It's time for the b a qa A the b a qa What to say the ba qa with Manday the ba qa A. Hello ba Fam, I am back to answer more of your questions on this week's b Aqa. This question comes from listener Chelsea. Chelsea says, hey, ladies, I am twenty six years old and currently working in my first full time Big Girl career JOm. I'm working on transitioning to another job now. I have good credit for my age and I make good money, but I'm
always working on a bigger bag. I have my own small business and very few bills, but I want to hear from you, ladies. What would you tell your twenty something self, knowing everything that you know now? I am very I'm a very proactive person, so I am working on getting into personal finance more and planning for the future.
I love your show and I appreciate your advice. You know, Chelsea, this question came out a really good time for me because I was just sitting the other day in my car on the way to pick up dinner or something for the family. I sometimes give myself little errands just so I can go be alone in the car. Anyone out there also do that even if I sit in the driveway for like an extra ten minutes when I get back, like that is precious quiet time for me.
But I was reflecting on my drive and I was thinking about my three bees, the book, deal, the Beyonce, the baby, and I really, yes, I'm proud of myself that I accomplished those things this year. But I looked back and I was like, you know who accomplished that, Baby Mandy when she was twenty four and opened her first four oh one K and started to invest. She's the one I can thank for the ability that I have had to build this life for myself, and she's the hero of my story. I'm getting to enjoy the
fruits of baby Mandy's labor. And as I was thinking about that, God, it made me want to just like reach back in time and give her such a big hug because she worked so hard. I'm still working hard right and in another twenty years, ten years, I might be looking back and saying, ooh, thirty six year old Mandy. She was my queen. She did it all for me.
But I will always have a soft spot in my soft spot in my heart for the baby Mandy of my early twenties because when there are so many reasons, distractions of opportunities to go a different way, to follow the social media pressure to put on a big show, go on vacations, you know, show off that you're doing well and you got no kids and you're having fun, and try to keep up with you know, the joneses.
At that age, Baby Mandy made a different decision and decided I'm going to keep lifestyle inflation out of my picture. And lifestyle inflation, as I've said, lifestyle creep another word for it, that is like the silent killer of wealth. I promise you so many people could be genuinely debt free, wealthy well into like early like twenties and thirties if they just could beat down lifestyle inflation. So if I could go back, I would say, this is the best
thing that you did, baby girl. Like the fact that when you ten x your net worth and you ten xt your income by quitting jobs and learning how to be a badass negotiator and getting those big raises as you jump from job to job and move through your career, you didn't let the extra earnings drive you to start spending more in places that didn't really like they weren't
a huge value to you. And by that I mean I wasn't going out and upgrading my apartment to get the better you know, the better location, the luxury unit with the washer dryer. That living in New York City, that's kind of like a status symbol, like, oh, you have a washer dryer in your building or in your unit. Like first of all, where do you live Jersey, because that's not happening in Manhattan. But unless you got real, real, real, real big money. But you want to improve your lifestyle.
You want to go out more for drinks after work, You want to you want to go on those vacations, you know, you want to go to the Hamptons like you see and TV and sex and the city you know, in the summertime and escape the city and all of that.
And you want to be able to.
Do the big New Year's Eve celebrations and all the things that you know, think about when you associate with New York and what you do here and being in your twenties and all of that. But I really got quiet with myself in my twenties and I was like, I value financial freedom. I never want to go back to that fear and anxiety that I felt after I moved to New York and I got let go from my very first job. I was laid off like three months after I joined back in twenty ten, and I
never wanted to feel like that again. And I said, I value feeling safe. I value feeling free to make decisions that I want to make, not because I'm desperate to find a job to keep my lifestyle. And that is what I would tell any twenty something today is start to get really clear on what you value, why you are making the choices you're making today financially, and how that's going to get closer to the goals that you value. So for me, I was like, yes, it's
nice to go out. And don't get me wrong, I had hell of fun in my twenties. I had a big ass wedding that I paid for cash, thirty thousand dollars wedding in Savannah, Georgia that I have no regrets about. But I was only able to save up for that wedding and I didn't want to take on debt for that wedding. By making some serious lifestyle choices to enable me, like as I was increasing my income, my husband and I moved in with his family. For I think we
lasted about eight months. It was, you know, did what I could with my in laws, my future in laws. But we were able to save and set aside cash that wedding so that you wouldn't be taking on a lot of debt. And that's not the choice that a lot of people make when they finally get to you know, at the time I was making I had just gotten a new job and was making over one hundred and fifty thousand dollars a year, and I chose to live like a broke like like I did, like I wasn't,
you know what I mean? And I did it for a time so I could give myself something that I valued, you know later. So looking back on baby Mandy in her twenties, I would say, that's the smartest thing that she did. So get clear on your values, Chelsea. What do you where do you want to see yourself in ten years? And what financial choices can you make now to get yourself there? So for me, it was about keeping my debt low and setting early habits to invest.
And I didn't focus on how much I was setting aside. I just focused on or how sorry I didn't focus on how much I was like making in the market. I just focused on setting a goal of I'm going to be contributing ten percent automatically, and I'm going to increase that by one percent each year, and I'm going
to continue this habit. And the beautiful thing about just focusing on the habit of investing and just automating it and forgetting it is that as you earn more, like you're talking about, I'm working on a bigger bag right now, as the bag gets bigger, the cut that you're taking for your investments is going to get bigger right along with it. And as you grow, you know, get older, time goes on, those investments will grow, you know, in shallah,
hopefully most of the time, they will grow. Right. So, if you can just get clear on your values and set the habits of saving and investing now, I mean, you're already going to be so so far ahead of
your peers and really stick with those values. And remember, like when you start looking and getting tugged in other directions and people are trying to get you to do this bottomless brunch and take this vacation, like if it's not true to you and your goals like get really secure and strong in saying no and setting that boundary and letting your friends be a part of your life, be a part of your life in other ways that are of value to you.
You know.
For me, I like to take vacations. I like to travel with my friends, but I was going to keep it small and I was going to go with friends who wanted to vacation at my level, you know, who weren't going to pressure me into like spending extra for first class this, or you know, the luxury villa versus the smaller bed and breakfast, you know what I mean. So I think that that's also really important is making sure that the people you surround yourself with respect your values.
They don't have to have the same values or want the same things you want, but they need to respect you and where you're coming from. What I also love about you, Chelsea, you personified brown ambition. You got your first full time, big, big girl career job that you said, but you also have your small your own small business on the side, having your own source of independent income.
Oh baby, Mandy.
Did this in her twenties and I love her for it. She started brand ambition, and you know, obviously went on to do other creative endeavors that I'm doing now in my thirties. But just starting something in your twenties and not thinking about I need to may become a millionaire.
I need to have this business, you know, get I need to become a unicorn billionaire, you know, billion dollar business, something like that, but just starting something like there's no way you're gonna be able to enjoy the fruits of any labor if you never do the labor first, right, And sometimes some of us get psyched out by the goal that's seeming too large, Like if I start a business, it has to be perfect, it has to bring in millions, you know. But and then you let that psych yourself
out and you never start it. But just starting to plant the seed of some kind of entrepreneurship in you're in your early twenties to bring an additional income for yourself that it's going to give you professional resilience, meaning your big girl job it doesn't love you back. I learned that very early in my twenties. The job does
not love you back. So having your own source of find like financial your own source of income, so that you can protect yourself on top of having savings, having another source of income that's not tied to your nine to five makes you so much more resilient, So I
think that that's excellent. I would definitely, you know, give my baby Mandy in her twenties, a huge, huge round of applause for always kind of staying independent and having something of her own, even as I gave my all to my employer, saving a little bit for myself as well.
And I love that you're doing that too. But you sound like you're an amazing shape, Chelsea, and I'm so damn proud of you, and I can't wait, like right now, if I were you, I would just like be have a shit eating grin on my face at all times, because I know for a fact, Chelsea, and you need to know this too, that in another ten years, when you're my age thirty six, you are gonna be like
doing it. You're going to be living the life that you're dreaming of right now, and you can be like me in whatever version of your life you want to be in. But reflecting back and saying thank you so much, twenty six year old Chelsea for making those choices, because now I am thriving and I am loving my life exactly as I wanted to. And I wish that for so so many of us out there. Right, So you got time on your side.
Good for you. Girl.
Listen, if you're listening to this show and you're thirty six, forty six, fifty six, and you're like, damn it, I wish I was Chelsea. Now you still got time. Age ain't nothing but a number. But you asked Chelsea about something I'd tell my twenty something self, you know. But the trick here is that no matter what age you are, like, start telling yourself these lessons now and in another ten years we all have, you know, we don't know how
much time we're going to get. We hope we have lots of time, right, and I do believe that it's never too late to start making changes and start changing your approach to money and to your career and your finances so that you can thrive and start a new you know, a new chapter for yourself. So I hope that this was helpful, Chelsea, and thanks for giving me a chance to reflect. And you know, pat baby Mandy
on the shoulder for doing the damn thing. And I hope in another ten years I'll be just as proud of who I am now, for making the decisions that I am now that are going to help me continue thriving in my forties and beyond. I'm going to take a quick break and be right back with question number two.
And I'm back and I'm black and I'm brown ambition.
Shit, I'm back and I'm black and I'm brown Ambish.
Shit. I'm black and I'm black and I'm brown ambition. Don't you wish we could be friends?
Hey? Okay, so we are back for question new it all? Dude.
I was talking to one of my mentees today that recently just lost his grandmother a couple of days ago, so just had me thinking about grief all over again.
And he has been in business for a couple of years, and.
You know, he's been having a hard time, and he was just asking, like, how do you just even start, Tiffany. You know, like he's it's been like, I think like five years. He's made a little money here there, you know, and it's like not from this big budget niece to space where like I have an access and knowledge of dad, how do you just start? And so me answering the question for him, and it's funny because he called me.
And then I have another mentee who has like a business that you probably know if I say it, but still he was kind of struggling too. He has a business with his wife, and I was like, I know his wife for a long time, and we were talking on the phone for like an hour, and I was just kind of pouring into him, and I thought, this is going to be a good question to answer, like how how do you how do you start, you know, how do you start to walk towards success in business?
And what both of them they both have businesses that very much are good for the community, you know, like it's good for our community, Like these are black centric focus businesses that are meant to uplift and uphold and enhance and empower our communities. And so they've been doing that work for a number of years and they're like, but I'm not making sustainable money. And this lesson took me a long time to learn.
But you've been a learner.
Tip that you can't go get you a notebook, go get you a notebook. So here's a lesson I had to learn because I too have a community based business that doing a good job with the community side is not the same thing as making money. I know. It's like, what, Okay, you have to have an impact plan if that's what you so desire, and then.
A separate income plan.
Many of us who start businesses to be of service to our people, we already have the impact plan. We know it's built into our DNA or you I'll get a help right and then like, and I know it took me four or five years of perfecting my impact plan and wondering why I was still broke before I realized I don't actually have a plan to make money. I just assume if I make the bigger the impact money would come. Is say, lie, maybe every once in a while you get a little lucky.
You're almost like you hit a lick.
But the truth of the matter is that's not actually how it works. Like, that's really actually not how it works. That like you have to have a separate income plan. Here's a crazy thing. You can have major impact make no money. You can have all this income and not have impact on people in a positive way.
That's the crazy part.
Like you could if you could literally just have an income plan and have a successful business.
But how you want to sleep at night? Because I sleep good.
So I like to have an impact and an income plan. Okay, now, how you and yours do in your household, that's up to you. But what I'm saying is is that you always have to have an income plan. How will I make money? Separate from the impact, How will I make money? And so I started. Once I realized that I started to really look at I'm like, Wow, all the things I'm doing to create impact, none of these.
Things make me money.
And if I'm being honest, the budget Niza, which is my first business, my first baby, I still struggle with them because my first mind is always impact, impact, impact. I'll give you an example. I recently did a wealth walk in Maryland, and so my wealth walk went really good. Like the first wealth walk I had in Jersey, I think like fifty people showed up, which was nice.
We just walked and talked about money.
The second walk I had a Mayland, about one hundred people showed up, and then this time we went live and four thousand people showed up live.
It went great, But the.
Wealth Walk is impact, and it was such a heavy lift for my team, and it cost me money to fly out there and to get a hotel to hire the photographer and Da da.
Da da dah. There was no income menia and people keep saying, ooh, can you do a wealth walk?
Kick you, I can't afford to do that, and I'm struggling with I want to do more wealth walks because they were It was so amazing because one y'all know, I've been a walking child, right, snches since has been getting.
Snatched, right.
And I know for our community, especially for black and brown people, but especially for black women, the impact of like of distress and diabetes and high blood pressure and hypertension, all these things we carry in our body, that walking is a great tool that for the majority of us, is not overly taxing. You know, it's a community based activity. It's so good for your legs and your limbs, and also for most people, not everyone. I know that everyone
is not able. But the beautiful part about the Wealth walk is that we walk and then those who could not walk, we came back anyway to a you know, safe, secure place, and then we talk about money. And the last one I did was with the counsel Counselman at Large Will Juando in Maryland, and he talked about how to how to lean into legislation and your politicians in a way that will impact your wealth.
So it was awesome.
I mean, Will was so knowledgeable from how to get money for your businesses to how to purchase a home using the tools available to you in your state.
It was just so impactful. No income, all of that awesome.
And I know if I do the next one two hundred and the next one three hundred and next one front and no income, and I realize, okay, I have to have an income plan. And so some of the things I can do is I can sell T shirts like Wealth Walk T shirts.
I thought about that.
Also, I can say, hey brands, hey brands, looking like you always do, why don't you sponsor or Wealth Walk? Because you get these people in person one hundred, two hundred, three hundred, and then on top of that, you get thousands of people watching the walk the talk part of the Wealth Walk, and so there's like, you know, potential for sponsorship there.
So I have not done those things yet.
But what I'm saying is that even me a season entrepreneur, fifteen years in the game, I still struggle with the income impact component.
Okay. And so I was telling my mentees about so here's how I had him start and hopefully these these will help for you. You ready, get shippad down.
I know you probably driving the car, and to pull over to the side of the road, get your pen on, and say.
Here are the steps.
One I always visualize whenever I'm trying to reach your goal. I always visualize a white board, typically a corkboard, and I say, put your numbers on the board. So I want you to visualize a whiteboard or a corkboard and put a number at the top of the board. And so that number can be a number of people you want to sign up for your email list or whatever. But we're talking about income right now. So we're gonna put an income number on the board. And it has to be.
Folk. It has to be based on something concrete.
So for one of my mentees, it was based upon he was filing some paperwork for his big or whatever, and like he had some lawyer fees and blah blah blah blah, and I was like, add up those fees so you can get very clear on the number, you know, So for you, you want to get very clear on So I don't want you to just come up with some random and oh, I would love to make ten thousand.
I don't care about all that.
What number do you need to make for a specific reason, because it's going to give you purpose to walk toward it. So you might say, honestly, I need to make three thousand, five hundred because that's how much three months worth of rent and the place that I want to rent, I don't know, and just make it to them. Or maybe you need to get materials for whatever, the paintings that you sell and the materials you added it all up, it's like two hundred, I don't know. Get that number
on the board and a timeframe. Numbers are critical, So that's going to go on the top of your board. You can go on a real board or the board in your head. Okay, that goes first on the board. Okay, very clear. So it's the number that you need to hit, specific number based upon a specific goal and a timeframe. Those two numbers go on top. Second on the board. Is that's your must make number. Second number on the
board is your like to make numbers. So let's just say it's twelve hundred dollars is what you need to make in order to buy the materials to do your paintings, but ideally you would love to make two thousand dollars in the next three months. So maybe you said to yourself, you know, I want to like, you know, I have three months because I don't know essence fast or invest fast or whatever's coming up, and I need my painting
to be ready by then, you know, or whatever. I'm just making it up like that's why you have the three month timeframe. You need to make the twelve hundred because you added up how much pain and whatever things you need are gonna cost you in twelve hundred is what you need to make.
Second number on the board what I like to make.
It would be cute if I could make two thousand now, okay, a little boost up, a little reach. So that's the second number on the board. You with me, okay. Third thing on the board is I want you if you already have been in business, I want you to write down a number of ways you've already made money before. So you might say, you know, I did sell one painting before, or I did sell a T shirt before, or you know what, my sister's best friend did pay
me to make a cake. I need you to write down all the ways you've made money before, and if you haven't made any money because you're brand new, I need you to write down ways that people have made money in the space that you're in before. I'm not talking about big, big ways. I'm talking about people who are similar size to me. You're like, Yo, my homegirl, you know she sold I don't know, acrylic nails, or she's done retightening of.
Hair or whatever that is.
So either ways you've made money before, or ways that you've seen someone who's about at your level has made money before. Okay, write down as many ways as possible.
You're ready.
So remember number one, how many time frame and a specific amount that you want to make within that timeframe based upon specific goals, not just these random things, based on specific goals. Two, same timeframe, but your stretch goal, add another five hundred to it, and add thousand to it.
Stretch goal.
Three ways that you've already made money in this space already, or ways that you've seen people who are at your level, very beginner level made money in this space.
Okay, and so we're.
Doing three now three A is now here or here are the ways that because you can't do all the things right, So let's just say you write down ten different ways that you've made money in this way before, or you've seen people who are beginning make money in this way.
You can't chase all of them.
So you're going to write down these four questions You're going to ask yourself and it has to say yes to these four for you to decide if maybe you're.
Gonna do it.
One you have to ask yourself, like ideally, you know, I think it's three questions, really, but really, like I said, have you made money in this way before?
Right? Have I made money in this way before? Or have I.
Seen someone who is very beginning make money in this way? Because we want to know is it possible. We're not guessing out here now. This is not your life business plan and you're planned for. This is a make money now plan the next three months, right or four months or whatever? Have I made money like this before? Have I seen a beginner make money like this before?
Yes? Moving along? Two? Can I do this by myself?
Because one of my friends he was like, oh, if I only had a team, I'm like, what that's like saying if I only had a magic wand duh?
If we all have humongous.
Teens, if we only had a million dollars, if we only had no worries, if I only get eat cake, can I get fat? I mean, what are we saying? Of course, but you don't got none of them things? So step two is can I do it without a team? Can I do this by myself? Like I said, this is not a forever plan. This is just in the moment plan so I can get to my first major financial goal.
You know, can I do this by myself? When I first the first six seven years, by Jesus, it was me myself and not that's all I got to.
The end and don't know. Okay, can I do it by myself? That's question number two? If you can't do it by yourself, Like, if you're fortunate, then maybe you're you're significant others helping and maybe you got a sister helping. Great Q for you, but in large part for most of us, can I do this by myself?
To start?
Third question? Can I is this possible within a time frame? Because sometimes what I will find, especially with a new entrepreneurs so I'll have these huge ideas, but that's a five year plan. Bro were talking about five months from now, Max, Like don't give me no five year plan. You don't have no money coming in tomorrow, like you might not be here in five years to see that through. Can
I do this within my time frame? I would not make a time frame more than five months, honestly, I'm looking like three months on the average that timeframe, you know, Like, can I do this within the timeframe?
Is that possible? Yes?
I can bake a cake and sell a cake within three months? Okay, there you go. And then fourth is do I not have to come out of pocket?
Really? Or is it nomenal meaning?
Like hmm, like what can I do to keep my cost as low as possible because I don't have any money? You know, like maybe baking a cake? You'm like, oh, I do have to spend a little bit money to start. Well, what's cheaper than the cake? Our cookies cheaper than cakes? I could sell that instead, you know what I mean? Or can I do pre orders of these cakes instead for people who already eating cakes from me? Can I do it without taking much money out of pocket? Or
zero money out of pocket? You see how you have to be clever? So those are the fourth questions you're asking. Under number three, have I done this before made money because you want to. I don't want you guessing. So that is your preliminary I ain't never made no real money. I'm still super new in business. Or you've been in business for a while, but you're not really sure, like you know why you're not making no money. That is a preliminary income plan.
Ain't that good job. I'm not gonna lie. I'm smart, you know, but for real, that's a preliminary plan.
And when I told it to my two and I've got about three male menties everybody else's like women, and I told it to them, they were like, oh my gosh, I could do that. Right away, they started texting me like, Yo, here's all the fees that I have to pay, and so I know my number thirty eightundred dollars. I know my number twelve hundred dollars. Okay, in three months, I really have to have it done or this thing expires. Okay, but my stretch numbers, I would love to make forty
five hundred dollars. Okay, here are the three ways that I've made money before. Then we started to look at those ways. Once those ways answer those four questions, boom, I've made money like this before I've seen someone do it. Boom, it don't take more money out of pocket or very little.
Boom.
I could do it within a timeframe. Boom, I could do it by myself and answer those questions. Then we started to like, I said, let's put some money, more money on the board. Once you start to you look at your list of number three, you start to eliminate those things. So don't say yes to those four questions. And then I started to say, Okay, you sold merch before you told me that the merch made you two hundred and fifty dollars. Can you put merch down for
five hundred? I think if you did two fifty on some old la la la la, I think you do five hundred in three months, if you did two fifty in one month. He was like yes, So now we're starting to cross things off the board because you want to make three thousand dollars. Okay, you already down like we've already maybe we can put merch down for five hundred dollars. So now you're down to twenty five hundred dollars that needs to be made. What else I could do?
Speaking okay, because before he was like, oh I don't know how many speaking engagements A how I should charge for speaking engagement. But now buruh I said, look, if it was me, I'm looking at the board, I'm looking at the people who want me to speak. You let them know I would love to make fifteen hundred, but in your mind you might take six or seven hundred, okay, And so you might even push to say, you know,
do you have a budget of two thousand? If they push back to fifteen or at least a thousand, a thousand, damn, you already halfway done. Because he said, there's some speaking people who have asked him to speak, and he's always been like, oh no, I'm like, get your no less than five hundred, push for at least one thousand dollars, you know, but ask for maybe twenty twenty five hundred.
See what they say.
So he was already like, yo, okay, merch down for five hundred, speaking down for fifteen hundred.
Boom, Now we're.
At two thousand, other three thirty five hundred that you need, boy, you know, And so slowly but surely you see how you go from I don't know what that do to boom.
Boom boom, boom boom boom boom boom. Let's go back. Oh that was first ices in that when I was a kid. I'm like, do you remember that?
Saw?
Boom boom boom. Let's go back to my room. Tell I was like in the second grade anyway.
But you see how you go quickly from like here, it's an actuable income plan that I can do today?
Is that really helpful?
Because then you can start assigning amount that you believe you can make. That's why asking yourself the question, have I made money in this space before, because then you can say, if I was able to make two hundred, maybe I can make four. Or if my friend or someone who I saw do it, you know, I see that they if I can estimate they made about a thousand, maybe I could do two thousand. You see what I mean.
So I hope that was helpful. You know, I love me some personal finance, but I also love some business. So here's the thing.
Here's the thing.
When you started out friends, if you want me to mentor you which you know you do know you no, you no, you know you do. I actually have a mentorship program called mymntor Tiffany dot com. Use this platform called Patreon and it's twenty bucks a month. It's like two sixteen for the year, because I think you get like ten percent off if you pay for the year, and the benefit if you pay for the annual is
when I come to your city. So whenever I go to a city, I try my best to have a mentee dinner with about twenty to twenty five women as much as a restaurant will allow, which usually they cap it at twenty five, and then we have dinner together and we get to like introduce ourselves to each other, share our businesses. I mean, it's just an amazing time. Like in Maryland it was about twenty two of us.
It was awesome. But if you pay annually, I.
Set aside the first half of the tickets for annual members to because it always sells out. I set aside the first half of the tickets that they get to buy first, and then I leave it like I open up to the rest of the mentees. That's the benefit of being an annual member. You get ten percent off and you get access to things before everybody else because it always always sells out. So yeah, if you want to join, you on a twenty bucks a month, my
mentor Tiffany dot com. I don't talk about personal finance there. Don't come there like I need. I have to live richer academy that if you want a personal finance like you know, courses. But my mentor Tiffany, is really me mentoring you in business. Okay, So hopefully that was helpful. I know that was kind of around or word, but I just know that was really helpful for them, and you know, hopefully that was helpful for you.
And I will see you.
At the next b a q A A b a q A wit to say the b a q A with Tiffany the b a q.
A see your next Friday. All right, bye, y'all, Hey, ba fam.
We could not do this show without your support or the support of our team behind the scenes. The brann Viision podcast is produced by Imani Crosby and Dennis and Plinsky is our in house tech guru. I am your co host Mandy Woodrif Santos, and we will see y'all next week, ba Fam.