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Entrepreneurship is the greatest adventure of self-discovery you can ever experience. But even if you know so many things and are an expert in a field, there are insights about money that only someone who has been there can give you, and the most important aspects of financial growth is one of them.
When I started my financial education platform to teach female entrepreneurs about money, there were very few female entrepreneurs like me and that limited my ability to investigate and follow more than they did on social media. As a financial expert, I thought I could do it since I had “everything” I needed to grow financially without any problems; after all, I went to college and have been in the financial world since high school, but I couldn't be further from reality.
If you're a Black, brown, or person of color entrepreneur, your financial trajectory is directly tied to several factors like your identity, your and your family's beliefs about entrepreneurship and money, and the way you adhere to all of these subconscious habits around money management, including your relationship with money. But no one talks about it, and it takes us years of trial and error that hinder our ability to build a business, build our confidence, and create a strong foundation as an entrepreneur.
Here are the top five insights I wish other entrepreneurs would have shared with them on navigating the financial landscape as a Black founder.
Related: She launched her black-owned beauty brand with $1,500 in her pocket — now her products are on Sephora shelves.
My relationship with money influences financial growth
How we manage money—the meanings, beliefs, interpretations, and actions that create what we call a relationship with money—are critical to your path to financial growth as a Black woman entrepreneur. When I first started my entrepreneurial journey, I wasn't fully aware of how my beliefs, perspective, and financial identity would influence my business decisions that had to do directly with money, like pricing, or those that had to do indirectly with money, like how I looked when promoting my programs.
Take a moment to analyze: Are you one of those people who go on autopilot and implement every strategy in the market, but find it difficult to talk about money, look for appropriate pricing, look at your bank account and budget money? Then it's time to look at your relationship with money.
The family's views on money and entrepreneurship must be filtered
Your relationship with money, your attitude toward entrepreneurial opportunities, your money management skills, and many other skills you need to build a business have been developing since you were too young to remember. From your attitude toward money to the way you handle risk, setbacks, and other mental and emotional rollercoasters related to money, you must become your own best advocate when it comes to filtering out the opinions or advice from your close social circle that don't agree with you or support you in your goal.
The best way to filter out these views is to assess, according to your vision and financial goal, what advice, beliefs, behaviors, and opinions are useful (and most likely to help you move toward your goal). If they are not applicable, you have no room to consider them.
For example, what benefit can be found in the statement “You must offer us family prices?” I have never seen any benefit in this opinion in my entire career. On the contrary, it brings with it a lot of guilt and shame. Therefore, it has been filtered out since the first year of business.
Related: 5 groundbreaking black female entrepreneurs share how they break barriers – and how you can, too
The key is a supportive community
As an entrepreneur, you are doing something most people we know are not doing, and to grow financially, you have to start having the right conversations with the right people.
A community is where you can find the things that concern you and the insights you may need to find a better, more cost-effective system or clear your head.
Surround yourself with likeminded entrepreneurs and mentors who understand your challenges and can offer you guidance. But more importantly, as a Black entrepreneur, you need a community that understands your unique challenges that come with pulling yourself together while feeling the reality of having to pay the bills. Join networking groups, listen to podcasts and become part of the community, attend industry events, and participate in online forums that reflect your financial goals and the goals of your business.
Financial planning is essential for financial growth
One thing I knew from school, and this path has only confirmed, is that financial planning is non-negotiable from the start if you want to grow. With your desire and motivation to grow your business, a lot of the emotional side of money will be triggered. It could be buying the next course, subscribing to a platform, buying the next device, or spending money on advertising when it's not the right time; in all of these cases and those, your financial planning will be your best ally. It's important to have a base to fall back on and ground yourself when that urge to make the extra purchase or investment means faster financial growth.
Don't make it too complicated. Just shift the focus from “I just need to make money” to allocating and tracking your numbers.
Related: “I'm black. I'm a woman. Let's talk about raising venture capital.”
Your management goals are just as important as your sales goals
One of the habits I work most on changing with my community is changing the focus from a revenue-oriented mindset to broadening the spectrum and considering how you manage what you earn. As an entrepreneur, you get a lot of marketing, information, and sometimes standards that emphasize revenue as a metric for growth. However, learning how to manage that revenue that isn't pocket change, a one-time windfall, or an “I'll never have this much money again” thought becomes your financial key.
Align your pursuit of revenue with a solid plan to sustainably manage and grow your business.
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