What Do I Mean When I Say “A Freedom-Based Investment Portfolio”

If you’re a high-earning woman doing everything you were told you were supposed to do with money…

Maxing out your 401(k).

Contributing to an IRA.

Buying index funds.

Building a “diversified” portfolio.

Watching your net worth climb.

...and hoping that someday, when you have enough money accumulated, you’ll finally feel financially free, I want you to consider something:

What if the traditional retirement model you’ve been following was never actually designed to make you feel financially secure in your 30s, 40s or 50s?

Because having millions of dollars invested for “someday”... and having the freedom to live your life on your terms are NOT necessarily the same thing.

And if your wealth strategy requires you to keep working for decades while accumulating assets you’re penalized if you so much as touch…

How free are you, really?

The strategy I teach my clients is the same one I used myself to build a million dollar investment portfolio that pays me $20k/month without touching the principal… even though I’m decades away from turning 60.

What You’ll Hear in This Episode

• How I define my Freedom Number. The monthly income I’m working toward to support the life I want.

• Why owning lots of investments doesn’t automatically mean they balance each other. Different purchases can still be affected by the same problems.

• Why I focus on money coming in, alongside growing what I own. I want to understand what my money can make possible today.

• Why access matters. When and how I can use my money is part of the decision.

• Why I start with the life I want. My goals guide what I choose, rather than copying someone else’s collection of investments.

Why Listen to Me?

Hi, I’m Sarah Nicole Nadler, a financial coach and self-made millionaire who believes women deserve to feel powerful in every room their money enters.

Over the past decade, I’ve helped women:

• Turn six-figure inheritances into strategic portfolios
• Move from frozen to decisive
• Stop nodding politely in financial meetings they secretly don’t understand

I specialize in the space where strategy meets identity.

Because investing is not just math.

It’s about confidence. It’s about decision-making. And it’s about who you believe you are allowed to become.

I’ve worked with women who inherited six figures and felt paralyzed by the responsibility.

Women who had successful businesses yet froze when faced with choosing her first stock.

Women who hired advisors, nodded politely in meetings, and left feeling smaller than when they walked in.

Not because they weren’t intelligent.

But because no one had ever explained investing in a way that felt accessible, strategic, and aligned with how they think.

I’ve also seen the opposite transformation.

• The moment a woman realizes she can understand asset allocation.

• The moment she sees how fees compound over time.

• The moment she recognizes that investing is following a framework—not a personality trait.

That shift changes everything.

My work blends practical investment education with emotional readiness, because money decisions made from fear look very different from those made from clarity.

And when you receive an extra $100,000—whether through savings, inheritance, settlement, or sale—clarity is the difference between empowerment and panic.

I am not anti–asset management companies.

They serve a purpose.

But I am deeply pro–informed decision.

Whether you decide to manage your investment portfolio yourself, or outsource it to an asset management company…

You deserve to know what your options are.

You deserve to know what you’re paying for.

And you deserve to know that managing investments is not reserved for a select few with special credentials or secret knowledge.

It is a skill.

And skills can be learned.

The information contained in this episode is NOT financial advice. It's my strategy based on my own financial situation and experience, and is not the advice I would give to every client. If you'd like the support of a financial advisor to work out your own plan, click here to connect with my team.

With every episode of Women, Wealth & What's Next, I like to empower you with a POWERFUL free resource that goes with the episode which you can implement right away to create some of the same results, if not better, in your business.

This week, since we are talking about investments and retirement, I want to invite you to check out my Ultimate AI-Powered Investing Dictionary for Beginners to help you understand the language of the stock market!

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Retirement Isn’t an Age. It’s a Number.

My Freedom Number is the monthly income my investments would need to provide to support my desired lifestyle.

Think of it as the monthly price tag on your dream calendar: the home, the travel, the time with family, and the freedom to choose whether you work.

Instead of only asking how much I need to save by a certain birthday, I ask:

How much money would need to come in each month for me to live the life I want?

That gives me a destination I can connect to everyday decisions.

Three Mistakes I Explore

1. Collecting Investments Without Understanding What Could Affect Them

Diversification means spreading your money across different investments. Think of filling your closet with different outfits instead of buying ten copies of the same dress.

But if every outfit is made for summer, you’re still unprepared for winter.

In the episode, I explain why I look beyond the number of investments I own and consider how they might respond to different conditions.

I also introduce risk parity, which means balancing how much each investment contributes to the chance of losses or big changes in value. Think of packing a suitcase: splitting the space equally between shoes and silk dresses doesn’t mean each side weighs the same.

The aim is to prepare thoughtfully for different conditions, while recognizing that no combination removes every risk.

2. Building a Bigger Number Without Building More Freedom

Net worth means what you own minus what you owe. Think of adding up the value of your house, savings, and other belongings, then subtracting the unpaid bills attached to them.

That number can be impressive. But it doesn’t tell you how much money is arriving each month to support your life.

That’s why I pay attention to cash flow, meaning money coming in and going out. Picture your money as a beautiful fountain: the water arriving matters just as much as the water already sitting in the pool.

I want to build toward money coming in that can cover more of my lifestyle, from everyday expenses to the freedom to take time away.

3. Choosing Where to Put Money Without Considering When You’ll Need It

Accounts designed for retirement can offer benefits, but they also have rules about accessing your money.

I want those decisions to fit my goals and timing.

It’s like packing for a trip: the right item still needs to be in the bag you can reach when you need it.

In this episode, I explain why flexibility and access are part of how I think about financial freedom.

Build Around Your Life

Maybe your version of freedom is spending a summer in Italy.

Maybe it’s caring for an aging parent, taking three months off, or starting something you’ve always wanted to create.

Maybe it’s simply knowing you can choose what happens next.

Those desires deserve a place in the conversation about your money.

In Summary

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✨ Your challenge this week: Review your investment strategy. Ask yourself, is your money giving you more control and cashflow, so you can live the life you were meant to have and do the things you are on this earth to do?

If this episode helped you, DM me on Instagram (@sarahnicolenadler) and let me know your biggest takeaway!