In this first guest episode of The Money Story Project, I’m joined by Sumi Fitzgerald, a diversity, equity and inclusion consultant who helps small, service-based businesses turn good intentions into concrete, impactful practice.

Sumi brings lived experience of Sri Lankan Tamil heritage, growing up and living in the UK, alongside cultural wisdom and years of professional expertise - and here they share their own money story with honesty and heart.

Sumi highlights the ongoing push and pull between inherited money stories, the need for safety, and the desire to run a business rooted in values

We talk about:
• The “summer fear” : why August brings money anxiety for small business owners
• Safety and roots: from family history to the struggles of renting
• The boots story: clashing cultural messages about “what money is for”
• Why self-employment can feel safer than a “stable” job
• Spreadsheets, Profit First (adapted), and paying yourself
• Pricing, equity and the gender pay gap in self-employment
• Inclusion beyond pricing: "the harder conversations we avoid”

• The missing data in the small-business world: Sumi’s idea for a mini-study

Links & Resources

Read our accompanying article with Sumi

• Connect with Sumi Fitzgerald: Linkedin   Instagram  Website
• Sumi's Free workshop (coming up in October 2025): Find Your Inclusion Leaks & Your Missing Clients - a free hour to uncover where potential clients might be slipping away. Best place to hear the details first: Instagram @sumi.does.dei on Sumi’s email list or visit the website.
• Sumi's Free guide: Five Things I Have to Tell Almost Everyone - practical fixes you can implement straight away.

Connect with the Money Story Project  - Visit website   Instagram    Apply to be a guest

In this first episode of The Money Story Project, I share why I started this podcast - and how my own journey from “I’m not a maths person” to Chartered Accountant, Fractional CFO, and trauma-informed finance coach changed the way I think about money entirely.

This isn’t a rags-to-riches tale, a list of “10 hacks to get rich,” or a lecture on what you should be doing. It’s about exploring the deeper roots of how we relate to money - the stories we’ve been told, the stereotypes we’ve absorbed, the barriers we’ve faced, and the systems that shape it all.

In this episode, I talk about:

• Why I believe nobody is inherently “bad with money.”
• How early messages about maths, creativity, and “the kind of person who works in finance” nearly kept me out of this work.
• The turning point when I realised that money conversations had to include how we feel - and how making space for those stories transformed my work with clients.
• Why money is never just an individual thing, and how identity, culture, class, gender, neurodivergence, and trauma all intersect with our financial lives.
• What you can expect from future episodes - and how to share your own story if you’d like to be part of the project.

Whether you’re a founder, creative, freelancer, or simply someone who’s ever been made to feel “bad with money,” you’ll find space here for honesty, complexity, and solidarity.

Links & Resources:

Get involved by sharing your money story 

Follow us on Instagram @MoneyStoryProject and Harriet Formby @belowthelinefinance

Website & show archive

If you enjoy this episode, please follow, leave a  review, share it with a friend, and join the conversation - because the more we talk about money honestly, the more we can change how it feels.

Money touches every part of our lives - but the real stories aren’t about bank balances, budgets, or get-rich-quick tips. They’re about who we are, where we come from, and the world we live in.

In this short trailer, host Harriet Formby - Chartered Accountant, Fractional CFO, and trauma-informed finance coach - shares why she’s starting these conversations, what you can expect, and how your own money story might be more powerful than you think.

Expect fascinating, heart-warming, relatable, and sometimes infuriating conversations about money, identity, belonging, culture, family, education, and the systems we all navigate.

These are the stories we wish more people spoke about - and the ones that might just change how you see yourself (and the world).

 Follow The Money Story Project and join the conversation.