Donya Khandan, Financial Coach + Entrepreneur
Donya Khandan, The Money Coach, Financial Entrepreneur
Money Mindset for Women
A few days ago, we had the pleasure of speaking with Donya on Instagram Live as part of a new hybrid of our extraordinary women feature series. We spoke about how the world of personal finances became such a passion for her, how the pandemic has affected her business, and what her top financial business tips are for young women! Check out the transcript below for a preview and click here to watch the entire Instagram Live on our IGTV: Pink Tank Group + Donya Khandan on IGTV
(Pink Tank Group) Tell us about your background, we would love to know more about you!
(Donya): I am a financial coach, I call myself The Money Coach but that’s because I want to stand out. I know there is a lot of money coaches out there but I look at it differently. I do more than what an average financial advisor does. I have my licenses so I am a proper financial advisor. The reason why I say I am a money coach is I want to help people to understand there is more to finances than just having products. They need an understanding of how money works, how finances work, how the product works. And eventually helping people make the money work for them instead of them always working for the money. For me, It’s also about the mindset. I want to help them change the way they look at money. Not a lot of people, and me being one of them before, have a good relationship with money and it isn’t as accessible as they want it to be.
(Pink Tank Group) How did finance get to be such a passion for you?
(Donya): It’s not the finance that I’m passionate about. I’m passionate about sitting down with clients, helping people. The environment that I work in. I have a positive environment with amazing people around me that are there to pick me up and lift me up whenever I need it. The freedom that I have while building a successful business is what got me into it. I used to be a student for kinesiology and that is where I ended up getting into the financial field. I always wanted to have some sort of impact and make a difference.
(Pink Tank Group) How did your ‘Money Coach’ brand come to be?
(Donya): The opportunity came through a friend of my Dad’s. I got curious and that helped me end up in the field today. I wanted to learn and decided for myself to educate and learn and had everything to gain. As an immigrant, I moved to Canada 6 yrs ago and I didn’t know a lot about the economy and finance. I didn’t even know what a credit card was! I need to learn this – no matter what I do in my future. I need to know how money and finance work for me at the end of the day. I realized there are a lot of people out there who are in the same position that I was in. This allows me to help them and build a business on the side that I enjoy.
(Pink Tank Group) How did Covid affect your industry and your career?
(Donya): It affected it positively. For me, it was one of those upbringings. A lot of people are struggling, lost their jobs, feel more depressed and anxious during this pandemic. For me, it helped me grow even more. I am in an industry where I get to help people during this time and to relieve that stress. My business used to be face to face but now everything is handled online. So convenient for my clients and for me and I get to expand even more outside of Ontario.
(Pink Tank Group) What are your Top Financial tips for young women?
(Donya): #1 thing – a lot of women rely on their partners when it comes to finances. When it comes to financial knowledge. Unfortunately, I’ve seen it happen when people get separated or lose their partner, they start struggling with so many things that they never did before. Educate yourself as much as possible to become more financially independent and financially literate.
#2 - Savings. The earlier you start, the better for you. 5 years of waiting might cost you over $300,000 in savings for the future.
(Pink Tank Group) What do you like best about your business?
(Donya): The fact that I get to sit down with different people and learn about them, hear their stories, find those solutions that they might need for what they are struggling with. I love to be a problem solver. In my career, I get to see people grow and that is very fulfilling that I can help change their lives and become more fulfilled. Seeing others win makes me very happy and fulfilling.
(Pink Tank Group) How integral is social media to the success of your business?
(Donya): It wasn’t in the beginning but then I realized that consistency is the key. When I kept going with it, I saw a big difference in the feedback, engagements, people reaching out, and touching base. Reels are also amazing and I love using them. They help with the algorithm to help compete with Tik Tok. Instagram plays a big role in my business now and once I master this platform I will expand to the other ones. Instagram is like your business card. They get to know you, your brand, your personality, what your focus is, what your passion is. If you are being authentic and genuine, you start to see results. I stopped thinking about what people will think about this post and that post and I just started to do it.
(Pink Tank Group) What is the one area that people are challenged with the most with finance?
(Donya): Paying off debt. There are a lot of people that deal with debt and they do not know exactly how to pay it off.
