May 23, 2023 • 28 mins
Linda Garcia, is the founder of In Luz We Trust and author of “Wealth Warrior.” From being a single mother at a young age struggling to pay bills to becoming a business owner and having a six- figure investment, Linda has made it her life’s mission to educate other Latinas on financial literacy.
After working in the TV and Entertainment Industry for 17 years, Linda decided to pivot her life after she discovered the secret to obtaining wealth: invest big and take big risks. And just like that, her Patreon, In Luz We Trust™, was created in order to teach the Latinx community about the stock market, how to invest, and how to conquer money wounds. Linda recently launched her new book, “Wealth Warrior,” which is a guide for BIPOC communities to understand and excel in the Stock Market.
You can find her website on InLuzWeTrust.com
Follow her on Instagram at @inluzwetrust
DISCLAIMER: All information in this podcast and associated entities is for general information purposes only. The host is not a financial adviser, the content presented in this episode is not intended to be a substitute for professional financial advice, nor should it be interpreted as such. We strongly recommend consulting with a qualified financial advisor before making any financial decisions. any reliance you place on the information provided is at your own risk, and we shall not be liable for any loss or damage, including but not limited to financial loss, indirect or consequential loss, or any loss arising from the use of this information.you should carefully consider your own financial situation, objectives, risk tolerance, and seek professional advice before making any investment decisions.
Naibe Reynoso is the Host and Executive Producer of Latinas Take the Lead.
Production Assistant is Anna Sophia Monzon
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Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:07):
The market itself and you and your emotions and how
you react and how you treat your relationship with the
market and your relationship with money. That is going to
be your ultimate teacher, and it gives you this power
that is incredible. I love to see women talking about
stocks and investing because you can just see the confidence
(00:29):
exuding from understanding one of the most important systems in
our country.
Speaker 2 (00:38):
Welcome to Latinas, take the lead. Does anybody else get
excited when you hear words like stocks, wall Street, NASDAC?
I do, But it took me a long time to
learn to explore investing and not fear it. And if
you ever saw the eighties movie Wall Street, starring Charlie
Sheen and Michael Douglas, about ambitious New York stockbrokers who
(01:01):
live by the mantra greed is good, you probably unconsciously
felt that Wall Street did equal greed, excess and the
ultimate downfall of the movie's main characters. You probably also
noticed that the movie was filled with white men doing
all the stock buying and trading. But dondes Latinas, from
(01:22):
an early age, we feel like we don't belong in
certain spaces, especially if we don't see ourselves in them.
But Linda Garcia, who we just heard at the top
of the show, is changing the paradigm, and not with
the stuffy three piece suit, but with the cool, relaxed
vibe that exudes. I am a proud Latina, and she
(01:44):
helps us understand that investing and the stock market is
for all of us, whether we wear tailored suits or tracksuits.
Linda helps us understand that we also need to get
a piece of that American pie. Before we start with
the interview, I need to say a disclaimer. I am
not a financial advisor. The content presented in this episode
(02:07):
is not intended to be a substitute for professional financial advice,
nor should it be interpreted as such. We strongly recommend
consulting with the qualified financial advisor before making any financial decisions.
Any reliance you place on the information provided is that
your own risk, and we shall not be liable for
(02:28):
any loss or damage, including but not limited to financial
loss in direct or consequential loss, or any loss arising
from the use of this information. You should carefully consider
your own financial situation, objectives, risk tolerance, and seek professional
advice before making any investment decisions. Understood and thendido. Okay,
(02:51):
let's go okay, all right, there is so much to
dive into, right. The biggest thing that happened was a
launch of your book, Wealth Warrior, Eight Steps for Communities
of Color to Conquer the stock Market. And I really
love the title Wealth Think You Warrior because I'm all
(03:11):
about Las Gerera's No Strong Women, and you really empower
the audience and your readers to feel like warriors when
we're combating, or when we're learning, or we're in frintan though,
all things about money that, as you know, have been
a source of pain for a lot of us for
(03:32):
so many different reasons. So talk to us about the book.
Speaker 1 (03:37):
Yes, So the book is out in stores now, and
it's a book that takes on the eight simple steps
and lays the land of the stock market, but deeply
rooted in the book and one of the first steps
is something that I call money wounds, and that's making
us really take a closer look at our relationship with money.
(03:59):
I think you pointed out that for so many of
us it has been an extremely challenging relationship, and so
I want to make sure that as you're reading the book,
we take that on first and foremost, because for me,
I really believe that it doesn't matter how much financial
literacy you take in. It's going to be what you
(04:20):
do with your relationship with money at the root of it.
If you feel that money is evil or that wealthy
people are greedy, it's going to be almost impossible to
begin generating wealth. We have to really change our perspective
and change our understanding of money. And so I have
the first chapter is what that starts with, and then
(04:41):
I have my entire story interwoven into.
Speaker 3 (04:44):
The book itself.
Speaker 1 (04:45):
I call that sort of a brain break, so that
it's not doesn't feel so heavy or overwhelming. I try
to simplify it as much as possible and at the
same time keep you entertained through the process.
Speaker 2 (04:58):
Right, So, now we're here, what you know? You are
a warrior of finance for our community. But you had
a career in television, and just so we get to
know you a little bit more, if you could tell us.
I understand you were working with the Vestica as like
in sales, and then you moved on to Netflix. What
were you doing at Netflix? Because you weren't in finance there,
(05:19):
you were doing something completely different.
Speaker 1 (05:22):
Absolutely, so I began working in Netflix in operations, which
was something that was completely different than from what I
was doing before, still the entertainment sector. As you pointed out,
I worked right before that at Lionsgate Banthelion Films, where
I was working in marketing and publicity, and then there
was this opportunity to do operations where I would focus
(05:44):
on Latin America and I would manage like their Disney
account and just a lot of their major accounts for
Latin America, and so it required a different part of
the brain. But I think for me, it was obvious
that there would be this incredible opportunity at the point
in time we're talking about Netflix in twenty twelve, when
they first signed the deal to have House of Cards
(06:07):
and Orange is the New Black become one of their
original series.
Speaker 3 (06:11):
They coined that term.
Speaker 1 (06:13):
Everyone uses it now, but that was something that Netflix
came out with, and so I really got to see
this incredible shift and change in media, and I was
on the operation side. I had to use a different
part of my brain that wasn't focused on marketing or publicity.
But what happened there was something that's incredibly powerful that
I know anyone working at a tech company will understand.
(06:36):
There's this knowledge that you start to take in by osmosis.
Speaker 3 (06:40):
Where you are. You start to.
Speaker 1 (06:42):
See money in a completely different way. The first reason
is because in tech companies you have a very nice salary,
and compared to any media, television, movie, studio, anything you've
done before, the pay in tech companies is a lot higher.
That's the first thing. The second thing is you start
to see the flow of money in the way you
(07:05):
experience work. Like we had breakfast every single morning, We
had catered lunches every single lunch. We had a kitchen
that was fully stocked with every single snack and drink
you can imagine. And so coming from Asteca America, coming
from Lionsgate, coming from Panteli on Films, like all of
these other places where I thought that there was money,
(07:26):
I really understood money on a different level. And so
I also understood what capital is and raising capital being
in the tech industry. And so I had a colleague
that began to educate me while I was there on
the stock market. These were normal conversations that were taking
place in the space.
Speaker 3 (07:47):
However, this.
Speaker 1 (07:49):
Colleague had the emotional intelligence to understand that I was
intimidated by the conversation and then I had zero knowledge
and that I may be deflecting or pushing off the
conversation because of my insecurities. And so he educated me
I want to stay for about four months, basically just
talking to me again and again on why I needed
(08:12):
to purchase stock in Netflix. It wasn't something that we received,
or at least maybe we did, and I didn't negotiate
it because I didn't know how to negotiate that into
my salary or that it even mattered. But he really
convinced me that I needed to purchase it, and so
it wasn't It was part that he convinced me, and
then part that I started to see how much money
(08:32):
he and my other colleagues were making. They were openly
showing me their portfolios, and I was in shock because
my understanding at that time of making money was what
my parents taught me, which my mom worked out of Fabrica.
She you know, in Bia Bragasa, she sold thata goles
(08:54):
and she was a babysitter and that was all at
the same time, you know, So that was my you
have to work really hard, multiple jobs, and so to
see that there was a space that we could all
access where we just purchased a share and became a
part owner of a company and that share had the
(09:14):
potential to grow and make a lot of money. Was baffling, Like,
why don't we know about this?
Speaker 2 (09:22):
Right? No, I totally agree with you, and I'm so
excited and happy that there is these conversations happening within
our community. I opened a stock market account or a
fidelity account, and I share with my children. I make
it something that's not foreign and something that's not scary,
(09:43):
and I make it as normal as brushing your teeth, right.
I mean, it's not something that we talk about every
single day, but it's something that I do weave into
the conversation because that financial intelligence is really going to
make a big difference when they grow up. But I
didn't really start learning about the stock market until a
couple of years ago. And a really funny story is
I didn't even know I had like a health savings
(10:06):
account an HSA. Explain what an HSA is, because we
should all have one, right or maybe not?
Speaker 1 (10:12):
You tell me, Yeah, So this is what is really
interesting with an HSA that a lot of people don't know.
But it's a health savings account that you can use to.
Speaker 3 (10:24):
Charge your doctor's.
Speaker 1 (10:26):
Visits, and that money is tax free. In this account,
you can actually start investing into the stock market. So
depending on where you have your your account, mine is
with Fidelity, so you are actually have the ability to
start using that to buy stocks. So basically you can
(10:46):
buy your stocks tax free via that account, which is
really interesting. I highly recommend that anyone speak to their accountant,
their CPA.
Speaker 2 (10:56):
And that's where I was headed where I didn't even know.
I was literally cleaning out my desk. I remember it clearly.
I was cleaning out my desk and I saw like
my little statement of work because I used to work
out one ofvc on as well and different TV stations,
and I was like, what is this. I'm like, so
I called Fidelity and I'm like, okay, I have I
don't work out oneyvc on anymore. I have this lump
(11:16):
sum which wasn't a lot. I think it was like
five hundred dollars in this HSAY account.
Speaker 3 (11:21):
What is it? Blah blah blah.
Speaker 2 (11:22):
He's like, oh, you could either leave it there and
just let it sit, or you can buy stocks. So
I bought two Apple stocks because that's all that it
would afford. And now those two Apple stocks turned into
like forty and now that five hundred dollars turned into
fifteen thousand dollars just by making one phone call, like
and I haven't had a credit and that is incredible.
(11:44):
And I and I tell that story because it was.
It's so scary to think if I would if I
hadn't cleaned my desk and been like been curious, because
I think it starts with curiosity about what is this?
And I just happened to call and the guy was like,
you could just buy it, and I was like, eh,
I have an Apple phone, let me try it. And
now that ffy five hundred turned into fifteen thousand. And
(12:05):
that's the power of knowledge, and that's the power of conversations.
But one phone call, I earned fifteen thousand dollars. I mean,
obviously it took years. It took about ten years, or
however maybe a little less than ten years.
Speaker 3 (12:16):
But wow, I mean, I want to highlight this.
Speaker 1 (12:21):
There's several things I want to highlight here because I
don't want this to go past anyone that is listening
right now. She made fifteen thousand. You made fifteen thousand
dollars in making one phone call that took you I
don't know how many minutes. It's a passive investment. It's
not something that you had to look at every single
day or stress about.
Speaker 3 (12:40):
It was five.
Speaker 1 (12:41):
Hundred dollars something that you emotionally parted with, and you
probably thought, I didn't even know this money was here.
I might as well just buy a share and see
what this is all about. And then you have fifteen
thousand dollars later. So the reason that two shares were
purchased and then it turned into so many more shares
is something that we call a split. And companies, when
(13:02):
the shares start to get really quote unquote expensive, the
value starts to increase because the company is valued more,
more folks start to buy in and buy shares, the
company becomes more popular. What the company will do is
they will turn your one share into ten or twenty.
It just depends on what the company wants to do.
(13:24):
And so you've got to benefit from that split. It
attracts more investors into the company. And not only are
you a consumer of the product, but you are now
part owner of the product. And I think that is
what's most important. And I also want to highlight the
simplicity of it. Sometimes we overcomplicate.
Speaker 3 (13:45):
The stock market.
Speaker 1 (13:46):
And that's why I break it down really simple in
the book, in that you're not looking for a needle
in a haystack. When you're looking for a company to
invest in. It's not something that's hidden or that nobody
knows about. That's not the kind of company you want
to invent. You want to invest into the company that
you're most likely using. You understand the product as a consumer,
(14:07):
and everyone around.
Speaker 3 (14:09):
You is using.
Speaker 1 (14:10):
Those are going to be the safest companies to invest in.
Warren Buffett built his wealth on investing into Johnson and Johnson,
Coca Cola, and McDonald's. It wasn't on something elusive, it
was on something that he was using, continues to use,
(14:30):
continues to be a shareholder of. And so you know
this is this makes me so excited that you had
this experience, because I'm trying to explain the experience to folks,
but to get to speak to someone that has had
it is validation of the.
Speaker 2 (14:49):
Work, right and check this out for usting on. The
kick with this whole experience was that the HSA they
send you a credit card, and now when I have
a deductible doctor's bill, et cetera. Anything considered medical. I
can use that credit card, which will be deducted from
my HSA, but then it's all like tax deductible, so
(15:10):
I can put in more money. And it's just a
really nice system, and it's I started to take the
approach of looking at money and investing in all of
this as a game. Like my kids, my family, we
love to play Monopoly. We love to play that game. Right,
So I started to like detach myself from the emotionality
of it, because sometimes the emotionality makes you scared of
(15:33):
making decisions. So instead I look at it as a
fun game. And I started investing more in stocks, and
I started to look into real estate, and I started
to like have a shared stock account with my kids,
and I look at it almost every single day of
my stocks and this and that. And I even have
this platform that calculates your net worth et cetera, like
(15:55):
your credit card, dead and your stocks and compiles it all.
And to me, I'm like, as long as I look
at it with joy instead of with sane and anguish,
I'm good. And it's fun. It's fun because I'm not
losing my shirt, you know what. I mean, I'm not
like ye like mortgaging my house to buy stocks or anything.
I'm just kind of taking it one step at a
(16:16):
time and I'm learning. I'm like I'm a novice. I'm learning.
And that's why I'm so excited that you have this
book out that I'm talking to you, because there's so
much to learn, right And it's so sad according to
your book that only point four percent of latinos own stock.
Time for a quick break, We'll be right back. Not
(16:41):
only point four percent of latinos own stock. That is
mind blowing.
Speaker 1 (16:49):
It just it just changed two point five percent recently.
I like to hope that we're moving the needle with
the book and the education and the resources, and we
continue to move that needle. But it is so sad
to see those types of numbers and just the contrast,
you know, of like what the numbers for everyone else
(17:11):
looks like. And it's just so heartbreaking. But I love
your approach in that you're a student and that you're
finding joy and that you're emotionally disconnecting from the investment process.
This is something that I go into detail in the book.
I think this is the correct way to start this journey.
(17:31):
It's like the book is meant to really give you
the blue not the blueprint, excuse me, the lay of
the land, like the map. This is the map, this
is what this is called over here, this is it
gives you a tour of it.
Speaker 3 (17:44):
And then it is.
Speaker 1 (17:46):
And then I go into the book explaining how the
market is your teacher.
Speaker 3 (17:50):
I'm not a teacher of it.
Speaker 1 (17:52):
The market itself and you and your emotions and how
you react and how you treat your relationship with the
market and your relationship with money, that is going to
be your ultimate teacher. And it gives you this power
that is incredible. I love to see women talking about
stocks and investing because you can just see the confidence
(18:13):
exuding from understanding one of the most important systems in
our country, you know.
Speaker 3 (18:21):
So it's it's.
Speaker 1 (18:22):
Very encouraging to hear your story. Thank you for sharing
that with me. It makes me super like proud, like Gus.
Speaker 3 (18:29):
There's more of us out there.
Speaker 2 (18:31):
No, definitely. And the key to and you say this
in your book, is that you don't need to have
thousands of dollars to invest. You can have so like
fifty dollars, one hundred dollars, right there's a lot of
different levels. So you could start small and start experimenting.
If you're scared, if you don't have five hundred dollars
to invest, and you're maybe a little scared because that
(18:52):
would be your maybe your groceries for the month or whatever,
you can start small.
Speaker 3 (18:57):
So talk to us about that. How small can you start?
Speaker 2 (19:00):
What what would be the first step you would recommend
if someone is ready to buy that first stock?
Speaker 3 (19:07):
Yeah? Absolutely. So.
Speaker 1 (19:09):
There's something that is called a fractional share. This is
something that is relatively new, and a fractional share means
that you can own a piece of a share, you
don't have to necessarily own the entire share. Just as
an example, let's say that there is a company out
there that you want to invest in, and each share
is currently trading, it's currently worth on the stock market
(19:31):
for about let's just say one hundred and fifty dollars,
and you want.
Speaker 3 (19:35):
To start off slow.
Speaker 1 (19:36):
That scares you, that's that rightfully, So you're in a
territory you don't know of, so those emotions are normal.
What you can do is take ten dollars, even five
dollars one dollar if you want it. You take as
much as you want, and you can buy a fraction
of a share.
Speaker 3 (19:55):
The fraction is.
Speaker 1 (19:55):
Dependent on how much you want to invest, how many
dollars I just mentioned five, ten, fifteen, twenty, and.
Speaker 3 (20:03):
Then you own that fraction of that share.
Speaker 1 (20:07):
And this is something that you can implement for yourself monthly.
And the idea with this number is truly just for
you to see the way the market moves how much
money you've gained. After a certain period of time, you
will start to see your confidence in your perspective and
your understanding and money begin to shift and in the
(20:27):
same way of like you know, my two shares turned
into forty turned into fifteen thousand dollars. That's the that's
the teacher, that is that's who has been educating you,
is the market through time. And so we want for
the community to have this type of experience with even
just a small amount whatever it is that you can
(20:48):
emotionally part with so that you're not stressed and just
move through the process and see what that's like for you.
Speaker 2 (20:57):
Right, Because one of the quotes in your book is
scared money, don't make money. What does that mean?
Speaker 1 (21:06):
Yeah, So you know we have been we have a
lot of fear tied towards money. There's so much emotion
there and like what if I don't have enough? What
if I lose it all? There's all of these what
ifs that are truly rooted in fear. And what I
want you to understand about money the most is that
money doesn't grow and doesn't like like, let's pretend money
(21:30):
is a person. Money as a person does not thrive
in the space of you exchanging your time for money.
Speaker 3 (21:38):
It's just an exchange.
Speaker 1 (21:39):
Sure, you can have me for time, that's fine, But
money isn't happy and thriving in that type of exchange.
Money is happy and thriving when you put it out
to work. And the way I want you to look
at it is in a very simple way. My son
was one super into ants when he was younger, and
we began studying the ann And upon studying, we found
(22:02):
out that the queen clones herself, She reproduces herself, and
then she sends out her clones into different parts of
the colony because she is multiplying the multiplying herself. She
understands that she can multiply herself. I want you to
look at yourself as if you are the Queen Aunt,
(22:22):
and your dollars, the ones you exchange for your time,
you can actually send them out to an investment. And
there's different ways to invest. That can be real estate,
it can be the stock market. But I want you
to know that the stock market is accessible to you,
despite what.
Speaker 3 (22:37):
We've been told.
Speaker 1 (22:38):
And so you can send that money out to work,
and that money is happy in that space. Like the ant,
it can clone itself and it thrives, it duplicates itself.
It's the only place where money can duplicate itself is
via an investment. And so I want you to look
at it like that. So instead of fearing it, understand
(22:59):
that that's.
Speaker 3 (22:59):
How it reps produces. It doesn't.
Speaker 1 (23:02):
It exchanges itself in for money for time, excuse me,
when you work for time. But it does not reproduce
when you work for it, only when you invest. And
so the idea here is to really let go of
that fear and to start using it for the tool.
Speaker 3 (23:21):
That it is.
Speaker 2 (23:22):
Right, So what are your thoughts on real estate investment?
Speaker 1 (23:25):
I so there are three ways to create generational wealth
in this country. The first way is by starting a company,
leveraging employees for your personal time and have them working
and have them compensated. You know, your idea has to
be profitable, and it can get extremely complex very fast.
Speaker 3 (23:45):
Right.
Speaker 1 (23:46):
That's one way, and another way is via real estate,
and then the third way is via the stock market.
So there's only three ways. With real estate, you're leveraging alone.
You're getting alan from the bank and you're using that
as leverage. Your first house is not an asset yet.
(24:06):
It could become an asset, but it's not an asset
until you are generating money from it, until it's making
you profit.
Speaker 3 (24:14):
Right.
Speaker 1 (24:14):
I think that all three ways to build generational wealth
are important. They may not be suited for everyone, or
they may not be suited right now for everyone. So
it may be a bit difficult for someone right now.
Speaker 3 (24:29):
To purchase a house.
Speaker 1 (24:30):
They might not have the two year history of work
it requires, they might not have the down payment, they
might not have the credit. But when you try to
get the stock as an asset, a share as an asset,
it doesn't matter your credit history, it doesn't matter your
work history, None of those things matters. The only thing
that matters is that you have a Social Security number
(24:51):
or an ITI in number. So a doctor recipient can
open up a portfolio as well, and you can own
an asset tomorrow.
Speaker 3 (25:00):
So I don't think that real estate is.
Speaker 1 (25:04):
Better than the stock market, and I don't think that
the stock market is better than real estate. I think
it's important for us to understand both and not discount
one over the other, and see the advantages of the
stock market in that it can be accessible in your
life sooner, Like your children are already shareholders and they
might not be able to purchase a house right now,
(25:26):
or you know, do enough chores to collect the money
to purchase a house right now, or you know, but
they can do enough chores to collect the money to
purchase a share And so yeah, I think that that
real estate is equally important, but I think that there
are pros and cons to both.
Speaker 2 (25:45):
Right, you had mentioned that you bought your house. You
took out money to buy your house from the stock market,
and you were scared. That not scared, but it was like, Okay,
the decision of if I keep it in the stock market,
it's going to keep growing. But I'm curious, did that
money grow in as far as equity in your house?
Speaker 1 (26:03):
Yes, so it has grown as far as equity, Absolutely,
it has grown by I want to say almost seventy
five thousand dollars, so it has grown a lot. But
I have to tell you if I measure it against
the stock market, the stock market wins.
Speaker 3 (26:24):
The good thing is.
Speaker 1 (26:25):
That I only took a third of that investment out,
so so another third was used to invest in other companies,
and then the other third is still in there right now.
Speaker 2 (26:38):
And I know that you've been very transparent with your money,
and you know all of that, so you're a millionaire.
Speaker 3 (26:46):
Correct.
Speaker 2 (26:50):
Oh, so sorry, we will have to leave you with
this cliffhanger. Linda answers that question and other more personal
ones in Part two, which will air next week. In
the second portion of the interview, we dive deeper into
her childhood money trauma, as Linda shares very personal stories.
Speaker 1 (27:11):
And so sometimes my mom, like I mentioned, she was
working the five day Guy and cleaning houses and she
didn't have enough time every day to wash my underwear
by hand.
Speaker 2 (27:21):
Thank you so much for listening. I hope you learned
something today. I know I did. Please subscribe and give
us a review, tell your friends and go Madrees about
our podcast, and hope you join us next week. Latinas
take the Lead is executive produced by Hodston Reinoso Media Group,
LLC and hosted by me naive Renos Production assistant is
(27:41):
Ana Sofia Monson Latinus Take the Lead is a production
of the Seneco Women Podcast Network and iHeartRadio. For more
podcasts from iHeartRadio, check out the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts,
or wherever you listen to your favorite shows. Asta Laproxima Again,
we strongly recommend consulting with the qualified financial advisor before
(28:03):
making any financial decisions. Any reliance you place on the
information provided is at your own risk, and we shall
not be liable for any loss or damage, including but
not limited to financial loss, indirect or consequential loss, or
any loss arising from the use of this information. You
should carefully consider your own financial situation objectives, risk tolerance,
(28:23):
and seek professional advice before making any investment decisions.
The market itself and you and your emotions and how
you react and how you treat your relationship with the
market and your relationship with money. That is going to
be your ultimate teacher, and it gives you this power
that is incredible. I love to see women talking about
stocks and investing because you can just see the confidence
(00:29):
exuding from understanding one of the most important systems in
our country.
Speaker 2 (00:38):
Welcome to Latinas, take the lead. Does anybody else get
excited when you hear words like stocks, wall Street, NASDAC?
I do, But it took me a long time to
learn to explore investing and not fear it. And if
you ever saw the eighties movie Wall Street, starring Charlie
Sheen and Michael Douglas, about ambitious New York stockbrokers who
(01:01):
live by the mantra greed is good, you probably unconsciously
felt that Wall Street did equal greed, excess and the
ultimate downfall of the movie's main characters. You probably also
noticed that the movie was filled with white men doing
all the stock buying and trading. But dondes Latinas, from
(01:22):
an early age, we feel like we don't belong in
certain spaces, especially if we don't see ourselves in them.
But Linda Garcia, who we just heard at the top
of the show, is changing the paradigm, and not with
the stuffy three piece suit, but with the cool, relaxed
vibe that exudes. I am a proud Latina, and she
(01:44):
helps us understand that investing and the stock market is
for all of us, whether we wear tailored suits or tracksuits.
Linda helps us understand that we also need to get
a piece of that American pie. Before we start with
the interview, I need to say a disclaimer. I am
not a financial advisor. The content presented in this episode
(02:07):
is not intended to be a substitute for professional financial advice,
nor should it be interpreted as such. We strongly recommend
consulting with the qualified financial advisor before making any financial decisions.
Any reliance you place on the information provided is that
your own risk, and we shall not be liable for
(02:28):
any loss or damage, including but not limited to financial
loss in direct or consequential loss, or any loss arising
from the use of this information. You should carefully consider
your own financial situation, objectives, risk tolerance, and seek professional
advice before making any investment decisions. Understood and thendido. Okay,
(02:51):
let's go okay, all right, there is so much to
dive into, right. The biggest thing that happened was a
launch of your book, Wealth Warrior, Eight Steps for Communities
of Color to Conquer the stock Market. And I really
love the title Wealth Think You Warrior because I'm all
(03:11):
about Las Gerera's No Strong Women, and you really empower
the audience and your readers to feel like warriors when
we're combating, or when we're learning, or we're in frintan though,
all things about money that, as you know, have been
a source of pain for a lot of us for
(03:32):
so many different reasons. So talk to us about the book.
Speaker 1 (03:37):
Yes, So the book is out in stores now, and
it's a book that takes on the eight simple steps
and lays the land of the stock market, but deeply
rooted in the book and one of the first steps
is something that I call money wounds, and that's making
us really take a closer look at our relationship with money.
(03:59):
I think you pointed out that for so many of
us it has been an extremely challenging relationship, and so
I want to make sure that as you're reading the book,
we take that on first and foremost, because for me,
I really believe that it doesn't matter how much financial
literacy you take in. It's going to be what you
(04:20):
do with your relationship with money at the root of it.
If you feel that money is evil or that wealthy
people are greedy, it's going to be almost impossible to
begin generating wealth. We have to really change our perspective
and change our understanding of money. And so I have
the first chapter is what that starts with, and then
(04:41):
I have my entire story interwoven into.
Speaker 3 (04:44):
The book itself.
Speaker 1 (04:45):
I call that sort of a brain break, so that
it's not doesn't feel so heavy or overwhelming. I try
to simplify it as much as possible and at the
same time keep you entertained through the process.
Speaker 2 (04:58):
Right, So, now we're here, what you know? You are
a warrior of finance for our community. But you had
a career in television, and just so we get to
know you a little bit more, if you could tell us.
I understand you were working with the Vestica as like
in sales, and then you moved on to Netflix. What
were you doing at Netflix? Because you weren't in finance there,
(05:19):
you were doing something completely different.
Speaker 1 (05:22):
Absolutely, so I began working in Netflix in operations, which
was something that was completely different than from what I
was doing before, still the entertainment sector. As you pointed out,
I worked right before that at Lionsgate Banthelion Films, where
I was working in marketing and publicity, and then there
was this opportunity to do operations where I would focus
(05:44):
on Latin America and I would manage like their Disney
account and just a lot of their major accounts for
Latin America, and so it required a different part of
the brain. But I think for me, it was obvious
that there would be this incredible opportunity at the point
in time we're talking about Netflix in twenty twelve, when
they first signed the deal to have House of Cards
(06:07):
and Orange is the New Black become one of their
original series.
Speaker 3 (06:11):
They coined that term.
Speaker 1 (06:13):
Everyone uses it now, but that was something that Netflix
came out with, and so I really got to see
this incredible shift and change in media, and I was
on the operation side. I had to use a different
part of my brain that wasn't focused on marketing or publicity.
But what happened there was something that's incredibly powerful that
I know anyone working at a tech company will understand.
(06:36):
There's this knowledge that you start to take in by osmosis.
Speaker 3 (06:40):
Where you are. You start to.
Speaker 1 (06:42):
See money in a completely different way. The first reason
is because in tech companies you have a very nice salary,
and compared to any media, television, movie, studio, anything you've
done before, the pay in tech companies is a lot higher.
That's the first thing. The second thing is you start
to see the flow of money in the way you
(07:05):
experience work. Like we had breakfast every single morning, We
had catered lunches every single lunch. We had a kitchen
that was fully stocked with every single snack and drink
you can imagine. And so coming from Asteca America, coming
from Lionsgate, coming from Panteli on Films, like all of
these other places where I thought that there was money,
(07:26):
I really understood money on a different level. And so
I also understood what capital is and raising capital being
in the tech industry. And so I had a colleague
that began to educate me while I was there on
the stock market. These were normal conversations that were taking
place in the space.
Speaker 3 (07:47):
However, this.
Speaker 1 (07:49):
Colleague had the emotional intelligence to understand that I was
intimidated by the conversation and then I had zero knowledge
and that I may be deflecting or pushing off the
conversation because of my insecurities. And so he educated me
I want to stay for about four months, basically just
talking to me again and again on why I needed
(08:12):
to purchase stock in Netflix. It wasn't something that we received,
or at least maybe we did, and I didn't negotiate
it because I didn't know how to negotiate that into
my salary or that it even mattered. But he really
convinced me that I needed to purchase it, and so
it wasn't It was part that he convinced me, and
then part that I started to see how much money
(08:32):
he and my other colleagues were making. They were openly
showing me their portfolios, and I was in shock because
my understanding at that time of making money was what
my parents taught me, which my mom worked out of Fabrica.
She you know, in Bia Bragasa, she sold thata goles
(08:54):
and she was a babysitter and that was all at
the same time, you know, So that was my you
have to work really hard, multiple jobs, and so to
see that there was a space that we could all
access where we just purchased a share and became a
part owner of a company and that share had the
(09:14):
potential to grow and make a lot of money. Was baffling, Like,
why don't we know about this?
Speaker 2 (09:22):
Right? No, I totally agree with you, and I'm so
excited and happy that there is these conversations happening within
our community. I opened a stock market account or a
fidelity account, and I share with my children. I make
it something that's not foreign and something that's not scary,
(09:43):
and I make it as normal as brushing your teeth, right.
I mean, it's not something that we talk about every
single day, but it's something that I do weave into
the conversation because that financial intelligence is really going to
make a big difference when they grow up. But I
didn't really start learning about the stock market until a
couple of years ago. And a really funny story is
I didn't even know I had like a health savings
(10:06):
account an HSA. Explain what an HSA is, because we
should all have one, right or maybe not?
Speaker 1 (10:12):
You tell me, Yeah, So this is what is really
interesting with an HSA that a lot of people don't know.
But it's a health savings account that you can use to.
Speaker 3 (10:24):
Charge your doctor's.
Speaker 1 (10:26):
Visits, and that money is tax free. In this account,
you can actually start investing into the stock market. So
depending on where you have your your account, mine is
with Fidelity, so you are actually have the ability to
start using that to buy stocks. So basically you can
(10:46):
buy your stocks tax free via that account, which is
really interesting. I highly recommend that anyone speak to their accountant,
their CPA.
Speaker 2 (10:56):
And that's where I was headed where I didn't even know.
I was literally cleaning out my desk. I remember it clearly.
I was cleaning out my desk and I saw like
my little statement of work because I used to work
out one ofvc on as well and different TV stations,
and I was like, what is this. I'm like, so
I called Fidelity and I'm like, okay, I have I
don't work out oneyvc on anymore. I have this lump
(11:16):
sum which wasn't a lot. I think it was like
five hundred dollars in this HSAY account.
Speaker 3 (11:21):
What is it? Blah blah blah.
Speaker 2 (11:22):
He's like, oh, you could either leave it there and
just let it sit, or you can buy stocks. So
I bought two Apple stocks because that's all that it
would afford. And now those two Apple stocks turned into
like forty and now that five hundred dollars turned into
fifteen thousand dollars just by making one phone call, like
and I haven't had a credit and that is incredible.
(11:44):
And I and I tell that story because it was.
It's so scary to think if I would if I
hadn't cleaned my desk and been like been curious, because
I think it starts with curiosity about what is this?
And I just happened to call and the guy was like,
you could just buy it, and I was like, eh,
I have an Apple phone, let me try it. And
now that ffy five hundred turned into fifteen thousand. And
(12:05):
that's the power of knowledge, and that's the power of conversations.
But one phone call, I earned fifteen thousand dollars. I mean,
obviously it took years. It took about ten years, or
however maybe a little less than ten years.
Speaker 3 (12:16):
But wow, I mean, I want to highlight this.
Speaker 1 (12:21):
There's several things I want to highlight here because I
don't want this to go past anyone that is listening
right now. She made fifteen thousand. You made fifteen thousand
dollars in making one phone call that took you I
don't know how many minutes. It's a passive investment. It's
not something that you had to look at every single
day or stress about.
Speaker 3 (12:40):
It was five.
Speaker 1 (12:41):
Hundred dollars something that you emotionally parted with, and you
probably thought, I didn't even know this money was here.
I might as well just buy a share and see
what this is all about. And then you have fifteen
thousand dollars later. So the reason that two shares were
purchased and then it turned into so many more shares
is something that we call a split. And companies, when
(13:02):
the shares start to get really quote unquote expensive, the
value starts to increase because the company is valued more,
more folks start to buy in and buy shares, the
company becomes more popular. What the company will do is
they will turn your one share into ten or twenty.
It just depends on what the company wants to do.
(13:24):
And so you've got to benefit from that split. It
attracts more investors into the company. And not only are
you a consumer of the product, but you are now
part owner of the product. And I think that is
what's most important. And I also want to highlight the
simplicity of it. Sometimes we overcomplicate.
Speaker 3 (13:45):
The stock market.
Speaker 1 (13:46):
And that's why I break it down really simple in
the book, in that you're not looking for a needle
in a haystack. When you're looking for a company to
invest in. It's not something that's hidden or that nobody
knows about. That's not the kind of company you want
to invent. You want to invest into the company that
you're most likely using. You understand the product as a consumer,
(14:07):
and everyone around.
Speaker 3 (14:09):
You is using.
Speaker 1 (14:10):
Those are going to be the safest companies to invest in.
Warren Buffett built his wealth on investing into Johnson and Johnson,
Coca Cola, and McDonald's. It wasn't on something elusive, it
was on something that he was using, continues to use,
(14:30):
continues to be a shareholder of. And so you know
this is this makes me so excited that you had
this experience, because I'm trying to explain the experience to folks,
but to get to speak to someone that has had
it is validation of the.
Speaker 2 (14:49):
Work, right and check this out for usting on. The
kick with this whole experience was that the HSA they
send you a credit card, and now when I have
a deductible doctor's bill, et cetera. Anything considered medical. I
can use that credit card, which will be deducted from
my HSA, but then it's all like tax deductible, so
(15:10):
I can put in more money. And it's just a
really nice system, and it's I started to take the
approach of looking at money and investing in all of
this as a game. Like my kids, my family, we
love to play Monopoly. We love to play that game. Right,
So I started to like detach myself from the emotionality
of it, because sometimes the emotionality makes you scared of
(15:33):
making decisions. So instead I look at it as a
fun game. And I started investing more in stocks, and
I started to look into real estate, and I started
to like have a shared stock account with my kids,
and I look at it almost every single day of
my stocks and this and that. And I even have
this platform that calculates your net worth et cetera, like
(15:55):
your credit card, dead and your stocks and compiles it all.
And to me, I'm like, as long as I look
at it with joy instead of with sane and anguish,
I'm good. And it's fun. It's fun because I'm not
losing my shirt, you know what. I mean, I'm not
like ye like mortgaging my house to buy stocks or anything.
I'm just kind of taking it one step at a
(16:16):
time and I'm learning. I'm like I'm a novice. I'm learning.
And that's why I'm so excited that you have this
book out that I'm talking to you, because there's so
much to learn, right And it's so sad according to
your book that only point four percent of latinos own stock.
Time for a quick break, We'll be right back. Not
(16:41):
only point four percent of latinos own stock. That is
mind blowing.
Speaker 1 (16:49):
It just it just changed two point five percent recently.
I like to hope that we're moving the needle with
the book and the education and the resources, and we
continue to move that needle. But it is so sad
to see those types of numbers and just the contrast,
you know, of like what the numbers for everyone else
(17:11):
looks like. And it's just so heartbreaking. But I love
your approach in that you're a student and that you're
finding joy and that you're emotionally disconnecting from the investment process.
This is something that I go into detail in the book.
I think this is the correct way to start this journey.
(17:31):
It's like the book is meant to really give you
the blue not the blueprint, excuse me, the lay of
the land, like the map. This is the map, this
is what this is called over here, this is it
gives you a tour of it.
Speaker 3 (17:44):
And then it is.
Speaker 1 (17:46):
And then I go into the book explaining how the
market is your teacher.
Speaker 3 (17:50):
I'm not a teacher of it.
Speaker 1 (17:52):
The market itself and you and your emotions and how
you react and how you treat your relationship with the
market and your relationship with money, that is going to
be your ultimate teacher. And it gives you this power
that is incredible. I love to see women talking about
stocks and investing because you can just see the confidence
(18:13):
exuding from understanding one of the most important systems in
our country, you know.
Speaker 3 (18:21):
So it's it's.
Speaker 1 (18:22):
Very encouraging to hear your story. Thank you for sharing
that with me. It makes me super like proud, like Gus.
Speaker 3 (18:29):
There's more of us out there.
Speaker 2 (18:31):
No, definitely. And the key to and you say this
in your book, is that you don't need to have
thousands of dollars to invest. You can have so like
fifty dollars, one hundred dollars, right there's a lot of
different levels. So you could start small and start experimenting.
If you're scared, if you don't have five hundred dollars
to invest, and you're maybe a little scared because that
(18:52):
would be your maybe your groceries for the month or whatever,
you can start small.
Speaker 3 (18:57):
So talk to us about that. How small can you start?
Speaker 2 (19:00):
What what would be the first step you would recommend
if someone is ready to buy that first stock?
Speaker 3 (19:07):
Yeah? Absolutely. So.
Speaker 1 (19:09):
There's something that is called a fractional share. This is
something that is relatively new, and a fractional share means
that you can own a piece of a share, you
don't have to necessarily own the entire share. Just as
an example, let's say that there is a company out
there that you want to invest in, and each share
is currently trading, it's currently worth on the stock market
(19:31):
for about let's just say one hundred and fifty dollars,
and you want.
Speaker 3 (19:35):
To start off slow.
Speaker 1 (19:36):
That scares you, that's that rightfully, So you're in a
territory you don't know of, so those emotions are normal.
What you can do is take ten dollars, even five
dollars one dollar if you want it. You take as
much as you want, and you can buy a fraction
of a share.
Speaker 3 (19:55):
The fraction is.
Speaker 1 (19:55):
Dependent on how much you want to invest, how many
dollars I just mentioned five, ten, fifteen, twenty, and.
Speaker 3 (20:03):
Then you own that fraction of that share.
Speaker 1 (20:07):
And this is something that you can implement for yourself monthly.
And the idea with this number is truly just for
you to see the way the market moves how much
money you've gained. After a certain period of time, you
will start to see your confidence in your perspective and
your understanding and money begin to shift and in the
(20:27):
same way of like you know, my two shares turned
into forty turned into fifteen thousand dollars. That's the that's
the teacher, that is that's who has been educating you,
is the market through time. And so we want for
the community to have this type of experience with even
just a small amount whatever it is that you can
(20:48):
emotionally part with so that you're not stressed and just
move through the process and see what that's like for you.
Speaker 2 (20:57):
Right, Because one of the quotes in your book is
scared money, don't make money. What does that mean?
Speaker 1 (21:06):
Yeah, So you know we have been we have a
lot of fear tied towards money. There's so much emotion
there and like what if I don't have enough? What
if I lose it all? There's all of these what
ifs that are truly rooted in fear. And what I
want you to understand about money the most is that
money doesn't grow and doesn't like like, let's pretend money
(21:30):
is a person. Money as a person does not thrive
in the space of you exchanging your time for money.
Speaker 3 (21:38):
It's just an exchange.
Speaker 1 (21:39):
Sure, you can have me for time, that's fine, But
money isn't happy and thriving in that type of exchange.
Money is happy and thriving when you put it out
to work. And the way I want you to look
at it is in a very simple way. My son
was one super into ants when he was younger, and
we began studying the ann And upon studying, we found
(22:02):
out that the queen clones herself, She reproduces herself, and
then she sends out her clones into different parts of
the colony because she is multiplying the multiplying herself. She
understands that she can multiply herself. I want you to
look at yourself as if you are the Queen Aunt,
(22:22):
and your dollars, the ones you exchange for your time,
you can actually send them out to an investment. And
there's different ways to invest. That can be real estate,
it can be the stock market. But I want you
to know that the stock market is accessible to you,
despite what.
Speaker 3 (22:37):
We've been told.
Speaker 1 (22:38):
And so you can send that money out to work,
and that money is happy in that space. Like the ant,
it can clone itself and it thrives, it duplicates itself.
It's the only place where money can duplicate itself is
via an investment. And so I want you to look
at it like that. So instead of fearing it, understand
(22:59):
that that's.
Speaker 3 (22:59):
How it reps produces. It doesn't.
Speaker 1 (23:02):
It exchanges itself in for money for time, excuse me,
when you work for time. But it does not reproduce
when you work for it, only when you invest. And
so the idea here is to really let go of
that fear and to start using it for the tool.
Speaker 3 (23:21):
That it is.
Speaker 2 (23:22):
Right, So what are your thoughts on real estate investment?
Speaker 1 (23:25):
I so there are three ways to create generational wealth
in this country. The first way is by starting a company,
leveraging employees for your personal time and have them working
and have them compensated. You know, your idea has to
be profitable, and it can get extremely complex very fast.
Speaker 3 (23:45):
Right.
Speaker 1 (23:46):
That's one way, and another way is via real estate,
and then the third way is via the stock market.
So there's only three ways. With real estate, you're leveraging alone.
You're getting alan from the bank and you're using that
as leverage. Your first house is not an asset yet.
(24:06):
It could become an asset, but it's not an asset
until you are generating money from it, until it's making
you profit.
Speaker 3 (24:14):
Right.
Speaker 1 (24:14):
I think that all three ways to build generational wealth
are important. They may not be suited for everyone, or
they may not be suited right now for everyone. So
it may be a bit difficult for someone right now.
Speaker 3 (24:29):
To purchase a house.
Speaker 1 (24:30):
They might not have the two year history of work
it requires, they might not have the down payment, they
might not have the credit. But when you try to
get the stock as an asset, a share as an asset,
it doesn't matter your credit history, it doesn't matter your
work history, None of those things matters. The only thing
that matters is that you have a Social Security number
(24:51):
or an ITI in number. So a doctor recipient can
open up a portfolio as well, and you can own
an asset tomorrow.
Speaker 3 (25:00):
So I don't think that real estate is.
Speaker 1 (25:04):
Better than the stock market, and I don't think that
the stock market is better than real estate. I think
it's important for us to understand both and not discount
one over the other, and see the advantages of the
stock market in that it can be accessible in your
life sooner, Like your children are already shareholders and they
might not be able to purchase a house right now,
(25:26):
or you know, do enough chores to collect the money
to purchase a house right now, or you know, but
they can do enough chores to collect the money to
purchase a share And so yeah, I think that that
real estate is equally important, but I think that there
are pros and cons to both.
Speaker 2 (25:45):
Right, you had mentioned that you bought your house. You
took out money to buy your house from the stock market,
and you were scared. That not scared, but it was like, Okay,
the decision of if I keep it in the stock market,
it's going to keep growing. But I'm curious, did that
money grow in as far as equity in your house?
Speaker 1 (26:03):
Yes, so it has grown as far as equity, Absolutely,
it has grown by I want to say almost seventy
five thousand dollars, so it has grown a lot. But
I have to tell you if I measure it against
the stock market, the stock market wins.
Speaker 3 (26:24):
The good thing is.
Speaker 1 (26:25):
That I only took a third of that investment out,
so so another third was used to invest in other companies,
and then the other third is still in there right now.
Speaker 2 (26:38):
And I know that you've been very transparent with your money,
and you know all of that, so you're a millionaire.
Speaker 3 (26:46):
Correct.
Speaker 2 (26:50):
Oh, so sorry, we will have to leave you with
this cliffhanger. Linda answers that question and other more personal
ones in Part two, which will air next week. In
the second portion of the interview, we dive deeper into
her childhood money trauma, as Linda shares very personal stories.
Speaker 1 (27:11):
And so sometimes my mom, like I mentioned, she was
working the five day Guy and cleaning houses and she
didn't have enough time every day to wash my underwear
by hand.
Speaker 2 (27:21):
Thank you so much for listening. I hope you learned
something today. I know I did. Please subscribe and give
us a review, tell your friends and go Madrees about
our podcast, and hope you join us next week. Latinas
take the Lead is executive produced by Hodston Reinoso Media Group,
LLC and hosted by me naive Renos Production assistant is
(27:41):
Ana Sofia Monson Latinus Take the Lead is a production
of the Seneco Women Podcast Network and iHeartRadio. For more
podcasts from iHeartRadio, check out the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts,
or wherever you listen to your favorite shows. Asta Laproxima Again,
we strongly recommend consulting with the qualified financial advisor before
(28:03):
making any financial decisions. Any reliance you place on the
information provided is at your own risk, and we shall
not be liable for any loss or damage, including but
not limited to financial loss, indirect or consequential loss, or
any loss arising from the use of this information. You
should carefully consider your own financial situation objectives, risk tolerance,
(28:23):
and seek professional advice before making any investment decisions.
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Current and classic episodes, featuring compelling true-crime mysteries, powerful documentaries and in-depth investigations. Follow now to get the latest episodes of Dateline NBC completely free, or subscribe to Dateline Premium for ad-free listening and exclusive bonus content: DatelinePremium.com
On Purpose with Jay Shetty
I’m Jay Shetty host of On Purpose the worlds #1 Mental Health podcast and I’m so grateful you found us. I started this podcast 5 years ago to invite you into conversations and workshops that are designed to help make you happier, healthier and more healed. I believe that when you (yes you) feel seen, heard and understood you’re able to deal with relationship struggles, work challenges and life’s ups and downs with more ease and grace. I interview experts, celebrities, thought leaders and athletes so that we can grow our mindset, build better habits and uncover a side of them we’ve never seen before. New episodes every Monday and Friday. Your support means the world to me and I don’t take it for granted — click the follow button and leave a review to help us spread the love with On Purpose. I can’t wait for you to listen to your first or 500th episode!