Weight Loss Made Simple

119. You Can Build Wealth and Enjoy Life: A Coffee Talk with Germaine Foley

• Dr. Stacy Heimburger

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In this Coffee Talk episode, Dr. Stacy sits down with Germaine Foley, Certified Life and Money Coach, to tackle a common (and rarely talked about) struggle: making good money but still feeling behind financially.

If traditional budgeting feels restrictive, overwhelming, or just not sustainable for you, this conversation will feel like a breath of fresh air ☕️

Germaine shares her signature approach to money—building wealth while still enjoying your life—and explains how she paid off over $200,000 in debt without giving up travel, fun, or the things she loved. Together, they dive into why extreme budgeting backfires for many women, how avoidance keeps us stuck, and the simple mindset shifts and habits that actually move the needle.

You’ll hear:

  • Why “just spend less” isn’t enough
  • How to stop avoiding your finances without getting overwhelmed
  • The powerful “pause before you pay” habit that saves thousands
  • How values-based spending creates both freedom and security
  • Why financial security is often a top value—but the most underfunded

This episode is especially for women who are smart, capable, successful… and quietly wondering why money still feels stressful.

✨ You really can build wealth and enjoy your life at the same time.


Connect with Germaine:


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This episode was produced by The Podcast Teacher: www.ThePodcastTeacher.com.

Before we jump in, I want to give you a little context for this conversation. Unfortunately, my voice is not any better this week. So we are going to listen to another coffee Talk from Kickstart 2026. Just a quick reminder, Kickstart 2026 is our January seasonal challenge. We will be running four of those this year. And inside every week, I have amazing guest coaches that come in and do these little coffee talks with me, so they add some context to our weekly focus. And this one that I want to share with you is with an amazing coach. Her name is Germaine Foley and she is a finance coach.

She's so amazing. She does a free training called how to Build Wealth Without Going On a Strict Budget. She has a podcast, Becoming the Wealthy youy, and she just gave us some really great tips. Again, January is all about our baseline. So if getting a better handle on your finances or saving money or just growing your wealth or just being just a little more aware, if any of those things are anywhere in your goals for 2026, I think you're going to get a lot out of our conversation. So, again, if you're thinking like, wow, I didn't realize Stacy did things like this. I do, and I don't want you to miss out. So make sure you stay tuned for all of our seasonal Challenge.

You'll have three more chances this year to jump into those. They are turning out to be so amazing. I'm so lucky that these guest coaches, like Germaine, have agreed to come in and just provide some exceptional value. So I really hope that you enjoy this coffee talk with Germaine.

So everybody, this is a wonderful coach, Germaine Foley, and she is going to be talking to us about how to get a little more financially savvy. Because I know that’s always been a goal of mine. I feel like I always have this really ambiguous idea of “save money” or “spend less,” but I don’t really know any good steps.

Last year, I did this “No Buy 25,” where I tried to just shut it down and not buy anything, but I still don’t know if it helped me save anything.

So I think if you could help us with that, that would be amazing.

Absolutely, Stacy. Thank you so much. I’m so excited to give you all the things.

So tell me about your DBWTH, because I think the way that I tried to do it—just don’t spend a thing—was one part, but then I really didn’t know how to implement it, and it just felt a little restrictive. So how can we DBWTH? Tell me about that.

Yeah. So my signature DBWTH framework stands for Build Wealth and Enjoy Life at the Same Time. I think that especially us women, we’ve been taught through society, through financial experts and gurus, that you need to buckle down, not spend anything, stop buying lattes, no shoes, no vacations, and wait until you’re retired to enjoy life.

That just never sat right with me, so I rebelled. I was like, “I’m living my life. I’ll figure this money thing out later.” But then there was something inside of me that said, “Why do you have to be constantly stressed about money—because you’re in debt, because you don’t have savings, because you’re overspending—just because you think the only way to get control is to sacrifice everything and live this boring, frugal life?”

So I decided I was going to figure out how to build wealth and enjoy life at the same time.

That’s exactly what I did. We paid off over $200,000 of debt, including student loans. We built a multiple six-figure net worth. And once I cracked the code, I thought, “Professional women who make good money do not like strict budgets, so I need to teach them what I know.” That’s what DBWTH is.

It’s figuring out what truly matters to you. Because honestly, the Target sales and the impulsive Instagram and Amazon purchases aren’t what actually matter to us—but we spend money on them anyway.

So I teach my clients how to identify their values. We spend money on those things without guilt, and then we build wealth with the rest. When you decide to do both, you free up cash so you can build wealth and enjoy life.

I love that. And I will say, I learned from my no-buy experiment that I really didn’t need anything. It wasn’t that bad. I also learned to tap into my community. If the kids needed a costume, I asked. We don’t do that enough, but it really does take a village. There were so many times I would have bought something new, and instead I just asked and someone already had it.

So I got the “spend less” part, but what do I do now? How do I know what to do if I have extra?

First, we figure out what’s important to you so you spend on those things. Then you set financial goals. Depending on your season of life, your goal might be paying off credit card debt, saving $10K–$30K in an emergency fund—what I like to call a “life happens fund”—or investing, or buying a property.

Once you hit one goal, you move to the next. It’s very individualized. Some people love quality clothes. Some love travel. Some love personal development. Then we look at where they are financially. Some need to save, some need to pay off debt, and some need to start investing.

So ask yourself: If I could set one financial goal this year, what would it be? That’s where you start.

I love that. So what about people who do the ostrich thing—money feels scary, so they just don’t look?

Absolutely. A lot of people avoid it. That’s what I did at first. But avoiding doesn’t make problems go away. You’re a physician—you know if a patient ignores a health issue, it usually gets worse.

Nine times out of ten, it’s not even as bad as we imagine. Once you see where you are, you have the power to decide what’s next. Avoiding only makes things worse, especially as we get closer to retirement.

I love that. I know a lot of women think, “I’m just bad with money.” What are some alternate thoughts people can borrow?

A common one is “I’m bad with money” or “my money is a mess.” We don’t want to jump straight to “I’m amazing with money.” Instead, try “I’m learning to get better with money” or “I’m figuring this out.”

If you’re listening to podcasts, reading books, or hiring a coach, the truth is—you are getting better with money. Eventually, you can believe “I’m good with money,” but it takes steps.

I love thought ladders. I like adding “yet”—“I’m not good with money yet.” Or turning it into a thought instead of an identity: “I think I’m bad with money.”

If someone could do just one thing to start the year right, what would you recommend?

This tip has saved me tens of thousands of dollars. I call it the “sleep on it” rule, or “pause before you pay.” If you see something impulsively, don’t buy it right away. You’re not telling yourself no—you’re just waiting.

If you still want it tomorrow, you can buy it then. This puts time between the urge and the action so your prefrontal cortex can take back control. Most of the time, you never go back for it.

I even teach this with food. If I wanted something from the doctor’s lounge, I’d wrap it up and plan it for later. Nine times out of ten, I didn’t eat it. Planning creates choice.

I love that. For someone who gets overwhelmed by spreadsheets, what’s a simple way to get organized?

Start with awareness. Get a piece of paper and your banking app. Look at one normal month—not December. Categorize spending: necessities, eating out, subscriptions, random purchases. Once you see it, you can’t unsee it.

Ask yourself honestly, “Do I want to keep spending this much?” If yes, great. If not, that’s your opportunity to change. No spreadsheets needed.

When I first did this, we were spending $1,500 a month on food with two toddlers. Once I saw it, I knew I didn’t want that. We made small changes and got it down to $900.

Are there general categories people should use?

Yes—subscriptions, utilities, insurance, phone and internet, clothing, groceries versus eating out, delivery apps, and kids’ activities. Looking doesn’t mean you have to change anything. It just gives you clarity.

If there’s one thing people should take away from this conversation, what would it be?

You can build wealth and enjoy life at the same time. So many women don’t believe this, and that belief keeps them avoiding their finances. Financial security is almost always a top value—but it’s usually the most underfunded.

I want women to be prepared. Divorce, illness, life happens. One of my friends says she’s “paying her old lady first” so she can afford the good diapers someday. No one else is going to look out for you like you can.

This has been so helpful. Where can people find you?

I release new episodes every Tuesday on my podcast, Becoming the Wealthy You. I have over 150 episodes. I also have a free training at germainefoley.com/wealthclass, and Stacy will link it below.

This has been incredibly helpful. Thank you so much for joining us for this coffee talk.

You’re welcome. Thank you for having me.


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Stacy Heimburger

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