"You always hear about how to make money, but never how to keep it, protect it and grow it.”

Naomi Pearce has spent years on the frontline of an Australian crisis - the emotional and financial fallout of relationship breakdowns.

- Naomi Pearce

As a counsellor, she watched people walk away from homes, careers and futures not because they weren't entitled to more, but because they were too traumatised to keep fighting.

That gap between legal rights and emotional readiness drove her to launch TFA Legal, a national firm combining litigation with psychological support. Named one of APAC Insider's Most Client-Focused Law Firms, TFA is redefining how Australians, and particularly women, are supported through separation.

Let's start with your early years - what shaped your relationship with money?

It started early. I grew up understanding that with money comes moral responsibility. Later, as a psychological counsellor, I saw how deeply financial stress was tied to emotional wellbeing, especially during separation or divorce. Money was either a source of stress or silence - rarely a topic of calm conversation. It wasn’t about wealth or a lack of it, but how money could create power shifts, fear or shame within families. That left a mark.

What was your first job, how much did you earn, and what did you spend it on?

My job was in theatre performing, which later morphed into teaching and choreography. I was just 16 - full of nerves, sparkles, and a belief that storytelling could heal people. It didn't feel like a job; it felt like helping others escape, feel, and dream. As I became a teacher, I poured my passion into mentoring kids from under-resourced backgrounds. I often taught for free, ensuring no child was excluded for lack of money.