I felt my blood start to boil.

As I listened to the podcast on mental health and money…I kept asking myself…

“Who is this person portraying herself as a mental health and money expert? What are her credentials? Her experience? Her educational background?”

The host never said…and while the podcast guest made some interesting points during her interview…

…her advice and opinion on how money stress relates to depression and anxiety seemed a bit off base to me.

One of my biggest pet peeves had just been triggered…

When someone portrays themselves as an expert but can’t back it up with hard core evidence that they know what they’re talking about…

…my skin crawls.

I’m funny when it comes to integrity.

Integrity is EVERYTHING to me.

Honesty…transparency…and authenticity are non-negotiables in my opinion…especially when it comes to BUSINESS and MONEY.

Anytime someone gives advice on a podcast…blog post…newsletter…social media post…whatever…

…people listen to that advice…and they take it seriously…and they take that advice as truth.

And if that advice ISN’T based on fact…or actual experience…or research…

…it can hurt the people who apply that advice to their lives.

Before I totally flipped my sh*t about this “mental health expert-wanna-be”…

…I did some digging to find out who she really is and what she’s really all about.

Trying to give her the benefit of the doubt…and calm my rage…I went to her website, scouring for her credentials.

“Please let her be legit. Tell me she has some kind of background in counseling…or psychology…I’ll even settle for certification as a Life Coach!”

Nada. Nothing. No trace of ANY experience, education, or training related to mental health…

…with the exception of having experienced depression due to her own financial struggles.

I don’t think that qualifies someone as being a “mental health expert”.

I chewed on this for a while…questioning why this bothered me so much.

Then, I had a shocking thought…

I’ve got the Master’s degree…and almost two decades of experience…and a clinical license…

But what if potential clients…or podcast listeners…or newsletter readers see that I don’t have official credentials in FINANCE and think I’m a wanna-be imposter dolling out crappy advice?

I hate it when my emotions reveal something undesirable about myself…like being a hypocrite.

But rather than beating myself up over it…

…I made a decision that I was going to get the credentials to back up the 17 years of experience I have helping clients get results…

…so no one would ever hear my advice on money and wonder if I really knew what I was talking about…

…and if they ever checked my website to see if I know my stuff…they’ll see tangible evidence that supports I do.

I enrolled in an online program to earn my certification as a financial education instructor…and it wasn’t cheap.

But I didn’t hesitate…I didn’t have to scramble to come up with the money…or put the program on hold until I could afford it.

I didn’t have to apply for a loan and wait for approval…or beg a friend to loan me the cash so I could pay for the class.

I set aside money in my budget EVERY month for the sole purpose of EDUCATION…LEARNING…GROWTH…

…so I had the money ready and waiting to make me official and add even more street cred to my bio.

And once I finish the program…and get to put CFEI behind my name…I’ll be an even greater threat to my competition…

…because I’ve got the proof behind the pudding to show clients that I’m someone knowledgable…

…trustworthy…transparent…authentic…

…someone with complete integrity…someone people want to work with.

You want to position yourself like this too.

You want to be the BEST in the world at what you do.

You want your business…your skills…your experience…your personality…your credentials…your talents…to stand out from the crowd.

You want potential clients and customers to swoon over you…to feel you’re the real deal…

…and to instantly establish the know, like, trust factor.

When you invest in your education, training, certification, and professional growth…

…you dominate the market…and crush the competition.

But you need money to do that.

By setting money aside every month in your spending plan…the money will be at your fingertips…

…ready for you to jump on any opportunity in the instant it comes along…

…without any delays or hoops to jump through.

So when Melissa Cassera’s OBSESSED class opens up…you’ve got the money to join the party and add more fun and pleasure to your business.

Or when Marie Forleo opens enrollment to B-School…

Or when Amy Porterfield invites you to join her Digital Course Academy program…

Or when college class registration starts…or an amazing conference is announced…

…you’ll be ready with the money to pay for it…so you can up-level your business…

…be heard over all the entrepreneurial noise…

…be recognized as a legit expert in your field…

…and get paid handsomely for the skills and wisdom you offer to the world.

Starting now, put aside a chunk of change every month to invest in yourself…through courses…classes…books…conferences…certification programs…retreats…workshops.

It’s a money move that provides a great return on investment!