Possum Ugly earns the save

Todd Veillon has spent the last 30 years helping and coaching clients on how to make their money work for them. Now he has authored a book which gives practical advice and financial wisdom based on what he’s learned in the process. With Money H.E.L.P.: Holistic Economic Life Planning, Veillon uses a holistic approach to finance, helping people to understand they don’t have to handle their money the same way everyone else does. “I think a lot of times, the majority of people probably just conform to what’s expected in how they plan financially,” he said, adding about 5% of the people who don’t conform are the successful ones, the ones who truly have “the good life.”
Veillon said one of the reasons he wrote the book is because of an old saying: “An author writes the book they need to read.” Veillon said, “That’s very true in my particular situation, because I wanted to remind myself why I do what I do.” The theme of Money H.E.L.P. highlights his views on faith, family, and finance, and how those areas collaborate. “The key to the good life is just that,” he said. “It’s understanding how those three areas need to work together in harmony. I’ve experienced a lot of great coaches over the years. The way you see the world is how you relate to the world. I spent a lot of time with coaches who saw the world from the view of abundance as opposed to scarcity. There is more out there for everyone. There’s an old saying: ‘The rising tide lifts all boats.’”
Although he’s been in the business over 30 years, Veillon still considers himself a student. “This is an evolving thing. The day you quit learning, is the day that you’re waiting to die. We owe it to ourselves and others to continue to share our story as it goes along.” Just as he has been mentored, he has become a mentor and coach for people in his profession and those starting businesses. He likens it to the old days when people got together around campfires to tell their stories and share information, like where to find a shortcut around a mountain. “I want to be able to help them shorten the curve, the shortcut through the mountain so to speak, to get them where they’re trying to go.” He said the best way to sum up the book is, “We’re better together, and it takes a team.”
Money H.E.L.P. is also the story of Veillon’s company, how they started it and spent 10 years doing it the way everybody else does it, and then going through an epiphany, changing direction, creating systems that are simpler, safer, and more fluid. He also said the book is for his clients. “This is my chance to share my views and invite people in to know a little bit about us and our family, how we feel and what our mission is. We feel like we’ve had the good life. We have had far from the perfect life; like everybody else, we’ve had our own tragedies and disappointments, but it’s a good life, because we’re committed to faith, family, and finance.”
When it comes to competition, Veillon said the only person he is competing with is himself. “The whole competition in business, for me, is staring me right back in the mirror. It has nothing to do with the guy next door.” He believes in helping whenever he can. Even if he cannot help a potential client, he or his team will recommend someone who can help them. He said good deeds like this all come back in one way, shape, or form. “There’s a universal law of nature that basically says when you do something good for somebody, something’s coming back for you.”
Veillon has also written a children’s book called Possum Ugly, which he wrote for his grandchildren. This book explains how he views the world in terms of teamwork. “Over the years, starting with my kids and now the grandkids, I always told the story of Possum Ugly.” Every creature in the story has a unique, God-given ability. In ‘Possum Ugly’s case, being ugly turns out to be a virtue. “The moral is that we are all given God-given abilities and God wants us to work with others.” The book is not only for children; Veillon gives a copy to his clients to help them understand they are working with a team. “This simple little book will tell you how we view teamwork and where our power comes from.”
Though Veillon is now in his 60s, he still feels like a kid. Instead of retiring, he wanted to set out on a new adventure, to restart his life doing exactly what he wants rather than quit working to go fishing every day. “I love fishing and hunting, but I can’t do it every day. At our age we probably have more to share than we ever had. Unfortunately, we lose people at that point because the world has told us we should just quit. I think we should remake ourselves in a whole different direction. We have a whole bunch of people out there who can do wonderful things.”
Veillon further said a man without a mission is in trouble, because you have to have something to do, something to give to the world. “Hopefully that mission is something that is going to benefit other human beings and that God will be pleased with, something that’s worthwhile.” Continuing with his calling to be a mentor, he posts something motivational or spiritual to Facebook every day, believing if even just one person sees it and feels it, the mission is accomplished. “The rest is icing on the cake. We’re all called to do that. That’s what I want to encourage people to do: find who you are and find out what you’re good at and work on it every day.” He added, “Also, find what you’re weak at because you want to find other people who are strong at that. Then you’re powerful and invincible.”
When it comes to his success, Veillon said he has been blessed and also credits having a routine and implementing the things he has learned. “Those are the things I want to share with other people. It’s not big, fantastic things. It’s repetition.” He even quotes Aristotle at the beginning of Money H.E.L.P.: “We are what we repeatedly do. Excellence, therefore, is not an act, but a habit.’ All we have to do is get good at it.”
Veillon also wrote his books for his family, the ones who are going to continue the mission. “They will have some part of me that can say, ‘This is how Papa Bear saw the world. This is what he did every day, what he believed.’”