Financially Thriving with Shannon Weinstein
Happy Friday Feels, Tribe! I hope all of you out there listening are doing well and staying encouraged during this pandemic! I know for me, avoiding the news is crucial. I often walk downstairs after work to find my husband, Pat, watching CNN, and I just have to say “Nope. Not doing it today.” There’s so much fear flying around right now, and it’s way too easy to let all that negativity seep into your mindset and rob you of the brightness and joy you need!
I know I don’t have to tell you that this is especially true when it comes to our financial mindsets right now. There’s so much uncertainty and anxiety around our economy right now, and many of us are in scary and precarious situations with our jobs and bank accounts. It’s so hard to feel like we’re out of control of our finances!
But never fear! I got you covered.
You guys know that I am all about empowering you to feel happy and confident every single day — that includes these days spent in quarantine! And believe it or not, even in the middle of all this uncertainty, you can make strides toward financial freedom.
That’s why I brought in my guest today, Shannon Weinstein. Shannon’s one of the best CPAs out there, and I’m so excited to have her on the show. Trust me, she’s a freaking genius, and she’s here on Episode 76 of The Jenn Kennedy Show to share her knowledge and brilliance to help you financially thrive!
Who is Shannon Weinstein?
So as I said before, Shannon is a Certified Public Accountant, but let’s just call her a Certified Financial Guru. Seriously, this girl can do it all. In addition to having ten years of experience as an accountant, she’s also an online coach, a fitness instructor, and the founder of FitnancialSolutions.com.
Yeah, you read that right — FITnancial solutions. Let me explain:
Shannon’s career story began when she finished school and took her first job as a CPA. She was working 9-11 hours a day, just sitting at a desk, and eventually, she realized she needed to get active just to destress and improve her overall health. So, she started taking Zumba classes after work!
As she got to know a lot of fitness instructors and members of the fitness community around her, Shannon realized that very few full-time fitness instructors have the knowledge and financial skills to make their businesses thrive! It broke her heart to see so many great fitness-minded communities struggle to survive financially, so she decided to do something about it.
In 2015, she started Fitnancial Solutions with the purpose of teaching, supporting, and empowering fitness professionals to make smarter financial decisions and become as financially fit as they are physically fit! She is an expert at helping her fellow fitness instructors get their dreams off the ground.
Make no mistake, though; this girl isn’t just a fitness junkie who can crunch numbers. The homepage of her website says, “Let’s turn passion into profit & income into impact;” her advice really can help you do just that — make the money, manage it wisely, and have the most significant impact! Shannon Weinstein is a financial genius. The knowledge she has to share will empower you to take charge of your finances and start living in financial freedom, even in these challenging and uncertain times. Let’s get into it:
Become Self-Aware and Stop the Leakage
One of the biggest financial problems Shannon sees her clients dealing with is actually pretty simple, but it might surprise you:
“It’s mostly like lack of self-awareness because there’s a ton of leakage happening that people don’t know about.” - Shannon Weinstein
Too many people are outspending their income, especially in this current age. Shannon pointed out to me that now in 2020, with the abundance of services we can just put on autopay, many of us forget what we’re even paying for. Money flies right out of our bank accounts—that’s the ‘leakage’ Shannon talked about—and we lose the vital financial resources we need.
It's even happened to me! You guys, I once found that I was paying $20 a month for a meditation app that I never touched. What a waste of money! Like me, you may have similar expenses that you’ve forgotten all about. Maybe you’re subscribed to one too many streaming services. Perhaps you’ve been spending money on a gym membership, but you’ve realized that at-home workouts work better for you. Whatever they are, forgotten expenses like that can really add up and drain your bank account fast!
The good news? The solution to the problem is so simple.
It sounds obvious, but you’ve got to become self-aware of where your money’s going and stop the leakage. Make it a point to regularly take stock of where all your money is and where it’s going so that you can make the wisest money decisions.
I do this myself! Every Friday, I have what I call “the meeting with the CFO.” That’s where I sit down at my computer and look at every single one of my credit cards, my bank account, my investments, literally everything that involves my money! I go through it all, make sure I know where my money is, and cut any unnecessary expenses. That way, I avoid the leakage and make sure I’m investing where it counts!
“You know, you may be saying ‘no’ to things that you really, deep in your heart, you know you should be saying ‘yes’ to because you think it’s a budget issue, but … if you go through that exercise, you can discover how to shift that money from the leakage piece over to real investment.” - Shannon Weinstein
Regularly checking in on your money and keeping careful track of how you’re spending can make the difference between continually feeling overspent and having the financial freedom you want. Try to make it a point this week to sit down and figure out where your money is going — I’m sure it will help you start to feel more financially confident!
Find a Coach Who Will Add Value
Let me emphasize one thing real quick here (and I’ll borrow Shannon’s words to do it because it’s gold):
“You are not allowed to outsource giving a shit about your business.” - Shannon Weinstein
To succeed financially and achieve the income and lifestyle of your dreams, you must be personally attentive to your money. Like we just talked about, it’s necessary to take a hard look at your finances and fully understand them for yourself.
However, as with everything else in life, having a coach — such as a badass CPA like Shannon — is vital… and not just when you need help with your tax return!
“Having an accountant—it’s not a March and April problem. It’s a year-round relationship. And it’s something that you should be using them as an advisor in the off-season so that you can still make changes and implement ideas and tax-saving strategies throughout the whole year.” - Shannon Weinstein
Guys, let me just tell you: Having a coach in your corner who will work with you to add value to your financial life is a necessary expense. You go to a doctor when you’re sick, a fitness instructor when you need help working out, and a CPA to get help with your finances!
And it’s vitally important to find the right CPA for you, too. Find someone who is committed to adding value. The right CPA is not someone who wants to talk to you once a year during tax time, and it’s definitely not someone you follow on Twitter or Instagram who occasionally posts helpful tax tips. As Shannon said, this is a person who has a year-round relationship with you and who will encourage you, ask questions, and help you create a fantastic strategy for building a healthy financial life.
“Anyone who has sound advice is going to say, ‘It depends on your strategy.’ … And it’s so important that … you have a professional [who] … takes a step back, a pause, a deep breath, and thinks, ‘Okay, here’s what I think based on certain assumptions, but how can I make less assumptions and know more about this person before I give advice?’ That is a professional worth working with.” - Shannon Weinstein
So find a CPA — a financial coach — who will ask you questions about your business, your strategy, and your finances. That person will give you the best advice and truly empower you to thrive in your financial life!
Invest in Yourself
Here’s what this all boils down to, friends: Invest in yourself. It’s worth it. It just is.
Shannon is a professional fitness instructor in addition to being a CPA, so let’s use the metaphor of a weight loss journey. If you decide you want to lose some weight, what do you do? You might start looking for a gym, a fitness class, or a personal trainer. Maybe you also look for a nutritionist who can help you make healthier food choices or a doctor who can give you sound medical advice.
Likewise, say you want to improve your financial life. Maybe you’re trying to grow your business, maybe you want to invest in a retirement account, or maybe you just want to learn how to have enough money in the bank come tax time!
Are you going to ask your friends on Facebook for their best financial advice, maybe talk to a successful business owner you know, pick and choose a few tips, and hope for the best? Of course not! You’re going to look for a CPA, someone with the knowledge and skills to help you make financial decisions that will grow your money and help you thrive.
“... Just because someone is successful in their own business doesn’t make them credible to assist you with yours. … You have to be able to distinguish between, you know, the gimmicks of it and the real, quality professionals that you can ask for help from.” - Shannon Weinstein
Let’s take the metaphor a step further: If you’re looking for a gym or fitness professional to help you with your weight loss journey, are you going to hire the first person you meet? Are you going to look for the lowest prices? Nope. To truly invest in your health, you want to interview several people so you can find the right person who is willing to get to know you and create a diet and exercise strategy that’s right for your body. And you need to be prepared to invest both your time and money into finding a professional with experience and quality advice.
The same thing applies to finding your financial advisor. Talk to a few CPAs before you settle on one. Find a person who understands your goals and who is willing to tailor a financial strategy for you personally. And be willing to invest money — and it may be a significant amount — into hiring that person and regularly meeting with them. Remember, you get what you pay for, and you want to pay for the best help you can find!
If you want to grow your money and use your income to have the highest possible impact for your business, invest in yourself, and find the right professional to help you thrive financially.
Why You Should Listen To This Shannon Weinstein Podcast Episode Right Now...
How do you feel about your finances? They can be intimidating; I get it! Like we talked about earlier, in these uncertain economic times in particular, it can be stressful to try to manage our money, especially by ourselves.
But I am here today to tell you that you can do it.
“I mean, I could go on for days about like actual tax tips and things, but I think it comes down to really owning it.” - Shannon Weinstein
Are you ready to really own your finances? Do you want to take charge of your financial future? Then go ahead and listen to Episode 76 with Shannon Weinstein. She’s got just a wealth of fantastic information, and I know you’ll learn a lot! I know I did!
Thanks, tribe! I’ll catch you next time!
