The opinions expressed by Entrepreneur authors are their very own.
Building a business is an exciting but often unpredictable journey. Some months you end up riding high, noticing growth and momentum; in other months things decelerate, causing stress and questioning financial stability. But for the Latino entrepreneur, this rollercoaster might be a silent burden, a voice in your head that sometimes speaks through your partner, your parents or your pals, reminding you that results are still waiting to be realized. But above all, it is your personal voice.
Let’s be honest: inconsistent money flow is a huge challenge. There is no strategy to achieve financial peace if one month you’re feeling such as you’re on top of the world and the next month you are looking at your expenses and wondering how you are going to cover them. This inconsistency doesn’t just affect your checking account; it seeps into your peace of mind, making it difficult to plan for the future.
I know you are desperate to get this thing going, although sometimes you think the monthly payment sacrifice is enough. However, in my experience, there is not enough guidance that directly addresses the challenges we face as women of color and Latina entrepreneurs. When I began, resources were limited, and running a business toward financial stability was even more difficult without a strategy that took into account who I used to be as a person, my beliefs, my internal limitations, and a strategic strategy to achieve that goal. I made mistakes that delayed my financial stability. But due to these failures, I learned lessons that helped me in my pursuit of success – lessons that can show you how to avoid the same pitfalls and get there faster.
(*3*), all of us profit from sharing this information. For example, Latin American entrepreneurs represent 16% of all women-owned businesses in the U.S. and have generated greater than $65 billion in revenue in a single 12 months. Imagine how much more we could achieve if we had access to the right tools and knowledge from the very starting.
Let’s look at the three biggest mistakes that may threaten your financial stability and, more importantly, find out how to avoid them.
Ignoring the importance of monetary education as a business owner
As a society, we are making progress in financial literacy. However, when you step into entrepreneurship, a whole recent level of monetary education is required that many of us have not learned or even seen, yet it’s so essential. Consider that for most of our lives we have operated from a consumer perspective; we managed our funds and reacted to money from the “buying” side, looking at find out how to maximize the sum of money we had (discounts, sales, promotions, frugal budget, zero spending, etc.). But if you are a business owner, you’ll want to master the “sales” side. This is a completely recent way of pondering that requires a deeper understanding of cash flow.
For example, understanding money flow, the art of pricing, negotiation, tax planning, retirement and investment strategies are not a good thing, but a vital step if you should grow as a business owner. If you are not actively learning in these areas, you are limiting your growth and putting your corporation at risk. Avoid falling into the trap of pondering that as long as you make money every little thing can be fantastic because it isn’t just about the money coming in; it’s about how that cash is managed, reinvested and maintained.
How to avoid this:
Start prioritizing financial education immediately. Find resources specifically for entrepreneurs. Take courses, workshops or find a mentor who can guide you in corporate finance. Knowledge in this area offers you the strength to make higher decisions and speed up your path to stability.
Carrying shame and guilt about your earnings
For many of us, especially in the Latino community, there is a deep-seated cultural discomfort around money. We grow up hearing messages like “Get money, but not so much that it makes you a bad person” or that talking about money is rude, but we have also been taught to carry it with a lot of grace, which suggests that we should always keep our ambitions in check. . These messages often translate into subconscious money habits and feelings of shame or guilt, especially when we start making more cash or see financial success in our businesses.
I clearly remember feeling guilty for charging what my services were price. It took me a very long time to comprehend that this fashion of pondering was sabotaging my financial situation and was rooted in the uninformed beliefs and feelings I grew up with.
How to avoid this:
It’s time to redefine your relationship with money and directly challenge and shape your beliefs, ideas and feelings about making and managing money for financial growth. Financial independence and wealth allow us to create opportunities for ourselves and our community, so feelings like shame and guilt have no place in our path.
Surround yourself with individuals who reinforce this belief and show you how to build confidence in your earning potential.
The disconnect between identity and money
As a Latino entrepreneur, chances are you’ll also experience conflict between your cultural identity and your financial goals. Many of us were raised with the values of community and collective well-being, which might sometimes be at odds with personal financial success. We may fear that pursuing wealth will take us away from our roots or make us seem less connected to our culture.
This disconnect can keep you from fully stepping into the shoes of a business owner. I’ve seen this tension in myself and others, the feeling that if we develop into too successful, we’d by some means betray our upbringing. But that is simply not true.
How to avoid this:
Financial success is a cultural victory and the more images and examples we have of this path, the more normal it could be for these people to copy and create recent, standard ways of being financially independent.
You might be deeply connected to your heritage – and I strongly encourage you to do so – while building wealth. Treat your identity as a part of your entrepreneurship and let it fuel your success.