HSN Episode #17: Wealthy and Well Women with Bianca McGee
MICHELLE FOX: Happy New Year, my friend. I am so grateful to have you in this community. I can tell you since we've started this podcast last September, September, 2022 to be exact, this community has just become bigger and brighter and more impactful. And so sincerely, I want to start off 2023 by saying thank you. Thank you for showing up for us, and most important thank you for showing up for you and your health and knowing that your wellness matters.
That leads me into today's topic, which is wealthy and well women, and I specifically chose this episode to begin our year in the most powerful way possible. I have my friend and special guest, Bianca McGee to walk through some tools to help us with our mindset around money. I know that there's always room for improvement wherever you are on the spectrum for money. And in this conversation you'll see how we tie that into wellness. We even dig into burnout. Both of us came from the corporate world, jumped straight into entrepreneurship and we, we offer some tools to hopefully help you to avoid burnout as well. So stick with me.
Before I jump into our powerful conversation, I wanna ask you a question. Have you considered a word for this year? If you have, I would love to hear it. Let me know. DM me on Instagram and just share. So one, I can hold you accountable through the ear energetically, but two, perhaps your word might inspire somebody else. I'm happy to share that I am actually taking up space with my word in that I'm not just choosing one word.
For 2023, my word is flow and synchronicity. If you've been listening to me or with me for any amount of time, then you know, I've been on a spiritual journey since July of last year, and the words flow and synchronicity are very impactful for me because it reminds me that, yes, for my joy, for my highest use of my gifts and my services, I want to lean into the power of the universe, the power of my God, the power of my higher spirit. And so claiming the words flow and synchronicity I sincerely believe are gonna help me get there.
So if you have not picked your word for 2023, feel free to borrow mine and or perhaps by me talking about mine, maybe it's inspiring words that you already have in your spirit that you wanna hold onto for the remainder of the year. Please let me know. DM me on Instagram. Send me an email at [email protected]. I would sincerely love to hear from you.
Last but not least, I have another question for you. Are you wanting a retreat, specifically a retreat to Costa Rica the first week of March? I can tell you a space recently opened up one of our participants sadly, needed to drop out due to some personal reasons, and so that has left one spot open. So if you are listening to this and you've been looking for a sign and, or maybe you've been on the fence, or maybe this is the first time you're hearing of this, please head to michellefox.com/retreat and you'll get all the juicy details. I will let you know though the circle is amazing. There's seven beautiful spirits, women over 40, and we're headed to beautiful Yaco Costa Rica. First week of March, 2023.
Okay, now without further ado, let's listen in on my conversation with my friend Bianca McGee.
INTRO: Welcome to Healthy Sexy Nutrition with me, Michelle Fox, culinary nutritionist, health coach, and your host for this podcast. I teach busy professionals how to get more nutrition in their bodies. And how to have more fun in their home kitchens. If you struggle with consistency or sometimes forget to make your needs a priority or you avoid planning your meals, you, my friend, are in the right place.
Join me each week for inspiration to increase your energy, discover new recipes, manage your hormonal woes, and so much more. You are a busy professional, but that does not mean your nutrition should suffer. You deserve to live in a body and have a life that you love.
So let's dig in.
MICHELLE: Today we have my beautiful friend Bianca McGee with us, and before I just gush and gush about how much I love and admire this woman, I'm gonna read you her bio so you understand just a smidgen of the powerhouse that she is.
So Bianca McGee is the CEO and founder of Plan Profit Grow. That's where she serves as a Launch Cash Flow Strategist, a financial coach, and CFO for service-based women entrepreneurs experiencing rapid growth. She helps them to navigate cash flow, profitability, and money mindset challenges so they are prepared to scale without burnout. Amen and amen. Prior to starting her firm, Bianca was a finance leader for 17 years at Fortune 500 companies managing billion dollar P&L budgets. Yes, I said a billion with a B dollar P&L budgets, new product launches and investitures, and operational improvement initiatives alongside marketing and sales teams.
When Bianca is not helping women make bank without burnout. Ooh, can we say that again? Helping women to make bank without burnout. You can find her homeschooling her entrepreneur in training, planning the next travel adventure with her hubby, or indulging in a good book or podcast. Ooh, we are all in the right place.
Welcome, Bianca.
BIANCA MCGEE: Hi, Michelle. Thank you so much for having me. I'm so excited to be here with you.
MICHELLE: Oh my goodness. Well, not only do I admire you and love you, I just feel excited that we get to share some of your wisdom around money and wealth specifically for women. I think if I were not doing nutrition, I would be doing money and wealth because it's just, it lights me up inside to see that when women are in their flow and they are making the money, we have more options and we have more freedom. And so I just, I'm so excited to delve in. But before we do, will you play a little game with me?
BIANCA: Sure, sure.
MICHELLE: Okay. So this is what I call my rapid fire questions. Here we go. Number one. Sweet, salty, or savory?
BIANCA: Oh Savory.
MICHELLE: Okay. Love it. Woo. You passed that test. Okay.
BIANCA: Okay.
MICHELLE: Good job. Second one coming up. When you're looking at your inbox, is it inbox zero or inbox 10,000?
BIANCA: Oh Lord. Inbox 10,000.
MICHELLE: Okay. That does not suarprise me. Yes, I know a lot of people want a piece of your wisdom.
How about this, your favorite movie of all time?
BIANCA: Oh, ooh, that is a good one. Hmm. You see, I have to think about it. You see, movies was not on my list. Right? I said podcasts and books. So it's like, let's see. Let's think about that one. Um, you know, it's a crazy one, but I would have to say The Sound of Music probably. That's actually the first thing that came to my head. I, I love music, musically inclined. Um, yeah. And so, and I also homeschool, so you know the children and teaching them. So I don't know. So maybe that, that, that is the one I would have to go with for now.
MICHELLE: You just got my heart. That actually was one of my favorite movies as a child. I remember. I think it was really long, isn't it like a three hour movie, I think with Julie Andrews and you're right, the children and the do re me. Yeah. Oh gosh. Okay. Yeah, we could go on and on, but yeah. Uh, you are not alone. I love that movie too.
BIANCA: So, so you are really embarrassing me here.
MICHELLE: Oh, it's all love. It's all love. And last and final rapid fire question, would you be willing to share one of your favorite childhood memories in the kitchen?
BIANCA: Oh sure. Oh goodness. So my favorite moments in the kitchen would be with my grandmother. And unfortunately she's no longer with us, but I would say, and she, oh goodness. She could cook so well, right? Um, but the first dish, and I do that in quotations, dish that she showed me how to make when I was very small. It's called a one-eyed John, have you ever heard of that?
MICHELLE: Ooh, tell us more.
BIANCA: So it's very simple. It's basically you take a piece of bread, you take out the middle. Like make a hole in it and then you put a egg in there, so it's like you're making toast and cooking the egg at the same time. So it's simple, but that's my earliest moment in the kitchen with her. And, you know, it's something that I pass down to my little one too. So.
MICHELLE: And tell me one more time, what is it called?
BIANCA: A one-eyed John. I don't know. The egg is like an eye, I suppose.
MICHELLE: Yeah. And I wonder if that's like the black people version because my daughter who has a white father, the white people version, an egg in a nest. And I just remember, remember her being like three or four years old and being like, “daddy, daddy, I want the egg in the nest. I want the egg in the nest.” But it sounds like it's very similar.
BIANCA: I think it's the same thing. And that's something, yeah. Yeah. Same thing. Different names.
MICHELLE: Yum. And either way you have that beautiful memory with your grandma that is really special.
BIANCA: Yes. It is, but now just trying to swap out the bread for gluten-free versions.
MICHELLE: Yes. Okay. You get an A plus right there. Yes, ma'am. Yes ma'am. Yes. The egg in the nest and the whole with the gluten-free bread.
BIANCA: Mm-hmm.
MICHELLE: I like it. All right. Well let's talk about, as I mentioned at the top, one of my favorite subjects, wealth and women. And to begin with, I would just love to know like, how do you define wealth?
BIANCA: Oh, thank you for asking because you know, many people, when they think of wealth, it automatically goes to monetary, you know, means or financial. And while that is one way to view wealth, I would offer that there are three other forms of it as well. You can think of it in terms of your time, in terms of your social and spiritual experiences that you have, as well as what's near and dear to your heart and mine would be your health, you know, as well.
And so when I think of wealth, I think of all four of those things as being assets to us. We have our money, that's an asset. Our time is an asset. Our health is an asset. Um, the people in our life are assets. And so it's important to have harmony with all four of those things I believe in order to be truly wealthy. And the issue that we've confined today, whether it's with professional women or with entrepreneurs, right, because you and I both have been on both sides of that equation.
Um, and what we find is that people in general, but specifically we're talking about women, um, can end up sacrificing those other areas at the cost of, you know, pursuing the financial wealth. And so what I'm believe and propose is for, like I said, for those things to be in harmony for you to be truly wealthy and happy.
MICHELLE: And I imagine, and correct me if I'm wrong, but a lot of your clients, I imagine they're probably coming to you with “Oh, how do I manage my money?” Or, “oh, I think I'm having issues with cash.” But then just a little bit I, that I know about you, I imagine the conversation gets even deeper and as I like to say, circular, like you're probably looking at the whole person's health versus just zeroing in on the cash. Am I right or wrong?
BIANCA: Yes, you are so right. And this is something I think that makes me a little bit different from other financial professionals people may work with. Um, and just as we're going into this, a little background, as you mentioned, you know, 17 years in corporate America and experiencing burnout and when I left there I actually went on somewhat of a personal journey to learn more about stress and anxiety and what's the cause of it, you know, et cetera, and how to heal it. Um, and so from that, I bring that into my financial work, that background that I have as well. And so what I found was myself as well as many of the women that I work with, is that it's their relationship with money, their beliefs and behaviors that end up creating issues in those other areas, um, of life and causing that burnout. And so by getting to that root of dealing with the money and the financial side and what's going on there, then we can help to improve all other areas of our life as well.
And so when I work with them, that's something that we do in terms of like setting their financial goals and looking at what they're building out for their offers et cetera. We're thinking about, okay, how much time, you know, is that taking for you to be able to market and deliver that? Um, Looking at, in terms of, you know, your health as well. So does it allow you to have the time and the space to focus on things outside of work, which would be your health, as well as those people that are important to you and that you love? Right?
Thinking about the way that you are planning your spending in your business because we also touch not only on business, but personal finances. And so making sure that you are allocating part of that profit that you have to help with your health as well, right? So not forgetting about that. And so it's really, you know, breaking that cycle where you're just focusing on the financial piece and sacrificing all those other areas of your life.
MICHELLE: And I'm also kind of extrapolating from what you're saying, that this is also a values conversation. Meaning what are you valuing right now? Because people might not have the words or be clear about what they value. But I often ask my clients, let's just look at a snapshot of your life today, like today, like if you've skipped a workout, if you've grabbed the, you know, fast food on the way home and instead of coming home to cook, if you've, um, you know, maybe not kept up with your commitments.
That's showing you what you are valuing, whether you're putting words to it or not. I also like to look at mindset, and I also think it brings up that worthiness conversation because I can share nutrition tips all day long, but my clients aren't going to use that information unless they value themselves enough to say, “okay, yes, I'm gonna make 30 minutes a day to plan”, or “I'm gonna take 30 minutes a day to cook,” or, you know, whatever the strategies are.
So do you see that as well with money that perhaps people, actually, I won't even put words in your mouth. Do you see that worthiness conversation come up with the, the work that you do with your clients?
BIANCA: Oh, yes. Yes, so much. Um, yeah. And that's one thing that we focus on as well, right? It's around, like you said, your vision and your values. Because a good way to tell what you value is the way that you spend your money. And so a lot of times in what we work to do is to uncover when there's, uh, you know, discrepancy or misalignment between that because you say that you value one thing, but the way that you're spending your money and your time is something completely different.
So how can we get those things on the same page, and setting up, like I said, your, your business in such a way that it allows you to have that, that harmony and that alignment between those things. And I think another thing with it is, you know, honestly, in many black communities, What is valued right is health stressed and valued. And for many of us, I know, at least for me, you know, it was more so let's say towards the end of life for my grandparents, right? That then it became, you know, you wanna make sure you're taking care of yourself so you don't get into this position that I'm in, the kind of thing. Right. But growing up it's more about survival and being able to, um, really be a success in terms of being able to take care of yourself and financial means. Right?
And so I think that some of us have been conditioned to have those values out of line. And so then as we grow older, as we have our own families, and then we start making those decisions for ourselves and sort of rearranging those priorities and values, then that's where, you know, it's good to have someone like yourself, you know, as well as me from the finance piece, to be able to help you to really build your life in terms of what you now decided is most important.
MICHELLE: Oh, you just got my heart saying that. Yes, cuz part of my story and a big part of the reason why I do the work that I do is because I lost my father at he was 65 at the time of death, which I just. Still to this day. This was about eight years ago. I just feel like it was senseless because a lot of what you're saying, that's the way he was raised. And you know, at this point I've, I've found compassion around that and I've, I've found more compassion with some of the choices I've made over the years. But he was raised, which then passed down to me. Raised to think that the almighty dollar is the highest value. And so, as you know, an African American entrepreneur running his own CPA firm, he had all this pressure on his shoulder, all this stress, and oh, by the way, Wendy's was across the street, so that's pretty much what he ate for lunch every day, even though he maybe intellectually knew that that wasn't good for his body. But he didn't make time to make the changes with his diet, and so it was the stress. It was the constant chasing of the cash, the almighty dollar that I truly believe was what led to his ultimate demise.
And so anything I can do to help people just to stop and be like, Yes, I am worthy of taking this time to look at what I'm putting in my body, whether it's the nutrition piece or the meditation piece, just to, you know, release some of that stress. And then of course the financial planning and the strategies that I know you work with people.
Like, I think that really helps to soothe our nervous system, which then plays into lessening our stress and making better choices for our bodies. Cause I really. Don't want anybody dying at such an early age when there are steps that science has proved that we can take to avoid that happening. So yeah, all of that to say do you have any particular tools? Like cuz people can listen to us and be like, yeah, yeah, I hear you Bianca. I hear you Michelle. And they can feel like revved up. But then as soon as this podcast is over, I think human nature just pulls us right back into life. So is there any just one tool that you could suggest that people take right now just to take action?
BIANCA: Hmm. You know what I have found, and it's one of the hardest things to do, but it's to be honest with yourself. And to be honest with where you are, to be honest with what you want, and to be willing to bridge that gap and to take the steps that you need, you know, to do that. Just it, it touches my heart too when I have first heard about your, you know, your father because I can testify, being in accounting and finance is a very stressful, long hours, high, you know, risk environment that you're trying to manage, you know, cuz you're managing other people's livelihoods. But it's important for us to really understand that what's most important after all of that is said and done. Is focusing on the most important, which is our people, you know, and our families, right?
MICHELLE: Mm-hmm.
BIANCA: And everything else you can, you can get back, you know? And so, um, and also really understanding that it's not a competition. It's not an and, it's, or I'm sorry, it's not or right. I can be healthy or I can have a successful business. It's how to make those things coexist and how to understand that they work together. Um, and that being healthier and taking care of yourself really allows you to have more success. You know, in your business. And so reframing that I think, you know, is very important and not feeling like you have to be in this situation where you're giving, you're giving and giving until there's nothing left.
So getting honest, like I said about that with, with yourself as well as what it, it really takes, you know, to be successful in, in all areas. And that requires honestly having awareness. And sometimes you're able to do that yourself, but sometimes you need someone else on the outside to be able to give you that perspective, which is where coaches come into play. To help you with that and to support you on those days when you know, you kind of slip up, um, and being realistic about it as well. I think a lot of times we go into things. We're in this quick, fast environment where we want things instantly and knowing that it's a process. And even, like you said, you know, just money is, you know, one of the number one stressors that people have, right? It's, it really takes a toll. And so understanding that and putting it in its proper place can, can help a lot of things.
And so I just see so many women that just are set on these financial goals that they have. And it's like I've, I've been down that path, so let me kind of help you, you know, so we'll just keep finding the good fight. So yeah, those are the things that come to mind for me.
MICHELLE: And I just wanna tag onto what you're saying about the accountability piece for anybody in our community who's listening right now. Bianca is a resource, an amazing resource for coaching. Obviously, you know me, I'm here to be that extra support and or cheerleader if you need around your nutrition, so there's no shame in asking for help. In fact, it's the courageous thing to do. Is to ask for help, especially from my friends who may see some issues around their money or may see some issues around their health. I just, honestly, I ask you to look at what your life looks like right now and compare that to how it looked last year. And as Bianca was saying, let's get very honest, if what you're saying this year looks a lot like it did last year, then that's probably a sign that it's time to ask for help.
BIANCA: Yeah. Yeah. I was just, I was just thinking about how that, um, you know, the burnout experience in corporate and how I thought that the answer to that would be entrepreneurship, like that that was going to solve, um, the problems. And while the place that I was in was definitely misaligned with values and, you know, some, some other things, um, the root of the issue, if you will, was me. Right?
And like getting back to the conversation that we're having on, on worthiness and feeling like, One, needing to prove right or getting my value from how much I make or what my title is. And so, having, you know, those things and then even bringing that into entrepreneurship, you know, kind of, um, you just kind of bring, bring the baggage with you right? It's a, a new, a new place, but it's the same you that's there. And so I know even personally with me, that's one thing that I'm still, and that you and I have had conversations about just still working through, you know how to have that harmony. It is a constant journey that you have. And then I go on, right? Because you know, one of the main reasons why I left corporate was because of the impact that it was having on my health. And like I say, I thought, okay, if I'm in charge of my time and everything, then I will be able to do all the things that I need to do. I can go to the gym in the morning and I, you know, I'm not commuting, I'm not working until, you know, the night hours, so I can have all my meals and blah, blah, blah, blah, blah. And, and that's just, it. It, it doesn't happen miraculously just because you've changed the situation that you're in.
You've got to, like we talked about, change the values and priorities, and yeah, you may have more time, but you know, you find other things to, to take that time up and to put into it if you haven't been completely intentional with how you're gonna use it. But then also going back to that money mindset and thinking about that view and that belief and that worthiness. And so even though you are wanting to have other priorities higher on your list, it's really taking that intentional effort to move those things around.
MICHELLE: So preach. It's all about the intention because very similarly, I left corporate and they say a lot of us entrepreneurs, we leave the eight to five to step into the 24/7. And I recorded a podcast episode last year exactly of this subject and how I burnt myself out. And so. Back to our conversation. I really had to take a moment and look at my values and I'm embarrassed to say, and I'm probably using the word embarrassed cuz I, it's still, as you said, a work in progress.
But I'm embarrassed to say I kind of edged God out. I know people call that the ego sometimes, you know, I said, This is my new business. I have to do it the right way. I have to talk to the right people. I have to show up in the right ways. And even though I was eating well, I wasn't sleeping and I was drinking way too much coffee. And I burnt myself out. It, it didn't work. It did not work. And it wasn't until I literally had a two-year on pointing to the floor in my office here. But I had a two-year old temper tantrum saying, “why am I so burnt out? How did I get here again?” And I'm like, “God, I surrender. I surrender.”\
And as soon as I let God in, What, you know, my business took off. I had more energy than I have in a long time, and now I'm more committed than ever to continue to bring this message to people so that, like you said, we can bring this message to people before they hit rock bottom and hopefully before they have the two year old temper tantrum. Cuz I want people to see like true health, true wealth. It is possible. That's possible.
And to your point, I love that you mentioned it's progress. It's, it's a, do we ever reach the end point? Maybe I'll just end with that, that question. Do, do we ever just get it, Bianca? Do we all, we ever just have perfect lives?
BIANCA: No. No. There's always going to be something else. Whether it's your finances or your health, there's going to be, you know, a new circumstance, a new challenge that comes up that you are going to have to deal with. But that's also the beauty, right, in that as we continue to grow, we're able to meet those challenges, and overcome them better and faster, you know. And it, it, it builds character, it builds wisdom and that way that we don't keep it to ourselves. Which is kinda like what we're doing with this conversation now, is sharing, you know, so that others, maybe they can avoid some of the things or take a different path quicker.
MICHELLE: So of course we'll have ways to contact Bianca in our show notes. But Bianca, I wanna ask you, do you do one-to-one coaching? Do you do group coaching? How could we work with you if we wanted?
BIANCA: Yes. Yes, I would love that. So I have a couple of ways that you could work with me. One would be in terms of having a 90 day intensive, so those would be for people who know that there's some things going on with their, their cash flow and they're wanting to have some speed help in terms of identifying what's going on and, and how to remedy those. Um, and then also I offer, actually starting this month, I'm launching a new program that's going to be a hybrid, for six months that you can work with me, one-on-one for portions of it so that we can really get into your business and understand what's going on and, and where you need assistance. And then it also has a group component where it's really focused on that community, in terms of having those discussions around money and the intersection of wealth and wellness and addressing those money mindset issues that can keep us stuck.
MICHELLE: Oh my goodness. My heart is so excited that the community gets to glean some of your wisdom and we have the opportunity to work with you. So thank you for saying yes, and thank you for opening your doors to share this wisdom with us so that it does help us to create healthier communities. So as we wind down, is there anything else you wanted to share with us?
BIANCA: Yes, you can go to my website, planprofitgrow.com, as well as follow me on LinkedIn at Bianca McGee.
MICHELLE: And I noticed McGee is spelled uniquely, so we're gonna make sure all of that is in the show notes. But it's M C G E E, right? Did I get that right?
BIANCA: Yes.
MICHELLE: All right. Well thank you so much for gracing us with your wisdom for reminding us there is courage in asking for help and letting us know that there actually is a way to have a better life that we love. Please know I admire you, I admire the work you're doing and, and by you showing up, that helps me to give myself permission to continue to show up as well. So thank you.
BIANCA: Oh, The feeling is so mutual. Same here. Michelle. You're such an inspiration.
MICHELLE: Thank you.
Thanks so much for listening to Healthy Sexy Nutrition. Have you been driving, doing laundry or walking around the neighborhood? Sweet. I've got show notes for you at michellefox.com/podcast. Click over there when you are ready. I will let you know that on the page you will find resources to support what you just learned on today's show.
And of course you can grab some health supportive freebies as well. If you enjoyed this episode, I would be so honored if you would leave a review on whichever podcast platform you are listening on. It will help me with my mission to build healthier communities one person at a time.
Big love from your favorite culinary nutritionist and health coach, and until next week, keep showing up for yourself and know that you and your health matter.
You deserve to live in a body and have a life that you love.
