Getting Financially Naked with Margaret
Getting Financially Naked with Margaret
At the Financial Gym, we call the first meeting you have with a trainer, the “financially naked session”. In this meeting, you share everything about yourself financially so the trainer knows where you’re starting so that he or she can make the plan for how you can get where you want to go. Above all other meetings, this one scares clients the most because they are afraid or ashamed of their financial situation. Over two years ago on this podcast, I shared my financially naked session and it led to a request for more. Now, this is a regular series on this podcast.
Getting in the hotseat today is our first Canadian guest, Margaret. She joins me to share not only her digits, but how she got her finances into shape and how she wants to help others do it as well.
What are we drinking?
Margaret - Honey lavender tea
Shannon - Black Cherry Schweppes
Podcast Notes
Margaret has been a long-time fan of the podcast. She is Canadian and has been listening since 2017. She started on episode 1 and listened forward.
Margaret’s journey with money started with her parents. They both had good jobs, in the six figures, but she never saw the background of what they were doing. As soon as Margaret got a job and started making money, she didn’t know what to do with it, and that caused a lot of reckless spending.
She didn’t have the foresight or education on how to manage her money or have good money habits. Her parents never openly talked about their finances in a way that it was a lesson for her to know what to do, but as a teenager, she never asked.
Margaret learned what she knows now from hitting the ground and working her way back up. She had a lot of shame, because she didn’t want to talk about the credit card debt that she had.
When you are faced with so much debt, there are so many restrictions in life. She got to a point where she was tired of having to turn down opportunities, and she was tired of spending money on things she didn’t care about. She wanted to spend her limited resources on things she did care about.
Margaret was so scared to tell her parents anything, because she thought she would get into trouble. Now they talk openly about their financial fails and financial wins.
When you bring shame to light, it loses power and you can let it go. When we share our financial details, it’s cathartic and it changes the dynamics of our relationships. You are not defined by your bank statements or your credit card debt, but by the love and care of the community you have around you.
As soon as Margaret asked for help, she had a huge sense of relief. If you don’t know things now, there is nothing stopping you from learning.
The Gym gets a lot of requests for them to expand to other countries, but at this point, they are only in the U.S. now.
Questions from the financially naked questionnaire:
Birthday: 4/1/1992
Employer: Private wealth management firm in their investment department
Annual Income: $45,000; previously in a job making $36,000
Net Paycheck: $1,500 on the 15th and 30th
TD Checking Account: $750
EQ Bank Online: $1,000 emergency fund; 2% interest monthly; was at $5,000 before COVID
TD Savings Account: $208 (for trips to the US)
TD Tax-Free Savings Account: $12,000 (equivalent to the Roth IRA in the U.S.)
Registered Retirement Savings Plan (RRSP): currently open, but not investing (like a traditional IRA in the U.S.)
Credit Cards: $0
Mother’s Line of Credit: $6,500 down from $11,000 (1.65% down from 13% interest on a consolidated loan, down from 25% originally on credit cards)
Student Loan: $14,500 ($217 min/month, 5% interest)
Credit Score: 822
Monthly Expenses: $1,500 (rent, food, fuel, but not including loan payments)
Renter’s Insurance/Disability Insurance: None
Horse: $500 - $600 per month (leased out to others)
Will: Not yet
Children: None
Short-term goals: Keep growing her income, travel for a month, riding her horse
Non-Negotiables: Horses, a car
Shannon’s recommendations: Look into renter’s insurance
In Canada, you need to pass the Canadian Securities course which is self study with two exams. Margaret did this during the first part of quarantine. She passed the second exam in August and started her current job on September 1.
It is difficult to get a 0% balance transfer on a credit card for more than $5,000. When the credit card pulls your credit, your credit score goes down.
Even though a personal loan is higher interest, sometimes it is the best option. Pick the lowest monthly payment and the longest payment term, because the lower payment gives you more flexibility. You can pay it off quicker than the term.
Takeaway: My biggest takeaway is the importance of speaking with your family about your finances, especially if you’re struggling and they can help you. I know money is a difficult subject, believe me, my father is the last person I’d want to call for money, but the temporary pain of the phone call could be much less than the ongoing pain of pay high interest on your debts.
Random Three Questions
What have you been bingeing lately?
When you can travel again, where is the first place you will go?
If this was your last meal, what would it be?
Connect with Margaret
YouTube: Financially LIT with Margaret
If you have any topics you would like me to cover on this podcast, or if you’d like to get in the financially naked hot seat, I encourage you to email me to Shannon@fingyms.com, or join the private Martinis and Your Money Facebook group, and let me know what you want to hear.
2020 was a challenging year and if money was one of those challenges for you, please don’t let 2021 be more of the same. Despite a global pandemic, we witnessed Financial Gym clients achieve amazing goals all year long. We’ve worked with over 6,000 clients at this point and we’ve literally seen it all and would love to help you achieve your financial dreams in 2021.So head over to, or send friends to, financialgym.com to get set up today.