I was in the midst of my daily scroll on LinkedIn when Istumbled across a review for a financial coach. The review struck achord with me because it was written by a woman who looked to bearound the same age as me, and she had achieved exactly what I waslooking for – financial freedom and stability. The business shereviewed had a catchy tagline and creative logo, so I clicked onthe website link. Little did I know, I was about to embark on alife-changing financial empowerment journey.

As is the case with most accidentally stumbled-upon internetgems, it was everything I never knew I needed and more. The sleekgraphic design captured me, but the services and tools beingoffered kept me. It felt like they were specifically designed forme, and, in fact, they actually were.

The business was created by a woman in her mid-30s (like myself)with the intent of empowering other women to achieve theirfinancial goals through personalized budgets and coaching, allwhile leading a healthy and fashionable lifestyle. I could befinancially savvy and fashionable? I was sold!

I desperately needed her services in my life. I recentlypurchased my first home, so my need for financial stability andsecurity is greater than ever. I no longer have the renter's safetynet where if everything goes to hell, I can just move in with afriend. Things in my life have gotten real very quickly. I now havea mortgage, taxes and the random broken appliance in the middle ofwinter. If hitting 30 years old didn't make me feel like an adult,signing on the dotted line for my first mortgage certainly did.

With all this in mind, I sent an email to the address on thefinancial coach's website to learn more. To my surprise, I got aresponse a few hours later. We set up a free consultation for 7:00p.m. that night and she called at 7:00 p.m. on the dot. This typeof responsiveness and timeliness was music to my Type A ears. I wasalmost sold before the call even began.

During the call, we discussed my financial goals and whichproducts and services would be best for me. We landed on having herdevelop a monthly budget for me and doing weekly phone check-insessions, during which we'd discuss what I spent that week as wellas my financial hurdles and goals for the upcoming weeks andmonths. She also sent me a budget tracker in the form of an Excelspreadsheet. My budget is separated into columns – housing,transportation, food, etc. – and I have to enter in every cent Ispend, all while making sure I don't go over the allotted budget,which is displayed at the top of each column.

It's nearly five weeks into the process, and I've quicklylearned I spend a ridiculous amount of money on food. Those $4 soychai lattes add up quickly.

However, it's no longer a mystery where the majority of my moneygoes – to food! The simple act of having to input everything Ipurchase, big and small, is in itself a spending deterrent. Beforeevery purchase I make, I now look at my budget tracker and see howmuch I have allotted for the rest of the month. If I do spend themoney (and if it's a lot), I contemplate how I will explain thepurchase to my budget coach.

This whole process is an exercise in accountability. I'm gettingbetter and separating wants from needs. I'm less stressed aboutmoney because I have a very specific plan as to how I'll meet myfinancial goals, and now I always know how much money I have leftto spend each month. The whole process has been a game changer formy financial life – current and future.

Admittedly, I didn't find this service at a credit union, butit's the exact type of thing that credit unions should capitalizeon. I'm 34 years old, and like many of my friends, we're out of thefinancial starvation of our 20s. My demographic (hard-working,millennial college graduates with student loan debt) presents agreat opportunity for credit unions.

We finally have a little money in the bank and we're looking topossibly purchase our first home or refinance student loandebt.

An article in Financial Advisor Magazine said, “Thisyear, millennials became the largest segment of the labor forcewith 53.5 million employed individuals – around one-third of thetotal. These numbers matter because age can be a wedge betweenfinancial advisors and their potential clients. The average age ofan advisor is 57 years, while millennials' average age is closer to27.”

The potential membership base exists; it's just a matter oftapping into the market. I personally think anyone can advise mygeneration – they don't need to be someone my age. The key isreaching my generation, relating to them and using the right methodto advise. For me, it was a review on LinkedIn that caught myattention, but what kept me was the responsiveness and personalizedservice. I like weekly check-ins and the understanding of my needto travel while living a fashionable yet affordable lifestyle.These things matter – even if they don't matter to the personadvising. Tailor your products and services to accommodate specificdemographics. What may work for a person in their 50s may not workfor a person in their 30s.

I encourage credit unions to think outside of the box – justlike my generation has been doing for years.

Stay tuned for updates on my financial journey and more tips onreaching millennials.

Tahira Hayes is a Correspondent-at-Large forCU Times. She can be reached at [email protected].