More Money Podcast - 201 How to Become Your Best Self - Mike Bayer, NYT Bestselling Author & Life Coach

Episode Date: May 29, 2019

There’s no point in talking about investing strategies or tips on how to stick to a budget if you don’t like who you are or the direction your life is going in, am I right? Personal finance is important, but being your authentic self and striving to be your best self is something I personally believe you need to work on first, otherwise you won’t have a strong enough reason to be smart and responsible with your money. And that’s why I’ve got Mike Bayer a.k.a. Coach Mike on the podcast. He just came out with his New York Times best-selling book Best Self: Be You Only Better, and you may recognize him from his frequent guest spots on the Dr. Phil show. He joins me to talk about how we can all choose now to take action, start living more authentic lives and moving forward to fulfilling our full potential.  For full episode show notest visit https://jessicamoorhouse.com/201 Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Hello, hello, hello. Welcome to episode 201 of the Mo Money Podcast. I am your host, Jessica Morehouse. Welcome back to the show. We've got two more weeks of this season, season eight of the Mo Money Podcast. We've got this week, we've got next week, and then I'm out of here. Going to Hawaii, guys, and then Vancouver because my older sister is expecting. So it will be a really exciting, magical time. I'm going to become an aunt for the first time and then take some much needed time off the podcast so I can kind of regroup, take some time off and get some guests for season nine that will start at the end of September. But I want to make sure I was going to end this season off with some amazing guests.

And so you're going to love this episode. I'm interviewing Mike Baer, or also known as Coach Mike. He is often on the Dr. Phil show. That's where you can find him all day long. But he also has a book that has just come out called Best Self Be You Only Better. It is a New York Times bestseller. And he's on the show to talk to me about obviously not finance, but something I think kind of more important. I think when and this is It is a New York Times bestseller, and he's on the show to talk to me about, obviously, not finance, but something I think kind of more important. I think when, and this is part of the reason why I love having this show and having so many different guests from different perspectives. I love, obviously, talking about personal finance, but it is one element of your life.

There's so many other parts that we need to take care of. And also, I kind of feel like if you're not good with yourself, if you're not living the life that you want to live, if you aren't being your best self, then you probably won't take any of the advice on this show about how to manage your finances. Am I right? And so that is what I'm talking to Coach Mike on this episode about how we can all improve ourselves and grow and be our best selves, be the people that we're supposed to be. You know, the potential that we all have potential in us. So how can we really reach that potential? So I know you're going to love this episode. I'm

very excited about it. So before I get to this interview with Mike Baer, here's just a few words about this episode's sponsor. This episode of the Momany Podcast is supported by Willful, a company on a mission to make sure every adult has a will. Look, I'll be the first to admit that talking about death is no one's idea of a good time. But just like taxes, death is a certainty we all face. You see, while we can't predict what life might throw at us, we can at least prepare. If not for ourselves, for the people who matter most to us. Enter Willful. Willful guides users step by step through a series of questions to generate a customized legal last will and testament starting

at $99. This essential document lets you name your executor who will carry out your wishes, name guardians for minor children and or pets, and much more. If you're getting married, buying a home, having kids, or just generally want to give your family peace of mind by creating your estate plan, go to willful.co to learn more about making a plan for your estate. Make sure to use code MOMONEY15 for 15% off any Willful plan. Once again, that's willful.co and code MOMONEY15 for 15% off or just check out the show notes for this episode. Willful is currently available in BC, Ontario, and Alberta. Thank you, Mike, for joining me on the show. I am so excited to chat with you on this episode. Thanks for having me, Jessica. You're welcome. So you just came out with a book called Best Self, Be You, Only Better.

And I'm a big fan of you. You're always on the Dr. Phil show. Everyone kind of knows you. You're called Coach Mike. This book specifically, I feel like, is it targeted towards millennials? Because we use best self a lot. I don't know., where did the kind of concept of this book come from? Well, I, I, you know, I've been in,

um, I would say personal development slash mental health. I, I'm one of those who kind of sees mental health as, uh, the same thing as physical health where we all have it and there's different degrees to it. And,

um, I own a treatment center in West Hollywood, California called Cast Centers. And the tagline is freedom to be your best self. So that was started that tagline about 10 years ago. And, and then I just realized that a lot of what I, the work I do and what inspires me is typically around authenticity and the best version of self. And so it was just fitting to kind of create a playbook for someone to uniquely, who has their own unique journey to kind of go through the process of having me as their coach. How did you get into coaching and helping people in this way? I don't think, I feel like when we think of the term life coach,

there's some good people out there that do really good work. And there were some people that were like, what do you actually do? Or what are your credentials? How did you get into this world? And basically reach the amount of success that you have? You clearly are, you know, really engaging and people are really responding to the messaging that you're putting out there. Yeah.

So I started off as an alcohol and drug abuse counselor. And then I did interventions for many years. And I was certified in both of those and was a supervisor. And then I, um, I don't know for me. And I think this is for a lot of people in their careers. You just are constantly evolving and reinventing. And, um, I actually, uh, didn't want to own the title of life coach for a really long time. Um, because of,

you know, what you're saying. And, um, for whatever reason, if somebody says they're a expert in mindfulness, that has a little more like, Ooh, they must be an expert.

Um, then something as broad as a life coach, but I would, and, and, you know, my background's working with addiction and psychiatric disorders.

And then I've, you know, worked with executives and people who are just looking to have a better life. So, you know, I don't, I don't, it seems there's like a trend right now for people to label themselves as coaches with like very targeted words i'm pretty broad because i just i work with so many different types of people yeah and you're it seems like your kind of purpose is to help people kind of structure their lives or just better understand your lives i saw an

interview that you did and you talked about how kind of the idea or just like mental health, we don't really deal with at a young age, like when we're, you know, kids or even teenagers as we're developing as people, we deal with the physical health, sure, but not the mental health. I'm hoping that's, you know, changing now as we're talking more about it. But because of that, when we reach adulthood, we're like, whoa, I don't really have a sense of direction. I don't know what to do. Or we have a lot of work to do on ourselves. And that's when we go see a counselor or a therapist.

What, I guess, do you feel like a lot of, what are some of the, I think, similarities? Because I know you deal with a lot of people. But what are some big things that I think all adults have to deal with and would probably find some guidance in your book? Well, I think, look, I think everyone deals to some degree with the voice that says they're not capable or good enough or smart enough or wanted enough or talented enough. You know, I think there's a pervasive like kind of thing that, that exists,

which is, you know, doubt and fear and, and kind of just feeling stuck. And so that is a common thread I've seen for every human being, including myself from time to time, you know? Yeah. Me too. Me too. Um, is that, do you feel like some would associate that with like, oh, we're dealing with a confidence issue.

Is that kind of the problem or no? That's just a label. That's not really what's going on. Well, I would always say it's somebody not being their best self. Because what I like to do is help people identify who they truly are at a real spirit, you know, authentic level and everyone's different. And then I often have them create characters around that where they give it a name. Like today, for a month of May, I create what's called the Best Self Challenge. And today I had like Joe Jonas and Sophie Turner do it that I put on my social media where they create the best version of themselves and what they call their anti-selves.

Dr. Phil did it and Dr. Oz and a lot of different people who are kind of in the public eye. And I always find that if somebody's being or tapping into what they would call their best self and really understanding what that looks like and what it means, there isn't any confidence issues. Most people don't live or think about it. They usually only start to address it when it becomes a bigger problem and the ball is already kind of starting to roll down the hill, which doesn't mean it's too late. It just means there's more of a hill to go up. I feel like I understand the concept of being your authentic self, but I feel like a lot of people have a hard time if they've especially not really thought about it or maybe haven't been really authentic to themselves to

identify what that means or what that looks like. How do you, I guess, help people or train people to find out what that authentic self is inside them? Yeah, I think you bring up a good point because culture doesn't really reward it. So I feel like a lot of people who would be amazing for social media aren't on social media. And I feel like all the messages from billboards to commercials to what's on our iPhones to pretty much everything, not, I mean, not literally everything, but a lot of the kind of world around us isn't embracing. Like, I feel like the term authenticity no longer is, I should say the definition of it, I feel like is down the river right now in culture.

I'm not saying that people can't find it. It's just, you know, people, you know, you look at what's being rewarded and just, you know, people, you know, you look at what's being rewarded and embraced, you know, on Instagram, and I wouldn't call it, you know, the people who are the most followed aren't the people who are expressing the most vulnerability. Right? Like, and so I think what happens for a lot of people at a young age, it's different when people are adults, I would say, but at a young age, they start to go, okay, that's what kind of real is. And I'm not that, or I'm not good enough, or I don't look like that, or I'm not smart enough.

And so I always peel it back. I mean, I never did well in school. I mean, I was held back in the eighth grade, did terrible in English. And then, you know, you flip, you fast forward to where I'm at now and, you know, best selves in New York Times bestseller and, um, now in 12 languages in four months. Right. And why, um, why does that or how or why, or, you know, you kind of take it. And what I believe is, um, the success I've had in my life and working with others is when people, um, look back at their life at different moments when they felt most connected to their selves, to their bodies, to their spirit, whatever that means for them.

When they feel the most free, when they feel like they're in the moment. And so, for example, my best self, I call Merlin. That's a wizard, right? I find it's really helpful. It's, you know, it's an exercise of like being mindfully, you know, mindfully tapping into your best self is really understanding those characteristics. So for each person, I would say, you know, when was the last time you felt completely free and you were embracing life. And, you know, when we start to paint a picture of those moments and usually there, well, there is a pattern, um,

for everyone of those moments. And then we start to describe the feelings and we start to describe, um, how none of it has to do with, uh, you know you know, I would say other people's opinions or approvals. You know, it's not about other people's validation. It's about how do you really tap into and validate yourself. And I think you're right. Like a lot of people struggle with this concept, but that's, you know, if you look at any situation, if somebody looks at how do I handle this as the best version of myself, they're always going to have a better outcome when they do that. Do you think there's – is there a difference between being true to who you are and being who you'd like to be or who you want to be? Because I know when you think of best self, it means I want to be better than who I am right now. But it seems like you're also talking about being authentic to who you are.

Like, do you know what I mean? Like, is there, I feel like some people would be like, but I want to be, I want to be myself, but I want to be better. How do we, how do we do that? Well, I think it's, I think it's understanding what aspect of your life you want to improve, you know, that you can, you can be, uh, authentic and, and, um, uh, not decide to go pursue your dreams because you're not willing or have the drive.

I mean, I think, I think it involves action. You know, you can't just sit there at home and meditate and pray and think that, you know, Apple's going to call you and offer you a job. So, you know, it's, it's to me, authenticity is really about when your intention matches your words and your actions. And the biggest part is actions. What actions are we actually taking? And I think everyone has room for improvement. I think sometimes people who may have a harder time with it think room for improvement would imply that you're doing something wrong.

The room for improvement simply implies growth. You know, we're evolving creatures. Everything, our physical bodies are evolving every second, every minute of the day. Our life evolves and people who don't evolve typically suffer from my experience. Mm-hmm. Absolutely. Um, you mentioned on a segment, uh, you were on, on Dr. Phil, Phil on Dr. Phil, that, uh, your book is really like you are the life coach in that book kind of helping the readers but the intention is that they can basically be their own kind of life coach afterwards like it seems like your kind of purpose is to create people that are more self-reliant is that kind of

what your motivation is it's like giving them the tools so they can use it to help themselves. Yeah. I mean, in Best Self, I put together the exercises that I've created or some concepts I've taken from other people. But I wanted to create something that someone could have as if they're working with a life coach and where they're getting all the value they would be getting working with a life coach, except they can, you know, life coach can be in their pocket or their purse or, um, at home. And, um, I think it's important for people to, when I, when I talk about, you know, for someone to have their own coach within, you know, by the end of the book, it's, so somebody just has more belief and faith in themselves and is able to find that internal cheerleader and accountability and have a roadmap to bettering their lives. And by the way, like,

there's phases to it. I mean, sometimes we're in, you know, really having to focus on our jobs and careers. And sometimes it's more about improving our social life or our relationships with our family. But I think doing it alone and by oneself is just unnecessary. It's harder. Yeah. Yeah, definitely. Because you always have to be that self-motivated, which is very difficult to do. And it's also, I think, the one issue is, and especially in this world, is we all kind of feel, I think, a little bit disconnected more. And a lot of people struggle, depression or just we feel alone. So having kind of a book like yours and other people talking about these topics makes you feel like, oh, I'm not alone. I'm not the only one who feels

like this. Right. Which I think is really important. Yeah. I mean, I think, yeah, I, I, it's definitely, everyone has their ups and downs, as we all know. I think there's a lot of noise in terms of how to actually have a guide through getting through the noise, you know? Yeah, absolutely. I want to talk a little bit more about the Best Self Challenge that you mentioned, because it's part of your book. And so May is mental health month, do you want to talk a little bit about why you created this best self challenge? And what's kind of involved? What's it really look like?

Well, the best self challenge kicked off on Dr. Phil. And then it kind of on TV a few weeks ago. And then May 1st is Mental Health Awareness Month. And something I like to do is, and if someone reads Best Self, they'll get it, is I like to create exercises that kids at 10 years old could do or somebody at 75 could do. I like to create universal concepts. And because I always believe when somebody is being their best self, they're not drinking or addicted to drugs or, you know, getting in trouble. Right. Um, and so I, for mental health awareness month, I, I feel like everyone talks about this thing around like the stigma of mental health, but I feel like there's a stigma because all these groups don't do anything that makes it inclusive for everyone. Like you, you're like, okay, it's been all the

word this month. We're talking about bipolar disorder now. Yeah. Or I'm supposed to just write something on my hand or shirt or like, right. And so what I wanted to do was create something where, um, people could show on social media, the media who their best version of themselves is. And they're what we call the anti-self, which is that part of you that's keeping you from being your best self. And so, you know, we've had hundreds and hundreds and hundreds of people submit. We've had schools doing it. I just went into a school actually last week called Buckley in Sherman Oaks.

And the parents did it. And I just think it's a cool, inclusive way for somebody to show, you know, who they are and also that part of them that's getting in the way. Yeah, no, I think that's really important. You mentioned what I thought was really interesting is someone at 10 years old could do this challenge. Is this, I don't know why, but I think a lot of people think of, you know, personal development is something that you do in adulthood, not so much in childhood and, you know, when you're a teen or a preteen or anything like that. Is this something that we need to, you know, especially for parents listening, you know, talk about with our kids or get them started working on themselves at an earlier age instead of like, oh yeah, once I'm done university

and I've got my job and I'm an adult, then I'll start thinking about who am I in my authentic self and am I, can I be better? And you know, all that kind of stuff. Well, I mean, this starts in childhood. It's that, that would imply that we don't work out our bodies till we're 18 and to me that's like uh it's it's you know if you think about like from the if you take kind of a um i don't know a thousand foot view of it it's kind like, why wouldn't we teach kids how to be emotionally resilient? Yeah. And how to be empowered. And but it's interesting, I went into a school recently, I separated the parents and the students, and they were 10 years old. They were 12 in each. And actually, we showed this on Dr. Phil, and we randomly had a group of five parents and five kids that we

broke it down even further into because we could only have that many on camera because there was only so much time. And their sons and daughters articulate. They created what was called their anti-self. One, and none of these were chosen. We had no idea what they would reveal. And one dad who said, you know, I always think of my daughter, Bridget, as just happy and go lucky. She shared with her dad that when she gets angry, there's a character inside of her. And she drew it and named it and that she locks herself in the bathroom. She doesn't eat for hours and hours and she punches

a pillow in her bedroom. Well, that's early. That could be potentially early on stage eating disorder, right? Her choice at a 10 years old is to do that behavior. If we wait until she's 18 years old, imagine eight more years. Yeah. Yeah. No, another 10 year old boy was suicidal. Wow. And I just think, I think, um, uh, this is a way for parents to be able to tell for their, and they can go to my website and get it for free, you know, kind of how to do the exercise. And, um, and we have schools implementing this into their curriculum because it's been really revealing. Um, but I also, what's interesting is the schools had less impact than I thought they

would. Like the, the most important relationship to any kid is their primary mom, you know, his mom and dad. Yeah. Yeah. And their own emotional coping and, um,

and self-esteem and how they perceive the world was directly related to mom and dad, not the school. Of course. Yeah. So it's the parents, they need to really, you know,

kind of, and that's true. It's like a lot of, I know I am who I am because of what I saw of my parents or what I learned from my parents. So it's like, I think you can't just rely. It's great for school systems to implement this stuff.

But I think if you're a parent, this is something that you need to openly talk about. I really wish, you know, it was more talked about when I was a kid. I'm glad that now I'm older. It is being more talked about. But it's, you know, I think some parents may not think that it's their job or responsibility, or they may not even think there's a problem. Like that parent you mentioned, oh, my kid's fine.

She's so happy. And it's really, maybe you've never had that really in-depth conversation. Every, yeah, every parent didn't know what the anti-self of their kid was, even though they thought going in that they would know. And is it really because they just, they didn't, they've never had that conversation or they just, they didn't know how to broach the topic? Well, I think it's also sometimes we can't, if I, if sometimes we, instead of, we'll just label something as angry or temper tantrum or, because also for kids, they can't articulate necessarily how they really feel. Plus, you know, we all have with our own moms and dads, we all get to want to say certain things, not say certain things, right?

Like they can trigger things in us that other people can't trigger. So, um, I think it's, um, but I, again, this is like a, this is fun for the family and fun exercise. So it's kind of like it's just a way for a parent to know kind of clearly how their son or daughter is perceiving life around them, you know? Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Kind of makes me freaked out to have kids. I'll be honest. Cause I think all parents are worried about, you know, messing up their kids a little bit. Yeah. And so the challenge is this month of May and like today,

there's a cake store called cake and Art that created their best self and anti-self cake. And there's like a tattoo shop did it. And now I'm going to release that content next week. And Jake Lazor, he's a sports on Fox football on Sundays. And I'm trying to get a lot of different people to do it and try to create. What you do is you post your best self and anti-self, you describe them and then you tag three other people to do the challenge. I like that.

That's a good, a good way to get the conversation going, whether, you know, you just want to do with your family or friends or, you know, school or workplace. Cause I know, like you said, more people are talking about mental health and there's lots more campaigns about them. But

sometimes it is just a matter of like, oh, it's Mental Health Awareness Month. We're going to wear pink shirts or something. And you're like, okay, that's not really helping. We're not really doing any work. Or we're going to post photos of us saying I have body fat and pinching body fat, but taking 50 photos to then get approval from people to say you're beautiful and you're so beautiful. It's this big thing. Yeah. And to me, it's just big thing like yeah and it's just to me it's just not real it's just yeah that's where i feel like people will call that oh my gosh that person's so brave where i'm like no they're just they want more approval yeah they're just taking a selfie like no makeup selfie you're like okay it's not really there's no like good advice or tips or, or anything kind of actionable to kind of help

what's going on. So, yeah. One question, uh, one question I'll leave you with is, uh, when kind of striving for this idea of, I want to be the best version of me, is there, I know kind of what the answer is, but is there actually an end point or is it, it just seems like one long journey that you continuously have to do the work on yourself forever and i think lots of people can kind of feel like that sounds like a lot and i'm already tired kind of thinking about all that effort how how much work really is it is it sometimes it'll be like a lot of work and then you just have to maybe make some tweaks or is it just like well if you ask like if, if you think about in your day to day, how many, how much time do you spend a day working on yourself? Probably not that much.

Maybe 10 minutes a day, 10 minutes a day, maybe. Okay. So let's, if working on self 10 minutes a day is just exhausting. Most people who say that aren't spending even 10 minutes a day. Yeah. And that could just be chilling with yourself and meditating and sitting outside and like journaling. Like what? Like, you know, like I think it's because we have this fear that we're suddenly going to be digging into pain. Yeah. A hundred percent. Yeah. I don't want some like memory from my past coming up.

You're like, oh, right, I buried that. I forgot. Oh, gosh, pain. No, it's how do you move forward? Coaching's about action. Therapy's about more of that uncovering. Oh, that's interesting. I've never heard of it kind of described as that.

Interesting. Yeah, I think a lot of people um kind of like a life coaching situation is more just like that therapy but it's more actual goals and it's um making them measurable and and taking the next step forward and we do coaching at cast centers we have a lot of coaching clients um who come into the office and also do it via phone. And it's, you know, people who are like, look, I'm a little bit stuck in this one area and I want to, I want to improve it. I want to get a better job. I want to be more brave. I want to, you know, get out of this situation. That's not healthy for me. I mean, I, I think, you know, it's not, I find, you know,

the irony is like, okay, if you ask, I don't know, if you ask them, I did this show recently where the woman said she really wasn't happy and she's a fitness model. And, you know, I said, well, how many hours a day do you spend? And she doesn't think she's attractive. And I'm like, well, how many hours a day do you spend, she doesn't think she's attractive and I'm like well how many hours a day do you spend you know in the gym and she's like well I usually spend about 90 minutes in the morning and then two hours later in the day and then you know etc etc and then when I asked well how much do you spend on just your own like self and love and self-esteem and she she's like, I don't. And I'm like, well, how the hell are you going to feel better about yourself? Yeah. So it's like, she's going to the gym for like three hours a day, but not taking any time

to kind of self-reflect on, you know, what just happened or how do I feel about myself? Yeah. Or like, how do I, do I write a gratitude list? You know, I think because culture has so much so much been ingrained in therapy, they I think you component too, is people feel like, okay, maybe there are some actionable steps out there. There's some helpful guides, but I need that accountability. What do you say to people that feel like they need some outside accountability? And should we all really be just internally accountable? Like it is really up to you. It's your life. Well, I mean, I think it depends on what somebody's goal is. You know, if somebody's, you know, give me, if you give me an example of a goal, I could tell you, you know.

Well, I'd say maybe, let's say someone's goal is I'm really unhappy in my job. I've been miserable, but I'm terrified to leave because, you know, it's a risk. So I'm just staying put. But, you know, i just feel stuck in my life because of this job how do i move forward and i need some kind of account like you know i know the steps to take it's about applying to other jobs but i'm not doing anything about it yeah i mean i would i always think whenever there's struggle this is this is one of the lessons i've learned um in just life is if you can turn your struggle or suffering or problem into inspiration,

you're going to have a lot of fun and it's going to work out. So if you're really unhappy in your job, you start talking to people who are happy in their jobs and ask them why they're happy in their jobs. And you, you know, say to somebody, I'm really not happy in my job. And that you, you ask for advice, you ask for input, you make it. Um, and often I find a lot of people who are unhappy in their job, um, are unhappy with themselves. Like I find it more than ever is really other people cause me to feel this way. Instead of taking that responsibility. Instead of going, how did I create this in my life?

Yeah. Yeah. And you'll notice, you'll see this with people. It goes from relationship to relationship or that's unhealthy. Or you see people going from job to job that are unhappy. Or you notice that there's people that constantly sue people. And you're like, why are you suing people?

Like it's someone else's fault because the landlord didn't fix the elevator for three days. And you didn't even need to take an elevator. But you want to make it a big scene. And you're so obsessed with this is, you know, just terrible. And you somehow make yourself believe that you're doing this for the greater good of the building. No, you're not. You're just fighting nothing. It's like fighting smoke. And I think a lot of people waste a lot of time fighting smoke.

Instead of focusing on inspiration, you know, besides just applying for more jobs, it's how do you get inspired by the process? What does that look like? And people it's because the, if you don't, from my experience,

if one doesn't kind of sink into that place, they're just going to create another job they're unhappy with because there's no like awareness. There's just, oh, that's a bad job. Right. Well, you chose it to begin with. Well, I didn't know when I came in because I, okay, well maybe you need to listen more closely in an interview. Maybe you were desperate. And at that time back then, you thought to yourself, I don't care if it's a bad job. I just need to make money. Like be honest with yourself. Yeah. And I think if somebody can do that, I find that they're going to create the job they want. People that can't do that, they stay flat. Yeah. Yeah. No, I think that's really important to mention is

you need to be inspired. You know, like action is action, but you need that. You need that inspiration. That's what gets you excited to make a change. And that's how you'll make a change. Right. And I'm sure people will get inspired by your book. So where can more people find out information about Best Self, your new book called best self be you only better and take part in the best self challenge yeah so all thank you for having me and asking me um coachmikebear.com it's like the aspirin b-a-y-e-r coach mike bear and that's my same handle on all social media channels. And, um, we have different, uh, if you want to see people doing the best self challenge, you can, you know, check out

any of our social media accounts. And then, um, if you want to get some free exercises or get more interested in what may be value, you could get out of the book, Best Self. You can go to the website. There's a newsletter that's free where I, you know, send something out every few weeks. That's either a tip or showcasing what other people are doing. And then, you know, I'm on Dr. Phil almost every week, which is another place that I'm at.

Yeah. And I love your segments on Dr. Phil. Thank you. You're welcome. Well, thank you so much for taking the time to chat with me. It was a pleasure. Thank you. You too.

And that was episode 201 of the Momenty Podcast with Mike Baer, a.k.a. Coach Mike. Grab a copy of his book, Best Self, Be You Only Better, right now. I will, of course, link to it in the show notes, jessicamorehouse.com slash 201. You can find out more information about everything that we talked about in this episode on my website. I would much appreciate it. Do not go away. I have some very important info. I'm going to be announcing some contest winners of my massive book giveaway right now. So stick around. Lots of important things to share. Just want to share first a few words about this episode's sponsor. This episode of the Mo Money Podcast is supported by Willful, the online will company on a mission

to bring estate planning out of the shadows and into the same conversations as insurance, financial planning, and investing. Creating your will doesn't have to be expensive, time-consuming, or scary. Just like tax and investing software has changed the way we approach those once-overwhelming elements of personal finance, Willful is using technology to simplify the way we create estate planning documents. You spend your life creating value, wealth, and accumulating property and assets. Estate planning is one way to make sure your legacy benefits the people and organizations that matter the most to you. Life gets busy and budgets are stretched enough as it is. For the reported 56% of Canadian adults who do not have a will, Willful is offering an

affordable, well-designed solution to get you closer to peace of mind. If you want to learn more about Willful, head to willful.co for all the details. Use code MOMONEY15 for 15% off any Willful plan. Once again, that's willful.co and code MOMONEY15 for 15% off or just check out the show notes for this episode. Willful is currently available in BC, Ontario, and Alberta. Okay, first things first, obviously, let's get to the fun part. Let's get to that contest I've been running all freaking season long, giving away a ton of books. So the winner of the book work optional by Tanya Hester is going to Samantha Turchin. Congratulations, Samantha. I will contact you via email and your book will be on its way to you shortly. Next up, I have the book Living Debt Free by

Shannon Lee Simmons. And the lucky winner for that book is Arthur Wright. Congratulations, Arthur. I'm going to send you an email shortly and you just won yourself a book. And next I have Startup Money Made Easy by Maria Aspen. And the winner is Andrew Ojo. Andrew, I will be emailing you shortly for more details. Okay, I'll do one more. And then I am going to announce the remainder of the winners tomorrow because bam, I've got a bonus episode for you tomorrow. Okay, one more. The winner of the Modern Couples Money Guide by Leslie Ann Scorgi is Lyndon Cain. Congratulations. Okay, as I teased, I have a bonus episode for you tomorrow. It is going to be about a topic I have surprisingly never talked about on the show. And that's all I'm going to tell you for now.

I want it to be a fun little surprise for you tomorrow morning. So that is it for me. I will see you back here tomorrow for that episode. I will be announcing the rest of the winners of my major book contest tomorrow. And yeah, that's about it. Have a good rest of your day. See you very soon. This podcast is distributed by the Women in Media Podcast Network.

Find out more at womeninmedia.network.