[00:17] Tara Bansal: Welcome to her life, her practice, her way.

[00:21] A podcast for and about female financial advisors Tara I’m Tara Conti Bansal. I’ve been a financial planner and life coach for over 20 years,

[00:32] and I believe that when women thrive in this profession, we all win.

[00:37] This show is about sharing our journeys, our struggles, our breakthroughs, and the many ways we build a life and practice that feels true to us.

[00:48] And now I’m extending that mission. Beyond the podcast,

[00:52] I coach female advisors who want to grow a fulfilling practice and a beautiful life that they love.

[00:59] One filled with meaning, freedom, connection, and joy.

[01:04] Whether you’re just starting out, reinventing yourself, or dreaming of what’s next, you’re in the right place.

[01:11] Let’s build this together.

[01:13] This episode is the second part of my conversation with Shauna Dew,

[01:18] a college funding expert and financial planner who now helps families navigate one of the biggest, most emotional and overwhelming financial decisions they’ll ever make.

[01:30] We had a power outage,

[01:32] so we split the episode in two.

[01:34] If you haven’t listened to part one yet, you can find it right before this in your podcast feed.

[01:41] Now we’re going to jump back in.

[01:43] How much do you work and do you like what you’re doing now, or are you thinking of any changes?

[01:51] Too many questions at once. I’m sorry.

[01:53] Shanna Due: No, it’s all good. It all actually kind of goes together because what I love and one.

[01:59] One reason why I chose not to open my own RA was because I didn’t want to put in those kind of hours because my family’s important and I got these two teenagers and when I first left my firm, they weren’t driving yet and they still needed me and they were going.

[02:13] And I don’t know how there can be two people going in six directions, but that’s how I felt.

[02:18] So I loved the fact that I could work a really, like,

[02:21] solid six hours a day and then get up from my desk and leave and go do whatever I needed to do.

[02:28] So opening up a new RA does not blend with that very well.

[02:33] But this, this work does,

[02:35] and so I’m able to do that. Let’s see. So you asked me how much I work now, so when I first kind of opened this up, I was around 25,

[02:44] something sometimes I can go clear up. Like right now, we are in the thick of it. So I work a lot more.

[02:50] Tara Bansal: So thank you for making the time to do this right now during your busy season.

[02:55] Shanna Due: It’s also,

[02:56] I used to have very strict these are my business hours and for my financial planning clients Part of what we were working with them was work, life, balance and boundaries.

[03:05] And so they were all.

[03:07] It was known when they came into a relationship with me that these are the hours I work. I guarantee I get back to you within a certain amount of time.

[03:13] But this is what it is to work with me. And I model this because that’s what we’re trying to build for you. Yes.

[03:20] This I’m playing with a little bit because again, parents are filling out forms in the evening and it’s a big, huge moment and we have to make decisions in a very finite period of time.

[03:30] So I have been toying with. You can text me at any time outside of my business hours and I may or may not get back to you if I’m. If I’m just sitting there cooking dinner and I can text you back, like, here’s how to do it.

[03:42] Yes. If not,

[03:43] don’t. You’re gonna have to. I won’t. But I will get back to you as soon as I can. So that seems to be working right now. And as long as you set up expectations, it seems to work really well.

[03:53] I see. As, again, I mentioned earlier, I’ve got a senior and a junior this year. So as they go off and they don’t need me as much, I’m more than.

[04:00] I’ll start upping my hours, I think.

[04:03] And then I have my hands on a lot of other things too. I get like, what.

[04:08] So I do consulting for other advisors to do fun projects that they have that maybe they don’t have time for. Whether it’s figuring out their back office situation, whether they’re hiring for someone, I might help them hire their new person or figure out what that looks like.

[04:21] Sometimes it’s doing processes,

[04:24] just fun little projects that I don’t necessarily want to do with my own firm every day, but I help them figure that out.

[04:30] I do the accountability groups, which I love, and I do other small projects within the organizations that I’m part of that might be creative and writing.

[04:40] We have a new book coming out, so.

[04:43] Tara Bansal: So tell me more about the book, your first book and the one coming up.

[04:50] Shanna Due: So the first book is called More Than Money. It’s a collaboration amongst. I think we had over 25 advisors who contributed to that. And it’s called More Than Money because it’s about that.

[05:01] Money isn’t. It’s not just about the numbers. It’s about all the other things that you and I have already talked about.

[05:07] So each and it. That one is broken up into seven sections and it’s all about empowerment. That’s the overarching theme of the book. So it’s the power to give, the power to dream, the power to do things with your money.

[05:18] And each of the stories represents that.

[05:21] We decided to ask how.

[05:23] Tara Bansal: How did that come about? Like, you had this idea and.

[05:29] Shanna Due: No, I did not have the idea.

[05:32] It’s done through the advisors, growing as a community group. We call that the agc. It’s a group of advisors.

[05:39] And it started out with somebody had an idea of, hey, wouldn’t it be great if we all got together and wrote a book?

[05:45] So we had an interest meeting. Who would be interested in writing a book? What would it look like?

[05:50] Would we write it to other. Who would be the audience?

[05:52] What would we write?

[05:54] And then Justin and Taylor, who are the founders of the agc, were like, well, we kind of need someone to, like, speak your head this. And I was just so excited to be in the room with all these really, really smart advisors and successful.

[06:08] And I was like, I just want to be in the room where it happens. To quote Hamilton, I just want to be in the room where it happens. So I.

[06:14] As long as it’s just like sending out emails and making Zoom invites, I’m in.

[06:19] So I raised my hand, and the next thing I know, I’m putting together a book. And we were going to self publish. And then I was talking with our editor, Wendy Cook,

[06:30] and she said,

[06:31] hey,

[06:32] what if you pitch this to a publisher and see if they’d want to publish it? And I was like,

[06:37] we’re just writing a little thing. We’re just doing a little thing. She’s like,

[06:41] pitch it and see what happens. I have never done that before. So I’m looking at this form online at the publishing house going, ooh.

[06:50] So I figured it out. I wrote it, met with the senior editor, and he’s like, I think we’d like to do this.

[06:55] We did.

[06:56] So now it’s published. It’s in Barnes and Noble.

[06:58] Tara Bansal: When did it come out?

[07:00] Shanna Due: That one came out in summer of 2023.

[07:03] Okay. And then the new one, we decided we would do a follow up, Volume number two.

[07:08] But I said, we’re gonna do volume number two. We’ve gotta make it. The first one is good. I’m very proud of the work in it.

[07:14] I think there was room to make it even better.

[07:17] And so we made something that was good, and hopefully this next one’s even better. It.

[07:23] It’s a little bit more concentrated. And this one is about the different kind of stages in Life for planning.

[07:31] And it’s broken up into five sections.

[07:34] And it has. At the end of each story, there’s a contemplative question, kind of a deeper question that gets into some of your money script, your money story.

[07:43] It’s you reflecting on the story and how it is actually applicable to your life. It’s a little bit more helping the reader see what they should be asking.

[07:53] And then each of those questions leads to. At the end of the section, there’s an actual tactical how to.

[07:59] So now that you’ve read the stories, you’ve contemplated it in your own life.

[08:02] Here’s the steps that you can do for One is like legacy, another one’s giving. One is changes, one is dreaming,

[08:10] One is surviving.

[08:11] Tara Bansal: I can’t wait to check it out.

[08:13] Shanna Due: Yeah.

[08:14] Tara Bansal: How many people contributed to this volume?

[08:18] Shanna Due: Two actual stories. There are 20. And then we have some other guest pieces. Like, I wrote a section at the end of how do it’s. It’s five ways to design your financial life.

[08:30] So I actually have the last part of, like, how do you design your financial team? Who are the people in it? How do you find them?

[08:37] You know, obviously you can start with people in the book, but how do you find an estate planner, an accountant,

[08:42] things like that? So it’s a lot more how to. I’m really. I’m excited for people to see it. Everyone works so hard on it.

[08:51] It’s. It’s got great stories in it. The first one was amazing. And this one is. I don’t even know the next.

[08:56] Tara Bansal: Even better. Yeah. When is this. When’s the new one coming out?

[09:00] Shanna Due: July of 2026. So.

[09:03] Tara Bansal: So pretty soon.

[09:04] Shanna Due: Yeah, yeah, yeah. We’re in final edits right now that have to be done in the next.

[09:09] By the middle of November. I’m not sure when this is going to air, but. Yeah, when we’re middle of November, we’re doing final edits and then we’ve got to hire an actor, an actress to read it and.

[09:22] Yeah. And then we do promo and marketing and it’s out.

[09:27] Tara Bansal: How. How many? Because just listening to you, it sounds like you juggle many different balls.

[09:36] Shanna Due: Yeah. And color coding on the calendar is very pretty some weeks.

[09:43] Tara Bansal: So tell me, what are some of the other ones? I’d even like to hear all the organizations that you are part of.

[09:53] Shanna Due: Oh, let’s see. I’m part of the Society of Advice with Carl Richards.

[09:58] Tara Bansal: Carl Richards, Yep.

[10:00] Shanna Due: That’s how you and I met. Yes. And then I am part of the agc. That’s the other One I’m part of.

[10:07] Part of the conspiracy with Michael Bengay Stainer. Okay,

[10:12] let’s see what else? And then just like through my organization, like through FPA and then which is Financial Planning association for those who are listening who don’t know.

[10:24] Then I.

[10:25] I do volunteer work through the accredited. Through the afcp, which is the accredited financial counseling things. So sometimes I do read scholarships for them or work on our testing or whatever not served on the board there.

[10:37] I don’t. I’m not really interested in doing that. But I do do other stuff for that.

[10:44] The CFP board.

[10:45] I’ll volunteer for them sometimes. And then the pro bono work I try and step out and do that day.

[10:52] Oh, I’m. I almost completely forgot. I’m an advisor for the financial literacy. The Braun Financial Literacy center at the College of William and Mary. So I get to work with the undergraduate students there.

[11:04] They are completely student run, student led, student teaching.

[11:08] They are.

[11:09] They amaze me. Every week when I go in for our meetings, they’re so like on it. It’s amazing.

[11:15] Tara Bansal: How often are you doing that?

[11:18] Shanna Due: They have a planning meeting once a week that I go to.

[11:21] I go to their work session, but usually I don’t because that’s just kind of their session where they work stuff out. But we have a planning meeting that I go to every week.

[11:28] And then they teach four classes each semester.

[11:33] So I go. And then like the other night I helped. I was a guest speaker for one.

[11:38] Means I’m the expert in the room to kind of.

[11:41] It’s really a mitigation because they’re not allowed to give investment advice and some is beyond their scope. So yes, I’m. I’m really just there to provide that expert advice. But it.

[11:50] That’s really fun. I’ve. I enjoy working with them a lot.

[11:54] Not that I don’t enjoy the other things too. Those are.

[11:56] Tara Bansal: No, but it all sounds fun.

[11:59] Shanna Due: Yeah. I think that’s all of it right now. I. I’m not gonna pull up my calendar, but I think that’s all of it. Yeah.

[12:04] Tara Bansal: Plus the book and.

[12:07] Shanna Due: And the book. Yeah. And then my clients and taking care.

[12:10] Tara Bansal: Of your clients and your kids and the household.

[12:15] Shanna Due: So. Yeah,

[12:16] it’s all fun. It’s.

[12:18] It keeps me. Keeps my fingers on a lot of plans, places.

[12:21] And then I think the last part of your question is, do I like what I’m doing now or is it working? And am I thinking about anything else?

[12:28] Tara Bansal: Yeah. Are you thinking of any changes?

[12:31] Shanna Due: So I. Because it’s a new business and it’s it is very entrepreneurial in nature. There wasn’t really.

[12:38] I talked to a lot of people before I did this because I didn’t see anyone out there quite doing what I wanted to do.

[12:46] So there’s not a plug and play like to build an ria. It’s pretty easy. I won’t. Okay. It is not easy. By no.

[12:54] Tara Bansal: But there’s plenty of blueprints on like the steps and what you need to do.

[12:58] Shanna Due: I’ve done it. I know the tech stack I would want. I know essentially how the business model works. I understand how to make it, you know,

[13:07] sustainable, how to make it profitable, what you have to do.

[13:11] That’s. None of that is easy to do but the process is simple. Simple, I think defined. The marketing is pretty clear of what you need. None of it is easy but it’s, it’s defined if you want it.

[13:22] This is kind of a new thing and so I spent a lot of time asking. No one else is doing this. There’s probably a reason why because there’s a lot of.

[13:30] There’s a lot of people in the world that are smarter than I am. Why aren’t they doing this?

[13:34] And I’m learning why the it again it’s a short relationship and it’s intense and there are very busy periods like this is busy, busy right now this spring when all the offers come in and people have to send in deposits.

[13:48] That’s going to be another one that’s just rife with emotion and decisions and check writing.

[13:56] It’s that there because it’s not a long term relationship. There’s a lot of turnover and churn which means there’s a lot of more marketing and in constant engagements with those advisors to make sure that there’s a funnel coming in of referrals which none of which is problematic but it does take.

[14:15] It takes a little bit more effort when I just look at how many clients I need to turn over every year composed as opposed to a traditional RIA because they build.

[14:25] I feel like they build and the retention rate if you’re good at your job is really high.

[14:30] So you, you don’t have. I mean most advisors I know don’t do more than three new clients a month and even that is extreme for most.

[14:39] Tara Bansal: It’s high.

[14:39] Shanna Due: Yes, I agree where I need a hundred a year which and if depending upon your close rate that could be anywhere up to 300 prospects meetings or more.

[14:52] And I’m refining that out. I do webinars. I offer free tools and gifts if you come to the webinar. And then there’s a lot of refining that’s going on right now and deciding.

[15:03] I miss long term relationships with clients.

[15:06] Tara Bansal: Yeah. So that’s my favorite part.

[15:09] Shanna Due: I love coming in when these families are in the heat of the moment and trying to build clarity and sense of path and just saying is okay, fall,

[15:19] I got you.

[15:20] Tara Bansal: Yeah.

[15:21] Shanna Due: But then they leave and they should,

[15:24] they don’t need to hang out with me. Like we’re good until next year.

[15:29] But I do kind of miss my long term clients.

[15:32] So I have been toying a little bit with, is there a way to do both with that? But I don’t really want to start an RIA at the same time.

[15:40] So. Yeah, there’s, there’s changes afoot.

[15:44] Tara Bansal: Yeah. And you have a junior, so like things will change a lot once both your kids are.

[15:51] Shanna Due: Yeah.

[15:52] Yeah. So there are,

[15:53] there, there are choices to be made and, and then there’s the constant entrepreneurial of like, oh, this is great. Things are going really well. Oh my gosh, this is horrible.

[16:02] What was I ever thinking? I’m not good at this and nothing’s working and oh, look, okay, we got this. Things are moving along.

[16:09] Tara Bansal: This is fun. Yeah.

[16:11] Shanna Due: Oh my God, just knock it off. Who were you trying to kid? I mean it.

[16:16] Tara Bansal: Well, and I think it’s important for our listeners to hear that,

[16:22] that it, there’s ups and downs and it’s normal to feel those ranges of emotions depending on the day or the hour. I think honestly it is.

[16:35] Shanna Due: And it’s so interesting. Doctors always say like they are their worst patients, you know, and oftentimes I feel like we are our own worst clients.

[16:42] Tara Bansal: Yes.

[16:43] Shanna Due: Because, because I do some coaching on the side for fun.

[16:46] Tara Bansal: Um, which I think you should do more of.

[16:48] Shanna Due: But when I talk to people are starting their firms and working, you know that it’s accountability. So we’re doing a project, say whether it’s a marketing campaign or changing of processes or service offer or whatever, we’re doing a, a small one thing and a small amount of time.

[17:07] And I often like I tell them I can see it but, but when it comes to my own business,

[17:14] like I know, I know this is the cycle for entrepreneurs. I can tell my, my small business clients, I used to tell that to them all the time.

[17:22] My clients who had small businesses, I’m like, it’s going to go like this. Or if they worked for a startup, I’m like, just be prepared because your founders,

[17:29] they’re going to be cycling the whole time. I know that, I know that. But when it comes to myself, and I’m down in that, like, this is miserable. What am I doing?

[17:39] I forget that.

[17:41] Tara Bansal: But when you’re in it. Yeah, of course it feels different when you’re the one feeling it.

[17:46] Shanna Due: Yeah.

[17:46] Tara Bansal: I think.

[17:47] Shanna Due: And you got to know. I mean, sometimes there’s a, you know, Kenny Roger says you got to know when to hold them and when to fold them.

[17:53] Tara Bansal: That’s the hardest part.

[17:54] Shanna Due: Yeah. Like, is there a point where you do folds? But then I’m. I don’t know if you remember the cartoon. Like the guy who’s picking out the diamond mine and he decides to quit and he only had to go, like, this much.

[18:05] Tara Bansal: Yeah.

[18:06] Shanna Due: And so it’s like.

[18:07] Anyway, it’s just funny. I. I catch myself all the time. Like, what if I were.

[18:12] If I were coaching myself? What would I tell myself?

[18:15] And it makes me much more empathetic, like, too. For those people that I coach. Cause I’m like, get it.

[18:22] It’s hard to know that you’re.

[18:24] You’re doing okay. So it’s looking at the metrics, like, what’s going on?

[18:27] You know, what are the numbers?

[18:29] Are you turning a profit?

[18:31] Are you getting the hours you want?

[18:33] Is it meeting the mission? Why are you doing what you’re doing?

[18:36] Yeah. Are you spinning your wheels?

[18:39] All that stuff?

[18:40] Tara Bansal: What are you doing for marketing now?

[18:44] Shanna Due: So again, my main goal when I started this was to work with advisors.

[18:49] Just being like that would refer their clients to you.

[18:54] So I don’t do a ton for marketing right now.

[18:58] Part of that was being an in infancy. I want to make sure all my process words were really strong. And I put on this.

[19:05] My advisor friends laugh at me and remind me all the time, it’s fine. But I wanted to make sure that before I went to my friends, before I came to Tara and said, hey,

[19:14] I’ve got this thing. I think it would be great for your clients.

[19:18] I wanted it to be perfect. No flaws, no glitches. Because the last thing I want to do is not do right by your clients in any small shape or fashion.

[19:28] Those are your clients. That’s your.

[19:30] Yeah. We care so much about our clients. The last thing I want to do is do something wrong.

[19:36] I haven’t pitched hard. I haven’t even done like a huge grand opening. It’s mostly been very small.

[19:42] And I’ve been very fortunate just through friends of friends to find some great independent agent education consultants, like college coaches.

[19:50] Tara Bansal: Yeah.

[19:50] Shanna Due: And I don’t even know.

[19:52] It’s just knowing it’s. Knowing it’s networking, you know, like, oh, I should introduce you to my friend who does this. So, yeah, I do webinars. She’s in California. I do webinars for her.

[20:01] I met another friend who used to be in this business. She is transferred to do something else. So she referred like.

[20:09] And then she had webinars at private schools, so she just gave them my name. So I do webinars at some private schools. I also happen to be in California. For some reason, I’m all over California right now.

[20:19] So that’s just kind of worked out that I haven’t.

[20:23] I had an advisor friend of mine that referred me to a. Another advisor friend. Actually, no, that one was.

[20:29] She is a student. And one of my advisor’s friends, he teaches financial planning at a university and she’s a student there.

[20:37] And so she had a question about college planning. He’s like, I don’t really know.

[20:43] Call my friend Shauna. So she did. And then that led to like, oh, you should talk to my friend who’s an eic,

[20:50] an education consultant. And so now I.

[20:53] She referred. So,

[20:55] yeah, I haven’t done a whole lot of hardcore marketing yet,

[20:59] but I mean, that’s okay. But I wanted to know,

[21:02] like,

[21:03] 2026 goals are to start a. Just to have a grand opening for all my advisor friends.

[21:11] Like,

[21:11] the door is open,

[21:13] come on in.

[21:15] Tara Bansal: I think you should do that.

[21:16] Shanna Due: It is 2026.

[21:18] Tara Bansal: Okay.

[21:19] Shanna Due: Yeah.

[21:20] Tara Bansal: Put me on the list.

[21:21] Shanna Due: Make my own 7:1 and make it.

[21:24] Tara Bansal: Put me on the list.

[21:25] Shanna Due: Yes.

[21:27] Tara Bansal: Well, we are. Quickly, I may have to have you back because I still feel like there’s so many questions I didn’t get to ask.

[21:36] What do you wish more women in this profession knew or believed?

[21:44] Shanna Due: Number one, I want them to believe that they are needed and valued in this industry.

[21:49] And unfortunately, I am a mentor to some students at the university or Michigan State University, as well as my William and Mary students.

[21:58] And not all,

[22:01] not all. All the industry makes them feel that way.

[22:04] But there are so many places in this industry where they are and their skills are needed and they will be valued. And I want them to know that. And they just need to be patient and find it and not go to a place that doesn’t value that, that doesn’t value that.

[22:20] And that’s for all students coming out, but especially our female colleagues looking at it.

[22:26] And then the other thing I want them to know is they’ve got to do the work.

[22:30] Like,

[22:31] none of us deserve what we get. We’ve got to do the work we’re not entitled to it at all.

[22:36] But at the same time it will all work out.

[22:40] Some of the students I’m working with right now that are seniors trying to get that first job,

[22:45] they have such pressure like they’ve got to get it right. What if I don’t?

[22:49] What’s the worst that can happen?

[22:51] Go to a firm, you work there for a while, they help you get your cfp.

[22:55] Hopefully it works out and you grow and everything is magical and amazing.

[23:00] But if it’s not,

[23:02] you’re young, you, you know, want to, you’ll learn from it and you can you learn and you’ll be marketable because then you have some, some years of experience. Like the, you don’t have to have it all figured out today and it will all work out.

[23:15] It just you’re valued and you’re needed in this industry.

[23:20] That’s it. Those three things.

[23:22] Any.

[23:24] Tara Bansal: Any ideas on how to get more women to come into the industry?

[23:29] Shanna Due: We have to. We,

[23:31] us, us as who are here already have to reach out and just let them see that there’s another way.

[23:38] It doesn’t have to be this churn system that we all know about where it’s all about cold calling and just bringing people in the door. There is a whole other world out there of people who want and value female advisors to come in and they have a plan in place to develop them and those firms exist and it’s our.

[23:58] I think I’m not going to put that on you, Tara. It is my responsibility.

[24:01] Tara Bansal: I’m doing this podcast.

[24:05] Shanna Due: And I haven’t even been around that long. I’m a career changer. But for those of us who’ve been around and we’ve found it,

[24:11] I think it’s our responsibility to share it and if we’re in a place to produce it, like if you’re in a place.

[24:17] Tara Bansal: Help make it happen.

[24:18] Shanna Due: Yeah, I mean,

[24:19] depending upon what changes I make, that’s one of the first things I want to do is bring someone on so they can see what it is I do. I have such a hyper niche.

[24:27] I’m not sure it’s a great place for a first time person coming out, but maybe for an intern,

[24:34] something like that, for the other parts of it. But those of us who are in a place,

[24:39] we need to,

[24:40] we need to give them a. We need to give them somewhere to go so that they don’t get in a place that’s going to burn em out fast.

[24:47] Tara Bansal: Mm, I agree. So what does success look like for you right now?

[24:54] Shanna Due: Um,

[24:56] my word. I come back to is freedom that I get to make the choices that when I get up to come to work every day I am excited about the things on my to do list and I get to do what I want and we’re in a financial position where I can do that.

[25:13] It’s we are not work optional, but we can pick what we want to do. And so that is a lot of success to me personally,

[25:23] professionally. It will be some hard numbers I’ve set up for the business that it needs to reach in 2026.

[25:28] That’ll be some of my like we’ve got to meet these couple benchmarks. Otherwise it will be time to reevaluate.

[25:34] Tara Bansal: Okay, I’m gonna end with my lightning round. A favorite book, podcast or resource that.

[25:42] Shanna Due: You’Re loving right now I am in the process of reading the Art of Spending by Morgan Housel so professionally I would recommend that one for everyone.

[25:52] Personally, I’m reading How Philosophy Works just because the kids have been talking about it lately and I’ve forgotten more than I learned. I think so.

[26:01] Tara Bansal: So that’s how Philosophy works is that I get.

[26:06] Shanna Due: Okay, it’s a. It’s like a For Dummies book.

[26:09] Yeah, but you’re learning hits it hard and gets you out.

[26:13] I don’t know, something’s something silly I’m doing right now mostly because I feel silly at the dinner table and I have forgotten a lot podcast.

[26:23] I always listen to Kitsis and Carl. Like that’s an automatic one that pops up. Um,

[26:29] Advisor Marketing Made simple has been another one that’s been on my hit list lately. Although they stopped. They just had their last episode. So.

[26:36] Tara Bansal: Wow. For those of us that don’t know about it, we can go back and listen.

[26:39] Shanna Due: Yeah, they’re great.

[26:41] Really practical. Kendra and Taylor do an awesome job with it and for fun.

[26:46] I don’t know what this says about me, but I do like the Smart List podcast with Jason.

[26:51] Tara Bansal: Everybody I feel like loves that.

[26:53] Shanna Due: Yeah, it’s silly. I started listening to it when they very first I would take our dog for a walk during the pandemic.

[26:59] And so I’ve been listening ever since the first episode and sometimes they annoy me but a lot of times it’s just. This is fun and silly.

[27:08] Tara Bansal: Yeah, that’s great. Your go to self care ritual.

[27:13] Shanna Due: Walks outside. Hands down. Easy peasy.

[27:18] Tara Bansal: One thing bringing you joy right now.

[27:21] Shanna Due: Double edged sword right now. But it’s watching this junior and senior like make decisions that I know it’ll all work out.

[27:31] But these are life decisions and to watch Them go through that process, make the decision is such a joy. And then at the same time taking the hands off and saying, these are your decisions.

[27:42] Just holding my breath that it’s not going to be wrought with pain and agony along the way, you know? Yeah. So it’s a double edged sword right now, but it’s just really fun to see them become big people.

[27:55] Tara Bansal: Yes.

[27:56] Shanna Due: The adults they’re supposed to, not supposed to, but the adults they want to become. And then at the same time they’ll be leaving.

[28:03] Tara Bansal: So it’s bittersweet.

[28:05] Shanna Due: But there’s joy in that because I don’t. It would be bad if they were staying right back.

[28:09] Tara Bansal: Yeah.

[28:10] Shanna Due: If they weren’t leaving a lot. Part of life. It is.

[28:15] Tara Bansal: Well, thank you, Shauna. This was so fun. I would love to have you and I feel like I could talk to you forever.

[28:22] Shanna Due: But until next time, we can testify to that. We can.

[28:27] I know. This is so amazing. Tara, thanks so much for having me on today. And thanks to everybody listening. I hope.

[28:33] Tara Bansal: Yes.

[28:33] Shanna Due: Hope they have one thing they can take away from it that, you know, I think many.

[28:37] Tara Bansal: I feel like so much wisdom. But thank you for your time and your wisdom.

[28:43] Shanna Due: See you later. Bye.

[28:46] Tara Bansal: As I sat with this conversation,

[28:48] three themes kept rising to the surface for me. And each one feels like something all of us,

[28:55] not just college bound seniors or new planners or entrepreneurs, need to hear.

[29:01] The first is that success at its core is freedom.

[29:06] I hear this and feel this all the time in working with our clients.

[29:12] Talking with Shauna reminded me that freedom isn’t something that magically appears when everything lines up perfectly.

[29:20] It’s something we build gradually, decision by decision,

[29:24] boundary by boundary, season by season.

[29:28] For Shauna, for freedom looks like choosing work that fits alongside raising teens,

[29:34] saying yes to projects that energize her, and designing a business that supports the life she actually wants to live.

[29:42] And for me,

[29:44] and maybe for you,

[29:45] freedom is the ability to do the things we love in the way we want to do them with the people who matter most.

[29:53] Freedom to create more joy.

[29:56] Freedom to step back when we need rest.

[29:59] Freedom to stop carrying things that weigh us down.

[30:03] But freedom also asks an honest question.

[30:06] Where am I holding myself back from the freedom I say I want?

[30:12] Sometimes we’re waiting for permission.

[30:14] Sometimes we’re stuck in old habits.

[30:17] Sometimes we’re afraid of disappointing someone.

[30:20] And sometimes we’re afraid we’re just afraid.

[30:23] Which brings me to the second theme. Perfect is the enemy of good.

[30:28] Shawna talked about wanting her new business to be flawless before sharing it with the world.

[30:34] I get that. I’ve lived that.

[30:37] I’m a recovering perfectionist too.

[30:39] And perfectionism has a very sneaky way of dressing itself up as professionalism.

[30:46] I just want it to be excellent can quickly turn into I can’t move until this is perfect.

[30:54] But the truth is,

[30:55] the older I get, the more I know that we learn by doing,

[31:00] we grow by doing, and we only get better in the doing,

[31:05] in the practice, in the experiences.

[31:09] This came up recently on Messy Middlescence with my sister,

[31:13] how perfectionism keeps us from inviting people over,

[31:17] from trying new things, from showing up imperfectly but as a human.

[31:23] And the same is true in our work. If we wait until everything is polished and perfect,

[31:29] we will never do it or put it out into the world.

[31:32] We won’t publish the episode,

[31:35] we won’t launch the offer,

[31:37] record the video,

[31:38] write the blog entry or the email,

[31:42] or ask for the help we need.

[31:45] And yet we have to acknowledge that there is a real tension there.

[31:50] We do want to offer quality and excellence and do a great job because it’s a reflection of us.

[31:57] We don’t want to do harm to clients or damage trust.

[32:01] We don’t want to send something into the world that doesn’t reflect us or our values.

[32:07] But there’s a difference between pursuing excellence and being paralyzed by perfection.

[32:13] One moves us forward,

[32:15] the other keeps us stuck.

[32:17] Which leads to the third theme Shauna closed with, and it’s one I deeply believe There is no failure, there’s only learning.

[32:26] She said this in the context of young people choosing their first jobs or first opportunities,

[32:32] but honestly, it applies to all of us.

[32:35] Every age,

[32:36] every season,

[32:37] every chapter.

[32:39] Life gives us sliding door moments, choices that feel enormous.

[32:44] And the older we are, the more responsibility we carry,

[32:48] the scarier those decisions can feel.

[32:51] But the truth is,

[32:52] most of our progress comes from the risks we’re willing to take and the faith we’re willing to have in ourselves.

[33:00] When I look back at my own career, I could judge it as messy and winding and full of wrong turns and too many changes.

[33:11] I could tell myself, I quote, should have stayed longer at certain firms,

[33:16] or built faster or followed a different path.

[33:19] But when I look with honesty and compassion, I see something different.

[33:24] I see every chapter teaching me something essential.

[33:28] I see transition again,

[33:30] expanding who I am as both a planner and as a coach.

[33:34] I see growth. I couldn’t have gotten any other way.

[33:38] So no,

[33:39] nothing is wasted.

[33:40] Nothing was a mistake.

[33:42] It all was learning,

[33:44] all of it, into making me who I am and where I am now.

[33:50] And that’s what I want to leave you with today.

[33:53] Where could you give yourself more freedom right now,

[33:57] not in the future,

[33:58] but today?

[34:01] Where could you let good enough be the scary next step to momentum and feedback?

[34:07] And where could you trust that the next step, even the uncertain one, will teach you exactly what you need?

[34:16] Your life, your work, your practice. They’re not meant to be perfect.

[34:21] They’re meant to be lived, shaped, revised and and continuously grown into.

[34:27] So take the next step.

[34:29] The learning and the freedom will be there for you.

[34:34] Thank you for listening to Her Life, Her Practice, Her Way A podcast for and about female Financial advisors.

[34:43] I truly hope you found something valuable and encouraging in today’s episode. If you did, I’d be so grateful if you’d take a moment to rate and review the show on Apple Podcasts or Spotify.

[34:56] It helps other phenomenal women in our field find this space.

[35:00] And if you know another advisor who would benefit from these conversations or from the kind of support I offer through coaching,

[35:08] please send this episode to her.

[35:11] If you’re curious about working with me as your coach or interested in being on the podcast,

[35:17] I’d love to hear from you.

[35:19] You can find more details and reach out to me on the contact page of my website.

[35:25] Her Life, her practice herway.com no spaces, no underlines, just the words straight in a row.

[35:34] Until next time, keep building a life and practice you truly love.

Due Financial: https://www.duefinancial.com

AGC: Advisors Growing as a Community

More Than Money: Real Life Stories of Financial Planning edited by Shanna Due, curated by Taylor Schulte and Justin Castelli (AGC Book)

The Society of Advice – Carl Richards monthly powerful conversation for Financial Advisors

Morgan Housel’s book – The Art of Spending Money: Simple Choices for a Richer Life

Kitces & Carl Podcast

Smartless Podcast with Jason Bateman, Sean Hayes, & Will Arnett

Shanna Due
CCFC, CFP®, AFC®, ChFC®

Shanna Due is a Certified College Financial Consultant (CCFC), Certified Financial Planner™, Accredited Financial Counselor® and contributing author to More Than Money.

​Her mission is to end the student debt crisis one family at a time. She guides families through the complex financial aid system so that parents don’t have to sacrifice their retirement, and students don’t have financial constraints on their future.

As a fee-only financial planner she worked with families to align their capital (time, money, attention, energy) with their values and now she does the same for families working through the enormous task of getting the best college experience for the least amount of money.  She doesn’t sell any products or receive commissions; she works for your family.

[00:17] Tara Bansal: Welcome to her life, her practice, her way.

[00:21] A podcast for and about female financial advisors Tara I’m Tara Conti Bansal. I’ve been a financial planner and life coach for over 20 years,

[00:32] and I believe that when women thrive in this profession, we all win.

[00:37] This show is about sharing our journeys, our struggles, our breakthroughs, and the many ways we build a life and practice that feels true to us.

[00:48] And now I’m extending that mission. Beyond the podcast,

[00:52] I coach female advisors who want to grow a fulfilling practice and a beautiful life that they love.

[00:59] One filled with meaning, freedom, connection, and joy.

[01:04] Whether you’re just starting out, reinventing yourself, or dreaming of what’s next, you’re in the right place.

[01:11] Let’s build this together.

[01:13] This episode is the second part of my conversation with Shauna Dew,

[01:18] a college funding expert and financial planner who now helps families navigate one of the biggest, most emotional and overwhelming financial decisions they’ll ever make.

[01:30] We had a power outage,

[01:32] so we split the episode in two.

[01:34] If you haven’t listened to part one yet, you can find it right before this in your podcast feed.

[01:41] Now we’re going to jump back in.

[01:43] How much do you work and do you like what you’re doing now, or are you thinking of any changes?

[01:51] Too many questions at once. I’m sorry.

[01:53] Shanna Due: No, it’s all good. It all actually kind of goes together because what I love and one.

[01:59] One reason why I chose not to open my own RA was because I didn’t want to put in those kind of hours because my family’s important and I got these two teenagers and when I first left my firm, they weren’t driving yet and they still needed me and they were going.

[02:13] And I don’t know how there can be two people going in six directions, but that’s how I felt.

[02:18] So I loved the fact that I could work a really, like,

[02:21] solid six hours a day and then get up from my desk and leave and go do whatever I needed to do.

[02:28] So opening up a new RA does not blend with that very well.

[02:33] But this, this work does,

[02:35] and so I’m able to do that. Let’s see. So you asked me how much I work now, so when I first kind of opened this up, I was around 25,

[02:44] something sometimes I can go clear up. Like right now, we are in the thick of it. So I work a lot more.

[02:50] Tara Bansal: So thank you for making the time to do this right now during your busy season.

[02:55] Shanna Due: It’s also,

[02:56] I used to have very strict these are my business hours and for my financial planning clients Part of what we were working with them was work, life, balance and boundaries.

[03:05] And so they were all.

[03:07] It was known when they came into a relationship with me that these are the hours I work. I guarantee I get back to you within a certain amount of time.

[03:13] But this is what it is to work with me. And I model this because that’s what we’re trying to build for you. Yes.

[03:20] This I’m playing with a little bit because again, parents are filling out forms in the evening and it’s a big, huge moment and we have to make decisions in a very finite period of time.

[03:30] So I have been toying with. You can text me at any time outside of my business hours and I may or may not get back to you if I’m. If I’m just sitting there cooking dinner and I can text you back, like, here’s how to do it.

[03:42] Yes. If not,

[03:43] don’t. You’re gonna have to. I won’t. But I will get back to you as soon as I can. So that seems to be working right now. And as long as you set up expectations, it seems to work really well.

[03:53] I see. As, again, I mentioned earlier, I’ve got a senior and a junior this year. So as they go off and they don’t need me as much, I’m more than.

[04:00] I’ll start upping my hours, I think.

[04:03] And then I have my hands on a lot of other things too. I get like, what.

[04:08] So I do consulting for other advisors to do fun projects that they have that maybe they don’t have time for. Whether it’s figuring out their back office situation, whether they’re hiring for someone, I might help them hire their new person or figure out what that looks like.

[04:21] Sometimes it’s doing processes,

[04:24] just fun little projects that I don’t necessarily want to do with my own firm every day, but I help them figure that out.

[04:30] I do the accountability groups, which I love, and I do other small projects within the organizations that I’m part of that might be creative and writing.

[04:40] We have a new book coming out, so.

[04:43] Tara Bansal: So tell me more about the book, your first book and the one coming up.

[04:50] Shanna Due: So the first book is called More Than Money. It’s a collaboration amongst. I think we had over 25 advisors who contributed to that. And it’s called More Than Money because it’s about that.

[05:01] Money isn’t. It’s not just about the numbers. It’s about all the other things that you and I have already talked about.

[05:07] So each and it. That one is broken up into seven sections and it’s all about empowerment. That’s the overarching theme of the book. So it’s the power to give, the power to dream, the power to do things with your money.

[05:18] And each of the stories represents that.

[05:21] We decided to ask how.

[05:23] Tara Bansal: How did that come about? Like, you had this idea and.

[05:29] Shanna Due: No, I did not have the idea.

[05:32] It’s done through the advisors, growing as a community group. We call that the agc. It’s a group of advisors.

[05:39] And it started out with somebody had an idea of, hey, wouldn’t it be great if we all got together and wrote a book?

[05:45] So we had an interest meeting. Who would be interested in writing a book? What would it look like?

[05:50] Would we write it to other. Who would be the audience?

[05:52] What would we write?

[05:54] And then Justin and Taylor, who are the founders of the agc, were like, well, we kind of need someone to, like, speak your head this. And I was just so excited to be in the room with all these really, really smart advisors and successful.

[06:08] And I was like, I just want to be in the room where it happens. To quote Hamilton, I just want to be in the room where it happens. So I.

[06:14] As long as it’s just like sending out emails and making Zoom invites, I’m in.

[06:19] So I raised my hand, and the next thing I know, I’m putting together a book. And we were going to self publish. And then I was talking with our editor, Wendy Cook,

[06:30] and she said,

[06:31] hey,

[06:32] what if you pitch this to a publisher and see if they’d want to publish it? And I was like,

[06:37] we’re just writing a little thing. We’re just doing a little thing. She’s like,

[06:41] pitch it and see what happens. I have never done that before. So I’m looking at this form online at the publishing house going, ooh.

[06:50] So I figured it out. I wrote it, met with the senior editor, and he’s like, I think we’d like to do this.

[06:55] We did.

[06:56] So now it’s published. It’s in Barnes and Noble.

[06:58] Tara Bansal: When did it come out?

[07:00] Shanna Due: That one came out in summer of 2023.

[07:03] Okay. And then the new one, we decided we would do a follow up, Volume number two.

[07:08] But I said, we’re gonna do volume number two. We’ve gotta make it. The first one is good. I’m very proud of the work in it.

[07:14] I think there was room to make it even better.

[07:17] And so we made something that was good, and hopefully this next one’s even better. It.

[07:23] It’s a little bit more concentrated. And this one is about the different kind of stages in Life for planning.

[07:31] And it’s broken up into five sections.

[07:34] And it has. At the end of each story, there’s a contemplative question, kind of a deeper question that gets into some of your money script, your money story.

[07:43] It’s you reflecting on the story and how it is actually applicable to your life. It’s a little bit more helping the reader see what they should be asking.

[07:53] And then each of those questions leads to. At the end of the section, there’s an actual tactical how to.

[07:59] So now that you’ve read the stories, you’ve contemplated it in your own life.

[08:02] Here’s the steps that you can do for One is like legacy, another one’s giving. One is changes, one is dreaming,

[08:10] One is surviving.

[08:11] Tara Bansal: I can’t wait to check it out.

[08:13] Shanna Due: Yeah.

[08:14] Tara Bansal: How many people contributed to this volume?

[08:18] Shanna Due: Two actual stories. There are 20. And then we have some other guest pieces. Like, I wrote a section at the end of how do it’s. It’s five ways to design your financial life.

[08:30] So I actually have the last part of, like, how do you design your financial team? Who are the people in it? How do you find them?

[08:37] You know, obviously you can start with people in the book, but how do you find an estate planner, an accountant,

[08:42] things like that? So it’s a lot more how to. I’m really. I’m excited for people to see it. Everyone works so hard on it.

[08:51] It’s. It’s got great stories in it. The first one was amazing. And this one is. I don’t even know the next.

[08:56] Tara Bansal: Even better. Yeah. When is this. When’s the new one coming out?

[09:00] Shanna Due: July of 2026. So.

[09:03] Tara Bansal: So pretty soon.

[09:04] Shanna Due: Yeah, yeah, yeah. We’re in final edits right now that have to be done in the next.

[09:09] By the middle of November. I’m not sure when this is going to air, but. Yeah, when we’re middle of November, we’re doing final edits and then we’ve got to hire an actor, an actress to read it and.

[09:22] Yeah. And then we do promo and marketing and it’s out.

[09:27] Tara Bansal: How. How many? Because just listening to you, it sounds like you juggle many different balls.

[09:36] Shanna Due: Yeah. And color coding on the calendar is very pretty some weeks.

[09:43] Tara Bansal: So tell me, what are some of the other ones? I’d even like to hear all the organizations that you are part of.

[09:53] Shanna Due: Oh, let’s see. I’m part of the Society of Advice with Carl Richards.

[09:58] Tara Bansal: Carl Richards, Yep.

[10:00] Shanna Due: That’s how you and I met. Yes. And then I am part of the agc. That’s the other One I’m part of.

[10:07] Part of the conspiracy with Michael Bengay Stainer. Okay,

[10:12] let’s see what else? And then just like through my organization, like through FPA and then which is Financial Planning association for those who are listening who don’t know.

[10:24] Then I.

[10:25] I do volunteer work through the accredited. Through the afcp, which is the accredited financial counseling things. So sometimes I do read scholarships for them or work on our testing or whatever not served on the board there.

[10:37] I don’t. I’m not really interested in doing that. But I do do other stuff for that.

[10:44] The CFP board.

[10:45] I’ll volunteer for them sometimes. And then the pro bono work I try and step out and do that day.

[10:52] Oh, I’m. I almost completely forgot. I’m an advisor for the financial literacy. The Braun Financial Literacy center at the College of William and Mary. So I get to work with the undergraduate students there.

[11:04] They are completely student run, student led, student teaching.

[11:08] They are.

[11:09] They amaze me. Every week when I go in for our meetings, they’re so like on it. It’s amazing.

[11:15] Tara Bansal: How often are you doing that?

[11:18] Shanna Due: They have a planning meeting once a week that I go to.

[11:21] I go to their work session, but usually I don’t because that’s just kind of their session where they work stuff out. But we have a planning meeting that I go to every week.

[11:28] And then they teach four classes each semester.

[11:33] So I go. And then like the other night I helped. I was a guest speaker for one.

[11:38] Means I’m the expert in the room to kind of.

[11:41] It’s really a mitigation because they’re not allowed to give investment advice and some is beyond their scope. So yes, I’m. I’m really just there to provide that expert advice. But it.

[11:50] That’s really fun. I’ve. I enjoy working with them a lot.

[11:54] Not that I don’t enjoy the other things too. Those are.

[11:56] Tara Bansal: No, but it all sounds fun.

[11:59] Shanna Due: Yeah. I think that’s all of it right now. I. I’m not gonna pull up my calendar, but I think that’s all of it. Yeah.

[12:04] Tara Bansal: Plus the book and.

[12:07] Shanna Due: And the book. Yeah. And then my clients and taking care.

[12:10] Tara Bansal: Of your clients and your kids and the household.

[12:15] Shanna Due: So. Yeah,

[12:16] it’s all fun. It’s.

[12:18] It keeps me. Keeps my fingers on a lot of plans, places.

[12:21] And then I think the last part of your question is, do I like what I’m doing now or is it working? And am I thinking about anything else?

[12:28] Tara Bansal: Yeah. Are you thinking of any changes?

[12:31] Shanna Due: So I. Because it’s a new business and it’s it is very entrepreneurial in nature. There wasn’t really.

[12:38] I talked to a lot of people before I did this because I didn’t see anyone out there quite doing what I wanted to do.

[12:46] So there’s not a plug and play like to build an ria. It’s pretty easy. I won’t. Okay. It is not easy. By no.

[12:54] Tara Bansal: But there’s plenty of blueprints on like the steps and what you need to do.

[12:58] Shanna Due: I’ve done it. I know the tech stack I would want. I know essentially how the business model works. I understand how to make it, you know,

[13:07] sustainable, how to make it profitable, what you have to do.

[13:11] That’s. None of that is easy to do but the process is simple. Simple, I think defined. The marketing is pretty clear of what you need. None of it is easy but it’s, it’s defined if you want it.

[13:22] This is kind of a new thing and so I spent a lot of time asking. No one else is doing this. There’s probably a reason why because there’s a lot of.

[13:30] There’s a lot of people in the world that are smarter than I am. Why aren’t they doing this?

[13:34] And I’m learning why the it again it’s a short relationship and it’s intense and there are very busy periods like this is busy, busy right now this spring when all the offers come in and people have to send in deposits.

[13:48] That’s going to be another one that’s just rife with emotion and decisions and check writing.

[13:56] It’s that there because it’s not a long term relationship. There’s a lot of turnover and churn which means there’s a lot of more marketing and in constant engagements with those advisors to make sure that there’s a funnel coming in of referrals which none of which is problematic but it does take.

[14:15] It takes a little bit more effort when I just look at how many clients I need to turn over every year composed as opposed to a traditional RIA because they build.

[14:25] I feel like they build and the retention rate if you’re good at your job is really high.

[14:30] So you, you don’t have. I mean most advisors I know don’t do more than three new clients a month and even that is extreme for most.

[14:39] Tara Bansal: It’s high.

[14:39] Shanna Due: Yes, I agree where I need a hundred a year which and if depending upon your close rate that could be anywhere up to 300 prospects meetings or more.

[14:52] And I’m refining that out. I do webinars. I offer free tools and gifts if you come to the webinar. And then there’s a lot of refining that’s going on right now and deciding.

[15:03] I miss long term relationships with clients.

[15:06] Tara Bansal: Yeah. So that’s my favorite part.

[15:09] Shanna Due: I love coming in when these families are in the heat of the moment and trying to build clarity and sense of path and just saying is okay, fall,

[15:19] I got you.

[15:20] Tara Bansal: Yeah.

[15:21] Shanna Due: But then they leave and they should,

[15:24] they don’t need to hang out with me. Like we’re good until next year.

[15:29] But I do kind of miss my long term clients.

[15:32] So I have been toying a little bit with, is there a way to do both with that? But I don’t really want to start an RIA at the same time.

[15:40] So. Yeah, there’s, there’s changes afoot.

[15:44] Tara Bansal: Yeah. And you have a junior, so like things will change a lot once both your kids are.

[15:51] Shanna Due: Yeah.

[15:52] Yeah. So there are,

[15:53] there, there are choices to be made and, and then there’s the constant entrepreneurial of like, oh, this is great. Things are going really well. Oh my gosh, this is horrible.

[16:02] What was I ever thinking? I’m not good at this and nothing’s working and oh, look, okay, we got this. Things are moving along.

[16:09] Tara Bansal: This is fun. Yeah.

[16:11] Shanna Due: Oh my God, just knock it off. Who were you trying to kid? I mean it.

[16:16] Tara Bansal: Well, and I think it’s important for our listeners to hear that,

[16:22] that it, there’s ups and downs and it’s normal to feel those ranges of emotions depending on the day or the hour. I think honestly it is.

[16:35] Shanna Due: And it’s so interesting. Doctors always say like they are their worst patients, you know, and oftentimes I feel like we are our own worst clients.

[16:42] Tara Bansal: Yes.

[16:43] Shanna Due: Because, because I do some coaching on the side for fun.

[16:46] Tara Bansal: Um, which I think you should do more of.

[16:48] Shanna Due: But when I talk to people are starting their firms and working, you know that it’s accountability. So we’re doing a project, say whether it’s a marketing campaign or changing of processes or service offer or whatever, we’re doing a, a small one thing and a small amount of time.

[17:07] And I often like I tell them I can see it but, but when it comes to my own business,

[17:14] like I know, I know this is the cycle for entrepreneurs. I can tell my, my small business clients, I used to tell that to them all the time.

[17:22] My clients who had small businesses, I’m like, it’s going to go like this. Or if they worked for a startup, I’m like, just be prepared because your founders,

[17:29] they’re going to be cycling the whole time. I know that, I know that. But when it comes to myself, and I’m down in that, like, this is miserable. What am I doing?

[17:39] I forget that.

[17:41] Tara Bansal: But when you’re in it. Yeah, of course it feels different when you’re the one feeling it.

[17:46] Shanna Due: Yeah.

[17:46] Tara Bansal: I think.

[17:47] Shanna Due: And you got to know. I mean, sometimes there’s a, you know, Kenny Roger says you got to know when to hold them and when to fold them.

[17:53] Tara Bansal: That’s the hardest part.

[17:54] Shanna Due: Yeah. Like, is there a point where you do folds? But then I’m. I don’t know if you remember the cartoon. Like the guy who’s picking out the diamond mine and he decides to quit and he only had to go, like, this much.

[18:05] Tara Bansal: Yeah.

[18:06] Shanna Due: And so it’s like.

[18:07] Anyway, it’s just funny. I. I catch myself all the time. Like, what if I were.

[18:12] If I were coaching myself? What would I tell myself?

[18:15] And it makes me much more empathetic, like, too. For those people that I coach. Cause I’m like, get it.

[18:22] It’s hard to know that you’re.

[18:24] You’re doing okay. So it’s looking at the metrics, like, what’s going on?

[18:27] You know, what are the numbers?

[18:29] Are you turning a profit?

[18:31] Are you getting the hours you want?

[18:33] Is it meeting the mission? Why are you doing what you’re doing?

[18:36] Yeah. Are you spinning your wheels?

[18:39] All that stuff?

[18:40] Tara Bansal: What are you doing for marketing now?

[18:44] Shanna Due: So again, my main goal when I started this was to work with advisors.

[18:49] Just being like that would refer their clients to you.

[18:54] So I don’t do a ton for marketing right now.

[18:58] Part of that was being an in infancy. I want to make sure all my process words were really strong. And I put on this.

[19:05] My advisor friends laugh at me and remind me all the time, it’s fine. But I wanted to make sure that before I went to my friends, before I came to Tara and said, hey,

[19:14] I’ve got this thing. I think it would be great for your clients.

[19:18] I wanted it to be perfect. No flaws, no glitches. Because the last thing I want to do is not do right by your clients in any small shape or fashion.

[19:28] Those are your clients. That’s your.

[19:30] Yeah. We care so much about our clients. The last thing I want to do is do something wrong.

[19:36] I haven’t pitched hard. I haven’t even done like a huge grand opening. It’s mostly been very small.

[19:42] And I’ve been very fortunate just through friends of friends to find some great independent agent education consultants, like college coaches.

[19:50] Tara Bansal: Yeah.

[19:50] Shanna Due: And I don’t even know.

[19:52] It’s just knowing it’s. Knowing it’s networking, you know, like, oh, I should introduce you to my friend who does this. So, yeah, I do webinars. She’s in California. I do webinars for her.

[20:01] I met another friend who used to be in this business. She is transferred to do something else. So she referred like.

[20:09] And then she had webinars at private schools, so she just gave them my name. So I do webinars at some private schools. I also happen to be in California. For some reason, I’m all over California right now.

[20:19] So that’s just kind of worked out that I haven’t.

[20:23] I had an advisor friend of mine that referred me to a. Another advisor friend. Actually, no, that one was.

[20:29] She is a student. And one of my advisor’s friends, he teaches financial planning at a university and she’s a student there.

[20:37] And so she had a question about college planning. He’s like, I don’t really know.

[20:43] Call my friend Shauna. So she did. And then that led to like, oh, you should talk to my friend who’s an eic,

[20:50] an education consultant. And so now I.

[20:53] She referred. So,

[20:55] yeah, I haven’t done a whole lot of hardcore marketing yet,

[20:59] but I mean, that’s okay. But I wanted to know,

[21:02] like,

[21:03] 2026 goals are to start a. Just to have a grand opening for all my advisor friends.

[21:11] Like,

[21:11] the door is open,

[21:13] come on in.

[21:15] Tara Bansal: I think you should do that.

[21:16] Shanna Due: It is 2026.

[21:18] Tara Bansal: Okay.

[21:19] Shanna Due: Yeah.

[21:20] Tara Bansal: Put me on the list.

[21:21] Shanna Due: Make my own 7:1 and make it.

[21:24] Tara Bansal: Put me on the list.

[21:25] Shanna Due: Yes.

[21:27] Tara Bansal: Well, we are. Quickly, I may have to have you back because I still feel like there’s so many questions I didn’t get to ask.

[21:36] What do you wish more women in this profession knew or believed?

[21:44] Shanna Due: Number one, I want them to believe that they are needed and valued in this industry.

[21:49] And unfortunately, I am a mentor to some students at the university or Michigan State University, as well as my William and Mary students.

[21:58] And not all,

[22:01] not all. All the industry makes them feel that way.

[22:04] But there are so many places in this industry where they are and their skills are needed and they will be valued. And I want them to know that. And they just need to be patient and find it and not go to a place that doesn’t value that, that doesn’t value that.

[22:20] And that’s for all students coming out, but especially our female colleagues looking at it.

[22:26] And then the other thing I want them to know is they’ve got to do the work.

[22:30] Like,

[22:31] none of us deserve what we get. We’ve got to do the work we’re not entitled to it at all.

[22:36] But at the same time it will all work out.

[22:40] Some of the students I’m working with right now that are seniors trying to get that first job,

[22:45] they have such pressure like they’ve got to get it right. What if I don’t?

[22:49] What’s the worst that can happen?

[22:51] Go to a firm, you work there for a while, they help you get your cfp.

[22:55] Hopefully it works out and you grow and everything is magical and amazing.

[23:00] But if it’s not,

[23:02] you’re young, you, you know, want to, you’ll learn from it and you can you learn and you’ll be marketable because then you have some, some years of experience. Like the, you don’t have to have it all figured out today and it will all work out.

[23:15] It just you’re valued and you’re needed in this industry.

[23:20] That’s it. Those three things.

[23:22] Any.

[23:24] Tara Bansal: Any ideas on how to get more women to come into the industry?

[23:29] Shanna Due: We have to. We,

[23:31] us, us as who are here already have to reach out and just let them see that there’s another way.

[23:38] It doesn’t have to be this churn system that we all know about where it’s all about cold calling and just bringing people in the door. There is a whole other world out there of people who want and value female advisors to come in and they have a plan in place to develop them and those firms exist and it’s our.

[23:58] I think I’m not going to put that on you, Tara. It is my responsibility.

[24:01] Tara Bansal: I’m doing this podcast.

[24:05] Shanna Due: And I haven’t even been around that long. I’m a career changer. But for those of us who’ve been around and we’ve found it,

[24:11] I think it’s our responsibility to share it and if we’re in a place to produce it, like if you’re in a place.

[24:17] Tara Bansal: Help make it happen.

[24:18] Shanna Due: Yeah, I mean,

[24:19] depending upon what changes I make, that’s one of the first things I want to do is bring someone on so they can see what it is I do. I have such a hyper niche.

[24:27] I’m not sure it’s a great place for a first time person coming out, but maybe for an intern,

[24:34] something like that, for the other parts of it. But those of us who are in a place,

[24:39] we need to,

[24:40] we need to give them a. We need to give them somewhere to go so that they don’t get in a place that’s going to burn em out fast.

[24:47] Tara Bansal: Mm, I agree. So what does success look like for you right now?

[24:54] Shanna Due: Um,

[24:56] my word. I come back to is freedom that I get to make the choices that when I get up to come to work every day I am excited about the things on my to do list and I get to do what I want and we’re in a financial position where I can do that.

[25:13] It’s we are not work optional, but we can pick what we want to do. And so that is a lot of success to me personally,

[25:23] professionally. It will be some hard numbers I’ve set up for the business that it needs to reach in 2026.

[25:28] That’ll be some of my like we’ve got to meet these couple benchmarks. Otherwise it will be time to reevaluate.

[25:34] Tara Bansal: Okay, I’m gonna end with my lightning round. A favorite book, podcast or resource that.

[25:42] Shanna Due: You’Re loving right now I am in the process of reading the Art of Spending by Morgan Housel so professionally I would recommend that one for everyone.

[25:52] Personally, I’m reading How Philosophy Works just because the kids have been talking about it lately and I’ve forgotten more than I learned. I think so.

[26:01] Tara Bansal: So that’s how Philosophy works is that I get.

[26:06] Shanna Due: Okay, it’s a. It’s like a For Dummies book.

[26:09] Yeah, but you’re learning hits it hard and gets you out.

[26:13] I don’t know, something’s something silly I’m doing right now mostly because I feel silly at the dinner table and I have forgotten a lot podcast.

[26:23] I always listen to Kitsis and Carl. Like that’s an automatic one that pops up. Um,

[26:29] Advisor Marketing Made simple has been another one that’s been on my hit list lately. Although they stopped. They just had their last episode. So.

[26:36] Tara Bansal: Wow. For those of us that don’t know about it, we can go back and listen.

[26:39] Shanna Due: Yeah, they’re great.

[26:41] Really practical. Kendra and Taylor do an awesome job with it and for fun.

[26:46] I don’t know what this says about me, but I do like the Smart List podcast with Jason.

[26:51] Tara Bansal: Everybody I feel like loves that.

[26:53] Shanna Due: Yeah, it’s silly. I started listening to it when they very first I would take our dog for a walk during the pandemic.

[26:59] And so I’ve been listening ever since the first episode and sometimes they annoy me but a lot of times it’s just. This is fun and silly.

[27:08] Tara Bansal: Yeah, that’s great. Your go to self care ritual.

[27:13] Shanna Due: Walks outside. Hands down. Easy peasy.

[27:18] Tara Bansal: One thing bringing you joy right now.

[27:21] Shanna Due: Double edged sword right now. But it’s watching this junior and senior like make decisions that I know it’ll all work out.

[27:31] But these are life decisions and to watch Them go through that process, make the decision is such a joy. And then at the same time taking the hands off and saying, these are your decisions.

[27:42] Just holding my breath that it’s not going to be wrought with pain and agony along the way, you know? Yeah. So it’s a double edged sword right now, but it’s just really fun to see them become big people.

[27:55] Tara Bansal: Yes.

[27:56] Shanna Due: The adults they’re supposed to, not supposed to, but the adults they want to become. And then at the same time they’ll be leaving.

[28:03] Tara Bansal: So it’s bittersweet.

[28:05] Shanna Due: But there’s joy in that because I don’t. It would be bad if they were staying right back.

[28:09] Tara Bansal: Yeah.

[28:10] Shanna Due: If they weren’t leaving a lot. Part of life. It is.

[28:15] Tara Bansal: Well, thank you, Shauna. This was so fun. I would love to have you and I feel like I could talk to you forever.

[28:22] Shanna Due: But until next time, we can testify to that. We can.

[28:27] I know. This is so amazing. Tara, thanks so much for having me on today. And thanks to everybody listening. I hope.

[28:33] Tara Bansal: Yes.

[28:33] Shanna Due: Hope they have one thing they can take away from it that, you know, I think many.

[28:37] Tara Bansal: I feel like so much wisdom. But thank you for your time and your wisdom.

[28:43] Shanna Due: See you later. Bye.

[28:46] Tara Bansal: As I sat with this conversation,

[28:48] three themes kept rising to the surface for me. And each one feels like something all of us,

[28:55] not just college bound seniors or new planners or entrepreneurs, need to hear.

[29:01] The first is that success at its core is freedom.

[29:06] I hear this and feel this all the time in working with our clients.

[29:12] Talking with Shauna reminded me that freedom isn’t something that magically appears when everything lines up perfectly.

[29:20] It’s something we build gradually, decision by decision,

[29:24] boundary by boundary, season by season.

[29:28] For Shauna, for freedom looks like choosing work that fits alongside raising teens,

[29:34] saying yes to projects that energize her, and designing a business that supports the life she actually wants to live.

[29:42] And for me,

[29:44] and maybe for you,

[29:45] freedom is the ability to do the things we love in the way we want to do them with the people who matter most.

[29:53] Freedom to create more joy.

[29:56] Freedom to step back when we need rest.

[29:59] Freedom to stop carrying things that weigh us down.

[30:03] But freedom also asks an honest question.

[30:06] Where am I holding myself back from the freedom I say I want?

[30:12] Sometimes we’re waiting for permission.

[30:14] Sometimes we’re stuck in old habits.

[30:17] Sometimes we’re afraid of disappointing someone.

[30:20] And sometimes we’re afraid we’re just afraid.

[30:23] Which brings me to the second theme. Perfect is the enemy of good.

[30:28] Shawna talked about wanting her new business to be flawless before sharing it with the world.

[30:34] I get that. I’ve lived that.

[30:37] I’m a recovering perfectionist too.

[30:39] And perfectionism has a very sneaky way of dressing itself up as professionalism.

[30:46] I just want it to be excellent can quickly turn into I can’t move until this is perfect.

[30:54] But the truth is,

[30:55] the older I get, the more I know that we learn by doing,

[31:00] we grow by doing, and we only get better in the doing,

[31:05] in the practice, in the experiences.

[31:09] This came up recently on Messy Middlescence with my sister,

[31:13] how perfectionism keeps us from inviting people over,

[31:17] from trying new things, from showing up imperfectly but as a human.

[31:23] And the same is true in our work. If we wait until everything is polished and perfect,

[31:29] we will never do it or put it out into the world.

[31:32] We won’t publish the episode,

[31:35] we won’t launch the offer,

[31:37] record the video,

[31:38] write the blog entry or the email,

[31:42] or ask for the help we need.

[31:45] And yet we have to acknowledge that there is a real tension there.

[31:50] We do want to offer quality and excellence and do a great job because it’s a reflection of us.

[31:57] We don’t want to do harm to clients or damage trust.

[32:01] We don’t want to send something into the world that doesn’t reflect us or our values.

[32:07] But there’s a difference between pursuing excellence and being paralyzed by perfection.

[32:13] One moves us forward,

[32:15] the other keeps us stuck.

[32:17] Which leads to the third theme Shauna closed with, and it’s one I deeply believe There is no failure, there’s only learning.

[32:26] She said this in the context of young people choosing their first jobs or first opportunities,

[32:32] but honestly, it applies to all of us.

[32:35] Every age,

[32:36] every season,

[32:37] every chapter.

[32:39] Life gives us sliding door moments, choices that feel enormous.

[32:44] And the older we are, the more responsibility we carry,

[32:48] the scarier those decisions can feel.

[32:51] But the truth is,

[32:52] most of our progress comes from the risks we’re willing to take and the faith we’re willing to have in ourselves.

[33:00] When I look back at my own career, I could judge it as messy and winding and full of wrong turns and too many changes.

[33:11] I could tell myself, I quote, should have stayed longer at certain firms,

[33:16] or built faster or followed a different path.

[33:19] But when I look with honesty and compassion, I see something different.

[33:24] I see every chapter teaching me something essential.

[33:28] I see transition again,

[33:30] expanding who I am as both a planner and as a coach.

[33:34] I see growth. I couldn’t have gotten any other way.

[33:38] So no,

[33:39] nothing is wasted.

[33:40] Nothing was a mistake.

[33:42] It all was learning,

[33:44] all of it, into making me who I am and where I am now.

[33:50] And that’s what I want to leave you with today.

[33:53] Where could you give yourself more freedom right now,

[33:57] not in the future,

[33:58] but today?

[34:01] Where could you let good enough be the scary next step to momentum and feedback?

[34:07] And where could you trust that the next step, even the uncertain one, will teach you exactly what you need?

[34:16] Your life, your work, your practice. They’re not meant to be perfect.

[34:21] They’re meant to be lived, shaped, revised and and continuously grown into.

[34:27] So take the next step.

[34:29] The learning and the freedom will be there for you.

[34:34] Thank you for listening to Her Life, Her Practice, Her Way A podcast for and about female Financial advisors.

[34:43] I truly hope you found something valuable and encouraging in today’s episode. If you did, I’d be so grateful if you’d take a moment to rate and review the show on Apple Podcasts or Spotify.

[34:56] It helps other phenomenal women in our field find this space.

[35:00] And if you know another advisor who would benefit from these conversations or from the kind of support I offer through coaching,

[35:08] please send this episode to her.

[35:11] If you’re curious about working with me as your coach or interested in being on the podcast,

[35:17] I’d love to hear from you.

[35:19] You can find more details and reach out to me on the contact page of my website.

[35:25] Her Life, her practice herway.com no spaces, no underlines, just the words straight in a row.

[35:34] Until next time, keep building a life and practice you truly love.

Due Financial: https://www.duefinancial.com

AGC: Advisors Growing as a Community

More Than Money: Real Life Stories of Financial Planning edited by Shanna Due, curated by Taylor Schulte and Justin Castelli (AGC Book)

The Society of Advice – Carl Richards monthly powerful conversation for Financial Advisors

Morgan Housel’s book – The Art of Spending Money: Simple Choices for a Richer Life

Kitces & Carl Podcast

Smartless Podcast with Jason Bateman, Sean Hayes, & Will Arnett

Shanna Due
CCFC, CFP®, AFC®, ChFC®

Shanna Due is a Certified College Financial Consultant (CCFC), Certified Financial Planner™, Accredited Financial Counselor® and contributing author to More Than Money.

​Her mission is to end the student debt crisis one family at a time. She guides families through the complex financial aid system so that parents don’t have to sacrifice their retirement, and students don’t have financial constraints on their future.

As a fee-only financial planner she worked with families to align their capital (time, money, attention, energy) with their values and now she does the same for families working through the enormous task of getting the best college experience for the least amount of money.  She doesn’t sell any products or receive commissions; she works for your family.