Astra Client Spotlight - Astra Financial

Astra Client spotlight features our clients and their words so that we can gain more insight and learn from each other.

Meet Astra members, Stacey and Shawn. We asked them a few questions:

Tell us about yourselves. What do you do for fun and how do you stay busy?

Stacey: My name is Stacey and this is my husband Shawn. We live in Regina and have been married for almost 12 years but have been together for nearly 20 years. We have been Zena’s client since she was being mentored by Rod Tyler.

When I am not working, I am planning something. We love to travel and I get almost as much enjoyment out of the planning process as I do out of the actual vacation. I also enjoy yoga, cooking, preserving food, sipping on craft beer, thrift shopping, and spending time with the people I love. I started a travel blog (theytraveloften.com) in January but that has taken a hiatus during COVID-19.

Shawn: Everything to do with bicycles. I am fortunate to work at Dutch Cycle here in Regina so I share my passion with our clients and in my spare time, I will go riding or you will find me in the garage working on my bikes.

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Guilty pleasures worth every penny?

Stacey: Makeup. All of it. A lipstick can transform you.

Shawn: Bike parts and tools.

What is a special talent, skill, or gift that you have?

Stacey: I think my special talent is planning. I can plan anything from simple stuff like meal planning and grocery shopping, to travel planning, and event planning, to much more complex planning like the dissolution of my grandparent’s corporations and the consolidation of their estate.

I can visualize the step-by-step scenarios and plan all the logistics like who to contact, transportation, accommodation, packing, timing, and so on. I am mindful that planning removes me from this moment and leaves little room for spontaneity, but I do get a lot of enjoyment from the research and I think our travels are richer because they are well thought out.

Shawn: Cycling and bike maintenance are obvious skills but I am very organized and I enjoy cleaning. We have three cats, and I am definitely the cat whisperer in our marriage.

What is something that you have learned in the last three months?

Stacey: I have learned that I love working from home and that I am very self-motivated. I took an online social media marketing course because it is proving to be an essential skill in the workplace.

My core values have also been reinforced in the last three months. We are not on this earth too long so I must prioritize doing the things that I love with the people that I hold most dear. If I continue to have this value system, I will not have any regrets.

For the last eight years I have spent nearly every Saturday with my Granny helping her and organizing my grandparents’ estate. We had a very special relationship. My grandfather passed away three years ago but my Granny passed away amidst COVID-19 restrictions. I am proud that I was able to care for her in her home to the end. I am proud that we were able to organize her affairs according to her wishes and that all the work I prioritized for them, places her estate in good order. This has allowed me to have no regrets, to celebrate our special memories, and to let grief flow easily through me.

Shawn: We went to Belgium, Germany, and Switzerland in December and January and since we have been home, I have been learning German on Duolingo. I have completed over 200 days straight.

A couple of other things I have learned in the last three months is how to BMX and physical distance.

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Last movie watched? Book read? Podcast listened to?

Stacey: The last movie I watched Blinded by the Light. I’m currently reading Leadership is Half the Story: A Fresh Look at Followership, Leadership, and Collaboration and the last podcast I listened to was Simply Podlogical.

Shawn: The last movie I watched was Ford v Ferrari.

If you could go back to your 20-year-old self, what words of financial wisdom would you share with yourself?

Stacey: Shawn and I come from two very different financial values systems. I grew up with a single mother and two siblings. There was no extra money. No savings. It was struggle for my mom. Shawn’s family was not rich, but they prioritized saving.

I would tell my 20-year-old self, “A scarcity mindset is very difficult to overcome. Be kind to yourself and try not to lose too much sleep over money because your life will be filled with love and abundance”.

Shawn: I would first thank my parents for modelling a savings value system and establishing a strong relationship with our first financial advisor, Rod Tyler. I would go back to my 20-year old self and say, “stay the course, you have good financial foundations”.

Astra Client Spotlight

Thank you Stacey & Shawn for sharing!

You can check out the beers, bikes, travel planning, and travel adventures blog here https://theytraveloften.com/

Astra Client Spotlight