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How smart gay men manage their money
There are common habits of financially successful people and smart gay men, and other LGBTQ folks would be wise to adopt those habits. Get those first 3 tips here. Meanwhile, grab your free copy of the 7-Step Credit Card Debt Slasher here.
Smart gay men and other LGBTQ folks do this
Are you a financially successful gay couple?
On episode 44 of the Queer Money® podcast, we interviewed Shannon McLay of the Martinis & Money Podcast and the Financial Gym to talk about her Financial Gym.
Shannon created a brick-and-mortar business that’s basically Orange Theory for money. You need financial wellness as much as you need physical wellness and much like Orange Theory, Curves and CrossFit, Shannon’s national chain of Financial Gyms gives folks a safe space to get with their finances.
Shannon works with LGBTQ people, straight people, same-sex and opposite-sex couples alike. We asked about the similarities and differences she sees in queer versus straight folk and a quote of hers hit home with us. Shannon said, “The ones who are the most successful are the ones w/the most clearly defined goals.”
We’ve seen this in our own money work with couples.
Get your free copy of the 5 Building Blocks of a Happy Gay Life at debtfreeguys.com/5
We often tell the gay couples that we work with that they don’t need to have the same life and financial goals, but they do need to be able to support each other in working toward and reaching their separate life and financial goals. Surprisingly, couples can even have competing goals. They simply need a strategy which, surprisingly, many couples don’t create.
Thus, they struggle with their finances, and this struggle often leads to relationship tension and eventually separation. Openness, honest and strategy are the keys to being a financially successful gay couple.
Get smart money habits from the founder of the Financial Gym:
Smart LGBTQ folks stay unique inside and out
We often tell the gay couples that we work with that they don’t need to have the same life and financial goals, but they do need to be able to support each other in working toward and reaching their separate life and financial goals. Surprisingly, couples can even have competing goals. They simply need a strategy which, surprisingly, many couples don’t create.
Thus, they struggle with their finances, and this struggle often leads to relationship tension and eventually separation. Openness, honest and strategy are the keys to being a financially successful gay couple.
How do smart gay couples achieve this? Here’s our 3-part plan:
- Have clearly defined goals
- Collaborate on your goals, whether they’re similar or disparate goals – you’re a team
- Invest in your individual and mutual financial health as much as your physical health
Your smart gay money plan
- Have a goal tracker – be crystal clear on what their goals are you’re working toward and what you need to reach them
- Commit to cashflow – appropriately allocate and know where each penny is coming from and where each penny’s going
- Talk about goals and finances regularly – meet and talk about tips 1 and 2 regularly, whether weekly, monthly or quarterly
With this clarity and attention, you will be a financially successful gay couple.
Glamor pumping at the Financial Gym
Like us, Shannon started her money career at a Fortune 500 financial services firm. After a while, she struggled with the institutional inability to help those who need it most. After losing 50 pounds of post-baby weight from a rigorous diet and exercise regime, Shannon was amazed at the parallels between physical fitness and financial fitness.
Shannon then wrote Train Your Way to Financial Fitness, which you can and should order here if for no other reason than a hot guy with a book on the elliptical machine is hotter. I digress. This book was the precursor and incubator for an idea planted in Shannon’s head during her money-hungry days in full-service. She wanted to open a financial gym at a physical location. She envisioned a place where people could walk in off the street to do whatever financial exercises they needed to pay off debt, improve their credit score, save for retirement or whatever they needed most.
Shannon’s dream is now her reality and her financial gym is helping others achieve their financial dreams. Shannon shares many inspiring stories on Queer Money™ of people she’s helped and is helping. Don’t worry if you’re not in New York City! Shannon plans to open gyms across the country and we know she will. In the meantime, The Financial Gym can and is helping many people virtually. In fact, Shannon has never physically met some of her most successful clients.
Watch the Queer Money Follow Up to this episode:
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Get more tools to get money smart:
- 10 Smart Money Tips To Do Better With Money
- 37 Best Tips on How to Become Debt Free
- How To Save Money On Pet Costs
We’re David and John Auten-Schneider, the Debt Free Guys and hosts of the Queer Money® podcast. We help queer people (and allies) live fabulously not fabulously broke by helping them 1) pay off credit card debt, 2) become part- or full-time entrepreneurs and 3) save and invest for retirement.
