It is rightly said that “Feminism isn’t about making women stronger. Women are already strong. It’s about changing the way the world perceives that strength.” The role of women in the finance industry has evolved from financial puppets to financial planners, homemakers to home financiers, and financial advisors. Having the goal of becoming financially independent as young as possible, Kim Butler began to save money by selling milk when she was just a child. She stood steadfast to her mission as she believed in progress, founded Prosperity Thinkers, and drove it to the next level through her powerful vision.
Cornerstones of Entrepreneurial Vision
Kim Butler’s 30-year career has been marked by a humble beginning to her financial journey. Everything began on her farm, where she and her sister cared for their dairy cows. Kim recalls, “Since I was in 4th grade, I have worked with money. When my parents bought me a milk cow, my sister Tammi Brannan and I sold the milk to neighbors and church friends.” As a result of this responsibility, Kim developed a desire to take control of her life, a love of saving, and an entrepreneurial vision. She used her milk money to attend a private college debt-free and launch a career in finance. Kim shares, “Then after college, while working at a bank, I simply realized that I loved helping people with their money, so I expanded my offerings. After 30+ years, I’ve figured out what works and what doesn’t work with people and money. So our newest brand, Prosperity Thinkers, is there to help people with Inspiration, Education, and Activation of the foundational aspect of all things financial.”
Establishment of Prosperity Thinkers & Its Uniqueness in the Financial Industry
Kim recalls, “We used to be known by another Prosperity name for the first 30 years of my work, and so last year we decided to re-brand for the next 30 years (since I don’t believe in retirement).” Kim purchased over 100 URLs during a week-long “naming spree” and ultimately chose ProsperityThinkers.com because she has always appreciated the fact that prosperity can mean so much more than money. Her thoughts have such a powerful impact on her reality. She says, “I really like helping people turn their brains on, combined the Prosperity word with Thinkers to imply that we are helping people think differently about their money and wealth that is more than money.”
Since the internet’s onset, the Prosperity Thinkers team has worked across the country. They provide motivation, education, and activation. Kim says, “We focus on Simplifying your Savings, Automating your Assets, and installing Faith in your Finances.”
A Stalwart Financial Advisor
Kim’s vision and mission revolve around empowering her clients to provide lifelong service. What does this imply? It entails inspiring them to live lives of purpose for the rest of their lives, rather than retiring or stepping down. (This is how retirement is defined) Kim shares, “I’ve always liked to hoe my row, in other words, to be the boss, set the standards, lead the way, yet with humble confidence, no egotism.”
Kim, who has worked in many aspects of the financial industry, now helps clients develop long-term, sustainable wealth through the use of whole life insurance. The general public underutilizes life insurance while it serves as the “secret” foundation of America’s wealthiest. “I’ve helped people with money for what seems like my whole life. I started at a bank right after college and before the internet began, helping with checking accounts and mortgages. Then three years later, started getting my securities and life insurance licenses. All the while, trying to walk the talk I was sharing with my clients, which amounted to “automate your savings,”” added Kim.
Performance & Progress Leads to Customer Satisfaction
Kim shares, “I love the idea of progress. We strive to make some every day, individually, within our team, and for and with our clients. We enjoy helping over 100 people a year adopt a win-win-win approach to their finances. We also continually publish books, games, videos, blog posts, and podcasts to reach the various ways people learn. Our next book, Busting the College Planning Lies, is due in the fall of 2022.”
Another intriguing aspect of Prosperity Thinkers is the customer feedback. Kim highlights, “Our Google reviews mention how pleased readers are with our educational material.” Kim grew up in a house with two teachers and has always enjoyed reading, so it’s no surprise their material is famous. Kim brings up one of their client’s testimonials, “One of my favorite examples is from Sylvia: I discovered Prosperity Thinkers and the Prosperity Economics Movement through reading the Busting Financial Planning Lies series. The day I finished the first book of the series, I knew I was transported out of the mainstream herd of financial advice and onto the path of next-level financial aptitude. There’s no turning back now — I know too much, thanks to Kim Butler and the other PEM authors.”
The Prosperity Economics Movement
Kim says, “My husband, Todd Langford of TruthConcepts.com, and I felt there were 2 groups of people who needed continued help in financial literacy. Advisors and Clients.” With that commitment in mind, Kim co-founded the Prosperity Economics Movement, a non-profit providing financial education materials to individuals, whole-life-friendly agents, and brokers.
She added, “So the movement (which is a public 501(c)(3)) was formed to help both groups. It seems silly that financial advisors need help understanding how money works, yet they do. We see many videos where the advisor doesn’t understand the math behind the money.” Kim clarifies the situation by saying, “One example is borrowing at 4% and investing at 5%. That is a 25% improvement, not a 1% improvement. Another example is advisors will add up a series of payments cumulatively on one side of a ledger, then apply the time value of money (or opportunity cost) to the other side of a ledger (like when comparing two strategies), which is horribly inaccurate.”
Innovation-Driven Company Culture to Motivate Team Members
“I’m an innovator myself (according to my Kolbe profile), so this comes naturally to me, and consequently our team,” said Kim. She is drawn to technology because of its efficiency. Since her life’s purpose is to activate life-long service to save millions of lives, using technology and innovation to increase her ability to serve is appealing. She further said, “I’ll admit it is not easy to be a front-runner with tech, and have certainly made mistakes (like just recently, we switched databases twice in one year, it about killed us), yet failure is just learning, and our whole team embraces that idea. As with all investments, whether it is time, money, or people, I’m a big believer in “go slow, start small,” and this lets our team inch in when innovation is at play.”
Kim treats team members like gold, so 1+1 can equal 11. Kim pinpoints, “Meaning you get two people together with opposite skill sets and you get a multiplier effect of not just 1+1=2 or even 3 as many people say, but 11, putting the one with the other one and getting the value of the collaboration all along the way.” They are working with their strengths and doing what they enjoy, which energizes their process.
Challenges & Milestones
Kim says, “Uncertainty is always a challenge”. She overcame those obstacles by focusing on mindset and faith as a solid foundation and treating her team like gold. She added, “Since we are all in it together to get through the uncertain times.”
Kim highlights the milestones: “I went entrepreneurial in 1993, became independent in 1999, started working over the internet the year it became the World Wide Web and created a WFH (work from home) company at the request of the team.” Her first book was self-published in 2008, she began podcasting in 2014, and they have just created a card game available at www.FamilyLegacyGame.com along with a workbook to go with their 8th self-published book.
A Sneak Peek at a Typical Workday and Current Projects
Kim maintains strict calendar control and adheres to “office boundaries,” allowing visioneering in all areas of life. She says, “I do about 25 client meetings a week, on Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday, saving Mondays for team huddles and Fridays for creative endeavors like books and blog posts.” She manages pressures by visioneering, which makes it easy to stay motivated because everyone is working toward a goal they are passionate about. She said, “And when you love what you do and strive towards a self-managing company under the Strategic Coach system, everybody wins.” Kim has been a Dan Sullivan disciple since 1994. Dan Sullivan’s Entrepreneurial Time System (c) by Strategic Coach teaches to prioritize free days so the unplugged mind can return energized, rested, and inspired.
Regarding current projects, Kim is about to launch another course called The Prosperity Pledge. It will assist people in activating and optimizing their money and directly linking it to their values. It is also a Mindset Matters course, aiming to turn those brains on and put good thinking into action.
Thriving for Change & Uplifting Future Behemoths with Valuable Advice
Kim enjoys the exponential nature of multigenerational work since it is truly transformative. She says, “Automation is the key to good habits, and health and wealth are so closely tied that if we can help an individual, they can help their family (generationally), which will then help their community.”
Kim concludes by giving a piece of advice, “Everyone on the team should strive to be a leader, first of themselves, their own thinking and actions, second of those around them. This is the goal of the Self-Managing Company as directed by the Strategic Coach company. Thinking is where good leadership starts, and “leading with love” as well as a “trust and inspire” (both quotes from recent books) style generate such good amongst our team, which then spills out into our clients and our communities. Again, I love the exponential nature of this way of being.”
For More Info: https://prosperitythinkers.com/