Other People's Pockets

Today I’m bringing you mini episode — a conversation my husband and I recently had about some aspects of our finances.

I love knowing about how couples talk about money, or about how any two people navigate their spending together. Because at the end of the day, finance is not something we manage in a vacuum — it’s almost always an exchange and a representation of a relationship of some kind.

Find all of Maya'...

Today I’m bringing you a look into a side of my life that is exercise and dance.

This episode is actually not about personal finance … there is more of that coming very soon.

Instead, I’m featuring an episode from the podcast Secretly Sporty, where they interviewed me about why I dance and how that informs my life.

Secretly Sporty is a new podcast hosted by writer and academic Sebastian Langdell about the way that e...

Today we're featuring Jessica Slice, a disabled author, speaker and essayist. Her book, “Unfit Parent: A Disabled Mother Challenges an Inaccessible World,” is an amazing look at how her experience in her body — which more often than not needs to be in a reclining position — has been an unexpected asset in her ability to parent & connect with her children. She also writes about the challenges it brings an...

I want to know who you are.

I mean that in the best possible way.

Here's the thing about making a podcast: you spend a lot of time creating something, you put that thing out into the world, and … you really don’t know who exactly is listening to it.

I do have some audience demographic data, but it’s not very robust. Knowing who is listening helps me land potential sponsors, and that helps OPP grow.

So I made a survey...

How do you compensate someone for giving life to another person's dream?

Sunshine Hanson is a three-time gestational surrogate, which means that on three different occasions, she was pregnant with and gave birth to other people’s babies, and was paid for it.

Her experience of helping families who wanted biological children but could not carry them on their own and navigating the financial aspects of that, inspired her to start ...

What happens when you finally start to budget in your 50s, then you discover to your total surprise that you are $40,000 in debt?

I spoke to Margo Clayson about the uncomfortable conversations she had — and new relationship patterns she created — on her journey to becoming financially sound.

Clayson is founder of The Mighty Microgreen, an organization that helps educators create interactive STEM and nutrition...

Amelie Tsoungui is a Cameroonian immigrant who moved to the U.S. at age six. After two decades growing up in Chicago and spending part of her 20s in L.A., she decided to self-deport to Cameroon in 2025 after the Trump administration said it would revoke Temporary Protected Status (TPS) for Cameroonian nationals. The cancellation of TPS meant she would no longer be able to live in the U.S. legally.

This experience of moving back to W...

Today we're honoring a member of the Other People's Pockets family, Carmen González, who tragically died this past August at the age of 24. Carmen was guest number 4 on this show, sharing how she handled her finances as a journalist, student and undocumented immigrant in Los Angeles.

What you'll hear is a montage of voices of people who knew and loved Carmen, followed by a re-release of the episode featuring her on OPP in 2023.

Carme...

Quay Crowner is a longtime U.S. federal government executive who served at multiple agencies, including the Internal Revenue Service, the Government Accountability Office, and the Department of Education.

The 55-year-old Maryland native was most recently the Director of Outreach Impact and Engagement for Federal Student Aid at the Department of Education, when she was put on leave and ultimately fired this year as part of President ...

Today I’m interviewing someone who helps me immensely with my work, the way I approach my career, and how to just be more effective and intentional with my time.

I’m talking to my executive coach, Taylor Winters, because she has some really interesting ideas about the concept of “enough,” which we talk about a lot on this show.

This episode is a Pocket Dial! That's where we pause to reflect on the money ...

Today I’m bringing you my interview with Cecilia Thiam, a 35-year-old Swiss-American humanitarian aid worker who has spent most of her career living and working in sub-saharan Africa. She lost her job after the Trump administration enacted sweeping cuts to the United States Agency for International Development (USAID). Now, she has had to scrap her plans, move to a new country with her 6-year-old daughter while parenting solo...

On this season of Other People's Pockets, we're experimenting with a new angle for some of the episodes: How is the Trump administration affecting people's personal finances?

Today I'm featuring Daishi Miguel-Tanaka, an immigrants' rights advocate based in Washington, D.C. Daishi was born in Japan to a Japanese father and a Filipina mother. When he was 6, he and his family moved to the U.S. with a plan to obtain U.S. citizenship...

Whether you’re a longtime listener of Other People’s Pockets, or you’re brand new to this feed, thank you for being here! I have some news, which is that I am now publishing this show on my own! I finally have full control of this podcast feed, this show that I conceived and love so much, and I’m so excited for what this means about moving forward with creative freedom.

I’m going to focus part of th...

I'm so proud to present the pilot episode of a new show I'm hosting, Easy Money: The Charles Ponzi Story.

In 1920, a broke immigrant in Boston became one of America’s richest, most infamous men—practically overnight. In just nine months, he swindled the modern equivalent of a quarter billion dollars, upended the world of finance, and etched his name into history as the mastermind behind one of the most notorious sca...

Hi! I'm dropping in this quick note to say that Other People's Pockets will be back with new episodes soon! Also! I have a special new project to share with you. I'm hosting a new podcast that tells the story of Charles Ponzi, a broke immigrant who became one of America's richest, most infamous men, practically overnight—and etched his name into history as the mastermind behind the Ponzi scheme. 

Hosted by me and feat...

Today on Other People's Pockets, you're going to hear what it's like to receive financial planning advice, and the person receiving the advice is ... me! My income, savings, and retirement goals will get scrutinized by Isabel Barrow, director of financial planning at Edelman Financial Engines and frequent guest on the podcast Everyday Wealth, along with Jean Chatzky, financial journalist and bestselling New York Times author who is...

It's hard to believe it, but this is the 35th episode of Other People's Pockets, which means it's the end of our first season! For this special episode, we reached out to some of our past guests for a "Look Back" -- an update on their financial situations & viewpoints. Cord Jefferson stopped earning money for a while and didn't know when more would come. Carmen González is learning how to apply for credit cards now that she's a...

Building credit. Being on your parent's cell phone plan. Learning to drive. There are many financial benefits to having a relationship with your family of origin. Today's guest, Jessica, has experienced what it’s like to not have those advantages. Jessica severed ties with her biological parents due to emotional abuse she experienced from them throughout her life. Jessica has built a strong network of friends — her chos...

How does a love of extreme weather translate into making money? Raychel Sanner is a storm chaser and co-founder of Tornado Titans, a media brand by self-described “weather nuts” who capture images of supercells, monsoons, blizzards and more. As a Choctaw trans woman born and raised in Oklahoma, Raychel is transforming the image of storm chasing away from being dominated by straight, white cis-men. Raychel chats about th...