From Divorce To Control: How Women Rebuild Finances With Support, Systems, And Compassion

Money gets messy when life changes. Divorce, loss, and career pivots can turn confident spenders into second-guessers who feel stuck. We sit down with Cindy Locker and Carol Van Fossen of Next Chapter Finances to unpack a kinder, smarter way to rebuild control: start with the real numbers, get clear on your goals, and make a plan that lets you spend without guilt.

Carol shares how she moved from managing her family’s money to feeling “clueless” after major life shifts, then back to confident through structure and support. Cindy brings an accountant’s eye for detail, translating statements and cash flow into choices you can actually live with. Together, they show how a compassionate process—gathering data, naming priorities, and scheduling regular check-ins—turns chaos into clarity. No shame. No overwhelm. Just honest math and aligned tradeoffs.

We cover what a first engagement looks like, from mapping income and expenses to identifying leaks that don’t add joy, then redirecting dollars to what does: a vacation, a safety net, a child’s milestone, or retirement. You’ll hear why starting today beats waiting for the first of the month, how frequent touchpoints keep progress on track, and how their work bridges clients to financial planners, CPAs, attorneys, and insurance pros with everything organized and ready. If you’ve ever wondered whether your spending matches your values—or wished you could feel good about your choices—this conversation lays out a path.

If this resonates, connect with Next Chapter Finances through the link in the show notes to book a free consultation. Subscribe, share this episode with a friend who needs it, and leave a review to help more women find their financial footing.

For more information contact Cindy or Carol:
Cindy Locker: 
614-440-2315
cindy@nextchapterfinances.com 

Carol Van Fossen:
614-284-2783
carol@nextchapterfinances.com

https://www.nextchapterfinances.com
https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=61556088472295

Hi and welcome to Thrive and Decide. I’m your host Sarah Thress. This podcast is intended to help women who are going through a divorce, continplating divorce or have lost a spouse feel seen, heard, understood and not alone. All the beautiful souls who share on here are coming from a place of vulnerability and a common belief that sharing your story will help others. You will also hear from industry experts on what to do and not do while going through a divorce.

Sarah Thress
614-893-5885
Sarahthressrealtor@gmail.com
Thrive and Decide Facebook

https://www.instagram.com/thrive_and_decide/

https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=61559936633799
https://www.facebook.com/SarahThressRealtor/
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Real Estate Podcast Come To Find Out:
https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/come-to-find-out/id1704949604

Real Estate First Time Home Buyers course: https://sarahthress.graphy.com/

Transcript

SPEAKER_02 1:04

Hi, and welcome to this week's episode of Come to Find Out. This week I have two amazing women with me, and I'm super excited to introduce them. So we've got Cindy Locker and Carol Van Foxen, and they are next chapter finances. And so what I love about their story is just that, you know, they have kind of um started a next chapter. And so I really wanted to have them come on and just kind of explain um what it is that they do. Uh they're super passionate about helping women become financially stable. Um and so obviously that aligns with everything I'm trying to do. So thank you, ladies, so much for joining me. I appreciate it.

SPEAKER_00 1:42

Great to be. Yeah, thank you for having us.

SPEAKER_02 1:44

Yeah. So I loved whenever I got to hear, like, you know, kind of your story. So I'd love for you to kind of share. Um, you know, either of you can can start, but just kind of share like what it was that you were doing and then what kind of led you to create this.

Carol’s Journey From Control To Clueless

Why Women In Transition Need Support

SPEAKER_01 1:58

Yeah. Do you want me to start? Sure. Okay. Um, so hi, I'm Carol Van Fosson. Um, and my career started as a high school math teacher. So I had a bachelor's and a master's degree in math. Um, I was teaching, I was newly married. Um, and then I also took care of all of my personal finances. So here I am managing all the finances for a family uh while my husband built his career. And um then through that time, um, you know, things started to change in the form of having children and finding ourselves in several moves. And so during that time, the finances kind of shifted to my husband. And then at that point, I became a clueless spouse. So all this time I'd spent managing our money, all of a sudden I did not know where our money was coming, how much money was coming in, how much we were spending. I was busy. Um, during that time, I returned to teaching math. Um, my husband opened a practice, I managed all the books for the practice, and then gradually that shifted as well. So I was engrossed with kids, with um, you know, working on my career. And um, so then life changed a little bit in the form of a divorce. So during that time, um, I had to pull myself out by the bootstraps, regain control of my finances, and then begin my next chapter of life. And so that's sort of where our passion came from, this idea of helping women who are in a transitional phase of their life. So, whether that's a divorce, much like my story, or similar stories include the recent tragic loss of a spouse, perhaps some changes in career. Um, anything that brings about a change in life brings about a change in your financial life. So we are committed to helping women with that transition, both financially and then just taking the time to sit down with them in this usually emotional time to make some financial decisions, to establish some goals and to start to create a plan so that they can reach those goals.

SPEAKER_02 4:03

I like that. And I like the fact that you, you know, take the time to sit down with them and, you know, kind of meet them where they are. Because, you know, um, I know when I was going through my divorce, you know, having someone to just kind of meet me where I was at was huge, you know, because you're so lost in your grief and you're like, oh my gosh, like what do I, you know, how do I do this? Right. I love that.

SPEAKER_01 4:25

Right. And we we like to change women's relationship with money, you know, through this process. So, you know, making sure that they are in control of their money versus their money being in control of them. Yeah. I love that. I love that.

Cindy’s Background And The Spark

Changing The Relationship With Money

SPEAKER_00 4:38

Hi, I'm Cindy Locker and Carol and I met actually teaching. So that's where we first got started. And we both actually taught personal finance and investigated um how that affects um students and kind of getting them prepared for life. And during that period, we noticed that a lot of our friends were really struggling at certain points in their lives, and it may have been through a divorce or a sudden loss of a spouse, as we mentioned, or just feeling a little under or overwhelmed. So they had maybe they had plenty of money coming in, but they also felt like they were just spending a lot of money and they didn't have control of their finances. And so my first career was actually as an accountant, so I worked for PWC. Um, and so I'd been doing the bookkeeping for my husband's companies for many years. And so after COVID, and my children had graduated high school, I went and started my own bookkeeping business, which I really like. And I work with a lot of family-owned businesses, and with that I get into some of the intermingling between personal finances and business finances. Um, and so we started to look at also helping people not just grow their businesses, but feel control of their personal finances. And so we started this next chapter finances in order to help people feel like they understood and they were in control of their money and not their money being in control of them. So they weren't always chasing the next paycheck. They could set their goals, they could achieve their goals and be in control. So we have really enjoyed working with, and our niche is really women because we really feel like so often they just they they're very successful, but they may have been just putting in a back burner. Like no one necessarily wants to spend Saturday going through all the money coming in, coming out. You look at your credit cards, right? It's just so easy to use your credit card to Vemo people and not really know, oh my goodness, I'm spending$2,000 a month at Whole Foods or whatever it might be, right? That's just kind of a crazy situation. So we really started this to help um families and then women in particular with their finances.

SPEAKER_02 7:05

Yeah. I love that. I love that too because uh, you know, it's kind of like you guys are are doing your next chapter, you know, you did the teaching thing, you did the you know, bookkeeping thing, and now it's like, okay, what are ways that you know we can do our next chapter while helping people? So I really love that. Yeah. Now walk me through. Um, you know, obviously, you know, we we have a general idea of like what it is, but if someone came to work with you, what does that kind of look like?

How Their Process Works

SPEAKER_01 7:35

Right. So um we begin by just getting very clear with people's finances. So we look at um income, we look at current spending habits, we look at assets, we look at liabilities, and start to really uh develop this picture of where they are right now. And then from that picture, we talk about financial goals. You know, perhaps they're at a place in their life where they're saving for something, or perhaps they're starting to think about retirement and making that, you know, paving the way toward that and then bridging those two together to creating a plan that helps them reach their financial goals. Um, and one thing we will always want to try to do as well is to take some of the anxiety out of spending. So, you know, oftentimes um people have a rather negative relationship with money. Um, spending feels stressful to them. It feels like um something they shouldn't be doing. When in fact, when your plan is in place, spending is freedom. So, you know, depriving ourselves is never the answer, but having a clear plan is.

SPEAKER_02 8:41

Yeah. I really like that. And that's actually a journey I've personally been on is changing, you know. I I like to see I'm kind of healing my relationship with money just because, you know, it it's like you said, you know, you just get in that pattern where you're like, oh my gosh, like I can't spend. And, you know, and then you do, and you're stressed, and you know, you're like, well, am I gonna throw this off? Or, you know, uh the you know, complete opposite. I'm just like, oh, I'm just gonna keep spending. And then I'm like, oh wait, what?

SPEAKER_01 9:09

Well, and you know, with that too, we try to help women um approach this compassionately, you know, with a great deal of compassion for themselves because there will be mistakes, there will be financial errors, and and that happens. But we try to help them have a plan for that as well. So when this happens, here's what we're going to do. And so, you know, just really trying to take the negative feelings away from money and create that freedom.

SPEAKER_02 9:34

Yeah, I love that. Yeah, I love that. I think that's great. Now I know you're a bookkeeper. Um, so do you uh like kind of help them to like create their ledger? Or, you know, if they had a business, do you kind of help them with that?

Spending Anxiety And Compassionate Plans

SPEAKER_00 9:48

Yeah, so I do all of that. And so we try to get, we gather information. So sort of being ex-math teachers, being a bookkeeper, an ex-accountant, you know, we like to get into the nitty-gritty. So we'll take all of your credit card statements, we'll take your bank statements, and we'll really dive into like where your spending is going and what you're doing so that we present you with a clear picture. Because oftentimes people will say it's like going on a diet, and you know, and someone will say, Well, how much do you eat in a day? And you're like, Oh, I just eat this. And then you actually start to write it down and you realize, oh no, I didn't have you know 10 pistachios, I had a hundred pistachios, or whatever it is, right? Or peanut butter cups, or whatever it might be. The same with money, right? And so you don't necessarily know, like you know you're spending, but you don't know, like, oh, my budget went so much for eating out or for purchases. And maybe you have a goal, like you want to do a family vacation every year, and that's how you want to, that's how you want to spend your money, but you don't feel like you can, right? Because saving for that seems overwhelming, right? Whatever that price may be. But if you have a plan and you know that, then you can actually make that happen. So we do go through and give everyone like a clear picture of where their money is, and then we talk to them. But people have different choices. Um, and so we're not here to say you need to stop doing this and you need to do this. We're here to present it and then help you figure out how you want to live your life. Because most people, you have you have your ways about you, right? You can make slight adjustments, but you're not gonna radically change, right? And so we're here to take the um sort of the pain and the anxiety away, and so that you can make rational decisions. Because sometimes you just make your rational decisions because you're just shooting in the dark. You don't know exactly what's happening.

The Data Deep Dive And Tradeoffs

SPEAKER_02 11:42

Yeah. I love that. And I love that um everything you guys share comes from a place of compassion. You know, you guys are giving grace, you're not judging, you're not like, oh, really? You spent that much on eating out? Like that's stupid. You know, you guys are like, okay, well, that's fine, and those are your choices, and that's great. But if those are your choices, then just know that, you know, then you're not gonna have this money over here for this vacation. So, you know, again, what is most important? So I love that you also help kind of dial down into that. And I think that's what separates you two from like a traditional, you know, financial planner, where, you know, and obviously there are great financial planners out there, and there are people that, you know, that will sit down and take the time to talk, but some, you know, they don't have the time to sit down and really get to know them like you all do. So I really love that.

SPEAKER_01 12:36

Yeah. And, you know, we can be also the entry level into a financial planning um meeting. So helping women or people in general just organize things and have everything ready so they're more successful when they meet with their family attorneys. They they have a clearer picture when they meet with our their financial planners uh and their goals are, you know, in line.

SPEAKER_02 12:58

Yeah. Yeah. I like that. It's almost like uh, you know, it's a baby step or like the first step into figuring out, you know, your financial future. And, you know, I uh as I've been going into this, you know, this niche and everything, I've been like working with estate planning attorneys and divorce attorneys and financial planners and um, you know, different things like that. And so I think it's great because, you know, you all could be that great first step of you know, helping people to kind of see that big picture so that then they have all the stuff together. And so then, you know, they can go to uh their estate planning attorney or their you know financial planner or whatever, and they're like, hey, look, like I've got this plan and it's gonna make everything so much easier.

SPEAKER_01 13:42

Right.

SPEAKER_02 13:42

Including taxes as well.

SPEAKER_01 13:44

Yeah, plans enough for doing a lot of season, right? Yeah.

SPEAKER_02 13:49

Yeah. So you get do you guys help people? I mean, I know you were um a CPA, right? Okay. So do you still help people with their taxes or do you just kind of give more advice?

Bridging To Planners, Attorneys, And CPAs

SPEAKER_00 14:00

Yeah, so I help them get prepared for their taxes. Okay. Get everything organized. And then I work with their current CPA or their financial advisor to make some decisions. So I feel like, as Carol said, we do the pre-work, right? So it's the work. But then we're also the ones where sometimes you come up with like you decide this is what my goal is I want to have X amount of dollars set aside for my children's wedding, or we want to do this, or we want to celebrate our whatever it is. But then you can't, it just seems to the financial advisor's like, yes, you can do that, you need this amount of money, but then to get from here where you are to there is overwhelming. And if you're sort of left on your own and you meet with your financial advisor once a year or twice a year, you don't necessarily have the that kind of resource and support in between. So we're the ones that say, okay, you're doing great. Here's some changes that you might want to make and kind of give them that encouragement and that check-in, like you're responsible where you have to report back and you know, talk about it. And as Carol said, we're not trying to say, oh no, you should not have that fabulous spring jacket, right? Right. You want to have that. But right, yeah, if you bought that, then maybe you needed to do something else, right? You're gonna eat in or whatever it might be. So just to sort of help, because just like and it always feels bad going back talking about diets, but just that it's what other people but people struggle with too. Weariness of food, and they also struggle with um exercise and money, and people are often embarrassed to think that they've reached a certain age and that they don't know, they don't really have a handle on their finances, right? So it's sort of like the hidden secret. But if you actually have somebody that you can work with and you kind of have an accountability, then you can actually achieve your goals because it's just one of those things you're like, oh well, next month I'm gonna be much better. Oh, I already spent. I've I'm depressed, it's been, you know, in Ohio and it's lovely weather today, but you know, it's gray, like I need to go away for a weekend, I need to do this. And then you get off track and you start stumbling instead of having sort of a reset. And so we're sort of there to help them along the way.

Accountability, Check Ins, And Starting Now

SPEAKER_01 16:14

Yeah. And you know, and we find people often think they need to start this project at the beginning of a month or the beginning of a year, but the time to start is now. Right. You know, and and we'll probably have to start again. And so one thing that Cindy mentioned is we have frequent checks-ins with our clients, um, especially at the beginning of the process, so that we can support them, encourage them, and then at the end of every month, maybe make some tweaks to the plan. Um, at the end of six months, maybe some more tweaks at the end of a year. Um, so we like the like it when clients are, you know, in for the long haul and they're they're um committed, they are working toward their financial freedom. Yeah.

SPEAKER_02 16:55

Well, and I like that too. Um, you know, I I know we've kind of gone back to like the whole diet thing, but I like it because I think, you know, a lot of times it's like you have like that piece of cake, and then you're like, well, I mean, I have that, so I may as well just have this. Oh, and I may as well, and then all of a sudden you're completely gone, you know, and you've fallen off the wagon and then you gotta start back over, you know. So I love the fact that you guys do those check-ins, you allow the grace, you know, you allow the, you know, like, hey, like you're gonna stumble and that's okay. And like we're here and we're gonna help you. And, you know, I just think that's huge. And I love the fact that you guys, you know, again, you're a baby step, but you also create baby steps within the baby step. You know, you're like, okay, so we're gonna look at this now. Okay, now we're gonna look at this, and now we're gonna, you know, so you take that situation that can be so overwhelming and you make it, you know, to where it's manageable and you don't feel so like, oh my gosh, and you get that deer in the headlights look, you know.

SPEAKER_01 17:51

Right. We're not gonna change everything at once.

SPEAKER_02 17:54

Yeah, yeah, yeah. Right. I love that. I love that. I think that's great. So now if someone is listening and they're like, oh my gosh, like I want to work with you guys, where would they find you? And obviously in the show notes, I'll have, you know, all of your information, your socials, your website, um, you know, all of that information. But if someone's listening right now and they're just like, how do I get started? Um, what would you say is like the first step? You know, obviously contacting you. And then, you know, I guess what would you do first? Have a phone conversation with them or meet them in person?

Packages, Tools, And Onboarding

SPEAKER_01 18:27

Yeah. So um our our website will be linked in the show notes. Yeah. Um, and there you can sign up for a free consultation. So that would be a phone call where we would just sit down and talk a little bit about, you know, what prompted you to call? What is you're looking for? Um, and from there, we have different sorts of packages that people can opt into. Um, we do have a one-time meeting, which is just basically that beginning step of gathering the data and then looking at goals. Um, but then our other packages are about the analysis that comes from that. So with Cindy and I sitting down and looking at the credit card statements and the income and the current cash flow and the financial goals, we come up with a plan. Um, we also help people use financial tools. So maybe an app that we recommend to them. Um, and that would be during the process of the check-ins and coming back and revisiting goals. Yeah. So that can vary. But everything can be um signed up for on our website. Oh, nice.

SPEAKER_02 19:30

Yeah. And so if you go to the website, does it show kind of a breakdown of um, you know, the different packages they can do or like the different rates? Yes. Okay. Yes. Perfect. Everything that you would need is there. Yeah. Yeah. I like that too, because it's not just a, you know, one size fits all approach. It's very much a, you know, all the carts uh will meet you where you're at. And maybe you only need this part, but you don't need this part. So it's not like, well, you got paid for the whole thing. Like this, you know, I like that you guys do that.

SPEAKER_01 19:58

Yeah. And and some people have different needs. So we've worked with clients before that need some help selecting health insurance. And so we can do one of two things, do a little bit of research on our own and maybe connect them with a health broker that can help them through their journey. So, you know, as the introductory step, yeah, we have a large number of people we refer to for everything from real estate to financial planning to insurance. And um, you know, just help them reach their goals. Yeah. Yeah.

SPEAKER_02 20:28

I really like that. And that's what I've tried to do as well is to be a resource that, you know, if someone's like, hey, I really need a financial planner, I got someone for you. You know, hey, I need a need a contractor. I've got someone for you for that too. You know, I need someone that can just help me to understand like all of my finances, you know, like I got someone for that too. So I really like that.

SPEAKER_01 20:48

Yes, it's all about network, a network, yes, you know, to support women. And that's why we're here.

SPEAKER_02 20:53

Yeah. Yeah. I love it.

Referrals, Insurance, And A Women’s Network

SPEAKER_00 20:55

Yes. I think so much so much is oftentimes where we where we come in as in some sort of emotional state for people. Not thinking clearly. And so that's where we kind of come in and help take some of that pressure and anxiety away. And then realize, oh, that you do need some other people. And then we love having our network of strong women that we can send our clients to for all the different other needs. Right. So the financial is just one part of their well-being. And then we try to set them up for the rest.

SPEAKER_02 21:30

Yes. I love that. Yes. I love that. Excellent. Well, um, I appreciate you guys taking time out to uh meet with me today. And um, for those of you listening that are in the central Ohio area, we are going to be putting together um a meetup event. So um just stay tuned for more details. Uh, but we really want to be able to create an event where people can come and they can kind of meet other people that are going through this. So kind of creating a tribe uh of women so that you don't feel alone, you know, because as you and I have talked about before, when you're going through a divorce, you feel alone, even though you know you're not the very first person that ever went through it. Yeah, still when you're in it, you feel like you are the only person going through it. So um, so yeah, so stay tuned for more details about that. We're also gonna work on doing some seminars. Um, so we are gonna be doing a lot of great things. So you're gonna see a lot more of us. Um, so definitely stay tuned. But thank you again for joining me.

SPEAKER_01 22:25

Thank you for having us. Yeah, yeah.

Community Meetups And What’s Next

SPEAKER_02 22:27

Excellent. Like I said, everything will be linked in the show notes. And thank you so much for joining us. And we'll see you next time on Come to Find Out.