A Clo Bare Money Coach student success story
Stephanie was raising her niece and nephew with her sister, grieving her dad, sitting on an inheritance she didn’t know what to do with, and packing up her life to move to Germany. Oh, and she had credit card debt she’d been quietly avoiding for years. If that sounds like a lot — it was. She told me she spent most days just ignoring her finances entirely, because looking at them felt too overwhelming. Here’s why I bring her up first. Because a few months into the Wealth Freedom Accelerator, Stephanie’s credit score jumped from the 660s into the high 770s. She paid off all of her debt. She built her first real emergency fund. And she did it all while planning an international move with two kids in tow. This is her story.
Where Stephanie Started
Before WFA, Stephanie described herself as “overwhelmed and anxious,” and mostly just ignoring her finances.
She’d tried the things a lot of us try first — reading articles online, sitting through a few free info sessions, meeting with someone once to “figure it out.” None of it stuck, because none of it was built for her actual life.
She had credit card debt. Student loans. She was navigating money as a single person while also co-mingling expenses with her sister to help raise her niece and nephew. And most of the programs she looked into wouldn’t even talk to her about investing until her debt was gone first.
That wasn’t going to work for her — because she wasn’t planning on staying in the same financial system for long. Stephanie was preparing to move abroad, and most courses she found were built exclusively around U.S.-based, debt-free-first thinking.
She found WFA through social media and showed up to the info session with one very clear boundary: she was not there to be told to pay off her debt before she could invest.
“I am not concerned about paying off my debt. This is not what I’m interested in.”
But here’s the thing– you’ll notice, she ended up paying off her debt! And it wasn’t because Clo Bare made her do it– it’s because once she learned how to run her numbers between paying off debt and/or investing– she realized something that clarified everything.
Paying off her debt early would actually result in MORE wealth built for her over the long term.
Once she saw that? She wanted to pay off her debt ASAP– and she did.
The Results: By the Numbers
Worth naming: Stephanie hasn’t started investing brokerage-style yet — and that’s by design, not because the course didn’t work. She’s mid-move to another country and made the informed call to get her debt gone, her emergency fund built, and her plan set first. That’s exactly the kind of “right decision for right now” thinking we teach.
✅ 100+ point credit score increase in under six months
✅ Fully debt-free
✅ Built her first emergency fund and HYSA
✅ Has a clear plan for her old 401k
✅ Says she now feels “competent and capable” reading her own investments
Debt-Free and Moving to Germany
Here’s what makes Stephanie’s story different from a lot of the ones I share.
She wasn’t just building wealth for herself. She’s helping raise her niece and nephew alongside her sister, she’d recently lost her dad and received an inheritance she didn’t know how to handle responsibly, and she was about to move her whole life to Germany — credit history, banking system, and all.
A strong U.S. credit score doesn’t disappear when you move abroad. It follows you into every bank statement and rental application you hand over in a new country. Stephanie knew that going in, which is part of why fixing her credit wasn’t optional — it was the foundation for the next chapter of her life, wherever that chapter happened to be located.
“Having a good American credit score is in my favor… it really shows the responsibility I take in my finances.”
That’s not a “someday” win. That’s a “right now, mid-transition, still figured it out” win.
The Part That Goes Beyond Money
The number that matters most to me isn’t the credit score. It’s this:
“I just feel like competent and capable. I feel like I can look at stocks and understand what it’s saying for the most part — which is, I don’t know, if you asked me in January I would have been like, what the hell does any of this say?”
That shift — from what the hell does any of this say to competent and capable — is the whole point.
Stephanie told me she now feels ready to support her family with their financial futures too, not just her own. And she left me with a line I haven’t stopped thinking about:
“Scary things look scary when you don’t know them, but once you get to know them, it’s like, oh, this is just normal.”
Is Clo Bare Money Coach Worth It? Stephanie's Answer
Before WFA: anxious, avoidant, carrying debt she didn’t have a plan for, and convinced investing was something other people got to do.
After WFA: debt-free, a 100+ point credit score jump, an emergency fund and HYSA in place, a plan for her 401k, and the confidence to invest once she’s settled in a new country.
Her advice to her past self was simple:
“Don’t sign up for those free phone calls for debt relief… you are capable, and the knowledge you’ll gain from this course is actually applicable beyond just investments.”
And when I asked who this program is for, her answer was direct:
“If you’re ready to actually look at the numbers — even though it can be really scary — if you’re ready to have an honest conversation about what it means to prepare for retirement and what your life goals are, then you should join the course. I think it’s so worth it.”
Watch Stephanie's Full Story
Ready to Start Your Own Story?
Stephanie didn’t wait until her life felt simple to get her finances in order. She did it in the middle of the mess — a move, a loss, a family to help support — and came out the other side debt-free with a plan.
I want this for you too.
👉 Register for the free class: https://www.thelazyinvestorscourse.com/masterclass
👉 Book a free Wealth Audit call: https://api.leadconnectorhq.com/widget/form/D8oiRht7OyZNXbFNRZ4B
🔗 Hear from more students: https://clobare.com/clo-bare-money-coach-reviews/
Wishing you a lifetime of compound interest and dividends,
Chloé
Clo (Chloé Daniels) is a certified financial education instructor, financial literacy professional, and founder of Clo Bare Money Coach. She’s Bankrate’s Best Overall Personal Finance Influencer for 2025 and has helped thousands of women build wealth without a financial advisor.
