Interview with Sandi Saksena
In this episode, we will uncover 3 keys:
- Financial Independence is Essential for Every Woman
- Believe in Yourself and Take Calculated Risks
- Cut the “Bungee Cord” and Let Go of Limiting Beliefs
Podcast Transcription
Episode 58: Women and Wealth: Legal Strategies to Secure Your Financial Future ~ Sandi Saksena
Intro
Odiva Vasell: (00:32)
Welcome, welcome, my fabulous fempreneurs! I am excited to have you here with me today as we talk with our next guest about all things finance. She is an expert in financial management, wealth management, and also insurance. She’s worked in the field, guys, and again, get your pencil and paper ready, but also have your mind wide open because she has international experience that she brings to the table for us, and we’re gonna dig deep and talk all things about you and your money. So, welcome, my guest today, Sandi Saksena! Welcome, welcome, Sandi.
Sandi Saksena: (01:20)
Thank you very much for having me! It’s a pleasure to be on your show.
Odiva Vasell: (01:24)
Yes, and the wheels are turning, and it’s like, “Where should I begin?” But I will begin with talking about women and the pitfalls that we commonly fall into. Now, I know you’re coming to us today live from Dubai, and that’s a whole other city and culture. I’ve been there, and I love the experience. A lot of money changes hands there, but let’s just talk in general about the pitfalls that women fall into with financial management. Tell me more about it.
Financial Independence is Essential for Every Woman
Sandi Saksena: (02:05)
Okay, so I’ve been in the business for the last 27 years. I believe you’ll be, I’ve dealt with all kinds of nationalities, personalities, and women from different walks of life, different ages, different stages in their life. And you know what? I’ve come to the conclusion that no matter which nationality, or as I said, age, stage, whatever, there are some things in common.
And when I approach women talking about personal financial planning, I’ll get these excuses, excuses, right?
“Money is too complicated for me to handle.”
“If I take risks, I lose everything.”
“I don’t know enough.”
“If I am very pushy, for example, in the situation of asking for a raise, or you know, re-negotiating my contract or whatever, it’s like if I’m too pushy, I won’t get what I want, and most probably I would lose my job.”
And the funniest one is, “If I do something, supposedly I lose it all. You know, I don’t want to take a risk.”
And then the final one was, “I’m going to wait for that knight in shining armor. It could be the fancy car over there. It is gonna come and sweep me off my feet, and you know, I’ll live in the lap of luxury. I won’t have to worry about anything; I’m just waiting for that.”
So that’s what I have to deal with over here. But, it is funny. But what I mean is, a lot of ladies later on feel bad, because obviously, they haven’t done much.
Now, the interesting thing that I’d like to share with the audience is, Dubai attracts—or we do attract—hundreds of people. Thousands of people come here wanting to make it big, wanting to succeed, wanting to earn a lot of money and whatever else. And we have over a hundred nationalities that are in the UAE. It’s a small place, but we have over a hundred nationalities.
So, we have women from all different parts of the world, different walks of life, from the very highly educated—you know, the university professors, and the doctors, and all those top people—to the people who are the waitresses, the maids. We have the whole spectrum. But everybody comes just with one objective, right? To make money, to have a better quality of life, to be able to buy the things that they want, perhaps buy things for their parents, or whatever it is, you know, educate yourself further.
But somehow, when they come here, they seem to get a little off track because of the incentives to spend money. Now, I believe you’ve been to the UAE, right?
Odiva Vasell: (05:10)
Yes.
Sandi Saksena: (05:11)
And I’m sure you must be totally in awe of all these wonderful places, where even if you are not deciding to spend any money, you do end up spending money, right?
Odiva Vasell: (05:22)
Oh yes, definitely!
Sandi Saksena: (05:24)
So those are the (inaudible), and because we have so many different nationalities, a lot of times women, I’m not too aware of what are the rights that they have in this country. What are the laws in this country? And how does it respect them in a positive or negative manner, especially when it comes to money?
So, we live in a very international atmosphere. Because whatever we do, as I said, you know, I do financial planning, all our planning, all the things that we do, all the products that we have, are mostly international products. So, if you leave the UAE after you started, for example, a retirement plan or an education plan for your child, or a life insurance plan which you’re paying premiums for, if you move out of the country, you are able to continue paying the premium so that your plan will continue, and your, for example, your insurance policy will remain valid.
Odiva Vasell: (06:23)
So, what I’m hearing you saying is planning is key. And that…
Sandi Saksena: (06:28)
Absolutely!
Odiva Vasell: (06:29)
…over all the generations and cultures and nationalities, one thing is very common among women, which is keeping your eyes wide shut when it comes to money. Like just working hard, putting your head down, doing what the cultural society has told you to do, and hoping for the best.
Sandi Saksena: (06:55)
Yeah, that’s the word—hope—and hope is one of the things that only leads to despair.
So, there’s one thing that I always talk about when I’m doing my presentations. It’s called, one is called your habits. You know, you’re on the habit of doing this, the habit of doing that, and the other one is your attitude. I call it habitude.
Odiva Vasell: (07:19)
Habitude, okay. Yeah!
Sandi Saksena: (07:22)
And in order for you to make a change in your habitude, you have to do whatever it is you have to do for a minimum of 21 days.
So, even if they’re not talking about money, if they’re talking about a diet, or if they’re talking about exercise, we’re talking about giving up smoking or whatever it is, you need those 21 days for your body and your mind to sort of say, “Okay, fine, I can do without it!”
Odiva Vasell: (07:47)
Okay, so I was saddened before, but now this is hopeful. Within 21 days, you can start to shift your mindset.
Sandi Saksena: (07:56)
Exactly!
Odiva Vasell: (07:57)
If you set that goal. Alright, tell us more. Where can we begin?
Sandi Saksena: (08:02)
Okay, and now the other thing is, I’ve realized this. I can give you the best possible presentation, and I can give you all the facts and figures, and I can show you statistics. Why should you do this? How will it help you? I can give you stories about it and whatever, and you’ll be very nice if you listen with a lot of interest as well, but you will never make a decision to commit.
Then, why is that? It goes back to—and I think this is common knowledge, especially amongst all of us in financial planning, etc.—the money messages that were recorded in our subconscious as you were growing up.
Odiva Vasell: (08:44)
Childhood, yes.
Sandi Saksena: (08:46)
Right. So now, if we become aware of that, can we change it? The answer is yes. Because we are in control of our lives. If we don’t want to control our lives, that’s another matter. But if we truly love ourselves—and I always say this—if you’re talking about money and finance, and if you truly love and, most importantly, respect yourself, you will be financially independent.
Odiva Vasell: (09:13)
Alright, financially independent. Everybody says they want it, but wanting something and making it happen are two very different things. Tell us a little bit about setting goals for ourselves.
Sandi Saksena: (09:25)
Yeah, okay. So, I found again—and I’m talking about myself—when we are asked to set goals just generally, you know, in a group or in some study group or whatever it is, we are all asked to cut out pictures and make a vision board and all of that.
Odiva Vasell: (09:47)
Masterminds.
Sandi Saksena: (09:50)
And we do it as an exercise. We do it as an exercise, which means nothing to us. Because we do it just because we’re supposed to do it. But have you taken ownership of it? And nine times out of ten, we haven’t.
So, I always tell women, I said, you know, I don’t know what kind of a lifestyle you want. I don’t know what kind of lifestyle you’re having now, because that’s something private too. But all I can say is this: if you love and value yourself, you will make every effort, whether you’re a working person or not, to pay yourself first.
Odiva Vasell: (10:27)
Pay yourself first.
Sandi Saksena: (10:30)
Let us assume, in this part of the world, that you’re not a working woman. Alright, you’re a housewife, and you’re doing a fabulous job of, you know, maintaining a beautiful home, being there for your children, taking care of all the things, while your husband has this job where he has to be away.
So, you may have sacrificed actually your career to be the mom, to be there. And I think that’s an amazing thing. There’s nothing more important in the world than motherhood. Right? And so, if you made that choice, it’s fine.
But you must always remember, if you’re getting an allowance from your husband to run the house, you know, take care of things, whatever, keep 10% of it. That’s all. Start with 10%. And then, keep it in a place where you cannot access it.
So, what does that mean? You should have your own bank account. Right?
Odiva Vasell: (11:30)
Okay.
Sandi Saksena: (11:31)
And when you stop doing the 10% thing, so it’s very simple—you first save, then you share, then you spend.
Odiva Vasell: (11:42)
Save, share, then spend. Okay.
Sandi Saksena: (11:48)
And if you’re a mom and you’re, you know, with your kids—whether they’re teenagers or whatever—think about this rule. If you instill this in them, remember, if they take it forward in life, it’s simple, straightforward, nothing complicated. You don’t require a dictionary. It’s pretty simple.
So, what do you do then? All women, at least in this part of the world—again, it is very important—if you are not a working person, it’s difficult to have your own bank account. So, if you are a housewife, then you will have to have a bank account that is sponsored by your husband.
Odiva Vasell: (12:29)
Okay, and how does that work in the UAE? Can you tell me if it is different there or in other countries with women having bank accounts? How…
Sandi Saksena: (12:37)
So, bank account, okay. So, over here, as I said, if you’re not a working person, it’s not necessary to have a bank account. However, if you’re a working person or if you’re an entrepreneur who’s got their own small little company—you could be, for example, a social media influencer or a person who just does, you know, events or something small where you’re the only person—but you have a license. You have to have a license, yeah, okay.
Then, it is mandatory for you to have a bank account, right? And so, all your earnings, your commission, whatever you’re getting, goes into that bank account. So, when we are recommending—when I’m recommending—financial planning, all I’m saying to them is, if you keep the principle, pay yourself first.
And let’s assume you don’t get a regular amount every month. Sometimes a huge amount comes, sometimes there’s a trickle of money coming in, whatever. So, you have an idea how much you have to spend for your house, rent, and living expenses, and you also have a little bit of discretionary income.
At the beginning of the month, if you start a systematic investment plan—which in our terms over here, it’s not even expensive, it’s $150 a month—that’s it, $150. Anybody can afford that. It’s one week in the mall.
Odiva Vasell: (14:04)
Say it again?
Sandi Saksena: (14:06)
And if you put that away and it starts to grow and it’s invested in something, then you don’t even feel the pinch. (Inaudible.) But a lot of people say, “You know, I’m going to be very disciplined. I’m going to deprive myself. I’m going to be very careful where I spend my money. I’m not going to do this.” At the end of two weeks, you’ll be a miserable woman.
Odiva Vasell: (14:24)
Yeah. Did you say something about one week in a mall? Or one week in a…
Sandi Saksena: (14:29)
Yeah, okay. So, I’ll tell you. I’m talking about the UAE, right? So, I go to a mall, I don’t buy anything. I say I don’t want to purchase any clothes, perfumes, supermarket items. I’m just going to the mall because I want a change. I will spend at least $150 because I’m gonna sit in a restaurant. I’m gonna have a snack, I’m gonna have a coffee, I’m going to drink water, and then I may be bored and I say, “Okay, I’ll go to some amusement park center.”
Everything’s in the mall, right? I spend another $150 there, and then I tell myself, “You know what? I deserve it!” Right?
And then, a lot of times, people have business meetings in a mall, and then you end up paying for Starbucks or Costa or, you know, any other coffee. That’s money going. Can’t you have a meeting somewhere else?
Odiva Vasell: (15:28)
Yeah. So, I like if you’re saying…
Sandi Saksena: (15:30)
If you are smart, you can, number one, choose a most reasonable place to meet, and you can also have a little bit of discipline in what you order. So, this constantly trying to tell yourself, “I justify that, you know, it’s only this time,” it’s only this time that this time becomes every time.
Odiva Vasell: (15:52)
Alright, so I understand what you’re saying. You know, it’s not overspending, and it’s not depriving yourself, ’cause a lot of people think that they are going to accomplish their wealth management goals by just depriving themselves consistently.
And that’s another way of keeping your eyes shut and not really seeing what’s coming in and what’s going out. So, if we have this system—very simple system that you said—a child could apply, it’s first the saving, then the sharing, then the spending.
And I can imagine that child growing up and reaching the point where they have to go to university, and they’ve done this system their whole life. So, the amounts get bigger and bigger, but they have an awareness of how money works. It’s kind of a safety net. It gives you kind of a security.
Okay, maybe some emergencies will come along. Maybe I don’t have enough to pay for my whole college fund, but I’m getting there step by step because I’m in this weekly, almost daily, process of managing my money at all times. Wow.
Sandi Saksena: (17:08)
Yeah. And I always tell women, managing money is not rocket science. It’s the most common-sense thing to do. And a lot of people say this, you know, “I’m not good in math.” You know, women say, “I’m not good in math,” you know, these things, you know, my (inaudible)… You know what?
I’ll take you to the mall, and there’s a sale on, and I guarantee you won’t even have to take out your calculator on your phone. You’ll know exactly how much 25% off means. Right?
Odiva Vasell: (17:43)
Interesting! You did cut out. Your sound cut out just a little bit there.
Sandi Saksena: (17:48)
Is it better now?
Odiva Vasell: (17:50)
Yeah, it’s working again. But I got the gist of it. The women are doing this in their head, but they think they don’t know math.
And I wanted to talk about the cookie jar syndrome, so to speak. We have seen, you know, generations of women all over the world who save money by putting it in that cookie jar for a rainy day. And then, someone or something else comes along and takes all of the cookie jars, you know.
There’s an emergency in the family, and then all of that goes away, and she hasn’t paid herself at all. She’s lived minimally, and now she’s back to zero. So, it’s great for the family member or person that needed that fund, but she’s not providing herself with financial security by doing it that way.
What do you have to say for her?
Sandi Saksena: (18:45)
So, yes, it’s nice to have an emergency fund, you know, that emergency safety net. But your safety net should be insurance. The other safety net should be a savings account. No hiding money under the mattress and in a jar.
Because the most important thing you have to remember is, the more difficult it is for you to take off the money, the more you save. And people, you have to learn how to say no.
Odiva Vasell: (19:23)
Yes, how hard is it for women to say no?
Sandi Saksena: (19:27)
Yes, you’re called all kinds of names. You’re called—I’m feeling—you’re called the B word. You’re called all of those things, you know, like you’re not caring for us.
Okay, I’m not caring. Fine. Will you care for me if I’m in trouble? Or will you give me an excuse and say, “You know what? You have it, and I don’t have it, so obviously, I can’t care for you.” That doesn’t make any sense at all.
So, my sincere advice to all women is, you have to take care of yourself first. Everybody else comes behind you—your spouse, your friends, your parents.
Odiva Vasell: (20:10)
Your spouse, your friends, your parents. Yeah.
Sandi Saksena: (20:13)
Okay, and this thing about living with so and so, and you know, everything… I’m sorry. You have to have some kind of legal arrangement.
Okay, no joint accounts. No “I will spend for those, and you will spend.” No understanding. Written, signed.
Odiva Vasell: (20:33)
That’s a big one, having it in writing, not playing around. Yeah, yeah. So, don’t stop trying to be so good and accepted and loving and all of that.
Okay, no. First, get all the stuff done. Then you can be loving and whatever else you want.
Odiva Vasell: (20:52)
Having boundaries.
Sandi Saksena: (20:54)
Totally.
Odiva Vasell: (20:56)
Yeah. That can be, I can imagine, very difficult for women to hear.
But let’s just take a breath into that, ladies. You need boundaries, or what happens if you don’t set boundaries for your family and friends who want to—maybe they don’t realize they’re doing it—but they can take advantage or manipulate you into spending for them.
What happens? Yeah.
Sandi Saksena: (21:24)
Absolutely. Can you hear me?
Odiva Vasell: (21:27)
Yeah, I hear you a lot better now.
Sandi Saksena: (21:28)
Okay, good. So, what I always say is this:
A lot of people think about, you know, the world is changing. What it was when I got married—by the way, I’m going to be married 50 years next year.
Odiva Vasell: (21:40)
Congratulations!
Sandi Saksena: (21:42)
Yes, my husband is so happy he can’t hear me. All I’m saying is this: we’re in a new world, we’re in a new generation, we are—things are moving very fast, and women must wake up to looking after themselves. And when I say looking after themselves, I mean to be financially independent—their own savings, their own investment, their own insurance, and more importantly, they must have proper legal documents. And please, if you’re a partner in a company, make sure that your partnership agreement is drawn up by a qualified lawyer. The internet is not a lawyer, right? People go to law school and spend years studying the law, so give them the, you know, the respect that is due to them because they know what they’re talking about.
Odiva Vasell: (22:39)
Okay.
Sandi Saksena: (22:40)
So, very important to have your partnership agreements. And please, even if you’re a partner with your husband in the company—okay, very important. Why? Because if something should happen to either of you—and I’m not talking divorce—if either of you passes away or either of you is incapacitated because of an illness or an accident, and you do not have that legal structure in place, you are going to be, excuse my language, “Up shit creek without a paddle.”
Odiva Vasell: (23:17)
Yeah.
Sandi Saksena: (23:19)
So, that’s one. The other thing that you must have is a will. Even if it is a one-pager, you must have a will. You must have assets, which could be joint or several, but then you have to make sure that, legally, if one partner is not there, the other partner has complete rights. So, when you’re doing financial planning, when you’re looking to see how to organize or reorganize yourself after listening to a wonderful conversation, the first thing you should do is contact a lawyer. Understand what is required. Educate yourself. If you have a husband who is a very confident person and you keep thinking, “But he’s taking care of everything.” Well, if he’s not around, what are you going to do? You cannot behave in an ignorant manner and then not know what to do because he could have made a lot of arrangements for you, but if you don’t know about it, you’re not aware of it, how is it going to help you? Your money and the legal side are all interconnected.
Odiva Vasell: (24:33)
Yeah, I’m glad you brought that part up about wills because that was one of the questions that I had. How important is it to have a will, even if it’s the most simplest of wills? Letting people know who you want to be taken care of and how you want even your simplest assets—the car, or just your household—how you want it to be run when you’re not there? And of course, relying on your partner to make sure that you are stated in that will because if not, you know who comes in and takes everything—the bank, the government. They divvy it up, and you can be left with nothing.
Sandi Saksena: (25:13)
Exactly, because if you—let’s face it—no matter which country you live in, you have to live by the laws of the country. If you’re an expatriate and you’re living in another country, you have to know the laws of the country where you’re living. Because as an expatriate, how does that impact you? How does it impact your financial welfare? Right? If you do not have a will—for example, in this part of the world—and your spouse passes away, or you, as the surviving partner, just don’t have a will, they don’t know which law is supposed to apply. They will apply Sharia Law. This is the Muslim law. Now, if you’re a Christian or a Hindu or a Buddhist or whatever, that may not apply to you, but that’s the law. So, if it’s the law, Sharia Law means that all the male members on your husband’s side of the family are entitled to a share of whatever he has, and you will just get a portion. That is the law.
Odiva Vasell: (26:25)
Wow, that’s a good example for women to wake up. If you don’t know what the law is at all, and you haven’t taken the time to just read and research—so what if you’re not good at math? You can read and research and find out what your rights are. If the person who you expect to take care of you for all of your life suddenly is no longer there, you know what you have to stand on and put things in place beforehand. Yeah.
Sandi Saksena: (26:54)
And the other thing that I’d like to— I know you may have some questions, but I think this is a very important point that I would like to bring out. The expatriates marrying in the UAE or getting divorced while living in the UAE—nightmare. I know personally of an Indian lady who married a guy from Spain. So, they had a civil marriage here, but he was very smart. He then got it registered at the Spanish embassy, therefore the laws of Spain applied. They were working together, bought a house together, and you know, she was contributing and everything was there. But then he decided to divorce her, and she couldn’t get a single penny of what she had invested in that house. Spanish law, blood.
Odiva Vasell: (27:47)
Wow! House, business, all of that, Fempreneurs, pay attention to what your rights are. And when I hear you speaking, I can hear women in the background, maybe in the back of their head, in denial saying, “Well, I have a very comfortable paycheck, and I have a very good savings. My husband has a good paycheck, he has good savings, so this kind of thing doesn’t really apply to me. I have enough.” And then I have other women—I can think of other women who are maybe living paycheck to paycheck. They have more service jobs which can go up and down, and they’re thinking, “Well, I don’t have enough to really make a financial plan. I’m not there yet. When I get a little bit more, then I’ll think about planning.” Tell me about the dangers of complacency on both sides of the spectrum.
Sandi Saksena: (28:44)
Okay, so let’s take those. Let’s say the lady is married, and her husband is a successful person either in a job or in the business that he runs. And so, she has this very— and a good example—she has a very cushy life, wonderful holidays, entertainment, joint bank account, taking out money, all of that, supplementary credit cards, cards, right? And then, not being aware of what is the actual financial situation. That’s one. Like, how many loans does my husband have? How many debts? Does he pay the credit card bill in full? Does he have any other outstandings? Has he taken money and an overdraft facility for his company? All different kinds of things, right?
And on the other hand, he could be very good at investments, and he has a lovely portfolio that’s generating a lot of income. And you are, of course, enjoying the benefits and the fruits of that. So, something happens to him. Let’s say he’s not even passed away, but he’s just incapacitated. Do you know anything about the insurance? Do you know anything about the investments? Can you handle the investments? He’s worked hard, he’s worked diligently, and he’s created this amount of wealth. What are you going to do with it? Just spend it? Or are you going to be able to generate income from that? You cannot do that if you don’t know.
Right? So, it is your responsibility to learn and understand. And these days, it’s not difficult. You can take courses online. You can read a lot about it. You can reach out to people and say, “Okay, I want to do, I want to understand how to buy stocks, I want to understand how to trade, I want to understand.” That’s all it takes. Instead of wasting your time doing something that is of no value, you have to take responsibility. If you also truly love and respect your husband, you will do it.
Odiva Vasell: (30:51)
Okay, I can imagine that being a difficult conversation though, if you got married on the premise that, “Okay, he’s doing well financially and he will take care of me.” But what about the woman that is also successful, and she has a good career and is making good money? Does she just need to throw caution to the wind and say, “I have enough. If something happens to him, I’ll just keep going”?
Sandi Saksena: (31:16)
Yeah, you know, when couples have got independent income sources, one could be doing a business, one could be working or whatever. It doesn’t matter, but they have independent sources. I always advise this: Yours, mine, and ours. Your investments and bank accounts, my investments and bank accounts, and ours. Okay, so we both contribute, and we’re taking—it’s not a burden on each one. We’re both contributing to this, what’s it called? Family.
Odiva Vasell: (31:55)
Fund, yeah.
Sandi Saksena: (31:56)
But we’re still maintaining our financial independence, not because we don’t trust each other, but it’s the wise thing to do.
Odiva Vasell: (32:05)
Right. Total transparency.
Sandi Saksena: (32:08)
Yeah, so for example, if you’re running businesses, and if everything is interconnected, right? And something happens, and there’s a court case against the business, you will be drawn in. Your account will be frozen as well, properties can be attached, but if it’s not in your name, if it is in my name and not my husband’s name, they cannot attach it because it doesn’t belong to him. What I’m saying is, you need to be smart.
Odiva Vasell: (32:37)
Yes. And I would say that transparency is very critical here. If this person, you know, and you’re in this relationship, and it’s love and all of that good stuff, you have to implore on them that you need to know what they’re doing as well as share what you’re doing.
Sandi Saksena: (32:56)
Exactly!
Odiva Vasell: (32:57)
As you said, things could get frozen. They could be building up debt, and you don’t know it. Or they could have a lot of wealth, and if something happens to them, you have no keys to that fund.
Sandi Saksena: (33:10)
Exactly!
Odiva Vasell: (33:11)
It’s gone. I see.
Sandi Saksena: (33:15)
So, I think if you’re a single woman, and you choose to remain single, it’s always your choice. Or perhaps you were married, and now you’re a single person. You are totally responsible for yourself. And, you know, the other statistic which is quite disturbing—and I don’t know whether it would apply to people, for example, in the US or in the western countries—is, but in this part of the world, it works like this. Generally, women outlive men, right? So, if you’re in the same age group, you will outlive your spouse if you’re married by at least seven to ten years. And if you are married to a person older than you, then that could be a longer time in widowhood—unless, of course, you decide to marry again.
The other thing that happens is, it is incumbent mostly on the wife to take a back seat when the babies come. And so, she loses out on her career opportunities, her seniority, and a lot of skills because she’s decided to take a back seat. The other thing that happens is, when parents grow old—and I’m not talking about the youth, I’m talking about this part of the world—when parents grow old, there are no such things as, you know, old people’s homes and things. So, it becomes incumbent on the daughter, sometimes mostly the female or the daughter-in-law, to look after the older work.
Odiva Vasell: (34:44)
Yeah.
Sandi Saksena: (34:45)
Right? And that could continue for years. So, psychologically, it’s not a good thing. She could suffer from depression, she doesn’t have enough time for herself, and she’s exhausted. Right? There are so many things that happen to her, but she still has to keep going. And the most important thing is, if she is a person who’s been generating income, that stops. How is she, if she’s wise enough while she was working, to let her money work for her?
Odiva Vasell: (35:16)
Wow.
Sandi Saksena: (35:17)
Through investing. Not in a bank account, because any money that is put in a bank is meant for the bank to lend to other people and make money, not for you to make money.
Odiva Vasell: (35:35)
Make your money work for you.
Sandi Saksena: (35:37)
So, the women need to understand, no matter what your age group, whether you’re a working person or not, you need to understand how you are going to remain financially independent.
Odiva Vasell: (35:51)
Yes! I love that point because I, you know, culturally, I’ve heard it, we’ve all heard it—oh, have someone to take care of you, or you don’t wanna die alone. And at the end of the day, I’ve seen this, you know, worldwide. The women tend to outlive, so she becomes the caregiver for him, she’s becoming the caregiver for his parents, who remained her parents, and that’s a financial—huge financial—burden to take on for one person.
So, this is why it’s very critical to start at any age to build your financial independence for that kind of future. You love your loved ones? Do it now. Because the kids aren’t coming in there to help you, they’re probably coming in to ask for more help with whatever they’re going through in their life. But let’s talk again about the woman who’s in the service industry. She works at a hotel, her income is not so high, or she works maybe freelancing, something of that nature, where her income is not steady, and she thinks, “No, I can’t do any planning because I don’t have enough to plan with.” What would you say to her?
Believe in Yourself and Take Calculated Risks
Sandi Saksena: (37:08)
Okay, so I’ll use my own example because I’ve never had a salary. And when I started working, it was commission only, and it still is commission only. So, I have no idea whether I’m going to close a number of cases, what the case size is going to be, could it get delayed? Yeah, there are so many different variables about what it is that I need to do in order to ensure that I bought some kind of a steady income coming in.
So, what—and this is a great thing that my company does—is, at the beginning of the year, they ask us to do a forward planner, and this applies to you. Anybody could do it. In fact, I’ll share the thing with you, and you can maybe send it out to your network.
So, in the forward planner, assuming that I am paying for everything in that, the house, rent, everything is itemized—every single thing is itemized. House, rent, groceries, you name it, it’s there. And you put what you’re paying now, and then you have to take the most important thing into consideration. This is something which I call the silent thief because it is ever-present, it is always there, but you may choose not to see it. It’s called inflation, right?
So, when planning for the year, everything has to go up by between 5% and 10%. So, if I was spending, let’s say, ballpark $5,000 a month, I have to add 10% to everything in that itemized list. Then I know this is the amount that I would require to maintain the lifestyle I have now—not to improve it, right?
Then I start looking at my wishlist. Do I need to upgrade my wardrobe? Do I want to go on a holiday? Do I want to take a course that would, you know, improve my marketing of myself where I could generate income? Whatever else, right? Then you write all of those down and break it down into how much it will cost, not annually, but per month.
At the end of that, you will get a ballpark figure, including inflation. What is it that I need to do to generate this amount of money every month? Then you start figuring out what you need to do. Do you need to cut down? Do you need to cut down your expenses? Do you have the opportunity of freelancing and doing a little more?
If you are in sales or you’re like me, depending on the thing, what kind of client profile should I be pursuing so maybe I could get slightly bigger cases? So, where do I look? Do I look at my network and see, okay, my network is my net worth, right?
So, are other people in my network serving me? If they’re not serving me, get rid of them. So, a very simple thing nowadays—everything’s on this (mobile phone), right? WhatsApp, all kinds of things. If there’s nothing interesting on television, and you don’t want to play a game, and you don’t want to play with your cryptocurrencies or whatever you do, get rid of the limbs.
Look for people who can assist you. Can they get you more business? Can you approach them for a higher plan? Can you upgrade their plan? What are the various things you can do? It’s not rocket science, it’s common sense. But then we all know that’s not common, right?
Odiva Vasell: (41:09)
How is this not common? And it’s just that fear there. I can imagine the fear of taking that first step, but you break it down so simply. I think we’ve heard a lot before about how to budget, and I’m glad you talked about the “silent thief,” which is inflation—adding that on. That’s the first time for me to hear that.
And now, we just have to consider taking that first step of looking at the numbers. You can make a game of it. The way you explain it, it sounds like it could become fun after time because you’re so used to doing it. 21 days—that’s all it takes to start.
Sandi Saksena: (41:51)
It is quite simple, you know, if you come to look at it, right? We have 24 hours in the day, and let’s say that we sleep between eight and nine, or sometimes 10 hours, and we watch our favorite shows for another two hours. We still have at least an hour and a half of me-and-my-money time.
Odiva Vasell: (41:13)
Okay. Alright. And some of us don’t even spend that much in a month, but really making it a priority—looking ahead to the future of yourself, your kids, your family, and just overall your health—is so critical because you can also become sick with all the hats that you wear. It’s so critical.
And I just wanna get just a little bit more detail. You said you’re using yourself as an example, and you did not have a steady paycheck or salary. So, how did you build up your wealth?
Sandi Saksena: (42:53)
Okay, so, as I said, you know, when I started working at the age of 44, before that, I hadn’t worked a day in my life because of the Indian cultural system, you know. You graduate from university—so my love is my final year—I met my husband, and right after university, I got engaged. Then the following year, I got married.
And in the traditional style, the husband goes out to work, and the wife looks after the home, which is fine. By God’s grace, my husband is a very successful lawyer, and his career grew by leaps and bounds. So, from being used to a very frugal lifestyle because we come from very—what should I say—humble beginnings…
Odiva Vasell: (43:40)
Humble beginnings.
Sandi Saksena: (43:41)
Yeah. So, we were always careful. And then that sort of gave it all, you know—we could spend a little more, you know. We still had that, “Oh, let’s do a little more,” and so eventually, we had the most luxurious, extravagant, lavish lifestyle. And in my mind, when you’ve had that for close to 25 years, you think it will go on forever.
Okay? So, if my husband had certain shortcomings, I had more. But I did not take responsibility—I assumed that everything would just continue, right? And when things went downhill, it was a major shock, and we reached the stage where we didn’t have anything.
And that’s when I decided that I could not just sit at home and wring my hands and be his wife who was constantly on my husband’s back—
“What are we going to do?”
“Did you find something?”
“How are we going to manage?”
“I can’t do this.”
You know, you just have to stop that nonsense—wallowing in self-pity and pretending to be stressed out and all of that. You gotta take responsibility. So, I decided that I was gonna get a job, but I couldn’t write a CV—nothing to write.
And when I was growing up, I went to university in India. Even typing was not considered a good thing to do, you know. Only a certain level of people did typing, so I couldn’t even type. I was not computer literate. So, age was against me, and that’s what I always say—this, you know—there’s no stage or anything in life that you cannot learn to do something.
But who’s going to give you that opportunity?
Odiva Vasell: (45:32)
Yeah.
Sandi Saksena: (45:33)
There were a lot of rather rude and hurtful comments, you know, like,
“We don’t have time to waste on you,” kind of stories. But I do a presentation, which I’d love to share with you. It’s called Belief and Intent. When you believe in yourself, your intent is very clear on what you want. You will get it.
And so I got a job, and what was it? Financial planning—something that I really needed, right? And I was excited because it was the first job that I was offered. My first question was, “What’s the salary?” because, again, my mindset was,
“I’ll get the set amount of money, and I can help pay this and this and this.”
And my boss said to me, “There’s no salary,” and I said, “I can’t take this job.” And he says,
“You’re not thinking clearly. This is an opportunity for unlimited income. If you put in the hard work, you will see the direct results coming to you.”
It’s not like I work my ass off, you know, long hours in some corporate place, and I get my salary and whatever else. Then, I get a raise at the end of the year based on some HR and my bosses who may not like me. Right? Doesn’t it happen everywhere in the world?
Odiva Vasell: (46:58)
Yeah.
Sandi Saksena: (46:57)
How many times do you get passed up for a promotion because the man is more deserving? Where you have to work double to prove yourself?
Odiva Vasell: (47:07)
Okay.
Sandi Saksena: (47:08)
This was an opportunity where I had to work hard enough for me, and I saw the direct results.
How many cases could I sign? How many records could I get? How could I leverage all of that to make something bigger and better?
Cut the “Bungee Cord” and Let Go of Limiting Beliefs
Odiva Vasell: (47:25)
No limitations!
Sandi Saksena: (47:27)
So, I cleared all the loans, all the outstandings with it, and I enjoyed doing it. I then paid for my own travel. I qualified for the Million Dollar Round Table and was on it because the MDRT in the US is headquartered in Chicago.
Odiva Vasell: (47:47)
Could you say that one more time? You sound cut out. I qualified for the… I qualified for the…
Sandi Saksena: (47:53)
It’s called the Million Dollar Round Table (MDRT), and it is headquartered in Chicago. Anybody who’s in the financial planning industry—insurance, investments, all of that from all over the world—needs to qualify in order to be invited to be a member. So, I’ve been to about six different cities in the US as part of MDRT.
Odiva Vasell: (48:27)
That is brilliant and inspiring!
Sandi Saksena: (48:31)
And what happened is… this was my time of discovering who I am. And that can be such a big booster for every single woman, right?
Odiva Vasell: (48:49)
Yes! Very inspiring.
Sandi Saksena: (48:52)
So, that’s what I tell people—you have absolutely no idea of your potential unless your back is to the wall, and then your true essence comes out.
Odiva Vasell: (49:04)
Oh, right! That is inspiring for someone, as I said, who’s just had the bare minimum of income and for someone who’s got the cushy job. Really finding out who you are—your essence—by digging deep and taking not so much of a risk but taking a leap, believing in yourself.
It all started with you believing in yourself that you could make something happen. And now, you gained a diamond that no one could ever take away from you.
Sandi Saksena: (49:40)
Yes. You see, the other thing that I would like to mention to all ladies is, sometimes a lot of things that hold us back—emotional, mentality—that hold us back. And although we are trying to move forward, we’re held back, and it’s called the “bungee cord.” Cut the bungee cord.
Because, you know, if you’ve been bungee jumping, you know—you can go like 200, 300, 500 feet, and then you’re pulled back.
Odiva Vasell: (50:12)
Right!
Sandi Saksena: (50:13)
So that is it—cut the bungee cord.
Odiva Vasell: (50:15)
Wow! Thank you, thank you, Sandi, for this honor of coming here and just inspiring us women to take the next step to financial freedom. It’s all within us, and…
Sandi Saksena: (50:33)
Absolutely!
Odiva Vasell: (50:34)
Yes! You are a powerhouse. Thank you, thank you so much for joining me today.
[music]
Conclusion
As Sandi Saksena emphasized throughout the conversation, financial freedom is not a luxury—it’s a necessity. Whether you’re living a comfortable life or managing paycheck to paycheck, the key is to take responsibility for your financial future. By believing in yourself, being intentional about your goals, and cutting the “bungee cord” of limiting beliefs, you can unlock your full potential.
Start today. Learn, plan, and take that first step toward securing a future where you’re not just surviving but thriving. Remember, your financial independence is the greatest gift you can give yourself and your loved ones.