Sarah Carr has lived many lives in one. Betrothed at 14 to a much older man, she survived sexual abuse and the weight of purity culture, endured the loss of two brothers, and walked through the grief of divorce. Her story is undeniably tough—yet she radiates hope and positivity.

Today, as a single mother raising neurodiverse children who don’t fit neatly into the traditional school system, Sarah has also built a career that refuses to fit the mold—blending financial planning and financial therapy into a practice that honors healing, freedom, and possibility.

Her work as both a financial planner and a financial therapist is deeply personal. It’s about healing shame, rewriting money stories, and creating space for clients to see what’s possible. And it’s about crafting a life that allows her to be present for her children, to honor her own healing, and to define success on her own terms.

This episode isn’t just about career pivots or business strategies — it’s about resilience, about finding your voice after being silenced, and about choosing a path that honors your values and your freedom. Sarah’s journey is a powerful reminder that the “right way” is the way that works for you.

Episode Highlights

• Growing up in rural Pennsylvania as a pastor’s daughter and the heavy weight of purity culture
• Being betrothed at 14 to a 26-year-old youth pastor — and the miraculous intervention that ended it
• Carrying shame and trauma from abuse, and how years later therapy and courage helped her name it for what it was
• Losing both of her brothers (at different times) and walking through grief, while holding on for her sister, her parents, and her children
• Starting in financial services at 17, mentored by advisors who taught her both money skills and life skills
• Building her CFP® career against the odds — as a young woman in a male-dominated industry — and pushing through failure to pass the CFP® exam
• Choosing to walk away from traditional advisory roles when they conflicted with her values, and finding her way into financial therapy
• Navigating divorce, single parenting, and raising neurodiverse kids who don’t thrive in the traditional school system
• Creating a flexible, heart-centered practice that blends planning with therapy — giving clients clarity and confidence while honoring her own healing journey
• The wealth of relationships: finding her people, reclaiming community, and investing in connections that truly sustain life

In this uplifting and deeply personal episode of Her Life, Her Practice, Her Way, I sit down with my friend and fellow financial advisor, Kristin Stutz, to explore her remarkable journey from salon owner to cancer survivor to thriving financial planner. Kristin’s story is about resilience, reinvention, and the courage to design a life and career filled with meaning, connection, and joy. Her perspective on what truly matters—shaped by both triumphs and challenges—will inspire you to think differently about your work, your money, and your life.

Kristin’s career began in the beauty industry, where she built a successful salon business she loved—until a life-changing cancer diagnosis forced her to reimagine everything. After a long recovery, she channeled her love for people, numbers, and coaching into a new path: financial planning. Today, she serves salon, spa, and medical spa owners as a true thought partner, blending practical strategies with deep listening and empathy.

In our conversation, Kristin shares how surviving cancer reshaped her values, why she believes time—not money—is our most precious resource, and how she balances serving clients, growing a business, and being present for her family. We talk about perfectionism, the challenge of putting yourself out there, and the importance of being unapologetically yourself in an industry that can feel cutthroat.

Whether you’re navigating a career pivot, trying to balance business and life, or looking for a reminder that you do have this—Kristin’s warmth, wisdom, and humor will leave you feeling seen, encouraged, and ready to take the next step.

• From stylist to CFP®: Kristin’s unconventional career path and the skills she carried forward from the beauty industry.
• A life-changing diagnosis: How cancer shifted her priorities and her approach to money, work, and life.
• The “you got this” mantra: Using self-belief to move through fear and uncertainty.
• Time as our most limited resource: Why clarity on what matters makes hard choices easier.
• Serving a niche you love: Why she focuses on salon, spa, and medical spa owners—and how speaking their language makes all the difference.
• Progress over perfection: Overcoming the trap of waiting until things are “just right” before putting your work into the world.
• Authenticity as a business advantage: Building a practice that reflects who you are, not who you think you “should” be.

Angela Dorsey went from reading Money magazine in her childhood bedroom to building a business (Dorsey Wealth Management) she loves—trusting her gut and taking one brave step at a time.

In this conversation, we talk about how she left a steady Human Resources corporate career in compensation to create a practice centered on purpose, intuition, and real connection. Angela shares how she defines success (hint: it’s not AUM), how she built her firm one client at a time, and why leaning into what feels good has helped her build a thriving practice for women—and for herself. We also talk about why more women aren’t entering this field, despite its flexibility and deep rewards, and how outdated sales models and misconceptions about what financial planning really is may be keeping them away.

We also talk about her three-step prospect process, how she balances life and business, and the surprising power of Sunday morning reflection.

Episode Highlights:

• Angela’s earliest money memories and lifelong pull toward personal finance
• Leaving corporate life behind and building her firm from scratch while raising kids
• The emotional depth of financial planning—and how it surprised her
• Why she believes more women aren’t entering this profession (and how we can change that)
• How she discovered her niche organically and rebranded her firm to reflect it
• Her three-step values-driven prospecting process
• Structuring her schedule with intentionality: surge meetings, light Fridays, and time off
• Why she defines success as peace of mind, not performance
• The role of reflection, journaling, and Sundays in her business and life

In this heartfelt and thoughtful episode of Her Life, Her Practice, Her Way, Tara sits down with Larissa Costello, founder of Protea Wealth Management, to explore the winding path that led her from South Africa to Australia to the U.S.—and from stay-at-home mom to passionate financial advisor. With warmth, honesty, and clarity, Larissa shares how her deeply human approach to advising is grounded in relationships, mindfulness, and lived experience.

What makes Larissa’s story shine is how fully she integrates her whole self into her work. Whether she’s connecting with clients through yoga, building a practice around the values of resilience and care, or attracting aligned clients through authentic marketing—Larissa shows us what it means to lead with integrity and heart. As a yoga teacher-in-training, she also brings mindfulness and presence into every client conversation—on and off the mat.

This episode is a must-listen for anyone who’s ever wondered if it’s too late to reinvent themselves—or whether they have to choose between a heart-centered life and a numbers-driven career. Larissa reminds us that you can have both.

🔑 Key Themes & Takeaways

• Reinvention is always possible: Larissa became a financial advisor after staying home with her kids for a decade.
• Authenticity attracts: She built her practice around who she is, and her clients are often reflections of that.
• Soft skills are technical skills: Larissa’s empathy, listening, and life experience are core to how she helps clients.
• Being good with money starts with identity: Changing behavior with money or anything else, starts with changing how we see ourselves.
• Balance over scale: She values showing up fully for her clients more than building a huge firm.
• Support matters: She’s grown with the help of masterminds, coaching, and a tight-knit network.

📌 Highlights

• Larissa’s solo backpacking journey at 22 that shaped (or highlights?) her openness and curiosity and love of people, travel and adventures
• How she fell into financial advising after googling “wealth management” one day
• Launching Protea Wealth Management and the powerful symbolism behind the South African protea flower
• Her “too hard basket” philosophy: break down what feels overwhelming into digestible steps
• Why she doesn’t jump on “one-size-fits-all” coaching frameworks and instead trusts her presence

In this inspiring and down-to-earth conversation, I talk with Linda Rogers, founder of Planning Within Reach, about building a practice — and a life — rooted in authenticity, intention, and impact. With her tagline “Plant, Grow, Harvest”, Linda beautifully weaves together her love of gardening, sustainability, and financial planning. We talk about how she got into this business and grown her firm organically, aligned her values with her work, and navigated seasons of change — all while staying grounded and true to herself.

Whether you’re dreaming of launching your own firm, craving more balance, or wondering how to serve the people you truly care about, this episode is full of practical wisdom and gentle encouragement.

Highlights from the Episode:

• Why Linda’s tagline “Plant, Grow, Harvest” isn’t just branding — it’s her life philosophy
• How gardening teaches patience, resilience, and how to enjoy the fruits of your labor
• Blending personal values with your niche — especially in ESG and impact investing
• Letting organic growth and referrals guide your business — no pressure, just trust
• How to be a calm, grounding force for clients in times of chaos
• Working on the business vs. in the business — and making time to do both
• Using podcasts, YouTube, and content to help ideal clients self-select in
• Raising kids, running a firm, and redefining success on your own terms

Linda’s story is such a beautiful reminder that we can build our practices in alignment with who we are, what we love, and how we want to serve. Like a garden, it takes intention and care — but the harvest is so worth it.

In this heartfelt and engaging episode, Tara sits down with Kathryn Kubiak-Rizzone, a former physical therapist turned financial planner and founder of About Time Financial Planning. Kathryn shares her inspiring journey from healthcare to financial advising, weaving in stories of motherhood, identity, intentionality, and purpose. Her thoughtful approach to financial planning is grounded in values, inclusion, and empowerment — helping clients align their financial lives with what matters most.

Kathryn’s evolution into financial planning wasn’t linear — but it was deeply intentional. You’ll hear how she navigated career change, COVID-era parenting, launching a practice, and growing a mission-driven business on her own terms.

📝 Topics Covered:

• Kathryn’s early career in physical therapy and what she carried into financial planning
• The link between physical and financial well-being
• Making a career pivot during the pandemic with three kids at home
• Building About Time Financial Planning with transparency, inclusion, and empowerment as guiding values
• Why there’s “no one best exercise — or best financial plan” for everyone
• Designing a practice that supports your life — not the other way around
• Creating intentional systems to grow a solo firm efficiently
• The power of being a “thought partner” instead of an expert on a pedestal
• Navigating motherhood, entrepreneurship, and identity as an LGBTQ+ family
• Working remotely, the power of mastermind groups, and referral networks without strings
• Recommendations for inclusive finance books and the importance of values-aligned money decisions

In this inspiring episode of Her Life, Her Practice, Her Way, host Tara Bansal sits down with Certified Financial Planner(TM) and coach Liz Hand, co-owner of Pleasant Wealth. Together, they explore how financial advising can be reshaped through intuition, creativity, and emotional intelligence—especially by women forging their own paths.

✨ Episode Highlights:

• Liz’s roots: Growing up Mennonite and entering her father’s practice
• Discovering purpose early: Why she knew in 8th grade that financial planning was her calling
• Balancing tradition with reinvention: Buying and evolving her family’s firm
• Imposter syndrome and math insecurity — and why she stayed in finance anyway
• Reimagining client engagement with group coaching and seasonal, nature-aligned programming
• Creating a role that suits her strengths as a relationship builder, not a number cruncher
• The power of intuition in life, leadership, and business decisions
• Her passion for helping women flourish financially—and why she thinks many leave the industry too soon
• How she balances two businesses, motherhood, and creative self-expression
• Why she stopped listening to podcasts (and what she reads instead)

💡 Favorite Takeaways:

• “Money is not competition.”
• “You find what you’re looking for—whether that’s community or cutthroat culture.”
• “Women need to stay in this industry. We need more creative, intuitive advisors.”
• “Coaching is about release, not efforting.”

This episode is packed with wisdom for any woman in financial services—or anyone looking to align their work with who they really are.

In this powerful premiere episode, host Tara Conti Bansal turns the mic on herself, sharing her deeply personal and professional journey. From chemical engineering to financial planning, divorce to healing, and entrepreneurship to coaching, Tara opens up about the winding path that shaped her—and why she believes female financial advisors are uniquely positioned to lead and serve in meaningful ways.

Interviewed by her trusted friend and fellow advisor Kristin Stutz, Tara reflects on the experiences that taught her empathy, resilience, and the importance of creating a life and practice that truly align with who you are.

💡 Highlights from the Episode:

• • Tara’s non-linear career path: engineering, consulting, life coaching, and financial advising
  • The impact of divorce and the healing power of solitude, therapy, and self-reflection
  • Why she believes female advisors are often uniquely skilled for the profession
  • The founding story of Main Street Financial Solutions and balancing career with motherhood
  • Tara’s personal shift from “being good at financial planning” to focusing on what lights her up—connecting, coaching, and helping others find clarity
  • How coaching helped her rediscover herself—and why she thinks every woman should have access to that kind of support
  • The mission behind the podcast: to build a community of authentic, empowered female advisors doing life and work their own way

This first episode sets the tone for a podcast that's honest, inspiring, and full of heart. Tara’s story is a reminder that there’s not one "right" way to build a career—or a life—and that listening to your own voice might just be the most powerful move of all.