This week I speak to rising social media star and financial adviser Lisa Conway-Hughes, aka Miss Lolly. Lisa recounts her early dream of wanting to live in one of the beautiful big houses she passed on her way to work, but having no idea how she'd make that a reality. Juggling several low paid jobs, keeping a lid on her social spending and eventually carving out an accidental career in financial services, were the foundations of her later economic success.

This Real Money Stories episode features Gull Khan, former Banking and Finance Lawyer, who left behind her corporate job to become a Money Mindset Expert. Gull spent her early childhood in Pakistan with great affluence. But an alteration to her family situation meant her and her mother had to move to the UK and replace opulence with scarcity. Determined to reverse her situation through hard work and commitment, as a student Gull strove for good grades and successfully went on to law school.

In this episode, I speak to Mick McAteer, founder and co-Director of The Financial Inclusion Centre, a UK not-for-profit policy and research group dedicated to promoting financial markets that work for society. Growing up in the tough climate of Northern Ireland’s Civil Rights Movement, Mick had a strong sense for equality instilled in him from a young age. Working alongside his father selling produce door-to-door was not only hard work, but dangerous work too.

In this episode, I speak to money coach for women, Catherine Morgan.Catherine tells how early childhood traumas led her to have self-doubts which manifested as overspending and a slightly cavalier approach to money. She explains how she has completely reinvented her relationship with money over the past twenty years to build a healthy income and create a solid financial foundation, by helping others to help themselves be better with money.

In this episode of Real Money Stories, I speak to Peter Deane, director at Lower My Charges. Growing up in a modest family home, Peter learnt the importance of being careful with money. Stacking shelves in supermarkets to factory work, as a teenager he learnt money’s value. What these early experiences also taught Peter was that he would rather run a business than just work in it.

This week I speak to Emma Maslin, money coach aka The Money Whisperer. Emma had a good relationship with money from a young age and observed an entrepreneurial streak in both her father and grandfather. As a graduate from university, Emma qualified as a Chartered Accountant in 2006 in a “Big Four” accountancy firm where she worked in corporate finance, valuing businesses for takeovers.

This week I speak to Darren Laverty, a financial well-being strategist at Secondsight. Growing up, Darren learnt from his dad’s example that to have money, you had to work hard for it. A self-confessed “over optimistic attitude” saw Darren plunge into a high-spending lifestyle. Materialism took over his life. Having hitting rock bottom with insurmountable overdrafts and debts, he realised it was time for a change.

This week I speak to Sarah Lord, Chief Client Officer for Succession Wealth. A comfortable upbringing allowed Sarah freedom to explore opportunities, from completing a medial biochemistry degree to working a ski season. By a stroke of chance, Sarah found herself eager to pursue a career in the financial services. Now she boosts position number two at one of the leading firms in the advice sector.

This week I speak to Neil Moles, CEO of Progeny group. Growing up in a modest household on the Yorkshire Dales, Neil learnt that there always had to be an element of planning with money which stuck with him from a young age. A job at a building society at the age of 16 saw Neil pursue his love of maths and his passion for interacting with people. This combination led him into the world of financial advice.

This week I speak to Dr Lien Luu, Chartered Financial Planner and Associate Head of School for Enterprise and Commercial at Coventry Business School. As a 13 year old, Lien and her family fled as refugees from the conflict and humanitarian problems in their home country. Arriving in the UK as a refugee, via a precarious sea journey as one of the ‘boat people’ exodus, she experienced a cultural shock.

This week I speak to Don Fraser, chartered financial planner and director at Capital asset management. The power of peer-pressure spending and the contagious notion that affluence ought to be rewarded by material consumption are emotive behaviours that Don experienced first-hand.

This week I speak to Kathryn Knowles who combines the roles of business owner, insurance expert, mum, wife, fitness enthusiast and environmentalist. A modest upbringing taught Kathryn the importance of minimising debt, working hard, saving and spending in line with her values and priorities.

This week I speak to entrepreneur Ian Beestin. Ian's early money experiences of helping his dad count out the church collection money and collecting weekly customer payments on his milk round stood him in good stead. Ian explains how he turned £9,000 of regular savings into £50,000 by the time he was 24, and the capital for his first business investment.