A few weeks ago we launched a series that is intended to highlight women that we think are kicking ass and doing amazing things.
This week’s #WomanCrush is Patsy Mugabi.
When I found out you are as obsessed with natural hair as I am, I jumped in my seat! We need to have a whole conversation about that but not today sis, today is all about you!
➢ Getting To Know Patsy Mugabi
How would you describe Patsy if people didn’t know who Patsy was?
Mmhhhh….Getting to know Patsy, how do I describe Patsy? It’s a mystery! Anyway, Patsy is a long life learner, lover of people and life.
I love to describe myself as a powerhouse that is dedicated to equipping women to show up as the limitless version of themselves, especially in regard to financial freedom.
How did your upbringing and adolescence years inspire your love for what you do today? (For those who do not know, what do you do?)
I’ve been raised by a single mom and seeing her, everything that she has been through to put us all, my siblings and I through the best institutions and just give us nothing short of her best has inspired my love to champion women in their journey of financial freedom.
The truth of the matter is we don’t even want a sit at the table; we want the entire table. And for me, that’s what my work is doing. I’m dedicated to helping women show up as the best version they can be when it comes to achieving their monies.
➢ On Career Choices
Why money? Why speak up about money when people are so weird with discussing it?
So, funny story (I’ll cut it short.) This used to be me for the longest time.
I used to blog around here until I was conned twice by then friends mhmmm…it was really painful. I had also just moved to Nairobi. I had started doing a course called Bachelor’s of Business Science And Economics, which is basically a money course. So that’s what happened. Like, I started getting intrigued aboutmoney, yes, I was bending towards the investments side of money and the time value of money and all these technical aspects of money but no one was teaching me how to handle a profit. No one!
Although, I must backtrack and say on my corner of the Internet we don’t say we are broke, we say we are poorish. (Ha!) So those kinds of conversations allowed me to be vulnerable and sort of pivot my blog into a space where we can talk about money without being judged and to do better as we get to learn better.
Sorry about your friends! So talk to me about the inspiration behind the savings challenge. How does it assist your audience on their money journey?
I believe that the system that is set in place as we get to the money side is intentional budgeting, strategic spending but also strategic saving. I don’t know if I’ve said that already, and, so, the savings challenge really empowers you to do the work and the thing about finance is that it’s personal.
So what inspired it was I wanted to help people see what they can do it and as we said earlier, even as we get to this place where the money resides it’s going to take a lot of work. We have to put the personal in the personal finance.
Do you consider what you are doing game changing?
Yes, I feel like there aren’t so many, ahh, people talking about money in East Africa, we are not so many. I know a few registered organisations, I know a few individuals but not so much, not so many personal financial educators. So yeah, definitely game changing.
➢ On Mental Health
Speaking of game changing, we’re finding our way back from a game-changing year that chewed us up, laughed at our lists of goals and resolutions and rocked our mental health.
What was 2020 like for you? How did you feel and work through the pandemic?
Yeah! I know that’s right!
How was 2020 for me?
I had never been in a pandemic and honestly it just showed me the connections I lacked, the diversity and how much more connected I needed to be with the people I loved and cared for. And also just how dynamic everything is. I mean, who knew we would ever be working from home? So… I won’t lie, I was a bit tense, I had just gone back to school, I was studying online, I was working, there were a bit of pay cuts here and there so I had to strategise to look for that ka money but thank God, anyway, all in all we…what is that thing they say? We came, we saw, we conquered? Yeah that was my main highlight.
Mental health is such an important discussion that needs to be had more often because we’ve all struggled with/struggle with something. As a young woman, what do you struggle with today?
Imposter syndrome! Everyday!
And I have a vision board that helps me execute so even as I answer this, its Patsy answering but when it comes to doing the work, Patsy has so many excuses so, I have Miss Mugabi who just does all the work and does not give any, any excuses. She does the work, she shows up and out.
How do you implement self-care into your day-to-day routine? How do you self soothe?
Number one, music! Wow! Music, music, music, music, it is so underrated.
But I do a lot of Zumba as well to keep me mentally fit more than physically fit so I do a lot if Zumba. At least in a day I hydrate, I journal. Oh my God! I have to plug Phoenix rise project for their gratitude journal and I also check in on people who make me happy, who fill up my happiness tank. But also I take time to; to fuel up myself, like to do the things that make me happy.
Do what makes you happy, do what makes you smile, we are only here for a while and everybody’s judging any way so… do what makes you happy.
You run an insanely informative Instagram account, a badass blog and an entertaining and educative YouTube channel… what else am I missing? And how do you handle all this? How do you stay sane?
Let me first keep it a hundred with you, Thank you! My Instagram has sort of been the main channel, uh, blog? I sort of paused. I’m resuming that in April (whoop whoop) with a new domain and stuff like that.
I do YouTube but I also have, uh, I used to schedule and batch create my content because last year got really busy for me, working between jobs, trying to handle my businesses and also try to stay relevant. Plus also school, it was crazy, it was crazy for me.
How do I stay sane? Girl! That’s God first of all, that’s all God.
But also batch creating my content. I shoot content on one day and just spread it out through out the month or the months to come.
➢ On Gendered Stereotypes
There’s a masculinity attached to money and finance… why do you think that is? How can we change that?
Thank you!
And this is exactly why I do my thing for women.
I do this thing for women like me, for you, for all of us women, women. Its because I don’t know, I don’t know if its a thing that we’ve been, you know how they say for men, their financial clock is what they’re aligned to and for women, its our biological clock. I’m thinking that’s the stereotype! It’s about time we change. There’s something annoying and destructive about stereotypes.
What do you wish men understood?
Consent! Period!
I love these questions!
➢ On Girl Power
Do you have female role models or mentors?
Yes I do have quite a number. Auntie O! Oprah herself. I just love how vulnerable she is, how intentional she is and her work; how she shows up and out.
Doctor Natalie Bitature. Who’s this woman? She’s a social entrepreneur which is where I hope to end up and other people that I look up to are like personal finance educators.
What is the most important advice you’ve ever received from a fellow woman?
To keep showing up, keep showing up and collaboration over competition.
I won’t lie there used to be a time where I was a pretty toxic person, and it really really, ahh messed me up. This is mainly 2-3 years ago when I was starting out, I used to have a scarcity mindsets so collaboration over competition.
And also, to stay relevant you have to be consistent.
Who have you drawn professional inspiration from lately? It could be from a far (stalking them on Instagram) or up-close?
It would be mhmmm, it’s been quite a number of women, I think it’s closely tied to what I shared earlier, Oprah, Doctor Natalie, Doctor Ray to mention but a few.
What is one thing you know now about women and work that you wish you had known earlier in your career?
One woman’s win is also my win. We are in the same side of the game. Collaboration over competition.
What do you wish little girls everywhere knew?
I wish they knew that they are peng black girls and they have to trust in their source and let no one tell them other wise….
Can’t get enough? Get a larger glimpse into Patsy’s mind here as we dive deeper into questions about religion and God, stereotypes and dreams plus a quick rundown of her favorite things!
As always,
Keep hanging onto hope,
_Naks.
You can find Part2 of Patsy’s interview here.
Please feel free to suggest down in the comments who else you’d like to have us interview. You can also tell Patsy how amazing she is. Remember, paying someone else a compliment takes nothing away from you. Seriously.
