Is Upstate New York the New Silicon Beach? 3 Founders on How Moving From the City to the Country Benefited Their Biz

Upstate New York has always been a haven for creatives, and when COVID hit in 2020, many founders relocated from New York City to upstate out of necessity, desire, or both. Below are profiles of three entrepreneurs—Trinity Mouzon Wofford, the founder of Golde, Eliza Blank, the founder The Sill, and Hillary France, the founder of The Wylde—who made the move from the city to the country last year. Read on to discover how the change impacted these founders and their businesses.

Trinity Mouzon Wofford, Founder of Golde

Saratoga Springs, New York

During the summer of 2020, when COVID was surging, Trinity and her fiancé Issey, the cofounder of Golde, spent the summer in Saratoga Springs to gain some relief and safety from the intense situation in N.Y.C. They were going back and forth from Saratoga to Brooklyn, a three-and-a-half-hour ride each way, when Trinity had the realization that, for the time being, it made sense to return full-time to upstate New York to live and run their business. 

On one ride down from Saratoga during late summer, she remembers thinking to herself that she needed to go back; that perhaps running her superfood health and beauty startup, Golde, and paying rent in Brooklyn for too little space was not benefiting the growth of her business nor her own personal growth. On top of these challenges, Trinity and Issey are in an interracial relationship and, in the city, tensions were becoming palpable during the summer of 2020 in response to the BLM movement and the upcoming election. In a way, she felt as though the systems of the city were starting to fail her and she needed to actively change her surroundings for the benefit of herself, her family, and her business. 

Trinity grew up in Saratoga Springs. In fact, four generations of Trinity’s family have lived in the same house that she returned to, where her mother still lives. Returning to the house that her ancestors had lived in for generations felt very natural and provided a safe space to gain a fresh perspective. It’s allowed her to go deeper into outlets such as gardening and plant care, which, in her own words, have allowed for more creativity. Not surprisingly Golde has benefited from this positive energy and change.

During this past year, Golde has been lucky. The business hasn’t been negatively affected, and has, in fact, thrived. In January, Golde launched in Target, and one of the brand’s two new products scheduled for release in 2021, Shroom Shield, has launched. The team has always been remote so no adjustments were needed in order to keep the business running smoothly. The lack of pressure to be everywhere and do everything, something that anyone who lives in a big city can relate to, has allowed her to realize that she can’t predict the future. She can only think a few steps ahead, and for the first time, she is living in the moment and is fully enjoying it and the lack of pressure this brings. 

Eliza Blank, Founder The Sill 

Stone Ridge, New York

It’s a similar story for Eliza. Coincidentally, both she and her husband Steve grew up in more rural areas of Massachusetts, so the desire to feel the grass under their feet has always been there. She found herself at NYU for university, and although she loved the city, she always missed nature. It’s this love of nature that inspired her to start The Sill, an online plant nursery that delivers botanicals right to your doorstep. It also inspired her to buy her first home in Stone Ridge, situated in the Catskills, in 2015.

The paths to starting The Sill—as well as finding a house in upstate New York—were not straightforward ones. Eliza found raising money for The Sill to be challenging. Venture capitalists often want fast growth at all costs, and Eliza was committed to making sure her foundational economics worked, which, for her, meant slower growth with her eye on profitability from day one. After an arduous raise, she is confident they found the right investors for The Sill, and these investors have been by her side navigating the most difficult year yet. As was the case for most businesses, March 2020 was a very dark time. All five of The Sill’s stores were closed and the distribution center in California was forced to shut down. The bright spot is that sales didn’t suffer. As it turns out, people look to plants for emotional support, and since people could not be together, they found connection in giving small gifts of kindness in the form of plants to each other. 

In 2015, when buying their house upstate, Eliza realized that their mortgage would be less expensive than their rent in the city. Little did they know that five years later this house would become their permanent residence, sanctuary, and office for over a year. The past 18 months have led her to question if the social convention of the office is necessary. Does the team even need a five-day workweek? Eliza has started to hire permanently remote team members as far away as Hawaii and the business’s headquarters are now fully remote. For Eliza, she firmly believes that the space and closeness to nature their home provided them mitigated the extreme pressure and stress she experienced during COVID as a leader and also as an Asian American woman. Her home upstate became an oasis from what the world had become, or perhaps further revealed, that we live during a time of extreme unrest and racism.  

When asked what’s next for her and her business, Eliza responds that she wants to live a life well-lived. She wants her two-and-a-half-year-old daughter to have the space to play and become independent. For the business, she wants to further realize the broad ways in which nature can be infused into our homes and what the brand essence of The Sill is, and how it can evolve to fit into this new space that we have all found ourselves living in. For Eliza’s family, they will go back to the city for a year in the fall and see how it feels. For right now, the country has allowed her to have creative breakthroughs and reimagine how The Sill can further help us maintain our well-being within our home as we spend more time there than ever before. 

Hillary France, Founder of The Wylde

Hudson, New York

Hillary had always thought she would make the gradual move from spending weekends in Hudson, New York to living there full time. What she could not have predicted was that this move would happen as abruptly as it did in March 2020. For seven years, through her company Brand Assembly, Hillary had been running trade events for some of the most enviable fashion brands. Her business had been thriving, and then, within the first month of COVID, the Brand Assembly’s trade show business was almost obliterated. 

She saw an 80% drop in activity and she soon found herself in the position of having to reimagine her whole business model. She immediately gave up her office, attempted to pivot but was unable to make it work, and slowly drained her resources. She had to accept that perhaps this almost fully offline and in-person event business was not an operation that could survive a pandemic. Not surprisingly, for the last year, her trade show business has been on hiatus (and the good news is that they are set to return in October of 2021), however, the backend operations piece called The Faculty is still fully functioning. This situation could have fully devastated Hillary, but instead, it pushed her to finally pursue a dream she had always had: to create a space for brands and community to convene in one place in Hudson. At that point, she had nothing to lose so she packed her bags, gave up her N.Y.C. apartment, and moved to her weekend house in Hudson to create what is now called The Wylde.

Hillary had spent nine years going back and forth to Hudson and saw an opportunity for a retail annex in this quickly growing city. In fact, Hudson was recently ranked the #1 metro area in terms of the biggest change in net migration. With the influx of people to the area, she figured there was more of an opportunity than ever to create a space where people could feel a sense of community and continue to be inspired by fashion and conversation. On April 17, 2021, Hillary launched the Wylde’s first outdoor market Summer Saturdays with a selection of handpicked vendors across apparel, accessories, vintage, and apothecary. Local N.Y. brands like M.Patmos, Hudson Hemp, and Lail Design are featured within the market while the permanent retail store that opened on April 30th launched brands like Rachel Comey, Dôen, Mondo Mondo, and more.

Is The Wylde solely an upstate dream? In Hillary’s mind, it’s not. When taking the Amtrak train down to the city she has daydreams of opening The Wylde up in another emerging market if she finds success in Hudson. Rather than feeling consumed by the fashion space she feels excited about how fashion, culture and even coffee (a Wylde cafe is slated to open in August 2021) can bring people together to create community and meaning. This evolution of the business more truly reflects the changes she has felt personally this past year and the community that she had always sought to be a more permanent member of. 

Melissa Grillo Aruz, Founder of Aruz Ventures

About the author: Melissa Grillo Aruz has been an active part of the New York startup ecosystem for the past 20 years having senior roles at Forerunner Ventures, Gilt Groupe, and more. She currently runs her own marketing and talent consulting business under www.aruzventures.net where she helps commerce companies scale their business. She currently splits her time between upstate New York and Brooklyn. Instagram and Twitter @melgrilloaruz.

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7 Reasons You Should Declutter and Organize Your Desk Right Now

Photo: ColorJoy Stock

It’s hard not to fall prey to the American drive to have more. We live in a consumer-driven culture. Case in point, one of the first idioms I learned was, “Keeping up with the Joneses.” But as we fritter away our hard-earned money on “stuff,” we start to accumulate more than we can actually handle. Before we know it, we’re drowning in the byproducts of capitalism.

Years and years of this “more” mentality has caused a subtle shift in our culture. Many of us are starting to seek a more simplified life. We’re looking to surround ourselves only with the things we either truly love or truly need.

However, actually obtaining (and maintaining) such a lifestyle means getting rid of a lot of possessions—and then organizing what’s left. Although this may seem like an insurmountable task, it’s ultimately worthwhile.

Why?

Because decluttering and organizing feels amazing.

It's a Rush

Did you know that decluttering and organizing releases endorphins? One of the main reasons why these tasks are so satisfying is because our brains are literally pouring on the feel-good chemicals. This leads to reduced stress and anxiety and improves our mood! 

One way to really get those endorphins flowing is to take on a task that you perceive to be more difficult or challenging than others. For instance, consider organizing your digital photos. According to a survey by Everpresent, 83% of families have not consolidated their digital photos into a single library. Gathering all of your photos into one place, arranging and labeling them, and then uploading them to an online library or external hard drive can take many hours (or even days). That said, the rush you’ll get when the job is done and your precious memories are safe will be well worth it!

It Gives You a Sense of Accomplishment

So many of life’s little chores don’t leave you with an observable end product. You work and work and work, and… nothing. Decluttering and organizing, however, delivers results you can really see. And believe it or not, achieving these results can have positive effects in other areas of your life.

When you accomplish a goal—even a small one such as cleaning out the junk drawer—you gain confidence. You realize that you can succeed when you put your mind to something. The more of these tasks you accomplish, the more confidence you build. These repeated triumphs arm you with the courage you need to face all of life’s challenges.

It Gives You Control

Creating a clean desk space gives you a sense of control over your environment. Since we often feel a lack of control in other areas of our lives, having this control over our homes is incredibly comforting (even if it’s only on a subconscious level).

What’s more, there’s actually an evolutionary need for that control. Humans are wired to keep track of their surroundings at all times. We’re naturally drawn to uncluttered spaces that are easier to scan—and when we’re safely within them, we feel more relaxed.                 

It's Meditative

It’s a strange thing to say, but the mindlessness of cleaning is actually one of its biggest perks. The physical elements of housework are often simple, repetitive tasks. This makes the activity highly meditative. Whether you listen to music or podcasts while you clean or let the silence of the house take over, allowing your brain to take a break from everyday thoughts while you clean is the perfect way to meditate while staying active.

It Makes You Feel Better

Disorganization can have a terrible effect on your sense of self-worth. If your home is cluttered and dirty, it’s not hard to internalize. The more disordered and disheveled your environment becomes, the worse you end up feeling about yourself.

 A 2010 study from the University of California revealed that women who described their homes as being cluttered or filled with unfinished projects were more likely to be depressed and fatigued than women who characterized their living spaces as being restful and restorative. They also found that women who lived in cluttered environments had higher levels of the stress hormone cortisol.

It’s a Stress-Buster

Speaking of stress, clutter is surprisingly hard on our brains. Your brain is constantly processing visual information, and too much clutter can make it hard for it to be efficient. Keeping your home decluttered and organized helps to reduce unnecessary stimuli and allows you to stay focused on your goals.

It Makes Life Easier

One of the greatest reasons to declutter (besides it feeling awesome) is as a segue into a minimalist lifestyle. Every item you get rid of is one less thing you have to find a place for, regularly clean, maintain, and repair. The fewer items you own, the less time and energy you have to spend on taking care of things. Instead of collecting stuff for the sake of having it, only purchase and hold onto the items that mean something to you or you genuinely need.

It Empowers You to Move Forward

Have you ever kept an item strictly because you felt obligated to? An invitation to a friend’s wedding or a ticket stub from a concert? Sometimes the only reason we save items is that we feel responsibility, nostalgia, or even guilt when we look at them. But, in the spirit of minimalism, if we don’t love or use something, there’s no reason to keep it. Getting rid of these items will help you stay focused on the present and the future, rather than burdened by the past.

More and more people are starting to realize that the decades-old crusade to accumulate as many worldly goods as possible doesn’t always lead to happiness. In fact, it’s quite the opposite—too much stuff can lead to added stress and anxiety. Taking time to declutter and organize your home is a surefire way to feel more relaxed, in control, and at peace. And that’s worth all the money in the world!

About the author: Liz Greene is a feminist, makeup enthusiast, and anxiety-ridden realist from the beautiful city of trees, Boise, Idaho. When she’s not writing, she enjoys eating fancy cheeses, fantasizing about what life would be like if she had an Iron Man suit, and re-watching Venture Bros. episodes for the 100th time. 

This post was originally published on September 24, 2018, and has since been updated.

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How Shenae Grimes and AnnaLynne McCord Balance Being BFFs and Biz Partners

Photo: Courtesy of Shenae Grimes & AnnaLynne McCord

Listen to the full episode here.

Going into business with a friend can be an incredible experience, but it can also be a real challenge. You need to ensure your values, goals, and work ethics align.

So, how do you make it work with your bestie? How do you maintain healthy boundaries between being friends and being business partners? How do you navigate creative differences and make sure both of your opinions are heard?

To talk about what it really takes to go into business with a friend, Jaclyn Johnson, founder and CEO of Create & Cultivate and host of the “WorkParty” podcast, chatted with Shenae Grimes and AnnaLynne McCord on this week’s episode of “WorkParty.” 

Although Shenae and AnnaLynne played fictional best friends on the CW show “90210,” today, they’re real-life besties and co-hosts of the podcast “Unzipped” where they talk about everything from friendship and parenting to pop culture and social issues.

On the “WorkParty” podcast, Jaclyn asked these BFFs turned business partners what it’s like to navigate the friend-business-partner relationship, why they decided to launch a podcast, and so much more. Listen to the full episode here.

Subscribe to WorkParty and never miss an episode.

On starting a podcast together…

“We like people's stories. We like having in-depth conversations. We like questioning ourselves, we like questioning other people, and we're not afraid to quote-unquote go there.” — Shenae Grimes

On finding value outside of your career…

“You can be rich in life and not be the richest and most famous.” — Shenae Grimes

On being an advocate for children…

“I want to be a part of creating a world where we don't see the number of child suicides that we're seeing right now. For example, children as young as eight and nine years old, are killing themselves.” — AnnaLynne McCord

On prioritizing a career with work-life balance…

“Ultimately, what led me down wanting to get into the content creation thing and veer away from acting was the freedom to work from home, so that I could physically be present with my family instead of on a set for 16 hours a day.” — Shenae Grimes

On balancing friendship and business…

"This is business. If there's a decision that needs to be made, this is not about your heart or your feelings, this is about money." — AnnaLynne McCord

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Why You Should Dress Up for a Phone Interview

Photo: ColorJoy Stock

You may be wondering how clothing affects your ability to communicate. It all starts with that first impression. First impressions mean a lot.

Think about how often we judge people almost immediately based on their appearance. Clothing is a tool that can help you take control of how people see you and manipulate their viewpoint. Do you want to appear as a strong, knowledgeable, and confident individual? Your clothing can help with that!

In Jennifer J. Baumgartner’s book, “You Are What You Wear: What Your Clothes Reveal About You,” she explains that, “Our closets are windows into our internal selves. Every one of us attempts to say or hide something in the way we wear our clothes.” Use your clothing to positively affect how you communicate by taking the opportunity to show people who you are and what kind of person you want to be. 

Below are some tips to help you dress in a way that communicates authority and demands respect.

Dress for the Job You Want, Not the Job You Have 

You’ve probably heard this before, but there’s a reason it keeps coming up. Work hard, be respectful of others, and dress as if you’re the boss. There’s something empowering about dressing "up." It changes your demeanor and studies have shown that it influences the way we think. I often tell clients to dress up for phone interviews because it makes a difference in how you think and how you speak.

We’re often able to think more clearly and efficiently when dressed in workwear because it differentiates us from a more laid-back and social environment in which one would wear casual clothing.

You Will Be Judged on Your Appearance, so Take Advantage of It

Whether or not it’s right, it’s human nature to judge others based on their clothing and appearance. Since this is a known fact (people with straight teeth are considered more successful), take advantage of what you can and dress to impress. This doesn’t mean that you need to spend a lot of money on designer clothing, however, you should be dressing in clothing that is flattering and appropriate.

If you’re going to a meeting, opt for a pair of fitted slacks instead of jeans. It’s a simple switch that will immediately make you appear more professional and more authoritative. Similarly, by switching out a sweater for a blazer, you will make your look more polished and command more respect.

Think About What Your Grandparents Would Say

This sounds silly at first, but when getting dressed for work-related events or meetings, think about how your grandparents would react to the outfit. Everything is a bit more casual (hello, startup life), but that doesn't mean you should be casual in attitude when it comes to your career. If grandma says something's not appropriate, chances are, it's not. You can still dress like yourself and bring individuality to any outfit, but listen to that inner voice. You don't have to dress for the most conservative person in the room but aim somewhere in the middle. 

My grandmother has always lived by the motto that you can never be overdressed, and it’s almost always been right. Keep in mind that you want to remain appropriate, however, a suit will almost always be considered appropriate workwear. If you’re in a more casual environment, think of going with bold prints that feel less formal but also polished. Even if others are dressing casually, if you dress to impress, you will be able to communicate more effectively and command more respect than those in jeans and a T-shirt. Plus, studies have shown the dressing to impress enhances people’s ability to engage in abstract thinking.

When you’re wondering how clothing affects your ability to communicate, think about how you want people to see you, how you want to portray yourself to the world, and how efficient you want to be. If you want to be successful, dressing in a polished and professional manner will help you achieve your goal and communicate this objective to others.

About the author: A native San Franciscan, Michele Lando is a certified professional résumé writer and founder of writestylesonline.com. She has a passion for helping others present the best version of themselves, both on paper and in person, and works to polish an individual’s application package and personal style. Aiming to help create a perfect personal branding package, Write Styles presents tips to enhance your résumé, style, and boost your confidence.

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This story was originally published on October 5, 2016, and has since been updated.

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When COVID Hit, She Had to Close Her Restaurant—Now Her Products Are Flying Off the Shelves at Whole Foods

You asked for more content around business finances, so we’re delivering. Welcome to Money Matters where we give you an inside look at the pocketbooks of CEOs and entrepreneurs. In this series, you’ll learn what successful women in business spend on office spaces and employee salaries, how they knew it was time to hire someone to manage their finances, and their best advice for talking about money.

Photo: Courtesy of Ayeshah Abuelhiga

Ayeshah Abuelhiga was first inspired to open her own restaurant while working at local eateries in Washington, D.C. as an undergraduate at George Washington University. “It’s where I learned the value of a hard-earned dollar, where I learned Spanish, and where I saw people like me who didn’t necessarily have rich parents with white-collar jobs who paid their tuition,” explains Abuelhiga. “I saw the opportunity for restaurants to modernize, and ultimately, I knew that one day I wanted to own a restaurant." And after 14 years of climbing the corporate ladder, she did finally open the doors to her own restaurant, Mason Dixie, an authentic Southern comfort food hotspot, in D.C.

Although she had the make the difficult decision to close her restaurant after six years of serving the D.C. community due to COVID-19, she’s stumbled upon an even more impactful way to modernize the food industry. Like so many small business owners in 2020, she pivoted, identifying an opportunity to bring the wholesome biscuits that people would line up around the block for in D.C. into frozen food aisles across the county. Today, Mason Dixie has evolved into a clean frozen food company that makes biscuits and breakfast sandwiches that are available at over 6,000 stores, including Whole Foods, Target, Safeway, Costco, and more. And Abuelhiga is just getting started.

Below, the founder tells Create & Cultivate how she’s scaled her company sustainably, why she’s opted to raise funds from private investors (rather than through venture capital), and what major mistakes she’s made and learned from along the way.

You started Mason Dixie, in part, because you believe everyone should have access to affordable, wholesome food. Take us back to the beginning—What was the lightbulb moment for Mason Dixie and what inspired you to launch your business and pursue this path? 

I grew up poor. I was raised in low-income housing in Baltimore up until I was 11, but my parents did their best to instill the values of home-cooked, wholesome meals. We shopped at farmer’s markets and bought produce that was bruised, but we ate very balanced meals. I notice now looking back that the kids I still remember that I grew up with in Section 8 that ate out of vending machines are still in the system today, and those who had better access to food, are in better places. You truly are what you eat and I have always believed we deserve better. 

In that same vein, my immigrant parents owned a soul-food carry-out restaurant and convenience store when I was little and I got my taste for American cuisine from it. It was also a deciding cuisine when my Middle Eastern dad and Korean mother would disagree about whose cuisine would win out for dinner that night. I craved soul food even as I was coming of age in college, but I could never find homestyle, scratch-made comfort food, only fast food equivalents.  

Fast forward to college. I was the first member of my family to attend college and since my parents didn’t make a lot of money, I had to work to pay for school, so I worked in restaurants throughout my years at George Washington University. It’s where I learned the value of a hard-earned dollar, where I learned Spanish, and where I saw people like me who didn’t necessarily have rich parents with white-collar jobs who paid their tuition. I saw the opportunity for restaurants to modernize, and ultimately, I knew that one day I wanted to own a restaurant. 

So after working for 14 years in male-dominated industries, like tech and auto, and quickly climbing the corporate ladder, I realized I was an upper-level manager who was unfulfilled and had another 20  years to go before I could go after the only female C-level role that I didn’t even want. I was disenchanted and uninspired. So, I decided it was time to start my dream of owning a  restaurant. So in 2014, I founded Mason Dixie. I saw a huge opportunity in the lack of comfort food options available in the growing, better-for-you food space, and an even bigger opportunity making biscuits the focal point since there were no real, scratch-made biscuits on the market. I also saw an opportunity to make scratch-made comfort food affordable and accessible to the masses versus just doing better-for-you food in the fine dining realm by looking at the fast-casual scale and ultimately, grocery, as an even better avenue to do just that. 

You recently raised $6.3 million in Series A funding from investors—no doubt you’ve learned a lot along the way. What are three crucial elements everyone should include in a pitch deck when raising money and why?

1. Know the problem you are solving and how big the addressable market really is. Frequently I see founders who do not research the market space enough and show a $20M market opportunity. No investor gets excited about the opportunity to take up to 10% of a $20M market. If you make a seed oil and that segment is small, how big is the oil market in general? Sell the sizzle. It’s the opportunity size that gets early-stage investors going. But be realistic. Be able to defend the market size with real data. 

2. Know your sales performance and gross margins inside and out; it is ultimately how investors judge your worth. I cannot tell you how many founders I talk to that don’t even know what goes into a gross margin calculation, or where their strongest sales are coming from. This is important stuff you should be able to spat out on command. 

3. Know how you are going to use the funds. Don’t just say I need $1M. What is that $1M built from? Half to overhead/salaries, some to equipment, a third to working capital? Show in your projections how you get to that number. You will always be surprised after analyzing cash flow projections how much more you really need than you thought.  

You decided to forgo venture capital and instead opted to raise funds from private investors, many of whom are women. What advice can you share for entrepreneurs, particularly WOC, on partnering with the right investors, and what do investors need to bring to the table other than just money?

I say this until my face turns blue and people still look at me like I have three heads but choosing investors is like choosing a husband. They are almost identical on legal paper. They own your assets, you share financial responsibilities with them, and ultimately your relationship will be what allows you to succeed or fail. They are not a bank or a cash lender; they are meant to be business partners. 

You have to know the type of personalities you vibe with, what their values are, do you have the same humor even. It’s like dating. You have to ask yourself, “Could I be with these people forever? Are they my people? Do they really believe in me and what I am trying to achieve?” These are some of the top questions I ask of my investors when getting to know them and I highly recommend founders do the same when they go out to raise. This is why for WOC especially, it’s important to find your people. The check is secondary to shared values and work style. 

You launched Mason Dixie in 2014, and now the brand is available at over 6,000 stores, including Whole Foods, Target, Safeway, Costco, and more. What has been the biggest challenge in scaling your business and what lessons have you learned along the way? What advice can you share on how to scale a business sustainably?

The hardest part about scaling a fast-paced growth business is predicting growth. There are times when you get it dead wrong and over-project, and there are times you go gangbusters and hit it out of the park. Both scenarios are challenging to plan for. 

I think the way we have navigated our business growth best was by learning the hard way at first and then optimizing each year. At first, we sprinted and made some mistakes. We were lucky in that the sprint just qualified us for the next race, but we weren’t ready. We just happened to be the fastest runner in that first race. I would have preferred looking back to have trained and prepared for the second race. 

So with each misstep, we corrected, learned, and analyzed our weak points and then went in more cautiously. We chose better retailers, improved our product mix, then accelerated. I would always make sure to be cautious. If I could do it again, I would win strategically big and focus on making those wins bigger before going wider. It helps mobilize the team better, focuses your assets, and then allows you to move stronger into new markets. 

There are a lot of small business owners reading this interview who would love to have their products sold at major retailers like you. How can these founders follow in your footsteps? What advice can you share for getting a foot in the door with a big-name retailer?

Fair warning: the market has changed a LOT since we first got started. Anyone who started before a couple of years ago were the pioneers. You did a lot and asked for forgiveness later and people were more willing to grow/make mistakes with you. 

Now, the world has changed. There is a lot more competition—a lot more products out there—and retailers are getting smarter. Before you go pitch to a big retailer, you have to really know if you are ready. Do you have the marketing and trade budget to support the account? Can you keep up with the volume? Can you afford slotting fees? Do you have a sales support team to monitor and manage the account? 

Remember, these players have dealt with far more billion-dollar companies than they have thousand-dollar companies, so the rules are set for much bigger fish than you. 

Get educated, get funded, then jump into those waters with caution. Surround yourself with skilled and experienced advisors who have worked in the category/product type you are developing. Ask other companies in those retailers about their experience—both their successes and their follies. Get informed before you pitch. 

Where do you think is the most important area for a business owner to focus their financial energy on and why?

Being a founder/CEO means you need to know everything about your business—point-blank.  There isn’t one area that is more important than the other. It’s a living system and all parts of the system need to be financially healthy in order for the business to thrive. Now, this doesn’t mean you need to be the expert. Hire a great accountant or CFO early. Allow them to train your eye to see the dark spots and opportunities clearly. Focus on understanding your business over how to be a financial whiz. 

What was your first big expense as a business owner and how should small business owners prepare for that now?

People. People people people. They should always be your first biggest expense. Who is helping you to create your projections? Who is going to manage your first order, or even make it? Remember, you cannot do this on your own and the value of the people you surround yourself with will be invaluable in the long run. 

What are your top three largest expenses every month?

1. COGs – All of your cost of goods should and will be your largest expense. 

2. Trade expenses/marketing – In frozen, we invest a lot into trade since it’s not as easy for us to market and get trial by handing out free sample packs at a metro station or triathlon. Investing back into trade helps us grow and should be one of your largest expenses as you scale.  

3. People – Your people should be the best of the best and they deserve to be financially treated as such so they are spending 100% of their time worrying about their business and not if they will get paid. Remember – this industry is tough and financially risky. This is always on the minds of your people so make sure you can pay them on time, and in full. 

Photo: Courtesy of Mason Dixie

Do you pay yourself, and if so, how did you know what to pay yourself?

I didn’t pay myself for four years so that others might eat. I lived off of savings and credit cards for as long as I could to ensure I could snag the best people, finance the next purchase order, or invest in the next piece of equipment or manufacturer. I only started to pay myself once I knew I 

couldn’t cut checks big enough anymore to fuel the business and took in our first investment,  but even then I was conservative and only took what I need to pay rent and eat. As an owner, don’t forget you own the company and that is way more valuable than a salary. 

At first, conserve as much cash as you can otherwise you will burn through equity instead. Taking a big salary is a cash burn that will cost you more equity when you need to raise more money before the company has earned the valuation it deserves. So be frugal about what you need in the beginning until the business can afford to pay you. 

Would you recommend other small business owners pay themselves?

It just depends on that owner’s personal situation. If I started a business as a single mom with three kids and little savings to live off of, I probably would pay myself the bare minimum I needed to feed my family. But as a single woman with nothing to lose, I lived as bare as I could on what I had. In fact, I worked side hustles until the business could afford to pay for me. It really depends on your financial needs and situation—just be frugal is the biggest advice I can give. 

How did you know you were ready to hire and what advice can you share on preparing for this stage of your business? 

You are always ready to hire. No one is good at everything. I would have a hard look at your skills and experience, rate those against the different business functions your business needs,  and then hire for anything you didn’t rate yourself strongly for. When I took in a business partner, my COO, Ross, I knew I was terrible at operations and needed help. Similarly, when I  saw sales ramping up, even though I knew I was good at sales, I only had so much time so rather than spread myself too thin, I invested in the hires knowing that yes, I could still do it, but what was the opportunity cost?  

Did you hire an accountant? Who helped you with the financial decisions and setup? 

Yes. This should be one of your first hires. I rarely have ever met a founder who is an accountant/financially trained. These people are, you need them. Again, they will educate you about how to look at your business and ultimately help you finance it. They are a critical function. 

What apps or software are you using for finances? What’s worked and what hasn’t?

Every business can start with Quickbooks or any off-the-shelf software. In fact, there is a huge market opportunity for you software engineers out there to design scalable accounting software for product companies—hint hint! It’s been fine because of its ease of use and cloud-based 

access, but terrible for really using it as a business intelligence and decision support tool. At the end of the day, it’s accounting software, so decision support is still happening in Excel for us. I  don’t think there are better solutions until you advance a bit more, but I am always looking. 

Do you think women should talk about money and business more? Why? 

Yes, we are the biggest consumers in the world! We are business!! More decisions need to be made by the women who LITERALLY hold the purse strings. It can only happen with us talking out loud about it and informing the powers that be how we view money, business, services, etc.  The more we show up, the louder we are, the more we will be seen, the more will change. 

What money mistakes have you made and learned from along the way?

The funniest mistake was when I thought I was going to be Willy Wonka and open a biscuit factory in just a few months! It was actually one of the best mistakes I ever made. When we sold into Whole Foods our growth was so fast that we were getting requests for products everywhere. Naively, my business partner Ross Perkins and I decided to go after more accounts, particularly in the South because if these biscuits couldn’t sell down there, then we should just call this a good swag item and not further invest. Well, we got both Publix and  Kroger to buy our biscuits and were going to go from 100 stores to 1,000 stores in just under nine months. With no idea how to do this, Ross and I leased a drive-thru restaurant with a huge parking lot in the middle of nowhere so we could make pallets of biscuits and store them in a portable trailer freezer on the lot. 

We kept doing this for months and transporting the pallets, but the demand kept growing locally,  so we couldn’t even keep the inventory we had reserved for the new accounts. I thought we needed to build a bakery! A frozen dough bakery! In the middle of DC! I spent a ton of money on fully engineered plans for this biscuit factory that was also going to have our restaurant attached for the full Ghirardelli experience until we were about to pull the trigger on this huge spiral freezer. Turns out the freezer requires either ammonia or freon—which in DC—are banned in the quantities we needed to fuel this machine. So, we were dead in the water, and we had to pivot to find a way to make biscuits within four months. 

I say it was the best mistake I ever made because I ended up being fluent in frozen biscuit production—I knew exactly the equipment I needed, the process, the cost of things—so when I went on the hunt for the facility that would ultimately make our biscuits, I knew everything I  needed to know to make the search easy. Because I failed at building a factory, I succeeded in finding the best co-manufacturer out there for our biscuits, and that is what ultimately allowed us to scale and has brought us to where we are today. 

What is your best piece of financial advice for new entrepreneurs?

Learn about venture capital and investing before you start. It’s way more complicated,  personal, and nuanced than anyone tells you. I did my best to read and research but only as I  was hearing no’s during our initial raises. I even did a killer pitch where every investor in the room asked for follow-up discussions. But sometimes it’s not just about your business track record. Sometimes it’s about the color of the money on the table or how much more money is needed and it’s hard to stomach when you think everything else is A+ and you still can’t close the deal. 

Anything else to add?

Whenever the going gets tough, ask yourself, what have you ever failed at that you tried your absolute hardest at?  

I can’t think of a single time when I put my all into something where I didn’t succeed, so I know if  I keep trying, anything can happen. I realized if I didn’t stop trying and if I continued to persevere and stop putting a period at the end of the task, I would ultimately succeed. It’s been the driving statement that through every bad turning point in the path to getting Mason Dixie where it is today, and it is 100% effective.

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LLC vs. S Corp: Which Is Best for Small Business Owners?

Photo by Marcos Paulo Prado on Unsplash

As a small business owner, you’ve probably heard the words LLC and S Corp floating around. And you probably need to decide which one to form. And while legal structures aren’t the most exhilarating topic, picking the right one is essential for your business. 

Deciding if you should go LLC or S Corp starts with knowing the differences between the two and how each one will impact your business. Read on to learn everything you need to know about LLCs and S Corps. 

LLC vs. S corp: The basics

As a small business owner, the two legal structures you’ve probably heard the most about are single-member LLCs and S Corps. Before we talk about the difference, we got to get one technical thing straight. 

Technically, an S corp isn’t a legal entity but a tax election. It’s confusing but bear with us. 

The IRS assigns every business structure a default tax treatment...which is just a fancy way of saying that the IRS decides how each business structure is taxed. 

Single-member LLCs are automatically taxed like sole proprietors unless they ask otherwise. That’s where the S corp election comes in. 

You can ask the IRS to tax your single-member LLC as an S corp, which means that the IRS won't tax you under the rules of a sole proprietorship; they’ll tax you under the rules of an S Corp (which we'll talk about later). 

To keep things simple in this article, we will be referring to:

• Single-member LLC as an LLC

• Single-member LLC electing to be taxed as an S Corp as an S Corp

Taxes

The biggest difference between an LLC and an S Corp is how you’re taxed.

An LLC and S Corp are both pass-through entities. That means that all the profits from the business are passed on to the owner’s tax return. Unlike a C Corp, which has to pay corporate taxes, your business doesn’t pay any taxes. Instead, you, the owner, do. 

How LLC taxes work

The IRS automatically taxes an LLC like a sole proprietorship. Under this tax treatment, you’ll pay two types of taxes:

• Self-employment tax - 15.3% of 92.35% of your profit. Self-employment tax goes towards your Social Security and Medicare. 

• Income tax - Varies based on your tax bracket.

You probably know that self-employment tax is a killer, and it’s why taxes feel so much higher when you’re a small business owner than an employee. 

When you’re an employee, your employer pays for half of this 15.3% through payroll taxes, and you pay the other half, which is deducted from your paycheck. 

When you’re a small business owner, you pay for all of it yourself.

How S Corp taxes work

When it comes to S Corps, there’s one major tax difference: S Corp owners don’t pay self-employment tax on the business’s profits. They only pay income tax on the profits. 

It sounds great, we know. But there’s a catch. S Corp owners are required to pay themselves a reasonable compensation via payroll. And your employee wages are subject to FICA payroll taxes.

FICA payroll tax is 15.3% of your employee wages. Yes, that’s the same amount as self-employment tax. But, the difference is that your business pays half of that (7.65%) through employer payroll taxes, and you pay the other half (7.65%), which is deducted from your paycheck. 

You pay the equivalent of self-employment tax, but only on your employee earnings. 

There are a few other things to know about S Corp taxation:

• Your payroll taxes and the salary you pay yourself are a tax write-off, which lowers your taxable profits. 

• There’s no federal guideline for reasonable compensation, and we recommend chatting with a tax professional about how much to pay yourself (p.s. Collective can help with this!).

• You’ll also have federal and state income tax withheld from your paycheck. 

• Your income tax will include your employee wages and the profits from your S Corp. 

Tax savings: LLC vs. S corp 

Let’s do an example to compare the taxes a small business owner would pay as an LLC and S Corp. We’re basing this example on a small business owner who earns $150,000 annually in profit and, who as an S Corp, pays themselves a $50,000 salary. 

In this example, the business owner could save $15,350 by switching to an S Corp! Keep in mind that these tax numbers don’t include income taxes or state taxes, which will vary based on your tax situation.

If you want a personalized comparison of how much you could save with an S Corp, check out Collective’s tax savings calculator.

Additional costs

S Corps cost more money to run than an LLC. Here are some of the additional costs associated with an S Corp:

Payroll service fees

You 100% don’t want to do manual payroll yourself. Manual payroll involves many percentages, tax calculations, quarterly and annual forms, and ongoing payments to the IRS. If you calculate your payment wrong or miss a deadline, you’ll be subject to a penalty and pay interest on underpayments that you made. 

Trust me. It’s way more work than you want to deal with. Instead, you can use a payroll service that runs payroll for you and takes care of all your tax payments and paperwork. Our favorite payroll service is Gusto, which is perfect for S Corp owners. 

But like most magical things that do all the work for you, Gusto isn’t free. Gusto will cost you $45 a month to run payroll (unless you have a Collective membership, which includes a free subscription to Gusto).  

Bookkeeping costs

The days of doing your bookkeeping via a shoebox full of receipts are over. As an S Corp, you’ll need to get serious about your bookkeeping and use a legit accounting program, like QuickBooks Online. The most basic QuickBooks Online subscription will cost $20 per month (Collective members also receive a free subscription to QuickBooks Online). 

Tax preparation fees

When you’re an LLC, you report your business’s income and expenses on your personal tax return, and you only file one tax return. 

As an S Corp, you’ll file your personal tax return plus a corporate return called the 1120-S, U.S. Income Tax Return for an S Corporation. Filing this extra return will set you back several hundred dollars. 

Annual state registration fees

Depending on where you live, you might have to pay a yearly registration fee for your LLC and S Corp. Fees range from $20- $800 per year. 

Cash Flow

S Corps require steady cash flow. 

Cash flow is the money that comes in and goes out of your business in a given period. While cash flow includes your income and expenses, it also includes transferring money to your personal account, debt payments, and savings. 

Sometimes, businesses are profitable but don’t have enough cash flow to sustain their operations because too much money is going out to cover debt, taxes, or owner pay. 

With an S Corp, every time you run payroll, you pay a portion of your taxes in real-time, both as the employer and employee. This means you need to have the money available for your salary and payroll taxes every month. 

Liability protection

The good news is when it comes to liability protection S Corps and LLCs offer the same level of limited liability protection to their owners. That’s because an S Corp is an LLC taxed under the rules of an S Corp. 

Limited liability means that if your business is sued or can’t pay its debt, creditors and claimants can’t go after your personal assets, like your house or car. While there are some exceptions to this rule, generally, this is the case. 

Which one is best for you?

The truth is, the less you earn, the less beneficial an S Corp will be for your taxes. Even if you have some tax savings, the additional costs might eat up all your tax savings. Then you just have more work to do with no payoff. 

Our general rule of thumb is that you will benefit from an S Corp if:

• You’re earning more than $80,000 in profit each year

• You can pay for the additional costs of running an S Corp

• You have the cash flow to make regular payroll runs 

Now that you have all the deets about LLCs and S Corps, you can make an intentional decision about which entity to form. Still not sure if an S Corp is right for you? Check out Collective’s tax savings calculator and see how much you could save with an S Corp. 

C&C readers can enjoy 2 months of a Collective Membership at 50% off with this exclusive sign-up link.

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About the Author: Andi Smiles is head of content at Collective. She started her career as a small business financial consultant, teaching businesses-of-one to take control of their finances to build more authentic and sustainable businesses. She’s helped thousands of self-employed folx organize and understand their business finances while also uncovering their emotional relationship with money.

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This Founder Never Felt Represented or Celebrated by the Beauty Industry—So She Decided to Do Something About It

We know how daunting it can be to start a new business, especially if you’re disrupting an industry or creating an entirely new one. When there is no path to follow, the biggest question is, where do I start? There is so much to do, but before you get ahead of yourself, let’s start at the beginning. To kick-start the process, and ease some of those first-time founder nerves, we’re asking successful entrepreneurs to share their stories in our new series, From Scratch. But this isn’t your typical day in the life profile. We’re getting into the nitty-gritty details—from writing a business plan (or not) to sourcing manufacturers and how much they pay themselves—we’re not holding back.

Photo: Courtesy of Alisia Ford

Alisia Ford was working as an attorney when she launched Glory Skincare, but the business was always more than just a passion project for the first-time founder. As someone who never felt celebrated or represented by the beauty industry, Ford was determined to build a platform for women of color who, like her, had also been overlooked by major beauty brands and retailers. “I wanted to find skincare that worked for women of color and fulfill that huge hole in the beauty industry,” Ford tells Create & Cultivate. “It was almost a moment of, ‘If not me, then who?’ and that’s when I knew I had a responsibility to create this space in beauty for ‘her.’”

But Glory Skincare is more than just a platform to shop clean skincare. “We carefully curate products with dermatologists and chemists with specialties in skin of color and even work with psychologists so we can positively build up the relationship between skin and mental health,” Ford explains. “I prioritize making sure that women are creating self-care rituals based on what they really want, not what marketing agencies want them to buy.” And her conscientious approach has gained the attention of two of the most influential names in beauty, Beyoncé and Sephora. As a brand that’s been featured in Beyoncé’s Black Parade Route and graduated from Sephora's accelerate incubator program, Glory Skincare is a beauty brand to watch in 2021 and beyond.

Ahead, Ford tells Create and Cultivate how she bootstrapped the business, what she learned from the Sephora accelerate program (mentorship is everything), and why it’s important to invest in the future success of your business.

Can you tell us a bit about your background and what you were doing professionally before launching Glory Skincare?

Before Glory Skincare, I had a long career as an attorney. Most recently, I was an attorney for Apple’s advertising agency, but I’ve also served in various roles at premier organizations, such as Nike, Fox Sports, and Disney, across a broad range of industries. I’m so glad that I took the leap to leave my attorney days behind me and launch Glory Skincare. Being a woman in business has been so rewarding because I’m always surrounded by other incredible and supportive women.

How did you come up with the name Glory Skincare? What are some of the things you considered during the naming process?

The naming process for Glory was pretty easy but there is always a lot to consider when naming a company. I needed something that would be easy to recognize, but also reflected the vision and values of the brand. I wanted this company to be a community where women of every color and background are celebrated because, for many years, I never felt represented or celebrated by the beauty industry. It has taken me many years to find a sense of peace and belonging. This journey to self-acceptance has been a gift from God and the name glory is a personal reminder of this opportunity. Glory means great beauty and splendor which is how I want my community to feel in this new kind of beauty movement.

What were the immediate things you had to take care of to set up the business?

After I had the initial plan for Glory, I wanted to jump right in but I knew it wouldn't serve the business well to rush into things. I started out by writing a detailed business plan that helped me to understand the values, mission, and goals for Glory. Part of writing this business plan was also spent doing a lot of market research. Glory is intended to be a reflection of what my community wants. I dedicated a lot of time connecting with women of color about their skin to listen and understand the top concerns and problems they all face. Luckily, my background in the legal industry prepared me well for all of the paperwork you have to do for trademarking, finances, etc. Other immediate things I did were setting up the Glory Skincare domain and social media channels, hiring a team, and working on the marketing and design elements of Glory. 

What research did you do for the brand beforehand? Why would you recommend it?

Because Glory Skincare is meant to create a space for women of color that changes our relationship with beauty for the better, I made a decision from the very beginning to be very mindful about every aspect of our actions that could affect the women in this community. Even though my own experience as a Black woman helped me make the initial realization that a community like Glory was necessary, our adherence to this standard meant that we had to do additional market research, learn from dermatologists, and work rigorously with psychologists.

How do you find and identify the brands that you stock? What do you consider during this process and why are these factors important to you and your business? 

Glory Skincare is a community for women of color, and all of the brands and products on our site reflect that. We carefully curate products with dermatologists and chemists with specialties in skin of color and even work with psychologists so we can positively build up the relationship between skin and mental health. I prioritize making sure that women are creating self-care rituals based on what they really want, not what marketing agencies want them to buy.

How did you identify the manufacturer you work with to create Glory’s line of products? Are there any mistakes you learned from along the way and what advice can you share for aspiring entrepreneurs on finding the right partner to create a product?

When looking for a manufacturer, take your time and don't settle for something you don't want. Bringing on a team of people you trust and work well with is essential if you want the business to succeed. As a people person, it was really important to me that I had a good relationship with the manufacturers. The key things I looked for in the manufacturing company we hired were attention to detail, flexibility, problem-solving, and dependability. I am really lucky to work with a great manufacturer and I think this is because I really took the time to do the research and find the right company that aligned with my vision and goals for Glory. 

How did you fund your business? What were the challenges and what would you change? Would you recommend that route to other entrepreneurs? 

At the beginning, I was bootstrapping the business but I knew we would need to begin fundraising in order to grow the business to where I wanted it to be. It was challenging to be launching a business with such little funding available but it pushes you to be resourceful and work as efficiently as possible. We managed to raise a pre-seed round of capital but recently, my time and energy have been devoted to our seed funding. Fundraising is challenging and feels like a full-time job itself but it's been rewarding to have investors really connect with the brand and believe in the mission of Glory. 

Photo: Courtesy of Glory Skincare

How big is your team now, and what has the hiring process been like? Did you have any hiring experience before this venture? If not, how did you learn and what have you learned about it along the way?

We’re a small but mighty team! Right now, we have about five people on the team full-time but have a board of dermatologists, a team of manufacturers, and a PR team that we work with as well. Hiring during a pandemic can be difficult. It's hard to really connect with someone when you are interviewing over Zoom. I did not have much experience with hiring before this so there has been a lot to learn along the way. During an interview, it's important to ask questions pertaining to the job but I think we often forget it's important to also ask questions to help get to know the candidate on a more personal level. Someone might look great on their resume, but if you are bringing them onto your team, you also want to make sure they are someone you can trust and get along with. 

Did you hire an accountant? Who helped you with the financial decisions and setup? 

I do have a financial team that helps with investments, deposits, financial planning, etc. Since I do not have a background in finance, I knew I needed to hire an accountant to help with the financial side of the business. Just like with any member of your team, it’s important that you trust this person with the success of your business. Find someone who aligns with your values and believes in your company as much as you do.

What has been the biggest learning curve during the process of establishing your business?

This may sound a little cliché, but the amount of time and energy that goes into a business is something you can’t really anticipate. Every day is a new challenge and my toughest but most important lesson was definitely flexibility. 

How did you promote your company? How did you get people to know who you are and create buzz?

Shortly after we launched, we were featured on Beyonce's website in the Black Parade roster of Black-owned businesses. That was such a highlight of this whole journey and really ramped up the business. Last summer, I hired a PR team to help with securing press coverage for Glory. From product placements to founder interviews, their team has really helped get the name of Glory out into the media landscape. 

You recently graduated from Sephora's accelerate incubator program—congratulations! What was the experience like for you and how has it impacted your business? Tell us everything!

It’s been such a great experience and an amazing opportunity that I’m so thankful for. The program has been extremely helpful. We’ve received advice on everything from financial statements, to branding, to operations and fulfillment. As a cohort, we've created a bond as all founders of color and every individual in the program is someone I respect and value. I am beyond grateful for the experience! The program was intense and we all dedicated many hours to attending seminars, workshops, and meetings with various industry experts and professionals. I was pushed outside of my comfort zone but in the best way possible. The future of Glory is brighter than ever before thanks to the program. 

Do you have a business coach or mentor, and would you recommend one? 

I have a handful of really incredible mentors and advisors that I have met along the way. I am a part of several entrepreneurial groups and programs that have put me in touch with other founders that I have been able to lean on for support and guidance. I recently graduated from the Sephora Accelerator program which introduced me to people who are experts in their respective fields. As a brand founder, it's easy to forget that we are not experts in every aspect of the business. Having mentors, coaches, and leaders to go to for advice and support will help you make more educated decisions that will benefit your business greatly. I am grateful that I have a space to learn about what it is like to start a business, share ideas with other dreamers, and get encouragement to take a leap of faith.

What is one thing you didn’t do during the setup process that ended up being crucial to the business and would advise others to do asap?

Don't try to do it all alone. When I first launched Glory Skincare, I was fired up about my idea and tried to manage and oversee every element of the business. This wasn't sustainable and I quickly realized that I was burning myself out. Having a team is everything. Everyone can bring their unique talents, skills, and experiences to the table and build each other up in a really inspiring way. 

What is your number one piece of financial advice for any new business owner and why?

Invest in the long-term success of your business. At first, it’s hard to see so much money going into development, branding, marketing, operations, etc., but these investments will pay themselves off in the long run. If you set yourself up for success, it will come with time and effort.

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Why I Removed the Phrase “I Don’t Have Time” From My Life

Photo: ColorJoy Stock

“I don’t have time.” It’s a simple phrase you have probably thrown out to your friends, significant other, or kids, particularly if you feel as if the elusiveness of time is slipping through your fingers.

But when you sit back and reflect on the statement, what are you really saying? More importantly, consider who you are saying it to, and what it communicates to them. What you are really saying is that your time is being preoccupied with something else. Something your brain has told you is much more important.

We have to stop being victims of time and instead take ownership. The words you tell yourself matter. And if you are telling yourself (and others around you) that you don’t have time, you may just begin believing it. 

Once I conscientiously began removing that phrase “I don’t have time” from my everyday conversation, time seemed to loosen its controlling grip over me. I was no longer the victim, I was the one in power.

It’s not time management you need.

As someone who has spent years teaching productivity, I have come to this simple conclusion: time management does not exist. You cannot manage time. It is not an angry three-year-old throwing a tantrum in the middle of the grocery store that you can swiftly march out to the car. 

No, you cannot manage time (spoken by someone who personally tried to for years), BUT you can manage your activities. We can manage how we individually choose to spend our time. With all the inequalities of wealth in our world, time is not one of them. Time is equally doled out to each of us and it is up to us to decide how to use it.

To determine how we want to choose our time, allow me to break down the four different ways one can spend their time, as well as the importance of each for your productivity.

1. Resting

Resting may seem like a strange place to start but in reality, it is by far the most important if we desire to achieve the success we crave as human beings. Our society mistakenly believes that if we just follow the “hustle mantra” we will find success, so we are afraid to stop moving.

But our brain requires periods of rest. Healthy adults need between seven and nine hours of sleep per night. Acknowledge it, accept it, and move on. Sleep is non-negotiable. In fact, according to Tom Rath’s book, “Eat, Move, Sleep: Why Small Choices Make a Big Difference,” your quality of work can drop down as much as 30% when you are not getting an adequate amount of sleep. 

What do periods of resting look like? Well, we just covered sleep, but it can also include meditation, closing your eyes and taking a break away from the computer, or sitting outside in nature for a few minutes. The key to your resting periods is they should feel renewing and restorative, otherwise, it's not rest!

2. Doing

We know our day is already filled with doing, but what exactly is it we are doing? And are we using our time the way we really want?

When we use the phrase “I don’t have time” what we’re really doing is lying to ourselves. We are simply choosing to not prioritize whatever it is that truly needs the space. For me, I have started using other phrases that show intention, like, “I don’t want to give this my time right now,” or, “That’s not a priority for me at the moment.” 

I like these subtle changes to the words because what they do is remind me that I am in control of my choices. Time doesn’t demand how I spend it. I do.

One important caveat to “doing” that must be discussed is that sometimes we have trouble prioritizing the tasks we want to do for ourselves because we are so busy “doing” for everyone else in our lives (I imagine many of the women reading this are nodding their heads right now). When it comes to doing, please remember that you do not have to do it all, and you do not always have to sacrifice time on your tasks for the sake of others. 

3. Distracting

Personally, I think we have the wrong idea around the concept of “quitting.” Quitting is not an end, rather it is the first step in refocusing and redefining your life. When we give ourselves permission to let go of the things that no longer serve us, we gain the opportunity to pursue what is aligned with our purpose.

Many of you reading this may assume I am about to lecture you about removing distractions from your day, but that’s not how I roll. Plot twist: we actually need some distractions in our day!

A lot of people believe if they are not spending their time hustling towards some tangible goal, then they are not doing anything worthwhile. That could not be more false! Play is essential for our brains but we tend to undervalue it because it seems so silly next to our serious life or professional goals. What’s ironic though is that when we increase play, give ourselves time to actually enjoy time, we become more productive. When more frequent play is incorporated into our days we see dramatic increases in creativity, attention, and performance.

For those of you asking, “But, Tanya, how do we determine between good and bad distractions?” Here’s my answer: it is entirely up to you to decide. And before you go panicking, know that the deciding factor is so incredibly simple. After indulging in the distraction stop and ask yourself, “How do I feel after I finish this?” Is your answer along the lines of, “That lifted my mood and was exactly what I needed,” or is it more so, “I feel worse off than I did before.” Therein lies the answer.

4. Thinking

We have a tendency to bind our feelings of self-worth tightly with our daily achievements. We need to loosen these knots because the problem with this is it doesn’t take into consideration the important time we’ve spent thinking.

Every day we have over 6,200 thoughts, which, roughly calculated, means we have about four new thoughts every single minute! The big question though is what are we thinking about?

We spend an excessive amount of time thinking about the things that don’t require it: the worrying and stress, tweaking and reworking of tasks and projects that don’t even need it. We spend a disproportionate amount of time thinking about the minutiae, the unimportant. 

You may have noticed a recurring theme woven throughout this article: it’s not the action that matters, it is the intention behind it. We don’t want to just find ourselves doing and thinking. We want to choose to think and do what’s most important. With that, you may just unpack an extraordinary life for yourself that you never knew could be.

“If you are telling yourself (and others around you) that you don’t have time, you may just begin believing it.”

Whatever it is, the way you tell your story online can make all the difference.

About the author: Tanya Dalton is a best-selling author, speaker, and nationally recognized productivity expert. Tanya serves as a growth strategist for female leaders. Her highly anticipated second book, On Purpose: The Busy Woman’s Guide to an Extraordinary Life of Meaning and Success, will be on sale wherever books are sold on October 12, 2021. Tanya is also the founder and CEO of inkWELL Press Productivity Co. a multi-million dollar company providing tools that work as a catalyst in helping women do less while achieving maximum success.

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5 Rituals to Add to Your Self-Care Summer Bucket List

The pandemic era of isolation has forced many of us to spend more time with ourselves than ever. Along the way, it has reshaped our approach to health and wellbeing, and emphasized the value of daily expressions of self-care. But times of great crisis lead to great innovation, as history has shown us repeatedly. And activities that began as a means to help people cope have since evolved into more permanent self-care practices that will be carried into the new “normal.”

So, to ensure self-care remains a top priority this summer, we brought together the most trusted experts in the world of wellness–doctors, dermatologists, nutritionists, and small business owners–for our Self-Care Summit presented by Ketel One Botanical. 

The expansive day of programming included roundtable conversations, live workouts and expert workshops covering everything from the clean beauty revolution to radical authenticity and living true to your values, to everything you never knew about your pelvic floor and much, much more. Remi Ishizuka and Nate Pontious closed the day with an epic HIIT Homebodies workout.

ICYMI, we captured the highlights from our Self-Care Summit presented by Ketel One Botanical, to distill them into 5 self-care rituals you can create for yourself at home. Now, more than ever, self-care is essential. Keep scrolling to kickstart your own self-care summer!

(Psst… If reading this is giving you serious FOMO, join Create & Cultivate Membership to get unlimited access to all of our Digital Self-Care Summit content, including video recordings of every panel and workshop download in C&C history.) 

Experience a Movement, Breathwork and Meditation Session

Start your day with a movement, breathwork, and meditation session with Julianne Hough’s new platform, KINRGY, a new kind of fitness platform, uniquely designed to engage the mind, body and soul. KINRGY invites participants to connect with themselves through three expressions of energy: Movement to connect with your physical body, Breathwork to stimulate your brain and nervous system, and activating your Imagination to create possibility and inspire you to make your dreams a reality. This powerful combination creates the optimal state for deep, energetic awareness and transformation to strengthen your body, connect to your dreams and give you more energy!

Join a 45-Minute HIIT Workout

Founded by Remi Ishizuka and Nate Pontious during California’s lockdown, Homebodies is a one-of-a-kind at-home workout program and community focused on building healthy, strong, resilient bodies. With minimal equipment, each workout is designed around functionality, strength, mobility and motor control. The best part? No two workouts are the same. Each Homebodies workout is totally unique, so you won’t get bored, and the consistency will bring you incredible results, however that looks for you.

Celebrate Everyday Moments with Ketel One Botanical

Whether sipping beach or poolside, hosting and entertaining friends with a backyard barbeque, tailgating or having a dinner party, Ketel One Botanical is the perfect way to elevate any occasion.

The best way to enjoy Ketel One Botanical is with the signature ‘Botanical Spritz’ cocktail. All you need is: your Ketel One Botanical varietal of choice, soda water and a fresh fruit or herb garnish. Serve it in a wine glass over ice and voila, you have a delicious, fresh tasting cocktail that’s sure to please.

And now, you can take your Spritz experience on-the-go with the Ketel One Botanical Vodka Spritz, the bubbly, bright, and portable canned version of the Botanical Spritz cocktail.  

All the varietals, Grapefruit & Rose, Cucumber & Mint, and Peach & Orange Blossom are distilled with real botanicals and infused with natural fruit essences. Did we mention that there are no carbs, no sugar, and no artificial sweeteners and only 73 calories per serving? 

Get your pack of Ketel One Botanical Vodka Spritzes or the classic Ketel One Botanical bottles now, available on Drizly. Use the code BOTANICAL in the app for a small gift. Valid for new users only.

Cheers!

Start a Gratitude Journal

As a former radio host and entertainment reporter for Access Hollywood, E! News and MTV, Liz Hernandez built a career on words, and her latest chapter as the founder of WORDAFUL is no exception. Realizing how our thoughts and words from yesterday are what make up our lives today, WORDAFUL is a new form of storytelling that emphasizes our connection to the power of words. A gratitude journal is a simple yet powerful tool to begin transforming our inner dialogue, which in turn can help cultivate more meaningful relationships and lives.

Clean Up Your Beauty Routine

Self-care, in part, includes cutting toxic things out of your life–including toxic ingredients in your beauty and skincare products. In the current climate of the beauty industry, ‘clean’ can take on different meanings, but the one thing we can all agree on is that beauty products should be good for you and your skin (and make you feel great!). Not sure where to begin? Check out WLDKAT’s unconventional ingredients, Kulfi Beauty’s iconic eyeliner, this summer staple from Megababe and this smoky vetiver body oil from Noto Botanicals. 

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Please drink responsibly. Please do not forward this message to anyone under 21. 

 KETEL ONE BOTANICAL.  Made With Vodka Distilled With Real Botanicals And Infused With Natural Flavors. 30% Alc/Vol. © Double Eagle Brands, B.V.  Imported by Ketel One USA, Aliso Viejo, CA. Avg Analysis Per 1.5 oz.: 73 Cals, 0g Carbs, 0g Protein, 0g Fat. 

 KETEL ONE BOTANICAL Vodka Spritz.  Made With Vodka, Botanicals, Natural Flavors, And Sparkling Water.  3.6% Alc/Vol. © Double Eagle Brands, B.V.  Ketel One Botanical Spritz, Indianapolis, IN. Avg Analysis Per 12 fl. oz.: 73 Cals, 0g Carbs, 0g Protein, 0g Fat.

“Save Aggressively”—How Samara Walker Bootstrapped Her Business While Working 9-to-5 at Amazon

Photo: Courtesy of Samara Walker

Listen to the full episode here.

Side hustles are on the rise. 

According to a recent survey, as many as one in four Americans are planning on starting a side hustle in 2021. On top of the 34% of people who have already started a side hustle venture this year. 

But starting a side-hustle while working a 9-to-5 isn't easy. It takes determination, drive, and passion. Which is something that today’s WorkParty guest, Samara Walker, knows a thing or two about.

Samara started the luxury nail polish brand Àuda.B while working full-time as a senior financial analyst at Amazon after noticing that women of color aren’t often represented within luxury beauty.

And, thankfully, major retailers have taken notice, too. Earlier this year, Àuda.B launched at Nordstrom, becoming the first Black-owned polish brand to be sold by the retailer. (Which is incredible!)

On this episode of WorkParty, host Jaclyn Johnson chats with Samara all about how she went from full-time employee to full-time entrepreneur, and how she’s pushing the beauty industry forward in the process.

Subscribe to WorkParty and never miss an episode.

On self-funding Àuda.B through her Amazon paycheck…

“I created a direct deposit that went to my business bank account, so every time I got paid that was the money that I automatically put aside for Àuda.B.”

On building a network…

“Build your network. Ask questions. No question is a stupid question.”

“Always have some type of intimate circle and never be afraid to step outside your comfort zone and ask things that you don't know about.”

On the pros and cons of bootstrapping a business…

“The pros are your hundred percent hands-on and you have the ability to learn from the ground up.”

“It allows you to see your business at full scale because you have your hands in the pot on everything.”

"One of the cons is you're not able to scale as quickly as possible, and the lack of resources. Not only are investors money, but they also come with tons of knowledge and resources."

On being the best version of yourself as a founder…

“Be the best person that you can be right now.”

“You're going to grow and develop over time, but don't try to go from one to 10 because you're going to miss all those phases of your life and all those phases of growth that your company that you could have learned from.”

“Failures are successes.”

On the best career advice she’s ever received…

"Dreams are real, but the hustle sold separately."

On the money advice she always gives to entrepreneurs…

“Save aggressively. Save as if your life depended on it.”

Photo: Courtesy of Àuda.B

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3 Tips for Making Small Talk Anytime, Anywhere

Small talk, for many of us, was already a struggle. But after the pandemic era of isolation, more people are finding it difficult to strike up a conversation as social activities begin to resume. We’ve been so removed and isolated from our social circles that it can feel especially daunting to dive back right back into conversation, even with old friends. What may have been comfortable before the pandemic could now feel outside of your current comfort zone– and that’s ok. It has been a while since we’ve had the opportunity to polish our communication skills and it’s completely normal to anticipate some nerves when it comes to things to talk about. We’re all learning how to move back into the world again, and we’re all in this together. Even if your small talk skills feel a little rusty, these tips below will help you strike up a conversation and get back to socializing in our ‘newest’ normal.

Find Common Ground

Whether engaging an old friend or a new acquaintance in conversation, the universal rule is to find shared ideas, interests, hobbies, values or beliefs. Especially in our current climate when there is conflict over vaccines, safety measures and the all too familiar politics, sticking to topics you know are shared interests will not only keep both parties engaged, but will ensure you steer clear of conflict. Some good conversation openers might be, “How do you know (the party hosts)?” or “How do you like the food/drinks?” 

Wherever you may be sipping and socializing, establish common ground and elevate the occasion with Ketel One Botanical. Whether you’re enjoying it in a Botanical Spritz cocktail or in the portable Vodka Spritz can, it’s delicious, fresh tasting (and has no carbs, no sugar, no artificial flavors or sweeteners). It’s sure to spark up some conversation. 

Get your pack of Ketel One Botanical Vodka Spritzes or the classic Ketel One Botanical bottles now, available on Drizly. Use the code BOTANICAL in the app for a small gift. Valid for new users only.

Keep it Convivial

Do your best to keep the conversation light and optimistic. Especially after a pandemic year, we’re all seeking a bit of humor. You may not know the reality that someone else has just experienced. If the topic of the coronavirus arises, use it as a springboard to steer the conversation to those participating in conversation. Ask whether anyone has developed any new hobbies, started any new projects or learned any new recipes.

Focus on updates to your personal life, how you’ve adjusted to working from home, what TV shows you have been watching, and any vacations or trips you may have planned. Share recipes you’ve learned how to cook, recent books you’ve read, or other activities you did during the pandemic to pass the time and stay entertained. 

Watch Your Body Language

Last but not least, remember that your body language speaks volumes. Simple gestures like making eye contact and smiling convey affirmative listening responses that can help encourage more dialogue. If the conversation steers towards a topic you’re not comfortable talking about, don’t feel pressured to participate. Maintain composure and open body language while suggesting a non-confrontational topic.

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Please drink responsibly. Please do not forward this message to anyone under 21.

KETEL ONE BOTANICAL.  Made With Vodka Distilled With Real Botanicals And Infused With Natural Flavors. 30% Alc/Vol. © Double Eagle Brands, B.V.  Imported by Ketel One USA, Aliso Viejo, CA. Avg Analysis Per 1.5 oz.: 73 Cals, 0g Carbs, 0g Protein, 0g Fat. 

 KETEL ONE BOTANICAL Vodka Spritz.  Made With Vodka, Botanicals, Natural Flavors, And Sparkling Water.  3.6% Alc/Vol. © Double Eagle Brands, B.V.  Ketel One Botanical Spritz, Indianapolis, IN. Avg Analysis Per 12 fl. oz.: 73 Cals, 0g Carbs, 0g Protein, 0g Fat.

How to Become a Millionaire and Live Your Dream Life, According to Rachel Rodgers

What is your relationship with money? Do you live in scarcity mode or do you have an abundance mindset? Either way, we need to get better at talking about money if we ever want to be better at managing it, and eventually having more of it. Well, our new series, The Money Files is set to change all that by helping women become masters of their own finances so they can manage their money and their future.

Imagine having to work eight extra months just to earn the same pay as your white male co-workers. This is the likely reality for Black women in the United States as we marked Black Women’s Equal Pay Day on August 3rd this year. According to the National Women’s Law Center, on average, Black women are paid $0.63 for every $1 their white male counterparts earn. That equates to $964,400 (nearly $1 million) in lost income over a 40-year career. 

In honor and support of Black Women’s Equal Pay Day, we spoke with Rachel Rodgers—who's leading the conversation around social injustice and Black wealth—about her mission to change these statistics and close the pay gap. Through her company, Hello Seven, and her recently published book, “We Should All Be Millionaires,” she is empowering other women to hit seven figures by changing their relationship with money, stop procrastinating, and start making million-dollar decisions. 

How do you become a millionaire? What does it take to hit seven figures?

These are questions most of us have asked ourselves at least once in our lifetime and while you might think it’s a pipedream, Rodgers is here to tell you that it isn’t. The author, intellectual property lawyer, business coach, CEO of Hello Seven is on a mission to help other women hit seven figures without sacrificing their family or sanity. Over the past eight years, Rodgers has worked with New York Times-bestselling authors, tech startups, coaches, consultants, doctors, accountants, nutritionists, and so many more to take their business to the next level by creating and protecting their own intellectual property to scale their businesses to a million-dollar (or more) enterprise. (She outlines her four steps to becoming wealthy in any climate over on our Ask an Expert series on IGTV.)

In addition to her work at Hello Seven, Rodgers is also leading the conversation around social injustice and Black wealth with her Anti-Racist Small Business pledge. Instead of calling them out, Rodgers is calling companies in to have an honest discussion about racial justice and to help them determine how they can and should be part of the solution—that pledge has been signed by 2,200 businesses and counting.

So, do you want to learn more about Rodgers’ strategy for how to become a millionaire without sacrificing your family or your sanity? It’s time to stop procrastinating and start making million-dollar decisions by investing in yourself to build your dream life.

“One of my s’ heroes, Madam C.J. Walker, became America’s first female millionaire back in 1906,” Rodgers explains. “She was born to slaves. She was poor. She was Black. She was oppressed. She had every obstacle you can imagine and more. All the odds were stacked against her. Yet, she became fabulously wealthy. She launched a haircare company, built her fortune, and provided dignified jobs for hundreds of people. She bettered herself and the world. If she could do it then, you can absolutely do it now. And you can start today.” 

Of course, there is no magical solution to gaining wealth but there are fundamental objectives that can help you get there. In the words of Rodgers, “Instead of obsessing about how to trim your budget down to the bare bones, focus on exponentially expanding your income.” And you can start with as little as $100 (or less). Are you ready? Let’s go!

Photo: Courtesy of Hello Seven.

Stop procrastinating

The sooner you start building wealth, the better. 

If you’re struggling to motivate yourself to make and save more money, the main thing to remember is that having more money is never really about “the money.” It’s about the people you love and the causes you care about.

Here’s an example: A few years ago, I was traveling out of town for work, and I received a phone call about an emergency situation happening at home. I was immediately panic-stricken. All I could think was, “I need to get home now. Get me on the next flight home. I don’t care what it costs.”

I booked a super-last minute flight with three layovers and it cost $1,700. An outrageously expensive flight, but I didn’t care, and it didn’t matter. I could afford it. No problem. Done.

A typical American does not have an extra $1,700 laying around for emergencies or pleasure or any other reason. And this is a problem. 

You need more money because money provides more options for you. The option to fly home immediately if you need to. The option to send your kids to the best school. The option to leave a bad relationship without worrying if you can afford to live by yourself. The option to donate to causes like Black Lives Matter. The option to live as you choose, in freedom, in peace.

Again, if you’re struggling to motivate yourself, remember, it’s not about the money. It’s about the people you love. It’s about the lifestyle you want. It’s about having options instead of limitations. 

Look: do you want options, or not? If you do, then get after that coin!

Start Investing

Like so many things in life—jogging, cycling, twerking—investing may seem intimidating at first, but you just gotta dive in and start! 

Start small and keep it simple. I love the app called Mint which is a great way to get started with investing. You can start with $100 (or less) and go from there. Once your $100 investment brings you an extra $20 that you didn’t have before, you’ll be like, “Omg, I just made $20 bucks! Yay, free money! I love this!” and you’ll be inspired to keep going!

Make Million-Dollar Decisions

If you want to start earning more money than ever before and build serious wealth, these are the three fundamentals:

1. Stop making broke-ass decisions.

A broke-ass decision (a.k.a., B.A.D.) is any decision that steals your money or steals your time, energy, peace, joy, or power, and therefore, blocks you from becoming wealthy. For example, allowing your spouse (or child) to interrupt you 15 times an hour when you’re trying to work from home, thereby making it impossible for you to concentrate. That is a broke-ass decision. Stop doing that. 

2. Start making million-dollar decisions.

A million-dollar decision is any decision that brings you more money, and/or more time, energy, peace, joy, and power. It’s a decision that makes you feel rich—financially, emotionally, or both! Investing in a new blazer that makes you feel like a CEO instead of a shlub? Yes! That’s a million-dollar decision. Raising your hourly rate? Yes. Starting a side-hustle so you can start earning an extra $5,000 per month? Yes. Fueling yourself with high-quality food? Yes. Exercising daily? Yes. The path to millionaire status is paved with million-dollar decisions.

3. Surround yourself with people who are doing it. 

Fact: You are heavily influenced by your social circle. For instance, one study found that when low-performing students start hanging out with straight-A students, the low-performing students start scoring higher grades too. Success is infectious. It’s true with grades and it’s true with money, too.

If you want to become wealthy, start hanging out with ambitious people who are already wealthy, or, who are committed to the same goal. 

That’s why I launched my Club, a place for women who want to make serious money. Because when you hang out with millionaires and millionaires-in-the-making, the golden-money dust rubs off on you!

Invest in Yourself

To me, “investing in yourself” means doing anything that makes you feel powerful. Because the more powerful and confident you feel, the more money you’re gonna make. 

There are infinite ways to invest in yourself, and it looks different for every person. 

You can throw out your stained yoga pants and invest in a new wardrobe that makes you feel like a boss. You can invest in hiring a part-time personal assistant five hours a week so they can clear 1,000 tedious tasks off your plate and free up your mental bandwidth. You can invest in education, training, coaching, therapy, or all of the above. What’s going to help you feel your best? Whatever it is, do that.

Swap Budgeting for Expanding

Many people, especially women, are told, “You should go on a diet,” and, “You should cut back on your spending.” 

Both of these statements are deeply offensive to me because what you’re really saying is, “You should shrink and make yourself smaller.” “You shouldn’t reach for too much.” “You should find a way to be satisfied with much less.” “You shouldn’t take up too much space.” “You shouldn’t want too much, have too much, be too much.” 

Boo to that oppressive patriarchal nonsense! 

I take the opposite stance. I say, “How big do you want to live? What’s your dream life?” and then, “Cool, so what’s your plan to make that happen?” 

Try this: get a piece of paper and write down everything you would love to have. Your ultimate dream life. 

Do you want a three-bedroom house in the best neighborhood in town? Do you want a full-time nanny? A tutor for your kids? A new car with all the latest safety features? Make a list of what you truly want. 

Then, take your dream-life-list, head to Google, and find out how much each item costs. Crunch the numbers. Find out what it would cost to have your ultimate dream life. It might not be as much as you think. You might realize, “Huh, okay, my dream life costs $10,000 per month,” or $20,000, or $30,000, or whatever it is. 

Once you have this information, it’s empowering, and it leads to new questions. Now you can ask yourself, “Well, what’s it going to take to earn $10,000/$20,000/whatever amount per month so I can have my dream life? How can I pull this off?” Get creative and write down 25 different ways you could earn more and make it happen.

I do this exercise with my clients and it’s fascinating to see what they come up with. 

Instead of obsessing over how to trim your budget down to the bare bones, focus on exponentially expanding your income. 

Ditch the Debt Stress and Focus on Earning More

Stop stressing about debt, and instead, just focus on earning more money. It’s really that simple. 

Start a side hustle. Ask for a raise at work. Double your hourly rate. Text your cousin and tell him it’s time to pay back that loan. Focus your attention, time, and energy on one question: “How can I bring more money in the door?” Focus on that. Get that cheddar. And before too long, you’ll be able to pay off whatever debt you owe.

Learn to Trust Yourself

Taking a risk really just means, “doing something that’s going to change your life in a positive way before you feel totally 100% ready to do it.” And guess what? You are never gonna feel 100% ready. If you’re waiting for that moment of perfect readiness to arrive, it never will. So you might as well take the leap now. 

Part of becoming wealthy is learning to trust yourself. Trust your instincts. Trust that you will always land on your feet, one way or another. Trust in your creativity and resourcefulness. Trust in your ability to get things done. By taking a tiny risk now, and thriving, you build a little more trust in yourself. You gain evidence that it’s okay to take risks. This emboldens you to take bigger risks later on. So, start with a tiny risk today and build from there.

Diversify, Diversify, Diversify

I’m all about multiple revenue streams! In terms of how to do this, step one is, you need to leverage your intellectual property. Leverage your what, now? This just means, take something you’ve created (a system, method, process, formula, system, secret recipe, etc.) and package it so that people can purchase it 24/7 even when you’re asleep. 

A great example is, let’s say you’re a dog trainer. You have a unique training process that your clients love. They get amazing results and always rave about you but you can only see 10 clients per week so that’s limiting your income. 

So, you decide to create an online program (with tutorial videos) so that people all around the world can learn your special process. You sell your program on your website. Cha-ching! You just turned your intellectual property (a.k.a. your unique process) into a cash-generating product. 

You might be thinking, “But I don’t have any intellectual property!” but that’s not true. You do. Almost everyone does. You probably have some blind spots and you’re not seeing yourself clearly. Chat with a friend, hire a business coach, or join my Club and you’ll quickly see, “Oh, wow. I’ve been sitting on a million-dollar idea, and I didn’t even realize it.”

Make Wealth Your Reality

What’s a one-million-dollar decision you could make today? One decision (big or small) that would bring more money, or, more time, energy, peace, and power into your life? 

Do it. Make that decision. Then another. And another. This is how you will build wealth, and enjoy the freedom and options you want. “Other people have done this, and I can do it too” needs to become your new daily mantra. It’s the truth. And the more fiercely you believe it, the sooner it will become your reality.

Click to learn more about Rachel Rodgers’ business Hello Seven and start your journey toward building wealth today!

This story was originally published on August 13, 2020, and has since been updated.

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These Founders Are Bringing Fair Labor Practices, Artisanal Jobs, and Economic Development to Tunisia

You asked for more content around business finances, so we’re delivering. Welcome to Money Matters where we give you an inside look at the pocketbooks of CEOs and entrepreneurs. In this series, you’ll learn what successful women in business spend on office spaces and employee salaries, how they knew it was time to hire someone to manage their finances, and their best advice for talking about money.

Photo: Courtesy of Fouta Harissa

When Alia Mahmoud and Lamia Hatira met, they felt an immediate kinship. “We each have a Tunisian father and an American mother and our lives were sort of mirror images,” says Mahmoud. “Lamia was born and raised in Tunis and spent time in Seattle growing up, while I grew up in New York City and spent summers in Mahdia, Tunisia,” she elaborates. Although both women live abroad today—Mahmoud in Miami and Hatira in São Paulo—their families still live in Tunisia, and the textile brand Mahmoud and Hatira founded, Fouta Harissa, is their way of investing in their “tiny but mighty Mediterranean country,” Mahmoud tells Create & Cultivate. But they’re not just investing capital, they’re investing in fair labor practices for the country’s artisanal community.

By working with Tunisian artisans to craft high-quality, hand-loomed textiles, the brand is dedicated to preserving artisanal weaving in Tunisia while also contributing to the country’s economic development. “Unfortunately, Tunisian artisans are generally undervalued and underpaid as the custodians of our cultural heritage,” explains Mahmoud. “We want to change that by bringing the world a modern take on handmade artisanal products that also support fair labor practices, use sustainably sourced materials, and contribute to economic development in Tunisia,” she notes. Not only that but each of the artisans they work with is employed in a full-time position at the brand’s partner workshop and paid an above-market rate that exceeds the living wage.

Ahead, Create & Cultivate asks the co-founders all about how they self-funded the socially-driven brand, why they recommend hiring an accountant ASAP, and what money mistake has taught them the biggest lesson.

How did you fund Fouta Harissa? What were the challenges and what would you change? Would you recommend your route to other entrepreneurs? 

Lamia Hatira: We started with a small friends-and-family investment of $20,000 which helped us start our entities in both Brazil and the U.S.A. We are definitely still working on a small budget. It’s challenging because you don’t have the resources to do everything you want to do right off the bat, but it’s also kind of wonderful because you learn what really matters for your business and how to make the most of what you have. 

Each experience is definitely unique, but if you have an opportunity to get seed investment from friends and family at the initial stages, embrace it. Just make sure you’re on the same page with your investors about how active a role they will play and get in writing in your operating agreement.

The most important thing is to do what you’re comfortable with. We knew we weren’t ready to take out a huge loan or ask for a larger amount at the beginning because we didn’t want to owe anyone money or give away too much equity before we knew more about the intricacies of our business.

Three years later, we are now ready to take on more investment because of everything we’ve learned and because we know what works and doesn't work for Fouta Harissa at this stage. 

What was your first big expense as business owners and how should small business owners prepare for that now?

Alia: Legal fees to register our business and write an operating agreement, as well as placing our first major product orders with our manufacturer were definitely our first big expenses. I would advise taking the time to build a business plan in order to price out these early costs to the best of your ability, from there figure out where that money is coming from. A great way to generate some early cash flow is to do a friends-and-family sale before your product launches officially. This can help you raise some money and generate buzz.

Lamia: Beyond your most basic costs, make sure to include the other expenses that will ensure that your first customers get the experience you want them to have when they receive their product. This not only includes the product itself and its shipping, but the packaging, the marketing, the communications—they add up. 

What are your top three biggest business expenses every month?

Alia: Beyond paying for production, our biggest monthly expenses include the shipping costs to send our Foutas to customers, digital ads on Facebook and Instagram, and investing in regular digital marketing and PR.

Do you pay yourselves, and if so, how did you know what to pay yourselves?

Lamia: Not yet! We’re working on it.

Would you recommend other small business owners pay themselves? 

Alia: Absolutely. When it’s your business, you’ll work harder than you’ve ever worked on anything else before. Your time is valuable. Your effort is valuable. Build it in from the beginning. One thing we didn’t take into consideration, that we wish we had, is the employee taxes a business incurs in order to draw a salary. Even as founders! So until you’re making enough profit to distribute in those early years, build a small salary into your costs plus taxes.

How did you know you were ready to hire and what advice can you share on preparing for this stage of your business? 

Lamia: You don’t have to go from being a founding team to hiring a staff of full-time employees. We work with a lot of brilliant people, mostly as independent contractors. At this early stage in our business, it gives us the flexibility we need to try new things, learn, and try again. We’re so grateful to the talented people who believe in Fouta Harissa enough to devote their time to growing this business with us. 

I think you know when you’re ready when you realize you don’t know how to do everything, and that’s okay! We’re still in the process of learning exactly what our strengths are as co-founders and when and where it makes the most sense to invest in a new skill versus finding an expert who can help. We look forward to the day when we can have full-time staff on the team. 

Did you hire an accountant, and if so, would you recommend hiring an accountant to other small business owners? 

Alia: 100%. We recommend hiring an accountant as one of the first things you do. They can even advise you when you’re registering your business. We asked around and got recommendations from other female business owners until we found ours.

What are some of the tools or programs you use to stay on top of your business finances? 

Alia: Quickbooks has been a lifesaver. It’s a worthwhile investment and makes your accountant’s life a lot easier come tax time. We also use Square for offline payments and inventory tracking. And of course, Excel—a classic—where all the planning and projections happen.

Where do you think is the most important area for a business owner to focus their financial energy on and why?

Lamia: I’d say focus your energy on product quality and your people. Your product has to be the best possible thing you can put out into the world. At the end of the day, if you don’t have a great product, you don’t have a business. Just as importantly, invest in relationships. They are everything, especially at the beginning. You might not always be able to pay everyone you want to but be creative. Find ways to uplift them, involve them in decisions, consult them, and barter with them.

Do you think women should talk about money and business more? 

Alia: Definitely. We’re always worried about speaking up because we think everyone else has it all figured out. When you’re a small startup, you think there’s no way others have made the same mistakes that you have. But if we can talk about it more openly, with no shame or pretense, then we can really support each other to make the best and most savvy money decisions. 

The reality is, without good finances, there is no good business, and some of us can really use all the help we can get. 

Do you have a financial mentor, and do you think business owners should have one?

Lamia: We have two. One on the more day-to-day financial management who helps us build spreadsheets, come up with pricing strategies, and analyze reports; and another one who advises more on visionary planning and fundraising. Both are women and both are total badasses.

Business owners definitely need a financial mentor, or more. Find as many quality mentors who care about you as possible, and cultivate those relationships.

What is the biggest money mistake you’ve made and learned from along the way?

Alia: Underestimating the cost of digital marketing. As an e-commerce brand, we definitely did not anticipate the challenge of competing with companies putting in $10,000+ into social media advertising every month. When you’re just starting out with limited budgets for digital ads, it can be hard to compete. This became even more acute during the pandemic because everyone became an e-commerce brand and doubled down on digital. My advice would be, plan for a bigger budget for ads early on or find creative ways to not rely on them like collaborations, partnerships with brick and mortar stores, and investments into your most loyal customer base to encourage repeat buys.

What is your best piece of financial advice for new entrepreneurs?

Alia: Whatever price you’ve determined for your product, double it. Seriously, there are so many costs you don’t even know exist, beyond your COGS, when you launch a new product. All of those should be built into your MSRP. And do as solid a financial plan as you can. 

Anything else to add?

Lamia: If finance is your thing, use it to your full advantage and help others out. If financial matters don’t come naturally to you, make sure you learn the basics of your business finances to always know what’s going on, and surround yourself with people who know what they’re doing and who you can learn from.

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5 Black Financial Educators Who Are Empowering Us to Take Control of Our Finances

Photo: Courtesy of Tonya Rapley

Welcome to 5 for 5, where we spotlight 5 women in 5 minutes or less.

It’s no secret that Black women are not paid fairly. On average, Black women are paid 37% less than white men and 20% less than white women for doing the same work, according to LeanIn.org. But despite the stats, Black women *can* build wealth. Ahead are five financial educators who are advocating for change, empowering women to take control of their finances, and pushing these stats in the right direction.

1. Dasha Kennedy

Dasha Kennedy, a.k.a. @thebrokeblackgirl, doesn’t hold back when it comes to sharing tips for assessing personal debt, reaching a big financial goal, and implementing a financial wellness self-care routine.

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2. Tonya Rapley

The “Millennial Money Expert” and founder of My Fab Finance, Tonya Rapley, is on a mission to help 100,000 people make at least one money decision they’re proud of, whether it’s buying a home or saving money on a trip.

3. Tiffany Aliche

Known as @thebudgetnista on Instagram, Tiffany Aliche breaks down big goals like building wealth, paying off a mortgage, and buying a home while paying off student debt into achievable (dare we say simple) steps.

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4. Marsha Barnes

The brains behind @thefinancebar, Marsha Barnes is a must-follow for friendly reminders to engage with your finances, adjust your budgeting plan, and start an emergency fund, as well as tips on how to follow through.

5. Jamila Souffrant

The founder of @journeytolaunch, Jamila Souffrant, is all about helping people grow their savings, get out of debt, and gain financial freedom and independence. (Psst… her podcast, Journey to Launch, is a must-listen!)

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Making a Comeback: How Perseverance Can Help You Pivot to New Possibilities

Listen to the full episode here.

It’s no secret that COVID-19 has challenged small businesses everywhere to rethink the brick-and-mortar business model. With physical retail locations closing and e-commerce on the rise, it's been crucial for small businesses to pivot to digital to weather the pandemic.

By the numbers: Online sales grew by nearly 50% at the peak of the pandemic, and experts are predicting the shift may be permanent. According to a recent survey, 41% of consumers are currently shopping via social media and 51% say they’ll continue to use in-app shopping post-COVID.

Bank of America recently released their yearly survey of small business owners in the 2021 Small Business Owner Report. Their research found that business owners have started to regain their footing as economic confidence, business revenue expectations, and hiring plans bounce back significantly from levels seen in the fall. For example, 50% of SBOs are confident the national economy will improve – up significantly from 37% last fall, and 60% expect their revenue to increase – up even more from 34% last fall.

To address the impact of the pandemic, business owners tapped into various funding sources to stay afloat and made operational changes that they anticipate will continue going forward. More than half of SBOs tapped into funding sources such as personal savings, business credit cards and PPP loans. A majority of SBOs anticipate that the operational changes they made in response to the coronavirus will continue beyond the pandemic – specifically enhancing their sanitation practices and further building a digital sales strategy.

Regardless, entrepreneurship is on the rise—and it doesn’t show any signs of slowing down. Today, nearly 40% of the workforce is made up of freelancers, temps, independent contractors, and solopreneurs, and a growing number of millennials and Gen-Zers are becoming solopreneurs—61% of independent millennials are planning to stay independent as solopreneurs.

So, how do you successfully lead your business through COVID-19? How do you turn a seemingly insurmountable challenge into an opportunity? And how do you start planning for the “new normal” when the future is still unwritten?

On this episode of WorkParty, Jaclyn sits down with Ellen Marie Bennett, the founder and CEO of Hedley & Bennett, the leading Los Angeles based culinary workwear brand, to answer these questions and discover what it takes to weather the storm, and outfit hundreds of thousands of home cooks all over the world. Join the party on social @workparty and stay in the know at workparty.com.

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Attention, Self-Employed Bosses! Here Are 4 Tips for Budgeting on a Variable Income

Photo: ColorJoy Stock

During my first month as an entrepreneur back in December of 2018, I made $226 as an administrative assistant. Fifteen months later, I would go on to quit my day job and make upwards of $5,000 a month as a freelance writer and content creator for Rosetta Stone. 

While I had excitedly waited to get to this point, it was still hard for me to give up the financial security of my day job. Without corporate perks like PTO, health insurance, and automatically deducted taxes, I suddenly had to make sure I had enough to get through the expected—and unexpected—costs each month without the help of a regular paycheck. 

As an entrepreneur or freelancer, it is completely normal to have an irregular income, but it can definitely make budgeting your money a little trickier. Luckily, after a lot of trial and error and some helpful advice from a top-notch financial coach, I can finally say I’ve figured out how to budget with a variable income. Since this is something I wish I had known years ago, I decided it was time to share with my fellow business owners!

1. Calculate Your Monthly Needs

Before taking control of my budget, I had no clue how much I really spent per month. Like most young business owners, in my first two years of business, I was pretty much taking whatever job I could get—mostly because I just needed to get my bills paid. Never really knowing how much to expect from month-to-month, I ignored my bank account completely.

Every month I would just cross my fingers and hope I wouldn’t get an “insufficient funds” notice from my bank. But, this method led to a lot of extra stress and negative emotions around money. 

So, one day, I sat down and went through my last three months of bank and credit card statements and looked at how much I had been spending on necessities. This helped me figure out how much I really needed to be making each month to get by. Some common needs within a personal budget include things like:

• Rent

• Utilities

• Groceries

• Gas (only for required outings)

• Debt repayments (minimum required payment)

• Phone

• Personal care (toiletries, medicine, etc.)

• Insurance (car, life, etc.)

• Essential family expenses (childcare, clothing, etc.)

I also included the needs I had for my business. Some common business needs within a budget include things like:

• Employee/contractual worker wages

• Website hosting

• Email hosting

• Insurance (health, business, etc.)

• Public relations

• Marketing/advertising

• Business-related debt repayment

• Travel

• Taxes

• Business-related software (accounting, email management, website building, social media marketing, SEO, project management, CRM, communication/messaging, etc.)

• Business-related hardware (computers, phones, printers, etc.)

And this isn’t just what I learned from personal experience. When I sat down with financial coach Yvonne Tran for one of my podcast episodes, she echoed this sentiment as well. “If you have variable income my biggest tip would be to know how much you need to pay every month for expenses or bills and make that a goal to bring in every month in your business,” Yvonne shared.

2. Reset Your Money Mindset

Like it or not, we all have certain ideas about money. Whether you grew up hearing “money is the root of all evil,” “a penny saved is a penny earned,” or any other common money-related beliefs, our society has a lot of positive and negative associations with money.

Having grown up in a family of entrepreneurs, money struggles—and the negative money mindset that comes with them—were no stranger to me. For a long time, money was something that I considered stressful and even dirty. It wasn’t until I learned to see money as a tool and something to be grateful for that the money really started flowing. 

“Money mindset is definitely really important because if you view money as so stressful, super complicated, and intimidating then I can show you all the ways that you can fix your financial situation, but if your mindset is telling you ‘no’ then it’s not going to work out in the end,” Yvonne told me. 

A few ways you can reset your money mindset are:

• Using positive affirmations around money (and putting them everywhere!)

• Learning to give money away without fear

• Evaluating your beliefs around money 

• Actively fighting off any negative thoughts about money

• Fostering gratitude in every transaction

3. Cultivate Healthy Money Habits

Creating a strong budget and resetting your mindset creates a strong foundation for making good financial decisions, but keeping up with those good financial decisions means you have to cultivate healthy money habits too. Some healthy money habits that could help keep your budget on track are:

• Downloading a money-tracking app like Mint

• Spending with gratitude, not fear by using affirmations like, “I am grateful for all that money brings me,” or “I am grateful that I can contribute my money to the economy/this cause/this person,” when spending money

• Setting financial goals each quarter

• Waiting 24 hours before buying “wants” to avoid impulse purchases

• Saving 20% of your income for the unexpected

Yvonne is a big proponent of saving, especially when you have a variable income. “If you happen to have a short month one month and not bring in as much as you need then hopefully you’ll have that extra savings already set aside,” she shared. “That way, that can come in to fill the gap for that month, and then you’ll just work harder next month to bring in more money.”

4. Re-Evaluate Your Budget Each Month

If you have a variable income it is best to evaluate your budget pretty frequently. By re-evaluating your budget more often, you’ll have a better handle on your money as your income changes.

Since I can usually predict my income for the next few months, I tend to re-evaluate my budget each quarter, but monthly works great too. Here’s the method I use: first, I calculate how much I’ll be making over the next three months. Then, I divide that up to give myself a general monthly budget. Finally, I calculate all of those personal and business needs we talked about earlier. 

Next, I subtract my needs from my income and I use that final number as my budget for the month. I’ll usually take out a percentage for savings, but the rest I let myself spend freely. Some people prefer to take their savings directly out of their income, but it makes me feel better knowing everything else is taken care of first. This works well for me because on good months I can splurge on certain items, whereas on not-so-good months I have to reign myself in a little bit. But either way, it gives me a concrete number to focus on each month. 

There are hundreds of ways to budget your money, but the best budget is the budget that works best for you. I tried a lot of budgeting methods before I found one that really worked for me, so don’t get discouraged if you struggle a little bit. For me, once I changed my mindset around money everything changed, so I would definitely suggest digging into your own stories around money before getting started. Happy money-making!

“There are hundreds of ways to budget your money, but the best budget is the budget that works best for you.”

—Calli Zarpas, Founder of the Do Well Department

About the Author: Calli Zarpas is the founder of the Do Well Department, a holistic business program created to help overwhelmed business owners cultivate a business and life they love. When Calli isn’t running her community, she’s writing her weekly newsletter and hosting her podcast called Unstrictly Business, all about how successful business owners foster success in both their business and personal lives (Yvonne’s episode is an awesome place to start!).

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The Entire Beauty World Is Watching This Zero-Waste Haircare Brand Started by Two Industry Veterans

We know how daunting it can be to start a new business, especially if you’re disrupting an industry or creating an entirely new one. When there is no path to follow, the biggest question is, where do I start? There is so much to do, but before you get ahead of yourself, let’s start at the beginning. To kick-start the process, and ease some of those first-time founder nerves, we’re asking successful entrepreneurs to share their stories in our series From Scratch. But this isn’t your typical day in the life profile. We’re getting into the nitty-gritty details—from writing a business plan (or not) to sourcing manufacturers and how much they pay themselves—we’re not holding back.

Photo: Courtesy of Everist

As alums of major beauty brands including Revlon and L’Oreal, Jessica Stevenson and Jayme Jenkins saw from the inside that the beauty industry has a major plastic waste problem. “Before we even had a business plan or a product idea, we were committed to finding an innovative way to solve that problem,” Jenkins tells Create & Cultivate. “We had multiple aha moments or pivots along the way including, Why are we shipping large, heavy beauty products full of water and excess packaging around the world? Why do we need water in haircare when we’re already showering in water? We just knew there had to be a better way.” 

And, as the co-founders of Everist, a zero-waste haircare brand, it’s safe to say Stevenson and Jenkins have indeed found a better way. The brand’s inaugural products, a Waterless Shampoo Concentrate and a Waterless Conditioner Concentrate, boast silicone-, sulfate-, and preservative-free formulas made without any water and 99.7% pure aluminum recyclable packaging. The brand also uses recycled packaging for shipping, opting out of any plastic packaging and shipping materials, and has partnered with Climate Neutral to offset carbon emissions.

Ahead, the co-founders tell Create & Cultivate how they launched an industry-disrupting haircare brand, including the mistakes they’ve learned from along the way.

Can you tell us a bit about your background and what you were doing professionally before launching Everist? 

JESSICA & JAYME: We’ve both spent over a decade in the beauty industry in various roles and categories, most recently as a general manager (Jessica) and a VP of marketing (Jayme) for the beauty brands Nude by Nature and The Body Shop, respectively. Prior to that we both led marketing for some of the top brands from L’Oreal to Revlon and learned from some of the brightest minds in their fields.

Did you write a business plan? If so, was it helpful, and if not, what did you use to guide your business instead and why did you take that approach? 

JESSICA: We did eventually when we had narrowed down the idea, but in the beginning, we cycled through dozens of different concepts and did an exploration to see if they made sense. Was it profitable? Scalable? Was it even possible to bring to market? Was it a product or service that we would personally use? It took us a while to zero in on the right idea. Once we had our winning concept we did write a thorough business plan to give our early investors confidence in our idea and approach. It served as a great starting point, but things are constantly changing in startup-land and you need to stay flexible throughout the whole process. We view our models as live working tools to strategize vs a one-time exercise.

Photo: Courtesy of Everist

How did you come up with the name Everist? What are some of the things you considered during the naming process? 

JAYME: We wanted a brand that would be named after our customers; they are the Everist. They are the ones making small eco-conscious choices in their daily lives that together add up to a big impact. We exist to help them by making eco easier and without compromise. We also wanted a name that didn’t sound too “crunchy” but had the connotation of mindful consumption; an Everist thinks about their forever impact on their two homes: their body and our planet.

What were the immediate things you had to take care of to set up the business? 

JESSICA: We had to have a chemist and a manufacturing partner to help us create the product first (which ended up being a very long process since we had such a “blue-sky” brief). We also needed to find a sustainable packaging partner. Once we made some headway on that, we got started on our incorporation, trademark, domains, social handles, and in our case, patent process.

What research did you do for the brand beforehand, and would you recommend it to other founders? 

JESSICA: Coming from the industry, we did bring with us a great deal of knowledge to set a solid foundation. Although not essential, starting in a space where you already have some expertise, will give you a good head start. From there we did do a thorough competitive analysis and whitespace mapping, followed by continuous formula experimentation and business model profitability analysis to ensure our idea was viable to scale. In the end, the most important advice we can give is to always start with a large enough customer need and quickly test a bunch of solutions to find the one that best meets that need for market fit versus developing a product and trying to force-fit it to a customer.     

How did you find and identify the manufacturers that you work with? What was important to you during this process, and are there any mistakes you made and learned from along the way? 

JAYME: We wanted a manufacturer that was local for environmental reasons and also so we could be very involved in the process. We wanted a partner that believed in our ideas and was committed for the long run to help us bring them to life. It’s not always easy, but a strong partnership can help you move mountains.

How did you fund Everist? What were the challenges and what would you change? Would you recommend your route to other entrepreneurs? 

JESSICA: We started self-funded, like many entrepreneurs, as we were solidifying our idea, but we soon realized we would need more investment for inventory, brand building and to scale quickly. We attended events and casually met as many people as we could to learn and develop relationships. During one of those events, we were lucky enough to find the right strategic partner to lead our pre-seed raise and bring on other like-minded investors who could add value and believed in our long-term vision. To us, the right strategic fit was everything, especially early on as you need to have people on board who believe in you and support all the twists and turns that will inevitably come.       

Do you pay yourself, and if so, how did you know what to pay yourself? 

JESSICA: We don’t currently pay ourselves, but we plan to after launch. This is a personal decision based on both the founders’ and the company’s financial position and equity growth prospects. Cash flow is the company’s lifeline, so we will definitely not be taking our past corporate salaries, but enough to cover some living expenses. However, as the company grows, we do believe in founders taking a reasonable salary for their position.   

How big is your team now, and what has the hiring process been like?

JESSICA: We are currently a small team of two who have embraced the gig economy and have brought on amazing freelance and vendor partners to help us scale while remaining flexible at this early stage. Most of our partners have been brought on through research and referrals. That said, we are both seasoned people managers coming from big beauty and believe in developing diverse talent for long-term success. Therefore, we look forward to growing our team soon!

Did you hire an accountant? Who helped you with the financial decisions and setup, and are there any tools or programs you recommend for bookkeeping? 

JESSICA: Since we are both business grads, we had a baseline of knowledge to build our own financial models and were able to handle our own expense reporting through QuickBooks pre-revenue. However, as we were preparing to launch, we knew we needed to bring on experts to set up a solid foundation for growth. Therefore, we hired an outsourced accounting firm that specializes in bookkeeping and controller services that scale with the needs of the business. Other systems we explored were FreshBooks, as well as inventory management through a system such as SOS Inventory or QuickBooks Commerce. Once you have sufficient scale, a fully integrated ERP platform such as Oracle NetSuite could be useful.

Photo: Courtesy of Everist

What has been the biggest learning curve during the process of establishing your business? 

JAYME: Everything? That’s really what’s made this experience so exciting (and at times overwhelming). We have been hands-on in every area of the business where previously we were more specialized or leading a team of specialists. Learning clean chemistry, web platforms, fundraising terms, IP law. It’s been a wild ride. 

How did you promote your company? How did you get people to know who you are and create buzz? 

JAYME: Our first marketing investment was bringing on a great PR team. We knew that part of our uniqueness was that we had an innovative product with a great story to tell and we wanted to make sure we had help getting it out there. We’re also believers in creating a strong social community, encouraging reviews, partnering with like-minded influencers and brands, developing valuable educational content, and A/B testing digital media campaigns.  

Do you have a business coach or mentor, and if so, would you recommend one to fellow entrepreneurs? 

JESSICA: We don’t have a formal coach or mentor but have been fortunate to be surrounded by great industry experts, inspiring entrepreneurs, and investors who have also become valuable advisors. It is definitely helpful to have a strong support network around you for your entrepreneurial journey. If that doesn’t happen organically then there are many organizations or accelerators that you can join to connect you with a relevant mentor. However, it can take several tries to find the right mentor-mentee fit, but when you do it can add tremendous value.

What is one thing you didn’t do during the setup process that ended up being crucial to the business and would advise others to do asap? 

JESSICA: Register your business name and international trademark early. It’s not necessarily one we didn’t do, but it’s something we hear as a stumbling block all the time. Especially for brands, you don’t want to be forced to change your name after you’ve built up awareness once you find out there is someone else already using the same name in your local market or another important international market.

For those who haven’t started a business (or are about to), what advice do you have? 

JAYME: There are a million problems and to-do’s vying for your attention every day, so be laser-focused on what your priorities are and keep moving forward.

What is your number one piece of financial advice for any new business owner and why?

JESSICA: Managing your cash flow is critical. In a past side hustle, I’ve been in the situation that I had to personally finance a retailer PO when I was already deep in student debt. It quickly teaches you how real a cash flow problem can be versus numbers on a financial statement in business school. Make sure you know your burn rate and have a plan A, B, and C to extend whether through self-funding, an equity raise, or a loan. It can also be a good idea to have a working capital line of credit ready as a safety net to cover inventory costs before revenues can be collected. 

If you could go back to the beginning with the knowledge you have now, what advice would you give yourself and why? 

JESSICA: It will take longer than you expected, so enjoy the process. When a problem arises, get the right people in a room (or virtual room) and keep asking clarifying questions to uncover the root of the problem that needs to be fixed. Then, focus all your attention on the solution as people can be very creative when they are open to new possibilities and stay positive. The end result might look different, but often better if you’re open to it.

Anything else to add?

JESSICA: There are always going to be reasons and risks that can feel like now’s not the right time, but if you’re passionate about your idea—you just have to jump in. Best to ensure you have a solid support system around you and then be as flexible as possible to learn and pivot as you go.

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Old Navy's Head of Creative Marketing Says Believing in Your Talent is Key to Success

We often look to the iconic leaders of our time for motivation and wisdom, but for many of us, this is purely inspirational and not as applicable to our everyday lives. We truly believe there is more benefit in looking to your left and seeking out a peer-to-peer mentorship with a colleague or friend you admire. Why? Firstly, they will likely have the time to be your mentor, and secondly, their advice will be relatable and allow you to see your path clearly while keeping your mind open to new ideas, identifying new opportunities, and helping you self-advocate.  We call them Everyday Superheroes. In this new series, we talk to the people who are paying it forward, lifting others up and paving a smoother path for the next generation to come.

For Dana Marinovich, getting laid off was a fundamental part of her career arc, and a challenge that eventually led to her dream job as the Head of Creative Marketing for Old Navy.

After being let go, she took the summer off to reset and think about what she wanted next. “I gave myself permission to hold space for the change, to really evaluate what I wanted and recalibrate my intentions for the future,” Marinovich tells Create & Cultivate. “After a few months, I was reenergized, refocused and was able to set clear goals for myself that were true to who I am and what I want in my life, instead of being swept away with what was expected next.”

Now, as the Head of Creative Marketing at Old Navy, Marinovich leads a team of creative directors, writers, art directors, graphic designers, stylists, and photographers to help bring the brand’s vision to life through the creative in all channels. And with millions of people engaging with Old Navy each day, it’s safe to say that Marinovich’s work touches a lot of people.

Read on to hear how she went from agency world to in-house at Old Navy, how she finds the inspiration to create killer brand campaigns, and why believing in your talent is key to your success.

What did you study in school? And what did you want to be when you grew up?

I did not ever think that I would be in a creative industry when I was young. I grew up with a focus on math, science and literature. The closest thing to being creative that I could imagine, was to grow up to be an architect. So for a long time I thought that’s what I wanted to be. 

While in college, I majored in Art and Design, with a focus on graphic design. I also studied Painting and Photography at Chelsea College of Art and Design and Central St. Martin’s. Through those programs I fell in love with art, with critical thinking and this truly changed and solidified my focus.

What are some of the earlier jobs that helped to shape your career path?

After college, I moved to NYC and one of my first jobs was working for a (then) small agency, YARD. What I learned there was invaluable in how to approach a creative project for a brand. At that time, most of the agencies were either branding or advertising focused. But YARD was doing something different - they were a creative agency that bridged the two and built the work with a solid strategic ground. It was all the things, intertwined - and I was inspired by this approach. So early on in my career, I realized how much I loved to build brands holistically… and to build a thriving brand you need great creative strategy, a killer voice, and image and branding that elevates it. This period of time was like bootcamp in creative thinking, iterating and pushing limits. It was really really hard, and I will forever be grateful for it.

“Do one thing at a time. Put space between things. Develop Rituals. Think about what is necessary.”

What challenges have you faced along the way? What did you learn from them? How did they prepare you for your job now?

The biggest challenge I have ever faced is being laid off. I don’t think people talk about this enough transparently, like it should be a secret. Like there is stigma around losing your job. I have worked in retail or for retailers for a long time now, and the business is just volatile. There will be really high highs and really low lows. Some businesses can withstand the test and others are not so lucky. You have to ride the wave - and know that it will fluctuate.

When I was let go, I took the summer off to reset and think about what I wanted next. I travelled and spent a month abroad in Croatia with my family. I gave myself permission to hold space for the change, to really evaluate what I wanted and recalibrate my intentions for the future. It was honestly the hardest and best time for me in my career building. After a few months, I was reenergized, refocused and was able to set clear goals for myself that were true to who I am and what I want in my life instead of being swept away with what was expected next.  It was a relief, like I finally took back control of what my days were.

Tell us about your role. What does it entail? Did you work your way up? What were the positions along the way?

As the Head of Creative Marketing at Old Navy, I lead and get to work with a diverse creative team. My role is to develop a clear creative vision of the brand that people can relate to and want to connect with. Old Navy is a brand for everyone, for families, for your friend family, for your community. It’s inclusive by nature. And we bring the brand to life through a lens of fun, fashion and making the most of life together.

To get to this position, I both worked my way up and worked sideways. As I mentioned, I started my career in advertising in NY, but when I moved to CA , I came in-house at Gap. This was years ago, and I moved my way up at that brand - starting as a Global Art Director (which meant I would translate the North America creative for Europe, Japan and franchise partners), but quickly after starting, some of the leadership team left, and I was promoted to lead the internal creative team. I worked on many things during this time - and wound up pitching against our agencies and took back in-house the kids, baby and body advertising work. It was fun, we even pitched against agency work for the Diane von Furstenburg x GapKids campaign work - and won the pitch. At the time, it felt like a big deal, the internal team was so motivated and we were so happy to be doing the work that we were doing. We had a lot of fun.

After a few years I moved on to be the Vice President of Creative at a small kids and baby clothing company called Tea Collection. I was there for about five years and helped solidify the creative look/feel and voice for the brand. And then I came back to Old Navy and was just promoted this past Spring to the Head of Creative Marketing role. 

What do you love most about your job and why? Does the reality of your career match up to your expectations? Why/why not?

I love the people I work with, the team is very talented. As the Head of Creative Marketing, I get to work closely with a lot of different voices and I am energized by people’s unique point of views and helping the team grow and the work to push forward. 

I love working in-house and getting to actually craft and dream and think about how this brand shows up to the world. The reach of Old Navy is quite breathtaking - millions of people get an email from us everyday, millions hear and see and feel and touch the work that my team puts out there. I love getting to work for a brand that touches so many people. With that comes a big responsibility, and I take that very seriously. 

I honestly never would have thought when I started my career that I would get to the place that I am now. Of course, I had drive but where I am today truly came out of determination to always grow as a human. I wanted to do more, and I set my sights on the next and the next and the next. At the level I am at now, more of my responsibilities are in building talent, protecting the creative and pushing to the next. It’s a dream job honestly. Is it exactly what I would have expected in every moment? No -- it’s a hard job! But it is all worth it.

What can you tell us about the company culture? What has encouraged you to stay? 

I love working for an organization that champions inclusivity, diversity and fashion for everyone. This year we are pushing this even more. At the end of the summer, there is a big moment for the brand, and women in particular. It’s incredibly rewarding and impactful.

The people and the team at Old Navy is also what keeps me excited every day. I truly care for each of the individuals I work with and together we champion the work we do.

Talk us through your daily tasks and what a day in the office looks like for you. What’s the most rewarding part of your day?

Most of my day is spent discussing creative strategy, reviewing work and concepts and connecting with the creative team. The most rewarding part of the creative process is when the work is hard, when you’ve hit a wall over and over again, but you keep pushing – and then all of a sudden, the light goes on. That breakthrough moment is what it’s all about. It’s so rewarding to personally go through that process, but to also help a team through it – that’s what gets me.

What does your morning pre-work routine look like? What rituals set you up for success?

Well, each day is a bit different. Two days a week, I wake early and work out - this clears my head of stress. I find clarity and a good personal space is so necessary in this line of work. And the other three days, I focus on my other big role - I’m a mom of two small kids. And I love spending the mornings giving them my attention, sitting and having breakfast with them, talking Legos and unicorns, getting them ready and doing school drop off. It’s important for our connection that I show up at school, see and greet other parents and their teachers. It’s a balance and is so important. 

For work, I also like to take one morning a week for an hour and plan my priorities. This helps me keep on track and not get swept away with the work. 

Your role requires you to be across so many facets of the business—how do you manage your time effectively? What is your greatest productivity hack? How do you get it done?

I’ve recently read an article about the 12 Essential Rules to Live more like a Zen Monk, and found this very inspirational. A few of the rules are: Do one thing at a time. Put space between things. Develop Rituals. Think about what is necessary. 

These are things to remind myself, to practice and get better at. Again, I’m always learning and growing. I’m very thoughtful and deliberate in my approach to projects.

Do you ever reach inbox zero? Do you believe in that? What is your inbox philosophy?

I had a dream once I got my inbox to zero. I believe in the power of search.

What is one of the biggest misconceptions about your job?

Being a leader of a creative team is not actually being creative or creating all the time. Often I am researching, reading, reviewing, discussing; I’m thinking strategically, I’m analyzing, editing and then I’m creating.

If someone wanted your role specifically, what advice would you give them on how to land their dream job/your current job? 

Stay hungry. Love what you do. Be a team player. Understand you are only as good as the sum of your parts. Learn from your failures. 

“Stay hungry. Love what you do. Be a team player. Understand you are only as good as the sum of your parts. Learn from your failures. ”

Have you seen a consistent standout quality or personality trait of successful people in your industry?

Confidence, transparency, honesty, and straightforward in nature, and people who like to have fun.

What’s the best piece of advice you’ve been given? And what’s the worst piece of advice you’ve been given?

Best: “Believe in your talent.” 

Worst: “You need to diversify. So, let’s have you work on this pitch for a fast food account.” 

If there was one person you admire that you could power brunch with, who would it be?

Dolly Parton!

The Best Out-of-Office Emails to Use When You Finally Take That PTO

Photo: Kindel Media for Pexels

We all know the sigh of relief we let out once we set that OOO email, but did you really get the message right? Sometimes setting our automatic responses gets confusing and we're not sure what information to include and not to include. But because we want everyone to enjoy more of themselves on vacation and less of their inboxes, we've drafted some messages to use for your next round of PTO days. 

How do you set your vacation responders? Let us know in the comments section!

Option 1

Hi there,

I’m away on an island somewhere taking some much-needed me-time. Please contact [NAME] at [EMAIL] during my absence as my phone is on “do not disturb.” 

Sincerely,

[NAME]

Option 2

Hi there,

I am currently out of office and will be returning on [date]. In the meantime, don’t forget to subscribe to [COMPANY NEWSLETTER] and follow us on [FACEBOOK, TWITTER, INSTAGRAM LINKS] for all things [COMPANY NAME].

Best,

[NAME]

Option 3

Hello, 

I will be out of office from [date] to [DATE]. During this time I will have limited access to email, so please forgive my delay in response. 

Very Best,

[NAME]

Option 4

Hi there, 

I will be out of office from [DATE] to [DATE] and on vacation. If this matter is urgent, please contact [NAME] at [EMAIL]. Thank you!

Best,

[NAME]

Option 5

Hello, 

I am currently out of office with limited access to email and returning on [date]. 

For all [SUBJECT] inquiries please contact: [NAME] at [EMAIL]

For all [SUBJECT] inquiries please contact: [NAME] at [EMAIL]

Thank you!

Best,

[NAME]

Option 6

Hello!

I’m currently on island time and not checking my phone. Let’s catch up once I’m back on a 9-to-5 schedule on [DATE]. Thanks!

Best,

[NAME]

Option 7

Hi there, 

I am currently traveling and will have limited access to email. I will do my best to respond in a timely manner, but please excuse a delay in my response. If this matter is urgent, please contact [NAME] at [EMAIL]. 

Best,

[NAME]

Love this story? Pin the below graphic to your Pinterest board.

This story was originally published on July 13, 2018, and has since been updated.

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Eunice Byun Started Material as a Side Hustle While Working 9-to-5 at Revlon—Here’s How She Did It

You asked for more content around business finances, so we’re delivering. Welcome to Money Matters where we give you an inside look at the pocketbooks of CEOs and entrepreneurs. In this series, you’ll learn what successful women in business spend on office spaces and employee salaries, how they knew it was time to hire someone to manage their finances, and their best advice for talking about money.

Photo: Kirsten Francis

Eunice Byun launched her cookware company Material as a side hustle while she was working full-time as an exec at Revlon. But she knew she had to quit her day job when she kept waking up with new ideas for Material and couldn’t shake that feeling of “I’ll pinch myself later on if I don’t just do this now,” she tells Create & Cultivate. “It did help not having to worry about how I would financially make it by ironing out a lot of the vision for the business on nights and weekends, while still getting paid for my full-time job,” she adds about the decision of launching a business while working from 9-to-5.

Although the slow-and-steady approach was right for her, the entrepreneur admits it’s not for everyone. “If you’re the type of person who needs to jump in feet first and throw everything you’ve got at the business, then my approach might have been too cautious,” she says. “For me, I needed some assurance that what my co-founder and I were dreaming up was compelling enough that we could secure funding so that we could build the product and our brand right from the start.” And it’s safe to say that strategy has more than paid off. In fact, she had a number of investors who were interested in working with her before she even had a product (no big deal!).

Ahead, Byun explains what it took to launch a business while working full-time, how she secured funding before producing a single product, and why it’s important for founders to be compensated, regardless of the actual dollar amount printed on the paycheck. 

Your résumé is so impressive. You started your career in finance as an analyst at Goldman Sachs and later served as vice president of global digital marketing at Revlon. Can you tell us about your professional background and what you were doing professionally before launching Material? 

I’ve been fortunate enough to have had a pretty diverse career to date. After graduating from Northwestern University, I went into finance at Goldman Sachs. It’s a great place to start your career because you learn a lot of transferable skills—presenting information, time management, people management—at an early age. Ultimately, I knew that I couldn’t see myself in finance long-term and wanted to move into something more consumer-focused. 

From there, I spent the next chapter of my professional life in the consumer and start-up worlds, soaking up as much operational knowledge as possible. I learned about forecasting, merchandising, managing a P&L, operations, PR, and communications. Although I didn’t know it at the time, I was accumulating bits and pieces of know-how that would serve me well with my own company, Material.

Right before launching Material, I was in the beauty industry, deep in digital storytelling, community building, and influencer-focused marketing, much of which has informed our current marketing strategies. 

What was the “lightbulb moment” for Material? What inspired you to start your business and pursue this path? Did you always envision yourself becoming an entrepreneur?

I was that kid growing up who never knew how to answer the question, “What do you want to be when you grow up?” As I got older, I eventually realized it came down to surrounding myself with talented, driven people (who I could learn from), and building something that people cared about. That rubric served me pretty well as I navigated through a few different industries. 

But it wasn’t until I had my daughter that I realized there had to be something more. I wanted a place where I didn’t have to leave parts of myself at home, especially as a new mom. When my co-founder and I started piecing together the concept of Material, we envisioned the idea of our company but also the type of place and people we wanted to spend our time in and with. We felt there was a need for our company to exist (e.g. to bring more beautiful, high-performing designs to the home cook), but we also knew we wanted to build a company with values that matter and motivate us and our team. 

You had a number of investors that were interested in working with you before you even had a product. What were some of the challenges you faced in raising funding pre-product and what would you change? Would you recommend your route to other entrepreneurs? 

Product is central to our business, as we aren’t a one-product-shop where we focus solely on a singular item. In our case, we launched with a collection of seven items, so raising a pre-seed round was necessary in order to deliver the quality of products we envisioned. However, we made sure not to take too much money from the beginning as we didn’t want to automatically put us on the hamster wheel of raising more and more capital as quickly as possible. We also were specific on having a diverse set of initial investors, which proved to be one of our best decisions. With a mix of venture, angel investors, and houseware industry experts, we’ve received different opinions and guidance which has allowed us to chart a growth plan for Material that feels more dimensional and sustainable.

What was your first big expense as a business owner and how should small business owners prepare for that now?

Public relations and communications. We invested right from the start in a top-notch, start-up-focused PR partner. The way we saw it was we only had one company launch moment, where we could come out and tell the world who we were and what we are about, so we wanted to make that moment count. What we’ve found is that many of those press hits quickly got our name out and generated buzz, but longer-term populated our branded search results and filled the pages with articles. These still pay off for us years later. 

What are your top three largest expenses every month?

Payroll, fulfillment, and platform-related costs (e.g. processing fees and hosting). We used to spend a lot more on top-of-the-funnel marketing but have found that our lower-cost acquisition tactics are more effective and produce more loyal, long-term customers.

Do you pay yourself, and if so, how did you know what to pay yourself? 

Yes. One of our early investors advised us from the start to pay ourselves what we needed to focus on the company, and not how we’d make ends meet. That being said, my co-founder and I believe in hiring the best talent we can so we allocate our funds to the team (meaning we make less than other team members).

Would you recommend other small business owners pay themselves? 

Yes. It’s important to feel compensated for the work being put into the company, regardless of how much that dollar amount actually is. 

Photo: Kirsten Francis

How did you know you were ready to hire and what advice can you share on preparing for this stage of your business? 

An angel investor of ours broke this down for me once. He said there are two buckets of hires: superchargers and doers. You need both and you’ll eventually hire for both. 

Superchargers are those that you bring in slightly earlier than needed—and might overpay for at the time—but they are meant to exponentially grow your business. They might have done it before elsewhere or they have some experience that will immediately add value. 

Then there are the doers, where you hire them when you’re essentially past the breaking point. They help make processes move more efficiently or allow you to go faster, but you can afford to drop some balls here and there and not have it affect the business in a significant way. This ensures you aren’t building up a team too quickly and spending too much before it’s needed. 

What are some of the tools you use to stay on top of your business financials? What do you recommend for small business owners on a budget?

Excel. My co-founder and I look at spreadsheets daily as things are shifting quite regularly. We also have an outsourced CFO who we can tap into with more specific questions or analyses, as we’re not quite at the place where we need that skillset full-time.  

Do you have a financial mentor? Do you think all business owners need one?

I have different people whose opinions I seek out on various financial matters. I like speaking with other operators and founders about budgets because while investors may have a POV, I want people who are sitting with spreadsheets and making hard decisions on where you can spend your money and where you can’t. For fundraising matters, I like speaking to a number of people—not just one—because there’s more than just one path forward on how you finance your company. 

What money mistakes have you made and learned from along the way?

Inventory can help and hurt you. Too much, and you’re stuck. Too little, and you can’t grow fast enough. We recently invested in an inventory management system to help us work through these growing pains, as we try to be as capital efficient as possible and not have too much tied up and sitting in a warehouse.

Where do you think is the most important area for a business owner to focus their financial energy and why?

Know your pathway to profitability. There used to be an overabundance of focus on top-line growth, no matter the costs. Nowadays, the focus has shifted towards profitability which is important because it means you have greater control over your financial future if you don’t always have to rely on bringing in funding. 

Do you think women should talk about money and business more?

Yes! The number of times I’ve walked into a meeting where a potential investor focuses marketing questions to me and financial questions to my male co-founder have been absurd. The fact that my gender leads one to believe that I may not know much about my company’s financials is an antiquated perspective. ANY business owner should be well-versed in how their company will grow and what it’ll take to do so.

You’re a mom and a co-founder/CEO! How has being a mother changed your priorities and your focus in terms of your career? Do you think motherhood has made you a better business person? 

It deepens my reasons for why I do what I do. Having my daughters see that they too can write their own narrative and build something of substantial value is important to me. 

What is your best piece of financial advice for new entrepreneurs?

Get comfortable with it and don’t let someone else take the reins because they “know more about finances than you.” Your financial statements are simply a different way of telling your company’s growth story.

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