KK Heart (2:31)

I was just an average everyday gal, and I Still am. So for me, my story starts with being, I think, at the right places at the right time, with people who saw me and saw my prowess and really leaned into that instead of kind of getting me to shy away from it. And I think being unapologetically ambitious means I had to believe in myself when no one else did. So my background's really unique. I'm a behavioral scientist by training. Twenty something years ago, that was pretty unique. Sits at the intersection of sociology, psychology, psychology and data and analytics. And I wish I could tell you there's a glamorous way that I got there, but I google searched in college. What are some ways that I could use this to my advantage? And what are the skill sets that were needed? And this is like the early 2000s, you might remember, like statistician was really big. And so I went for that degree with the purpose of really making something of myself. I came from a single parent home, we moved here from a small island. And so for me, it was really not just about proving something, but really living my fullest potential. So fast forward, I graduated college early. I got that behavioral science degree and started working for really large companies. I worked for Lilly, which I wish I had seen the GLP1s coming because now it's a very prominent organization. And what they did really well is they kind of with military grade precision, taught us about the brain. Why do we do what we do, how to change what we do and everything surrounding it. So I use that skill first in healthcare, biotechnology, pharma, and then also for technological organizations. This is back when the digital transformation was new and they needed behaviorists to make everything a bit more addictive, a bit more sticky. And so I used my powers, not necessarily for good at that time, but I learned my skills and I really loved what I was doing. I actually thought I was gonna be a corporate girly and just age out working for Lilly. They really put a lot into you, personally and professionally. And then I hit the glass ceiling really hard really early. I really don't rem thinking I'm gonna go out there and do this for myself. It sounds so cheesy, but I feel like entrepreneurship chose me. We now know this phrase of being like, very multi passionate. But I had many strengths and many interests and even in the realm of behavioral science, as you can see, I was using it for different industries. And the accidental moment was actually when I got divorced, married and divorced before 30. So that was awesome right there with you. It's a great way to live a good life. It Is and sadly, I had made a lot of money in my career and I had started investing very early. So I had a prenup and he challenged the prenup girl. That was the mic drop moment. I was like, well, we're going to do something about that. So I was able to uphold the prenup, get divorced, escape an abusive relationship. But then I was like, what am I going to do? Be like the wealthy businesswoman with a dog, which was my dream life. But I knew that I was called for more. So I had a first client in between that as I had gone out on my own and he was acquiring businesses. He was a dentist by trade and he would go and acquire dental clinics, buy out the owner, keep them on as an employee, and we would run what private equity now calls a roll up. We would run all of the businesses under a central service. So I started doing that and once I got divorced, I realized that I could do that for myself. And I did.

Julie Solomon (5:40)

Wow. And so I want to, if you'll take us back because one of the things that I know a lot of my viewers think and feel because I know them so intimately, they are all high, high achieving, high performing women. But a lot of them, they have to go through a lot of ups and downs and rock bottom moments to even feel wor. To invest, to hold money, to receive money, to not feel like that just needs to be passed on to some man to figure it out for them. So what was it about your upbringing? Whether it was being raised by an immigrant single mom, what about that gave you the resilience, the passion, the assertiveness to really not have a plan B honestly. And just to know that not only are you, you have an important skill set that you've acquired. You're smart, you're intelligent, you're dynamic. But that you are worthy of all of that. Where did that come from?

KK Heart (6:31)

You know, it's interesting now because I'm a mom through adoption and I find myself kind of reaching for those skills. My mom taught me every day as a mom myself. But I didn't even have time to think about this until you asked it. It was the self belief came from my mom who always believed in me. She taught us that education was kind of the big opportunity for us. You know, we had to be slightly better, slightly smarter, slightly stronger. And I leaned into that. She taught me that that was a blessing and not a curse. And so I always believed that she who works the hardest would get where she want, wants to go faster versus hacks and quick Fixes. So she really gave me this like, you can do anything, girl, go get em thought process. Very early on in life, I can tell you, from the age of eight, I wanted to do gymnastics. Mary Lou Wetton had won the Olympics on that hurt knee. And I went to my mom and was like, hey, I know this is gonna be tough for you. I need you to scrape up a couple thousand dollars. I wanna start competitive gymnastics. I'll give you a couple months to get that done. And she was like, you got it.

Julie Solomon (7:30)

Okay.

KK Heart (7:31)

And she did. Wow. A couple months later, she had enough money saved up. I started training where actually some of the Olympians had trained in Orlando. And I became a competitive gymnast and did that for 15 years.

Julie Solomon (7:41)

Wow.

KK Heart (7:41)

My mom is the ultimate. If you can see her, you can be her. And I was really lucky. I'm the youngest of three and I watched her glow up after divorcing my dad, leaving our country of origin in the middle of the night because he threatened to kill her. Real classy. And then we landed in the States and she had this amazing degree that she couldn't use and had to start all over again. Chose a secondary career which she rocked. And so she became a nurse and she started going through higher level education. And again, I could see that throughput of education being the thing that gave my mom the next opportunity. But here was the real learning. It's how she lived with money. She lived underneath her means. She was thoughtful about every decision and she brought me to the bargaining table. Julie. I was there negotiating a car. I negotiated the house she now still lives in. I was 12 and 16 years old, but I was there for all of it. And I got access to something that I believe has really transformed the way I view money, the way I true treat success, and the way I think about access and bringing people along for the ride.

Julie Solomon (Podcast Host - Promo) (8:38)

I am so excited to share this,

Julie Solomon (8:40)

especially for those of you who tune

Julie Solomon (Podcast Host - Promo) (8:42)

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Julie Solomon (10:20)

Oh, that's so good, kk. You're even just as a mom myself, you are reminding me in real time how important it is to have our children be involved in those things.

KK Heart (10:30)

Yeah.

Julie Solomon (10:30)

There's something that I remember you saying so distinctly when we spoke on that panel together and it was about this idea of living under your means. I want you to walk me through that, girlfriend. Like, what does that mean? You know, in the grand scheme of things, obviously it's going to be different from, from everybody. But when goals and values and things that someone may value, because there's nothing wrong in it, there's nothing wrong with. Someone may value, you know, a Mercedes and that's fine. Someone may value a Honda and that's fine.

KK Heart (10:54)

Yeah.

Julie Solomon (10:54)

But walk me through, like, what does this actually mean from a tangible and intangible standpoint to then gain the long term gains of what's on the other side of that?

KK Heart (11:04)

Well, that's it. I would say it starts with values, core beliefs and worldview. When I think about the worldview of what I have makes me who I am, it puts me in a position of scarcity immediately because I have to have more. Whereas if I lean into this idea that who I am is meant to magnify all these things that I'm great at and you know, money is a tool, things are a tool. That means you can have the occasional splurge, but it doesn't define you the same way. So I would say that was really firmly ingrained in me. I watched my mom be able to, you know, immigrated here, we became naturalized citizens. She Owned a home, she had tons of assets. But that living underneath your means was really the thing I thought catapulted her there faster and further than her peers, who actually didn't have those setbacks. What it looks like, I think, and you said this so astutely, it's different for everyone. What I believe it should be is maybe an emphasis more on liquidity, on diversification. And this is going to ruffle some feathers, but holding cash in ways that are meaningful enough for you to be able to come to the bargaining table, to have access, and to be able to maybe acquire or do different things with your money that most people don't often get the chance to do. I have about 15 to 20 different income streams that I still leverage and pull. And I think the hardest thing for people to wrap their minds around is this idea that diversification and treating my businesses like an asset is actually how I got here. But the underlying core of that is that I don't rely on money the way that most do. Money and material things don't make me who I am. So I've been the same person without it and with it. A few things look a little bit differently, but ultimately I'm a minimalist, so I actually prefer less to begin with. I would say that messes a lot of people up once they start coming into money, because the whole concept of the world now is like, how loud can you be? How much can you have? And when I look at what life really means for most people, it does not equate to those things. Working in business growth the way I have, I've actually been on the either side, whether acquirer or acquiree, of about $300 million in exits. You know what no one ever does after that exit? They don't go, man, the money is worth it. Never. They've never said the money drove them and that the money made everything worth it. What I often find also unpopular is personal development issues, issues with caretaking, divorce, struggles with kind of addiction, and things that they weren't dealing with. And so I found that more clients struggled in that area than they did financially. But there was a correlation between the way they treated money and things and to the way they treated their body, their assets, their family. And so that was really hard to sit with until I started realizing that there was a different way to do business. And when you think about, with our modern family office, we often think about the business is the vehicle, which is a flip from the average American, which is kind of using retirement vehicles, stocks, bonds, in order for Them to grow wealth for us. We acquire businesses. I own 10. And so that's a big part of it. And when you think of it that way, then you've got to grow that business in some really unique ways that may not always include an exit. And again, that's just that countercultural thinking of it's not really about more. It's about what can you do with what you have. And ultimately, I think keeping more means that you don't have to spend as much to get there something else.

Julie Solomon (14:13)

Because this is kind of leading me to another idea that I definitely think we need to talk about, because you will be so good at handing this. I think a lot of times when people create a business with the big goal to exit.

Julie Solomon (Podcast Host - Promo) (14:24)

You got it right?

Julie Solomon (14:24)

Like that's. That's the whole point.

KK Heart (14:25)

Come on.

Julie Solomon (14:26)

Yeah, the whole point is to exit. And here's my thoughts. So sometimes they immediately think, oh, well, I need to get a bunch of investors. I need to get people to fill up my board seat. I need to get this, and I need to get that. I want to know the blessing and the curse of those things. When do you think is the actual right time to do that, if at all? Like, what does that actually look like? And I'm sure that the business model dictates a lot of this and really, what's the goal at the end of the day? But I just want your take on that because I think it's going to be really interesting.

KK Heart (14:52)

Girl, this is a spicy hot take. I think so many women these days are in love with this idea of the exit. It's actually why I wrote cash flow 2.0. It's our growth operating system that we run the modern family office on. I actually earned every dollar in that with the exception of my husband. I made about 10 million before I met him, and then we tripled it since we've been together for about a decade. So when I tell you I understand the dream of the exit, I also just understand the practicality of it. So there's three different ways other than an exit that women overlook with regards to success, and many of them make you more successful from a cash flow perspective. I always say cash is queen, right? And so between that, being able to have liquidity, which is what lots of very successful people don't have, the idea of being able to use your assets without necessarily leaning on debt, for me, is a win that most women are overlooking. So let's talk about the exit for a second. You hope it's strategic. You're really Thoughtful. Right up until the point where it's time to get money. And then it's like whoever has the highest number wins, right? But that often leads to the things we see today, which is that, you know, private equity gets a bad rap. We run a lot of our businesses that we have taken on and acquired full out, very much so like private equity. But we forget that after the exit, there is a a mismatch and a misalignment of incentives. And most founders aren't thrilled even with a lot of money in the bank. But they've also overlooked three other ways they could have what I call go for growth and not had to sell their baby and their business in a way that did not feel as aligned other financially. So I'll give you an idea of what those are. Two of which are internal, one is also external. So internally, you know, most business owners are thinking about how can I grow the business? And they think about this external lever first. I'm going to exit to someone and it's going to be big, hairy, audacious. It's going to be all the zeros, baby. But that doesn't happen for most people. And actually for female founders, it's even smaller. The second is growth through acquisition, which is something I love. I acquired my children, for God's sakes, right? So I love acquisition. But you actually need money to do so. You need money, assets and influence to do so. But these other two are often overlooked because they're not as sexy, they're not as interesting. And those are internal ways to grow. Imagine you've got this kind of client base you've already been serving and you need to get more of their wallet or pocketbook, which means you can add other services and offerings, products that get more share of wallets. That's another internal way of going for growth. The other is this idea of I want to be really thoughtful about how I say this. When you're looking to grow internally, you often overlook that there's a drip in your funnels, there's a drip in your conversion. And for me, conversion optimization is actually a huge skillset. It's made millions of dollars for clients that I've worked with, businesses I've acquired, and even businesses that I invest in because we're always looking for that next high of the new client, right? Let's run ads, let's get more influencers. But actually what we don't think about is 1% more of the people we already have a connection to who already are on our list can make us a Lot more money. So I wish women would think a little bit more holistically about their goals in that area. You know, there are many ways to enjoy your success financially and not financially. And I think actually the exit comes up as the most exciting, but the interpersonal issues still follow and the caretaking needs still come. And I think a lot of really well to do women find that at some point they hit a wall because their lifestyle is not built for the business that they currently have.

Julie Solomon (18:15)

Share more about that.

KK Heart (18:16)

It's brutal because we've kind of treated our businesses as a job. And like I said, when you think about the asset management philosophy, the concept around a business is actually the opposite of the average American, which means you need to grow that business in order to get wealth. And so a lot of times we're chasing the wrong outcome for the lifestyle we want. So we have the money in the bank, but we feel tied to the business. We can't get off social, we're unhappy. And that doesn't feel aligned either. Right. But then the idea of just giving it all away and getting this large number is so rare. I mean, the odds about it, it's incredibly low. Most women find themselves in a really difficult financial position, just trying to get there right.

Julie Solomon (18:54)

Especially for personal brands, 100% impossible.

KK Heart (18:57)

And so this is the conversation I wish I was having more often where we're really thoughtful about our growth. I always think of it as a more holistic version of growth because when I think about what most women are talking about, you know, in our girlfriend groups and when we're behind the scenes, it's not that I wish I made more money because it would make my life better. It's like I want my life to be better and yeah, I want to make more money. And I feel like being unapologetically, apologetically ambitious for so much of my life. You know, this is my 24th year in business, I'm only 40.5. And so I think there's something to the idea that you can have both. I know that's controversial these days, but you can be personally successful and professionally successful if you're thinking about that long term success in a more strategic, intentional and proactive way. And a big part of that is figuring out, you know, who am I, what do I want out of this and what's going to happen next? What's in five years that I'm not foreseeing that I can actually, actually kind of change my incentive structure, change the way I do business now so I can actually grow into this business instead of growing out of it.

Julie Solomon (19:59)

And it reminds me of something that. So I grew up in blue collar working family. We didn't have money to barely put food on the table, let alone anything else. But my parents divorced and then my mom in my early teens married a very, very, very successful businessman. And he's also an incredible human being. And so I was able to learn some things that I didn't learn early on in my life. And one of the things that he taught me early on is he said, you know, as you go out into the workforce and as to acquire assets and, you know, profit and things like that, you have to understand what does it cost to be you?

KK Heart (20:31)

Yeah.

Julie Solomon (20:31)

And like, what does that mean? And not just you, but you as a family, you as kind of things that you want to invest in, you as the kinds of organizations you want to give back to. Like, what does it cost to be you? Do you agree with that being an important indicator? And if so, I would also love to know what other indicators, what other tips and tricks like that would you love to add on to that? That's really important when a woman is doing her thing, growing her business, making her money, like, needs to be thinking about in order to make sure that when she's 65 years old, she's not still having to show up on Instagram doing a webinar because she has no assets to fall back on.

KK Heart (21:08)

Girl. This is where I say, get your assets together. Right? Because it really came about because the thought process of waiting until you're wealthy to have the ability to think about these things is actually not how I got here. I made the first million saving, investing in the stock market, bonds and real estate. Boring, right? And so what. What I found very early on was this idea of when you get your assets together, you can do it with little and you get way more as you do it with much. So now as we've created our family office, part of the structure is around this idea of alternative assets. And I think a lot of people believe that you first, like get an accidental amount of money and then you start deploying, you start having thoughtfulness, win the lottery 100% every time. And so many times when I share that, and it's actually been very new for me to share that for so much of my career. I was actually very stealth and didn't share that I was successful, kind of pretended I didn't have money. And the first thought process for most people is like, well, who's your daddy? Right. Which is interesting because I'm the matriarch. I made that money, honey. And when I thought about assets, I thought about it in my first $100,000. I remember I was quite young when I made that. But I started thinking, where can I deploy capital to get a gain for the long term from this small.

Julie Solomon (22:19)

Because that was $100,000 was a lot of money for.

Julie Solomon (Podcast Host - Promo) (22:22)

Yes.

Julie Solomon (22:23)

And for where you were in your life. Like, how can I take this? And that's. Yeah. Beautiful.

KK Heart (22:27)

It's part of the story that I want people to hear, which is not the big number now. It's, what did I do with those lower numbers? Tax strategy, diversification of assets. And honestly started betting on myself, started realizing that if I'm my best asset, then I need to invest in that just like I invest in anything else. I think we do that these days, but we do it more with material goods. We do it more with vanity metrics. And, I mean, I can happily say I took multiple years off social and I made more money those years. And I met my husband and my children at some point. So it was a really beautiful journey for me to see that I could do less but also gain more. And then, you know, as I think about impact and something you said about kind of where I view myself as successful now, it's being work optional. It's living a life where I actually choose to wake up every day. I actually still love working with clients on their growth. I still love looking at a deck and investing. I've got a couple coming up, and I still love acquiring. I try to do one a year, and so that's a real joy. That's the F word, as I call it. Freedom that most people want, but they put themselves in a position. Position where they'll never get there because of the way that they're treating themselves, their money, and also their skills. There's so much to this. That's a skill that can be learned, and I'm still learning, and I'm having a great time doing.

Julie Solomon (23:41)

So who is your ideal client?

KK Heart (23:43)

For which thing?

Julie Solomon (23:45)

Ooh, for. Let's do. For. For acquisitions, but then also for your mentorship. Consulting, growth side.

KK Heart (23:53)

Yeah. Trick question. It's the same gal for everything. That's the Lynch.

Julie Solomon (23:57)

That's what I was like.

KK Heart (23:57)

I think you're gonna say the same one. Yep. No. 100% what I did that I now.

Julie Solomon (24:01)

Cool.

KK Heart (24:02)

And thanks to all the ladies who've really talked me up these last couple of years, because I just thought it was a natural skill set. And this is the only way I

Julie Solomon (24:08)

could do it right.

KK Heart (24:09)

But I thought about the ideal client so intricately that everything I do, acquisition, growth, consulting and advising, or being at that investment level, always around the same ideal client. Now she's kind of grown with me, so she's 28, 30 plus. She really aggressively invests in herself, usually personally and professionally. And so her needs are so varied and so vast that I mean, I do so many different things to be able to meet her needs. So I acquired a skincare company last year, Ghost Democracy. It's been fantastic to give something that I actually was a client of to that ideal client who knew she wanted cleaner ingredients. She wanted to stop doing eight things. And that was an asset that really fell into my lap because I had cash. So when you think about her, she has these personal desires, but then professionally she's really asking me, how do you manage all of these assets together? How can I get my assets together, but also how can I put it together in a way like the family office, where there's strategy beyond now and I call generational growth, where there's money for the future, there's money for everyone who's at the table. And we're still partnering and growing that money year over year. So she has really had her glow up, but she's still looking for the next step to really solidify her success financially.

Sponsor Voice / Ad Read (25:22)

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Julie Solomon (25:35)

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Julie Solomon (26:37)

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Julie Solomon (26:54)

what is your thought process on for those that start to build generational wealth? When do they start to offset that to the future generations? This has been a big conversation that I and I think a book came out a couple years that talked about. There was kind of this mentality of the boomer mentality that, you know, we wait until we're dead or we wait until we're 85 and then, you know, we give the money to our children. And you know, of course the government's going to take a big chunk of that and you're going to have a ton of capital gains tax and da da, da, da versus well, actually let's give it to them when they're younger, when they can use it and they can use it for education or our grandchildren can use it for education. Yeah. Do you have any thoughts about that and how does that play a part in your strategy and your approach to.

KK Heart (27:33)

It's everything. And you know what's so sad, Julie? I still remember the day that my CPA at the time called me and said, hey, like, you've hit a million dollars, you should be celebrating. And I was single, I was alone with a dog, and I was so sad. And while I had all the assets, right, and that million was cash, so it was liquid, so the net worth was higher. I just, I can't tell you that that was really a goal that I felt was worth celebrating at the time because I feel like there's so much more to life than that that. Now the second part of your question

Julie Solomon (28:08)

was, do you have a thought process and like, you just save it, diversify, hold it away, or do you start to share it?

KK Heart (28:14)

Well, so here's the thing. At that time, it felt really futile to create a future for someone I didn't know. My forever husband for kids I never thought I'd have. We pinky promised swear we would never have kids. And so this is unpopular boy. I'm very unpopular today with my opinions. But I think you've got to do that work early, even when you don't know what it's going to look like in the future. The only reason I'm sitting here with you today with the success I had is I did it before. It felt good. So everything from putting aside as much savings as possible to starting to put stuff into the stock market and going beyond my company match Those are things that I did 20, 21, 22. Compound interest is real friend. And so I didn't start playing with the longer term stuff until way later, going out the risk curve, you know, the things that people are really excited about that I do. I'm a limited partner in a venture capital fund. I'm a general partner. So I'm part of the management team on a private equity fund. I invest in startups, some of them really well known that happened way later to your point. But when we start thinking about risk management, you know, this is the thing that most people wouldn't see from the outside in. I'm a wuss. Like I was acquiring businesses because I would get that money back every month, right. I wasn't believing in myself that I could run this empire. So even when the early stages of the family office were formed, I was doing the thing that I now know is really difficult for a lot of people. I have a lot of strengths in business and money. I tell you, I was a hot mess before I met my husband and I'm proud to share that. So this is just a natural skill set that I think most people can learn if they're willing. But that is the uncomfortable truth is like you have to start putting aside the money for the rainy day. You have to start doubling down on how you diversify that and where you put that money while it's sitting there. When do you start deploying it? And that's personal to everyone, but as early as humanly possible, even under a million. And then once you're at that million dollar mark, that's when you start to think, okay, a million dollars liquid, you usually have other assets and levers to pull from. And this is when I start thinking about business growth. So from, I would say from 10, this is where we're really trying to grow the businesses first and then everything after that. Now you can start really thinking about some of the riskier bets because the odds of them going well are low, especially if you're not going to manage it yourself. And I'm a big advocate of that, even though it's an unpopular view about kind of the assets under management approach to wealth. But the lower we start with regards to risk, unsexy, but so incredibly consistent. And then as we go out the risk curve, our upside down grows quite exponentially, but it also increases our risk. So I think there's something to be said for just sitting with the basics for as long as possible. And there's some great experts on this. Like I always say, ditch the debt. But I've always been so risk avert. I didn't have debt. And then when I think about people who've gotten out of debt, they tell me how simple it is. They're like, I put money aside. I stopped living outside of my means. It was so simple for them.

Julie Solomon (31:04)

But paid the highest interest rate down for ourselves. Exactly.

KK Heart (31:06)

The, there's, there's processes for these, I think, where a lot of women tell me now, they're like, I would love to hear more about how you did this. Was this kind of intricate balance of wealth building alongside business growing. And this is what I'm trying to be more honest about, where there's ebbs and flows. But when I think about business acquisition, it's probably one of my favorite kind of linchpins in our family office that most don't have.

Sponsor Voice / Ad Read (31:25)

Right.

KK Heart (31:26)

And the reason for that is really simple. You can offset the highs and lows of the market, whether it's stocks or real estate, with businesses. And so if you can actually run the businesses as well as I do, being operational and being efficient with that also grows you in a different way. So now you're growing your capital and your skill sets at the same time.

Julie Solomon (31:44)

Right.

KK Heart (31:44)

Every time I do a deal, investment, or acquisition, I'm learning, I'm growing, and I'm also gaining more in my bottom line and my liquid number. So that's really the unlock for me. It's like, it's slow, it's methodical, and it starts taking off really fast if you let it, and if you keep more of that under your wheelhouse, so to speak. And I call it DIY your roi, which may mean that you manage a team who does it for you, may be crazy like my husband and I, and want to do more on your own, and that's a skill set that you can learn. But we've got to stop taking our eyes off the prize with regards to our generational wealth. And instead, we need to think about, what is this really going to mean for me in 10 years, in 30 years? And then you start thinking about the generations behind you. And that's where playing the long game always wins.

Julie Solomon (32:28)

So what would be your advice? There may be a woman listening right now that she's like, okay, KK, you know, I, I, I make $1.3 million a year. I take home 800 of that. Okay, I'm 41. I'm too late. I didn't start this when I was 20. What am I gonna do? How do I do this? Am I just gonna be destitute at 65. What would you say to someone like that?

KK Heart (32:50)

Well, that's what I get all the time, to your point. And I always ask this question, which is, how much are you keeping liquid? Cause those big kind of high revenue numbers, those are vanity metrics too, Right? When I hear you're keeping 800,000, I'm thinking, okay, that's f. Where does that money go? This is what comes back to that fiscal conservatism. Because a lot of times our lifestyle creep has come alongside the business success. And I'm not telling people not to live in a great home or love the life they're living with some financial success. I'm just saying, can you right size that with your monthly burn? Can you figure out how much can I live off of that really feels aligned and feels like success, but how much of that can I stop burning so I can start putting it into other wealth vehicles? And so we still. We built our home into Dallas three years ago. We still built about a third of what we could afford, and it was more than enough. It's a primary residence for us. It wasn't about getting money out of it in the end, but it was this mindset about, what can we do with a couple extra million dollars that we wouldn't have, you know, wanted to do otherwise? So much, so many things.

Julie Solomon (33:51)

And I think a lot of times, like you said, it's like, okay, well, if you're taking home, you know, 800, is that liquid? That's actually.

KK Heart (33:57)

That's fantastic. Margins. Absolutely.

Julie Solomon (33:59)

That's a lot of money to get some started. So, like, yeah, where is that going? If you're taking home 800, but it costs 1.5 a year to be you. So now you've got this debt piling up. Like, we've got to kind of look at what. Where that's at. And I think that where most women get kind of lost is that they don't understand the basic math, which is completely normal and fine. But then they let that dictate.

KK Heart (34:19)

Yes.

Julie Solomon (34:20)

And then they keep saying, well, once this happens, once that happens, once I win the lottery, then I'll have to figure this out.

KK Heart (34:26)

This is why I want to beat the drum about the different ways to grow. You know, that woman may be thinking, my business is not, like, operational in a way that I can exit.

Julie Solomon (34:34)

I'm not making enough yet.

KK Heart (34:35)

Correct. And so the thought process around that is, let's look at the other ways that you can grow that feel aligned for your lifestyle. So she may have two or Three kids and she can't really take time to go grow the business externally. But she can improve her conversion optimization. It's one of my favorite things that I do.

Julie Solomon (34:50)

We can look at people.

KK Heart (34:52)

Yeah, we can look at people who can see. Okay, well, we're not really converting this client type. What is this avatar? What are we missing? What can we bring into our wheelhouse that we can offer that client? These are the things we often overlook because it feels easier to. To say I need more and I'll do more when I get more to your point. And I actually think we can do so much more with less and sit very comfortably. I think I show up today hopefully very authentically because I don't have a thing I need to sell and I don't want to manage people's assets under management. I want to empower people to feel how I feel right now. And I'm so grateful that I feel this way.

Julie Solomon (35:27)

Do you have a success story? And you don't. Obviously I know you probably a lot of confidential, but a success story of a woman that, you know, maybe came in maybe under your consulting arm or what have you and kind of felt that way. Maybe she felt she was too late. Maybe she felt that she hadn't made enough. Maybe she felt that the operations were just completely all over the place and she was a hot mess. Express.

Julie Solomon (Podcast Host - Promo) (35:46)

Yeah.

Julie Solomon (35:47)

And how you were able to turn that around.

KK Heart (35:49)

Yeah, I'm really lucky. I've worked with most of the clients on the consulting advising arm for almost a decade. So we really grow together. There's one I think of that. Her story could have gone a different way and actually it would have looked more successful. She owned a single location yoga studio and. And had basically hit her first kind of real success financially when I met her. What I thought was interesting about her is that most people would have chosen more locations. Franchise girl, you know it, right. And she was really intricately kind of interested in the idea of not really knowing what a personal life would be. You know, spoiler alert. I actually helped her meet her husband. They got married, they grew the businesses. They got to four locations. Extremely profitable, multimillion dollar Prof. Profit. And helped him start a hospitality business. And helped her and her new partner start more hospitality businesses outside of their state. When I tell you the success around that, I think about her kiddo that she had to pay for IVF for. I think about her husband who really didn't have a lot of stability before she met him. I don't think about those six yoga locations and how well, they're doing right. But that is the success is that she went for. For less, but went for depth. And so that depth has made her a fantastic living and stability. And I think that's that push and pull we're often struggling with as business owners, where the biggest number is the best, but that biggest number may not be continuous. And so I want people to think about this a little more holistically, which is, you know, this sounds so cheesy, but what is the benefit of, you know, gaining the world if you lose your soul? And sometimes we're chasing that 1.3 every year. We're not necessarily doing it the right ways. We're not necessarily valuing it in the right ways. And so I wonder if there's a place where we can live within our means comfortably and still be ambitious and grow. And that's what I'm learning for myself, even still.

Julie Solomon (37:44)

Well, I want to talk about that a little bit, as I know that you had the gift of fostering and then adopting a set of siblings, a daughter and a son. And I want to just hear about what. I know that you've had it in your heart, like you felt called by God to do that at a very young age, and it was there and for a reason. But what that has been like, that you've now got these two incredible children that you get to nurture and steward and teach. And, you know, you're sharing with me a story about how your daughter was. Was talking about buildings that she needed to buy and ways to diversify her assets, which is just incredible at 10 years old. Right. And so just share with me how becoming a mother and becoming a mother in such a. A really beautiful and unique and courageous way. Yeah. Has opened your eyes or maybe even kind of changed how your values have shifted and changed and, you know, how you're really approaching what your wealth and what success means to you now.

KK Heart (38:42)

Boy, has it changed me. You know, when you talk about my kids, I instantly go into mom mode and thinking about our last dinner where we were literally analyzing an investment together. And, like, these are the things that I feel like I'm meant to do in the world. You know, I had a heart for foster care and adoption since I was young, young kid. I never knew why. I believe God put that inside of me very young. Maybe because if my dad had killed my mom, I would have been in foster care. Right. I can't glamorize that. But I want to be clear that I always believed that children deserved a safe, healthy, happy home. And I always thought that would be my backup plan if I ever decided to be a mom. I just can't believe I'm living it. So here's how we got here. You know, husband and I pinky promised, swore that we wouldn't have kids. We actually vibed off of that very early on. Especially with a forever husband, you kind of come to the table when. With a lot of do's and don'ts. And that was a big one for us. Somewhere in my journey, my mom did something really right. Even as an adult, she led in a way that I just completely enamored with her for. She said, you've got your time, your treasure, and your talent. Make sure you're using all of it very, very wisely. So I started volunteering, trying to give back because I had so much free time. And that's how I met my kids. I was a CASA volunteer. And so at the. At that level of care, you're just supposed to, like, hang out, take them into the community, maybe teach some life skills. And my daughter really changed my life the second visit when she said, I really think you should be my mom. And that just. It changed everything for me, Julie. It made me realize that the path that I thought I was on, which is even reading books about regretting motherhood. There's a book called that. And realizing that that was actually not the path that I was gonna choose. Like, if I chose it, I knew I wouldn't really regret it.

Julie Solomon (40:26)

Yep.

KK Heart (40:26)

But how it would all come together just feels divinely interventioned. And so something about becoming a mom and an entrepreneurial mom, because, remember, I had most of the businesses, with the exception of the 10th business we just acquired, prior to my kids, I had most of the wealth. Prior to my kids. My biggest concern is it would kill my ambition. I was so lucky that women really poured into me that had a similar mindset and had become moms and were really joyful about it. They were so open and honest with me. And so as an entrepreneurial mom, here's what I thought that would look like. I'd sit back every day. I'd run whatever businesses I already had. I'd take them to school. You know, we would walk and live a very active lifestyle. And all of that's true. But, boy, it fueled my ambition even more. The real difference was kind of what that looks like tangibly moving forward. I've always been one to either 100% acquire, strategically invest. But it's very rare. You have to have a really specific part of skill set that I want to buy into or I'm advising and mentoring. But now all I think about is partnerships. I think about women that I want to take along on the ride. I think about underrepresented founders who need someone to know that they exist and to give them not just like an opportunity, but maybe a check, maybe access, network. A network. Things that I realize, and I'm really grateful for that I actually had that got me here, here. But I. I don't. I wish I could tell you I had that as my vision of success before becoming a mom. But I think about my kids and the way that we've nurtured them just in a few short years and watching how that can truly talk about influencing change. And now I'm more ambitious not because I need the money, but because I want to help other people on their ride up and help them to see that the ride up doesn't have to be tragic. It doesn't need to be where you sell your yourself and lose your soul. And that's actually quite uncommon these days that someone has that desire and is willing to share. So they've completely changed me. And now some of my best memories of the last couple of years are having those conversations at the dinner table about what should our next acquisition be? Should we change our thesis? What are we doing that's like tax aligned with regards to the kids future. Future. And they're there for all of it, Julie. And they're leaned in and they're thinking about themselves as their asset. Instead of being a kid that was thrown away or born into nothing but drug addiction, they're now looking at themselves going, man, I've got my assets together. I've got a path. Now I just have to go live my fullest potential so mom and dad can turn over the keys one day.

Julie Solomon (43:03)

Yeah. Do they have any assets in their name yet?

KK Heart (43:07)

We have a trust, and so they've got a chance trust that really sets them up for life. We're still going back and forth on when we'll release certain milestones. Right. But what's been really unique is that they get the right to say what we acquire, what we invest in. And so while I was looking at things that were kind of purely millennial for my, you know, zone of genius, I've got a Gen Z, Gen Alpha little girl. Yeah, she's bringing trends to the table. And so she's really kind of making me rethink not just the style of business but, but the style of client that we want to start attracting. Because I think it's unfortunate to say, but our economy is shifting in a way that doesn't benefit everyone. And you know, I feel like I was just one of those lucky few that got to the top of the K shaped economy so fast and so early. But I think about that a lot because my daughter is constantly thinking about underrepresented, underfunded, the normal person. And so it's easy. When you acquire the way that I have over what I think is a very early amount of time and have sat on it and started deploying it, it's real easy to say, well, I only want to do things that are for like high net worth and the very best. And that is what most of my things that I lean into do because that's who I am. But I've got this little girl who doesn't forget her past and she's constantly thinking about who can we bet on, what can we do that's up and coming and underrepresented now. And I mean, one of these days she's going to be driving the ship, so to speak to me.

Julie Solomon (44:30)

A force of nature.

KK Heart (44:31)

I can't wait to see what happen

Julie Solomon (44:34)

with her, like and to be 10 years old and to already have that kind of wisdom and awareness, you know, her past was brutal, but it allowed her to be who she is right now and that's gonna serve her very well.

KK Heart (44:45)

I always think on our hard days, boy, she's an amazing leader. And as an adult, we are gonna love that about her. As a child, sometimes we kind of wish that she would remember that she's just a little kid, but she is a leader that I am grateful to know, which is crazy for a parent to say. We always say, who adopted who. Yeah, it's beautiful though, because it really is the future that I'm. And this is a kid who leans into her strengths because she has struggles and she sees the world and opportunity even though she knows what has been and what could be. And I want to see a world through her eyes more and more. Yeah, I really do.

Julie Solomon (45:20)

And it's a good reminder for me too.

KK Heart (45:22)

Yeah.

Julie Solomon (45:22)

For all the moms that are watching, we forget.

KK Heart (45:25)

And I think I just don't have the ability to ignore it because of what I do. And because they're a part of every investment acquisition in everything we do, we forget that they don't necessarily follow what we say. They follow what we do, girl. So when I say one thing and do another, she's paying attention. And the opposite and the inverse is true as well. So there are Days she'll say, mommy, it's occurred to me that you do everything you tell me to do. Or I overheard a conversation the other day. Both kids were talking, and they said, I wonder who makes more money, mom or dad? And then I heard my son say, I think it's mom, because she's, like, really impressive. And then my daughter said, I think it's mom, too, but I don't know that she, like, makes the most. I just know she is comfortable. And I was like, this is epic.

Julie Solomon (46:10)

Right.

KK Heart (46:10)

We're talking about money, something that most women, especially, are afraid to do. We're leaning into where we can use our money for good versus pretending that we don't have any or that there's no impact that can be given. And these kids at this very young, young age can see a version of wealth that I wish I saw even sooner in a world that's telling us to do the opposite.

Julie Solomon (46:32)

Right.

KK Heart (46:32)

Oh, it's cool.

Julie Solomon (46:33)

It's so cool.

KK Heart (46:34)

It's really so important.

Julie Solomon (46:35)

Okay, so as we go through the rest of this year, 2026, and really on to the next few years, there's just a lot changing. Yeah. In the landscape and in the world and with AI and tech and all the parts to play, what are you you most excited about and then what's kind of making you maybe hesitate a little bit, or not hesitate, but just kind of reserve? What are you getting a little bit more conservative or reserved about when it comes to money?

KK Heart (47:04)

You know, real talk, lots of reservations. I'll start there. I think asset values are out of control. It's really tricky. I started acquiring so long ago where you didn't have crazy multiples on businesses and not everyone was wearing called a

Julie Solomon (47:18)

unicorn because it's so rare.

KK Heart (47:20)

And now everyone wants these crazy valuations and extravagant exits even when the business isn't performing well. And it's been brutal. I've actually tried to acquire more times in the last 12 months than probably ever before. We've deployed about 5 million in the last year and, like, been extremely picky about how and where to, because you can really lose your shirt if you're not thoughtful and operational about this. So I would say that's the thing that keeps me up at night, is almost feels like valuations have gone to the place where I don't know when my next acquisition will be. And I used to do one a year with the exception of the year I, you know, took off to acquire my kids.

Julie Solomon (47:54)

Right.

KK Heart (47:55)

So that was my joy, was finding that one acquisition every year. And Now I think what I'm really thinking about is kind of alternative strategies to use the businesses we have. Growing the family office means the top line continues to grow every year just through compound interest and different things hitting at different times. So we talked about this earlier, but there's not a perfect timeline, but there's a timeline to when liquidity will come up even more. And we've really thought about that. With being work optional for so long, this is the generational asset that we want to give on to the kids. So putting in some stop guards there just to financially be able to do that. And so that's really what keeps me up at night, what gets me excited. You know, I was an early adopter to artificial intelligence as a behaviorist 10, 15 years ago. They wanted us to prompt. They wanted us to understand kind of how to use. You remember if this. Then that.

Julie Solomon (48:42)

Yeah, yeah, yeah.

KK Heart (48:43)

They wanted us to understand that and how to use technology. I even had an exit off of it where I was working with a company, became their early client, started advising, and we ended up selling to my biggest client, mindbody. So there was a lot of really good things about AI early on.

Julie Solomon (48:57)

Yeah.

KK Heart (48:57)

I'll be honest. What happened was things advanced so quickly that I actually started to lean out and feel nervous about the state of the world and like, what would happen if this technology went into the wrong hands, you know, did the wrong things. And here we are. Right. And so now, now I'm very thoughtful about artificial intelligence and software and technology, but I'm also thinking about how can we leverage this as the average person and not just to write great copy for social media. Right. Like to do things that are really impactful and we're using it more and more. My husband and I, we really delicately manage the family office together. He's kind of head of investments. Everything goes through him after I approve. I'm the matriarch, baby. But I bring the deals to the table. I bet them thoroughly. First I do diligence and he then goes through and just runs the numbers. So we've been using a lot of AI for that more and more. Where we had an associate doing that and we realized there was still human error, there were still concerns, and so we're bringing it more in house to touch it and feel it more. But I am excited about things that would. Gosh, that would have taken me years to figure out.

Julie Solomon (50:02)

Right, right. That now takes months and eventually will probably take days, literally. Or hours.

KK Heart (50:07)

Literally.

Sponsor Voice / Ad Read (50:07)

Yeah.

KK Heart (50:07)

So I love that. I love seeing how technology continues to improve our lives if we let it. And I'm really leaning into that and funding companies that are of at that intersection of like the benefits of in real life and then also leveraging technology for, you know, hopefully good. So I'm excited about that. I'd say the other thing I'm really excited about is for people to really think about their financial situations more. I never thought I'd be talking about money ever. I'm a business growth girly, so that's where I really lean in. But when I thought about the way that we ran all of our businesses, the way this 300 million exits came about, it really was what I call cash flow 2.0, which is this idea of three other other ways to be successful besides just the exit. And so now as I'm sharing about that more, I see eyes light up, I see women feel free. I see future caretakers of parents and children who feel like there's a path for them and they've got this thing that I think of as optionality which is you don't have to decide today that an exit is on the books. You can make that decision later on if you follow the principles of cash flow, if you follow internal growth, if you acquire instead of just focus on being acquired. But that takes a little bit of discipline. Discipline. It takes some balance and some regimen and I feel like that's both an inside job and an external job. And I'm excited about that.

Julie Solomon (51:22)

Oh, so good kk, thank you, thank you, thank you for being here. You are just beyond a force of nature and so articulate and you have so much heart and soul and wisdom and, and it's just, it radiates off of you that you are truly doing what you were meant to do in this lifetime. And I'm just so honored to know you. Thank you. And if you wouldn't mind telling people where they can learn more about your companies, the ways that you can support them, where to find you on social, online and beyond.

KK Heart (51:52)

Yeah, well, I actually recorded my story in a docu series called Generational Growth that's live on YouTube under KK Heart. You can find me on basically everything under KK Heart. And cash flow 2.0 is out. It is an amazing 300 page manual that is aligned with mentorship and coaching. Coaching with me. I always found there wasn't a one shot way to explain this. But being able to break down the way you want your family assets to work, the four layer capital strategy, the asset management, all of that, it can be taught. And I'm excited to be teaching it and so all of that is on heartincorporated.com beautiful.

Julie Solomon (52:25)

I'm grabbing it myself because I can't wait to dive in. You've just opened my eyes to so much today and I appreciate you and your time.

KK Heart (52:31)

I love it. Let's grow.

Julie Solomon (52:32)

Yeah if to do if today's episode

Julie Solomon (Podcast Host - Promo) (52:35)

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