As we step into a new year filled with fresh goals and inevitable curveballs, there’s no better time to talk about what it really means to invest in yourself. Not just financially, but mentally, emotionally, and professionally.
In a world where hustle culture is giving way to value culture, Maha Abouelenein, global communications strategist and author of the bestselling book: “7 Rules of Self-Reliance: How to Stay Low, Keep Moving, Invest in Yourself, and Own Your Future,” joined the HerMoney podcast to share her blueprint for building confidence, creating opportunity, and taking charge of your life in 2026.
Here’s what we learned.
Reputation Is Currency: Spend It Wisely
Jean Chatzky: How much of self-reliance is financial independence, and how much is the confidence and skill-building side?
Maha Abouelenein: I always talk about thinking of your reputation as a currency, like it’s money, what it’s worth, and what its value is. If you have a good reputation, that’ll help you get in doors, it’ll help you build the right relationships, and it’ll help you get into opportunities you didn’t get in before.
And that will help you make more money, and that will help you create more opportunities for yourself. And so I always think about when you think about yourself, think about your image, your reputation, your personal brand, that is valuable. Your name is the only thing you actually own. How can you use your name by investing in your brand and thinking about how you show up to turn that into business opportunities to turn that into financial security?
The Five Traits of Self-Reliant People
Jean Chatzky: All right, the five characteristics that you’ve pinpointed for self-reliant people are initiative, adaptability, decision-making, leadership, and having a growth mindset. Let’s unpack them one by one.
Maha Abouelenein:
- Initiative: Don’t wait. Take action.
- Adaptability: The market is changing. So must we.
- Decision-making: Don’t strive for perfection. Strive for progress.
- Leadership: Own your role, no matter the title.
- Growth Mindset: Stay curious. Keep learning.
“The small things are the big things,” Maha reminds us. “Spending 10 minutes a day consistently is how you build real change.”
Stay Low, Keep Moving: Maha’s Mantra for the New Year
Jean Chatzky: One of my favorite phrases in the book is, stay low, keep moving. Because at some point, we’re going to get stuck, we’re going to have a bad day. Our heads are going to explode. How does this work?
Maha Abouelenein: There are so many distractions in our lives right now—your friend obligations, work obligations, and comparing what people are doing on social media. So, staying low is sort of my way of putting on blinders to focus, because if I spend all my time lobbing tennis balls, I’m not actually working on the things I need to improve.
So staying low is about how you stay focused so that you’re not up here doing what everyone else wants and then not getting your own things done that fills your cup or makes you happy or progresses you forward a month, six months, or a year from now.
MORE ON HERMONEY:
- 8 Financial New Year’s Resolutions That Could Actually Change Your Life in 2026
- Jean Chatzky’s Top 3 Money Moves to Make Before the End of 2025
- 5 Steps to Crush Your Holiday Debt Quickly
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