Meet Your Financial Maven®: The Story Behind the Podcast
- Samantha M. Besnoff, CPA
- 2 days ago
- 3 min read
Your Financial Maven Podcast® · Introducing the Show
Do you know your money? Do you feel financially empowered — or stressed every time you look at your bank account? That tension is exactly why I started this podcast.
I’m Samantha Mittman-Besnoff, CPA, and I’m known as Your Financial Maven®. After more than 30 years in accounting, I realized that the conversations people need to have about money are the ones we’re often least comfortable having. So, I built a space for them.
Why “Maven”?
The word Maven comes from my roots. It is a Yiddish word (meyvn), which means "expert," "connoisseur," or "someone who understands". That word fits me because I don’t just want to do your taxes or reconcile your books in the background — I want you to actually understand your money. The “why” behind the numbers. The story your spending tells. The patterns you inherited without realizing it. I genuinely love sharing what I know.
Financial empowerment isn’t about becoming a finance expert or memorizing tax code. It’s about feeling steady when you open your bank app. It’s about knowing what’s coming in, what’s going out, and why you make the choices you do without shame, but with grace.
What This Podcast Is About
Your Financial Maven® is built around one core idea: “We need to change the way we think about money.”
That means looking at the full picture — not just the spreadsheet side, but the psychological side too. So much of how we spend, save, hide, and stress about money comes from our upbringing and lived experience. The household you grew up in. The first time someone made you feel small about money. The lessons nobody actually sat you down and explained.
The show covers:
The mindset side — money stories, money shame, the psychology behind our financial decisions
The practical side — budgeting, taxes, financial education for real life
Conversations with guests — financial planners, entrepreneurs, coaches, and people with money stories worth hearing
Solo mini-sodes — just me, talking through a topic you’ve been wondering about
Some episodes are deeply personal. Some are technical. All of them are designed to leave you a little more confident about your money than you were before you pressed play.
A Little About Me
I’m a CPA who has worked in just about every corner of the accounting world — public accounting, corporate, nonprofit, government, and now my own practice. I’ve spent more than 30 years watching people’s relationships with money up close, and I’ve learned that the technical answer is almost never the whole answer.
I work with individuals, small businesses, and nonprofits, and I focus heavily on financial education. The podcast is an extension of that work — a way to reach people who may never sit across from a CPA, but who deserve the same clarity and care. And I am not all about work too. I have a family and friends that have been so supportive of this journey. It has been a true blessing.
What You’ll Get from Listening
If you stick around, you’ll come away with:
• Permission to talk about money without shame
• A clearer sense of where your own money beliefs come from
• Practical knowledge you can actually use
• Real stories from people who’ve navigated their own financial chapters
• The reminder that you are absolutely capable of getting this
Welcome to Your Financial Maven. I’m so glad you’re here.
Your Financial Maven® Podcast is a Gold Award Winning Podcast. Thank you for listening!
Follow, like, and subscribe to Your Financial Maven® wherever you listen to podcasts. Share your money stories or questions with Samantha. She would love to hear from you!
This podcast is for educational, informational, and entertainment purposes only and is not a substitute for advice from your CPA, tax, or financial professional.
Samantha M. Besnoff is a Certified Public Accountant, Independent Life Insurance Agent, and Financial Education Consultant. She has been a part of the accounting world for over 30 years spending time in most areas of the field. Her experience is vast and she loves to share her knowledge with you! Delving into the podcast world has been amazing and she has enjoyed the last three years sharing with her listeners.
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