She Was Making $17K a Year When Her World Fell Apart — Here's How She Built a Multi-Six-Figure Business From the Rubble

What does it take to rebuild your life — and your finances — after losing everything?

In this episode of Manifest, Manage & Multiply Money, Audrey Faust sits down with Donna Jean Kendrick, founder of Sefton Financial and a multi-six-figure financial advisor who specializes in helping families in widowhood, divorce, and life transition. Donna's story is one of the most powerful on this podcast — from making $17,000 a year as a newly widowed sole parent to building a thriving, mission-driven financial planning practice in under a decade.

Donna shares what the early years really looked like — the oodles of noodles nights, the $6 box hair dye, and the financial roadmap that gave her permission to breathe. She opens up about the identity shifts required to go from helicopter mom to CEO, the money blocks she had to clear as a blue-collar girl from Philadelphia, and why she followed her gut and hung her own shingle in the middle of a pandemic. She also shares her powerful redefinition of GRIT — and why the lesson is always in the pivot.

This conversation is raw, real, and deeply aligned with the mission of this podcast — normalizing wealth, resilience, and the identity evolution that happens when women choose mission over fear.

Chapters

00:00 — Introduction to Donna Jean Kendrick

05:06 — From widowhood to financial empowerment: the $17K story

09:54 — Building a multi-six-figure business from the ground up

15:00 — Identity shifts, mindset work, and getting out of your own way

20:01 — What money and success really look like at this level

25:04 — Launching Sefton Financial in a pandemic and following your gut

30:08 — Final thoughts: just jump

In This Episode, You'll Learn:

• Why having a financial roadmap during crisis is as much emotional as it is practical
• How Donna cleared her money blocks as a blue-collar girl from Philadelphia
• What GRIT really stands for — Gratitude, Resiliency, Integrity, and Tenacity
• Why she chose mission over job or career — and how that decision changed everything
• How she paced her business growth around Social Security benefits and survival thresholds
• Why hanging her shingle in a pandemic was the best decision she ever made
• How success doesn't change the core of who you are — unless you let it

Guest Free Gift

If you want to make sure your family is protected no matter what life throws at you, Donna Jean Kendrick's Personal Document Locator is the place to start. This downloadable PDF helps families organize all of their critical financial and personal information in one place — from estate documents and beneficiary designations to advisor contacts and asset locations — so that your loved ones always know exactly where to find what they need.

It's one of the most practical gifts you can give the people you love. Find it at https://sephtonfinancial.com/webinar/

Connect with Donna Jean Kendrick

Website: www.donnajeankendrick.com and www.sephtonfinancial.com

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/DonnaJeanKendrick/

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/donnajeankendrick/

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/donna-kendrick/

Tik Tok: https://www.tiktok.com/@DonnaJeanKendrick

Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@donnajeankendrick

Where Is All My Money Going?

You'll notice Audrey asks every guest if they have ever been financially phobic. About 80% say yes. Even the seven figure ones. Turns out getting to the other side of that is exactly how they grew faster.

If your own financial reports still make you nervous or nauseous, this is for you.

Every month Audrey hosts Where Is All My Money Going? A free live experience where she walks you through a QuickBooks sample company so you finally understand what your profit and loss statement is actually telling you. Seats are limited and there is no replay so no one feels awkward asking questions.

🔗 Grab your seat here: https://www.audreyfaustconsulting.com/money

About the Host

Audrey Faust, MBA, is known as The Manifesting CFO. For more than two decades she has worked with multi-six and seven-figure businesses, helping entrepreneurs understand their financials, strengthen profitability, and build long-term wealth.

Through her work, Audrey has witnessed the identity shifts and leadership evolution that occur as businesses scale and the powerful role that money mindset plays in sustainable success.

Audrey's Free Gift

If looking at your numbers brings up feelings you were not expecting, you are not alone. Audrey Faust has created a seven minute guided meditation infused with bioneural beats, designed specifically for women who want to approach their financial information with curiosity instead of fear, shame, or judgment. Listen to it before you open your QuickBooks, your bank account, or your profit and loss statement. It will change the energy you bring to that moment.

🎧 Get instant access here: https://www.audreyfaustconsulting.com/meditation

Subscribe & Follow

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And until next time…

Keep manifesting, managing, and multiplying your money.

If you’re ready to go deeper, I’ve got some powerful ways to support you. Join me inside my world:

🌐 Website: https://www.audreyfaustconsulting.com/

📸 Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/manifesting_cfo/

💼 LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/audreyfaust/

🎥 YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@TheManifestingCFO