Happy Thursday.
Thursday.
No, I mean I tried to put a weird accent on Tuesday, but then I just it sound like Thursday.
Hey hey, hey, we're black, we're black, we're.
Brown, and.
So somebody's a homeowner.
I'm in the club, a club. I have so many keys.
I don't know what to do with them. I don't know what they all go to.
How does it feel?
It feels really expensive.
Just laid out my entire savings account for the for the closing costs.
It feels really good. You know, we had a.
Really special day today. I wasn't expecting this, but I don't know if I ben And when we when we went to the open house, we realized that there was an older couple there and they were retiring and they were older African American couple had lived there for forty years. And I became really like sort of obsessed with them, and I really wanted I just thought it was amazing too that they would, I.
Guess, choose us to give us the house because.
They know they had a lot of different offers, and I know that they're like the real estate agent really liked us, and you know, being newly weeds and everything, like that, and you can. And we were walking around the house during like the open house and inspection and stuff, and you can get little clues about people and like what kind of life they have, like the fridge full of all their grandkids drawings, and the room full of
the guy the dad's veteran medals. You know, he was in the army, and you I don't know, just you get this really good, like a good family lived here for a long time and had a good life. But I never thought we would meet them, but we we you know, the closing was today. We pulled up to their house and they were there and they they took us through the entire house and their names are Ed and Rosemary.
I love.
Yeah, they showed us how everything worked, and Ed is like I mean, we were there for like a good two hours and in Regay, my husband he was, you know, asking Ed how to do the fireplace. And I mean that they knew that house inside and out and they took such good care of it. But you could, like I could. I was talking to Rosemary a lot, and you can just tell that she was really excited for their you know, they're they're actually really young, like they
look amazing for being. I think they're in their mid sixties, they're retired, they're moving to Delaware. They look at they're just like gold. You know, they're they're retiring at a good age. They still have a lot of years ahead of them. But you could tell that she really felt still emotionally attached, and it was it was really sweet of them to actually say goodbye to the house and to give us and kind of like pass the baton in a way.
I love it.
It was really it was really sweet, and I was just really grateful for that experience because I didn't know what to expect. I thought we were just going to walk through and test the door knobs and run the faucets and stuff. But we ended up really having a nice, a nice time with them, and they were like, so, here's that neighbor.
And don't worry about her.
She's fine, but like that neighbor's kind of noisy, and they're, you know, giving us the lay of the neighborhood.
Yeah, I was really sweet.
I love that and the passing of the keys at the because we basically had the walk through. Then we went to the attorney's office to actually sign the most paper I've ever seen in my entire life, just documently page at a page for paget page of closing documents. But they were there at the table with us, and you know, Ed handed me the keys across the table and it was it was cool.
I love that.
Yeah, but it was expansive.
Yes, ah, you know, it's so crazy. It's like when you said I'm in the club. I remember when, literally the day I got married, all of these married women text me and they were like, welcome to the club.
That's what.
Misery loves company.
No, I know, Oh no, honestly, yeah, that's all I mean. It's crazy because you know, we finally closed on our house. I don't know, a few weeks ago, but I don't feel like we have a house because we're not in it, because you.
Know, we're doing renovations.
Yeah right, So you know, it just feels surreal every once in a while, like super Man, we have a house.
Yeah.
I well, we went there, we went back to the house after the closing and I and it still felt like I was in Edwin Rosemary's house.
Yes, it's like, let's come home. This feels weird.
I don't want that.
Yeah, it hasn't hit me yet. And uh yeah, it.
Feel like I guess you have like your things in there, and like yeah, but for us, it's gonna be a while because honestly, we have probably months of of renovations and stuff. When you buy our older home, I don't do Do you know what year your house was built?
Nineteen forty seven? Do you know what they gifted us? This was amazing. I forgot when we got to the closing, they hand me this packet. It has the original blueprints for our house, like the beautiful, the dark, like the real blueprint, like they don't even make these anymore, from nineteen forty seven when it was first built. And they said that, you know, you're the only the fourth owner and we wanted to give you these and it was it was beautiful.
Yeah.
Did you get them framed?
Yeah?
I don't.
I don't know that we're going to get the originals frame but I want to keep those safe. But we're probably going to get I've I've did a little bit of research and there's like art shops or even Staples will do a copy of it, like a good replica, and then we can get that framed and then keep the other one in like a safety deposit box or something, because that's that's like it's a special thing. I it was very generous for them to give us that.
No, I love that. I said that. I was like, I would love to get the blueprints for us.
I'm actually going to go to city Hall and see if they have, like, you know, copies of the blueprints because I'd.
Love to see, like, you know what what the I guess.
Original owner had in mind, because our house was built in nineteen twenty wow. And so even so, you know, I was looking for a contractor and a designer and a friend of mine connecting me with her two friends. And the wife is a designer and the husband is a contractor and project manager. And they were they've just been so awesome. They're actually like our new like couple friend. This is like our first joint couple friend, you know, Like I mean, I'm my best friend Drina and her
significant other. Like we're all cool, but we were cool before we got married, you know, right, and so this is but this is like what like a couple friend we made together, and we're like, oh my god, We're so obsessed with them. It's like crazy like Superman and like so Rihanna is a woman. She I think she's from Guyana and and Jermaine is the man and he actually.
Is by Rachel.
His his dad is black and his his mom is white and they are like so dope and they have a daughter named Olivia, and they are a amazing and like like we went out to like I Hop with them, and like then me and Rihanna went over to Home Sends and the guys and Supergirl and their daughter they went to like bunples together. I mean we have just been like obsessing with each other like we tech we do we group text together, and I'm like, oh my god, these.
Are are like our friends.
I'm jealous because you know, usually it's you might be like, oh I like I like the you know, you might like the woman, but he might not like the guy, or he might like the guy.
You're like, ah, she's all right.
So it's like the fact that like we both like, you know, well one I like Jermaine, but I also like Rihanna, and their daughter is super sweet and so but also too they're really talented and so what we asked them because they're just he Jermaine is just too busy to take on like to do construction or even even though he's done his own house, which is gorgeous.
Their house is beautiful. He did all the work himself.
Basically, and they put it on the market and it's sold within twenty four hour, not even they put it on the market and somebody bought it sight unseen.
Put an offering.
Oh my god, I'm asking.
Because that's just how beautiful their place is. And so we asked them, well, then can you at least be like our men tours in this, and that's what they're
kind of doing. They're basically consulting. And so because there's so many things I don't know, like with the older house, you really should get lead and asbestos testing, and so we did, and we found out because we did see a pipe and debasement that looked like it might be wrapped with asbestos wrapping, which is which was normal for reck then and it was and it's not a huge deal to abate it, but obviously you have to abate it.
We had that there, you did, right, and a bunch of pipes downstairs, yeah, fun stuffs and.
Bight and then and then because the house is older too, and I don't know where the paint comes from, but we did actually have some paint on a number of like the wood, because there's a lot of wood in nineteen twenties. I don't know if it's a craftsman. I don't know like what the actual what it's called. But there's a lot of lead, I guess in like whatever layers of paint underneath. And so we have to get that abated. And so that's in itself is like just
a process. And so that's where we are now, like hiring the abatement company, and even that's a process like getting them to put bit to do the work. And so Jermaine and Rihanna have just been walking us through and I'm excited because she's been like I like her eye for design because I love her house, and she because they're looking for a house now since they quickly
sold there. She's been walking me through like when she goes to open houses and stuff, she'll be like, oh, Tiffany, comes, I want to show you this design detail to see if you like it. So she's trying to get a feel for my style. So she actually brought me to this house nineteen twenty is also in Newark around the corner for where our new house is, and the molding was dark molding, and I never never would have thought that I would like dark molding, but it was beautiful.
Their molding was black, which it's too dark for me, but I love the dark molding, and I realized that, you know, I think I'm really interested in having dark molding, not black, but maybe not white.
And so I'm just enjoying this process, even though for us.
It's going to be alone, rude, but it's nice to know that we have people who are going to kind of walk us through and not let us mess up and help us in you contractors and electricians and all that stuff, and they we won't be my biggest worry with someone's going to get over on us. And now we're like, no, We've got our couple friends who this is what they do for a living, so you're not going to try us.
And they've been through it already.
Yeah, exactly.
And are you guys doing any like any any major work or just a little minus stuff.
Oh oh yeah.
I've been chomping at the bit to get people in to start looking at the house and giving us estimates and putting in bids and everything, but of course no one would actually come until we had the keys to the house, which we got today. So last week we started making appointments for tomorrow the day after closing, and we have our thing is same thing. There's a couple of like just structural things we need to fix first so that we have people come in and look at
the plumbing and we're probably converting to gas. So we have like three people in HVAC and plumbing, three different businesses coming in the morning, and then the afternoon we have three different architect design build type people. So okay, before we do any structural changes, we need like the architects to come in. You probably know all this, but I didn't know that architects came first. I thought you'd get a contractor first, but.
Yeah, I didn't know that either until I was like, oh, and if you want, I can give you because Jermaine he gave me. Whether it's your architect or I don't know who's gonna take. So just this last weekend, we actually took measurements of every room and then you can put it into what's called a bid sheet. So I don't know maybe your architect would do that, but I can give you the spreadsheet that Jermaine gave me, because
then that's the bid sheet. Is the spreadsheet then you give to the different contractors so you can compare apples to apples, so that way you can say, hey, contractor in room A, we want this, this, this, and this fix and here the dimensions and room B we want it. So I was like, oh, he said, because if not, then each contractor kind of comes in and gives a guestimate based upon like what he thinks needs to be done, and this one might tell you twenty thousand, this one
want to tell you thirty thousand. But they're not bidding on the same thing. But with the bid sheet, they fill it out and line item by line item, you and Enrique can look and say, you know what, we actually don't need this window done, but we do need this done, so you can take fifty off here, but
add two hundred here. And I'm like, oh, it's been such a learning experience, and I'm like, I've actually been taking so many notes because I know we want to start investing in real estate, so that way we know next time we have like, okay, step one do this, step two do this. But I can certainly give you that that bid sheet and ask your architect, you know, like whoever, you have to still take measurements to help you fill that out.
How are you how are you budgeting for reno?
Because I basically, for first of all, I feel.
Like I'm budgeting in the dark.
We have a chunk of money set aside, and like I'll have some some more money coming this summer that you know.
We'll add to the pot.
But I I'm really, I'm really when you, I'm like, I'm not worried, but I'm really cognizant of the fact that I want to make sure that we are earmarking funds for renovations and we're we're not touching emergency funds so that I don't feel like like there's always going to be money in the bank. And I guess I'm just nervous about about, you know, getting caught up in a reno and then you're over budget.
But like you still want to.
Do some things, and I'm I'm like, I'm already trying to prioritize what I want done and maybe think of things that, Okay, if I had to wait, we can wait to do this until later kind of stuff.
So what we did was like because same thing, honestly, so I've just honestly been like saving every penny.
And because we have our our.
Emergency fund is already full, you know, so we're like, okay, we've got our six months of just in case money. But and so I've been and then we have like other savings here and there. But I have been putting the lion's share because I knew this was coming. You know, we looked for for like over a year and a half or a house, so I knew this was coming. So I said, Okay, I've been really stacking away and
saving like crazy in our house fund. And so you know, if we got everything done, you know, it might cost us like everything including furniture and my cost us seventy five to one hundred thousand dollars, but we are. But I this is one thing that I like that Jermaine told us. He said, let's the big sheet. We're gonna put down every little thing that you think that you might like. He said, because then it becomes a line
item that you can take off. And he said it's better to have it, even if it's just for future, like okay, this is phase two. But he's so that's what we've been doing is just to put everything down, price it all out, and then say, okay, I really have to get the kitchen done because the kitchen is a mess, and we really have to get the master bathroom done because the master bathroom is too small for Jirell because you know, he's tall.
Other than that, things can wait.
We're like, okay, we want to refinish the floor, but Jirell might be able to do that himself, you know, with his friends, and Jermaine might help, and okay painting. Direll's twin brother is a master painter and has his own painting business, so we could save there. So as it is right now, we're just literally writing everything down. I don't even have I don't even know what it's
gonna call. I was like, I mean, it's probably going to cost him a fifty thousand dollars plus range maybe, but even then, you know, I don't know because I want to include furniture because most of.
Our furniture now it's not doesn't fit where we're going.
So yeah, So I mean, like I said, I'm really I'm excited, nervous, but not as nervous I was really afraid before because I was like, I don't know how to do any of these things. And I just hear so many scary stories about contractors doing the wrong thing.
But now that we kind of have like okay, we've got our our design and contract mentor you know, any time I have a question, you know, I hit up group chet text Like for example, I didn't know that when so we got the testing for asbestos and lead and they said, yes, you have a little abestis in the basement and you've got some lead inside the house. And then Jamine I was like, so what do I just call the people new people and say hey, fix it?
And he's like, no, you'll have to go back.
To that company and say to create an abatement plan.
And I was like, oh okay.
And so he was like, because from that plan there should be specific specs. And from those specs, now you can then go to two or three other abatement companies and say here's are the specific rooms in the house the amount there is, so that way they can price it all equally.
And I was like, oh.
Cause I just would have went to like a company and but like, hey, you know, here's my basic report. And I didn't realize, like, you know, having the plan is an additional cost, and I was like, oh, so there's always like something and it's just nice to not be kind of like puttering around in the dark because honestly, it's renovations kind of scare me because I watched too much of HGTV and I'm like.
Ah, so much.
I had a dream about cabinet trade the other night that like we were trying to take it out.
It's it's a sickness. I'm not okay. I love that we're in the same boat. So you just I'm gonna I'm gonna hit you. You were like a couple of months ahead of me. I'm gonna hit you up.
Just let me know.
This is all I know.
It's like, look at us growing up. When we first started the podcast.
We were single ladies, all the single ladies, all the single ladies, right and now look next thing.
You know, kids up next, And I think it's time to.
Boom store break, boots to break, boots to break.
Are you gotta brown break? Are you gonna brown boost?
I got a break?
Okay, too much positivity happening right now. I gotta I gotta bring it down. Do you want me to go first? So I've been in a texting debate with my two besties. They're my pop culture debate team. And ever since Cardi B debuted her baby bump, her her her, you know, un kept secret that CARDIV is pregnant. But she debuted on SNL this past Saturday. He saw her performance. Also,
by the way, Chadwick Boseman on SNL was amazing. Anyway, so Cardi comes out she's pregnant, she has a new album dropping, and all of a sudden, there's all this conversation around, oh, no, is Cardi B gonna survive this maternity leave? Is she gonna you know, does she have enough? Is she popular enough to withstand being out of the public eye for a few months while she has this baby?
And blah blah blah blah blah.
And I was like, geez, like, this is why women are afraid of telling their coworkers or their bosses that they're pregnant, because immediately people treat you like you have a disability or like.
If you go on maternity leave for a few months. But Cardi B is not. She's not like an accountant.
Okay, whatever, She's gonna be on a gold yacht somewhere on you know, enjoying her child. But for the rest of us, you know, maternity leave, if you're lucky to have it, you know, twelve weeks or whatever it is to go away into that fear that you have that Okay, I'm gonna take this, this maternity leave that I am entitled to and privileged enough to have. But while I'm gone,
who's gonna take my job? Or who's gonna you know, am I gonna get looked over for promotion or a raise because people are like, oh, well, you know, she was gone for these three months, so she really know what if she if she is she really up for the challenge? Or if you tell someone that, you know, telling them early on that you're pregnant, and then them just treating you differently like, oh you don't you know, you're you're in a delicate condition, like you can't probably
handle all this work. And it made me so mad because I'm like Cardi b come on, she's a celebrity, she'll be she'll be more fine. It's it's it just made me think about the other women who aren't in that position, you know, a position where they have a lot of money and a lot of fame, that are you know, have regular old jobs, but deal with this kind of stigma just because they have the audacity to
have a child. And I might be a little sensitive about it, since I myself have been considering starting a family and being in my position wondering or thinking, Okay, how can I set up my job right now so that when I when I choose to step away, I can come back and it's it won't be this, you know, massive I don't know this this massive shift and how people respond to me in the workplace.
Yeah.
I mean, it's so funny that you mentioned Cardi B. Because actually I was going to boost but the same thing I was gonna say, you know what, I'm gonna boost Cardi B because she is so unconventional and I've just seen I know, and but you know what I what I like about Cardi B is that it's very clear that she is Cardi B, regardless of how anyone
feels about it. And you know, so many times, you know, and I grew up like, you know, just adhering to good girl politics, you know, like don't talk too loud, don't be too wild, you know, don't don't I don't know, like you know, just this is the this is how good girls act and as a result, you know, this is what you get, you know, as a surprise.
And it's just nice to see.
That, like, you know, that someone is not following that formula and it is winning in her own way. And it's just nice because I you know, I feel like, you know, it took me forever to shed and I probably haven't shed all of it. I would say probably like eighty percent of that, Like, oh, I've got to be in a certain way in order to be respectable, in order to be you know, you have to behave like a certain like a young lady. You have to remember my first boyfriend would always tell me like, oh,
it took me, you know, to really tell me. That was because I am a bit wild, not like wild like in these streets wild, but like wild, like like uninhibited and silly and loud and fun and you know, and so it's just nice to see, like, oh, wild girls can can rock out too, you know.
And you know, like who would CARDI be? What would the reaction be if Cardid worked at like Chase Bank.
I don't know, I know, But what I just mean is that that she found what I like, is that she found her own lane, and like, you know that if you are not subdued, which is nothing wrong with that, that's just not your natural personality. It's okay that you can find a space where you can express your natural
self and still be successful. And so it's just a nice departure from that because I look at I don't know if you remember, do you remember was it the Oscars where Tiffany Hattish kind of ran up to MARYL.
Street. Did you see that, like.
Meme ran up to her.
Yeah, she like like ran up to her, like oh my gosh, my gosh, my god.
Like, yes, she's a good example of like herself.
Yes, And people were like, oh my gosh, she embarrassed herself. Yes, And I thought to myself, like, oh my goodness. This is a girl who, like she had like the most popular movie in two thousand and seventeen or eighteen whenever it came out, and like she is killing it and she used to be homeless, and this is a girl who was like raised by her grandma and her father left.
I just like, I just it's so crazy to me that people are still trying to stamp out like ooh, you know, you're not being respectable, like this is that's
not how good girls act. And I'm just like, man, if you're a wild girl, know that, you know, you might not fit into normal, regular society and you might have to carve your own space out, but there is success for you outside of like you know, you know, the status quo, because you know, for a long time, I really just held a lot back of like, oh, you know, I don't want to.
Be too too wild. Now I'm like, man, I could do what I want. I could do what I want.
I'll say your own damn boss. So who's gonna tell you now?
Exactly?
Like literally, I could tell a brand that the other day, I was like, oh, because they were trying to pressure me into doing something, and I was like, I actually said, sir, I don't have to follow listen to anybody, but dream catches in.
Jesus, he didn't find that funny. Jesus, he didn't find it funny. So need just to say we're not working together, but either way, I don't care, because I was like, so I don't work for you. I could do what I want, like you know, because well, like you're not going to pay me extra money. No.
I set up my business in a way on purpose that the people that I have to serve are the ones that pay me.
And what it means is.
That the better the better I serve women like me, the better my businesses. So I never have to worry, like if I work with a brand, it's because I like it on purpose. Keep the money that I make from brands like less than ten percent of my overall income.
So that way, if I have to tell a brand to Cake Rocks, I don't care, like, you know, my income really comes from serving women like me, and so like, yeah, he didn't like that, and I was like, I don't care, you know, if you're not gonna do right by the dream caactors, I don't care how much money you say you gonna put in my pocket, you know. So yeah, I just want to say big ups Cardi B and
the Tiffany Hattish and wild girls out there everywhere. It's not an easy life, but if you can make your own way and you're willing to put in the work, there is success for you as well.
I remember when we first launched Brown Audition. I was think and I was talking to someone about our I think we had just launched or we're launching it the week after or something like that, and I mentioned the name of the show, and the reaction was, you want to call it Brown Ambition? Aren't you afraid of alienating some people? And I was like, nah, not afraid, Like I mean, that's the appeal of we're unapologetic about who we are speaking to. I mean, everyone's invited to the table.
But you know, this is about you know, this is about speaking to the Brown experiences as a woman in your career and with your finances, and empowering a group of people that has been left out of a lot of those conversations. So yeah, I mean this Brown Ambition is about, is about aspirations, It's about the special kind of ambition and perseverance it takes as a Brown woman or man in this country to make it. And I don't think there's anything.
Wrong with that.
And I think that when you're when you're honest, and you're in who you are and presenting yourself and your message, and I mean, I don't think that we've alienated anyone. I think that we've just empowered some people. But if you find that alienating, then there's something probably a little wrong with you.
Exactly.
So basically, where the CARDI b a podcasting is what I'm trying to say. What if she says, what is everything? Because she does like this bird call thing? No, all right, I just found my chewbaka. Okay, moving on, moving on to some calls shows. I have a question for you Brand Ambition listeners. Do you want to help us get some advertisers. We need to get at least two hundred and fifty brand Ambition listeners to fill out this short, seven question survey to.
Help us get some ads up.
In the show, which will be amazing. So I'm going to put a link in the show notes to this really short surveys. It's through Libson, where we host our podcast. Just fill out this really short survey. It will be a huge help. And that's all I have to say about that.
Yeah, I say it's literally like not even one minute. You're like click, click click.
I kind of wish they'd ask more about our listeners.
So so many questions I want to know, like do you have kids?
I don't know, do you want to own a house someday? Anyway, but seven short questions it would be a huge help. You can find a link in the iTunes show notes, or you can go to brand Ambition podcast dot com and I'll post and I'll post it. I'll post it in the in the post for today show.
I like catching your garback.
I never know if that's coming.
Because I can do what I want.
It's exciting.
But no to your questions, yes questions. I have a question from someone who wants to remain anonymous. She's a she's a science a science whiz. Here's here's a question. Okay, Hello, I'm a twenty eight year old chemist for a small company. I have been with this company for a little over three years. Since I've been working here, I've been making slow and steady progress my career and I work my
bet off. I have noticed since I've been here, two girls who started after me and no less than me have become leads and managers of departments at my company. I am starting to feel some type of way because one of the girls has been here less than a year and I trained her. I recently found out that both girls are good friends with the supervisor of my department. How do I handle this situation? Anonymous?
Ah, Molly, did you watch Insecure?
Yeah?
I will be in secure. Did this happen on the show?
Yeah?
Molly found out that her coworker guy was making like way more than her.
Oh yeah, that's yeah, that's like a paything. This is a little bit Well, she doesn't mention pay I'm assuming they probably make more than she does. But this is like two women getting haired after you and getting promoted to be the leads of the department.
I would feel some type of way about that too.
Yeah, I feel like I don't have good experience with this, so I'm gonna like, I mean, other than saying I probably would probably honestly be interviewing for other position, I feel like I haven't been in the workforce been so long.
What's say you, Mandy.
Well, you know, I mean I think there's there's a lot of like parallel. So that's maybe in the entrepreneur like if you like, if you had been working for a company for a while and you find out that two other you know, I don't know, Penny ni Ste and the shopping nie Ste like double got a double you know, offer for for like a sponsorship that's worth twice as much as a sponsorship.
You know, that didn't happen.
So this woman emailed me by mistake somebody else's contract, and that's a.
Hold up, wait a minute.
So that was I was like, yeah, so I see that x y Z is getting like double that what you guys are trying to pay me. So we're gonna have to have a conversation before I move forward with anything. And I know they were like, gosh, darn it.
It's like whoopsie yep.
And so I just honestly, I just asked, so aside from you know, maybe looking for I mean, unless you really love this job, but it's always good too to see where else you could be appreciated, I would are you asking.
For the next level?
Sometimes I feel like women say I'm going to work hard and hope somebody notices.
Mm hmmm, yeah, you know, okay.
You know, are you saying like, oh, so of course you want to work hard, but are you making it a point to make sure people notice and say, hey, you know, hey John, you know, could I have a conversation with you? Bring your brag folder where you kind of list of like, you know, I've done this and this and this, and I really like working here and I really would like to take on some more responsibility.
I'd like to be considered for x y Z, Like I don't you haven't said the chemus if if that's something that you've done, but it's certainly something you certainly should do.
Here's what what struck me about her her question. She mentions, I've been with this company for a little over three years. Since then, I've been working here, making slow and steady progress in my career, and I work my butt off. It almost sounds to me, and you know, I totally get this. I mean, you think when you come into a company, you know at the time she was twenty four or twenty five years old. Because she's twenty eight, she's probably thinking, Okay, I'm going to pay my dues.
I'm just going to keep my head down, do my work, and people will notice me and obviously I'll get promoted, right, But other people don't always play the game that way, and sometimes that's not the best way to play it. Sometimes this squeaky wheel does get the does get the grease?
Is that the expression I'm bad at my yea squiaki wheel gets the grease?
So I don't know, real.
Yeah, but I agree. I think if you have to be more intentional, and you actually need to at least twice a year, you know, whether it's during your annimal review, or at least you know sometime during the year, have consistent conversations with your managers and tell them what your ambitions are, tell them how you see yourself. You know, I want to become a leader. I want to be sure that you know we're on the same page and
I'm on track to take on more responsibility. It's not just about doing the job that you're doing really well, but find ways to take on more responsibilities and show and demonstrate that you're hungry for more. I think that you know, and I agree with Tiffany. You know you can't wait for someone to tap you on the shoulder and be like you you are the one. You know, I've I've watched you. You're Cinderella. Come take this glass, slipper.
It won't always work that way. And I also don't want you to get too bitter about the girls who came after you and you think no less than you. Don't focus on them because they're not so much the problem. It's to ever tap them on the shoulder and gave them the opportunity. I mean, maybe you should talk to
them and ask them. You know, I'm really curious. I'm interested in becoming a manager someday, would you mind grabbing a coffee and telling me about you know, how you got to where you are, opening that door to them, because I mean, maybe you know now that whether or not it's it feels right or whatever, it makes you
feel a woman fezzy inside. But if they're in a leadership position now, maybe they could turn around and bring you up, you know, if you tell them that you're interested, or you know, put in a good word for you with the supervisor that they apparently know, but you know, kind of kind of flip it. Don't get stuck in the bitterness or feeling like you're not getting what you deserve. Try and try and make a positive make it a
positive opportunity to build a relationship with them. Also, definitely, if you haven't yet raise your hand, ask for a meeting with your supervisor and tell don't even bring up with the women who got promoted over you. Just talk about yourself and how you want that maybe you can vaguely say, you know, I notice other people are being recognized and I just want you to know that, you know, I have been working hard and I want more to this job too. And then once you've put your cards
on the table. If their reaction is, now, we have nothing for you. You know, we don't really see your potential. Even that's kind of harsh. But if you get the vibe from them that they're not going to create that path for you, or you're not going to help you push on that path, I'll.
Show you the door.
You need to start looking for other jobs, because then you look for another job and you know, okay, this is a dead end for me. And you've given them a chance to make you, you know, give you a reason to stay, and they haven't, you know, given you anything to They haven't given you that reason.
So you're entirely within your rights.
And I think it's a smart thing to start looking for work elsewhere, take your great work ethic, and move on and possibly leverage your new move to a higher position somewhere else now that you've got a few years of experience under your belt.
Yeah, no, I agree, I think that. No, honestly, I think that's perfectly stated. Is that try and then if not, then you can move on knowing that you've done what you would which all that you can do. But say something, you know, don't wait for people to notice, because oftentimes people don't absolutely.
I mean people, you know, and and it's it.
They may not notice and I'm going to talk about this later during my win, but I'm gonna save it.
They may not. They may notice it, but still like.
Not they they may not. They just may be too busy or too wrapped up in other things. And then once you finally raise your hand and make them notice it, they will have time to look at you and say, oh, you're you know, you're right, and I have overlooked this, you know. Give them a give them the benefit of the doubt, I guess by by at least, and the respect, you know, to sit them down and give them a chance to to recognize everything that you've been doing for them.
Exactly.
Good luck chemist.
We'll call it an anonymous chemist.
Yeah.
I'm trying to think.
What's the name of the princess from Wakanda who's like the tech girl I know, Sury Princess Surry.
Yeah, good luxury, you got a heirl.
Okay, one more question. This is a home ownership question, Tiffany. This is actually good for you. So this is from listener arian who says, I have a question about home buying. I have been thinking about buying a home, and I'm trying to learn about home buying through auctioning. Tiffany purchased her home, her home in cash through an auction, and I'm wondering if there's a way to get financing for a home auction purchase. Please provide any tips or additional
advice surrounding this process. Is that true you got your house through an auction site?
I forget I did?
Okay, all right, yeah, so yes, So if you're going to purchase an auction in person and then no, well you would have to bring left financing with you. So for example, let's just say you're going to you know you're going to because you can literally go to auction where.
They're like five, ten, fifteen, and twenty about thirty.
So, but you could go to your like say credit Union or whatever and come ready with money that you borrow, So you could do that way. So, but typically auctions want the money upfront. Now, however, you whatever you did to get it, that's up to you. But I have seen on some auction sites that they do allow for some financing, but not often because you have to look at it this way. The auction site doesn't own the property.
They are merely like the middle man. They're like eBay, you know, they don't sell the product, they're just in the middle so they're not waiting to get paid because auction sites typically get like a percentage or cut of the sell of the property. So the financing probably it's almost like if you buy a car and then you go to your credit union and borrow all the money and then go to the dealership and say, hey, I
have my own financing. So basically you're going to the dealer like you're buying with cash from the dealer, but the cash is finance from the credit union.
So but think about this.
Way, like, so my house was you know, on the not even necessarily on the higher end as far as costs, But you can find auctions if you're willing to look outside of like these, Like cause I live in Newark, which is really up and coming. It's like more and more business and enterprises are coming here, so so houses go for a little bit more. But I also saw things that you can get for ten thousand dollars, but
they're run down. So that's what if you don't have a whole lot of cash, but you know you're gonna have to bring some cash to the table. Consider saving up like a lump sum, because you can save five, ten, fifteen thousand dollars, you know you can, and then purchasing a house that needs a lot of work, and then later financing what's called a two oh three K loan. And what that is is that's alone specifically set aside
for innovations. So that loan becomes your mortgage, but really the bank expects you to use that money and actually will only disseminate that money when you show them specifically how you're going to fix up this beat up house. And so that's like, for example, Superman and I are looking at a second property and it's just that it's beat up. It's like you can't even go inside. But the location is amazing and it's ten thousand dollars, but the house needs.
To be tore down.
And for that we'll get a mortgage, but we'll get a tool of three k loan and that'll be our mortgage, and we'll fix it up and we'll we'll rent it out or we'll airbnb it out. So there are there are ways to get around it if you don't have a lot of cash to put down. I was just willing to put down a lot for this house because we were going to live here.
And I imagine you're competing with a lot of all cash borrowers too, So if you don't have that cash financing you may have, it may be hard to win some exits, right.
Yeah, because think about it.
I mean, if someone came to you and said, hey, I really love you car, I can give you installment payments or like you know what, I you know, I have a loan and you know, or I really love your car.
Here's cash right now.
Cash right now is guaranteed, so people tend to you know, it's a stronger buyer that Brita's cash.
But just know that cash properties don't have to be two hundred thousand dollars.
You could find cash properties that are less, but you're going to they're not going to be in like, you know, amazing condition, or they might not be in this perfect place. So I know, a young girl, her mother has really taught her how to invest in. She's invested in South Jersey a lot because a lot of people are foreclosing because they're still recovering from Sandy, the the in the recession, and houses are going for ten and fifteen thousand dollars.
So she's been saving. This young woman is like not even twenty five yet, and it has like two properties. She's been saving. I think her her grandmother passed and set and set aside some money for her, and she's bought properties fairly inexpensively and and you know, fix them up and then rented them out and then save that money and got the next one. So be open to the fact that you're you know, you're you're probably going
to have to finance one way or the other. But you can finance on the front end, or you could pay a little bit of money and finance on the back end.
Two or three K loans are really interesting. I'm going to post a guide to two or three K loans because we just did one recently at Magnified Money and they are a great way to get They're basically a renovation loan through the SAHA, the Federal Housing Administration, and I think they require they don't require a huge downpayment either.
They just have to sort of deal with the requirements and a two or three K loan like they kind of control which contractors you pick and yeah, all this kind of stuff.
So because you have.
To think about it this way.
A bank is basically lending you money to fix up what is essentially they believe their property until you pay off that loan. So they're like, I hear you that you want marble floors, but in this neighborhood, we're not gonna be able to recoup our money with your mars. We need you to fix this bathroom and fix this,
and do this and do that. So bank like two three klons are a little bit stricter with what you do with the money because the bank is like, they essentially need you to bring the property up to the to the value of the two oh three k loan, so that way, if you don't pay they can take
it and resell it and get their money back. But yeah, but it's definitely something worth looking into, especially if you're buying like a super fixer up, Like you're not gonna get a two three k lo for like ten thousand bucks. Banks are not doing that. It would have to be I don't remember what the cutoff is, but it has to be a pretty good amount of money, Like the house has to need a pretty good amount of work in order to qualify.
Well, thank you for your question, Arian and if you guys have more questions for us, hit us up at Brand Ambition podcast dot com. Nope, okay, it is so manipulative and mean, or you can send us an email at Brand Edition Podcast at gmail dot com.
Now you're waiting for it.
Oh, she is always This is.
A lovely time for wins.
Yes, because all we do is Wayne, Wayne, Wayne, no matter what.
So my win today, I'm actually just going to do a really quick shout out.
I want to.
I don't know if you've seen the new video from Drake Nice for What, which has like every beautiful brown celebrity activist, woman in power on the planet basically in this in this video. It's amazing. But then I found out that the director is just this twenty two year old woman. Her name is Karen Evans, and she's just twenty two years old, and she's killing it. And I'm gonna do my win for her this week.
So my Wayne is not quite as inspirational. It's just a little fun.
I don't know if you saw this on our Facebook page, guys, but athletes of brown and black descent when they've well you know what I mean, like brown and black athletes.
I was trying to be faking.
I'm sorry.
I'm sorry I continue.
That sound crazy.
No, but so I just think it's really cute that, you know, when they've won or they've gotten a point or whatever, that they've been doing the Wakanda Forever salute. And I just think that, I don't know, that just brings me Jordan like that this movie like it's just a movement, you know. I just and I just think that that's just the movie. I know I did Wakanda, like I think hitting over a billion dollars.
I think I did it last week or something.
But I just think that there's a surge and maybe that's what the win is that I don't know if you guys can feel it, but I certainly can.
That there's this undercurrent of.
Just like appreciation for brown and black blackness and not like I'm talking about, not necessarily from the outside world, like from each other.
You know, I can see it on social media. I can't.
Oh a, my my bad, that's one of my brown friends trying to call me. See they know I take by this time. But yeah, just this appreciation for brown and blackness that I've seen, Like one of my friends turn name is Yaba doctor yaba blay and she's got this hashtag and this Instagram account which I love called professional black Girl. And if you just need sometimes a boost of like and it's just all things brown and black girls.
Like.
So sometimes it's like a little girl singing a song. Sometimes it's just like a beautiful woman in Africa. Sometimes it's just like girls here in the US like stepping or girls in New Orleans like Second Line Band or whatever it is that is that represents our culture. And so I'm just feeling like this, like feeling this love. I feel like it's it's it's probably similar to there was a time in history when everyone was kind of
reclaiming their blackness and they were naming their kids. That's when like Queen Latifa came out and everyone was getting like Muslim names and and it was like.
Afros and you know.
And I just think that there's something happening now, and I'm just glad that we have a podcast that helps to partially capture that movement and also move that movement forward. So a wind for Wakanda and a wind for brownness and the win for blackness.
I'm doing this salute right now. You can't see it.
I'm like, I'm doing it too, what kind of whatever?
Now, everybody go watch Chadwick on SNL because it was the best hilarious that was Block Jeopardyards.
It was everything he said, Oh I see now, yes, all right, mandra.
On fellow homeowner. Yeah, keep us postomach keep posted.
I might elbow my way into that group chain.
Eventually I'm try and it in.
I'm trying them to in write.
Right.
Oh I didn't even say so just in case you're asking. People are going to ask me and I'm like, oh, please don't email me. The company of the couple. Their their business is called Blue b Lu, Blue Home Home Design and Development. They're on Twitter and no Instagram Blue Home and Design and Development. Because last time I mentioned them, so many people hit me up and I was like, oh I can't answer everyone back and people were mad
at me. So just in case you want to follow them on because they're going to be like posting our pictures and stuff. So if you want to kind of see like our journey, Blue Home Design and Development.
Awesome, all right
For a ball, yes, what kind of forever