Becoming a Millionaire Messenger & Biblical Money Mindset With Tamra Andress

Hey Friend!

This is an interview with Tamra Andress who is here to talk to us about our money mindset. She is a best-selling author, top podcaster, international speaker, marketplace minister, and the founder of Fit in Faith Media Press Publishing. She is an incredible human who teaches faith-filled leaders to become messengers and broadcast their truth for the kingdom of God. This is so aligned with what I want for you guys, to use your podcast to share your true calling.

I do not doubt that this interview will bless you, your business, and especially your money mindset.

Where Are You in Your Business?

Before we dive into this money mindset interview, I want to ask you where you are in your business. Are you trying to get clear on what you are called to do so you can get started in an ordered way? If so, I encourage you to check out Clarify Your Calling which will help you get crystal clear on what you are going to create and build.

You may know what you are called to do but don’t know the next step in building an audience and creating consistent income. If so, then I have another workshop for you! Check out my Profitable Podcast Bootcamp, designed to help you understand how to use podcasting to grow an online business.

Introducing Money Mindset With Tamra Andress

Stef: Well, hello, Tamra, and welcome to the podcast, friend!

Tamra: I’m so pumped to be here. I’ve been an avid listener for years so it’s so exciting to be on the other side of the microphone.

Stef: I fell in love with you the second I saw you preaching from a Pelaton. I knew you were my people! So tell everyone who you are and what you do!

Who Is Tamra Andress?

Tamra: I’m Tamra Andress and I am a marketplace minister. I do exactly what Stefanie does but by a different title. If you are wondering what that means, I am ordained and also a business coach. My passion is to develop a marketplace ministers from the lens of messengers. This is the language we call our community. It’s been a God deposit that has developed over the last 6 years in this particular business.

What it means to be a messenger is to be willing to speak up for the good news and make sure you have God at your side as you do so. I like to catalyze people into the zone of genius of speaking, teaching, business development, and publishing. I believe in sharing the good news in a way that God has called you to.

Stef: So good! I learned you have a hybrid publishing company.

Tamra: I do! It was a hybrid, but now we are in all the worldwide bookstores we can access. We are working with a distribution partner who has been in the business for 23 years. So, while we are a new publishing house, we have access to people who are OGs in the industry, and it’s been fun.

The average author, who might only sell 2,000 books, is the variable for us versus Amazon or similar options. Based on our access to distribution, we are promised 10,000-15,000.

Staying Aligned With God in Business

Stef: I love that so much. As an entrepreneur, you have your hand in many things, like many of us do. We have so many callings and purposes. What the world says we should do, what we are well versed in, and then these kingdom nudges from God. How do you know what to focus on, and then how do you align your faith with those decisions of stepping forward into something new?

Tamra: This is such a powerful question. I can get off base and know that a 1% misalignment will lead me to this huge chasm. I’ve been there. I’ve been an entrepreneur for over 10 years.

Before Fit in Faith, I didn’t walk intimately with the Lord like now. I never asked God what I should be doing with my life, and I didn’t know the words calling, purpose, or identity. So, everything I did was based on accolades, the world’s version of success, and the “American Dream.”

What Changed Tamra’s Money Mindset?

Tamra: I had what I like to call a quarterly life crisis. During that time, I came to know God and had a supernatural encounter in my living room. He wrecked everything for me regarding my money mindset, making me think of the young rich ruler. Instead of having a choice, I was forced to quit because I would either keep my marriage and family intact or become a rich ruler. I didn’t want the latter; it wasn’t my end goal.

Now, I process everything (including money mindset) with the Lord. He is my CEO. I start and finish my day with the Lord. I want to be in alignment and it’s not being religious but knowing how much it hurts to be out of the will of God. So even when it comes to marginal choices like passion projects and what everyone else might be doing, I know that might not be the Lord’s will for me. I can often find out just based on my internal alignment meter if fruit or peace are coming out of this decision and, ultimately, if it is glorifying God.

Many of my people come to me because of the freedom I operate in. That’s why I love listening to you, Stef. You’re willing to put your faith first as your foundation instead of making it the last thing or not mentioning it at all.

What does God say?

Tamra: I help others with questions like, “What does God say?” and, “Why aren’t you using that as the primary message?”

Stef: To reiterate some of the important points you made:

• What is the fruit coming from it?
• Does it give you peace and joy?
• Are you utilizing your gifts and talents?
• Is it glorifying to God?

Tamra’s wrecking moment

Stef: These are many good tactical ideas to consider when stepping into something new.

So, how has your faith been a part of your journey? Our stories have a lot in common, but can you tell us more about that wrecking moment and how it impacted your business now?

Tamra: I know not everyone gets to have this story, but I wish everyone could have a forced timeout when chasing a dream or checking into a job. I had the luxury in this forced quit of not having to do anything except be a stay-at-home mom and become a wife. Although I had been married for 4 years and been together for 7, I did not know what it meant to communicate with my husband.

I did not know what love meant. I didn’t have a relationship with God. My mothering was structured out of how I was mothered and did not forge my own way. My mom was still the be-all and end-all, and I had not cleaved to my husband.

I took a three-year gap in titles, labels, and job responsibilities besides nurturing my home and heart. For the first time in my life, I was learning to communicate with myself, learning what emotional intelligence actually means, and just finding my life and what I wanted it to look like—and learning to voice that to my spouse.

We were about three years in, and I was having coffee with a girlfriend. She said, “You should do this and business coaching.” Even though I had been an entrepreneur for 10 years, I had never had a coach. I didn’t know what that was. So I went on this journey and explored what that could be, and I realized that I am naturally an encourager, equipper, motivator, and teacher.

Tamra’s First Steps as a Messenger

Tamra: I brought together 30 women locally and we came into my husband’s office space. I sent them this very encrypted message before the new year and called out the golden side of them and asked them to come to this office space. They came and I opened to Proverbs 31 which I had never done before. I asked them to raise their hand if they felt like they were a Proverbs 31 woman and most women did not. I then asked how many would consider themselves an entrepreneur, a few more raised their hands. Lastly, I asked how many would LIKE to be a Proverbs 31 woman and everyone raised their hands.

I invited them to join me as I learned how to coach and help them grow. By the end of 2020, I had about 15 of the original 30 successful entrepreneurs. Now, I still have 5 of those original 30 successful entrepreneurs who have quit their full-time jobs and are making revenue. It is cool to see how my “yes” unlocked the access point for others.

Stef: I love that story so much because it highlights that pivotal moment in all our lives when we give our “yes”; it’s always terrifying. But when you experience the ripple effect of the “yes,” you want to give a thousand more. Do you have any tips for overcoming the fear of getting to that “yes”?

Tamra: Well, we know that faith and fear coexist. Once you have that revelation, you just have to prioritize which one is more important to you. Even with the fear, just do it. Realize that you aren’t failing and that what you are afraid of is likely just a story you made up, with no truth to it whatsoever.

Poverty Mentality vs. Money Mindset

Stef: Let’s talk a little about the poverty mentality. You have this concept that I want to hear more about. What is your lens on the poverty mentality related to the Great Commission?

Tamra: Poverty is a place no one hopes or dreams to be. Everyone wants to be rich and famous. I had these songs about money that were anthems in my life, and money was my idol. We know, based on scripture, that it is the LOVE of money that is the root of all evil, not money itself.

It’s a heart posture towards our finances and, ultimately, the knowledge and activation of stewardship that brings anyone out of poverty. But this poverty mentality isn’t necessarily a bank account number, because we as Americans who make 30K or more a year, top 1%, are the wealthiest in the world. As Americans, we think that’s nothing, especially after expenses.

It’s biblical to put our money to work

Tamra: This is where I help encourage people to shift their minds to realize that we are already in the top 1% so how does that then make us steward those finances and bring us into more wealth? We need to be willing to be patient and take risks which we don’t like to do. We usually want to hoard our money but it’s so biblical to put our money to work. Money is a kingdom principle. Gold was planted in the garden and wealth was established in Eden. Having these knowledge points help us move forward and break that poverty mentality and create a money mindset.

The church has honestly created and continued this mentality: “Jesus was poor, so I’ll be poor.” I promise you, Jesus was always an entrepreneur and was never poor. He was gifted gold at birth and surrounded himself with people who had great wealth, like Deborah.

God is calling women to stand up, speak up, and start stewarding well. I’m not trying to step on anyone’s toes, but if you post about your Amazon boxes every week, are you stewarding well? Are you just in the cycle of consumerism? Materialism and consumerism will put you outside God’s favor. If we are willing to give it all, God is willing to multiply it all.

Stef: That’s a word! What are some tips for those finding themselves in this love of money if one wants to have the heart posture of taking risks, stepping into wealth?

Education for a More Biblical Perspective on Money Mindset

Tamra: Education is a huge part of this. We don’t get the support we need when we are young to learn how to be stewards. We need to know how to manage money and that it’s not bad. If we think it isn’t good, we will constantly reject it.

There’s this book called Abundant Money. It’s so good. In between every single paragraph, it says, “I love money. Money is good.” This is important to know; it is not something to be afraid of.

We wonder:

• What if I break this poverty cycle?
• What if I become a millionaire?
• Will people quit trusting me?
• Will people think I’m “too good” for them?

Education is important so we can break off this unhealthy money mindset.

You need to know your numbers, such as what’s coming in and going out. What’s going out is a huge portion of what’s coming in. You also have to learn tax strategy, which sounds terrible, but there are so many educators who specialize in it.

Heart posture with money

Tamra: I didn’t always have this knowledge, and it wasn’t until I started leaning into the Word and what God says about money. We must return to that heart posture of having our hands wide open because it is all His. When I did this, it changed the game for me.

Stef: As with anything that God created, it can be used for good but also the enemy can create those lies around money. As we look at the most successful people we know, we can see clearly the ones that aren’t biblically based and how they are having to make money, feeling the anxiety that the fruit might not be the best. In contrast, you can see the ones biblically based, successful, making great money, and stewarding that money.

When I look at my life now, I make way more money than I did when I was working 4 times as hard, and I give more money than I was ever able to give. It feels peaceful, joyful, and glorifying. So we must discern through our heart posture and become educated on it.

It can feel overwhelming to seek and become educated, so take one step and learn that component. God goes before you, so keep taking the next step.

The trustworthy person will get a rich reward, but the person who wants quick riches will get into trouble.

Proverbs 28:20

Give, release, and steward money

Tamra: When your eyes and heart are open to the willingness, God will teach you. If He is your CEO, He is also your teacher. You will open the Word and have all these fresh revelations about finances because He will speak to them, and it will change your heart.

Proverbs 28 says, “The trustworthy person will get a rich reward, but the person who wants quick riches will get into trouble.” If you think about the get-rich schemes and trends, you’ll realize nothing worth having comes quickly. It’s this knowing that it is not the money that makes us happy, it is the abundance and the willingness to create joy on the earth with it. We give, release, and steward it.

Stef: I remember telling my husband I wanted to tithe the 10%. When we didn’t have the money, we sat down and calculated the amount. We were terrified that it wouldn’t make sense. We made that first payment, trusting God that it would return, and now I know 100% that it is God’s and that the whole point is to be able to give and bless others.

Tamra: And I don’t want people to think “Oh it’s easy to give because they have money.” Because I still worry about money. I struggle in this area because my husband and I are both entrepreneurs. We don’t have consistent income coming in every two weeks.

It’s the knowledge that it doesn’t control me and that God is my ultimate provider. There are plenty of times when I think there is no way this is going to work, but because I continue to do things like fast and seek God, He ends up meeting my needs.

How Podcasting Has Helped Tamra and Her Business

Stef: Let’s shift gears and talk a little about podcasting. As you know, I help women use podcasting to share their voices because I believe we can reach people more organically without the effort and hustle. How has podcasting helped you grow your business? Would you recommend it?

Tamra: Yes! It has fundamentally shifted my perspective on quality time and what it means to spend time in the Word with God. The power of storytelling can be so healing to the people listening. I’ve been podcasting for five years now, and I have three podcasts. We release four episodes a week between them.

I love it because it is the most beneficial and quality time spent every single week with the people I love and the community I serve. I’m most attuned to myself and my voice when I’m serving the good news. Some of my podcasts are very business-driven. At the same time, I know that I get to go back to the Lord to learn and apply that to the world. You are serving people around the world instantaneously and eventually get to see the ripple effect.

How Podcasting Changes Lives and Boosts Revenue

Tamra: We did internal promotions on one of our podcasts, and 18 months into my show, I had someone book a call, and I didn’t know who she was. Then I hopped on the call, and this woman starts crying and tells me, “You’ve got me through the darkest season of my life just seeing you and hearing your voice. I can’t believe I’m on a call with you right now; I didn’t think this was possible. I don’t know how to work with you, but I want to do it.” So I invited her to my women’s retreat in Mexico, and she booked the flight to come with me and then booked a coaching experience with me.

That ripple effect was 20K on the other side. Not that I care about the money, but I care about her salvation. She was saved because I was willing to turn on a microphone.

Stef: Exactly, and amen! I love that you mentioned the benefit to you. Often, I talk about things like the audience and reaching people, and yes, you can make money, but I like that you mentioned all the benefits to you. You were growing in the conversation and benefiting from the time saved with podcasting.

Tamra: I can tell the difference in my demeanor when I podcast and work on internal things like strategy or emails. I know I’m doing specifically what God has called me to do: being a messenger. This is fruit not just for me but also for the people I love most.

Finding Tamra Andress

Stef: Thank you for blessing us with this conversation about money mindset. Where can everyone come to listen to your show and learn more about what you offer?

Tamra: You can find me at tamraandress.com.

My three podcasts are:

• The Messenger Movement
• Girls Gone Holy
• Founder Collective

I pray this blesses you!

APPLE PODCAST | SPOTIFY | YOUTUBE

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