Restore, Reflect, Experiment: A Guide to Managing Major Life Changes

Shannon Schottler [00:00:00]:

 

There comes a point where we gotta get out of the notebook and we've gotta get into action a little bit.

 

 

 

Joanna Ehresman [00:00:06]:

 

Yes.

 

 

 

Shannon Schottler [00:00:06]:

 

And I think what underscores all of that is restoration. Always. All the time. I'm a huge proponent. Like, how are we making sure that we're taking impeccable care of ourselves and that we're coming into this transition work of letting go, reflecting, experimenting with a full tank of gas? It's really hard to get a car moving again if it doesn't have any gas.

 

 

 

Leah Alter [00:00:34]:

 

Hi there. Thanks for joining us. I'm Joanna Erisman. And I'm Leah Alter. And this is Women's Share, a celebration of women in financial services. Before we get started, we'd like to thank Catchlight, our presenting sponsor of Women's Share. Catchlight helps firms save time and grow their assets by predicting which leads will most likely convert and suggest content and ways to engage them. Learn more at catchlight.ai/womenshare.

 

 

 

Leah Alter [00:01:01]:

 

That's catchlight.ai/womenshare.

 

 

 

Joanna Ehresman [00:01:06]:

 

And today, we are joined by Shannon Schottler, a professional coach specializing in life and career transitions. She says, think about those messy middle seasons of life where you're wanting something different but may not be sure what it is or how to take steps forward. She's passionate about creating sacred spaces for folks to restore, reflect, and experiment. When Shannon is not coaching, she is the host of the Messy Mucky Biddle and Workplace Hugs podcasts. This is an extra special personal thrill for me to get to connect with Shannon on here right here on Women's Share. Shannon and I met well, met virtually, I guess, in 2020 when we were part of a group coaching container led by the amazing Amy Young. To say that time was transformative for us both, both professionally and personally, is definitely an understatement. And in addition to being a wonderful friend and support, Shannon has also coached me during my transition into entrepreneurship.

 

 

 

Joanna Ehresman [00:02:18]:

 

And I'm just so forever grateful for the guidance and care and love that she has provided me. I'm just so excited to get to share her with all of you. Thank you so much for coming on the podcast today, Shannon. Welcome to Women's Share.

 

 

 

Shannon Schottler [00:02:33]:

 

Oh my goodness gracious. What a, I don't know. Warm intro. Can't

 

 

 

Joanna Ehresman [00:02:38]:

 

be that.

 

 

 

Joanna Ehresman [00:02:39]:

 

I'll try. I'm so

 

 

 

Shannon Schottler [00:02:40]:

 

happy to be here and talk more about where transitions and, yeah, financial services intersect. There's a lot of overlap here.

 

 

 

Leah Alter [00:02:50]:

 

Yeah. Well and that's what we're excited to dig into. Like, you said we were chatting about this a little bit before we started recording. So I think especially in our industry, you know, advisors and their teams, they work with clients who are navigating the messy middle. So whether it's a career change, loss of a loved one, you know, promotion, any sort of big life transition or maybe not so big, I guess. Right? Just curious. How do you define the messy middle, and what are some signs that we could look for to know if we or someone we know might be in that space?

 

 

 

Shannon Schottler [00:03:23]:

 

Yeah. I love this question. Okay. And you guys are gonna get you're gonna be privy to a new metaphor I'm using for the first time ever on this podcast.

 

 

 

Joanna Ehresman [00:03:32]:

 

Whoop whoop.

 

 

 

Shannon Schottler [00:03:33]:

 

Yes. So on the whole, how do I define messy middles? They're periods of our lives where something is ending, but we're not sure necessarily what the new beginning entails just yet. So even if we look at the examples you mentioned, somebody who wants to make a career change, something is ending. They don't like their corporate career anymore. They're wanting to make a shift. The loss of a loved one, something is ending. A promotion, something is ending. That one might be more of a fun flavor, so to speak, the birth of a child, a fun flavor.

 

 

 

Shannon Schottler [00:04:05]:

 

So that's, like, high level. Something is ending, but we're still figuring out what the new beginning is. I can now, thanks to your podcast who inspired me with this new metaphor, break it into 3 flavors. I think there's 3 flavors that people might come into transition with. We're going to do ice cream flavors. You guys, are you ready for this?

 

 

 

Joanna Ehresman [00:04:25]:

 

Yes. Who doesn't love ice

 

 

 

Leah Alter [00:04:26]:

 

cream? Speak of

 

 

 

Shannon Schottler [00:04:27]:

 

my language. Yes. Great. Great. Great. So the first flavor is is rocky road. Like, that is an ice cream flavor of transition. So these are the people if I'm thinking about, you know, financial services professionals, these are the people who are coming into you feeling really disenchanted and disengaged with life right now.

 

 

 

Shannon Schottler [00:04:45]:

 

They're on a rocky road. Maybe they're experiencing things like death, divorce, a job loss, or an illness. Right? They didn't want or plan for any of those things to happen per se, and they may be in a little bit of denial about the mushroom or not the mushrooms, the marshmallows. I hope there's not mushrooms in there, but the

 

 

 

Joanna Ehresman [00:05:07]:

 

magic one. The magic one?

 

 

 

Shannon Schottler [00:05:09]:

 

Yeah, the marshmallows, the nuts, but, like, whatever is on their rocky road right now. And I think what's true with this flavor, as I think back to clients I've coached, is that they're struggling to, like, let go and move on from the place that they've been. I also wanna offer some feelings that these people might be coming in into time with you with. They're feeling overwhelmed. They're feeling super low in energy. They're feeling lonely. They're feeling defensive. Maybe even like victimized.

 

 

 

Shannon Schottler [00:05:42]:

 

Cynical about what's happening in their life. So that's one flavor that maybe some of us are more familiar with. Another flavor is Neapolitan ice cream. Right? It's, like, it's basic. You know? There's no inclusions in Neapolitan ice cream, but there's, like, 3 different flavors going on within this one flavor. So that is the person that is trying to, make some quiet time and reflect a little bit. They're trying to turn inward and take stock of their life because, like, right now, they don't they can't tell what flavors they're working with because it's, like, Neapolitan ice cream that's, like, all mixed up. And so they're needing to sort for, like, what's chocolate, what's vanilla, and what's strawberry in my life right now? They might also be searching for a sense of meaning.

 

 

 

Shannon Schottler [00:06:26]:

 

Again, because they've got, like, so much flavor happening within one flavor, they're like, I don't know. Like, what is the meaning in all of this? I think of this as the people planning for retirement, maybe. You know, they're like, wow, I just got a lot of identity in my work. And now it's like, that was my chocolate flavor. And now I'm like, I don't know. Am I moving towards strawberry, vanilla what's going on here? That might be the empty nesters. And that might be the midlife crisis people, you know, who who are, like, I've been doing this thing for 5, 10, 15, 20 years. I'm not done with my career yet, but I don't wanna do it anymore.

 

 

 

Shannon Schottler [00:07:03]:

 

This flavor isn't tasting good anymore. So how might people

 

 

 

Joanna Ehresman [00:07:07]:

 

Can relate.

 

 

 

Shannon Schottler [00:07:09]:

 

Yeah. For sure. For sure. So how might people be feeling if they're, like, working with the Neapolitan ice cream? They're feeling, like, mood swings. That's the other reason why I picked Neapolitan for this metaphor. It's, like, some days, they're strawberries. Some days, they're chocolate. Some days, they're vanilla.

 

 

 

Shannon Schottler [00:07:25]:

 

And they're those mood swings are often the result of, like, maybe some loneliness, some grief about what they're moving through and the feeling of, like, a loss of what's been familiar. I was just talking with the client literally right before I jumped on of, like, he's considering leaving a profession he's been part of for 18 years. Like, yeah. That's gonna be a loss of the familiar, but also, like, a little bit exciting in the sense of a rebirth of purpose.

 

 

 

Leah Alter [00:07:54]:

 

Right.

 

 

 

Shannon Schottler [00:07:54]:

 

So that's flavor number 2. Flavor number 3 is, like, a zingy lemon sorbet.

 

 

 

Joanna Ehresman [00:08:03]:

 

Oh.

 

 

 

Leah Alter [00:08:03]:

 

I was thinking you were going vanilla. I'm like, what's vanilla? Zingy sorbet.

 

 

 

Shannon Schottler [00:08:07]:

 

No. No. We're going, like, z, zingy lemon sorbet. So this is, like, the energized flavor of transition. I think of this as the people who are experiencing, like, a promotion or an impending birth of a child or an impending, like, marriage or something that's, on the whole, like, usually something people look forward to or excited about. They're thinking about, like, how am I going to enact this new identity? I've never maybe been these things before or it's been a long time since I've been these things, a boss, a mom, a leader, whatever it is. And so they're in a space of wanting to explore and experiment within their newer shifting identities. So what are the feelings that those kinds of folks are coming into your office with? They're restless, they're optimistic, they're eager, they're wanting to, like, learn and connect with all the people.

 

 

 

Shannon Schottler [00:08:57]:

 

Those are our zingy lemon sorbet transitioning folks. So we got go ahead.

 

 

 

Joanna Ehresman [00:09:02]:

 

I was gonna say, do you think that a little there's a little bit of that, like, imposter syndrome that shows up during lemon zingy?

 

 

 

Joanna Ehresman [00:09:12]:

 

Why Oh, yeah.

 

 

 

Shannon Schottler [00:09:13]:

 

Moving into these

 

 

 

Joanna Ehresman [00:09:17]:

 

moving into these kind of new things as like you said, a boss, a leader, a mother, a wife, whatever it is. Right? Of, like, questioning, like, can I really do this? Am I really prepared for it?

 

 

 

Shannon Schottler [00:09:31]:

 

Yeah. That flavor punches you in the palate a little bit. Right? Yeah. It's like, Oof. Like, wait a second. Wasn't expecting that sometimes. So, of course, imposter syndrome can come with that territory and that's where some of the work is, like, how do we support a client? For me, I would say 90% of the coaching plans I have with folks are they're wanting clarity and they're wanting confidence.

 

 

 

Joanna Ehresman [00:09:54]:

 

Yes.

 

 

 

Shannon Schottler [00:09:54]:

 

Confidence said differently is, like, I feel like an imposter. So when we're working on confidence or somebody saying, I wish I felt more confident in this new identity that I'm taking on, For me, I break that down into how do we support you in shifting your relationship to experiments? Because you're gonna be in, like, a beginner mind again a little bit. So how do we support you in, like, it's okay to be beginning and trying and experimenting with things again because you're not an expert anymore. And self compassion. How are we growing their muscle to practice being gentle with themselves? Because if we keep trying stuff, but we I didn't ask you guys if I get square on this podcast. But if we keep beating the crap out of ourselves Right. Then we're not gonna wanna keep experimenting. So it's like it creates a self fulfilling process prophecy where we never do build our confidence because we're afraid to experiment or we're being really hard on ourselves every time we try to.

 

 

 

Shannon Schottler [00:10:51]:

 

Mhmm. So

 

 

 

Joanna Ehresman [00:10:52]:

 

Yeah. Well, and you touched on this a little bit, but, like, how how do you recommend we support ourselves when we recognize like, oh, this is a transition's a comin'. But also how do we support other people who are facing their own transitions? Kind of a 2 parter on that.

 

 

 

Shannon Schottler [00:11:13]:

 

Yeah, yeah. If I had to boil it down to 4 pieces, I think 3 of which are in my bio, let go, restore, reflect, experiment. So depending on what flavor you're in, like my rock my Rocky Rotors, their work is letting go. So how do you support yourself through that? You you take inventory. You ask yourself that question, like, what am I holding to that it wants to be released in my life right now? Like, am I really holding tight to my past corporate identity or to my past identity as a mom if I'm becoming an empty nester? Can we begin to find some ease, some softness, some, like, less grippiness in that one? For my my Neapolitan flavors, in that sifting and sorting, like, what's chocolate, vanilla, strawberry, it's more of that reflection space. So can I make conscious time? And if we're supporting people in that, can we be encouraging them to take that time? Thinking of married couples, I'm thinking of honestly terrible, I'm gonna go here already. Terrible financial advisors that I've heard about from my clients who the financial advisors are almost like have such a state of fear within their own nervous systems that even if the client is, like, ready to go and step in, they are terrified to, like, give them the green light almost.

 

 

 

Joanna Ehresman [00:12:39]:

 

Mhmm.

 

 

 

Shannon Schottler [00:12:40]:

 

Or terrified to even, like, consider the possibility with them almost. And it can really turn some people off. You know?

 

 

 

Joanna Ehresman [00:12:46]:

 

Right.

 

 

 

Shannon Schottler [00:12:47]:

 

So can we can we still be an encouragement of saying, like, hey, like, maybe there's some things you wanna think about here without killing the dream altogether. And then the experimentation piece that I talked about, especially for my zingy lemon sorbet people. Like we gotta be in that mindset of I'm a beginner again. I'm doing this thing that I've potentially never done before, or it's been a long time. I am going to have to try some stuff and see what works. I'm thinking of initial consult that I had this morning where, like, that was the space that that woman was in. There comes a point where we gotta get out of the notebook and we've gotta get into action a little bit. And I think what underscores all of that is restoration.

 

 

 

Shannon Schottler [00:13:29]:

 

Always. All the time. I'm a huge proponent. Like, how are we making sure that we're taking impeccable care of ourselves and that we're coming into this transition work of letting go, reflecting, experimenting with a full tank of gas? It's really hard to get a car moving again if it doesn't have any gas. So how are you doing a great job of keeping gas in your tank? Sorry. I'll pause there.

 

 

 

Joanna Ehresman [00:13:48]:

 

You're blowing my mind, Shannon. Amazing.

 

 

 

Leah Alter [00:13:50]:

 

Well and and actually the last part of, talk experimentation. Leah, I have heard like, you were such a great coach to me about that or giving me advice around what came to mind is you'd say you can always make a different choice. Right? Like, when I was like, oh, we're starting this podcast and, you know, and, like, it's just so change averse or, you know, just in this very in my head.

 

 

 

Joanna Ehresman [00:14:15]:

 

Well, and I think too, like, when you can recognize that somebody is both excited, but also questioning or isn't sure about what that next move is, but you can tell that there's like a little bit of lemon zest happening.

 

 

 

Joanna Ehresman [00:14:35]:

 

Yes! Yes!

 

 

 

Joanna Ehresman [00:14:36]:

 

It's like how can you hold space or create space for someone to be able to kinda work through it and talk through that. Right? So, like, when I went to Joanna initially with the idea for this podcast, she was like, oh, yes. But then there was a lot of, oh, but wait. You know? Yeah.

 

 

 

Joanna Ehresman [00:14:56]:

 

Yeah. And she had

 

 

 

Joanna Ehresman [00:14:57]:

 

to, like, work through that. And rather than maybe, like, here, let me list all the reasons why this is the best idea ever and you have to deal with me. I was like, okay. You know, take the time. Let's talk about it. Come back, you know. And when you give people permission to work through all of the things

 

 

 

Shannon Schottler [00:15:16]:

 

Yeah.

 

 

 

Joanna Ehresman [00:15:17]:

 

Then they find the answers themselves without feeling like they were led there.

 

 

 

Shannon Schottler [00:15:24]:

 

Totally. Like, let's give some spaciousness here because they're messy, you know, and, like, it's not gonna be perfect. I'm thinking of my daughter is really in a season of baking and I have a 9 year old, you guys. And it's it's, like, beautiful to watch her be in the messy middle of, like, learning how to follow a recipe and read instructions. Like, it's gonna be imperfect. And so can we be really mindful about surrounding ourselves or being the kind of person for someone who's going through mess that is okay with the messiness, that is okay with, like, Oops, honey, you put a tablespoon of baking soda in there. We only need a teaspoon. You know, it's, like, no big deal.

 

 

 

Shannon Schottler [00:16:04]:

 

Like, we'll figure it out. Can we surround ourselves with those kinds of people, and can we be those kinds of people for others?

 

 

 

Joanna Ehresman [00:16:11]:

 

Yes.

 

 

 

Shannon Schottler [00:16:12]:

 

That's why I'm so passionate about this work to begin with because I think our like, our whole world needs a little bit more of these, frankly, like, life skills. Like, they're life skills to know how to let go, reflect, restore, experiment. And the more we have that, the more we can all be a little bit more compassionate with each other in the mess.

 

 

 

Joanna Ehresman [00:16:32]:

 

Yes. Yes. Yeah. Because nobody gets to avoid the messes. No one. Not. Yeah. Not one of us.

 

 

 

Leah Alter [00:16:40]:

 

Haven't thought we were for you. Yes. Yes. Yes. Before we dive deeper with you, Shannon, I wanna give a quick update from Catch Lite, our presenting sponsor. So for our listeners who like podcasts that help with your professional goals, which is I'm I'm assuming all of you, you're listening to this, we've got a recommendation for you. Catchlight hosts a podcast called Grow Organically, where Dan Gilmartin, the head of marketing at Catchlight, hosts candid discussions with wealth management and financial pros.

 

 

 

Joanna Ehresman [00:17:09]:

 

Each episode breaks down growth factors at wealth management firms and how organizations can continue to be forward thinkers in today's competitive landscape. Add Grow Organically to your podcast rotation, and you can learn more about that at catchlight.ai/womenshare. That's catchlight.ai/womenshare.

 

 

 

Leah Alter [00:17:33]:

 

Okay. So, Shannon, let's talk about the intersection of money and life transitions. And you touched a little bit about, like, the role of a financial adviser, but what are some of the opportunities or the pitfalls that you've seen with your clients?

 

 

 

Shannon Schottler [00:17:46]:

 

Yeah. So there's 3 that stick out to me. The first one is letting like generic financial fears lead the way. So oftentimes I'll have clients come in and be playing to, like, the invisible audience. I think there can also be, like, the invisible audience of financial fears. Like, they're like, oh, but what if I don't find the job by November? What if I don't? So what is the antidote for that one? It's facts. Like, facts can be a part of your transition plan. Right? Like, make the budget.

 

 

 

Shannon Schottler [00:18:23]:

 

What is your true bare bones budget? What can you truly cut? What do you really need? I'm gonna put a stake in the ground and say after 8 years of doing this work with clients, I would say on average, I'm finding the number to be about 35%. People can cut about 35% of their expenditures, which is, I think, a higher number than anyone thinks. Right? Mhmm. Yeah. But we don't know that until we actually start dealing with facts instead of just, like, allowing our fears to lead the way and keeping us with those golden handcuffs on all the time.

 

 

 

Joanna Ehresman [00:18:55]:

 

I I mean and I can speak from my own experience. Right? Like this that was a big part of my transition. Big part of it. And it's something that I have to go back and do regularly, which is look at my budget, look at where I'm spending money, make sure it's still all aligned and working, but it that practice is I go, oh, okay. I'm good. I'm fine. Continue. But be just being able to, like, know that it's okay rather than I think it's okay is such a huge relief in being able to, like, just continue on.

 

 

 

Shannon Schottler [00:19:38]:

 

Yes. That's a common question I'll ask clients of, what information would be useful for you to make this decision, you know, like whatever decision they're weighing between 2 jobs or whatnot. And oftentimes a big question is should I stay or should I go with the job that I'm in if it is a career transition they're thinking about And it's when I asked that question, what information would be useful? It's like, well, how much money do I really need? You know? So it's like, just just sit down. It doesn't have to take forever, and it doesn't have to be perfect. Like, you can change it. You can modify it. I'm remembering my own transition 8 years ago now. We cut everything, you know, and then we realized, like, oh, that we went, like, scorched earth just in case.

 

 

 

Shannon Schottler [00:20:20]:

 

And then we slowly added things back, you know, Like, the first thing

 

 

 

Leah Alter [00:20:24]:

 

have electricity again. Yeah.

 

 

 

Joanna Ehresman [00:20:26]:

 

Yeah. Exactly what you'd see

 

 

 

Leah Alter [00:20:28]:

 

this summer, y'all.

 

 

 

Joanna Ehresman [00:20:29]:

 

Exactly. But it's like when

 

 

 

Shannon Schottler [00:20:31]:

 

you really start to think about it, it's like, oh, wow. They're really of course, this isn't true for everyone, but for Yeah. A lot of people I work with, there are there is wiggle room. There are truly, like

 

 

 

Joanna Ehresman [00:20:42]:

 

Yeah.

 

 

 

Shannon Schottler [00:20:42]:

 

Fixed versus variable expenses that we can play with here a little bit to make things possible that might otherwise seem impossible.

 

 

 

Leah Alter [00:20:49]:

 

One other comment that and I know you have 2 other points you can get to on this, but you're I really like that question that you you prompt your clients with of, like, what information would be helpful? Because what I find, I just keep cycling in the worry. And that's, like and then the way to kinda stop that is to ask yourself, well, what do I what am I doing about this? Like, what would help me get out of this? So What do I need? Taken. Thank you.

 

 

 

Shannon Schottler [00:21:16]:

 

Yeah. Okay. So and the second one that I see a lot is thinking that this transition that you're moving through is gonna be your financial forever. So what is the antidote for that? It's like, okay, can we just make a plan for the right now? And I'm gonna give you guys a really, like, tender real life example for me. My dad passed away in 2023 when he started hospice 6 months before that. I remember sitting down with my husband and saying, like, I wanna spend as much time with my dad as possible, but I don't know what's gonna happen to my business, so on and so on and so forth. And I was so sure it was like, this is gonna be my financial forever if I cut back on my coaching hours this year. And realizing, like, wait a second.

 

 

 

Shannon Schottler [00:21:57]:

 

Let's just say hypothetically, I lose 50 k this year because I don't run group programs or something like that. That's just for right now. This isn't forever. Would I give up $50,000 to spend more time with my dad as he moves through transition? Hell, yes. So can I look at it as I'm not choosing to give up that income forever? I'm choosing to do it for 6 months, for a year. So and it's a trap that I see others fall into. Like, we we make it mean that we're never gonna make this kind of money again, blah blah blah blah blah blah. Like, what if that's not true? What if it was just for the next 6 months and then you can change your mind again? I'll pause there.

 

 

 

Joanna Ehresman [00:22:41]:

 

Yeah. No. I'm like,

 

 

 

Joanna Ehresman [00:22:43]:

 

we're best like, mhmm.

 

 

 

Shannon Schottler [00:22:45]:

 

Yeah. Yeah. So then the third one is what I call, like, the all or nothing mindset. So on the flip side, I will have these clients. I'm thinking of an individual I was talking to yesterday that they're, like, go big or go home. Like, I can't start until I'm finished. So these are the folks that are like, I wanna quit. I wanna quit my job and just, like, have a clean slate, You know? And and, again, like, what's the antidote for these folks? It's experimentation.

 

 

 

Shannon Schottler [00:23:16]:

 

Like, can we find a safe to fail way for you to test in to the new possible self without, I don't know, like, maybe totally taking a record ball to your life.

 

 

 

Joanna Ehresman [00:23:27]:

 

I was gonna have to say, burning your whole life down?

 

 

 

Shannon Schottler [00:23:30]:

 

Yeah. And and I can say this with, like, a degree of, I don't know, like, pointing the finger at myself because this was my method, and I didn't have to do it that way. You can if you want to. And again, like, let's not impede clients who are in a more risk willing place than we are. Sure. But when we're doing experiments, let's try to target for, like, what's a short term duration and limited scope? Those are the 2 things I encourage clients to focus on. Like, can we find a short term duration and limited scope? You can expand length and scope from there, but, you know, if you wanna start a business, can you find one client? Can you find one project? If you are thinking you wanna be a stay at home parent, like, okay, can you try it for, like, a week and see how it feels?

 

 

 

Joanna Ehresman [00:24:11]:

 

Yeah. Like,

 

 

 

Shannon Schottler [00:24:12]:

 

what is that, like, time?

 

 

 

Leah Alter [00:24:13]:

 

I know. Definitely change your mind. Okay. Yeah. Or, like,

 

 

 

Shannon Schottler [00:24:16]:

 

you're in your retirement years and Nate's my husband is so sure that he wants to be a golf pro. So where it's like, okay. Great. Like, can you shadow for a day and make sure that that's what you think you wanna do as an example? So those are the 3 that I see a lot.

 

 

 

Joanna Ehresman [00:24:30]:

 

Well, and I just in my own, like, experience experience, I I went to my financial adviser and said, okay. This is what I'm doing. At least this is what I'm planning on doing, and I was not sure what I would be met with. Yeah. I'm very fortunate that I have amazing financial adviser team, and they said, okay, and plotted it all out for me and said, we say go for it. Yes. And it was like, like, for real? I had this moment of, like, you're telling me that, like, I can do this thing where, like, I don't know if I'm gonna have any money coming in? And they were, like, you know, like, this is all the things that you've done to get yourself here so that you can do this. Now is the time to do this, and it just gave me this huge permission slip and a huge relief to maybe take that leap and take that chance.

 

 

 

Joanna Ehresman [00:25:37]:

 

So I think it's really important to find people in your life, both personally and professionally, that are gonna be the sounding boards that, you know, are gonna give you both the hard truth, but also encourage you to make the leap.

 

 

 

Shannon Schottler [00:25:57]:

 

Yes. I could not agree more. I am hopeful that more financial advisers are moving in that direction. Yeah. Maybe this you guys would know more on this than me. I'd be curious. I feel like, generally speaking, people who are already working with a financial adviser, like, they're doing a couple of things right, you know? Like, they got their heads screwed on straight maybe, you know, or they have a certain level of income if it's worthy of being advised upon. Like, I don't know.

 

 

 

Shannon Schottler [00:26:20]:

 

Maybe maybe they can, like, do a couple of things here. But the amount of times that I hear people come back to me and they're like, oh, man, my financial advisor scared the shit out of me. I can't do anything. Like, it's

 

 

 

Joanna Ehresman [00:26:32]:

 

Find a different advisor.

 

 

 

Joanna Ehresman [00:26:35]:

 

And go

 

 

 

Joanna Ehresman [00:26:36]:

 

find a new advisor.

 

 

 

Shannon Schottler [00:26:38]:

 

Yeah. It can be brutal. So I think you just be mindful. I get not every financial adviser's gonna go get a coaching certification, but be mindful of when you're in advice giving mode, I guess, versus when maybe it's more appropriate for you to put on a coaching hat and ask some curious questions to really understand, like, what's at stake for this person if they don't make a change? Like, sometimes people's oftentimes people's mental health is at stake if they don't make a change. And if you knew that as their advisor, then would you still be giving the advice that you are today?

 

 

 

Joanna Ehresman [00:27:11]:

 

Well, and I think we have so many conversations with women advisers, and it comes up a lot in that they do feel like a coach. They do feel like they are supporting their clients in a much more holistic way than a balance sheet or a bank statement.

 

 

 

Shannon Schottler [00:27:30]:

 

Beautiful.

 

 

 

Joanna Ehresman [00:27:32]:

 

So it is encouraging to see it going in that direction.

 

 

 

Shannon Schottler [00:27:38]:

 

Yeah. Yeah.

 

 

 

Joanna Ehresman [00:27:38]:

 

Yeah. So, Shannon, we ask every guest that comes on the show, what is the best career advice that you've received?

 

 

 

Shannon Schottler [00:27:46]:

 

This was advice I got just recently. Surround yourself with those focused on contributions, not accumulations. And I want us to think about this going both ways. Right? So, like, you wanna surround yourself with people who are focused on contributions because then hopefully they're gonna be, like, contributing to you, you know, like you're learning your growth. But also, like, can you be that kind of person as well? Like, how and who can you contribute to today so that we're creating a career culture of contributions and not just, like, stacking up the paychecks and the awards and the accolades all the time.

 

 

 

Joanna Ehresman [00:28:22]:

 

Oh. Yes.

 

 

 

Shannon Schottler [00:28:23]:

 

That sits with me a lot. I I think about that every day. Like, how can I contribute today versus, like, be in the energy of trying to accumulate today?

 

 

 

Joanna Ehresman [00:28:31]:

 

Mhmm. I

 

 

 

Leah Alter [00:28:32]:

 

love that. I'm actually I'm categorizing people in my head right now.

 

 

 

Joanna Ehresman [00:28:36]:

 

Sorry. Right? I feel like

 

 

 

Leah Alter [00:28:38]:

 

it's an interesting thing to think about. Yeah. And also reflecting on, like, oh, where do I fall? Wow. Okay. So if someone wants to learn more about your coaching programs, you in general, like, what's the best way for them to connect with you?

 

 

 

Shannon Schottler [00:28:54]:

 

Yeah. The best way is for sure on my website right now. They can also connect with me on LinkedIn at Shannon Schottler. My website's shannonschottler.com, my name. I'm quiet on my Instagram profile as of the time that we're recording this episode. We'll see if it's different in the fall. But but right now in the in the summertime when I'm recording this, I'm deep in farm mode.

 

 

 

Joanna Ehresman [00:29:19]:

 

I can say more on

 

 

 

Shannon Schottler [00:29:20]:

 

that later.

 

 

 

Joanna Ehresman [00:29:21]:

 

I will I will have links to everything. Your website, your LinkedIn, all of that will be in the show notes of the show so people can go

 

 

 

Leah Alter [00:29:29]:

 

and find you. Mhmm.

 

 

 

Joanna Ehresman [00:29:30]:

 

And, Shannon, so outside of, you know, your professional life outside the office, what is something that we can celebrate with you today?

 

 

 

Shannon Schottler [00:29:40]:

 

Yeah. Okay. So you guys, truth be told, I'm transitioning too. Right? Like, I'm always walking the walk right alongside my clients. I am currently in a process of integrating my identity of farmer back into my portfolio of identity. So I grew up on a farm in Wisconsin and with my dad's passing last year, like, that's just provided a lot of positive and hard of course, shakeups in all of his kids' lives as we try to figure out how do we keep this farm going. So it's been so life giving for me to be learning all these farming skills. Like I learned how to build fences.

 

 

 

Shannon Schottler [00:30:14]:

 

I learned how to drive a skid steer. I'm learning how to use a grease gun, how to like,

 

 

 

Joanna Ehresman [00:30:19]:

 

I don't even know what those words mean.

 

 

 

Shannon Schottler [00:30:21]:

 

I know. Right. And I didn't either. But for me, like life, it is so life giving to learn. Yeah. And I had my daughter in my lap, like, just last week, we were scraping pony manure. Who knew? Because you'd be so funny, guys. We're scraping pony manure, and she's sitting on my lap as I'm teaching her how to, like, drive the skid steer, and it was so meaningful.

 

 

 

Shannon Schottler [00:30:44]:

 

So that's that's what's, like, feeling really celebratory in my life of figuring out how to integrate. And that's also why I'm not on Instagram very much these days because I'm just, like,

 

 

 

Leah Alter [00:30:52]:

 

always loving in the skid steer thing.

 

 

 

Shannon Schottler [00:30:54]:

 

I'm in the skid steer, and I'm loving the farm life right now, especially in the gorgeous weather that we've been having. So

 

 

 

Joanna Ehresman [00:31:01]:

 

Yes. Love that. Well well, and

 

 

 

Leah Alter [00:31:03]:

 

talk about working, like, such a different part of your mind, body. Right? Like, it's just a whole different type of productivity, which has to be really gratifying. Right?

 

 

 

Shannon Schottler [00:31:13]:

 

It makes me a better coach too. The more time I spend out on nature makes a better coach. I used to spend half my time, like, creating content, and now I spend half my time at the far away. And and it turns out

 

 

 

Joanna Ehresman [00:31:24]:

 

up. The level up.

 

 

 

Shannon Schottler [00:31:25]:

 

It supports me just as much in my belching practice to be

 

 

 

Joanna Ehresman [00:31:28]:

 

Yeah.

 

 

 

Shannon Schottler [00:31:29]:

 

At the at the farm.

 

 

 

Leah Alter [00:31:30]:

 

And time to think of metaphors while you're working away.

 

 

 

Shannon Schottler [00:31:33]:

 

Oh my god. Yes. The amount of fence metaphors that my clients

 

 

 

Joanna Ehresman [00:31:37]:

 

have worked for over the last 6 months

 

 

 

Leah Alter [00:31:40]:

 

because For cultivation?

 

 

 

Shannon Schottler [00:31:42]:

 

Oh, I'm sorry.

 

 

 

Joanna Ehresman [00:31:42]:

 

Love it. No. Totally. Or manure.

 

 

 

Shannon Schottler [00:31:45]:

 

Or manure composting. We gotta compost that.

 

 

 

Joanna Ehresman [00:31:49]:

 

That's right. Amazing. Well, once again, we wanna give a little shout out to Catchlight for backing our mission here at Women's Share. Catchlight's platform can build data rich profiles and score your leads to help you increase efficiency and improve your conversions. Check them out at catchlight.ai/women

 

 

 

Leah Alter [00:32:13]:

 

share. Shannon, thank you for coming on the podcast. Like this was such a fun conversation. I, I just so enjoyed it and really just appreciate your perspective. And I, I am confident all of our listeners will as well.

 

 

 

Shannon Schottler [00:32:26]:

 

Wonderful to be here. Thanks for having me. Oh, great.

 

 

 

Leah Alter [00:32:29]:

 

Well, that's our show for today. If ours is a mission that you want to share in, subscribe to Women Share on your favorite platform. With that, I'm Joanna Erisman.

 

 

 

Joanna Ehresman [00:32:38]:

 

And I'm Leah Alter, and I love you, Shannon. And we'll catch you on the next episode of Women Share.