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Taxes can be sexy, accounting, bookkeeping, even though you don't think so. All of that when you get into your numbers can be sexy when you are in control of it and you are telling your money where to go versus they're telling you where you can't go. So.
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Welcome to Shout Your Cause with Sally Hendrick, a digital magazine where you can get found, get heard, and get inspired with content that challenges us to be globally minded. Our focus is on raising awareness around social justice issues, cultural differences, and to bring you the people dedicating their lives to tackling challenging topics as their way of giving back. Let us be your advocate to make your voices heard around the world.
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Hey everybody, this is Sally Hendrick for Shout Your Cause. I'm so excited to have LaShonda Debr on today. Hey, LaShonda, how are you doing?
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Hey, hey,
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LaShonda happens to, uh, help me with my bookkeeping and accounting for my business, and I don't know what I would do without her anymore now that I'm so used to her handling all of that . So, welcome.
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Thank you. Thank you. Thanks for having me. It's good to be here.
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Tell me a little bit more about what you do and let's just get into the discussion.
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So, um, there are many things, but, um, overall I help women navigate their financial journey. So on the personal finance side, you know, helping them to be in the driver's seat of, um, their money and creating their own economy, monetizing their skillset, and on the business side is helping to eliminate and reduce, um, the overwhelm and stress that comes with managing business finances. Um, the various services that are covered under that, um, which is basically a C F O umbrella and, um, an advisor, you know, like a financial advisor is through tax preparation, tax planning, tax strategy services, um, accounting, bookkeeping, some bookkeeping. Um, and I'm also a, an insurance agent. So I help with the, um, them not outliving their money, um, from that aspect. Um, and just in cashflow management,
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So how did you get into doing all of this?
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Started out as tax preparation. I went into, um, owning a tax business. Um, I majored in accounting, business management and accounting. So I knew I always wanted to be in the money aspect, handling the money aspect of things. And, um, I had a tax business and then that branched off into the many other things or whatever my career. I also serve as a financial analyst, um, in my career. So my government career. Um, so it was just, um, just all things financed from that standpoint. Um, and basically, you know, I, I got into finance and I became a lover of numbers and all of that, um, because growing up it was always, um, it wasn't a money thing to me, but I was in a single income household. My father was around, but my mother basically managed and she did everything. So seeing, um, how she maneuvered, she was a hustler by nature.
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You know, she baked, she was the candy lady, um, she catered, she sold Tupperware, she did ceramics, you know, and all that. So I was able to see from that back end very young, like, oh, okay, I'm gonna have to make sure that, um, I make money to be able to do this, this, and that. Because of course then since she had to single handly handle everything, and there was some things as far as, um, I mean, we had what we needed, um, and I, I got plenty of my wants or whatever, but I still saw through her lens like being able to go to school where she wasn't able to pay for me to go to college or whatever, wasn't gonna be able to do that. So I knew I had to figure that part out. And then just in her handling different aspects of the household, I was like, oh, you know what, okay, regardless if I'm married or not, I'm gonna have to make sure that I'm able to handle my money, make money, and do whatever. And I did not want that to stop me from doing what I wanted to do. So earlier on my thing was, okay, I need to make money, I need to do this, do that, whatever, whatever. So that, that's been the driver for me all of my life. With that,
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Well, that's got to be a big why behind why you like to help women to navigate their finances. Now have you always done the help with personal finances as well, or is that something new that you've added to your, you know, to your offerings lately?
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No, actually I've always done that. I did it before, not always in the paid status. Like I would speak to w I've always spoken to women who were, um, uh, well spoken. I've always motivated and talked to women or whatever, um, and cheered them on who were, um, either newly divorced or, you know, or maybe they were in the backseat of their finances. Um, even if it was like a two person household, the husband may have been the one that was generating the money and making the money or whatever. So they weren't always hands on. So behind the scenes, like I was always the one like rooting them on like, girl, you need to do this, you need to do that. This, you need to make sure you are aware of this, this, that, or whatever. Because again, the back of my mind, I'm like, don't be letting nobody set you up now because you need to know, which I know that's not everybody's story, but again, so I've always, I always look at it from that aspect.
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Like, even if he is doing X, Y, Z, you need to make sure it's still over here. You're doing this, this and that, or whatever. You need to have you in account. You need to know this because even if it works for the household still, what if something happens to the husband? Which I mean, of course now we've seen that too. They may die, get sick or whatever, they could lose their jobs or whatever. So yes, so I've always, I always did that, but just at first it wasn't always, um, like I said, from me, I hadn't always monetized that in the beginning. I was just there. Like, um, when I went to church, I would talk to people, you know, about personal finances. I would do the workshop seminars or whatever. I would lead that effort. And then on the side with my girlfriends or whatever, I was always answering questions about that.
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So everything coming up, um, as I navigated my career journey, everything that I did, basically, I was like plugging it in, tying it to money finance or whatever, you know. And then like when my mother got ready to retire, I was like, oh, okay, we need to make sure we can put your money this place or that place, because you need to make sure you don't outlive your money. So that's how I got to become a life insurance agent, because I started talking to someone about rolling over her money, and then they were like, oh, well, are you interested in this? Or whatever, you know? And I had already had the tax business, so I was looking for something else to do off season with that, because I had a tax, um, office, I had a retail space that I was responsible for. So it was like, okay, then that's another revenue stream for me off season for taxes or whatever, or off the tax, um, peak time of taxes. So I did insurance.
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So it's kind of like you took what you learned from your mother, which she was doing anything and everything to hustle to make money. You learned that you didn't necessarily want to be doing that all the time. However, learning from her has also given you the skills to be able to know how to coach other people on what to do, what not to do, you know, which direction to take. So it sounds like coaching is something that just comes naturally to you.
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Yeah, mm-hmm. and always like trying to, uh, stay ahead of it, be proactive about certain things. Yeah. So
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Mm-hmm. , where now where can people find you before, and we're not gonna wrap up yet, but where can people find you? So that we know,
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Um, website wise is my name LaShonda deb brew.com. Facebook, your virtual cfo or either My name LaShonda Deb Brew, Instagram, the same thing. Instagram is actually Debr LaShonda, um, but some variation of my name, you can find me on social media and then, um, on at my website.
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Yeah. And we'll put all the links in the show notes as well.
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Mm-hmm. . So when it comes to why you're doing what you're doing, do you think that just all of these past experiences and what you've witnessed is why you, why you do that?
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Yeah, I'm sure it is. Um, and then along the way, you know, as I, um, went along on my journey and certain things that I became aware of and, um, and or lessons and experiences that I had, you know, I was like, oh, okay, now I need to do this, or now I'm aware of this, you know? So then that was something that, um, now I teach my children about or I talk to them about or whatever, as, and as well as speak to my clients about it, I'm able to help them with certain things. So it's a big reason as to yes, why I do what I, you know, what I do. Mm-hmm. having the multiple revenue streams. So when one is down or slow, then you have something else. You know, I mean, it's like a backup for the backup, for the backup, and something to pay for this over here. If you, if it's, this is not gonna work, okay, then we need to have something over here. So yeah, it all is looped and intertwined together for sure. Mm-hmm.
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, that's great. Well, are there any particular causes that you think you support as a result of what you do in your business?
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Well, it's two, um, just off the top of my head. Um, one definitely is for, um, abused women or those of domestic violence abuse, single mothers for sure. Like, um, it's, you know, those different ones along that path. And then also for adopted children or those in foster care, because there were a few of my husband's, um, nieces and nephews that we've helped along the way who were in foster care. So, you know, I have a heart definitely for those that are in foster care, because I mean, they're like, they're independent before they have to be independent at such a young age. And, um, if they're not adopted out, then they're basically on their own once they reach, you know, 16 or whatever, they age out of the system at that point. And so without any guidance, um, from there and without any contact with family members, then they're like trying to figure that out. So those are two causes that
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You would probably like my Season four podcast, if you wanna go back and listen to it there, I, it's all about foster care and adoption
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And Oh, wow.
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Okay. What's going on in the department of Children's Services? Mm-hmm. all over, all over the country.
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Oh yeah, for sure.
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Sure. Well, you know, I went to Washington DC um, back last year in September to document the process of what this group was doing to try to give families, you know, to have, uh, advocates for the parents, because whenever they're investigated by D Cs, they usually don't even know they're being investigated in the beginning. And then, um, and a case is brought up against them.
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Mm.
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They don't know which direction to take.
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Yeah. Oh, you talking about before they remove the children outta the home, is that what you Okay.
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Or or they will Yeah. Or even after they've removed them. Yeah. They're trying to create an advocacy for the parents to help them understand how to navigate the system. Okay. Because they don't have any information coming to them. They're just being, um, bamboozled basically by the department.
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Oh, wow, okay. Yeah,
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Because that's how the department gets their money is based on the number of heads of children.
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Oh, wow. Oh, wow. They're,
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Yeah. They'd like to be able to change that system, but they're trying to at least go at it by, uh, the law and by, and getting the parent advocate in there mm-hmm.
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before,
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You know, so people don't step in, into si situations that they don't Yes.
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Without knowing. Yeah. Yeah. That's wild.
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Yeah. I think I had six episodes, really interesting stuff.
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Mm-hmm.
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, all of them had different angles to them too, so it was good.
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Uh, very interesting. Were you familiar with the before that
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Or, um, no, not until
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I knowledge
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About, not until I went on that trip. I went on that trip and I wrote that article, and then I published all the podcast episodes.
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Oh, okay. Yeah. There's a lot that goes on behind, excuse me, behind the scenes with that. Mm-hmm. Mm-hmm. .
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Well, is there anything else you'd like to share with the audience before we go?
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Um, no. Um, not nothing off the top of my head, but just, um, from the business aspect for women, um, and them being in the driver's seat of their money, because I deal with a lot of the startup entrepreneurs are those that are still maybe revenue-wise still in the startup phase, who are apprehensive about being hands-on with, um, their finances or whatever. And so I just want to, you know, um, encourage them, encourage everyone to, you know, be hands on. Even if you're not the one to do it, you have, you should be the one that's leading it. So, you know, taxes can be sexy, accounting, bookkeeping, even though you don't think so. All of that when you get into your numbers can be sexy when you are in control of it and you are telling your money where to go versus it telling you where you can't go. So,
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You know. Amen.
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Wanna say, do that , do that. Love it.
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Love it. Well, if anybody needs an accounting, bookkeeping, uh, tax strategy, life insurance, personal finance person, just reach out to LaShonda Debre. Yes.
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Yes. You're here. Yes.
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Thank you for listening today. My name is Sally Hendrick. Be sure to visit our website for show notes and more information on how you can inspire others. If you would like to contribute content to our magazine, please apply on our website shoutyourcause.com.
