Why do smart, capable people ignore advice they genuinely believe is good for them? In this episode, Joy Slabaugh—a CFP® and Certified Internal Family Systems (IFS) Therapist—joins the conversation to explore why behavior change rarely comes from better information alone. Joy explains how IFS helps financial planners understand the internal conflicts people experience around money, and why working with “parts” often succeeds where logic, pressure, and persuasion fail. The discussion reframes the advisor’s role—not as fixing or convincing—but as facilitating self-led clarity, trust, and follow-through, offering a powerful framework that benefits both the people seeking help and the professionals who serve them.
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How IFS Helps Financial Planners Create Real Change – with Joy Slabough
About Joy Slabough:
Joy Slabough, CFP®, MTax, LACMH, MA, Speaker, Advisor Trainer, and Wealth Alignment Guide, brings more than two decades of experience in financial advising and behavioral finance. She began her career working with one of the world’s largest investment firms, where she trained advisor teams, advised on multi-billion-dollar accounts, and led innovation initiatives focused on client experience and financial strategy.
Driven by a desire to better understand the emotional and psychological factors influencing financial behavior, she later became a licensed therapist, integrating clinical insight with her extensive financial background.
Today, her work specializes in helping individuals, couples, and professionals navigate the deeper emotional dimensions of money. Through the integration of finance and psychology, she guides conversations around relationships, financial behaviors, purpose, and legacy—helping clients align their wealth with their values and long-term vision.
In addition to her client and advisory work, Joy is a sought-after speaker and trainer, known for her ability to bridge the worlds of financial expertise, behavioral insight, and meaningful personal transformation.
About Rick Kahler:
Rick Kahler, MSFP, CFP® , CFT™, CeFT® , Certified Internal Financial Systems™ Financial Therapy Practitioner, president of Kahler Financial Group, is a lifelong resident of Rapid City, SD. He began his professional career in 1973 selling and appraising real estate He founded Kahler Financial Group in 1981. He became the first fee-only Certified Financial Planner™ (CFP ® ) in South Dakota in 1983. In 2020 he became one of the first Certified Financial Therapist (CFT™,) in the nation.
His firm, specializes in the integration of investment advising, financial planning, financial coaching, and financial therapy, serving small business and real estate owners, professionals, and retirees, as well as individuals and families.
He served on and chaired the South Dakota Investment Council and served in leadership capacities with the Financial Planning Association and the National Association of Financial Planning Advisors. Kahler is also a nationally renowned speaker and educator. In 2003, National American University recognized Mr. Kahler with the Alumni Distinguished Service Award.
Interested in working with Rick Kahler, MSFP, CFP®, CFT™, CeFT®, Certified Internal Financial Systems™ Financial Therapy Practitioner? Please go to our website, Book a Financial Therapist Appointment and fill out a request for a 30-minute free consultation.
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