How One Layoff Led to Entrepreneurship, Wealth & Community - Jennifer Kornoely : 189

A layoff is scary. It’s also clarifying. When Jennifer Kornoely lost a “perfect fit” corporate job, she had to replace an income fast and figure out how to be her own boss. What starts as real estate photography quickly becomes a masterclass in entrepreneurship: pricing without racing to the bottom, building service packages that create real value, and learning the parts nobody teaches like taxes, marketing, and client relationships. We dig into the loneliness that can come with solo work and why community is not a nice-to-have for women entrepreneurs; it’s a competitive advantage. 

Jennifer shares how audiobooks, personal development books, and finance books helped her shift from a victim mindset to financial literacy, investing confidence, and better business decisions.  That's where "She Reads, She Leads Book Club" comes in. Jennifer started it because she was tired of figuring everything out on her own. She wanted a place where women could learn about personal development, business, and money while connecting with others, sharing ideas, and learning from each other's experiences. Members vote on monthly reads, then turn insights into action items with accountability and follow-up, including tough topics like money psychology, retirement planning, and wealth mindset. 

If you’ve ever thought “I don’t know where to start”, this conversation gives you a starting line. 

What’s one book that changed the way you think about money or your career?

 https://www.shereadssheleads.com/

Transcript

The Question That Changes Everything

DanielaSM 0:00

Hi, I'm Daniela. What happens when the career you thought was the perfect fit suddenly disappears? Would you know where to start or would it become the opportunity you never saw coming?

Jennifer Kornoely 0:13

Building those genuine relationships, just seeing those small tangible results. So ready is the feeling, ready is a decision, having a better grasp mentally of what was happening in my business.

DanielaSM 0:25

I would have joined networking groups. My guest is Jennifer Connolly, a real estate photographer, entrepreneur, founder of G-Leads G-Reads Book Club, an avid reader, a natural curious person, and someone who brings great energy. Our conversation was much longer than what you will hear today because we cover so many interesting topics. We have pulled together some of the most impactful moments for you. Let's enjoy her story. Welcome, Jennifer, to the podcast. Thank you so much for having me. I'm super excited to have you because I know we have a wonderful story to share. And why do you want to share your story?

Jennifer Kornoely 1:05

Because I want women to be able to get all the amazing things that they deserve. And I never want them to be under the control of somebody else, especially when it comes to their money.

DanielaSM 1:13

Ah, okay. And when

Getting Fired And Forced To Pivot

DanielaSM 1:15

does your story start? When I got fired. Usually people don't laugh, but that's a good thing. Most of the time is a good thing.

Jennifer Kornoely 1:25

The universe has a way of shoving you off a cliff so that you can be forced to fly. Yes.

DanielaSM 1:30

Yes, exactly. So what happened then?

Jennifer Kornoely 1:34

So I got fired from a really great job. It was a perfect fit. Yes, it was corporate, but it was in a creative services department. And it was all because the guy I reported to didn't like me. It had nothing to do with my performance or, you know, meeting my goals. It was all because we just weren't a personality fit. He didn't like me. He had authority. I lost a job. So now I was a single mom in Southern California, insanely expensive, cost of living, and had to figure out how to replace an income. So I started doing real estate photography because it was a hobby. So I had a skill set, but I didn't know anything about running a business. I didn't know how to pay taxes. I didn't know how to market or network. So I was kind of forced to figure it out as I go. Doing real estate photography, you're alone in these houses, you're by yourself all the time. So I started listening to audiobooks, just kind of like improving my skills, becoming more financially literate. But I was still not solving the problem of loneliness and not having anybody to collaborate with or brainstorm or bounce ideas off of. I figured there's gotta be other women who feel the same way. They wanna work on self-improvement, but they want to do it in a community. So I just started reaching out to women on like LinkedIn and uh other social media groups and networking groups and be like, who wants to read nonfiction books, specifically like finance and business and mindset books? Talk about it afterwards. And so many women were like, yeah, me, I I I want to improve myself, but I don't know where to begin. So that's how the She Reads She Leads book club was

Turning A Hobby Into Income

Jennifer Kornoely 3:02

born.

DanielaSM 3:02

It's been it's been great. Let's talk about it, this hobby that you had as a photographer. So, Bo, how how did you develop that skill?

Jennifer Kornoely 3:09

I've always done it as a hobby, just you know, needing a creative outlet. Um, it's always something different. It kind of fuels the needing a newness with the ADHD, you know, you're always doing something new. But I really gravitated towards architecture, real estate buildings, things like that, cityscapes. And especially being in Southern California, the people part of photography was very saturated, whether it was weddings or fashion or babies. There's, I mean, so many photographers that when you're pricing yourself, it just kind of becomes a race to the bottom. So with real estate, it was not a saturated market. So it kind of allowed me to market myself and price myself in a way that was still bringing in real money.

DanielaSM 3:52

I see, but but then how do you decide that, oh, you know, this this could be a business? How can I had you decided that you could work on that?

Jennifer Kornoely 3:58

So so I was doing pictures like for the whole, because it was the hotel company I was working for, I had access to their hotel. So I was just kind of practiced with their hotels, but then when I lost my job, it was actually someone I was dating at the time, he's like, why don't you start reaching out to local realtors and brokerages, not just offer to take their pictures, but create more marketing materials for them so it should become valuable to them. And I had never really thought about that before. So I had reached out to a few brokerages and put together some packages for photography and virtual tours and drone and things like that, and just tried to work on making myself as valuable as possible. Because when you're just offering like a one-off service, then you're competing with everyone else who's offering that one-off service. And you're usually only competing on price. Just approaching them and being like, hey, let's work together. I see where you, your marketing materials are maybe a little bit lacking. I can do this for you and you don't even have to worry about it.

DanielaSM 4:55

That sounds great. You knew that part, but then you didn't know how to run, like you do be your boss and to run the business.

Jennifer Kornoely 5:02

I had no idea what I was doing. And I look back now with so much regret because I probably just could have made so much more money or made such great connections. I could have built something that was, you know, a real business. Instead, I was just kind of doing like one-off jobs here and there. I'm sure I left so much money on the table. Yeah, I had no, I had no idea what I was doing. I never networked. Well, what would you have done differently though? Now that you know what you know. I would have joined networking groups. I would have made it a priority to introduce myself in a more professional way. I would have been more strategic with the type of people I try to align myself with. I would have known how to use social media to leverage my business. But a huge part of it is the networking and the relationship making. I had no idea how important that that really was.

DanielaSM 5:54

You work in a place before, wouldn't you know? You didn't know that before.

Jennifer Kornoely 5:59

Because, you know, when you work, when you work in a corporate job, you're in your department and you're a little bubble. You have a task, you have a couple people that are above you, a couple people below you, maybe a couple people on the side, but you're not really being strategic outside of that little bubble. Who can I partner with that's maybe in a different office or a different industry or, you know, in a different position? Like who else can I make relationships with? And not, and it's not just like getting more connections on your LinkedIn tally sheet. It's like who can I form really genuine yet strategic relationships with so that down the road, when there isn't an amazing opportunity, you're gonna be front of mine. That never occurred to me when I was in corporate. And I a lot of it was just never having had a real mentor. And I regret not knowing how important that was to have somebody to guide you and to kind of be like, hey, these are the people you need to know. These are the people you need to stay away from. Yes.

DanielaSM 7:01

You know, I tend to do that, and then people said, no, it's better that everybody makes their own impression. And I'm like, no, because some people are never gonna change, and it's better that you protect them from those people.

Jennifer Kornoely 7:16

I saw an article, it was just over the weekend, and they were saying that when you sit next to successful people, and whatever successful means to you, you are 15% more likely to become that type of successful. When you sit next to negative or unproductive people, you are 30% more likely to become more negative and unproductive. So spending time with negative people has a greater impact on your success, your mindset than being around successful people. So knowing that, I would have been a lot more strategic in optimizing my access to successful people. Yes.

DanielaSM 7:56

So I have to say that growing up in a Latin country, you learned that relationships are incredibly important. My grandmother was a director of a hospital and she knew everyone. It was just normal for us. We needed

Networking Skills Corporate Jobs Don’t Teach

DanielaSM 8:10

a doctor, we needed this, the doctor would come to our house every Sunday for lunch. Uh you know, you knew people constantly. And so that was part of it. I moved to Canada and I don't really know that that's that important. But then I started listening to, oh, let's go to this network event. You need to learn how to network. And I was like, what do you mean you need to learn how to network? Isn't this something natural that you're supposed to be doing? And in Canada, it's more settled over there in South America. You know that you got this job or you got this thing because you know someone. Here it is the same thing, but it is more discreet. So people think, oh, that doesn't happen here. And it does happens a lot. So it is quite funny. Once you know it, you're like, it does happen all the time. You get the job because you know you knew somebody. So don't tell me it doesn't happen.

Jennifer Kornoely 9:00

I am so envious of people who grew up in really familial cultures, like when you look at, you know, Latin cultures or certain, you know, religious cultures when you know the idea of getting to know people is just ingrained. Like I grew up very kind of isolated, which is weird because I grew up like in cities and suburbs. It wasn't like I was living on, you know, some mountain out in the middle of nowhere. But my family was not real social. They weren't, you know, making those business connections, they weren't having those conversations with other people. And I grew up thinking that was normal. And I look back now and it's like, oh no, you need to make relationships to move your life forward. And not even necessarily from a business or getting paid perspective, but just to feel fulfilled because we're not meant to do this alone in any way. Yes. And but that's how I grew up is very alone.

DanielaSM 9:49

And what do you think high school and elementary and universities for is exactly not to learn because you could learn in so many ways. People want to go to Harvard. Why? Because, well, first of all, it's a reputation, but also all the people you're gonna meet there are the people that you want to hang around with, and just taking an interest in someone else's life. Okay, so going back to your story. So what happened? You started to take pictures and you were kind of lost and started to listen to podcasts, and immediately you thought, okay, I'm alone, I'm going to make a group, or you just start

Learning Money And Mindset Through Books

DanielaSM 10:20

to learn first.

Jennifer Kornoely 10:20

No, it wasn't immediate at all. It was uh, you know, a good few years, and especially like during COVID when there was a lot of free time on everyone's hands. And, you know, I'd be you're you're not interacting with anybody now because you're not bumping in anyone at the grocery store or having that water cooler, chit chat. So I'd just be out walking the dog around the neighborhood, just listening to audiobooks. And I'm like, okay, well, what am I lacking but that can really improve me the most? So I started with like personal finance and I just was working on my own mindset for probably a good three or four years of just listening and then realizing, oh my gosh, these books are so valuable, most of them, and have such great information. And I really felt like I was growing as a person, but that only kind of amplifies the fact that you have nobody to talk to about it. You're just like, oh my God, I'm becoming smarter and I'm becoming more knowledgeable about all these fun things. You want to tell people when you suddenly have the goods in your head, like you you feel like you have to tell people.

DanielaSM 11:22

And then you only have your partner and you're driving crazy.

Jennifer Kornoely 11:27

Or you know, I'm talking to the dogs about you know, Roth IRAs, and they're like, oh my God, I don't know what you're talking about. So uh yeah, it becomes really loud in your head when you want to have those conversations, but you're not having them.

DanielaSM 11:42

But also it is important that when you learn something, that you share it, because then the neurons, right, connect. If you don't talk about it anymore, it disappears from your brain. A thousand percent.

Jennifer Kornoely 11:53

So there's this uh research study called the learning pyramid or the learning triangle. And you know, you p you picture a pyramid at the top, it's real small. And when you read a book or listen to an audiobook, you're only retaining about 10% of that information. What I will do with some of my business books is I listen to the audiobook while following along with the physical book and I'm like underlining as I go. Then you're gonna start retaining about 20% of the information. When you start talking about it afterwards, you're gonna start retaining 50% of the information. When you implement it into your regular day, whether it's in your business life or your personal life, you start retaining about 75% of that information. And then when you start teaching others, now you're retaining 90% of that book you just read. It makes so much sense because like I'll read a book, regardless of the topic. It could be business or fairy fiction, and two weeks later, someone will be like, oh, what was it about? And I'm like, well, I liked it. Yes, oh my god. It was kind of about this, but like it's it's just gone from your head. So I think important talking about the books, and that's one reason why even fiction book clubs are so popular because you're talking about it, you're engaging in it, and it's it's reliving in your head and you're holding on to more of that information.

DanielaSM 13:04

You mentioned ADHD. I have the the first bar, the attention. I get really excited. Oh my god, it's so interesting. Oh my god. And then, you know, I don't have nobody to talk to, and then somebody comes and I was like, Oh, I just read this book, and exactly the same. What was the bad about? I'm like, um, I don't remember. No, I don't remember. It's like, but it was really good.

Jennifer Kornoely 13:28

Yes. Oh yes, I am constantly distracted by shiny objects. So all right.

DanielaSM 13:34

So then you said that uh you started to read these books, and what happened? What happened then?

Jennifer Kornoely 13:40

I just started to become my mindset shifted from before I used to kind of maybe have this kind of victim mentality of, oh, I don't know anything about whatever money or investing or business, and woe is me. I guess I'm just not capable, or I guess I just didn't grow up in a house where we had those conversations. That's something for rich people. And then I my mindset just started to shift, and it's like, no, I think these conversations don't happen in most homes where you're, you know, teaching your children to be financially literate or to have business savvy. But it it's possible, like you just have to put in the work. It's like there was one reference in one of the books where if we're playing Monopoly, everyone has access to the rule book. Some people just choose to read it and play by a different game of strategy as opposed to just winging it. And that kind of really hit home. Like, I I can read the rule book. I can read every expert out there wants to has written a book or wants to get their voice out and their thoughts out. Whether it's you know the same kind of thing where I was just saying once you start to learn it, you just have to talk about it. Or whether they're just an egomaniac who wants their voice to be heard, every expert puts out their stuff. A library card is free. So why not ingest as much as I can? I can't afford an MBA education, so I'm gonna take my library card to the library and go do it on my own. And I was, you know, working all day long, either in an empty house or sitting in front of the computer editing photos, I wasn't distracted by anything else. So there's no reason why I can't pop on an audiobook and you know, knock through some finance education. Why why not? I don't have small children to distract me. I don't have to interact with customers on a day-to-day basis. So it's a perfect opportunity.

DanielaSM 15:38

Yeah. Do you count how many books you listen to? Of course. I need validation.

Jennifer Kornoely 15:45

Yes, I have a tracker and I use on an app called Story Graph. I track all my books that I'm want to read, that I'm in the progress of reading, because of course I have to be reading four different ones at once. I need at the end of the year to be like, oh yay, I read a hundred books.

DanielaSM 16:02

Okay, so you read lots of books.

unknown 16:05

Yeah.

DanielaSM 16:06

And then you saw improvement into like finances. Yes, kind of give me those those steps, how you saw the things that you were applying.

Jennifer Kornoely 16:14

Yeah, it started with personal finance, understanding the nuances of it, understanding that nobody is taught this stuff. Very few people are taught this stuff, like in regular school. You have to go out there and seek this information. And just seeing things like, okay, now I know how to invest. No, I now I know how to save so that it actually moves the needle forward. Just seeing those small, tangible results. So just moving on to then more complex topics like, okay, what does investing look like beyond just my 401k or something? Starting to move on to more difficult topics like business plans and networking, just all the things that I had never been introduced before. And seeing my client list build, my income build, having a better grasp mentally of what was happening in my business.

DanielaSM 17:03

No, that's always very rewarding. Oh, yeah. I have read a lot of books, but the one that I applied the most was a finance book. I was complaining, and it was not on the time, but the phone listened to you. It was just not that it was 2012. And I was like, that's so weird. How come I keep investing and my money doesn't grow? Something is wrong, you know, and something is wrong. And then I turned the radio on in my car, and there was this guy from Canada, actually from BC, and he wrote this book. He calls Teachers Millionaire, because he was a teacher and he happened to be a millionaire. And I'm listening to him, and he's saying exactly like he was he's answering the question, and I'm thinking, this is come from the universe because you know there was no Google to have listened to me. And so I bought the book. It was relatable because usually, you know, there are books from the US, so you don't have the same things, and so here it was different. I I emailed him and said, Oh, I want to do this, and he's like, Well, read my book and any questions I will follow up. I read the book, I highlighted everything, I started to apply it. I moved my money from the bank where I was to to another bank, but I managed it myself, and and I was scared, I had no idea about anything, but I'm gonna follow the steps. Of course, you you're leaving the bank and they said, Oh, you're gonna regret it, right? And so you're like, Oh, and I'm like, I'm not gonna regret it. My money started to grow, and it was easy, it was so easy. I have told a few people there were they were curious, and then they were like, Oh, really? I want to do that too. Yes, I want to do that too. Oh, here, it's very easy, and then they never do it. And then I I started to teach my kids. I was like, Okay, you know, you have to learn these courses that I put on on the TV for them when they were 12 or 14 or 13, I think I don't remember when. They gave them a credit card, you know, that we can co-share, start using it, and how do you use it? Blah, blah. I think that I did a good job teaching so many to people, right? And and ourselves. And I was so satisfied, traveled for six months, and we are have no death. And and I always laugh because I said I learned it from one book. I learned all this from one book. I and I don't have heroes. This book changed my life. That's just really what happened. And it's just really amazing. So for you, there were many books that changed your life.

Jennifer Kornoely 19:18

It's great when you see a book that is like because not all books are amazing. Someone once said, Eat the chicken and leave the bones. You take what you can from each book, and then some of it maybe doesn't apply to you, you don't resonate or whatever. But some books just sit next level and they will always be the books you recommend to everybody else.

DanielaSM 19:34

Yeah, yeah, yeah. And then you know it's funny because when my son during COVID, he started he started to reread that book again. And he says, Oh mom, there is a dated version. And then from 2012 to now, Canada has opened that they have more opportunities to invest in different ways than before they were limited. Then I was like, Oh, now I could change my money somewhere else. I'm like, I'm scared again, right? And you know, a few questions to some people, and I'm like, okay, let's do it, let's move it somewhere else. Keeps evolving, and and you do have to be open to change because even though you thought, okay, well, this is working, something could work more.

Jennifer Kornoely 20:09

Yeah. And I think a lot of people will say, Oh, I don't feel ready. I don't feel ready. But ready isn't a feeling, ready is a decision. You have to decide for yourself, okay, I'm I'm ready to do something new. Because if you just keep doing the same things you're doing every day of before, nothing's gonna change. Your life is not going to be this amazing, spectacular thing if you do nothing different.

DanielaSM 20:30

Yeah, that one of the things that was in the in that book from Strong Ground, he says, if you're not prepared to break it, nothing is gonna change. Because yeah, things are going well, but you would like something to change. Yeah, then you need to break something there because, like, but everything is working well. It's just not, I'm not satisfied. Something is not happening.

Jennifer Kornoely 20:49

Yeah. And I think a lot of people maybe mistake, like, oh, it's just it's fine. It's just how it is. They'll mistake that with this is great. Or are you just stuck in your rut?

DanielaSM 20:59

Yes, exactly. Or is it really good? Any other topic that it was important to you that

Building Community With A Book Club

DanielaSM 21:05

you were focusing as well?

Jennifer Kornoely 21:06

Yeah, a lot of just personal development and sort of like working out my my own personal therapy needs with with different books, you know. Any topic that looked interesting to try and have a calm mind, or because it it's very noisy in here. Anything that just seemed interesting that maybe I was struggling with, especially if it was something I had never read before. Like I was reading one book on conversation starters for small talk. I hate small talk, like it's so disingenuous. So I'm like, oh, well, that'll be a good book because I struggle with it. So anything that was a struggle, a few that really stood out. Um, there was one that Vincent Paglusi wrote called The Wealth of Connection. And it turned out being one of my favorite books and all about telling your story and having genuine conversations with interesting people. And the money will come later, but building those. Genuine relationships. And that was really a catalyst for me to start to realize relationships are the pinnacle of importance for everything we do. Yes, it is. You would think that would be obvious, but just having grown up a little bit isolated, you don't really realize that you're like, oh, you have your blinders on. You're like, oh, I'm just doing my thing. I'm going to school. I'm doing my homework. I'm in my job. I'm doing my whatever I'm doing. You don't really realize sometimes that you have to take your blinders off and take a genuine interest in everybody else first.

DanielaSM 22:32

Yes. And then also you're reading books, but imagine that those people also are around you and then you have something to share, and they have something to share to you. I know. I find that uh connections are very important, and that's something that uh I miss sometimes because I don't I don't know, is is is people don't you're too busy, they're always too busy.

Jennifer Kornoely 22:52

Ask genuine questions to get to know them as a human, and it evolves from small talk. Plus to, I'm not sure if you've ever read the book, uh Dale Carnegie. How to make friends and influence people. Yes, yes, yes. And it's like that's kind of the the theory of his whole book is by asking those genuine questions and showing interest in someone and their unique lives, that makes you more memorable and desirable to spend time with. Obviously, don't do it like just from a selfish perspective. Oh, if I ask them about their kids' soccer game, they're gonna like me. You can turn the conversation to evolve small talk into something more meaningful. The simple phrase of, oh, tell me more is hugely impactful. I mean, I can't think of any time someone said that to me, but I know if they do, it's like, oh, you you really want to know about me. You like me.

DanielaSM 23:40

But then Jennifer, talking about you, you read all these things and and and you know these techniques, does it get tired when when you are always the one who knows the techniques and doing it and nobody else is sharing?

Jennifer Kornoely 23:54

Yes, it does. It does. And a lot of it, some things have changed. Like I've changed who I have conversations with and who I go out of my way to spend time with, because the people who are never interested in putting forth that effort, okay, well, this can't be a one-sided relationship. But also knowing that's normal. I think the people who put out feelers for relationships, that's the norm. Is you're feeling like you're the one doing it. But I've just gotten picky about who I reach out to, also. If I'm having a moment like, oh, I really want to have a conversation with someone, I'm picky about okay, well, if I reach out to this friend right now, I know they're gonna respond right away. Oh, but if I reach out to this person, I'm not gonna get a response for another three weeks. Yeah, it's hard and it is a little lonely, and it does become overwhelming sometimes, like when you're networking a lot, having a lot of small talk conversations, meeting a lot of new people, having these one-on-ones, it does get a little exhausting.

DanielaSM 24:48

And then I take a step back and maybe take a few weeks for myself, but then yes, I'm good at uh small talking about it. In in, you know, going to a work event is it was very easy because I did it for many years. But then if you take me to a party, um, I'm like, you know, like I know we're gonna be talking. Oh, what do you do? Oh, I hate it. So I don't even want to be there. So I I tend to kind of get in panic when I have to go socializing because I know that it's gonna be really difficult for me.

Jennifer Kornoely 25:23

Yeah, I get that. We were at a party a couple weeks ago, and the woman who's hosting it, she's a great friend. We have fabulous conversation when it's just us, but she had invited a lot of people that I I didn't know any of them. And so I just kind of sat there with my husband off to the side, and he and I were talking the whole time. Granted, we were people watching everywhere, and that was fun, but we weren't interacting with a lot of her friends, and that's probably bad party goer behavior. But yeah, same. It's it's hard sometimes to be in a social situation where it's okay, now you are forced to go have fun with all these new people. Right. Even though you have all the techniques. I've had to put boundaries up too with certain people. Like if I'm telling a story and they're only waiting for an opportunity to interject and tell their story, they're not asking any questions or have zero interest in this, you know, crazy thing that I'm telling them. Or like if I go on some really amazing trip, like and I notice when I tell people this some of these stories, if they're not like, oh wow, that's crazy, we're not the same people. We're we're we're not gonna mesh. If you're just waiting for an opportunity to tell me about your normal day-to-day something here and you're not taking any interest in me, I know, we're not gonna be a conversational fit. And you can't force it. Some some people you just don't fit with, and that's fine. They will have their community somewhere else, and I will have my community somewhere else. The important thing is that we have community. Yes. Especially as women, and especially as we get older, there's all kinds of research studies that as women age, we need community. It uh helps provide for our longevity and our quality of life. We need community, regardless of what kind of community it is, whether it's a religious community, um, an educational community, large family, we need community.

DanielaSM 27:07

And regardless, if you are not a very social person, too?

Jennifer Kornoely 27:10

Yes, it is imperative that we have community. And I think then it's just a matter of knowing what your abilities are for conversation, not only to give, but to receive, because then you just find the right people that you fit with. I'm naturally a very introverted person. I love nothing more than sitting with just one person, maybe two, on the patio, having a glass of wine, having real conversation. I do not do well in party settings, so that's great. I know that about myself. So I'm very intentional with who do I spend my time with and having those conversations.

DanielaSM 27:40

Yes, yes, I know. I mean, me too. I did a test once and it was quite an interesting test, and then I got 10% of extrovert. Oh, okay. And that explained a lot to me because I always been outgoing. Like you know, I go and I I am saying hello to people, I don't have issues. So I thought I was an outgoing person. It is true that I am an introvert in the way I recharge. So that was a really good test for me to understand people better.

Jennifer Kornoely 28:04

Yeah. Even being introverted, that doesn't mean I don't still crave community in conversation. I just want it to be intentional in quality. Introvert is different than you know, a hermit living out in the mountains by themselves. So I still crave community. I just want it to be a community of women who want to improve themselves and have really smart conversations.

DanielaSM 28:27

And so that's why after reading all these books, finance, then you said that you were doing more about your your personal self, any other topics?

Jennifer Kornoely 28:36

So I've started to notice there's a difference between personal finance and wealth. And I'm very mesmerized by wealth because those were conversations that never came anywhere near my house. And I find it fascinating that the people who grew up amongst like real, like generational wealth, they they have a different mindset. I'm fascinated by it. It's it's like a little oddity, you know, you're very curious. Oh, what's going on over there? I want to know what are these secrets they know? What are, you know, what are these loopholes that they're aware of? So I'm very fascinated by reading about um wealth and investing. And I've also started, funnily enough, just reading biographies, hearing people's stories, especially when they have these jaw-dropping stories of, oh my God, how did that happen to you? I'm so glad you wrote a book and told me all about this because I want to know this. Biographies about smart women who've done unique things have been really influential.

DanielaSM 29:32

Yes, that's true. I I love when they read all biographies, or you know, even a movie that you hear stories. Okay, so after all these subjects, you decided that, okay, well, I want to share, or was it in between that you said, what who can I talk to? What what how do you form this group of women?

Jennifer Kornoely 29:48

It was a few things happening at once. Um, the first major thing is I knew I wanted to move away from photography, especially real estate photography. And I live in Idaho, so it's very seasonal. In the winter, nothing's happening, and I like to make money year-round. So I'm like, how do I move away from photography into something that I don't have to live in a specific location in order to continue? So that was one catalyst. Another was just feeling like I didn't have community. And I'm like, okay, how do I fulfill that need also? Um, and then I was talking to my friend Vincent, the one I mentioned, who has that book, The Wealth of Connection. And he was like, he also used to be a photographer, and he was like, Well, now I've moved away from the photography, and now I teach people how to build memberships. And I'm like, I have no idea what that means. Tell me more. And so he was talking about his group, and he led a group of people who a huge variety of people, and they had their own memberships. It ran the gamut. There were um support groups and people teaching other people how to do sales, and some were religious groups. And so I was like, oh, I could build a community around reading and women entrepreneurship and women in community, I could build that. And it was seeing other people having these really obscure groups, it was like, oh, anything is possible. And the more niche your area is, I think the more people want to hear about it and what you're doing. Because if you just have something generic, like, oh, we're a support group. Who wants to hear more about that? That sounds so generic. But if you have a support group for women, entrepreneurs who want to self-improve, you know, like the more specific you get, the more people want to be a part of it. It was a perfect storm. A lot of things came together all at once.

DanielaSM 31:39

Uh-huh.

Jennifer Kornoely 31:39

Tell me more. So I um started getting more active on social media. I started talking about the things I actually want to talk about, not posting the fluffy stuff, but posting genuine things I wanted to have conversations about. Um, and started kind of reaching out to women, specifically on LinkedIn, because it's, you know, a platform for professionals. Hey, like, who is interested in personal development? Who enjoys reading, like asking genuine questions and having people respond and then just kind of reaching out, like, hey, do you do you like to read? Do you like to read about personal development? What's your business about? And having these conversations and learning about them and what they do, it just sort of forced me to realize there is a need. Women are so often creating these businesses to fulfill a need at home, usually a childcare need, but they're doing it by themselves. There's not a lot of communities where women can go and be a part of and still run their business, level up their personal development, have conversations with other women. And I just think so many of us are feeling alone and that we're wearing all the hats and doing it by ourselves and struggling. Who do I talk to about this thing that I don't even know about? So that's kind of that's kind of how it was born. It's evolved a little bit, trying to curate it so that it meets everyone's needs and that it becomes this thing of value. Uh-huh. What is the name?

DanielaSM 33:10

She reads, she leads book club. That's a clever name. I like it. Yeah. But it's not just, I mean, not reading books, it's also audiobooks.

Jennifer Kornoely 33:18

So the book part is surprisingly the smallest component of it. The real gold comes in our conversations. So what we do is we vote every month on a book. I put together a list of, you know, maybe a dozen different books. We vote. So that helps illuminate their what their needs are right now. Obviously, if a couple books get all the votes and some books get no votes, that helps me to know these are the conversations that people want to be having, not these ones. Everyone goes and reads the book on their own. We come in once a month on Zoom and we discuss it. And that's where the real gold is, is in the discussion parts of it. People are opening up about, oh, I didn't even know about this. I didn't know I needed to know about this. We've had conversations about the last book we did was the psychology of money, how we're kind of raised and programmed to think a certain way about money and how that affects us down the road. A little bit about like retirement and investing and things like that. And we've had women open up on our calls saying, I'm 50 years old and I've never once considered anything about retirement. And now I feel like I'm screwed. What do I do? And then having half a dozen women to be able to chime in and say, you're not alone. I feel the same way, is super validating. But then also to tell their stories and give different views on how their lives have operated lights up new light bulbs in your head. It's so important to know that you're not alone and that there are options to get out of whatever hole it is you're in at the moment.

Keeping Conversations Action Oriented

DanielaSM 34:46

And Jennifer, I want a solution. So I don't want people to say, oh, you're not alone. How do you solve that part when somebody's like, well, I don't really, I don't want a pity party. And that's what I always have issues with groups. How do you change that to some more constructive?

Jennifer Kornoely 35:02

After maybe that, you know, few seconds of the pity party, a lot of it is people telling their stories of, okay, I was in that same boat. This is how I got through it. Or people chiming in with, oh, well, remember that one part in chapter four when he said this? Having 10 other women surrounding you to help solve that problem and help brainstorm takes it away from the pity party and starts moving it towards a solution-based conversation. And, you know, I go in with questions to help facilitate the group ahead of time. The questions are not designed to let's wallow in whatever mire we're stuck in for the moment. Okay, what did you think about this part? What did you get out of this? What is your action item going forward? And during all the Zooms, I'm taking notes and we're we're creating action items. So at the end of All our Village Zooms, it's like, okay, what did you get out of this book? What is your next steps moving forward? And then I've got my list. So I'll reach out on Facebook a week or two later. Hey, did you do that thing you were talking about? Or someone else will comment, oh, you mentioned you were struggling with such and such. Here's a resource that I found for you. That's what community should do. Have your pity party moment. Talk about the thing that's living in your head that you're struggling with. But now let's decide how to get out of it. And that's why we need community. Because if you're by yourself struggling with the thing, you're just gonna live in the pity party. You're not gonna move towards the action.

DanielaSM 36:27

And are you also saying uh to the group, okay, but you need to take action too?

Jennifer Kornoely 36:31

It's not like you just come in here to say absolutely, absolutely, and everybody participates in the group. And you know, when you know how sometimes when you're on a group Zoom and there's a dozen people and everyone has their mute eyes? Yes. Oh, no, everybody gets called out in the Zooms. Hey so-and-so, what did what did you think of this part? Hey, so and so. What what did you take away from this? Yeah, it's a very participatory group. And then the Because otherwise it's not a community, otherwise it's just me talking to a Zoom call. Nobody wants that.

DanielaSM 37:00

No, and then the group, the number of people is important.

Jennifer Kornoely 37:04

Yeah, we have about maybe 25 people in the group overall, but on each Zoom we'll have maybe six, eight people. That's a really good number for the conversation. So as the groups get bigger, we'll probably either offer them more days of the week or offer more books so that people can pick and choose to keep the groups small because then the conversation's really flowing. Great conversation's not going to happen on a Zoom of 200 people, you know? Yeah, so small groups always matter, right? Yeah, and a lot of people don't want to have those really kind of vulnerable conversations in front of 200 strangers. It's so much easier to be vulnerable when it's six of the people.

DanielaSM 37:41

Yes. And so your plan for these is to grow much bigger, but maybe have smaller groups. Yeah. Do you want to talk about finance? This is the group you want to talk about. Exactly. Self-improve this group, and so that they'll keep small, but uh they're the more people.

Jennifer Kornoely 37:55

Yeah, because you know, not everybody has an interest in everything, and that's great. So as we grow, uh, that's definitely um the kind of the rough plan is okay, this week we're gonna have a book about this topic. Next week we're gonna have a book about this other topic. And that way the groups will just naturally stay smaller. Or if there's a book that you know everyone wants to read, okay, great. We're gonna have three different Zooms, we're gonna talk about it Monday, Wednesday, and Friday, whatever. So that way people can pick something that not only works for their schedule, but it'll naturally stay smaller.

DanielaSM 38:26

Yes, it's beautiful, and I and I'm I know that these days people are talking a lot about community and connections. And again, it's kind of like to me, like leadership people are talking, but how many people are actually doing? And so you're one of those, and I congratulate you for that. And thank you for that. Yes.

Jennifer Kornoely 38:44

And everyone, everyone has a different level of comfort, and that's fine. Not everyone was meant to lead, first of all, and not everyone is meant to lead in the same style, and that's also completely fine.

DanielaSM 38:54

Yes. Is there anything that I miss asking you? I'm sure there's so many that we can be here for hours, but anything else that you want to add?

Free Book List And Closing

Jennifer Kornoely 39:03

I have a list of books that I think every woman, especially if you want to be an entrepreneur, should start with. And it's the top three books in six different categories. So, like you start with personal finance and you move on to investing, networking, um setting boundaries and mindset, all these different topics that I think are a really great place to start. Um, I have it as a free download. It's uh on the website, she reads she leads.com. And a lot of times I hear, I don't know where to start. What book should I read? Here's a list. These will get you started, and then you can find out your areas of this is what I'm struggling with, this is what I want to know more about, and that will help kind of guide you where to go from there.

DanielaSM 39:46

Yes. So thank you so much. We will put everything in your show notes so that people know how to reach out and be part of your community.

Jennifer Kornoely 39:54

Yeah. And if anyone wants to be a part of a book club, we would love to have them. Yes.

DanielaSM 39:58

And I'm gonna say the name again. She reads, she leads book club. And thank you very much. I love that we met. Thank you. Thank you. I love Jennifer's story because it's a reminder that sometimes the biggest setback ends up pointing us in a completely new direction. Whether you're thinking about starting a business, trying to become more confident with money, or simply looking for people who inspired you to grow. I hope you contact Jennifer. And I hope you would share this conversation with others. Join me next time for another story conversation. Thank you for listening and