200th Episode - Listener Happy Hour
This is a super special episode for me to share with you, because it’s my 200th episode. Can you believe I’ve said “Hello Martinis and your Money listeners” 200 times now? Time flies when you’re having fun, and having fun is what I do when I record these shows for you and for me. When I was thinking about how I wanted to commemorate this event, the only thing I could think about was my amazing listeners - you, who are the reason why I take the time out to record and share this show. So I thought I would host a happy hour for some of my uber listeners, where I share some juicy info about this show, and about me personally, and let them ask me whatever they want. I hope you enjoy this conversation with my friends.
Jen – Tito’s Lemonade Vodka
Mabel - Shiraz Wine
Sherri – Black Box Cabernet
Shannon – Deep Eddy’s Vodka with grapefruit flavored sparkling water
Podcast Notes
Shannon announced that she is partnering with Bacardi, and she is about to kick off a five-city tour. It is a women’s empowerment summit for the hospitality industry, and she will be talking about financial fitness. Bacardi will be giving a one-month membership to every attendee as Shannon’s speaking fee.
Shannon started this podcast as a dare three years ago and has kept doing it because of her listeners.
Shannon asked each guest how they found this show:
Mabel followed Shannon to two events and introduced herself. She originally found this show through the Mad Fientist’s podcast when he was interviewing Mrs. Frugalwoods and she mentioned Happy Hour.
Jen is very interested in personal finance and found Shannon through YouTube. She saw a video that Shannon did with the Financial Diet. This show is the first podcast she has ever listened to, and she has listened to all of the episodes.
Sherri was never interested in personal finance and she wanted to educate herself. She googled personal finance podcasts and came across this one and loved it.
Shannon has recorded episodes that she hasn’t aired, because she didn’t get anything out of them. If she thinks the information may be helpful to listeners she will air it. She would rather replay an episode she has previously aired than expose her listeners to something she didn’t find value in.
Shannon gets requests every day from people who want to be on her podcast. Most requests are from people who have written books. She usually does not accept these requests, unless the books interest her in some way. She picks guests based on what she is interested in and what she thinks her listeners will be interested in.
Sherri now adds cinnamon to her coffee, because of what Shannon said in a recent episode.
The ladies talk about their favorite and least favorite episodes:
Mabel’s favorite episode is the Frugal or Cheap Happy Hour (Feb & Mar 2015).
Jen’s least favorite episode was called The Joys and Pains of Single Parenthood with Sarah Bettencourt. Her favorite episode was Credit Card Churning with Holly Johnson (Apr 2015).
Sherri’s favorite was Debt Repayment and Side Hustling with Melanie Lockhert. Another favorite was Open Enrollment with Charleton Lamb. Sherri will turn off the podcast if it doesn’t interest her.
Shannon’s all-time favorite episode was her story, The Struggle to Find Happiness, because she went through a lot and she wanted to share it with her listeners. One of the episodes Shannon really loved was The Importance of Positivity with her college roommate, Jill. She also loves the Happy Hours. They’ve recorded 34 episodes together so far. When Shannon wants to laugh, she will go back and listen to Happy Hour episodes. Shannon’s least favorite episodes are not aired. You can tell if she is not really interested, if she gets to the random three questions within 30 minutes.
Shannon said it is difficult for someone’s true self to come across in 45 minutes. She has personally had emails from people that don’t like her swearing and emails from people who do like her swearing.
Shannon shared a positive email she received from Hilary Hendershott after she aired her episode, Helping Women Talk about Money and Investing (Dec 2017).
The ladies asked Shannon about the boyfriend she briefly mentioned in a recent episode. Shannon shared a story about her not-fun online dating experience on Bumble. The boyfriend she mentioned isn’t from an online dating site, but happens to be her friend that gave her the first $15,000 for the gym. Shannon shared a story about almost getting caught by her son with her new boyfriend.
Mabel asked if there had ever been any difficult guests or anyone who drank too much while recording. Shannon shared that there was a Happy Hour episode where Melanie was in NYC and they went out drinking together prior to recording. Shannon said she didn’t remember much of the show afterwards. Shannon talked about one guest that drank too much and another that may have had a “Rocky Mountain high”.
Shannon shared that some of her favorite episodes include Frugality for Depressives, Disability Insurance - What you need to know, Minimalism for Anyone, Deep in Debt But Now Full of Life (Nov 2017),
Sherri and Shannon talk about the core philosophy the Financial Gym has about balancing life now and planning for the future.
Jen said she heard an episode where Shannon said the worst car she ever had was a BMW. Jen said she works for BMW and is the Marketing Director for several dealerships in her area. Shannon shared a story about how her ex-husband had a paid-off mustang and they both decided to trade it in for an expensive, convertible BMW.
Shannon said that she loves recording and sharing the podcasts with her listeners.
TAKEAWAY: The importance of commitment. I committed to this show three years ago. While it’s hard work and it takes time, it has led me to some amazing experiences on and off the show that I am so thankful for. I look forward to recording the next 200 shows.If you need help committing to your financial goals, I hope that you’ll reach out to my team at The Financial Gym and find out more about what we do. No matter where you are in your financial journey, my financial trainers can help you get where you want to go. So head over to, or send friends to, financialgym.com/friends to sign up for a free call today. Also, visit the Gym’s site to find out more about our local money tribes that we’re kicking off across the country. You don’t have to be a Gym member to join in, you just have to be someone who is interested in chatting about all things personal finance with some cool people, while possibly enjoying an adult beverage at the same time. Look them up and get connected.And until next time, take care!!