We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Litsa Dejulio a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.

Alright, Litsa thanks for taking the time to share your stories and insights with us today. So let’s jump to your mission – what’s the backstory behind how you developed the mission that drives your brand?

I help singles learn how to manage money stress and stop living paycheck to paycheck. Over the years, I’ve learned that when you manage your time, you also need to consider how you spend your time and energy. My mission is to support the journey of self-discovery and growth, helping individuals craft a life filled with purpose and joy through intentionality and mindful living.

I’m an impulsive spender. When I think about the money spent over the years, I cringe. If I had been intentional about that past spending, then I would have felt it was money well spent. But I was directionless, living paycheck to paycheck, and just trying to get by. I lacked intentionality, and I was not being mindful of my choices.

At one point, I faced my mindless decision-making and learned about personal finance. I learned how to manage my impulsiveness and work with a spending plan. Even as I coach others to do what I learned to do; I’m still learning myself. I still need to be mindful of my impulsiveness, but I embrace it. Although I’m impulsive, I’m confident I can make healthier choices for myself.

I also discovered the connection between how we spend our time, money, and energy. Some things like owning a house and getting married take a lot of money, time and energy. Certain things might require more financial resources than time or energy. And we need to learn how to manage tradeoffs. We can spend time and energy cleaning our home, or we can hire someone to do it for us. But with either scenario, there are tradeoffs.

To help people live better, I designed the R.I.C.H. Life Framework, which focuses on how they manage their time, money, and energy. Rest and relaxation include time for self-care and vacations. Intentionality focuses on our habits and routines and our overall vision for life. Creativity is an integral aspect of human life. Health includes our physical, emotional, mental, spiritual, and financial health.

I believe that our creativity and ability to grow are the most valuable tools we possess. It is critical we take care of ourselves. It’s a harsh truth, but no one else is doing to do it for us.

I focus on singles because as I was learning about money, time and energy management, I found a lot more resources and information for parents and couples. But, being a single woman, I believed that individuals living alone, whether by choice, because of widowhood, divorce, or other living arrangements, also deserved a place.

Awesome – so before we get into the rest of our questions, can you briefly introduce yourself to our readers.

I’ve worked in the education, medical and mental health fields for over two decades. Although very rewarding, I began coaching to further my mission of helping others. I continue working as a clinical social worker and therapist in a hospital setting, and I now am a mindset coach for singles with money stress.

Before my coaching years, I had a very negative mindset. I lived with anxiety and was prone to burnout. My mind was a whirlwind and I juggled multiple projects at once. Because I have so many interests, I’m often pulled in various directions. As a result, I spent a lot of time not doing much at all, because I was too overwhelmed. Plus, besides anxiety, I developed a few chronic conditions over the years and my energy levels varied.

Funny thing is, I used to think I was bad with money. What’s worse, is that I thought I could never learn about how to manage money. After all, I was a creative, social scientist, but a businessperson. It took me decades to finally asked myself, “Why do I think like that?” After all, I’ve learned other things in my life. Why can’t I learn how to manage money? I wish I could say I changed my mindset and behaviors soon after that, but it took years of reading articles, books and blogs, and watching YouTube videos. I made a lot of mistakes, and I tried a lot of different techniques and methods. Eventually, I figured things out and made some changes.

By integrating many techniques, I assist individuals in breaking free from paycheck-to-paycheck living and eliminating debt. Specifically, I use a zero-based budgeting method and spending philosophy called YNAB (You Need A Budget). I became a certified coach in the YNAB method, and I combine that work with my R.I.C.H. Life Framework. My coaching practice draws from my expertise as a clinical social worker, yoga teacher, supervisor, and educator. I emphasize self-care and self-compassion and acknowledge that we need to live our lives while on this journey. I don’t believe in extremes and it’s possible to break the paycheck-to-paycheck cycle while having some fun. We are all on our unique journeys, and I am so happy and honored to be doing this work.

What’s a lesson you had to unlearn and what’s the backstory?

This is a brilliant question. As a mindset coach, I help individuals unlearn, or at least tweak, their mindsets and habits all the time. And I’ve done a lot of work unlearning my share of mindsets and habits.

Earlier, I discussed my frequent struggle with completing tasks on a lengthy to-do list. I’ve needed to learn to say no and accept the tradeoffs on my decisions. It’s been incredibly difficult to let go of the belief that I can, and must, handle everything.

For a long time, I thought if I just work harder, I’ll get it all done. I had a lot of shame and guilt wrapped up in not being able to meet my expectations, which were often influenced by society and my personal life. Our patriarchal and ableist society heavily emphasizes what people lack. You’re not organized enough; you have too little; you aren’t meeting this or that deadline. There are a lot of judgements. And those judgements are too often turned inwards.

Over the years as a therapist and coach, I know that one of the hardest things for people to do is to say no. Not just to others, but saying no to ourselves is incredibly difficult. Perhaps we already feel deprived, so saying no to something or an experience can be really devastating. I love to learn and will buy many books and online courses. But then I can’t read or complete them all, and that makes me feel bad. It can feel like a vicious cycle.

When talking about having to say no, Elizabeth Gilbert once wrote, “No, it’s much harder than that. You need to learn how to start saying no to things you DO want to do, with the recognition that you have only one life, and you don’t have the time or energy for everything.”

Harsh, but true. So, I needed (and still reminding myself), what am I saying yes to?

Can you tell us about a time you’ve had to pivot?

If you had told me years ago that I dive into the personal finance world, never mind center a coaching practice around it, I would have looked at you with utter bewilderment.

I work as a part-time clinical social worker, and I had supplemented my income with per diem work. I had been looking to start a business and was exploring options.

I learned about book coaching about five years ago and thought that was a perfect blend of writing, editing and helping others. I’ve always loved stories. Individual journeys, novels, memoirs—I become a therapist because in part I wanted to hear people’s life stories and to help along the way. I attended an introductory workshop and signed up to become a book coach..

Sadly, right around this time, I was dealing with eye issues. I had gone through tons of tests and saw various specialists. Eventually, I needed surgery. Post-three surgeries, I was alright, but the business’s over-reliance on my sight gave me pause.

After taking some time to consider my options, I made the rough decision to walk away from book coaching. I knew I still wanted to coach, but I needed a new focus. My journey to better money management and financial literacy had already begun. I started using YNAB (You Need A Budget). I signed up to be a certified YNAB coach. I found coaches to help me with building my business.

Funnily enough, I tried YNAB over ten years ago and I did NOT like it. And now I’m a certified YNAB coach. Life has a way of coming full circle, so what failed in the past might succeed now. Or what used to work for us, may not work now. So, we always need to stay opened to possibilities.

And that is what I want for myself and others. Stay opened. Our fundamental values remain constant, yet our tastes, interests, and passions develop. Embrace the change. You never know what’s around the corner, and what you’ll say yes to next. I don’t regret my time in the book coaching community as I made incredible friends and contacts which I maintain to this day. Now, I work with a book coach as I write my first novel.

Reference
https://www.facebook.com/GilbertLiz/posts/how-many-times-in-your-life-have-you-needed-to-say-thisand-do-you-need-to-say-it/915704835178299/

Contact Info:

• Website: https://litsadejulio.com/
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/litsadejulio/
• Other: Free download: https://litsadejulio.kit.com/4c4f997a22

Image Credits

Litsa DeJulio