Financial Feminist

If you've ever thought, "I know what I'm supposed to be doing with my money, so why can't I just do it?"–– this episode is going to change everything.

I'm sitting down with Dr. Nick, a licensed neuropsychologist and executive cognition specialist, to unpack the brain science behind why smart, capable women still make emotional financial decisions. We're going into the dopamine deficit that makes long-term financial goals feel impossible to start, the norepinephrine surge that only kicks in when things become an emergency, and why "I'm bad with money" is a story your brain makes up — not a fact about who you are.

Dr. Nick breaks down how emotional dysregulation silently drives impulse spending, financial avoidance, and the boom-bust cycle so many of us know too well, and more importantly, how to build systems, practice self-compassion, and rewire your brain's relationship with money, one small win at a time.

Dr. Nick’s links:

Website: https://www.drnicolemurray.com/

Visit ⁠https://herfirst100k.com/ffpod⁠⁠ to stay up to date and find any resources mentioned on our show.

If you're feeling stressed about money, we've created a money plan to help you, no matter where you're getting started. Taking a quick 2-minute quiz to get your money plan at https://herfirst100k.com/ffpod

In this episode:

00:00 How Emotional Decisions Shape Your Finances

01:47 Why Knowing Isn't Enough: The Brain Science

02:56 The Role of Dopamine in Financial Decisions

05:11 How to Create Urgency Before a Crisis

07:52 "I'm Just Bad With Money" — Debunked

10:15 What Is Emotional Regulation (And Why It Matters)

14:52 The Intensity Gauge: Rating Your Emotions

15:02 Managing the "Always at an 8" vs. Numb Baseline

17:29 Making Financial Decisions at a 5, 6, or 7

19:19 Replacing Mindless Spending With Systems

29:54 Willpower Is a Myth — Here's What Actually Works

32:11 The Case for Self-Compassion Over Willpower

35:43 The Boom-Bust Cycle of Financial Motivation

39:28 How Emotional Regulation Changes With Age

42:24 Preparing for Life's Transitions

49:00 Rebuilding Trust With Yourself and Your Money
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If you've ever power posed in a bathroom mirror or blasted a Beyoncé song before a big negotiation hoping it would make you believe in yourself, this episode is going to completely change the way you think about confidence. I'm sitting down with return guest Kara Loewentheil, founder of The School of New Feminist Thought, host of the internationally top-ranked podcast Unfuck Your Brain, and author of the instant New York Times bestseller Take Back Your Brain, and we're getting into the real, evidence-backed truth about what confidence actually is — and why everything you've been told about building it is probably doing you more harm than good. Kara breaks down her Confidence Compass framework — self-knowledge, self-compassion, self-belief, and self-actualization — and why real confidence has nothing to do with a feeling or a pose, and everything to do with building a trusting relationship with yourself so you can take risks, go after your financial goals, and create the life you actually want.

Kara’s links:

Website: http://unfuckyourbrain.com/HSC 

Unf*ck Your Brain podcast: https://schoolofnewfeministthought.com/podcasts/ 

Take Back Your Brain book: https://www.takebackyourbrainbook.com/ 

Visit ⁠https://herfirst100k.com/ffpod⁠ to read the transcript and find any resources mentioned in this episode!

0:00 Intro

0:59 Confidence Is a Skillset, Not a Feeling

2:08 Why Power Poses and Beyoncé Songs Don't Work

4:19 Does "Fake It Till You Make It" Actually Work?

5:19 Kara's Background: Yale, Harvard Law, and Becoming a Coach

5:34 Betting on Yourself Without Feeling Confident

7:55 Confidence vs. Certainty and Control

9:30 Confidence as a Relationship with Yourself

12:02 The Confidence Compass Framework

14:40 Money, Shame, and Which Block Shows Up Most

16:47 How Shame Disguises Itself as Responsibility

19:37 The Permission Slip Problem

27:31 How to Uncouple Shame and Build New Beliefs

38:28 Unlearning Selflessness Without Feeling Selfish

43:04 Confidence Doesn't Come from Having Things — It Creates Them

45:37 Using the Confidence Compass for Money Goals

48:52 The Seeds of Who You Want to Be Are Already in You
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Summer travel is something most of us look forward to all year.

But without a plan, it can leave you with a maxed-out credit card and a lot of financial stress to come home to. In this episode of Financial Feminist, I'm breaking down exactly how to budget for summer travel so you can enjoy your trip without the money anxiety hanging over you the whole time. I'll walk you through how to set a realistic trip cap before you ever open a flight search tab, why travel is a known predictable expense and not just a fun splurge, and how to build a sinking fund so the money is already there when it's time to book. If you’re craving a getaway this summer, I'm giving you a step-by-step framework, plus my favorite money-saving tools and practical tips, so you can travel well and come home financially intact.

*Important note: this episode was recorded in January 2026, before the increase in gas prices

My favorite tool for finding flight deals: https://going.sjv.io/c/1408818/3039272/10802

Get my Bill Breakthrough scripts: https://herfirst100k.com/bill-breakthrough

Get a quote for Auto Insurance: https://herfirst100k.com/auto

Visit https://herfirst100k.com/ffpod to get my free Travel Budgeting Spreadsheet! 

See my credit card recommendations: https://herfirst100k.com/credit-cards

00:00 Intro

00:16 Why Summer Travel Feels So Expensive

02:50 Step 1: Set Your Total Trip Cap

03:49 A Budget Is Not a Killjoy

05:46 Let Flight Deals Decide Where You Go

07:55 Step 2: Break the Trip Into Real Categories

12:22 Step 3: Plan Backwards

15:13 Step 4: Cut Costs Without Ruining the Trip

17:48 Book Experiences in Advance & Pick Your Splurges

19:21 Use Credit Card Points

19:58 What to Do If You Can't Afford the Trip You Want

22:05 Travel Is Part of a Rich Life
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If paying off debt is starting to feel like it's swallowing your whole life–– this episode is for you. Today I’m getting honest with you about something the personal finance world doesn't say enough: debt payoff isn't just a numbers problem, it's an emotional one. The mental load of tracking balances, watching interest undo your progress, and feeling like you have to earn joy before you've hit zero is exhausting, and it's not what sustainable financial freedom looks like. In this episode, I'm giving you the pep talk you actually need, breaking down why hyper-vigilance around debt isn't discipline, what to do when debt payoff has consumed your entire personality, and four practical ways to protect your energy so you can keep going without burning out.

Watch How to Payoff Credit Card Debt FAST: ⁠https://youtu.be/qLR-x0Zg4eY⁠ 

Visit https://herfirst100k.com/ffpod to join the free 5-Day Debt Payoff Challenge! 

00:00 Intro

00:23 The Pep Talk You Need

01:16 Debt as Cognitive Labor

01:50 Why Debt Payoff Feels So Hard

02:28 Shame & Moral Failure Around Debt

03:02 The Invisible, Unpaid Work of Debt

03:52 Hyper-Vigilance Is Not Discipline

04:15 When Debt Becomes Your Whole Identity

05:22 You Don't Have to Suffer to Be Responsible

08:02 4 Ways to Protect Your Energy

08:09 #1 – Automate Everything

09:00 #2 – Stop Checking Your Accounts Daily

10:52 #3 – Give Yourself Permission to Have a Personality

11:24 #4 – Slow Progress Beats Burnout

11:33 Closing Thoughts
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If there's one episode I need every woman in your life to hear, it's this one — because what Erin and I unpack together has the power to completely transform the way you show up for yourself and the women around you. Erin Gallagher is the CEO and founder of Hype Women, an inclusive network unlocking women's access to human, social, and financial capital, and the author of the book Hype Women. In this episode, we get into the real reason women are conditioned to put everyone else first, how to tell the difference between anxiety and intuition, and why you cannot build real wealth, real friendships, or a real life until you stop abandoning yourself. We walk through the three stages of metamorphosis, and break down the spectrum from mean girl to hype woman so you can finally audit the women in your life (and the woman inside your head). This episode is the pep talk you didn't know you needed.

Erin’s links:

Website: www.hypewomen.com 

Visit ⁠https://herfirst100k.com/ffpod⁠ to see the show notes and read the transcript of this episode!

00:00 Intro

01:08 The Phrase That Changed Everything

02:55 Why Women Abandon Themselves

06:40 The Constant Threat Assessment

09:45 Remembering Who You Are

13:30 The Difference Between Intuition and Anxiety

17:40 Is It Still Working?

21:00 The Three Stages: Caterpillar, Cocoon, Monarch

25:10 Looking Around at 40

29:30 Renegotiating Your Life

33:15 The Mean Girl Inside of Us

37:00 You Can't Hype Others Until You Hype Yourself

41:45 Recognizing Your Conditioning

46:00 The Five Types on the Spectrum

51:00 Learning to Hype Yourself

56:00 Building Your A-Team

60:00 The Power of Women's Communities
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