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 Trump’s executive order to dismantle Diversity Equity and Inclusion programs, even though her job had nothing to do with DEI.

I'm talking to Quay as part of a series I’m doing on how the Trump administration is affecting individuals’ personal finances.

Email Maya with guest ideas, questions or hello's at [email protected]

Find Quay Crowner on LinkedIn

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mayalau.com

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 themes that come up on Other People's Pockets.

Taylor Winters is an executive coach and entrepreneur. She co-founded and managed a globally-recognized design agency to a successful exit and pivoted her focus from developing products to developing people, specifically leadership professionals across industries. She earned her coaching certification from UC Berkeley (Haas) created the leadership practice Every Day Future, and is pursuing a Masters in Applied IO Psychology from Harvard.

Follow Taylor Winters:

IG: @everydayfuture

Follow Maya Lau:

IG: @itsmayamoney

LinkedIn: @mayalau

TikTok @itsmayamoney

YouTube: @itsmayamoney

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, and re-think her entire career.

We spoke on July 10, 2025.

This is part of a theme we are pursuing looking at how the Trump administration is affecting people’s personal finances. If you know someone who would be a great guest, get in touch at [email protected] or on Instagram or TikTok at @itsmayamoney. And on LinkedIn!

Thank you for supporting this show!

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 through Daishi's grandfather, a U.S. citizen. But when his grandfather died, that path to citizenship vanished, and Daishi and his family remained in the U.S. as undocumented immigrants.

Since he was a teenager, Daishi has been protected from deportation because he is a recipient of Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA). He spoke about how DACA has afforded him a financial life in the U.S., and what the Trump administration means for how he's thinking about his future and his money.

Follow Maya Lau:

Instagram: @itsmayamoney

TikTok: @itsmayamoney

Email: [email protected]

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 this next season on something a little more news-related. I’m looking at how the Trump administration is affecting people’s personal finances. Whether it's changes to immigration policy, federal job cuts, tariffs … How are these big policy changes impacting the kitchen table conversations that we’re having about our money?

If you have a story you think would be great for this show, email me at [email protected], or find me on Instagram or TikTok at @itsmayamoney

I am going to be putting out episodes on a different schedule than before ... think about once a month, until I get up and running.

A new episode of OPP drops tomorrow, July 15, 2025. Thanks everyone!

Your host, Maya Lau

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 scams ever: the Ponzi scheme.

Hosted by me and featuring award-winning comedian and actor Sebastian Maniscalco, Easy Money: The Charles Ponzi Story is a docudrama that captures the rise and fall—both outrageous and tragic—of the con artist who fooled the world and paid the price. Easy Money: The Charles Ponzi Story is an Apple Original podcast, produced by AT WILL MEDIA. Follow and listen on Apple Podcasts.

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 featuring award-winning comedian and actor Sebastian Maniscalco, Easy Money: The Charles Ponzi Story is an Apple Original podcast, produced by AT WILL MEDIA. Follow and listen on Apple Podcasts.

And come see me live at the Tribeca Film Festival talking onstage about Easy Money: The Charles Ponzi Story. I'll be joined by Sebastian Maniscalco along with Will Malnati, CEO of AT WILL MEDIA, and Jamie-Lynn Sigler, of the Sopranos, our moderator.

Friday June 13, 2025

5p

OKX Theater at BMCC TPAC

199 Chambers St.

New York, NY

Tickets: https://www.tribecafilm.com/films/easy-money-the-charles-ponzi-story-with-sebastian-maniscalco-jamie-lynn-sigler-2025

Use discount code: TFPONZI30

Come say hi!

IG @itsmayamoney

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 also the host of Everyday Wealth.

This special episode of Other People's Pockets was produced with support from the Everyday Wealth podcast.

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 U.S. citizen. Laura Lyster-Mensch decided she had been too cagey about her money on this show and now wants to reveal all. And more!

Follow Maya Lau at:
Twitter: @mayalau
Instagram: @itsmayamoney
TikTok: @itsmayamoney

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 chosen family — who contribute money when she needs a security deposit and give her rides to appointments. She explains how personal finance looks different when you have an alternative definition of family, and how she has a new outlook on asking for help and taking on debt.

Follow Maya Lau at:

Twitter: @mayalau

Instagram: @itsmayamoney

TikTok: @itsmayamoney

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 the income she gets from her day job, whether she could do storm-chasing full-time, and what money conversations look like with her wife.

Follow Raychel Sanner at:

Instagram: @raychelsanner

@tornadotitans

X: @raychelsnr

Facebook: @raychelsanner

raychelsanner.com

Follow Maya Lau at:

Twitter: @mayalau

Instagram: @itsmayamoney

TikTok: @itsmayamoney