Stop Playing Small: Money Lessons We Can Learn from Big Companies

In this episode of Disrupt Your Money, we stop playing small and start stealing the right lessons from the very corporations we love to drag. Meg pulls back the curtain on how big companies treat their money and shows you how to apply those tools in your own business without importing all the corporate greed, exploitation, and nonsense.

Instead of romanticizing “scrappy” struggle, we look at what actually makes big companies powerful. You’ll learn how to step fully into your CEO role, pay yourself like a real employee, quit letting your feelings run your financial decisions, and think differently about debt, support, and structure. 

⏱️ In This Episode:
00:00 Introduction: Why we’re borrowing (select) money lessons from big companies
01:09 Big corporations vs. community-centric businesses—and what we do and don’t want to emulate
04:56 Stepping into your CEO identity
05:32 What “real business” infrastructure actually looks like
06:56 Separating business and personal money
08:03 Paying yourself like you matter
11:11 How big companies leverage debt to grow
13:39 Building your own financial support team
15:27 Recap: The core money lessons we should steal from big companies
16:06 Why You Should Care: The Supreme Court, abortion pills, and why reproductive justice is a money issue
26:48 Spotlight: Elevated Access
28:07 Listener Question: Should I put my first rental property in an LLC?
31:55 Wrap-up: Why investing in support is not “extra”—it’s strategy

🔗 Mentioned in This Episode:

👉 Biz Money Library – Meg’s free hub of templates, checklists, resources & guides

👉 Elevated Access – nonprofit volunteer pilot network providing free flights for people seeking abortion and gender-affirming care

👉 Submit your listener question or story → https://disruptyourmoney.com

💬 Connect with Us:
🌐 Website → https://equitablemoneyproject.com
📸 Instagram → https://instagram.com/equitablemoneyproject
🎧 Podcast → https://equitablemoneyproject.com/podcast

🚀 Your Next Step:
Ready to make your money match your values? Download our free Wealth is Resistance Action Kit → https://equitablemoneyproject.com/kit

Transcript

SPEAKER_00 0:06

Hey there, friends, and welcome back to another episode of the Disrupt Your Money Podcast. And I am really excited for today's episode because it's about a topic that is a little bit funny for me, actually. So today we are talking all about the money lessons that we can learn from big companies. And here's why this is funny, because as a former corporate dropout, I spend a lot of time bashing corporations and big companies for the harm that they are inflicting in this world. And most of that is deserved, some of it maybe not quite so much, but overall I don't feel too guilty about it. But today's topic comes from a place of being able to look around and step back and say, you know, there are some things that big companies are doing right that we could all stand to learn from. So let's go ahead and dive in. Now, I mentioned already that I spent a lot of time bashing big companies. And here's why I do that. First and foremost, I don't love the idea of big companies. I think there is something so beautiful and brilliant in small community-centric organizations that are really there to have an impact and are connected to the people that they serve. And I just think that as a company gets really, really big, it becomes harder to feel connected to the people you serve. That's not necessarily a big company's fault. It's just a reality of the size of an organization like that. So it becomes harder for the CEO to really understand what each individual consumer needs or wants from the service that they're offering or the product that they're offering. But I'm also a business owner, and I get that we have to grow our businesses. We don't have to, but it's a good idea to grow our businesses if we want to have more impact. And so I have always sort of struggled with that with big companies. How big is too big? But another reason why I'm not a big fan of big companies is because let's face it, we have seen a lot of destruction out of the way big companies are run and treat their workers. We know that there are monopolies, there's price gouging, we have underpaid workers, we have big companies spending millions, billions of dollars lobbying our politicians to get tax laws and other laws passed that benefit them. Big companies get a pretty bad rap, deservedly so, because of the things that they do. Now, I want to be clear, this doesn't mean every big company falls into this bucket. But there is something problematic about these really big monstrosities that have so much money that they can actually influence the laws that govern our bodies, our housing, our healthcare, our lives, our education, everything, right? So that's why I'm usually a little bit queasy about big companies, and that's putting it mildly. But as I mentioned, we're gonna kind of give them some props today, and that's because overall, big companies have the money stuff figured out. Now I'm not celebrating them. It just is what it is. But we can take some of those lessons from them, apply them in our own businesses, and then we can become the ones with wealth, with money, with power so that we can go out and have the impact that we want to see in this world. So let's talk about first and foremost what these companies, big corporations are doing that we might want to replicate. First and foremost, big companies are treating their businesses like a real business. I cannot stress enough how many people I work with in our community who are still acting like this is a hobby, this is a side gig, this isn't something important. And I will tell you, for most people, the reason why they're doing that is because they don't believe in themselves enough that they are good enough to run a legitimate business. It tends to be the case, not to generalize too much, but it tends to be the case that especially with women, this is something we struggle with. And it's not surprising at all because we were not taught that this is something we can do. I didn't grow up knowing about a lot of female CEOs because they didn't exist. I didn't grow up knowing about a lot of female elected leaders because they didn't exist. This just wasn't something that I saw in my life, and so it wasn't something that I understood automatically was an option for me. Now, thankfully, I had incredible family and parents who did teach me that even if you don't see a lot of it, it is absolutely out there for the taking, and you can do anything you put your mind to. But for many of us, that just wasn't the way of it. And so we didn't learn that women can run incredibly big and powerful and profitable businesses. And so I think a lot of us struggle with this idea when we have our own business of calling ourselves a business owner, of calling ourselves a CEO, and frankly, of acting like one. We want to downplay it, we want to put it aside, we want to hide it in the shadows because we're afraid of what it might mean, what somebody might say if we bring it out into the light. And so I think for a lot of us, we're not treating our businesses like real businesses because of that fear, because of that feeling of imposter syndrome, because of that lack of confidence that we are legitimate in the work that we're doing. Now, when I say treat your business like a real business, and when I talk about what the big businesses are doing, what I mean is that they have things like financial systems, they have bank accounts, they have accounting systems, they have invoicing systems, they have accounting teams, they're hiring tax advisors. They're not, you know, the the, I don't know, what's a big company? GE is not sitting there on TurboTax trying to file their taxes. Okay. They're treating their business like a real business because it is a real business. And I know that oftentimes putting these types of things in place isn't sexy or doesn't feel like very much fun. But these foundations are so critical to running our businesses that they're absolutely a necessity even at the very beginning. And I talk a lot about this in other episodes, so I'm not gonna go too deep into it today. But if you do nothing else, if you take nothing else away from this episode today, this let this be it, which is that you've got to start treating your business like a real business by having these systems in place. You know another thing that big companies don't do, they don't run personal expenses through their business. You wanna know why? Because it's not their personal bank account. It is a business with shareholders that belongs to other people. Again, we have to adopt this mentality, this mindset that our business is its own thing that can stand on its own because it's that incredible. Now, it's also really important, you know, we talk about this sort of personal business balance here. It's also really important that when we're thinking about our businesses, we're not just thinking about not running personal expenses through the business, but we're also thinking about the interaction between the business and ourselves personally. I don't know any big business that would get away with not paying their employees. But we all do it. If I had a room of people right now, I could ask you to raise your hand if you've ever gone a month without paying yourself in your business, then I guarantee everybody in the room would raise their hand. Because many of us are running businesses that are not actually paying ourselves. You would not show up at a big company and do that job. And when they said, sorry, no paycheck for you, go, uh, oh well, maybe next month. Absolutely not. So why are we treating ourselves like that in our own businesses? Why are we our own worst bosses? That's why prioritizing paying yourself is so critical in your business. We have to separate the business from the personal. They're not intertwined like this. The business is a thing, and then we're over here, and we deserve to be paid for the work that we do. We deserve to be paid when we show up in our business. Now, speaking of emotions, that's another thing that big companies don't do. They don't get emotional. Do you think big companies are out there freaking out about their tax bills and so they just skip filing their tax returns? Or do you think they're out there ignoring checking their bank statements because they're afraid of how much cash is in the bank? Or do you think they're out there refusing to raise their price because they're so afraid they're gonna lose clients? No. Every one of those actions are critical actions that business owners need to take and big companies do it because they don't let emotions get in the way. They're not sitting there letting those big feelings say something about them. They're not sitting there letting those be the roadblock to the progress they need to take to make something happen in the business. So when we think about, well, how can we be more like big companies when it comes to this? It's acknowledging the fear around this stuff. Because I don't want to tell you, don't feel this way. You can feel however you want to feel. It's acknowledging the fear around the money stuff, but overcoming it anyway. Saying, you know, when I check my bank account today and it's really low, it doesn't mean anything about me and my value as a person. All it means the money is a little low in the business right now. How do we get out of that? We cut expenses, we make more money, lots of things we can do. And that's exactly what big companies do is they look at it from a very fact-based approach, a problem-solving approach, not an emotional story about our value in this world. Now, another thing that big businesses do that I think is really valuable is they leverage debt. And this is gonna be a controversial one, probably, because a lot of you are gonna say, I don't like debt, I don't want to use debt, debt's bad. I have a lot of conflicting feelings about debt. I think the history of debt in this country is very problematic. We know that medical debt is by far the biggest debt that people have in this country, and it is crippling to millions of Americans. We know that student loan debt is crippling. We know that tax debt is crippling, and we know that the cost of healthcare, of education, of housing is crippling to people. So it's a hugely problematic area in our society to tell people go take on more debt. Debt's okay, debt's good. But here's what I'm gonna say about this is I don't think that debt inherently is bad. I think the way debt has been used as a tool, the way it's been wielded, the way it's been used to oppress is bad. And we have to change that. We have to fight that in this society. But debt on its face, I don't believe is bad. And that's why in your business it might make sense to use it. Big companies do a really good job of leveraging debt. Now, what do I mean by leveraging debt? Let's say a big company wants to open a new warehouse somewhere and it's gonna cost$20 million. They have the cash, they can go pay the cash for the warehouse, but if they do that, then they're not gonna have that$20 million anymore. And let's say that by the way, that$20 million sitting in their bank account is making them a little bit of money, maybe not a huge amount, but it's making them a little bit of money. Or there are other things they can do with that money. They can put it into other investments, other things that they can do. So they can pay cash for the warehouse and boom, it's paid off. Great, but that's it. Or they can go get a loan from a bank or an investor for two, three, four percent, maybe more. And now they don't have to give up all of their cash right now to buy that warehouse. That warehouse is still gonna get bought, it's still gonna get built, it's still gonna generate money for them, but they haven't given up all their cash to get it, and they get a tax deduction for that interest expense. So, yeah, they're paying a little bit of money for the privilege of borrowing that funds, but they get a tax deduction for that, which lowers their overall tax bill, and they get to put off when that cash actually has to leave their account because that loan is 10 years, 15, 20, whatever it may be. So that's what's leveraging debt means. It's when you use debt in your business to be able to do something like invest back into your company in a way that is advantageous financially from a tax perspective for the business. So I like using debt in a business if it number one serves an important purpose that aligns with the strategy of the business. And number two, if there's a really good plan for how that debt gets paid back. That's the critical piece, and that's where most people go wrong when they take out debt in their business, is they say, I'm just gonna get this and figure it out later. No. When a big company decides to take on debt, they know exactly how that money is getting paid back. It's built into their budget. They're not just hoping for the best. So if you can be responsible with debt, if you can implement a good strategy for paying it back, and if you have a really good purpose for using it, like expanding your business, then that's not a bad thing to do because it may actually return some financial and tax benefits for you that you wouldn't otherwise have access to. Now, the last thing that big companies do, and I already mentioned this one at the beginning of the show, but the last thing that big companies do when it comes to their money that I think we all should listen to is they engage a qualified team, or should say engage a team of qualified advisors, anywhere from financial advisors to tax advisors, bookkeepers, they have people on their team. The CEO of GE is not sitting there updating the company's books on a weekly basis. That isn't the best use of that person's time. They bring in a team of qualified folks that understand what they do, that know how to use the financial information for strategic purposes and that help move the business forward. Now, I'm not telling you to run out and hire a bunch of people right now, but look at where your business is at and look at where some of the challenge areas are. If you're feeling like your books are constantly a mess and it's a big drain on you and it's stressing you out, and you don't have access to your numbers because you don't know if they're updated, maybe a bookkeeper is the person for you. If you feel like every time you have to do your taxes, it's really stressful. You're not sure if you fill out the forms right, you think you're probably leaving money on the table, you really don't know what you're doing, the business is starting to grow, you want to make sure you're doing all the right things as it gets bigger, then maybe you're gonna work with a tax professional. Don't be afraid to invest money back into your business by hiring a team of qualified advisors who can help you grow that business. I've said this before, but one of the least important things we do for our clients is prepare their tax returns. Tax returns are just filling out forms. The work we do for our clients is the strategy, it's the conversations around how they can maximize what they're doing to minimize their tax burden, not just this year, but long term. So make sure you have those conversations with people and you have those people on your team because much like big companies, the payoff is absolutely worth it. So I hope you buy into my money lessons that I think we should take from big companies. I know they're big companies, we don't want to like them, we wanna hate them, they're the bad guys, and we can still think that. But they're doing some things right when it comes to the money. And I want you to do those things too because I think you're gonna be really happy when you see the payoff for taking these steps. All right, friends, so I want to dive into a segment that I love, which is money news that you can actually use. Because let's be honest, there's a lot of crap out there in the world, a lot of information being thrown at us, and it's really hard to sift through all of this. But the thing I actually want to talk about today, it is money news, but it's so much more than that. Last month, the Supreme Court made a bold and big decision that preserved access to one of the two pills that is used for medical abortions. Now, I'm not a doctor, but let me just tell you that these pills are critical for people who need this kind of care, not just people who are actually trying to achieve abortions, but lots of people who may have issues and there becomes a need for a medical abortion. Now, the Supreme Court preserves this access for now, and that's the critical piece. And by the way, as sort of like a caveat, this only preserves the access in the states where abortion is legal. This doesn't overturn the illegality of this health care in certain states. So this is just in states where abortion is legal, but it at least preserves access in those states for now. Key word, key phrase for now. Now, why for now and what's going on here? Well, the the um Supreme Court is actually waiting on the battle that is going on right now with the FDA over approval for this pill, for you know, this one of the two pills. And there are court cases right now challenging that approval. So that is playing out in the court. So the Supreme Court has said, we're not gonna overturn this yet. We're gonna see how this plays out in the court. Now, I'll be honest with you, I don't think the end of this story is a happy one. I think by the time that case playing out about the FDA approval playing out gets the Supreme Court, I think that's gonna be their invitation to overturn it all. We've already seen what they did with Roe. So we know that this is the um the their willingness to do this. But you might be sitting there thinking, okay, well, you said this was money news. So what are you talking about? Why are we talking about this? Well, here's why we're talking about this on a money podcast. Even before Roe fell, abortions by medication accounted for 54% of abortions in the US. So back when like you could do a lot more than you can now, more than half of the people who got abortions in the US got them through medication, abortion meds. This is a huge number of people who have lost access to healthcare because of the fall of Roe, but were at risk of even further losing access to this necessary health care if the Supreme Court didn't rule the way they did. So it's good that they did this ruling, but like I said, I don't think it's a long-term savior here. But why is this a financial issue? Well, let's look at some of the things that happen when a person is forced to carry a fetus to term and give birth to a child that wasn't part of their plan. Number one, we see a rise in childhood poverty. We know that when children are born into situations where they essentially didn't fit, they weren't, it wasn't a wanted pregnancy, the birth was not something that was wanted. We know that those children are more likely to face childhood poverty. Because the reality is that a lot of people who seek abortions are not in a financial position to have a child. In fact, many people who seek abortions might otherwise decide to have a child, but for the finances. Now, I'm not suggesting that that is the only reason. You are perfectly entitled to decide you don't want a child for non-financial reasons, but we know that there are a lot of people that fall into that bucket. So when those people are forced to have that child, that child is then more likely to be in a level of poverty because that person who gave birth to that child is struggling financially. We also know that when somebody is forced to give birth to a child, that they, their opportunity dwindles tremendously. It becomes harder for them to pursue education because now they have the added cost, the added time, the added challenges to balance the two. We know that it becomes harder for them to work, they have to take time off. Not a lot of employers offer maternity leave, paternity leave, things like that that are paid, that are beneficial. Um, we know it becomes harder to increase wealth because now a substantial amount of money is being put towards the child that might otherwise have gone into investments, into uh you know, building their own wealth. And then we have the direct costs. We have the costs of medical care, because the reality is a lot of people who give birth in this country do not have insurance, andor that process is not covered or fully covered by their insurance. So a lot of people go into medical debt when they have to give birth. And if you're forced to give birth because you cannot get an abortion, that becomes a debt on top of an already extremely heavy burden. Now, there are also costs for those folks who decide they're going to travel to get the abortion care that they need and deserve. They have to travel out of state, sometimes many, many, many states away to get that access. And it's not just the travel cost, but it's the time off work, it's if they have other children, it's the uh child care for that, it's the uh lodging when they're in the place where they're getting the care. It's the care itself in many cases. Significant costs just around the fact that they are forced to go somewhere else for the care that they need. We know the debt increases all around, and I've already referenced this. We know medical debt increases, we know education debt increases, we know credit card debt increases because now it's become harder and harder and harder to stay on top of those finances. So, what are you gonna do? Let's throw it on a credit card. And let's be clear: all of these issues are compounded massively for historically marginalized populations. This is a huge problem in a country that is already struggling with debilitating financial issues, debilitating mental health issues. And now we're layering this on and these massive financial implications. This is by far one of the most extreme issues that we are dealing with today, in my opinion. And so, why is this a financial issue? For all of the reasons I just mentioned. But if you're sitting there thinking, well, I understand why it's a financial issue for someone else, but not for me, maybe it's not for you today. But what about down the road? Or let's talk about the ripple effects that this has. Because even if it never becomes an issue for you personally, the ripple effects of the rising debt, of the crippling financial growth of massive amounts of people in this country will absolutely cost each and every one of us. We're gonna see costs keep going up, we're gonna see taxes go up, we're gonna see an increased need for extra support services. The reality is it's already really hard to afford life as it is. Forcing someone to have a child just absolutely adds on to that burden. And so this is a financial issue, and it's one that you should be paying attention to no matter your gender, no matter where you're at in your childbearing journey, if you ever even wanted to go on that journey at all, because this is something that affects every single person in this country, and it's debilitating and crippling. And if we don't address it and fight back now, it's going to take us under. So, what can you do? Well, we're gonna put lots of links in the show notes, but a few things just to go through the list. Number one, donate to abortion funds. This is directly to the funds that help provide this critical care for people who need it. You could also donate to independent abortion clinics. So if you know of clinics, especially in really hard-hit areas, that's a great place. Keep in mind that clinics that are on the border or near the border of states that have outlawed abortion health care are really struggling right now. So if you can find those, that can be really helpful as well. But that's where abortion funds are nice too, because they help supplement a lot of that. Protest. Just because it feels like the fervor and the anger has died down doesn't mean it actually has. There are people out there who are talking about this every single day. Find those people, get them together, and go out there and talk about it. Because the worst thing that can happen to this issue is that we forget about it or we stop paying attention. We need to keep the spotlight on this because the more we do, the more it will remind people that this is still a critical issue and the more it'll keep people riled up. Activate your network. Call everybody you know, or text them, or tweet them, or whatever you like to do, and say, Did you know that this just happened? Tell them about the Supreme Court decision, but tell them this is not gonna last. We have to keep fighting. Tell them that there are people in states that are fighting for the care that they need. And by the way, there are people dying in states because doctors cannot give them the treatment that they need. If you Google it, you will find many, many, many examples. There are very tangible examples of how this is devastating communities. And you need to share those. You need to tell people what is going on because that people do get busy. People forget, people go back to their lives, and you need to remind them why this matters and that it's happening. Call your representatives. If you live in a state or a place that is very protective of abortion care, like I do in Massachusetts, call them and thank them for the work that they've been doing. I guarantee you they will be appreciative for that support because 99% of the calls they're getting are probably angry calls. If you live in a state where abortion is at risk, then absolutely call those representatives. You have got to make them feel the heat. And let's go back to activate your network. Get your friends and your family to call them too because they need to know that you are not going to let this stand. And lastly, volunteer your time. There are actually some really great organizations around the country who are making it easier and more accessible for people to get the abortion care they need. One in particular I wanted to mention, which is a little bit niche, but I love it because it fits right in with what I love, is called Elevated Access. So Elevated Access is an organization that started, I think, last year, and private pilots will actually fly people, you know, on small planes to states so that they can get abortion care. And I love this because some of you may know, but I've been training for my private pilot's license. So I love the idea that when I get it, I can join Elevated Access and help people who need abortion care. But it doesn't have to be that. You don't have to have your pilot's license to help out. There are many organizations who provide assistance with travel, who provide housing if you live in a state where abortion care is provided. There's lots of different ways that you can help. Just promise me this that you will not let this issue die, that you will continue to help all of us put the spotlight and keep the spotlight on this, because there are too many people out there who are suffering today because of these reckless and cruel decisions that a select group of people have made. And the impact, not just financially, but across every area of our lives, is going to be just so profoundly devastating. We need your help to solve this. All right, friends, I know that was a little heavy. I'm gonna wrap it up here with something a little bit lighter. We're gonna go back to the money stuff in today's listener question. And as a reminder, you can always send your questions to disruptyourmoney.com. I would love to read and answer them on the air for you. So today's question comes from a community member who is asking about buying their first rental property. And they have asked if they should put it in an LLC. Now, before I answer this, let me caveat this by saying I'm not an attorney, so I cannot legally advise you on what type of legal entity to use for your rental property. But I actually want to get to the heart of the matter here because I think if you Google it, you'll probably be able, or we actually have some resources on our website, you'll be able to understand pretty quickly the benefits of an LLC. Not saying it's the right answer for everybody, but there are some benefits. But the question that actually comes up the most around LLCs is about the taxes behind this. So let me just give you a quick sense of how this works. When you have an LLC, and typically if you're the only person who owns it, we call it a single member LLC. A single member LLC LLC is by default what we call a disregarded entity. Meaning that for the purposes of taxes, we just kind of ignore the legal entity. Now, to be clear, that doesn't mean you lose your liability protection that you get from an LLC. We're talking about just for tax purposes, not for legal purposes. So for tax purposes, a single member LLC is a disregarded entity, meaning that we ignore the existence of the LLC. And what does that practically mean? Well, it means that the profits and losses of that business get reported on your personal uh tax return. They get taxed at your personal uh income tax rate. So really doesn't matter that you have an LLC for tax purposes. Now, what happens if more than one person owns that LLC? Then it becomes a multi member LLC. And by default, a multimember LLC. LLC is for tax purposes a partnership. How does that change things? Well, a partnership has to file a separate tax return. So right there, at a minimum, you're talking about an extra fee to have your tax preparer prepare that tax return for you. Now a partnership doesn't actually pay tax at the partnership level. So they don't pay tax on the tax return themselves. Much like the single member LLC, the profits and losses from the partnership roll up to your personal tax return and get reported on your personal tax return, reported and taxed on your personal tax return at your individual income tax rates. So effectively, there's not really much of a tax difference, much of any of a tax difference between the single member LLC and the multi-member LLC. There's just a difference in the administration. There's more administration when it becomes a partnership. There are also some specific rules about partnerships and some other stuff that I'm not going to get into right now, but for the most part, effectively the same. Now, if you have an LLC and you make the election to be taxed as an S corporation, that's a tax status classification, then that's a whole different thing altogether. And you, your S corporation will have to file its own tax return, much like the partnership. Much like the partnership, it doesn't pay tax at the S-Corp level. The profits and losses roll up to your personal tax return. But there are some tax benefits to having the S corporation tax election versus just being a single member LLC or a multi-member LLC. So bottom line is there are some opportunities here potentially for tax savings if you have an LLC or corporation that makes that S corporation election. But if we're just talking about a single member LLC to buy your first rental property from a tax perspective, it doesn't matter at all. So ultimately, I would talk to your attorney. I would make a decision based on what makes the most sense for you in terms of that legal entity and any protections that you want. And don't worry too much about the tax side of it. All right, friends, we are gonna wrap it up there. So as a reminder, you can always get the access, uh, support, resources that you need by going to our completely free Biz Money Library, which you can access at equitablemoneproject.com forward slash free. And don't forget that if you like the work we're doing, please subscribe to the podcast on your favorite podcast player and leave us a review. We would be ever so grateful. Until next time, my friends, I hope you are making big money moves in your life. Do not forget, we have to disrupt our money. Thanks for listening to Disrupt Your Money. If you have a money question you'd like answered in a future episode, go to disruptyourmoney.com. To support the podcast, please rate and review it wherever you get your podcast. And if you want access to all of my free templates, checklists, resources, and guides, click the link for the Biss Money Library in the show notes.