January 23, 2025 • 26 mins
The silent roadblocks preventing women entrepreneurs from accessing capital aren't always what you think. While structural barriers exist, the psychological and cultural hurdles often prove more challenging to overcome.
Shannon Lee Reynolds, change leadership consultant, brings powerful insights from her banking and accounting background to unpack these hidden challenges. "Women are nurturers by nature," she explains, highlighting how the constant tug-of-war between professional and personal responsibilities creates unique pressures. But perhaps more surprising is her observation about mentorship: "Women are over-mentored. What they're missing that men are really good at is having sponsors." This distinction between receiving advice versus having someone who actively brings you to the negotiation table and lends their credibility makes all the difference when seeking funding.
The conversation delves into how imposter syndrome and reluctance to ask for appropriate compensation directly impact business growth. Reynolds challenges women entrepreneurs to embrace profitability without apology: "The key to owning a business versus having a hobby is that our business makes us money—and we, as women, need to be okay with making money." She provides actionable strategies for building confidence through strategic planning, setting boundaries, and surrounding yourself with people who push you beyond comfort zones.
For women seeking equity funding, preparation is essential. Understanding your business's financial story—where you've been, where you are now, and where you want to go—creates confidence both in yourself and potential lenders. The most powerful takeaway? "We do not need to ask permission to be successful." As digital transformation and increased focus on diversity create new opportunities, women entrepreneurs who embrace change, remain adaptable, and aren't afraid to scale will find themselves uniquely positioned for success.
Ready to break through your funding barriers? Visit tdjequityllc.net to connect with professionals who can help you navigate the path to financial capital and business growth.
If you need assistance in obtaining funding, email us at podcast@tdjequityfundinginsiders.net. Tell what the scope of funding is needed and the amount. A broker will contact you to discuss your funding needs. And remember, at TDJ Equity Funding, we do not force your funding needs into a lender's box but find a lender's box that fits you!
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Episode Transcript
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Speaker 1 (00:13):
Ready to get the inside scoop on equity funding?
Tune in to TDJ Equity FundingInsiders Podcast for an in-depth
look at what it takes to accessfinancial capital and maximize
your investments.
Hear from experiencedprofessionals, including bankers
, underwriters, loan officersand industry experts, as they
(00:36):
share their unfiltered storiesand valuable lessons on securing
funds.
Speaker 2 (00:45):
We're thrilled to welcome you to our exciting new
webinar series Giving Power tothe Business Owner.
This series empowers you withthe knowledge, strategy and
tools you need to take yourbusiness to new heights.
In partnership with leadingexperts from complementary
industry, we're bringing you adiverse lineup of sessions that
will cover a range of topicsthat's really crucial to the
(01:07):
growth of your business.
Hi, I'm Jacqueline Jackson andI'm a loan broker with TDJ
Equity.
We are bringing in from youpeople that can give us from
innovative financing solutionsto effective marketing
strategies, to optimizingoperations, mindsets and
leveraging technology.
We have created a content thataddresses the real-world
(01:29):
challenges and opportunities youface as a business owner.
Our goal is to provide you withactionable takeaways that you
can implement immediately anddrive growth and achievement to
your business.
Okay, so we are now going to getstarted, and I want to start
off by, first of all, we want tothank our guests that we're
(01:50):
having today.
Who we have today that has comefrom Bend, oregon, is Shannon
Lee Reynolds.
She is a change leadershipconsultant, so she's come in to
help talk to us on our givingpower to the business owner and
give us some insights, asbusiness owners, of what we can
do to be to reach thosesuccessful goals.
(02:11):
So again, shannon, thank youfor being a part of our show.
First of all, thank you forhaving me excited to be here.
Yes, ma'am, and we're excitedto have.
Now we do want to find out alittle bit more about you.
I know from talking to you andbeen knowing you for a while,
you have a passion about whatyou do and I love that part, and
(02:32):
so I want you to first tell ourlisteners what is it about?
Why are you so passionate aboutcoaching women, professionals
as well as business owners?
Speaker 3 (02:43):
Yeah, well, I actually started my career in
banking and accounting, whichwas a while ago, and at that
point in time, you know, itstill was very much male
dominated.
Both industries were very muchmale dominated and it was
interesting as I essentiallygrew up through those careers.
(03:07):
What I realized with working inthose industries, and then also
as I started getting intoconsulting and coaching, working
with business owners, is thatwomen truly bring a unique set
of skills, strengths and adifferent perspective to how
they do business and how theymove forward in their careers.
And one of the things that Irecognized when seeing this is
(03:30):
that, while they bring this veryunique perspective, they also
have a very specific set ofchallenges that I think our
culture, as you know, as we moveforward, we've gained some
traction, but I still think thatthere's a lot that we can do as
a society to help navigate someof those challenges.
(03:50):
So my goal in my career isreally to help empower women in
their businesses to navigatesome of those challenges and
pressures that we have out therein the business world, but
still be able to embrace, youknow, the strengths that we
bring to the table as womenbusiness owners.
(04:10):
I think that there's a lot ofvery different perspectives that
can make a company verywell-rounded when we bring our
authentic selves to ourbusinesses and grow in a way
that is true to being a womenbusiness owner and grow in a way
that is true to being a womenbusiness owner.
Speaker 2 (04:29):
Now, what you say I think is great and I definitely
agree, but we know, as women, wehave some challenges.
Like you said, that may notnecessarily be what the male may
have.
So one is dealing with business, in which you and I have talked
on that.
So what type of challenges doyou see, as women, that we have
when it comes to facing, youknow, being professional and
(04:49):
being in a business setting?
What type of challenges do yousee us, as women, having?
Speaker 3 (04:55):
Well, I think the number one thing that I see
stand out is our work lifebalance, because women are,
we're nurturers by nature right,so not our.
Not only are we bringing ahundred percent of ourselves to
work, whether it's in our careeror in our business, but we're
also bringing a hundred percentto our home life as well, and
(05:20):
those are always conflicting andpulling at each other.
So that's definitely achallenge that we have.
Another thing that we see is Isee a lot of women that have
that imposter syndrome, justfeel like they maybe are not
quite sure of themselves.
Do they really deserve to bewhere they at?
And I think a big piece ofwomen in business is a lot of
(05:46):
women, and I am a huge advocatefor this.
I've read this in a coupledifferent places.
We always talk about havingaccess to mentors, that type of
thing, but I think I find thatwomen are over-mentored.
What they're missing that menare really good at is they have,
instead of having mentors, theyhave sponsors and they have
(06:08):
very supportive networks, andthe difference between a mentor
and a sponsor is that you knowin the community they're sitting
down to a table fornegotiations and they're
bringing you in and they'responsoring you into that
(06:30):
situation.
So they're lending theircredibility to you and we
haven't quite gotten that skilldown and I think it's really
important to have that becausewhen we talk about finance
especially women in businessthat because when we talk about
finance, especially women inbusiness that sponsorship
becomes really crucial tounderstanding the ins and outs
(06:52):
of funding, of understandingtheir investment options.
When we have that sponsorshipthat imposter syndrome is less
likely to creep up on us and welearn a little bit more about
some of those ins and outs ofhow we can navigate that
financial, those financialpressures and constraints that
(07:14):
we have.
So having a sponsor and havinga strong network will help us
gain that confidence when itcomes to growing our businesses.
Speaker 2 (07:24):
Just doing it, and I can attest to that too, because,
being a loan broker, we do haveand that's how I want to do the
show too as women, we secondguess ourselves, and so when it
comes to business and we have toput together loan packages and
all of that, we can put ittogether administrative wise.
But I noticed that we kind ofand I'm saying this because I
(07:48):
want you to kind of elaborate onit, if you can that we kind of
have a tendency to hold back andlike, okay, we want you know
five a half a million, but youknow I don't think I can afford
that.
I'll go buy you know a hundredthousand dollars, and not
knowing it all has to do withcash flow.
So we have those things thatkind of stop us.
So, in your experience, whatare some strategies that women
(08:11):
can use that can kind of helpthem maintain that, that, that
to stay on the road, thatintegrity and to stay focused?
Do you have any strategies thatcan help us with that?
Speaker 3 (08:21):
Well, I do.
I think that it's reallyimportant for in business as a
company that you've got a good,strong, diversified team to help
you look at, be strategic inyour thinking.
But I think fundamentally withwomen business owners, quite
often we go into businessbecause we have a passion about
(08:43):
whatever it is that we're doing.
So the key to owning a businessversus having a hobby is is
that our business makes us moneyand we, as women, need to be
okay with making money.
I mean, it's that's what abusiness is for.
So if we can be okay withmaking money but have a clear
vision and abide by that vision,the mission and the values that
(09:06):
we've established in ourbusiness, even as our business
grows, we're always looking tothe future and we're setting
clear value driven goals.
So when we look at what thosegoals are into the future and
what we want for our growth,we're then able to take a step
back and say, okay, what do weneed to hit those value-driven
(09:28):
goals?
And what really happens isusually you've got to spend
money to make money and the onlyway that you're going to attain
that growth, the way that youwant to attain it, is by getting
that funding.
So, understanding what thatfuture growth is and being okay
with that, taking that step outand getting the money that you
need to really finance it andhave the cashflow, because most
(09:53):
businesses have receivables,those types of things, and they
get.
You know, there's certain timesof the month or the cyclical
times of the year where theyhave shortfalls in cash, but
they know maybe three monthsdown the road that they're going
to have a bunch of money comingin.
So understanding the finance andthe strategy that goes along
with finance helps them attainthose goals so much faster and
(10:16):
they can work more effectivelywithin their business and they
can be transparent with all thestakeholders and letting them
know here's what our long-termgoals are.
These are our values, anydecisions that we're going to
make.
We're only going to say yes tothe things that will help us
reach those goals and then, whenthey do that, they can then
demonstrate to their lender thathere's what we said we were
(10:40):
going to do.
These are the steps that we'retaking to make it happen.
These are the steps that we'retaking to make it happen and
when you can show that you havea plan, you're working your plan
and you've taken and you'vedone the things that you've said
that you're going to do andyou're generating that cash flow
.
Now you're more likely as I'msure you can attribute and
verify you're more likely.
When you're making money,you're more likely to be able to
(11:01):
get money to help for thatscaling.
Speaker 2 (11:04):
Right and see, and that's the thing you just
answered is when we ask, like Ihave people have asked, like you
know, why certain businessesseem like you know they're doing
real good and they don't haveto struggle and all of that,
well that the secret to it isnot necessarily a secret, but
it's an old cliche businessplanning.
Everything you just said.
It should be written down andwritten out so you won't make
(11:27):
those mistakes.
But I think the confidence willcome in knowing, like you said,
knowing where you're going,knowing what you're doing, and
that's so important.
It's more and more people arenot doing business plans.
They're just working off theirhip, shannon.
So what do?
Speaker 3 (11:42):
you have to say on that, or or they do the business
plan right.
They spend all of this timemaking the business plan and
it's done, and then they're doneand they put it in a drawer and
they never look at it exactlyexactly, exactly they own.
Speaker 2 (11:54):
It is a strategic plan and that's what I tell
people.
When you do your business plan,you have a business plan, but
we suggest to recommend like youdo too as well, strategic
planning needs to be input Ithink people need to be aware of
and you and I have talked on ityou should have a funding plan
a part of your business plan.
At what point should you getmoney?
(12:15):
Everybody think, oh, when Ifirst started off, I need to get
money.
Okay, you could or could not,but when you're looking at
getting another round of funding, when should you get that and
what should that look like?
Like you said, they have to becash flowing and you have to
really show you making money.
But we still have to look atwhat's your long story, what's
your use of funds, and those arethe things that most of us do
(12:38):
not even know.
And because women have atendency to be and I'm not
trying to say this is putting usdown and we're not we're more
timid than to ask the straight,direct question Am I right or
wrong?
You know, in business,absolutely.
Speaker 3 (12:52):
I think that and again, it's not for all women,
but I do see that a lot of womenthey don't like to negotiate,
they're not good at advocatingfor themselves and they're not
always good at asking for whatthey're worth and whether that
it doesn't matter if you're aprofessional, in a career or if
you're owning your own business.
(13:13):
A lot of women don't want toask for the wages, but in
business compensation is stillthe same.
They don't want to ask too muchfor the services that they're
providing or the products thatthey're creating, much for the
services that they're providingor the products that they're
creating, whereas you have toknow what the value of what
you're providing is and beconfident in that.
And when you do, you becomeprofitable and then you can look
(13:34):
at growth and scaling and thenyou can, like you said, write
that loan story right, yourlending story of what, where
have you been, where are you nowand where do you want to go?
Speaker 2 (13:46):
Right and how you do it.
And the thing I think we haveto be cautious of is women.
But as business owners, periodis that we have certain things
that have happened to us in ourenvironment when we were younger
that have imprinted on us asadults in business, and what we
do is continue to do business.
We're not dealing with that andand I say that because and I've
(14:06):
talked to you about that,shannon that we have people come
in before they even ask for theloan, they have already killed
the deal, and that's because wecome in with this criminal, oh I
don't think I'm deserving, ohI'm not gonna get it, oh I'm,
you know, and that's because ourenvironment imprints on us.
And I think that's something.
And that's what I love aboutwhat you do, because you help
(14:27):
people to see in that changeleadership, what's stopping you?
Because we don't even knowstuff is stopping us.
That's the big trick, ok, sothat's where you guys, you come
in and you can kind of help us.
So what kind of ideas or whatyou could give us to help us to
stay like that, to stay focusedon that?
What kind of ideas or what youcould give us to help us to stay
like that?
Speaker 3 (14:45):
to stay focused on that.
Well, I think that, again, Ithink the biggest thing is is
for women is setting boundaries,and that means setting
boundaries at work.
It also means settingboundaries at home and in your
relationships, and there is somuch power in saying no, right
(15:07):
and surrounding your people.
I think it's human nature towant to surround yourself with
people that make you feel goodabout yourself and not
uncomfortable.
But I think the most powerfulthing is surrounding yourself
with people that are just goingto push you a little bit, make
you just a little bituncomfortable, because once you
(15:28):
step into that next level, it'suncomfortable when you take the
first step, but when you takethe next step and the next step
and the next step, it getseasier and easier and easier.
And guess what, don't getcomfortable there.
Then you step up to the nextthing and I think that it's
really important that we takethe same perspective of our
businesses, because when youquit striving and you quit
(15:50):
growing, you actually revertbackwards.
So we have to have that mindsetand that's why the changes I
think is so vital to my coachingand consulting is so many
people are afraid of change andchange to me, rather than
looking at it as something scary.
(16:11):
To me, it is a huge opportunityand if you're in business, you
should be changing all the time.
All the time it's just makingsure that those changes that you
make are in alignment with whatyour vision and your goals and
what your business plan says,what your lending story is about
, and if they are not, then youneed to be taking a look at that
(16:35):
and talking with your sponsorsand your network and your
support team that you have.
Speaker 2 (16:43):
Oh my God, it did it again.
Speaker 3 (16:46):
With the times and where your industry is going,
and making sure that you've gota plan moving forward and you
don't have to have every singlelittle detail planned out.
But you do need to make surethat you've got that path and
you're sticking with it so that,when it does come time to
looking at your funding, youhave a reason for the steps that
(17:07):
you're making and what yournext steps are going to be,
because that instills confidencein your lender In the lender
exactly, and that is so true.
Speaker 2 (17:16):
So it's about us.
Actually, it sounds like whatyou're saying is it's not
necessarily just the confidence,but you get the confidence by
knowing what you are at life,where you're at, what you're
doing at that point, and thenyou can deal with how much you
need, based on actual facts ofwhat that is.
That's what you're sayingbasically Not to be so emotional
(17:37):
like we are, because we are,and I think that's some great
work and that's what I think andI want to say this too to our
listeners to have someone likeyou I've gotten into this
business coaching thing, been init for a while, but I've ran
into so many of you all.
That really works well withfemales and that's something I
think I want to encourage ourwomen to get involved with you
(17:58):
guys.
I am because, as a businesscoach, you bring something to
help guide us on what we don'tknow how to do, you know, and
it's stopping us Like we talkabout.
It's just a flat foot stop andwe just feel like we're by
ourselves.
What is it about us as womenthat's in business, that we
don't reach out for others, forhelp?
Speaker 3 (18:22):
What is that?
I really think that we care morewhat I'm guilty of this myself
we really care what other peoplethink of us, and it's really
not our business what anybodyelse thinks about us, as long as
we have that strategy in place,we know what our passion is, we
know what our values are andwe're being true to ourselves
(18:43):
and we are strategically movingforward in the direction that we
want to take our careers andour businesses.
It doesn't matter what anybodyelse thinks, right, so surround
yourself with people that aregoing to be supportive and
sponsor you in your goals.
I think that really, when itcomes down to it, we're worried
(19:03):
about what our families think,we're worried about what our
staff thinks, we're worriedabout what our peers think, and
we need to just quit worryingabout it.
Just true to who you are, makesure that you're doing the
things that you need to do to besuccessful in your definition
of success, and then surroundyourself with professionals like
you that are going to be ableto help you move forward in
(19:26):
those goals, help you understandwhat you need to do to make
those next steps, because Ithink that we need to surround
ourselves and build each otherup.
Speaker 2 (19:35):
We do, we do, and I'm going to say that when you're
saying that, I don't think werealize how vulnerable we are
and we actually put ourselves infront of a lot of places,
peoples and things that weshouldn't when we're in business
and we trying to build becauseeverybody's not going to support
you.
That's what you're saying,right, they're not, you know,
(19:56):
they're not going to be there.
I don't think we realize thatyou can't just keep going back
to the same.
Somebody said if you come in aroom and everybody don't light
up when they see you, you needto go to a different room.
They need to go to a differentroom.
See you, you need to go to adifferent room.
That you need to go to adifferent room.
Exactly, and as women, we needto learn that.
Get the help.
(20:16):
If the help is not there, go towhere the help is and get your
help.
You don't have to do it byyourself.
Reach out to Shannon, reach outto myself.
We may not do, but we knowsomebody that will.
You know, but the thing is, youdon't have to do it by yourself
.
Speaker 3 (20:29):
That's what we're saying, whatever it is well, you
know, what's really interestingwhen we're sitting here talking
is is that, um, let's just say,whoever's watching this video,
they're going to be listening tous and they're going to be
thinking to themselves.
Oh, I could use that help, butyou know what?
I don't want them to know howmuch I don't know yeah, so.
(20:50):
I think that we have to get herout of our own way and be okay
with just having thatconversation and starting it,
because the first time you haveit that it's really hard and I'm
just as I'm not, an expert.
I learned how to do this stuffthe hard way, through my own.
The first time that I decidedto make a career move, it
probably took me I'll be honestand transparent probably took me
(21:10):
about three years because I wasso afraid of what everybody
would think.
Speaker 2 (21:15):
So you know how we feel.
That's why you can help us,right?
Speaker 3 (21:19):
Yes, and then the next time I did it maybe the
little time was a little bitshorter because I didn't want
people to think that I wasmoving from one thing to another
and then the next time, when itdidn't feel good, when I walked
into that room and I knew itdidn't feel good, I knew it was
time for a change and it didn'tmatter what anybody else thought
I was going to do this and Imade the change and it was
(21:40):
amazing and it was the rightthing at the right time.
So don't wait for otherpeople's, because if you start
going and asking everybody,you'll get all of these
different answers and it'll be.
You'll do that analysis orparalysis by analysis right
Right.
Be good reaching out If you havesome place that you want to go
(22:03):
and you just need that helpinghand.
Reach out to that person anddon't be afraid that they're
going to judge you, becauseguaranteed they are not.
Speaker 2 (22:10):
They're going to be so happy to help, you To help,
and we have to understand we donot need to ask permission to be
successful.
That's right, absolutely, youknow no permission required.
So I'm with you.
Well, I think this is great.
Is there anything else that youwould like to tell our
listeners?
Speaker 3 (22:29):
going forward, Well, I think that, as I'm working
with women, especially at thispoint in time, I think that we
need to be aware that we arereally in a huge area of change,
especially in business.
We have so much digitaltransformation that's coming
(22:51):
about, so, and we've got agrowing focus on diversity and
inclusion, which guess what?
We, as women, we're really goodat that, so that gives us a
little bit of a competitive edge, right?
I think the number, the biggestthings that we can focus on
going forward is we have to stayadaptable.
(23:11):
Do not be afraid of change.
We do be willing to learn newthings.
Be willing to ask for whatyou're worth and take steps to
sponsor other women.
If you have a skillset, bewilling to invest in someone
else, help them grow and helpthem grow enough that you're
(23:33):
willing to take them out in thecommunity and stand there as
their equal.
And when you look at yourbusiness, don't be afraid to
grow Right.
Don't be afraid to go into newmarkets, invest in new products,
invest in new services or justscale your operations.
Invest in new services or justscale your operations.
And when you do that, make surethat you've done the work ahead
(23:55):
of time so that when you areready to go get that funding,
that you've educated yourselfwell and you have that support
network in place so that youhave you know the ins and outs
before you're actually there.
So you become the expert and ithelps with that confidence when
you go to sit down to the table.
You've already educatedyourself ahead of time, so make
(24:16):
sure that you're investing inyourself.
Speaker 2 (24:19):
Right, and that's exactly.
That is great, great, greatinformation.
Well, I do wanna thank you, msShannon.
This has been awesome Again,like I said, the information
that you and I get when we talktogether and what you bring for
everyone.
You all can reach out to MsShannon.
Our website is right abovetdjequitylscnet.
(24:40):
If you would, you can book anappointment with us.
You can get in contact with usas well, and we can get you in
contact with Shannon as well.
If you would, shannon, leteverybody know how they can
contact you.
Let's see here.
Speaker 3 (24:52):
Just put into the chat.
If anyone wants to just visitwith me for just, you know, a
few minutes and kind of find outmore, share your story and
where you're at, I would behappy to just sit down and have
a chat.
So there's a link to mycalendar session or my calendar
in the chat and they can justbook a quick discovery session
and know, you know, it's just,it's just about getting to know
(25:16):
each other and learn a littlebit more about your business and
your journey.
Speaker 2 (25:19):
Right and there and knowing that you have that
possibility to help.
So definitely reach out to herand make an appointment with her
and, like I said, let's seewhat she can do to help you.
That's what we here.
We got to start doing what MissShannon said.
We got to work together andsponsor each other when we can,
you know, see how you can helpeach other, and the little
knowledge we know may be a bigknowledge knower for somebody
(25:41):
else.
You know what I'm saying, so wedo need to do that.
So I do want to thank you somuch, miss Shannon, for coming.
We love to have you Great, andI want to thank all of you all
who have actually that'slistening to this or hearing
from repeat or replay.
We want to thank you guys andlet you know we're working
toward harnessing the power thatyou need to take your business
(26:04):
to the next level.
Check us out on our YouTubechannel as well as you can visit
us on our website atwwwtdjequityllcnet.
And until next time, you alltake care and stay safe.
Speaker 1 (26:20):
We hope you enjoyed this episode of TDJ Equity
Funding Insiders Podcast.
If you'd like to be a guest orget in touch with us, please
visit our website attdjequityllcnet.
Forward slash podcast or emailus at podcast at
tdjequityfundinginsidersnet.
Until next time, take care.
Ready to get the inside scoop on equity funding?
Tune in to TDJ Equity FundingInsiders Podcast for an in-depth
look at what it takes to accessfinancial capital and maximize
your investments.
Hear from experiencedprofessionals, including bankers
, underwriters, loan officersand industry experts, as they
(00:36):
share their unfiltered storiesand valuable lessons on securing
funds.
Speaker 2 (00:45):
We're thrilled to welcome you to our exciting new
webinar series Giving Power tothe Business Owner.
This series empowers you withthe knowledge, strategy and
tools you need to take yourbusiness to new heights.
In partnership with leadingexperts from complementary
industry, we're bringing you adiverse lineup of sessions that
will cover a range of topicsthat's really crucial to the
(01:07):
growth of your business.
Hi, I'm Jacqueline Jackson andI'm a loan broker with TDJ
Equity.
We are bringing in from youpeople that can give us from
innovative financing solutionsto effective marketing
strategies, to optimizingoperations, mindsets and
leveraging technology.
We have created a content thataddresses the real-world
(01:29):
challenges and opportunities youface as a business owner.
Our goal is to provide you withactionable takeaways that you
can implement immediately anddrive growth and achievement to
your business.
Okay, so we are now going to getstarted, and I want to start
off by, first of all, we want tothank our guests that we're
(01:50):
having today.
Who we have today that has comefrom Bend, oregon, is Shannon
Lee Reynolds.
She is a change leadershipconsultant, so she's come in to
help talk to us on our givingpower to the business owner and
give us some insights, asbusiness owners, of what we can
do to be to reach thosesuccessful goals.
(02:11):
So again, shannon, thank youfor being a part of our show.
First of all, thank you forhaving me excited to be here.
Yes, ma'am, and we're excitedto have.
Now we do want to find out alittle bit more about you.
I know from talking to you andbeen knowing you for a while,
you have a passion about whatyou do and I love that part, and
(02:32):
so I want you to first tell ourlisteners what is it about?
Why are you so passionate aboutcoaching women, professionals
as well as business owners?
Speaker 3 (02:43):
Yeah, well, I actually started my career in
banking and accounting, whichwas a while ago, and at that
point in time, you know, itstill was very much male
dominated.
Both industries were very muchmale dominated and it was
interesting as I essentiallygrew up through those careers.
(03:07):
What I realized with working inthose industries, and then also
as I started getting intoconsulting and coaching, working
with business owners, is thatwomen truly bring a unique set
of skills, strengths and adifferent perspective to how
they do business and how theymove forward in their careers.
And one of the things that Irecognized when seeing this is
(03:30):
that, while they bring this veryunique perspective, they also
have a very specific set ofchallenges that I think our
culture, as you know, as we moveforward, we've gained some
traction, but I still think thatthere's a lot that we can do as
a society to help navigate someof those challenges.
(03:50):
So my goal in my career isreally to help empower women in
their businesses to navigatesome of those challenges and
pressures that we have out therein the business world, but
still be able to embrace, youknow, the strengths that we
bring to the table as womenbusiness owners.
(04:10):
I think that there's a lot ofvery different perspectives that
can make a company verywell-rounded when we bring our
authentic selves to ourbusinesses and grow in a way
that is true to being a womenbusiness owner and grow in a way
that is true to being a womenbusiness owner.
Speaker 2 (04:29):
Now, what you say I think is great and I definitely
agree, but we know, as women, wehave some challenges.
Like you said, that may notnecessarily be what the male may
have.
So one is dealing with business, in which you and I have talked
on that.
So what type of challenges doyou see, as women, that we have
when it comes to facing, youknow, being professional and
(04:49):
being in a business setting?
What type of challenges do yousee us, as women, having?
Speaker 3 (04:55):
Well, I think the number one thing that I see
stand out is our work lifebalance, because women are,
we're nurturers by nature right,so not our.
Not only are we bringing ahundred percent of ourselves to
work, whether it's in our careeror in our business, but we're
also bringing a hundred percentto our home life as well, and
(05:20):
those are always conflicting andpulling at each other.
So that's definitely achallenge that we have.
Another thing that we see is Isee a lot of women that have
that imposter syndrome, justfeel like they maybe are not
quite sure of themselves.
Do they really deserve to bewhere they at?
And I think a big piece ofwomen in business is a lot of
(05:46):
women, and I am a huge advocatefor this.
I've read this in a coupledifferent places.
We always talk about havingaccess to mentors, that type of
thing, but I think I find thatwomen are over-mentored.
What they're missing that menare really good at is they have,
instead of having mentors, theyhave sponsors and they have
(06:08):
very supportive networks, andthe difference between a mentor
and a sponsor is that you knowin the community they're sitting
down to a table fornegotiations and they're
bringing you in and they'responsoring you into that
(06:30):
situation.
So they're lending theircredibility to you and we
haven't quite gotten that skilldown and I think it's really
important to have that becausewhen we talk about finance
especially women in businessthat because when we talk about
finance, especially women inbusiness that sponsorship
becomes really crucial tounderstanding the ins and outs
(06:52):
of funding, of understandingtheir investment options.
When we have that sponsorshipthat imposter syndrome is less
likely to creep up on us and welearn a little bit more about
some of those ins and outs ofhow we can navigate that
financial, those financialpressures and constraints that
(07:14):
we have.
So having a sponsor and havinga strong network will help us
gain that confidence when itcomes to growing our businesses.
Speaker 2 (07:24):
Just doing it, and I can attest to that too, because,
being a loan broker, we do haveand that's how I want to do the
show too as women, we secondguess ourselves, and so when it
comes to business and we have toput together loan packages and
all of that, we can put ittogether administrative wise.
But I noticed that we kind ofand I'm saying this because I
(07:48):
want you to kind of elaborate onit, if you can that we kind of
have a tendency to hold back andlike, okay, we want you know
five a half a million, but youknow I don't think I can afford
that.
I'll go buy you know a hundredthousand dollars, and not
knowing it all has to do withcash flow.
So we have those things thatkind of stop us.
So, in your experience, whatare some strategies that women
(08:11):
can use that can kind of helpthem maintain that, that, that
to stay on the road, thatintegrity and to stay focused?
Do you have any strategies thatcan help us with that?
Speaker 3 (08:21):
Well, I do.
I think that it's reallyimportant for in business as a
company that you've got a good,strong, diversified team to help
you look at, be strategic inyour thinking.
But I think fundamentally withwomen business owners, quite
often we go into businessbecause we have a passion about
(08:43):
whatever it is that we're doing.
So the key to owning a businessversus having a hobby is is
that our business makes us moneyand we, as women, need to be
okay with making money.
I mean, it's that's what abusiness is for.
So if we can be okay withmaking money but have a clear
vision and abide by that vision,the mission and the values that
(09:06):
we've established in ourbusiness, even as our business
grows, we're always looking tothe future and we're setting
clear value driven goals.
So when we look at what thosegoals are into the future and
what we want for our growth,we're then able to take a step
back and say, okay, what do weneed to hit those value-driven
(09:28):
goals?
And what really happens isusually you've got to spend
money to make money and the onlyway that you're going to attain
that growth, the way that youwant to attain it, is by getting
that funding.
So, understanding what thatfuture growth is and being okay
with that, taking that step outand getting the money that you
need to really finance it andhave the cashflow, because most
(09:53):
businesses have receivables,those types of things, and they
get.
You know, there's certain timesof the month or the cyclical
times of the year where theyhave shortfalls in cash, but
they know maybe three monthsdown the road that they're going
to have a bunch of money comingin.
So understanding the finance andthe strategy that goes along
with finance helps them attainthose goals so much faster and
(10:16):
they can work more effectivelywithin their business and they
can be transparent with all thestakeholders and letting them
know here's what our long-termgoals are.
These are our values, anydecisions that we're going to
make.
We're only going to say yes tothe things that will help us
reach those goals and then, whenthey do that, they can then
demonstrate to their lender thathere's what we said we were
(10:40):
going to do.
These are the steps that we'retaking to make it happen.
These are the steps that we'retaking to make it happen and
when you can show that you havea plan, you're working your plan
and you've taken and you'vedone the things that you've said
that you're going to do andyou're generating that cash flow
.
Now you're more likely as I'msure you can attribute and
verify you're more likely.
When you're making money,you're more likely to be able to
(11:01):
get money to help for thatscaling.
Speaker 2 (11:04):
Right and see, and that's the thing you just
answered is when we ask, like Ihave people have asked, like you
know, why certain businessesseem like you know they're doing
real good and they don't haveto struggle and all of that,
well that the secret to it isnot necessarily a secret, but
it's an old cliche businessplanning.
Everything you just said.
It should be written down andwritten out so you won't make
(11:27):
those mistakes.
But I think the confidence willcome in knowing, like you said,
knowing where you're going,knowing what you're doing, and
that's so important.
It's more and more people arenot doing business plans.
They're just working off theirhip, shannon.
So what do?
Speaker 3 (11:42):
you have to say on that, or or they do the business
plan right.
They spend all of this timemaking the business plan and
it's done, and then they're doneand they put it in a drawer and
they never look at it exactlyexactly, exactly they own.
Speaker 2 (11:54):
It is a strategic plan and that's what I tell
people.
When you do your business plan,you have a business plan, but
we suggest to recommend like youdo too as well, strategic
planning needs to be input Ithink people need to be aware of
and you and I have talked on ityou should have a funding plan
a part of your business plan.
At what point should you getmoney?
(12:15):
Everybody think, oh, when Ifirst started off, I need to get
money.
Okay, you could or could not,but when you're looking at
getting another round of funding, when should you get that and
what should that look like?
Like you said, they have to becash flowing and you have to
really show you making money.
But we still have to look atwhat's your long story, what's
your use of funds, and those arethe things that most of us do
(12:38):
not even know.
And because women have atendency to be and I'm not
trying to say this is putting usdown and we're not we're more
timid than to ask the straight,direct question Am I right or
wrong?
You know, in business,absolutely.
Speaker 3 (12:52):
I think that and again, it's not for all women,
but I do see that a lot of womenthey don't like to negotiate,
they're not good at advocatingfor themselves and they're not
always good at asking for whatthey're worth and whether that
it doesn't matter if you're aprofessional, in a career or if
you're owning your own business.
(13:13):
A lot of women don't want toask for the wages, but in
business compensation is stillthe same.
They don't want to ask too muchfor the services that they're
providing or the products thatthey're creating, much for the
services that they're providingor the products that they're
creating, whereas you have toknow what the value of what
you're providing is and beconfident in that.
And when you do, you becomeprofitable and then you can look
(13:34):
at growth and scaling and thenyou can, like you said, write
that loan story right, yourlending story of what, where
have you been, where are you nowand where do you want to go?
Speaker 2 (13:46):
Right and how you do it.
And the thing I think we haveto be cautious of is women.
But as business owners, periodis that we have certain things
that have happened to us in ourenvironment when we were younger
that have imprinted on us asadults in business, and what we
do is continue to do business.
We're not dealing with that andand I say that because and I've
(14:06):
talked to you about that,shannon that we have people come
in before they even ask for theloan, they have already killed
the deal, and that's because wecome in with this criminal, oh I
don't think I'm deserving, ohI'm not gonna get it, oh I'm,
you know, and that's because ourenvironment imprints on us.
And I think that's something.
And that's what I love aboutwhat you do, because you help
(14:27):
people to see in that changeleadership, what's stopping you?
Because we don't even knowstuff is stopping us.
That's the big trick, ok, sothat's where you guys, you come
in and you can kind of help us.
So what kind of ideas or whatyou could give us to help us to
stay like that, to stay focusedon that?
What kind of ideas or what youcould give us to help us to stay
like that?
Speaker 3 (14:45):
to stay focused on that.
Well, I think that, again, Ithink the biggest thing is is
for women is setting boundaries,and that means setting
boundaries at work.
It also means settingboundaries at home and in your
relationships, and there is somuch power in saying no, right
(15:07):
and surrounding your people.
I think it's human nature towant to surround yourself with
people that make you feel goodabout yourself and not
uncomfortable.
But I think the most powerfulthing is surrounding yourself
with people that are just goingto push you a little bit, make
you just a little bituncomfortable, because once you
(15:28):
step into that next level, it'suncomfortable when you take the
first step, but when you takethe next step and the next step
and the next step, it getseasier and easier and easier.
And guess what, don't getcomfortable there.
Then you step up to the nextthing and I think that it's
really important that we takethe same perspective of our
businesses, because when youquit striving and you quit
(15:50):
growing, you actually revertbackwards.
So we have to have that mindsetand that's why the changes I
think is so vital to my coachingand consulting is so many
people are afraid of change andchange to me, rather than
looking at it as something scary.
(16:11):
To me, it is a huge opportunityand if you're in business, you
should be changing all the time.
All the time it's just makingsure that those changes that you
make are in alignment with whatyour vision and your goals and
what your business plan says,what your lending story is about
, and if they are not, then youneed to be taking a look at that
(16:35):
and talking with your sponsorsand your network and your
support team that you have.
Speaker 2 (16:43):
Oh my God, it did it again.
Speaker 3 (16:46):
With the times and where your industry is going,
and making sure that you've gota plan moving forward and you
don't have to have every singlelittle detail planned out.
But you do need to make surethat you've got that path and
you're sticking with it so that,when it does come time to
looking at your funding, youhave a reason for the steps that
(17:07):
you're making and what yournext steps are going to be,
because that instills confidencein your lender In the lender
exactly, and that is so true.
Speaker 2 (17:16):
So it's about us.
Actually, it sounds like whatyou're saying is it's not
necessarily just the confidence,but you get the confidence by
knowing what you are at life,where you're at, what you're
doing at that point, and thenyou can deal with how much you
need, based on actual facts ofwhat that is.
That's what you're sayingbasically Not to be so emotional
(17:37):
like we are, because we are,and I think that's some great
work and that's what I think andI want to say this too to our
listeners to have someone likeyou I've gotten into this
business coaching thing, been init for a while, but I've ran
into so many of you all.
That really works well withfemales and that's something I
think I want to encourage ourwomen to get involved with you
(17:58):
guys.
I am because, as a businesscoach, you bring something to
help guide us on what we don'tknow how to do, you know, and
it's stopping us Like we talkabout.
It's just a flat foot stop andwe just feel like we're by
ourselves.
What is it about us as womenthat's in business, that we
don't reach out for others, forhelp?
Speaker 3 (18:22):
What is that?
I really think that we care morewhat I'm guilty of this myself
we really care what other peoplethink of us, and it's really
not our business what anybodyelse thinks about us, as long as
we have that strategy in place,we know what our passion is, we
know what our values are andwe're being true to ourselves
(18:43):
and we are strategically movingforward in the direction that we
want to take our careers andour businesses.
It doesn't matter what anybodyelse thinks, right, so surround
yourself with people that aregoing to be supportive and
sponsor you in your goals.
I think that really, when itcomes down to it, we're worried
(19:03):
about what our families think,we're worried about what our
staff thinks, we're worriedabout what our peers think, and
we need to just quit worryingabout it.
Just true to who you are, makesure that you're doing the
things that you need to do to besuccessful in your definition
of success, and then surroundyourself with professionals like
you that are going to be ableto help you move forward in
(19:26):
those goals, help you understandwhat you need to do to make
those next steps, because Ithink that we need to surround
ourselves and build each otherup.
Speaker 2 (19:35):
We do, we do, and I'm going to say that when you're
saying that, I don't think werealize how vulnerable we are
and we actually put ourselves infront of a lot of places,
peoples and things that weshouldn't when we're in business
and we trying to build becauseeverybody's not going to support
you.
That's what you're saying,right, they're not, you know,
(19:56):
they're not going to be there.
I don't think we realize thatyou can't just keep going back
to the same.
Somebody said if you come in aroom and everybody don't light
up when they see you, you needto go to a different room.
They need to go to a differentroom.
See you, you need to go to adifferent room.
That you need to go to adifferent room.
Exactly, and as women, we needto learn that.
Get the help.
(20:16):
If the help is not there, go towhere the help is and get your
help.
You don't have to do it byyourself.
Reach out to Shannon, reach outto myself.
We may not do, but we knowsomebody that will.
You know, but the thing is, youdon't have to do it by yourself
.
Speaker 3 (20:29):
That's what we're saying, whatever it is well, you
know, what's really interestingwhen we're sitting here talking
is is that, um, let's just say,whoever's watching this video,
they're going to be listening tous and they're going to be
thinking to themselves.
Oh, I could use that help, butyou know what?
I don't want them to know howmuch I don't know yeah, so.
(20:50):
I think that we have to get herout of our own way and be okay
with just having thatconversation and starting it,
because the first time you haveit that it's really hard and I'm
just as I'm not, an expert.
I learned how to do this stuffthe hard way, through my own.
The first time that I decidedto make a career move, it
probably took me I'll be honestand transparent probably took me
(21:10):
about three years because I wasso afraid of what everybody
would think.
Speaker 2 (21:15):
So you know how we feel.
That's why you can help us,right?
Speaker 3 (21:19):
Yes, and then the next time I did it maybe the
little time was a little bitshorter because I didn't want
people to think that I wasmoving from one thing to another
and then the next time, when itdidn't feel good, when I walked
into that room and I knew itdidn't feel good, I knew it was
time for a change and it didn'tmatter what anybody else thought
I was going to do this and Imade the change and it was
(21:40):
amazing and it was the rightthing at the right time.
So don't wait for otherpeople's, because if you start
going and asking everybody,you'll get all of these
different answers and it'll be.
You'll do that analysis orparalysis by analysis right
Right.
Be good reaching out If you havesome place that you want to go
(22:03):
and you just need that helpinghand.
Reach out to that person anddon't be afraid that they're
going to judge you, becauseguaranteed they are not.
Speaker 2 (22:10):
They're going to be so happy to help, you To help,
and we have to understand we donot need to ask permission to be
successful.
That's right, absolutely, youknow no permission required.
So I'm with you.
Well, I think this is great.
Is there anything else that youwould like to tell our
listeners?
Speaker 3 (22:29):
going forward, Well, I think that, as I'm working
with women, especially at thispoint in time, I think that we
need to be aware that we arereally in a huge area of change,
especially in business.
We have so much digitaltransformation that's coming
(22:51):
about, so, and we've got agrowing focus on diversity and
inclusion, which guess what?
We, as women, we're really goodat that, so that gives us a
little bit of a competitive edge, right?
I think the number, the biggestthings that we can focus on
going forward is we have to stayadaptable.
(23:11):
Do not be afraid of change.
We do be willing to learn newthings.
Be willing to ask for whatyou're worth and take steps to
sponsor other women.
If you have a skillset, bewilling to invest in someone
else, help them grow and helpthem grow enough that you're
(23:33):
willing to take them out in thecommunity and stand there as
their equal.
And when you look at yourbusiness, don't be afraid to
grow Right.
Don't be afraid to go into newmarkets, invest in new products,
invest in new services or justscale your operations.
Invest in new services or justscale your operations.
And when you do that, make surethat you've done the work ahead
(23:55):
of time so that when you areready to go get that funding,
that you've educated yourselfwell and you have that support
network in place so that youhave you know the ins and outs
before you're actually there.
So you become the expert and ithelps with that confidence when
you go to sit down to the table.
You've already educatedyourself ahead of time, so make
(24:16):
sure that you're investing inyourself.
Speaker 2 (24:19):
Right, and that's exactly.
That is great, great, greatinformation.
Well, I do wanna thank you, msShannon.
This has been awesome Again,like I said, the information
that you and I get when we talktogether and what you bring for
everyone.
You all can reach out to MsShannon.
Our website is right abovetdjequitylscnet.
(24:40):
If you would, you can book anappointment with us.
You can get in contact with usas well, and we can get you in
contact with Shannon as well.
If you would, shannon, leteverybody know how they can
contact you.
Let's see here.
Speaker 3 (24:52):
Just put into the chat.
If anyone wants to just visitwith me for just, you know, a
few minutes and kind of find outmore, share your story and
where you're at, I would behappy to just sit down and have
a chat.
So there's a link to mycalendar session or my calendar
in the chat and they can justbook a quick discovery session
and know, you know, it's just,it's just about getting to know
(25:16):
each other and learn a littlebit more about your business and
your journey.
Speaker 2 (25:19):
Right and there and knowing that you have that
possibility to help.
So definitely reach out to herand make an appointment with her
and, like I said, let's seewhat she can do to help you.
That's what we here.
We got to start doing what MissShannon said.
We got to work together andsponsor each other when we can,
you know, see how you can helpeach other, and the little
knowledge we know may be a bigknowledge knower for somebody
(25:41):
else.
You know what I'm saying, so wedo need to do that.
So I do want to thank you somuch, miss Shannon, for coming.
We love to have you Great, andI want to thank all of you all
who have actually that'slistening to this or hearing
from repeat or replay.
We want to thank you guys andlet you know we're working
toward harnessing the power thatyou need to take your business
(26:04):
to the next level.
Check us out on our YouTubechannel as well as you can visit
us on our website atwwwtdjequityllcnet.
And until next time, you alltake care and stay safe.
Speaker 1 (26:20):
We hope you enjoyed this episode of TDJ Equity
Funding Insiders Podcast.
If you'd like to be a guest orget in touch with us, please
visit our website attdjequityllcnet.
Forward slash podcast or emailus at podcast at
tdjequityfundinginsidersnet.
Until next time, take care.
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