We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Aimee Cerka a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.
Hi Aimee, thanks for joining us today. Some of the most interesting parts of our journey emerge from areas where we believe something that most people in our industry do not – do you have something like that?
Debt Pay Off – there are several gurus out there that shout from the rooftops to do everything in your power to get out of consumer debt no matter the cost, even if it means living off beans and rice. That’s not a strategy that I’ve seen work for most with long-term success. The reason is simple.
That hard-core debt pay-off focus is difficult to sustain. We’ve all had a diet that we’ve tried that the entire time we’re on the diet we’re thinking about the chocolate chip cookie or whatever it might be that we can’t have. Typically we end up yo-yo dieting where you lose a bunch of weight but then end up gaining it all back and possibly more! The reason is simple. It wasn’t sustainable.
The stats also show that IF you’re successful with that hard-core debt pay-off focus within 5 years 75% end up back in debt again… Because you programmed your subconscious mind to focus on getting out of debt. So even when you pay off that debt your subconscious is still thinking “get out of debt, get out of debt, get out of debt” so unknowingly you self sabotage and go get back into debt.
The solution/switch is simple. You’ll still pay off consumer debt because yes that is a smart strategy but it’s not your focus. Focus instead on your net worth. Your net worth is your true overall picture of where you’re at financially. If you don’t know you calculate your net worth by taking your assets – liabilities = net worth. Your net worth will improve as you pay off debt. Your net worth will also improve as you grow assets. Focusing on your net worth is a fast track to long term financial abundance.
Great, appreciate you sharing that with us. Before we ask you to share more of your insights, can you take a moment to introduce yourself and how you got to where you are today to our readers
Aimee is the Money Confidence Coach for ambitious women who are ready to finally have clarity, peace, and confidence with their money regardless of what’s going on in the economy so that they can create the happiness, family life, financial security, and long-term wealth they deserve.
After 10 years in the personal finance industry, I’ve learned a thing or two. But it wasn’t until I hired a coach who helped me realize, that through the 3 major financial roadblocks in 7 years, I hadn’t let my family down. It didn’t have to be a struggle and I didn’t have to work harder than everyone else. That was all a money mindset story I was telling myself because I was creating it. Once I uncovered that money mindset story, I was able to create and implement simple scalable systems to grow our net worth by 250K+ while spending time with my loved ones and on my priorities.
My principles and style of teaching allow you to create the financial life you dream of without pinching pennies or never seeing your family because you’re putting in 80-hour weeks. YOU can live your life while improving your finances! When I’m not helping you become unstoppable, you can find me hanging out with my hubby and 3 children or binging Blacklist on Netflix while trying to beat the next level of Killer Soduku.
The thing that my clients love most about the services and training I provide is that I blend the practical strategy within budgeting and money management with the mindset work that needs to be done. If you focus on just the mindset work, there is only so far you can get without actually using a strategy with your money. In the same regard, all the practical budgeting strategies are pointless if you don’t approach the situation with the correct mindset. The unstoppable finances framework that I created is built to make both sides systematized and sustainable for long-term abundance.
My favorite way to work with clients is inside Money Masters Inner Circle Academy. Money Masters Inner Circle Academy is a 12-month guided experience for those who are tired of struggling to get ahead and fed up with feeling stuck. You want to finally enjoy clarity, confidence, and peace with your money. You can! The Academy is the place to do that and then you’ll achieve your financial goals and sustain them without overwhelm and fear. A completely online self-paced program with weekly coaching, accountability, and support. You can build the life of your dreams and be unstoppable on your timeline.
We’d love to hear a story of resilience from your journey.
Three months pregnant and three days after leaving my 9-5 job in insurance to pursue being a full-time business owner and work from home Mom. The business partnership we had for our trucking company (my husband was a truck driver) imploded. We quickly had to find a way to make ends meet. He ended up going back to a job driving a truck. So we had self-employed expenses on an employee income. In case you were wondering, that’s not really possible and VERY stressful. We made progress financially, but it was SLOWLY. It felt like we would never “make it.”
We welcomed our 2nd son in August of 2016! My pregnancy with Wyatt was uneventful (other than the severe morning sickness) and we did not know that at only a few hours old, he would need to be transferred to Cook Children’s Medical Center NICU (Neonatal Intensive Care Unit.) Wyatt was diagnosed with Esophageal Atresia with a TEF. In non medical terms, that means that his esophagus was not connected to his stomach. There was also a small connection from his esophagus to his lung. The surgery to repair this break and fix the hole to his lung was performed at less than 48 hours old. Thankfully everything went great! This was only the beginning of what ended up being a 7 ½ week stay in the NICU.
It took a month for the microscopic hole in Wyatt’s esophagus to close. THEN, he got to try to eat by a bottle for the first time! Super exciting, except it didn’t go well. AT ALL. We continued to try for a couple days and they brought in therapists to work with him. It just wasn’t working. We decided/requested to get a g-button for Wyatt, which allows us to directly feed him in his stomach; so he’s still getting nutrition while he tried to figure this eating thing out.
During that entire time I was able to be with my son in the NICU basically the entire time, I really left only to spend time with my oldest and to go home to shower (self care).
I didn’t have a boss that I had to answer to.
Have you heard of digging your well before you’re thirsty? We were living that.
I was able to live my priorities! My family is able to come first. I was able Wyatt to all his appointments, which most the time is multiple a week. I also still was homeschooling (my oldest).
We had done some work financially up to that point, but it was during that time that we realized how crucial that work was. The NICU stay and the mindset stories that I created during that time are the reason that I have the company that I do today. There will be curveballs that life will throw at you. It’s not a matter of if it’s a matter of when. I totally get that feeling of doing the work just to have an external circumstance take it away. It feels like that progress that you’ve made is ripped out from underneath you. I just want you to know that it doesn’t have to be like that forever. You don’t know what you don’t know. There are principles that you can learn and apply to achieve that life that you are looking for. That’s what I am passionate about. I want to help as many people as I can, get that stress & burden off their backs.
Maybe you’ve had your fair share of curveballs come your way, you might feel defeated. If you do I want you to know there is hope, it’s not to late. Things can change just take the next step
Any stories or insights that might help us understand how you’ve built such a strong reputation?
Not being afraid to be authentic and real. In a world of social media where we see the highlight reel from so many but not the behind-the-scenes of what is actually going on. I believe the best thing I can do is show up in an authentic manner. My clients know that there is a possibility that you’ll hear and/or see my children on coaching calls, they also know that I haven’t achieved perfection. There are things that I’m continuing to work on and improve on an everyday basis. Especially since finances are just an emotional topic. The more simple and real teaching can be the more lives can be affected.
And truth is sweet to the ears and when you hear sustainable principles they make sense. You don’t have to revolutionize everything – there are solutions to become unstoppable in your life because simple systems are the most effective way to create long-term sustainable abundance.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://aimeecerka.com
- Instagram: https://instagram.com/aimeecerka
- Facebook: https://facebook.com/aimeecerka
- Linkedin: https://linkedin.com/in/aimeecerka
- Youtube: https://aimeecerka.com/ytsubscribe