Helping Women Be Financially Independent. An Exclusive Interview With Author, Financial Speaker & Wealth Retreat Leader Millen Livis

Q: What was your first job? How did it shape or impact you?

ML: I was born and raised in the former Soviet Union. My first job was working at a data-entry center. It was a very boring, meaningless (to me) work, with a minimum wage pay.

There were only women in our department… of all ages.

Working at this job taught me to be grateful for any job (because I was helping my parents with my wages), shaped my perception about any job as a stepping stone to something bigger and better (not the final destination), and motivated me to get knowledge and experience in the area of my interest (at that time it was physics), so that I could enjoy meaningful work that pays well and creates a positive impact on other people’s lives.

I decided to be SO good at what I do that my gender (women were inferior workforce in the former Soviet Union) and my ethnicity (I come from Jewish heritage and was discriminated because of it in the Soviet Union) will not be used to dismiss or ignore me.

Q: What changes in your life led you to become an International Holistic Financial Independence mentor?

ML: I had a pivotal moment (phase) in my life after I walked out from my financially comfortable by loveless marriage and my financially comfortable but meaningless Wall Street career, and “jumped” into entrepreneurship – started my real estate investment company with a couple of business partners.

My intention (my North Star) was to experience FREEDOM – freedom of money, choice, time, location. To achieve that, I had to become financially free, so that I won’t depend on any partner, boss, or government with my financial security.

My “parachute” didn’t open when I jumped. I crushed… became financially broke, emotionally broken and deeply depressed.

However, by the grace of God, I was introduced to a life coach who helped me shift my perceptions on success, self-leadership, and what’s possible (among many other things).

Working with this coach helped turn my “sinking ship” 180 degrees…

I learned the tools that helped me develop a wealth mindset, become a savvy manager of my money, and, eventually, a strategic investor.

This experience also led to my spiritual awakening.

Within 7 years I became financially independent, from ground ZERO….

Then published my two bestselling books.

Eventually I decided to become a mentor to women who want to control their money (so money won’t control them); who want to live without constant money worries, stress, and anxiety; and who want to create their own unique path to financial independence.

Q: Tell us something about the MILLENaire Method you have adopted.

ML: The MILLENaire Method is my holistic system for becoming financially independent.

This method was born by reverse-engineering my path to Financial Independence.

It includes four pillars - fundamental skillsets - that one must develop in order to become financially independent:

1. Wealth Mindset

2. Savvy Money Management

3.

4.

Strategic Investing

Practical Spirituality

All my work with clients and students is based on this method.

Q: What is one reason you hear that will lead women to seek your mentoring services?

ML: Many women like my holistic approach to creating lasting wealth. I teach “hard” (very practical) money skills (savvy money management and investing) as well as “soft” money skills (wealth mindset and spiritual principles of creating financial wealth). And they like that I “walk the talk” - embody what I teach, have achieved what they are aspired to achieve.

Q: Are your mentoring sessions private or in a class setting? What are some of the topics you cover?

ML: As of now, I offer both - private mentoring and group programs.

One of my group programs – Awakened Money Mas- tery program – helps clients develop Wealth Mindset (as opposed to Consumer or Scarcity mindsets) and become savvy managers of their money.

This program helps my clients truly transform their relationship with money, their money story, and their bank accounts. They have more money with less stress and less risk.

Q: Were there moments in your career that were pivotal to getting where you are today?

ML: Yes. Here’re some of them.

- I would have perished, like many of my colleges and friends, on 9/11 2001 (I used to work in World Trade Center) if I didn’t listen to my intuition and didn’t resign a couple of months prior to this tragic day.

- While being in a very dark place in my life, I made a scary decision to invest in myself and work with the life coach, when I was lost, fearful, and broke.

- After years of living “by default,” I recognized the importance of living “by design” - the importance of knowing your goals. Because I started with the end in mind (financial independence).

- I used to struggle with making quick decisions and realized the importance of knowing your values in life in order to be decisive. Because it helped me be clear about my priorities and make decisions that are aligned with my values and goals.

Q: You’re also an author, can you tell us about some of the topics you’ve written about?

ML: I published two bestselling books of my own, and two collaborative books.

- A Shift Toward Purpose: Secrets to an Amazing Career

- A Shift Toward Abundance: Secrets to Financial Freedom

Q: What’s the best advice you’ve ever received?

ML: Failure is not a person. It’s an experience. And it has the beginning and the end. There is always a light at the end of the tunnel…just keep going.

Rahaf Harfoush is a Digital Anthropologist and Best-Selling Author researching the impacts of emerging technologies on our society. She teaches “Innovation and Disruptive Business Models” at SciencePo’s School of Management & Innovation in Paris.

Advisory Board Members

Elinor is the CEO of Smooth Sale. She’s also an International Best-Selling and Evergreen Author, Top 1% Influencer, Inspirational Speaker.

Andrea Simon is a writer and photographer based in New York City. She has worked as an editor, writer, and manager on diverse projects, and was the co-owner of an editorial/production company that specialized in health-related educational materials.

Millen Livis

MILLEN LIVIS is International Holistic Financial Independence mentor, International best-selling author, investor, and entrepreneur.

Janice McLean DeLoatch

Dr. Janice McLean DeLoatch is a passionate advocate for entrepreneurs and women in the entertainment industry. She created the Women Songwriters Hall of Fame to honor women whose work represents the heritage and legacy of the world’s music songbook. She serves as the Founder, Chief Executive Officer, and Chairman. Janice is also a Tv Host, Radio Personality, Entrepreneur and Author.

Jessica Cox

The World’s First Licensed Armless Pilot, and First Armless Black-Belt in The American Taekwondo Association

Cover photo by Jessica Korff | Feature images Amy Haskell

Jessica is best known for becoming the first armless pilot in aviation history. Her achievement earned her a Guinness World Record medal, invitations from six continents, and featured on TV programs like Ellen, Inside Edition, Fox and Friends, Oprah Winfrey Network, CNN, CBS Evening News, and the BBC.

Described as a speaker “no one will ever forget,” she shows audiences around the globe how to inspire enthusiasm and build authentic confidence. With the goal of showing people how to go home from work every day feeling excited for tomorrow, she teaches how to courageously tackle new challenges with creativity and unrelenting drive.

Since she was born without arms, she became fascinated by the limitless ways the human body can adjust to a variety of circumstances. As she learned to conquer physical barriers, she developed mental skills that allowed her to go on to achieve the seemingly impossible in her own, unique way.

Q: Flying a plane, walking a tightrope – when do you first remember challenging yourself to do things the typical person never attempts?

JC: I don’t see myself as someone who does things because other people don’t do it. My mom overcame extreme poverty to graduate from college, immigrate to the United States, she traveled the country as a nurse and she never sat still for very long. In my mind, my drive to try new things and go on adventures comes more from her spirit.

Q: How often have you encountered naysayers in your abilities to accomplish your goals and what has been your response?

JC: Every day. While it’s not always blatant, it’s obvious in how people react to me. It challenges me to try to prove them wrong. It fuels me. You only need to look as far as some of the comments on my YouTube videos to see the pushback people give for me flying or being a black belt.

Q: Describe how you encourage your audience to find their motivation to achieve their goals?

JC: I find that most people are well motivated, but they allow excuses, over-complication, and habits to get in the way. Normally, motivation isn’t the problem, it’s the perceived limitations that often aren’t as difficult as we make them out to be.

Q: Have you ever had to modify a goal and how do you address this subject to your audiences?

JC: Every goal was modified at one point. As long as you get the job done, it doesn’t matter which way you attack it. In my speeches, I talk about “thinking outside the shoe.” It’s a metaphor for when I learned to first tie my shoelaces. I remember watching my Kindergarten teacher show us how to tie our shoes with her foot inside her shoe and using her hands to tie her laces. Since my feet have become my hands, I couldn’t simultaneously have my foot inside the shoe and tie the laces. I could have given up, but who said your foot has to be inside the shoe when you tie them? I eventually figured out how to tie my shoelaces with my toes and then slip my foot inside the shoe. The goal shifted from tying my foot inside the shoe to simply tie the laces loose enough for me to later slip my foot in.

Q: One aspect of your motivational speaking addresses diversity, can you tell us more about that?

JC: Diversity has become a regular part of social justice conversations and those conversations have become more common, which is great. The problem is that while we talk about race, gender, or orientation, disability is often forgot- ten or diminished in the conversation. I often remind people that the disability community is the only minority that you could join, not everyone is born into it like me. We also make up 25% of the US population and more than 1 billion people globally will experience a disability in their lifetime. That is a lot of people that need to be in more conversations.

Q: The obvious question, have you and your team done anything unique to adapt to the COVID videoconference environment?

JC: Everything has switched to Zoom and other platforms, so I did too. I think I had a head start because I was already recording video content. We upgraded some equipment and our bandwidth to make sure my clients received the best possible stream. Not traveling meant that I had a little more time on my hands - or feet - so I’ve been expanding my coaching services. I’ve worked with amputees in the past to be a mentor for them but now I’ve opened up my one-onone time to the general public.

Q: You write an occasional blog, including one on inspirational porn, probably not a subject that a lot of people have studied. What would you like to say about it and how has it evolved?

JC: I’m more than happy to inspire someone because I fly an airplane, earned a black belt, surf, scuba dive, and slack- line. Inspiration porn is when someone’s inspired because I can function as a human being. I once had a woman in the checkout line at the grocery store say, “It’s inspiring to see you, people, out and about.” People shouldn’t be inspired because someone with a disability eats food and needs to buy toilet paper. I think it comes from an assumption that people with disabilities are inherently unable to do regular things or the person without a disability assumes they couldn’t cope with the disability they see. In reality, the disability community is the only minority you can join and represents about twenty percent of the global population. Inspiration porn only exists because we as a society haven’t a normalized disability.

Q: Do you ever give in to asking someone to do something that’s somewhat difficult for you – difficult, but something that you’re capable of doing? How does that feel?

JC: Yes, I do. For example, with my husband, but I think it further perpetuates laziness and is a disservice to me because then my ability to do something can be impacted. I’ve been asking my husband to reach for things that were at the edge of my flexibility. Unfortunately, as a result, I’m not stretching my limits and therefore my flexibility has lessened.

Q: You’re a Third Degree Blackbelt – without it would you ever feel physically vulnerable?

JC: It’s sometimes hard for even me to believe but I’m a fourth-degree black belt. I started training when I was 10 because I had some anger issues as a kid and sometimes kicked my siblings or my bedroom door. Channeling that energy certainly helped. I think without a black belt I would feel vulnerable because people would see my armlessness as a vulnerability. Despite being a black belt, though, I naturally maintain a higher awareness of my surroundings and try not to present myself as an easy target.

Q: Of your many avocations, which are your most enjoyable and which are you most proud of, and why?

JC: My most enjoyable activity is cycling because it’s a sport where I can just relax and enjoy the breeze on my face. I usually find myself always moving so it’s an activity that matches my personality, I think. I’m most proud of learning to fly. It not only challenged me physically but also emotionally. It represented one of my greatest fears and I had to overcome that to fly solo. I’ve been a certified pilot for 12 years now and no one can say I didn’t earn it, and no one can take that achievement away from me.

Q: Aside from martial arts, is there a particular activity that you and your husband enjoy most together?

JC: We both love to travel and unique experiences. I’ve visited 26 countries so far and he’s been with me for most of them. We’ve had ginseng chicken in Korea, flown in small planes all over Alaska, had fish and chips outside the Tower of London, been invited by princes, had breakfast with a baboon in Kenya, and even fed hyenas in Ethiopia.

Q: In the trailer for your documentary, Right Foot, you mention that you wouldn’t have chosen to have arms because of the many people you’ve met and whose lives you’ve touched. If you had been born with arms, how do you feel that your life would have been different? Do you think you would have been equally motivated and had the same interests?

JC: Nick Spark deserves the credit for the documentary. It was his vision; I was just the one in front of the camera. I think there would have been some things that would have stayed the same, like the sense of adventure in me. But whether I would be equally motivated is something I question. Those naysayers fueled a certain level of motivation. My mom was the youngest of thirteen kids in an impoverished family in the Philippines. She beat the odds and immigrated to the United States as a nurse. Even after her cancer diagnosis, it was hard to slow her down. I’d like to think I got a lot of my drive from her.