Episode 43: How to Achieve Wealth with Ashaunda Davis

Acquania Escarne 0:03

You are listening to the Purpose of Money podcast, a podcast where we talk about ways to build wealth and create more freedom in your life today. I am your host Acquania Escarne. If you enjoy listening to the Purpose of Money podcast please leave us a five star review on Apple podcasts or wherever you may be listening to this show. We love to hear your thoughts and feedback and want to continue to provide content that you love. Thanks in advance for a five star review.

Welcome back to The Purpose of Money podcast. Today we're going to have an interview between me and Miss Shonda Davis, a wealth management advisor, author and awesome dynamic woman who's helping people with their finances. I hope you guys really enjoyed this conversation where we dive into how she's helping men so that she can help build up dynamic households and other things she's doing in the financial space to ensure that her clients have a successful financial journey. We talk about everything from life insurance to her money story. So I hope this is an episode that you love and will share with anyone else that you think would enjoy the content and appreciate the tips too.

Hey guys, welcome back to the Purpose of Money podcast today I'm super excited to have special guest Ashaunda M. Davis. She is a wealth management advisor, best selling author, speaker and financial coach with a unique approach to serving clients. Her passion led her to create a practice specializing and serving ambitious business owners. Miss Davis has her MBA is a series six and 63 investment license and has 10 years in the insurance industry. She not only ranked agent of the Year in 2017 in her Atlanta based firm, but she also was the first woman and first woman of color to break the production record in 2018. Miss Davis has been featured on an Essence magazine panel contributes articles to both Essence magazine and black EOE journal and is helping her community daily.

Hi, welcome to the podcast. I'm so glad to have you. How are you doing today?

Ashaunda Davis 2:31

I'm doing amazing. And it is such an honor to be here with you Acquania

Acquania Escarne 2:35

Thank you so much. I'm so glad you could be a guest on the show because I am also in the financial services space as a licensed life insurance agent. And I like to talk to other women in this space about wealth building tips, because I think it's helpful for the black community to hear from as many perspectives as possible. So I am so glad you accepted the invitation to collaborate on this conversation we're about to have, and give my audience an opportunity to learn more about you.

Ashaunda Davis 3:05

Absolutely. And it's generous of you to have me in this space where we both occupy so thankk you again

Acquania Escarne 3:11

You're welcome. So I want to know more about you and your start. Because on the show we'd like to share an entrepreneur's journey. And I'm curious to know what was money like for you when you were growing up?

Ashaunda Davis 3:25

Yes, so let me first say that there's always this lens that we all look at, having come from money, right. And so there's this mental blueprint that is either seated in us consciously or subconsciously. And for me, where it shows up and where it began, was with my grandmother, every visit to my grandmother's house for some reason, she blessed us with money, right. But also during our times with her, she always had money in her wallet, and she kept her her wallet in her bosom was represented to me that money was to be kept close to you. But she also had money spread out throughout the house, just change everywhere. Right? And so yet she only invited a few people to her home, once again, a close knit. But I'm gonna tell you, there's a couple of defining moments that were really pivotal for me to with my parents.

I remember walking down our winding steps of our home around the age of 13 or 14. And I go into the kitchen and I see my parents were papers, inaudible everywhere on the table. And I asked them what they were doing. And they say we're paying our bills. Now I don't know what 13 14 year old ask if I can help but I was that one Acquania who said can I help? And literally I did and so my father turned this little book around, told me to write out certain names on the on the book and come to find out it was a checkbook, right? And so for me, I remember seeing them manage their money. But I also remember Christmases where we had multiple gifts and other Christmases where we had very few. So for me money was the thing that a we kept very close to us. B it came and it went, right. But see you try to manage it as as well as you can. The unfortunate thing was I didn't have anyone to teach my parents taught me how to multiply.

Acquania Escarne 5:26

That's deep. And you know what's funny, I have a similar story where when I was a kid, raised by a single mom, my mom used to let me write checks for the lunch money that I would have to get to go to school. And that's how I learned how to what goes on a check. But then also, she would make me balanced the checkbook, she would say, every time you write a check, you need to deduct it and in the balance, so I know how much is in the account. And that was my introduction to knowing how much money you always have, and making sure you're not overspending. And it's sad, because now you rarely write checks is this thing like, you know, I brought it up to my son one day and he said, What are checks? I only know the card that you swipe. And um why would anyone write on a piece of paper and give it to someone else as currency. Like he said things like this to me. And so I've still tried to teach him What a check is, and why it can be valuable. But you have to teach differently, because so many people see the swipe action, and they just assume it's this endless pot of money. And I had to explain to him that there has to be money on the other side of the transaction. Otherwise, it doesn't go through.

But what resonated with me with what you just said was the last part where you said, teaching you how to multiply your money. So now that kind of leads me to my next question, you are a financial advisor. What inspired you to pursue that particular career field?

Ashaunda Davis 7:00

Yeah, absolutely. So I'm a registered investment advisor as well as a wealth advisor. And one of the main reasons why you'll hear me referenced my parents often, right, they are the crust of my story. They are the center of my story. And it was about 12 years ago, I just simply realized that, again, my parents did some phenomenal things they built their first home forced four bedrooms, three baths. And yet there were successes. And there were these inefficiencies right? There were times in the home, unfortunately, we either didn't have hot water, or the air conditioner went out. And we were hot in the house, right. And so that taught me to seek out help early. Because I realized that no one really came to help my father, manage money, right? Seek out ways to increase the the income that he was earning, but then also how do you invest as a beginner? Right, with a family of five? How do you do all of that. And so I said, if I sought out a financial advisor early, then I will have a higher success rate, right? Because each generation should be doing better than the previous generation, right. But I was met with working with three mainstream American financial advisors and investors. And they sent me out of their offices, each one basically saying, good luck. And the reason why I realized now didn't know then, was that here was a 27 year old, 29 year old, 32 year old, remember, I've met with three, right? And I wasn't their ideal client. I didn't have a six figure income. At that time. I didn't have a portfolio where grandma and granddad handed down a trust fund, but then to manage. So there wasn't very much that they thought they could do for me, by helping me to manage my money, and then scale my learning. So that when I caught up professionally and financially, I could execute certain financial tips and strategies that they would have obviously, you know, shared with other professionals. So there was this voice inside of me after that third one that said, Ashaunda , if you don't see it, be it. And so that's what got me into the thinking that there's definitely more to budgeting. It's important, but there's more to it. How do we multiply this? How do we use compound the compounding effect to our advantage? And so I just began on this journey of learning for myself, and then learning to impact my community. Because again, nobody was helping my father. No one knocked on the door of my brother's house, who was going to help if I did.

Acquania Escarne 9:56

I love that. That's such a powerful story. If you don't see it be it. I love it. I'm so glad you followed that vision. So one of the things that I found really interesting as we were chatting before this podcast interview, and in our discussion, you were very transparent and that you aspire to help men, right? And then married couples especially. And I wanted to ask you, you know, what, why do you have a preference for working with men? And how does that help the overall black family in building the men up first?

Did you know that over 75% of the financial advisors out here, primarily target again, your dentists, your doctors, and your athletes, who is targeting the hard working professional man who has maybe had five years in business, and has achieved certain levels of success, but may have not achieved as much as they would like, right, who's helping the engineer and the IT professional, who makes 75 100,000, they still have a family. So they still have high, you know, income and expenses, but who's helping them. And so again, my father was one I thought to myself, I'll never recall I'll never forget. Now always recall, thinking, if someone had helped him, I might have had seed capital to to launch my business. If someone had helped him, we might have been able to start a Legacy Fund for my nieces and nephews. Right. And so I realized that inadvertently, just by helping the kings in our community, by association, I'm going to be helping my queens. And even though I don't have any children yet, and, and but yet, I have nieces and nephews, I'll be helping those princesses and those princes in our community, to really have more of an opportunity than what you're not may have started out with.

I love that, yes, helping our kings is also helping our queens. That's beautiful. Thank you. So I want to ask you some tips because this podcast is also a learning platform, and we want to empower our listeners with tips that they can execute. So what are some of your best tips for someone starting on their financial journey?

Ashaunda Davis 12:19

Number one, on my encourage them want to get my book called Wealth Over Riches 10 Principles to Shift From Looking Rich to Building Wealth Habits. And that's where I want to start, right. First and foremost, I chose that title intentionally because I hope that I hope to really inspire your listeners to transition from accumulating consumer goods, name brand titles that don't have your last name associated with and instead, acquire relationships and resources that really feed and fuel your life, your lifestyle and your passion. And that's the difference between riches. Those are material items. Wealth, I have an acronym for really quickly, well stands for wisdom, E stands for emotional stability, your A stands for accumulating assets, right? L stands for loving relationships, T stands for true spirituality being in tune. And that h stands for healthy living and lifestyle.

Well, the point of what I'm saying, as far as the tips are concerned, is realize, once again, number one, have a mental shift around acquiring assets and relationships, right? You get around the right people, it helps to feel you, you'll never be out of you'll never run out of opportunities when you have the right relationships, right? If you have more assets going for you. those assets, once again, are compounding and they are actually accumulating. But then number two speak to three principles. Many of us don't really understand what the word principles mean. And if you don't mind, I want to take a moment. Principles mean that there are fundamental truths that serve as the foundation for a system of beliefs and behaviors, right. And when we realize that there are certain financial principles that we should all be atone to, then we can elevate our standard of living just by implementing those principles I want to share three with real quick.

The first one is realize that money is a tool that are resource designed to help you live life and help you live it more abundantly. But now there's a there's a balance to that, right. The second principle is live below your means though. And it might sound like an oxymoron. It's just saying acquire as much abundance as possible, but it doesn't mean that you have to spend it all and the third principle that might clients absolutely love is to build a financial floor that you cannot fall through. And we would have to take some time to really unpack that. But it looks like having a peace of mind fund. We don't want to invoke an emergency. So let's call it a peace of mind find it just sits over there should you need it, right. It also entails having maybe disability insurance, you can help with that. Right? Make sure that income is coming in no matter whether you are hurt, injured, or ill, right. And then also make sure that you have passive income that you are either starting, or that you have scaled to work for you. So again, those tips are shift your mindset from consumerism, to acquiring assets, and realize that principles can serve you in your financial journey.

Acquania Escarne 15:52

Absolutely love those. Those are some excellent tips. And what really resonated with me, you said a lot, so let's unpack it a little bit. But, um, definitely, most people don't even realize the importance of disability insurance because it's not pushed in the market, and visibly noticeable as much I believe. So I'm always empowering my clients to think about life insurance, and disability insurance, because you, most people in their lifetime may face a period of sickness or injury, making them unable to work. And Disability Insurance is what kicks in when you have it. So fill in that financial gap at that time. But the other thing you said that is so important, but people don't always focus on it is surrounding yourself around the right people. And it's so interesting that you said that because today I actually put out a verse, walk with the wise and become wise for a companion of fools suffers harm. That's proverbs 13:20. And that really just signifies when you surround yourself by the right people, they're going to help you level up. But they're going to encourage you to when you surround yourself by the wrong people, you might be in the same position they are for years and years to come. And that might hold you back a long time in your financial journey. Because you're not surrounding yourself around the right people to push you along to push you to that next level.

I love everything you said, because it's just so important to remember the basic things that you need to do. But having a financial floor that is strong enough to sustain you to hold you that peace of mind fund, I love that. Sometimes reframing how we refer to things can make a big difference in how we react when we need to respond. And also how we act, how we react and how we act. I absolutely love that. And I love that peace of mind fund. Yes. Everyone needs a peace of mind, especially when things may not go as you planned. So I love that. So um, and we did get a chance to talk about your book. So guys, check out her book Wealth Over Riches, it's a great read, I think it's helpful to read different perspectives on financial literacy, and also tips to help you build wealth. So I'm definitely gonna leave a link to that in the show notes. But I want you to kind of give a little bit more into what type of services that one can find if they come to us, just in case somebody wants to work with you. What do they need to do?

Ashaunda Davis 18:28

Yeah, absolutely. So first and foremost, realize that one of the things that makes me unique as a wealth advisor, registered investment advisor and a certified financial coach, okay, is that I understand and assist my clients with the distinctions between finances and a financial plan. Okay, and so when we sit down and have a financial strategy session, or discovery consultation, we first help our clients to complete a 360 degree lens, look at everything from money management, saving strategies, the most efficient and effective way to minimize and or eliminate your debt. But then also, how do we increase your credit score in the next six months by 100 to 200 points? Right. So that's all specific to advanced financial plan, I'm sorry, advanced personal finances. But on the other hand, and one of the things that I realize was there are a lot of people like Dave Ramsey teaching about, you know, money, baby steps, right. And then you have all these other gurus who are speaking to finances, but you have very few people who bring the two together. And so when I speak to financial planning now, this is where we began to introduce the concept of retirement planning. We introduced the concept of a 10 year investment strategy. We also look at using risk management or insurance products that are more elevated than the norm. Right?

I remember as a kid, being at my grandmother's house and the insurance man, the life insurance man coming and collecting her premium, right. But when she passed, she had probably five different policies, anywhere that anywhere from two to maybe 5,000 in face amount or death benefit. But who's there teaching us about concepts and strategies like the Rockefeller method? Who was there teaching us how to use permanent life insurance as a cornerstone vehicle to have access to liquidity, be able to take money from an attached free manner? Who is there helping us to show us how to position even life insurance inside of a trust when each child is born in your family to create legacy wealth? Who's, who's there teaching us those principles and strategies. And so those are the types of things that I do with my clients. For me, it's really being at the center of their financial lives, both now and 20 years from now, because life is dynamic and so should , your financial plan?

Acquania Escarne 21:17

Absolutely, life is dynamic. And so should your financial plan. Absolutely agree with all of that, as a life insurance producer, I do assess someone's financial situation, and we look at permanent and term life insurance options. But for those who can do it, permanent life insurance provides access to tax free dollars, enough money to create your own bank in some instances, and a great way to protect your family. So I love how you brought that up, because that's definitely something I use for my clients as well. And there is a book about the strategy that you alluded to, what would the Rockefellers Do, I can drop a link to that as well. But that's talks more about the leveraging of permanent life insurance to build access for families to create businesses to contribute to education, and buying homes and other assets that you can use, and get through the cash value that life insurance can provide. So that's, that's really, really good.

So the name of the podcast is called the Purpose of Money. So this is my signature question. I asked all my guests, what is your purpose for money?

Ashaunda Davis 22:29

So for me, money is a tool, right? It's a very important tool. And I value it, and I respect it okay. But it's a tool. It's no different than a tool. When I say this, please kind of understand the juxtaposition, right? There are various tools that we use to fix our vehicles, there are tools in our kitchens right to prepare our meals. But the interesting part about money and finances is that when you do give it a high level of intentionality, purpose, respect, then you can use it to be a blessing and not be a burden on someone. You can use it to create a life for yourself. You can use it to live life on your own terms. And that's what I that's what I use this tool for, right? I want to be able to make sure that I'm using these tools to also impact my nieces and my nephews, my community. Right. And so it's a powerful tool. And it's a tool. Nothing less, nothing more, but it's definitely meant to be respected.

Acquania Escarne 23:44

I love it. Miss Davis, this has been an awesome conversation. I'm so glad I had an opportunity to interview you for the Purpose of Money podcast. Before we depart I want you to please let my listeners know how can they find you give us your website, and any tags on social media where we can follow you.

Ashaunda Davis 24:05

So for your listeners who want to gain free content, they may want to have access to my online my online course or purchase my book, you can definitely go to my website. And that's ashaundadavis.com a s h a u n d a Davis.com on Facebook, you can find me at Ashaunda Davis. But on IG you can find me @OfficialAshaundaMDavis my social media manager did it that made so forgive me, it's long. But again, it's OfficialAshaundaMDavis but I do want to put this out there as well. For those the afluent minded black men, women and couples who are interested in dominating in all aspects of their financial plan. You know, I want them to go to you for life insurance, disability insurance, but there are other aspects that relate to your investment strategies that can be coupled with all of the solutions that you put in place. If that's you seek me out not only on my website but to schedule a 30 minute complimentary consultation, so that we can really unpack where you are and where you need to go in addition to where you're sending them. So I want to make sure to offer that to all of your listeners as well.

Acquania Escarne 25:16

Thank you so much this this is a blessing. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Guys. If you liked this episode, please remember to share it with those who need to hear it to leave a comment where you're listening and a great five star review. Until next time, keep building generational wealth.

Thank you for listening to the Purpose of Money podcast. For more resources and information, check out my website, the PurposeofMoney.com And while you're there, please sign up for our newsletter so you have the latest information on new episodes and blog posts. Until next time, keep creating freedom in your life today.

Transcribed by https://otter.ai