I'm so excited to introduce you to this week's guest, Jane Rodriguez (she/her) who is the CEO and Founder of The Thriving CEO. Jane is a proud Bilingual Latina, born and raised in Miami, Florida. She serves as the Online Business Manager for so many wonderful online businesses and has experience working with a variety of entrepreneurs from Diversity & Inclusion Speaker/Consultants to Business Coaches to Professional Organizers. In this episode we chat about how Jane’s Latinx identity and culture impacted her finances, her experience navigating university as a first generation student, becoming an entrepreneur and learning to charge her worth, finding the balance between spending and saving and so much more!
You will walk away with tips on how to:
Oh, and also some fun book recommendations!!
FOLLOW + SUPPORT JANE:
JANE'S IG:
www.instagram.com/_janerodriguez
THE THRIVING CEO IG:
www.instagram.com/thethrivingceo.co
If you enjoyed this episode, share a screenshot on social media and let us know what your favourite part was!
I'm so excited to introduce you to this week's guest, Jane Rodriguez (she/her) who is the CEO and Founder of The Thriving CEO. Jane is a proud Bilingual Latina, born and raised in Miami, Florida. She serves as the Online Business Manager for so many wonderful online businesses and has experience working with a variety of entrepreneurs from Diversity & Inclusion Speaker/Consultants to Business Coaches to Professional Organizers. In this episode we chat about how Jane’s Latinx identity and culture impacted her finances, her experience navigating university as a first generation student, becoming an entrepreneur and learning to charge her worth, finding the balance between spending and saving and so much more!
You will walk away with tips on how to:
Oh, and also some fun book recommendations!!
FOLLOW + SUPPORT JANE:
JANE'S IG:
www.instagram.com/_janerodriguez
THE THRIVING CEO IG:
www.instagram.com/thethrivingceo.co
If you enjoyed this episode, share a screenshot on social media and let us know what your favourite part was!
Hi and welcome back to this week's episode of Keep Finance Queerd, a podcast that's putting the personal back in personal finance through complex and nuanced guest interviews and solo episodes. I'm your host, Ellyce Fulmore. And today I'm so excited to introduce our guest, Jane Rodriguez, who is the CEO and founder of the Thriving CEO. Jane is a proud bilingual Latina born and raised in Miami, Florida. She serves as an online business manager for so many wonderful online businesses and has experience working with a variety of entrepreneurs, from diversity and inclusion speakers and consultants to business coaches to professional organizers. She's also on book talk and even gives us some reading recommendations at the end of our conversation. In this episode, we chat about how Jane's Latinx identity and culture impacted her finances, her experience navigating University as a firstgeneration student, becoming an entrepreneur and learning to charge her worth, finding the balance between spending and saving and so much more. So get ready for some amazing conversation around culture, entrepreneurship and money with Jane. Hi there. Hi. I'm Sydney. My name is Rebecca. I'm an Autistic Kay woman. I'm Jane. I'm a first generation lady. I am a single mom and a survivor of domestic abuse. I am an ADHD plus sized millennial on the autism spectrum and Ad creating other problems in itself. Even though I bring in decent money, I struggle with dating ahead of everything. I am now struggling to pay off my debt. My traumatic brain injury means that it's hard for me to concentrate long enough to sort out my finances. The hardest time managing my finances. My parents were never able to teach me. I love my Starbucks habit and I'm not giving it up. Hi, Jane. I'm so excited to have you on the podcast today. Hi. I'm so excited to be here. So for the listeners right now who are not familiar with you, could you just tell us a little bit more about who you are, where you live, what you do, and your journey to get to where you are right now? So basically your life story? Yeah, definitely. So my name is Jane Rodriguez. I used her pronouns originally from Miami, Florida. Proud Cuban American, born and raised in Miami. I have had a very interesting life path, I guess, to get me to where I am today. And it's been great and wonderful and so much like personal development has gone into it. But basically the main things are that I went to school, I got my bachelor's, my Masters, all that lovely stuff. I was working in higher education for a couple of years and specifically working a lot with bi, student development, all of those pieces. And then I decided that that wasn't for me because if folks that are in the higher Ed field or the student affairs listening, you know, that you're, like, severely underpaid for the work that you do. And I did not want that to be my life. So I branched out and I started my own business, which has definitely evolved since 2019, when I first started it because I started off as a life coach and then made my way to being like, a social media manager. And then from there, I made my way to being like a virtual assistant and then finally landing in what I do now, which is an online business manager. And I work specifically with Di consultants, speakers, stuff like that, and helping them with the administrative side, the systems, the tools, the stuff that people really hate to do, I really love to do. So I found like, a really awesome group of folks that I get to get paid to do that with so doing that. And now I am living in Orlando, Florida, living my best life very close to Disney and Universal. Oh, my God. Right now, honestly, after things that have come up, like politics wise, I am like, I don't know how much longer I want to live in Florida, but for sure. Yeah, I said that without connecting those dots. And I've just heard all this stuff on TikTok yesterday about Disney and how much money they are putting towards politicians. And I'm like, oh, no, now I have to boycott Disney. Yeah, seriously, it's brutal. And aside from the political side of things and kind of a tangent, Florida is pretty awesome to live in, especially like Orlando. And if you like going to the parks and stuff like, the weather is pretty great, pretty hot and humid. But aside from that, it's not too bad. So we just wish we did better as a state. Yeah. It's honestly surprising to me. I visited Florida a couple of times, and it's surprising to me the political climate that's going on there, to me, it doesn't feel like Texas. I'm like, okay, it makes more sense in my brain. But like, to Florida, Florida should be Liberal. I don't know. It doesn't seem to make sense to me, which is wild, though, because in the cities where institutions of higher education are, like all those counties, they're blue counties and they're very Liberal counties and then go anywhere outside of those cities, that's where it gets really red and the influence comes in. So it's tough being in a city that's pretty Liberal, but living in a state that isn't. Yeah, that would be very hard. Okay, amazing. So I love all of the pivots that you've kind of taken to get to the point that you are now, and it sounds like you've had a lot of different experiences, and we're definitely going to dive into a lot of that later on in the podcast. But from the information that I gathered from you, kind of like pre interview, I know that you mentioned the idea of salient identities and that Latina is one of your salient. Would you be able to define what that means for the listeners? Yeah, for sure. So saliency is actually something that I didn't learn about until I was in grad school, which is pretty wild considering that I lived 21 plus years of my life not necessarily being super aware of my identities. And it wasn't until I went to grad school at a predominantly white institution that my identities really stood out more to me. Right. Because as Latina born and raised in Miami, Florida, the majority of the folks in Miami are Latinx folks. Right. So I was part of the majority when I lived there. So my identity of Latina wasn't super salient. And what I mean by that is that I wasn't aware of my identity as a Latina. And when I left that environment and I went into a space where I was considered the minority, that kind of made it very blaringly obvious that I was a Latina. And that was kind of like a tough realization because I definitely grew up in this bubble in Miami, Florida, where I was just like everywhere around me there are people speaking Spanish or people that look like me or talk like me and grew up like me and had the same cultural values and listened to the same music and can relate to parental experiences and all that stuff. But, like going to grad school and getting to meet and socialize with folks that weren't part of my childhood and growing up was very, very different. And I found myself really desperate for that connection with folks that identified like me when I went to grad school. So I did a lot of work, like the Hispanic and Latino Student Union. I, like, really connected with the folks in my grad program that were also like Hispanic and Latinx and all that stuff. So that's kind of like what Saliency is is how aware are you of that identity that you hold. Right. And then like another one being my identity as a CIS woman, I'm very aware every single day that I am a CIS woman. But then there are also other identities that might not be super salient to me, and it's because I don't have to think about them all the time. It's just. Yeah. And that also plays into the identities that people perceive as well. Right. More salient identities of like, someone can kind of just talk to you and kind of pick up on those identities. Yeah, for sure. Yeah. I think that's really interesting. And actually, I know that you know Jalali as well. But for the listeners, Jalali is my Dei consultant that I work with, and she made me and my employees do like an exercise on salient identities. And I found that really interesting to just reflect on what are the aspects that people notice first about me and what's good about that and what's not good about that and what are the identities that maybe I am really proud of that aren't as easily showing, like, for me, that's not something that someone would necessarily look at me and be like, oh, she's queer. So that's aspect of my day that's really important to represent. But sometimes it feels like I'm misunderstood, I guess, by what people perceive. But I think it's a really important thing to be aware of. What are those salient identities that you hold and how do people perceive you in a space? And is that something that is that how you want to be perceived or how does that impact a bunch of things, your privilege and how people talk to you and all of that? Yeah. Okay. So how has your identity and or the major pieces of your identity impacted your relationship with money? There's so many layers to this, I think specifically as a Latina and then as a woman within a Hispanic and Latinx culture. And I think that a lot of the other components that come to play here, too are like being a first generation student and being like a child of immigrants and stuff like that, because my relationship with money has been very interesting and I think I would even say even privileged in regards to in relation to other folks that have maybe similar backgrounds as me. Right. So a lot of it is very heavily influenced by my parents and what I saw them do with finances growing up and even some layers of sexism involved in that as well, because I've always been told, like, I can't do X, Y and Z because I'm a girl and all those pieces. So there's definitely a lot of layers here. But I would say definitely the parents influence is important and how that has impacted me growing up. Like, for example, as a first generation student in childhood immigrants, neither of my parents are very fluent when it comes to English. My dad is a little bit more fluent than my mom, and that's just from living in the United States for 35 years at this point. But a lot of the things around finances growing up and like a student going to College, I had to very much figure out on my own. And I have very vivid memories of me sitting in the living room trying to fill out the FAFSA and to get like financial aid and trying to translate this financial jargon that was already very confusing for a 1718 year old and trying to translate that into Spanish. So my parents can give me the information I needed to be able to fill out the FAFSA and get financial aid and all those pieces. So there's definitely a lot. And then I would also say that my parents have very different approaches to how they handle finances, and that has made me have a mixture of both of their mindsets, for sure. Can you tell us a little bit more about that kind of like mixed you were getting from your parents and how was money kind of talked about in your household. Yeah, definitely. So my dad is extremely spontaneous, and I will say reckless when it comes to finances. And I have developed some of these attributes myself, which is like, I know where it's coming from. So it's like charge my dad where he was always like, if he wanted something, he was going to buy it, and he was always a big splurge er. And it was like the whole mentality I worked hard, so I deserve to be able to treat myself to these toys. And it was just like really random things that he would just spend a lot of money towards. So he was always really reckless with it. And then my mom was on the complete opposite side of the spectrum, where she was always very anxious about money and always the type of person to be like, we can't buy X, Y, and Z because we don't have that money or whatever. So for me, I would say that I tend to be really spontaneous with my money in a way that I hope to see us responsible because there are things that I will definitely splurge on, like books for sure. Like if there's a special edition of a bookset, like, I'm buying that bookset. But it was different for my dad, who would buy cars and add all of these fancy things to the house or like a super intense, like, aquarium and all this stuff. So I kind of, like, took that and brought it down to a lower level or what works for me. And then with my mom's influence, I try to be really mindful of, okay, what money do I have? Where can I spend appropriately? How can I make sure to have money in savings to kind of like follow up budget? Because I don't want to end up in debt like my parents were. And I would say that with my parents, it's gotten to the point that I don't even think that they have funds to retire, and that's just because of their spending habits and how they live. So anything that I've learned about, like savings or retirements or like, Roth IRAs or things that have been completely self taught because my parents have no idea what that looks like. And it's something that I've tried to even talk to them now as a 28 year old because they should be retiring within the next ten years. And what does that look like for them? And trying to have those conversations with them is very interesting. Yeah. So it sounds like trying to find a balance between kind of the advice that you got from both your parents and where that happy medium, because I think it's definitely easy as the children to almost over correct from what our parents did. But because you've got both sides of it, it's almost like, where do you fall, like, finding that middle ground. Exactly. All the time. Yeah. You kind of got both perspective, which is also interesting. Like, you saw what it was like to be really tight with your money and frugal and budgeting. But then you also saw the other side of I work hard and I want to spend money on myself. So I think that's interesting of trying to navigate what that middle ground is. And yeah, I can't even imagine you mentioned the student loans. I can't even imagine trying to fill that out with also being a language barrier because I know when I was filling it out, I'm like, this is like another language. Like, what are they saying? Like, it's so like all these words I've never seen before and then trying to like, I can't even imagine that the difficulty in, like, trying to then there's so many layers that you have to navigate just to try and do what a lot of other people don't have those extra layers involved. And yeah, that's a hard situation to navigate. And when you touched on the good things, you're learning about investments now and teaching your parents, I know on a small scale in Canada, there's an account called the TFSA, which is like, similar to like a Roth IRA. It's just like an investment account, but it didn't exist until I was, I think like twelve or something like that. So that's like an account where my parents could never even teach me how to use that because it was being invented when I was growing up and when that was happening. So I can imagine it's like for you, it was that times like 100, like all of those other things that they didn't even get to experience. It's so hard for a parent. Like, how do you teach your child something that you never learn? And then how do you break that cycle? Because it just continues on of like if you're never taught that and unless you go out and seek that information is something that is not readily taught to us in schools or anything for sure. Yeah. And I think that that's also like a whole conversation where I really wish that these things were spoken about, at least in high school, because with that, my parents also never they're really bad savings, obviously, and they never put money away for me to go to College. And it's something that I'm obviously I'm paying for now because I had to take out student loans to go to undergrad and grad school and all of that stuff. And it sucks that we weren't or at least I wasn't educated in high school of what that looks like and what that actually means. Hopefully they have those conversations earlier with your parents about what that looks like. So it's definitely been an interesting thing to navigate. And I look back sometimes I'm like, how the hell did I do that? It's just surreal that I even made it up through all of that. But it's really interesting to think about and reflect on now, like, ten years later. Yeah, I know. It's definitely something that I agree should be talked about in school. I've talked about this before on the podcast, but my parents actually have always been really good with their money and manage their money well and saved well for retirement and that kind of thing. But they did not pass on that financial literacy to me. So they didn't speak about money to me all growing up. So it's interesting that even, like, me, coming from a very different background than you, I had a similar kind of, like, experience of my parents not talking about money. And then that affecting me as an adult where I'm like, I don't know what to do now, and it's hard to even you don't even know where to get started until it's almost like, not too late. But something has already happened. Like you find yourself in, like, 50,000$100,000 of student loan debt or you maxed out, like, three credit cards. And it's not until you're kind of in that situation of like, I have no other option now except for to figure this out that you can sit down and do it. But yeah, it really should be something that's like, I think it should be start being taught as early as elementary, just like basic financial systems and things like that. And I think that as we grow up and maybe start families and having these conversations, because then it makes me wonder, like, why aren't these things talked about within family structures? Is it the stigma and the taboo Ness of talking about money that prevents people to have these conversations with their children and all that stuff? Because I will say that the one thing that my parents did teach me and I appreciate it, is that I took out a credit card early when I was 18, and I've been pretty good about not ever maxing out my credit card. Thank God for that. But I really appreciated that because it allowed me to build my credit score and have the length of the credit history be like a really good factor. But those are other things, like talking about credit score. And another thing that kind of touches on it a little bit too. And things that should be taught about in school is like, I want to buy a house this year. I have no idea how to do that. Like, zero awareness on how to buy a house. Like, what do I need to buy a house? How much I saved to buy a house? Like, nothing. And that stuff that I also was never, like, taught about, even with my family or in school. Yeah. And like, taxes. It's like, oh, if you do it wrong, you're going to jail. I'm like, okay, I think I saw a TikTok. It was like a TikTok that's like, the IRS is like, oh, you need to tell me how much you owe. It's like, oh, but you know how much I owe. Why don't you tell me? It's like, no, you have to figure it out. But what if I get it wrong? It's like, oh, you go to jail. I really don't understand. It makes no sense. That is definitely something that I think especially as an entrepreneur. It's really scary because I don't pay like, taxes don't get taken out of my paychecks every month. I pay quarterly taxes. And even that was something very difficult for me to learn and wrap my head around what this looks like. Taxes from an entrepreneur point of view to a point that I have an accountant, and I will pay whatever they want me to pay for them to do taxes because I'm confident if it was money not good with taxes. Don't ask me about taxes. That's outside of my realm. But yeah, I'm just making the switch right now from sole proprietor to Corporation. So now there's like a whole nother layer of things. And it's actually scary because I'm like, I could be doing something completely wrong and I won't find out until they're like, hey, you owe us $20,000. And I'll be like, what? I won't know at all. I know you touched a little bit on how you kind of have been finding that middle ground between your parents kind of spending behaviors. But how does that conflicting financial advice affect your finances as you were like before you got to this point now where you're kind of finding that middle ground as you were like figuring out and you were becoming older and more independent? How did that advice affect you and how did you kind of navigate that? Yeah, for sure. So I would say that when I was in a more traditional nine to five, specifically with a credit card debt, to me it was something that was going to exist no matter what, because it had gotten to a point where between moving expenses or big purchases that I need to make stuff like that, at times it felt like I was never going to get my head above water. That was like the best analogy to describe that. So I had kind of like, let go of the idea of ever being debt free. And when I say debt free, I do not include student loans. I feel like that is something that is going to always be part of my life. I don't consider that debt that just exists, but specifically with credit cards. And it was really, really tough because I was just like, it is what it is. That's my reality. I need to buy things. I'm not making enough to be able to pay off my credit cards. And this is what it means to be an adult and have credit card debt. And I would say that that was very much like, influenced by my parents because the same mentality that they were always like, we're going to have credit card debt because it's just we need to buy things and we don't have the money to buy things. So we're just going to put it on credit cards kind of thing. And I would say that thankfully now my relationship with credit cards, it's very different because within my business, I finally was able to make what I consider to be like more than enough. And when I say more than enough, I mean I can contribute, pay my bills. I'm not concerned about being able to buy groceries and stuff like that. And one of my first goals when I started my business and I started to make more income was to get down to zero credit card debt. And Thankfully I was able to do that. And now I can kind of like manage that a lot more. And I still obviously have credit card payments that come through, but I'm in a really lucky place where I can pay it off in full every month, which is somewhere I never ever thought that I would be. But I'm also comfortable with the idea of having credit card debt and being mindful that if that needs to exist. And I think that with entrepreneur life. Right. I actually talk about this with Jalali a lot and this idea of stability and financial stability, and it's just an illusion all the time. So tomorrow I can lose all of my clients and I would need to go back into credit card debt. Those are things that I've had to need to be mindful of and then have conversations with myself where I'm like, okay, if this happens, it's okay. It's not that into the world. It's just what you need to do to survive. It's been very different as I've grown up and having that different relationship with money in so many different ways. And there's just so many added layers as an online business manager and like a service provider where a lot of my finances depends on other people's businesses. So I know that there's, like, pressure there too, where I feel like if someone's business isn't doing well, then they can't pay me and then my business isn't doing well. And it's just like a whole spiral thing happening. So, yeah, it's been very interesting to try to manage all that and coming to terms with a lot of things in relation to finances. Yeah. So would you say that the shift in your credit card, especially in just figuring out how to manage that, did that mostly come from being able to make more money and then have, like, I guess more you create more space, almost a step back and look at your choices. Would you say that that was like the turning point, or was there something else? Did you seek out any kind of financial education in between there that also helped you kind of figure out how to do that, or how did you figure out how to start managing your credit card better. Honestly, it's interesting. No, I've never really seeked out any financial education, and that's always something that I've wanted to explore more on, but it's never been like a priority because I'm just like, as long as I feel good, I'll be fine. But there's definitely things that I want to explore in regards to investments and all of that stuff. But I would say that what kind of helped me a lot was the pandemic happening because for me, one of my biggest splurge things and like the thing that I was always going to spend money on, no matter how broke I was, like broken quotations was traveling, right. So once I didn't have that ability to travel again for a year, my credit card debt went severely down, and it allowed me to catch my breath and pay that off. And not saying that it's like a good thing because I honestly would much rather travel the world and have credit card debt and have zero credit card debt and not travel the world. It's just like one of those things that like, this is what I'm willing to use my money on. So that definitely helped a little bit. So it was kind of like a combination of both of, like, making more money because I was starting my business and I was starting to become really successful at it, but also having less expenses because of the pandemic and not being able to go out to eat or travel or do the things that were taking up the majority of my money. Yeah, I experienced a similar thing as well. Like, I paid off my debt so much quicker at the beginning of the pandemic because it was like, there's just way less to do, and I'm the same as you are a lot of money towards travel. And so that was definitely like a big chunk of money that I could be like, well, it's not going to go to travel right now exactly. But what I would say now and this is what I've actually started to realize that I don't like is that before the pandemic and I was traveling and stuff like that, I was so quick to be like, yes, I'm going to book that trip, I'm going to go here, I'm going to do that. And I loved it. That is definitely like books and traveling. Those are my two things that I will spend money on. I literally do not like anything else but books and travel. That's where my money goes. And now as we're slowly being able to travel more and stuff like that, I find myself really hesitating to book the trips because of the money. And I'm just like, wow, I've realized how much my money mindset has changed in a way that it's responsible, but it's also not the way that I want to live my life. So it's very interesting to kind of, like, feel that out because I'm like, oh, I have zero credit card debt, but I really want to go to this trip to Sedona. But then I'm like, oh, but if I booked that trip, then it's going to probably cost me, like $1,500. And do I want to spend one $500 or put that on a credit card when I can? So it's very interesting how my money mindset has changed because of that. Yeah, that is interesting. And I think that part of it is positive and that you're, like, taking time to weigh your options and what is more important to you or what feels good to you. But then I also understand, on the other hand, you don't want to feel guilty for traveling when it's something that's so important to you, and it's like a really big part of your life. And I think that's, like a hard part for everyone. Almost every client I've worked with has struggled with this of, like, wanting to spend money on something and then feeling guilt for spending that money. And it's like, how do you get to that point where you can do both, think of the options, weigh them, but then also feel really good about the decisions that you do make? And yeah, I think that's just like a bit of a learning experience that everyone has to figure out. And I think a lot of it comes back to your money mindset and how you view money at that time. And I think the pandemic has really led to a lot of changes for so many people and, yeah, made everyone kind of, I think, a little bit more reserved and careful about what they're doing, which isn't necessarily a bad thing, but I think it can go too much in the wrong direction of like, then you don't feel good about spending money on anything, which we don't want. Good to spend money on yourself. Exactly. I've always been a very spontaneous and I very much have, like, the you only live once mindset when it comes to a lot of things. So that's why I'm just like, just do it. You've never, ever regretted going on a trip, but that doubt that hesitancy that I'm having is so weird because it's not how I was before, and it is very much tied to guilt, because then it ends up this giant spiral of like, okay, if I go on this trip, I'm spending more money, so I need to make more money. How do I make more money? And then I get hard on myself about making money or finding more clients to work with, so I can afford that trip. And it just ends up being like, this whole thing. I'm like, I'd rather just not go on the trip. I'm going to get anxious about this. Like, I'm just not going to do it, and then I don't do it. And then I hate that I don't do it. It's just a lot happening. Okay. Yeah. Okay. So you mentioned traveling books really important you to spend money on. So I think this question is something you're still kind of figuring out. But how do you find that balance between what you just said, like spending money in yourself, but then also saving money and reinvesting in your business and things like that? Yeah. So one thing that I've actually been doing that has helped, and it's traveling with friends. And it's different for me because prior to the pandemic, I traveled by myself all the time and I loved it. And now I am very hesitant to travel by myself. And I think that it's like a safety thing, too. But traveling with friends helps to alleviate the financial burden of traveling if you're like splitting an Airbnb. So that's kind of how I've been able to get a little bit more around that, and I find ways to do that. Can I answer your question? I feel like there was another part. Yeah, totally. But just finding that balance. So you basically finding a way to travel that is more budget friendly that will have less stress for you on the financial end. Yeah, for sure. And I think that if I have new clients coming in and stuff like that, and that makes me feel a little bit more comfortable and I'm like, okay, great, I have this big client coming in. I'm going to make an extra like $1,500. Let me book a weekend trip somewhere. And I think a big part of it, too, is wanting to celebrate myself and my wins. And that's one of the main reasons why I started a business to begin with was so that I can be able to travel whenever I wanted and be able to work from wherever I wanted. So I think some of it is going back to the root cause of why I started this to begin with and not being hard on myself if I want to enjoy the reason why, as you should self coaching for the listeners, too. Something that I like to do is have syncing funds for things like travel. So this is another way for some of you that might work well to kind of avoid some of that guilt of booking a triple at once is like if you put away a set amount every single month, so that can be anything like $20, $50, $100 or whatever is available in your budget, and then once you've reached the $500 and you book a trip and so then it's like you're kind of like balance between doing both. That might work well for some people or as you mentioned as well, when you get paid extra for a client or maybe you work overtime shifts, then that could also be a time where anytime I get extra money, I'm going to put that towards travel. And that's like another great way to do it as well. So I love that. I think it's so important to find that balance. Yeah, definitely. We're on the topic of you being an entrepreneur. So now that you are a successful entrepreneur running an amazing business, what has changed for you in the way that you view money, and how has that affected or changed your money mindset from your experience growing up? I feel like this is something that is constantly, constantly changing, and I keep going back and forth from it. And I will say that it's definitely, definitely different from when I was working in five and then growing up. And I see money as so much easier to attain almost as an entrepreneur, because I know that if I really need to put out a workshop or a course or find a new client to make extra income, that I can do that. And I think the potential of that is really beautiful and awesome. Whereas when you're in a nine to five, it's a lot harder to do that because you're very much, like, set into your salary or what it is that you're making. So I would say that I really like that side of it, and because of it, I don't see big investments as daunting as I did before. Like, for example, prior to starting my business, I would have seen an investment with a coach for like 2000,$3,000 as the biggest thing in the world. And I can't believe that I'm willing to invest this much money to work with someone. And now I see that I was like, okay, that's doable. And it's wild because I never thought that I would get to that point where I was so confident with money and my ability to make money, where I would be able to make investments that weren't scary to me and even put money away to buy a house and stuff like that. So I've been able to accomplish things that I never, ever thought that I was going to be able to do. And that has just been really great and awesome. Seeing and watching my money mindset transform and my relationship with money transform and those kinds of approaches to things. Yeah, that's amazing. I think you just touched on such an important point of the difference between kind of a nine to five and owning your own business is like, you are quite restricted in, like, what you can make. There's a certain where you can pick up overtime shifts and things like that, but a lot of them, you're kind of this is your salary, this is what you make, and it's a good thing in one way. It can be a lot of for some people, it's that stability. And some really don't want to be entrepreneurs either. Like, it is obviously a lot of work in a very different type of career, but I always felt that way working other jobs, too, that I felt like I couldn't execute the ideas that I wanted to or that I also wasn't paid extra for going above and beyond or creating even entirely new systems in a company or doing these huge projects. You're still just paid the salary. And I found that very restrictive. So, yes, I agree that's the beautiful thing about entrepreneurship is that there's no ceiling of how much money you can make. And it's like you want to do something, you can just like do it. I want to make a course tomorrow. You can just do it. And that course might bring you like a quarter of a million dollars. I don't know that exactly. Yeah. Okay. So you mentioned that you work with a lot of entrepreneurs, and I'm curious to know what the common struggles around money or money mindset are that you see with BIPOC and women entrepreneurs. Yeah. So many things to chat about here. I think that going back real quick to the stability of like a nine to five versus being an entrepreneur. And I think that it's definitely a struggle in the sense that, yes, it's great that we don't have the ceiling, but it also sucks sometimes where you don't have that confirmed money coming in every week if you're not doing well. And I know that sometimes for clients that I work with, one month, they might be bringing in $10,000, the next month they might be bringing in $300. So that struggle can be really scary for folks. So that's like one part of it. The other thing that I would say is getting the clients is very hard sometimes. And I think that there are folks that get into a certain groove where they get like a bunch of referrals and they get clients sent their way and stuff like that. But it's scary when a lot of the responsibility for you to make money in your business is based on your actions and what you do and your outreach and marketing and all of those pieces and that struggle of the finances of like, okay, I haven't made any money this week or this month. How am I going to put myself out there more to get a client or book a consulting gig or a speaking engagement and whatever that looks like. So those are some of the big pieces. And then I know that there's always like an added pressure when you have a team. So like, all the clients that I work with, they have me. So they have to pay me every month, which can also be scary because again, if they're having a slow month where they're not making a lot of income, it can be really scary to be like, okay, I have to pay Jane for her services this month, but I haven't made any money this month. So how do I kind of navigate that? And it's something that can be very scary as an entrepreneur. And I say that even as myself having a team member and having like a VA that works with me is that sometimes if I am not making enough money. I'm like, how am I going to pay them? And it's just like the cycle of it. But I would definitely say that the fluctuating of income on a month to month not being consistent can be really scary when it comes to money and people's approaches to finances. And there are some folks that acknowledge those fluctuating waves, and if they're having a really good month, they make sure to set money aside. So if next month isn't doing too great and stuff like that, and a lot of it has to do with futuristically planning as well, since a lot of the folks that I work with are Dei consultants and speakers right now, they're looking to book out sessions and gigs for the summer and the fall so that they know that they have income coming in during that time. There's lots of pros and cons to like the entrepreneur life. And as someone who works very much in the behind the scenes of a lot of folks'businesses, I see it all, and it's great because I'm like, okay, we're all in the same boat in some way, but it's also scary. Yeah. So do you have any tips for how you manage, like, an inconsistent income? Great question. I feel like I am constantly, and this is probably one of the things that I struggle with the most is how to manage that consistent income. And I will say that I kind of created a safety net for myself. So in the months that I was making, like, really great money because I had launched a course or whatever that looks like, and I made way more than enough, like, so incredibly lucky to have made what I've made, I was very mindful that that wasn't always going to be my reality. So I put a lot of money into savings. And right now that money is like my buy a house fund, but it's also my life. If I lose all my clients tomorrow, it's going to be what's going to pay my rent. And that gave me some sense of safety and stability because I know that okay. If I lose all my clients tomorrow, I still have money to be able to pay rent for the next six months. So I have six months to figure out what I'm going to do next. So I think that that's helpful. So I would definitely create, like some sort of plan of support where you're putting money away in savings every month to kind of like allocate for that. And if it gets to a point where you never have to use it, which I hope not of one would that I never have to use it, then I can use it to buy a house like I want to. So that's something that I try to be really mindful of. And even though sometimes I really want to splurge, it's more important to have that money in savings just in case something does happen. Yeah, amazing advice. I'm a big fan of the safety fun, and everyone will know that because I talk about it a lot. But I think that's so important for, like you just said, it gives you time. That's, like the biggest thing that it gives you, right? It's like time and space to figure out what is the next move. And instead of being thrown into survival mode where you're panicked and you're like, oh, my gosh, how am I going to put food on the table? What am I going to do? You have that time to kind of sit back and be like, okay, what makes sense? How am I going to get more clients? And it takes a lot of the pressure off of you to try and scramble. And I think really an entrepreneur, when you're selling from that scarcity mindset, it does translate to the clients that you're trying to get. That like, the desperation behind like, I need to get this money, and it doesn't feel good to sell from that point of view either. So I think that's just such great advice. And I always say have at least work on saving up at least three months of your expenses, and ideally even more or whatever makes you feel comfortable. I have some clients who like to save up, like, a year's worth because that's what they need to feel safe. And so whatever you need, I think it's just really great. And for anyone, even if you're not an entrepreneur, it's a great idea. But for entrepreneurs or people with inconsistent income, that's just such an important thing. And it doesn't like, panic mode is not fun when it comes to that. Yeah, definitely. And I think with two of those sensors, these are conversations that I've kind of had to have with myself, too, especially when I made the transition from a nine to five to being a full time entrepreneur. I didn't have consistent income when I did that, but I made that decision anyway because I was like, okay, I know that if for whatever reason, I don't have enough money to pay my rent or pay my car or whatever it is that month, that I am capable enough to figure it out and go work at Barnes and Noble, which is kind of like a secret dream job of mine or DoorDash or do whatever it is that I need to do to kind of help make those ends meet. And then the other thing, too, is being comfortable with debt. And this is something that I actually learned from one of my business coaches is that debt isn't an emergency. So if it got to the point where I needed to tap into those credit cards, then I did what I needed to do. And something that I think is really cool about that, too is that I believe in my ability to be able to make money. So even if let's say right now I'm making enough to pay my bills and just get by who knows what six months from now is going to look like. Six months from now I can be making a million dollars, and then all of this will not matter at all. Right. So I think being confident in myself, too, that is what my future looks like where I am going to get to a point where I will be making more than enough money to be able to pay off my credit card debt if I needed to go into that. So it's like a nice little Pep talk for the future of life right now. You might be struggling to make ends meet, but who knows where you're going to be six months from now? You might be super financially successful. Yeah. And I think that's true for even for nine to five corporate jobs. I think it's important to remember that where you are right now is not going to be like your financial situation forever. Most likely in most jobs you will end up making more money like you will move your way up the corporate ladder or you will be an entrepreneur or have a side hustle or do different things. And I think that's like a great piece of advice, too, is like having trust in your future ability to make more money and know that the situation right now is not always going to be the financial situation that you're in. I love that. Okay. So to touch on the subject that is especially like relevant right now with it being International Women's History Month, we know that the gender wage gap and also the racial wage gap is still a very prevalent issue in society. And Latino women get paid less than white women, and we all get paid less than men. So as an entrepreneur, how do you navigate charging your worth and not feeling guilty about it in a society that's really told you that you shouldn't be charging as much? That is a great question, and I will say that I am I've always been very aware of what Hispanic and Latinx women make because it's less than what any other woman of color makes. And I've always tried to wonder why that is. And the only thing you can think about is the language differences and roles and jobs that traditionally are filled by Hispanic and Latinx women and being mindful of that. But I think for me, I've been lucky in the sense that I have always been in a pretty Liberal and aware field. Right. Like student affairs, at least from my experience. And this is not the experience with all the folks is pretty equitable when it comes to salary with all the folks that they hire because they're mindful of that. And it's kind of like this is what you're teaching and preaching to the students that you work with. So you want to make sure that you're backing that up. So I've been really lucky with that. And I think that with as an entrepreneur, pricing is one of the biggest things that I struggle with. And even to this day, I struggle with. And I've had to have a lot of conversations with myself and with my business coaches about what that looks like for me and getting to a place where I'm like, okay, I'm being paid my worth, kind of defining what that is and not feeling guilty about it. And for me, I've always had to find a really great balance to that where I kind of, like, take into consideration. Like, okay, this is all of the things that I'm providing for my client. This is what they're going to be able to take away. This is how it's going to impact their business, not just while we're working together, but in the future. And that in itself has a lot of value. So I try to be mindful of that. So something that feels good and feels comfortable, and then I will say that there have been situations where I felt like I charged too much money for something and, like, impostor syndrome kicked in, like, full gear because I'm like, who do I think I am charging these prices? This is not worth that. And it made me feel really uncomfortable to do that. So I kind of brought it back down to something that felt right. But it's hard because I feel like all of that is so relative and it's so dependent on who you're working with. So I try to be really mindful of that as well of like, who is the client that I'm working with? What does their budget look like? Where are they in their journey of entrepreneurship and what that looks like? So for me, it's interesting because I love, love working with new entrepreneurs. That is, like, my favorite audience to work with is really helping people feel confident and comfortable starting a business, understanding the systems, the tools, the legal stuff of it. Like some taxes start of it, because those are things that I really struggled with when I was starting my business is that I didn't know where to start. So I love working with that audience, and I feel like I can really speak to their experiences and make them feel good about that. So what I would charge a new entrepreneur is going to be very different from what I'm going to charge. Like someone who has maybe been doing this work for five to ten years and has solid income coming in every month. So I try to be mindful of that and kind of having almost a sliding scale approach, but it's definitely an internal sliding scale approach, and I have my minimum. I have what I feel is comfortable for, like, an hourly rate, depending on if it's, like an hour of work or, like, an hour coaching call and all of those pieces. And just knowing that it's not just about the work that you're doing together in the moment, but the impact that the work that you're going to do is going to have for the rest of their entrepreneurship. Yeah, I think pricing is one of the hardest things to kind of figure out and navigate. And it's interesting when you said you felt like the prices were too high, but people were willing to pay it. So then that's also an interesting thing of you feeling like it's too high, but then someone else being like, no, I'll pay that. And then it's like, wait, if you think I'm worth that much, then, like, why don't I feel that way? It's just like a weird. It's a very hard thing to navigate. And I love that you do a slot. Kind of like I like the idea of an internal sliding scale of what's kind of like your minimum. And I do, like, a similar thing with when I do brand deals, I always have kind of like my minimum that I'm willing to accept. And that's just based on the hours of work that I'm providing. Like, my creativity, my name, my brand, all that stuff. That's the bare minimum. And I think that's something you can apply to any sort of career that you're doing. And even, like, in a corporate job as well. Like, when you're negotiating for a raise or negotiating your salary as, like, having that, like, just all of the education and life experience and your own creativity and the way that your brain works, you already have a minimum value that they need to be paying you. And then not to mention all of the roles of the job itself, that just adds more money that they should be paying you. So do you have any tips of, like, what would you suggest the first step that someone does when they're trying to figure out how to price themselves, whether it's for a corporate job or for their own services? Yeah, I would research honestly and kind of figure out what other folks are doing. So, for example, I run a Facebook group specifically for folks who want to be online business managers and virtual assistants in hopes that folks will use that space to ask those questions. And when it comes to stuff like that, I'm a super open book. I want to be able to make sure that people feel confident in what their prices are. So I'll tell them this is how much I charge, and this is how much I got paid for this work in hopes that inspires them to do the same. And I think that the same can be said for corporate roles and like nine to five. And I really like the idea of you're not just getting paid for the work that you're doing, but you're getting paid for all of the work that you did leading up to this moment and all the knowledge and all the experiences that you've acquired to make you the best fit for that role or position, because that really helps to put things into perspective, pricing wise of like how much you should get paid for the roles that you do and clients that you work with. And I actually really like having these conversations with the folks that I work with specifically because all of my clients, they do the same things, but they have different price ranges for certain things that they do. Like some charge a little bit less, some charge a little bit more. And it's great to see because then when I'm talking to other people, I'm like, okay, I know that someone I won't disclose information, but I think you're charging below market and like what people are getting paid for this and helping them empowering them, I guess, to raise their prices because there are other folks that are getting paid this and more and without it being a difficult. Yes, for folks. And I think that that's one of the things, the fun little trick that I try to do sometimes is that I try to raise my prices every certain amount of clients. And if folks say yes too early and too eagerly, then I'm like, I need to raise my prices. It's a lot of things, but then it goes into the value of it. Right. And I've noticed that folks, for example, in coaching programs, folks that pay more tend to take a program more seriously than folks that pay less. So it's like thinking about that and what kind of disservice are you doing to yourself and to them if you're not making the investment worth it for them? I'm going to take a course that I paid $5,000 for a lot more seriously than one that I paid $50 for 100%. Yeah, I like to call that technique that you mentioned. Laddering, when I talk about it with my clients is like picking a price point that you feel comfortable with and feels good in that moment and then challenging yourself to, like you said, every three clients I'm going to raise my price. And I love that you mentioned if they say yes too early, then it's time to raise your prices because that's like the same approach that I have. And especially with brand deals. If I pitch them a price and they say yes and don't negotiate, I'm like I asked for too little because if they're not negotiating, then they were willing to offer more, basically. So I think, yeah, that's a great tip. And the same could be said for, like if you're negotiating your salary for nine to five. Right. Like if their range is like 80 to 115 and you're like, oh, I'm going to ask for 100. And they say yes very quickly, you totally could have gotten like 110, probably. Yeah, exactly. Last thing I want to say on this before we kind of shift topics is pay transparency and see is so important. And I know you just touched on that. But for everyone listening, whether or not you're like you own your own business or you're even trying to switch careers or anything, talking about your salary is so important, even just with your friends and family. And when someone asks you directly, it's just so important to make that more of a normalized conversation. And then people are taking awareness of what certain industries pay and what is the difference between people getting paid at the same position. But maybe one is a man and one's a woman or things like that. That's very important to talk about. And it helps eliminate a lot of that feeling of being in the dark that a lot of people feel when pricing themselves or negotiating a salary. It's like you don't even know where to start, and especially if you come from a background like me and you did where our parents didn't talk about money, it's like never having money conversations. Then how do you then have a money conversation in a job interview? Like, it's a very uncomfortable thing. And I think that opening up that conversation more is just super important. I agree 100%. I know that Miami has a large Hispanic community, and I know that you're very proud to be a Latina woman and really embrace your identity on social media and with your friends and within your community. But I also recognize that you mentioned that you attended a predominantly white institution during grad school, and I can imagine the impact that might have on your identity. And you even mentioned you didn't realize that how salient of an identity being Latino was until you went there. And so moving from your undergrad in Miami to the grad school, how did you, I guess, adjust to that transition and manage feeling for the first time in your life like another or not the authority? Yeah, it was wild because it felt almost like a culture shock, but not in a negative way. And I would say that I'm lucky in the sense that I never that I can remember experienced any sort of microaggressions or racism because of my identity as a Latina. But it was more so like me being very aware of it, not only because of the subjects that we were discussing in grad school, specifically around diversity, equity, and inclusion, but the folks that I interacted with on a day to day basis, and even the differences within the student populations of grad school versus undergrad. Because I did go to Florida International University, which is a Hispanic serving institution. So the majority of students in that space were also Hispanic Latinx similar background experiences and stuff like that. So I definitely felt myself feel a little bit more insecure when I was working with white students in particular, because there are things that you feel like you need to hide because you don't know what their reaction is going to be about certain things, like whether that was speaking Spanish in public or that's kind of, like, the main thing factor. But I definitely felt myself, like, navigating more towards the Hispanic and Latinx students because since I went to Florida State University for grad school and the majority of the students that were Hispanic and Latinx at Florida State came from Miami and kind of, like, relating to them and wanting to support them and their experiences and also being mindful that they were going to have a very different College experience at Florida State for their undergrad than I was going to have than I did at FIU for my undergrad. But wanting to kind of, like, offer that layer of support of being like, you're probably experiencing things for the first time that you weren't expecting to experience. And knowing, like, the different cultural approaches to things was interesting and even how different students work through conflict or issues within their organizations and stuff like that, and the sort of stances that folks will take on different things was very interesting to witness. And it was one of the most, like, developmental experiences of my life. And I would never, ever, ever trade that because I feel like I learned more about myself in those two years than I did the prior 21 years of my life. And because I became so aware of my identities, I became so aware about my passion about the identities. And I was lucky in a program that was so amazing about wanting to understand all of those identities and the intersectionality of them. And I started learning more about leadership from a Latinx perspective. And those are things that I had never thought about. And it just exposed me to so many things that I would have never been aware of if I would have stayed in Miami and just kept living my life in Miami. Yeah. So how did you learn to really embrace and be excited and proud of your identity when moving to, like, going from an environment where you really just fit in with everyone else, have the same experience, and then moving to a predominantly white school and being having such a different experience, how did you learn to embrace your identity? I think that a lot of it came from missing all the things that I had in Miami and wanting to find and meet people who understood and could relate to those things. Like, for example, Cuban food is the best food on the planet, and I will go to my grave saying this and going to Florida State, there was not any Cuban food in Tallahassee compared to Miami. And talking about those experiences and things that I missed or, like, food was a very big component of it. But, like, certain, like, cultural things and whether that was the way that we celebrated birthdays or holidays and stuff like that, and it really allowed me to embrace a lot of the beautiful things about my culture and the community component to it as well. And the more that I learned about other people's cultures and perspectives, the more I was aware of my own, which made it really cool to experience because it felt like I was learning about my culture from a brand new lens and the role that that played into my decisions and how I carried myself or my work ethic or my leadership approach and all of those different components to it. Yeah, I love that. I think that's incredible. And I just love hearing the story of how you were able to just embrace your identity and be so proud of it in that space, because I think from my perspective as, like, being a white woman, I think it's just so powerful and important that I can be in those spaces where I can learn from other people that have different identities. And then when they're embracing those identities, it's just even more incredible because I get to see and learn all of these different parts about them and their culture and identity. So I love that so much and something I really want to make sure that we talk about because I know it's important for you to share as well. And we did slightly touch on this, but that was your experience applying for loans and getting federal student aid. And I would love to know what advice you would give first generation students who are trying to navigate applying for financial aid. Yeah, definitely. So I would say and I hope I feel so far from you from it at this point. But I think that there must be tons of programs and information that exists online to offer that support that had been created by people like me who experienced those things. So I definitely think that really utilizing the Internet and YouTube and Google and learning the most that you can before you make those decisions or even if you're like younger listeners or whatever, that looks like being open to having those conversations with your parents about what that looks like so you can make the best financial decisions for yourself and specifically around student loans. And I know that this is something that is being talked about more and more now with the hope of loan forgiveness. Like, fingers crossed is that at 18 years old, we're given like $50 to $100,000, and they're like, okay, here you go. We'll figure out your life, but you can't drink alcohol. I'll make it word to me that that is okay. But I definitely think, like, utilizing your resources, something that I wish I would have utilized more, was like my counselor in school, because even when you're applying for different colleges, you have all these application fees that you need to pay that can get really costly as well. So kind of exploring your options and what that looks like. I know that I was able to get a couple of waivers to waive those application fees because they can range from$$30 to $150 per application, which if you're applying to ten schools as an 18 year old, it can add up. So definitely exploring those options, speaking with relatives that have had those experiences and kind of see what insight they can provide as well and help figuring out what works best for you. Something that helped me a lot, too in grad school was that I had an assistantship, so that covered my tuition so I didn't have to pay for tuition. And I was able to get like a monthly stipend to help alleviate some of the financial burdens of being a grad school student. So that definitely helps a lot too. So exploring work, study options, trying to find ways to apply for scholarships, all of that stuff, and really connecting with folks that do that for a living and help support you. Because I know that there's tons and tons of underutilized resources and funds that are just sitting there because people don't know that they exist. So definitely exploring that and doing your research about what your options can be. Yeah, I think that's incredible advice that can be applied to you basically almost anything when it comes to money. And yeah, I agree that there are so many services that are underutilized and sometimes they're very difficult to find and they're almost like buried in the interwebs. But once you're able to find those support systems and I know there's a lot that exists, especially on a University campus, there's always like a ton of services to support you. And especially if you're going to a bigger institution, there's going to be a lot more like different groups that can help you. And I think that's really important. And the point you brought up about making sure you do your research again, I think it's something you can apply to literally everything with your finances, and it can be really hard to know. Like, okay, what's the first step? What do I even look up? But I think even like very baseline general information is helpful. Literally Google what you're thinking. Like, should I take out student loans or what student loan should I apply for? Literally just type that in and just start looking at something and that will help guide the direction and give you more questions to ask as you read things. And student loans are really tricky because it's becoming more and more impossible to go to school without student loans for a lot of people. And I think the problem is less about the student loans themselves. That is a problem, but more so about the lack of education that is provided to people around student loans. I think that could help a lot with just like learning how to navigate it. So for everyone listening, do a Google search. I am so confident that there is a YouTube video for literally anything that you ever need. And I probably not the first person to ever think something like, 100,000 people have thought about it before. You have and they Googled it. You can Google it and figure it out, too. Yeah, agreed. That's great advice. And like I said, if you're not sure where to start, just type in something and then it'll lead you down a wormhole of other videos to watch. I love that. Okay. Because I want to add in this question because you are a book talker and reading again. And everyone who follows me on Instagram knows this because I've been posting all my recent books. But I need to know from you what are your top three recommendations? It could be like the recent ones you read like the top three books that you recently read that I should read in March. Oh my gosh. So I am actually in the middle of a book slump that is ruining my life because I've gotten to the point where last year I think I read 153 books in 2021 and I'm at like twelve books this year. And I'm like, I'm not at the pace book wise, but I will say my favorite books and these are very common books within the book talk worlds. And I will say that book talk is like the source for all of my financial struggles because every time I see a book on book talk, I need to buy it. It's going to become my new it is what it is. I'm okay with that. So my favorite book series of all time is from Blood and Ash series by Jennifer L. Armand Trout. It's like a fantasy romance, which is like my absolute favorite genre. Anything by Sarah J. Moss is incredible. Fantastic. I tend to only read things that have like, romantic storylines. So there's definitely a lot of awesome books that I've read in that space. Like The Love Hypothesis. Also super strong book talk book. Literally so many. I took so many screenshots from your Instagram highlights on the Puerto Rico. I was like, I need to buy this one and this one. I just read The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo. So good. And since then I feel like I'm in a depression because the book was so good and I read it in less than 48 hours. I was obsessed. And now I'm like, I don't want to read anything because nothing is like comparing. So I need a really good I'll take one of the recommendations because I need a really good book to follow up with it to get excited again. Well, if you want some queer stories. Casey McQuinston is an awesome queer romance author. She wrote Red, White and Royal Blue. Yes, that's been on my list forever. I almost bought it like a while ago and ended up buying a different book instead. So I need to go buy that one. It's so good. And then one last stop is also another book written by her. That's amazing. I recently read The Lucky List, which was really good. I'm at the point where I read like I have favorite authors, and then I just read everything that they write. Like Colin, Vancouver, Christina, Lauren. Those are like my top folks. You can't go wrong with any other books. Okay. I'm going to get off of this all in order to book. Yes. I love it. That's the only influence that I want to have in the world is to get people to read. Honestly. Yeah. It's been such a transition. I used to read so many books when I was little. Like, we had the Scholastic Book Fairs at my school and they would release the book list of the year. So there would be, like, ones for different grades. And I would read every single book from my grade and above. And there's always a contest that I would win every year because I would read every book on the list. And then when I got to University, I just stopped reading for fun because I was reading so much, not for fun. So now I'm finding my joy of reading again and it's been really exciting. And I just like, yeah, I really need to keep the momentum going because I love it. I think it's an awesome hobby to have. It's so funny. Well, if you need any other wrecks, let me know. And you just slide into my DMs. I'm more than happy. And I'm sure Jalali has told you too, that I will talk your email. Yes. Okay. Amazing. So my very last question to end it off is how has money changed your life? Money? I think that money has changed my life in the sense that it has given me the freedom to prioritize myself in a lot of different ways. So it's given me the opportunity to live in an apartment that I love in an environment that I love and creating a really wonderful space for myself. It's given me the freedom to explore the world if I'm not exploring it in real life, exploring it in books and all of that stuff, it's given me the opportunity to be able to prioritize my physical health and being mindful of gym memberships and healthy food. That tends to be a lot more expensive than fast food and all that stuff. So I think it's really given me the opportunity to live my best life and thrive in all the ways that I need to be thriving that don't necessarily need to be super costly or materialistic, but more so, like happy content and being good where you're at? Yeah. Amazing. I love that so much. So if the listers want to go and find your DMs with book recommendations, where can they find you on social media or also work with you because you work with amazing entrepreneurs. So if you're an entrepreneur, let's say. Yeah, definitely. So my Instagram, like my main one, I have a bunch so my main one is underscore Jane Rodriguez and I also have a book talks like book Instagram that's called Jane bug reads if you want book recommendations. I haven't been posting a lot but I need to be posting some more and then my website where you can find more information about me and what I do is the thrivingceo.com amazing and I will link all of those down below. So if you are interested in checking Jane out and following her which you should, then you can go just click the links in the show notes but thank you so much for being here, Jane and just like sharing so much about your life and just being such an open book and I know that the listeners are, I'm sure, just walking away with so much valuable information and feeling not as alone in their struggles. So thank you, thank you. This has been absolutely wonderful and I am honored to be part of the podcast. Okay, so fun fact of the week is that I actually just thrifted a bunch of the books that Jane recommended in this episode like when we recorded it a while ago and I'm so excited to dive into those I've included all of the links to find Jane in the show notes so make sure that you go follow and support her and let her know how much you love this episode. If you enjoyed this podcast episode, we'd love it if you would share a screenshot on your social media and tell us what you loved about it. If you'd like to support the podcast, you can subscribe to the show right and leave a review on Apple podcasts or Spotify. I will be donating $1 for every review left in the first six months to organizations that our podcast guests have chosen. Thank you for listening and remember to Keep Finance Queerd.