Looking for their main point of contact to be this man that had no idea what they were doing, but because they were a man, it's just okay, they're going to be, you know, I want to talk to the owner. You're talking to the owner, this guy owns 1% and has no idea what you're talking about, but yeah, my initial clients, I don't have I have maybe one of those remaining, the people that I work with now are the people that I've always wanted to be working with.
Jennifer:
I love that.
I want to walk back a little bit because as I'm listening to you, I'm thinking, okay, so you were wearing this facade of the person who needs the kind of white male to bring people in, and it's not going to bring in the people you want anyway.
So at some point, I'm guessing you had to let the facade go, which is what I think we're talking about. But when do you think that facade started for you? When did you feel like you had to and you don't have to go back to the, you know, the genesis of it all, but like, just earlier in your life? What was that like for you as you were coming up? I imagine kind of bumping up against these walls of expectation.
Galit:
Yeah, so I actually am going to go way back!
I am a female that grew up in an Orthodox Jewish home and went to Orthodox Jewish schools in which there was one role for a female. It was to be a mother and a housewife, who is where your options - I did not fit into that mold ever.
So growing up, it was a constant battle between what I should be and what I actually was. So in school, I remember having to be in math classes that were four or five grades ahead because I just kept refusing to be at that level, I was like, No, you cannot continue to put me in at this level because I've learned that already. I don't need to just know addition and subtraction, you know, I want to progress, and I want to learn. So it was a constant battle between, you know, knowing that I was worth more than just being someone's housewife and then also maintaining this facade so that I could stay in the school, be accepted by the community, be accepted by my family, and be accepted by the authority figures around me.
Jennifer:
Yeah, yeah, I can only imagine - my mind is going to disorienting, that you don't fit in this mold, and so maybe there were thoughts in your mind about, like, what's wrong with me? Why am I different than everybody else?
But then on the other side, my brain sort of goes towards how terrifying for you, you know, you don't fit this mold. But everybody in your life who, when you say authority figure, I'm thinking your parents, you're all the way up the mind, the officials at the school at the church, that in your community, if this is how this community believes so strongly, and you don't fit there, it must have been terrifying for you, or I'm assuming it is I shouldn't put words in your I don't want to put words,
Galit:
It definitely was - it was, you know, they instilled this fear of, you're not going to have a good future, you are not going to live up to your duties as a woman, as you know, your duties to God, you are going to go to hell, you know, it was all of these things.
I can't even count the number of times that even my own family told me that I was going to hell because I did not fit into the mold. And it drove me to just kind of force myself to break out of it completely, in childhood, to break out of that initial religion, the initial religious mold that I was put into, and then I had to do it again, you know, in my career, because I was put into a new mold, which when you start working for banks, you know, they want you to look a certain way.
So I was wearing, you know, suits and color-blocked dresses, and I worked for some religious companies as well Jewish religious companies, so they even expected a higher level, so everything was covered up.
At those companies, I was hired to be part of their finance departments, but I would also have to set the table for the men and not be allowed to actually sit and eat with the men. It was always like these two sides of me knowing that I'm someone completely different and fulfilling this role that I have to fulfill in order to get the experience that I need to be able to break out on my own.
Jennifer:
Okay, so this is fascinating.
I mean, I feel like we could really dive into this if we had all day, but this is amazing, and there's something so magical, I have to say, about looking at you right now.
What I can see from Galit, if you're listening to this, is just this beautiful smile and her blue hair, so you know, she is not in anybody's mold any longer except yours.
I'm curious, was there an event or a series of events that made you kind of say, like, enough, and then how you move through that mold? Or were you sort of always on that track of moving towards it, but these were the ways you were going to get the experience you needed to get to where you are today as the CEO? I mean, I'm curious what happened for you.
Galit:
There definitely was a trajectory early on in my career, I was like, okay, I'm going to stay and fit into these facades for as long as I need to, to get the experience, so that I can create something of my own.
Once I created my business, what I didn't realize is that I would still have to put on a facade, and so in my business, there was a huge pivotal moment for me when I broke out of it. That was actually, I'm part of this nonprofit called the Ladies of Business Rockaway Beach, and we used to have guest speakers.
We had this PR expert, and her name is Timur Luna - I remember that day so vividly, she came in, and she gave this whole, you know, lecture about social media and PR and taught so many things. At the end, I walked up to her, and I was like, so I understand how you do it for all these other businesses, but this is my bit, you know, this is the details of my business, how would I be able to do that?
How would I be able to do these social media videos and stuff like that without, you know, releasing my client data and making sure that every single piece of paper on my desk is turned over before, you know, before I started a video and she said to me, "Let me look at your website and let me look at your social media, and I want to look at you."
She looked at it, and these were her words, these two people are not the same thing - me in person versus me online. She said, "These two people are not the same person, and I don't trust it."
I was like, wow, you're right! She's like this website, this social media looks super corporate. When we're talking, I like you - you don't feel super corporate, you feel like someone I would want to work with. I just knew you from your social media and from your website, I would not work with you.
Jennifer:
Oh, my gosh, what an eye-opening moment.
So you hear this, and you realize there is this dissonance between you, the authentic lead, and you, the business version, and somehow you want to marry these two because the business is what you want to do - so what do you do?
Galit:
There was a process, so the first thing I started was I went back because I had originally built my original website by myself, and I went back, and I rebuilt it. I put in things that mattered to me, so I have always been super into the oceans, and I made it kind of an ocean theme website and changed the wording so that it sounded more like me.
So that was my first initial thing than social media, I started to become active on social media, and I was using me, I was using my image, the image of my actual employees, using my actual clients, so I'd go over to a client's base, and during that, we take a selfie, and I post them on social media.
I started to really embody who I was in my business and move away from that super corporate look with someone else as the face of the business. I took back that piece of it, and then slowly, I started to feel more comfortable with how I was showing up and more comfortable being more and more of myself. And, you know, I eventually did, you know, completely threw off the carpet look and did what I wanted, which was dye my hair blue and just be me and be valued for all of my skills and not be judged on the way that I look.
I make sure that my clients always when they start with me, that we do a Zoom call so they know who they're talking to.
Jennifer:
Yeah, I was just thinking, you can't control who's judging you, but it sounds to me, like, when you show up authentically, you the people who would have judged you and decided not to work for me with you because you have blue hair, those are the people you want to work with anyway.
That's beautiful! Show up with your blue hair, and then if that person, for whatever reason, doesn't feel comfortable for you because that doesn't meet the old school framework? Well, that's fine, and it doesn't sound like that's hurting your business at all.
Galit:
No, in fact, it's completely helped my business because the people that I'm working with now are valuing me for my skills and valuing what I can do for them.
Plus, they're paying me what I'm worth, instead of me trying to pick off people that are looking for corporate accountants and things like that, who are not willing to pay for my services, you know, just looking for the corporations of the world
Jennifer:
Okay, I just want to stop for one second and reiterate this for everybody who is listening.
So once you stepped into, you really just stopped trying to be something that you weren't, clients showed up who appreciated your skills and were willing to pay you what you were worth - that feels like a revolutionary statement that needs to be said over and over and over.
I think so many times, we are so afraid of how people will judge us and then, you know, and then what does that look like, and then we're going to be a bag lady limping into the, you know, blah, blah, blah, it goes into this rabbit hole of disaster, but that's not what happened for you at all.
I don't know what that family life looks like, you can talk about it, you can not talk about it. That's totally up to you, but you seem like the more that you really embrace who you are and let go of those. It's almost like a fortress of what people expected you to be that your business life grew and your personal life. I'm curious, and I would imagine following along because you're no longer pretending what you were supposed to be.
Galit:
Yeah, that's exactly what happened.
My personal life is now wonderful. I can say that, you know, that ex that I spoke about, that older white male who was in my business, so he is no longer a part of my life and has not been for many, many years.
I am married to a beautiful man who accepts me exactly the way I am. My family has, you know, most of my family has no problem with who I am now - they love my blue hair. My nieces and nephews are all about it. It's now like every time I go around them, it's like, oh, what color? Is your hair going to be? What shade of blue? What can I find in my wardrobe that matches?
Jennifer:
Oh my gosh, you're like the wild, crazy auntie, and they can't wait to see what you have going on. I have to say, because again, I want to say to our listeners, I try not to hear the story before we get on here because I want to hear it when you do.
I'm actually surprised, that is not what I thought was going to happen with your family. It is incredible that you came from such a staunch background, and yet you still get to have the life you want to lead, and they're a part of it. That's honestly mind-blowing - I'm so happy for you!
Galit:
Yeah, there were some touchy moments in there, and there's certain family members that I don't speak to. But for the most part, the majority of my family accepts me, and I'm more than happy to spend my time and resources with the ones that do accept me and just allow the ones that don't come around eventually.
Jennifer:
Yeah, or not - otherwise, what's the option?
You pretend to be somebody you're not, and that wasn't working for you? That was absolutely not working for you.
So talk to us a little bit about what you do in your business, and just share what's happening.
Galit:
I technically own one business, but it's two parts. I have a virtual CFO company, so that's everything that has to do with money in a business, bookkeeping, payroll, accounts payable, accounts receivable collections, et cetera, and I do financial wellness coaching for individuals.
Jennifer:
What does that look like? If somebody doesn't know what that means?
Galit:
Yeah, so I really focus on financial literacy. There's a lot of people that are financial advisors and try to sell you things. I'm not looking to sell any insurances, or looking to sell any specific investments, what I do is I focus on financial literacy that you should have been taught in school.
I teach you how to make the decisions for yourself so that you don't have to rely on the other people to sell you. I've just found in my experience that even though they are meant to be looking out for your best interest when there is a commission involved, your best interest takes a backseat. And so I want to make sure that you don't get taken advantage of anyone. You don't get taken advantage of by anyone.
Jennifer:
Yeah.
Oh, beautiful, so it's a lot about educating and empowering people around money.
Galit:
Yeah, so we look at what your money stories from childhood? We look at what are the limiting beliefs that you have around money? And then we also talk about, like, the nuts and bolts? What is a credit score? How do you make your credit score acceptable to companies? What kinds of loans are available to you? What is the best type of insurance for you? What are options for your retirement? What are the different types of investment accounts you can have?
So we really go through everything budgeting, budgeting is a huge one that I do, and what I like to work with is making sure that every single dollar is accounted for. I like to give every single dollar in your wallet a job, that way, it is working for you, and you stop working for it.
So we budget for self-care, we budget for savings, investments, goals, we make sure that in your budget, it's not just what you owe other people. It is what you want for yourself as well and what you're working towards as well.
Jennifer:
Beautiful - I love this!
I can imagine there are people whose ears have fully perked up while we're talking. So go eat, and I will put all this information in our show notes but tell our listeners how they can find you and how they can get in touch with you.
Galit:
Yeah, so I am FINancial Sharktress - it's FINancial Sharktress Galit Tsadik on Facebook, I actually go live on my Facebook page. In my group Righteous Revenue Fishbowl every Monday, to give out free financial advice where I pick a topic, I call it My Money Mondays, I'm there giving advice, answering questions. On Instagram, it's @financial_sharktress, and my email is the galit@financialsharktress.com.
Right now, I actually have a group program that is coming out next month, so I do individual one on one coaching, I also do group coaching, and the group program is called the Inner Shark Circle. If you're interested in that, please feel free to reach out on any of those methods, and I can give you the information.
Jennifer:
Perfect.
And again, we will have all this available because I can imagine there are definitely people who want to get to know you who doesn't, who doesn't want to a get to know somebody who's got great input and resources around money, but also who got to this place from this journey that you just described to us. I'm so honored that you shared it with us today.
Thank you for being here - I really appreciate it.
Galit:
Thank you so much for having me and allowing me to share my journey.
It's so convoluted, and I was like, how do I bring this to the forefront and allow people to really understand so thank you very much for guiding me through it as well.
Jennifer:
You're welcome.
And you can say it's convoluted, but I think it's the story of the journey, it followed a path that was easy to stay with, so thank you. All right, those of you who've joined us, thank you so much for being here.
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