June 9, 2025 • 41 mins
Chisa Pennix-Brown Chief Experience Cultivator at Give It To the People sat down with Ja'Net Adams of EMACK Consulting on an episode of the Give It Get It Bizness Series.
Ja’Net is an International Financial Literacy Speaker, Author, Consultant, and CEO of EMACK Consulting LLC. Ja'Net's path to entrepreneurship started after she was laid off from her job and found herself in $50,000 of debt. She paid that debt off in two years and that led her to speaking around the world sharing her strategies. She has spoken on stages across the United States as well as in Canada, Europe, United Arab Emirates, and South Africa.
Her company has worked with K-12, higher education (minority and non minority serving institutions), Corporations, government entities, public and private sector to provide financial literacy workshops, training, curriculum, products, and consulting. Past and current clients are the NBA, Allstate, New York Times, Federal Reserve, Department of Education, White House, Dress For Success, Urban League, Ice Miller Law, TTEC Technology, Truist Bank, NC A&T University, Temple University, Winston Salem State University, University of Central Florida, and Upward Bound.
Ja'Net's advice has been featured in Business Insider, Forbes, CNBC, Good Morning America, NPR, BBC, Fox Business, Black Enterprise, USA Today, Huffington Post, and Marketplace Money.
Ja’Net is an International Financial Literacy Speaker, Author, Consultant, and CEO of EMACK Consulting LLC. Ja'Net's path to entrepreneurship started after she was laid off from her job and found herself in $50,000 of debt. She paid that debt off in two years and that led her to speaking around the world sharing her strategies. She has spoken on stages across the United States as well as in Canada, Europe, United Arab Emirates, and South Africa.
Her company has worked with K-12, higher education (minority and non minority serving institutions), Corporations, government entities, public and private sector to provide financial literacy workshops, training, curriculum, products, and consulting. Past and current clients are the NBA, Allstate, New York Times, Federal Reserve, Department of Education, White House, Dress For Success, Urban League, Ice Miller Law, TTEC Technology, Truist Bank, NC A&T University, Temple University, Winston Salem State University, University of Central Florida, and Upward Bound.
Ja'Net's advice has been featured in Business Insider, Forbes, CNBC, Good Morning America, NPR, BBC, Fox Business, Black Enterprise, USA Today, Huffington Post, and Marketplace Money.
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Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:08):
Okay, I'm hoping you guys are getting all of this
love that I'm putting into today. I do not know
what's going on in the background, but I'm just gonna
turn the music down.
Speaker 2 (00:18):
We were having some technical difficulties.
Speaker 1 (00:20):
I am really hoping that you can see us, because
it's two pretty little chocolate faces that really would love
to just share all of the energy.
Speaker 2 (00:28):
And everything that we have with you.
Speaker 1 (00:30):
We're still gonna go ahead and record though, because I
know it's gonna record the sound and everything, but you
should see these little faces up on the screen. So
I want to welcome you out today. I'm gonna turn
the music off and just pop everything up. Hopefully you'll
be able to see things the way that they are intended,
because for us, it's not showing in that same way.
(00:51):
I have no idea what's going on with the internet
or how it is reflecting to you, but I'm hoping
that you can see.
Speaker 2 (00:58):
What we have here.
Speaker 1 (01:00):
So today I have a marvelous guest who I have
not interviewed in a long time. It's actually been a
couple of years, Jenny Adams, and she is a person
who is about that money, okay, about saving that money.
But also spending that money wisely. And so today we
want to kind of talk to her about building a
debt free business. I do not have a debt free business, okay,
(01:21):
but part of that starts with some discipline.
Speaker 2 (01:23):
Part of that starts with what you do in the.
Speaker 1 (01:25):
Background, and so those things make a difference when you're
talking about business. Right, So let's get into what this
series is, and I'm going to bring Jannae on. So
the giv It Geted Business Series is a dynamic webinar
series designed to bring clarity and actionable insights to business owners.
We want to give you stuff at every one of
these that you can immediately do for your business. We
don't want it to be something where it's just theory
(01:47):
or where we're just talking trying to have a kiki. No,
we can have a kiki, but we also need to
invest in you mentally. And so with our give It
Geated business membership, that's part of what we do. And
this is something that we do on at least a monthly,
sometimes twice a month in order to be able to
let you know who the members are, but also our
business service organizations things your business just needs to know about.
(02:07):
We work with government agencies and all of that stuff
that seems like it's just too overwhelming, that might be chaotic.
We want you to be able to pull this in
and control it, and at least every time we do this,
you learn one or more new things in order to
increase your business acumen. So today we are with Janay Adams,
who I'm bringing on right now. And Janay, listen, it's
(02:31):
been a long time, all right, and we have done
individually collectively just in the state of North Carolina, out
of the state, some marvelous things, okay, And I just
want you to let people know just who you are
in general, and then we'll dig deeper a little bit.
Speaker 2 (02:47):
Yeah.
Speaker 3 (02:47):
So I first of all, thank you for having me on.
It's always like I love doing interviews. I love when
I see you in person. You just one of my
favorite people. So thank you again for having me on.
I am Janay Adams. I am the owner of eMac
and SO, which is a financial wellness and economic mobility firm.
We've been in business for the last fifteen years and
we have clients from corporations to government to higher edge
(03:10):
at even K through twelve and so I'm just happy
to be here and help in any way that I can.
Speaker 1 (03:15):
Yes, now with your company and just looking at eMac
Consulting and looking at how it's grown, and I'm going
to say, I don't know how long we've known each other,
but I'm thinking it's in at least the eight to
ten year range.
Speaker 2 (03:31):
Somewhere in there.
Speaker 1 (03:32):
I'm not sure how long, but it's somewhere in that range.
When we first started back in the back in the
good old days, right before AI, you know, jump into
the into the mix, right, you know, like cause you
have to realize sometimes you don't even realize how fast
the technology is moving, right, But this was back in
the days we actually had to have real conversations with
(03:53):
people and you actually had to go to networking events
to try to get your business out there. And I'm
not saying social media wasn't there, but I just think
that it wasn't relied on this heavily. What would you
say has been one of the biggest changes in your
business from when you started to where you are now.
Speaker 3 (04:11):
I think the biggest change has been the way that
the economy has changed. We have you know, I started
my business after the Great Recession, but since then we
have went through a pandemic, and then now we're probably
going into another economic storm and so being able to
navigate my business in and out of that and really seeing,
(04:31):
you know, how the easy money was coming in twenty
twenty and twenty twenty one, and I think now we
are going to see exactly who the real businesses are.
And we're starting I'm sure you've seen it too, we're
starting to see the ones coming, you know, basically falling
to the wayside. I actually seen an email before we
got on here of another company closing. So it's just
(04:54):
that I think that's what's been the biggest change for
my business is seeing the the progression of the clients
that I'm working with, seeing the progression of the way
that my services have to be done, all of that stuff.
Like we've been I've been having to basically evolution has happened.
Happened in my business for you.
Speaker 2 (05:15):
Yeah.
Speaker 1 (05:15):
Now, I like the fact that you touched on so
many different things, and I have to go to this
one because you said one phrase that touched my spirit.
You said the easy money. Now, let me explain what
I think she means by that. Twenty twenty and twenty one,
Even though it was the pandemic, the pandy, however you
(05:39):
want to call it. I made a whole bunch of
money in twenty twenty two and twenty twenty one. But
part of that was already being in position to put
yourself in online platforms to be in demand before everything happened,
and then to be able to execute things in a
way that was helpful to people exactly when they needed it.
(06:01):
And so one thing I've always been about, and you know,
I say this is being immediately actionable. And the technology
of zoom I used, go to webinar or whatever platforms
you were using during that time allowed businesses like hours
to thrive during that time. And so I told people,
I said, you know, one of the things is, you know,
people like, why don't you take out a PPP loan?
(06:23):
And I told them, I can't justify that my business
is losing money like you would need to show that
that didn't happen during that timeframe. And it was so
easy because people would just send you messages and say,
can you counsel somebody can teach your class? So what
happened for you during that time frame?
Speaker 3 (06:42):
Yeah, And you're right. And when I was saying easy money,
of course, just like your business went up, my business
went up as well because I didn't have to fly anywhere.
I could just be online. But when I was saying
with easy money, it was a lot of people that
got into so called business during that time. They can
make it because we had the child tax credit money,
(07:04):
we had the uh, you know, the stimulus checks coming.
So these people who were all all of a sudden
on social media, we're getting that money. And now we're
starting to see how that money has dried up and
they're struggling. But people like you and I, like you said,
had already built a business before that time, and we
had a system. And I have definitely seen how you
(07:25):
have been able to just go even at higher levels
from what you were doing before. And I'm sure demanding
even more money than you did before because you're you're
just doing everything bigger and better. And yeah, yeah, so
what I'm seeing, you know, for me, during that time,
like I said before, the money definitely went up, and
since then it has helped me grow because I'm like, Okay, now,
(07:49):
the next step is the government contracting, right, the next
step is to offer even a more elevated service to
my past clients and being able to charge more. So
those who knew business before the pandemic, before the easy money,
those are the ones that's going to survive now and
more than likely have even better businesses and stronger businesses
(08:10):
going forward.
Speaker 1 (08:11):
Yeah, and I'm glad you mentioned that because I have
some people that I know that receive funding because they
were HUB certified. I have people that I know that
received a bunch of grants during that time because of
the nature of their business, and now they've either had
to go out of business or they've had to shift
what they do in a way that is palatable for
(08:34):
the current situation, but also looking at things going forward.
So things that you may have said, Okay, well during
the pandemic, no this is not even possible, but we
need to stay in business. And then now some of
those things are like, well, people don't really want that
anymore because now we can be around each other again,
So it changes that whole dynamic. So I'm glad be
could see when I say easy money, my easy money
(08:55):
was different than your easy money. Like you were just
given the idea of a lot of people had money
come into them, but then they still couldn't sustain And
so that's a difference in those businesses, and we are
seeing that shift happen now and one of the reasons
I definitely want to have you on. So Jenny is
a member of the Givin Gated Business membership. But in
addition to that, the thing that I think that's always
(09:18):
been great and that I've seen expand specifically in your
business is being on the television. And I think that
being able to be seen even when you know things
were going bad, and still being able to relay that
information and parlaying it into really current trending topics, to me,
has been something that I think a lot of people
(09:39):
would be interested in, even you know, just knowing about that.
So one thing about Jane is she's on the news
on a regular basis. Okay, and I was on the
news on a regular basis, but then we changed, we
moved up here, and I'm like, I gotta get back
on the news, you know what I'm saying. So every
time I see jene little face pop up, I was like,
I need to send somebody something right like it just
it's just a motivator for me. So I'm never gonna
(10:01):
be the person that's like, look at her being on
the news.
Speaker 2 (10:04):
You know like that.
Speaker 1 (10:05):
No, I'm like, girl, look at her you and it
inspires me and keeps me like, you know what, we
need to consistently do some things, because I could say
that there are things that we're way more consistent at
certain times that because of what you're doing now maybe
you can't be as consistent. Doesn't mean you're still not working.
It just means you have to change what you do.
(10:26):
But can you talk to that about being on the
news and how that has affected your business on a
regular basis, whether that is social capital, whether that is
speaking engagements or whatever.
Speaker 3 (10:37):
Definitely, And I have been on the news and now
I think probably like twelve years, which is which is
wild to me. And what it does because people are
always saying, well, why do you keep doing it? I'm saying,
because my face is on TV every week or every
other week.
Speaker 2 (10:56):
Yeah.
Speaker 3 (10:56):
And what it does, like you said, it gives you
social capital, is shows that someone wants to hear from you,
You want your thought leadership in the area that you're in.
And it's only expanded from when I started. When I
first started, it was just me and Tracy every once
a month actually, and now I think I've worked with
(11:17):
eight people on that show now within that network, and
then it's also expanded, so it's not only making my
face be seen here locally, but also around the country.
I even did you know I take from South Africa
one time. And so what that does is it justifies
my price. And so that's why I tell people all
(11:38):
the time, having media, whether you're on TV or whether
you have different articles within magazines or in newspapers, that
justifies your price. Yes, that helps you raise it up,
for sure.
Speaker 2 (11:51):
It definitely does.
Speaker 1 (11:52):
And I really I mean, you know, like I said,
you were doing the news before I was doing the news,
and I was like, you know what, I have some
stuff to say too, So I want to get on there.
And I think that that you just, you know, one
of the things that is important that people need to understand,
and I say this on multiple platforms whenever we're out,
is the relationships matter.
Speaker 2 (12:09):
Right.
Speaker 1 (12:10):
So the thing is, Tracy's not even at the station
anymore because from what I saw, Tracy moved to Connecticut, right,
And Tracy was one of the reporters that was on WFMY,
so she was there for years, but now she's moved.
Because that's a lot of times what happens in the
journalistic world. They go from a different station to a
different station, and so it could have been something where
it's like, Okay, well she's gone, so we're not doing
(12:32):
your segment, are right, But you still have to have
those relationships with those producers, with the station, with the
other newscasters who felt like it was valuable to hear
the things that you were talking about exactly.
Speaker 3 (12:43):
And that's the key I would give to people. You
they be an expert in what you're doing and what
you're talking about, because if then you just become the
go to person. I'm pretty much sure in that newsroom
if it's something about money, they're just like, just call Jenna,
see if she's available. Because that's what it has been
on multiple occasions that people I have never met before
(13:04):
that would call me and say, yeah, Janny, I know
you don't know me, but I work at w F
and Y could you do a segment with me on this?
And it could be the same day. They're like, are
you ready? Could you be ready in like two hours?
And that's another thing. You've got to be ready all
the time, stay ready so you don't have to get ready,
especially when it comes to the news.
Speaker 1 (13:23):
Yeah, And I mean when it comes to that, I
think of the things of like even when we said
we were prepared, not necessarily, we didn't know COVID was
going to happen, but we were prepared in business to
be in place, right.
Speaker 2 (13:34):
And so when I look at, well, how do people
get so many things?
Speaker 1 (13:38):
How do they get so many offerers to do this
or to speak or whatever the thing is, they're ready.
So that means they have their photos, That means they
have their bios together. That means that they have their
website together. They probably have a booking link. They probably
have their calendar together, you know.
Speaker 2 (13:53):
What I mean.
Speaker 1 (13:54):
And so people, I think take the what I like
to call it is still the pretty stuff, right, the
pretty stuff for granted, but that's kind of like the basis.
That's the foundation of the things that you need to have.
So when people ask you for those things, you can
send them. And let me tell you something. I want
to transition to the government contracting area that we talked
(14:15):
about a brief that you talked about. What I've seen
is the people that are it tends to be the
higher up they get, the worse their pictures are. Okay,
and I'm just it's like, you know you have this position,
you know you're going to be asked to speak. Why
is this not something that's readily available and you have
(14:37):
to wait a week for them to get a picture
or they'll send you something that's like, we don't really
want to use this picture. So I'm always consistent about
telling people take great pictures, you know what I mean,
because it does make a difference. And even in your branding,
I could see the transition and the changes in the
level of what you're doing where it's like, okay, like
(14:59):
when you say, does it justify the price? Does it
look like you should pay me the money that I'm
asking you? And I think all of that makes a
big difference. But the government people, for some reason, they
I don't know, like they need somebody just come in
and say let's just hey, everybody, let's just take some
headshots because a lot of times they don't have a
really great headshot. But it does make a difference, right,
(15:20):
especially if you're going to be speaking and people are
going to ask you stuff all the time. Anyway, have
those things ready. So that's just a lesson, just a
little bit of tip. Now let's go back because now
I know exactly when this was. We're going to go
back to the year twenty twenty. We're going to go
back to January twenty twenty when we did the largest
small business summit that GTCC and Geiffer County has ever had.
(15:44):
We had twenty some sessions going and one of the
things that I was adamant about was Okay, well, what's
going to be the return of investment for people? And
what are some metrics that we can really measure to
say we did that this day. One of them was
preparing people to get their hub and MWB certification. Yeah,
and that day tell them what happened with you girl?
Speaker 2 (16:05):
Yeah?
Speaker 3 (16:06):
So I think it was shame that was in there.
Speaker 2 (16:09):
Yeah.
Speaker 3 (16:09):
Yeah. And so like before I was before before that,
you know, I it was. It was actually like a
two set process. First, I had got help from Hassani
Mitchell who was working working downtown, but either way, he
helped me walk through the application because I just had
(16:29):
no idea right at all. But then when I went
to the conference, there she was. There was the person
that needed to get done, and I was just like,
this is perfect because if not, I would have had
to mail it in try to figure things out. But
having someone there that is the person who gives you
the certification or at least gets the process started. That
was like a game changer. And like you said that
(16:51):
people were getting funding because they were HUB certified. It
set me up for that in twenty I think it
might have been twenty twenty one when they had the
Retool your Business.
Speaker 2 (17:01):
Yep, yep, reach too. It was taking new one yep.
Speaker 3 (17:03):
Yeah. It was a grant and it was free money.
And I think out of that So that conference being
there with Shade getting my Hope certification a year later,
there's after that year, twenty thousand dollars because I was
Hope certified. So you us all about returnal investment. I
got you at least twenty thousand.
Speaker 2 (17:23):
Okay, there you go.
Speaker 1 (17:24):
So I just wanted you to say that because I
knew what the situation was and it was cute because
after what she was like, oh, they sent me myself
in the state, and I was like, yay, So now
it's official. If people are intentional about really helping businesses,
and this is just my take on it, they will
make sure that you get access to the things that
you need, and not only just access.
Speaker 2 (17:46):
The follow through.
Speaker 1 (17:47):
Yeah, because I can give you a list of different things,
but if you don't fill them out, okay, nothing happened.
Speaker 2 (17:53):
Right, Like, I can.
Speaker 1 (17:54):
Tell you all of the events to go to, but
if you don't go to them and talk to this person,
it's nothing going to happen. But that alone lets me
know that one person, Okay, So if nothing else, that
one event that was free got her twenty thousand dollars.
Speaker 2 (18:08):
She didn't give me no money for this though, y'all.
But it's okay, it's all right. I still love her, but.
Speaker 1 (18:13):
Well, look but she got the twenty because the thing
was I was, I was really serious about what do
we need to do to help people?
Speaker 2 (18:20):
And so there are which is why we created the membership.
Speaker 1 (18:22):
Anyway, there are gaps, right a lot of times when
you're working with these organizations, specifically if they are state
county things, they have metrics to meet and they want
to meet them in a short amount of time. You
getting your certification to be hub a MWBE may not
turn into anything for a year, right, yeah, because then
(18:44):
you have to go through the bidding process or you
have to you know, go meet the people and have
those relationships in order to see where there is an
opportunity for you to have a contract. But that one
thing gave you the money that it was like, okay,
this was something that was free because of that certification,
whereas a lot of people would have said, oh okay,
well yeah I saw that, but I didn't pay attention
to it or I didn't do it. I didn't fill
(19:05):
out my paperwork. And the thing about it is it's
a free certification. Yes, that that transitions into tell us
what you have coming up?
Speaker 2 (19:13):
Because I saw a little a little post.
Speaker 1 (19:16):
That you have something coming up, and I don't think
we missed it yet, but it's the is it Department
of Transportation.
Speaker 3 (19:20):
Also, I did do that one. Okay, I did do
that one. I spoke on spoke to their small businesses
that are up under them with Department of Transportation, and
they actually did partner with Shaye. So it like the
the relationship that started that day is continuing, like like
I call her Shaye now and I've seen her in
multiple different you know, avenues and we're good friends. But uh, yeah,
(19:45):
that one has happened, and we partnered with the Hub
office and Jay invited all her business owners as well.
So it was really a really good workshop.
Speaker 2 (19:53):
For sure. I love it.
Speaker 1 (19:55):
I love to hear these wonderful success stories like this
because it is connection.
Speaker 2 (20:00):
It is who you know. It is sending people stuff
we've sent sent each other stuff. This is coming up.
Speaker 1 (20:05):
I'm not sure if you're interested in it, but I
just thought i'd let you know. And so that connection
has never never gotten severed, right, because it was intentional
to stay in contact with each other even though she's
usually out of the state ripping and running. I'm usually
somewhere in the state ripping and running. But you still
are like, oh, I see that. I'm going to send
that to you because it could be beneficial to you.
(20:26):
So when we transition and we talk about, you know,
building a debt free business, I don't want to leave
out of here without letting people know about that specifically. Now,
her story is unique because she had all of the
energy to say, I'm going to pay off all my
personal stuff, okay, And so I want to kind of
(20:46):
approach it from that that way, because a lot of
times with business owners, and I keep getting this over
and over, their personal things are messed up, their personal finances,
but that's why they then can't get the business credit,
So can you talk about what was the intent behind
it personally and then how that has then transferred into
(21:07):
not only that a book, but also classes and speaking
engagements about how you got that free.
Speaker 3 (21:14):
Yeah, so it was definitely from the beginning it was personal.
Fifty thousand dollars a debt in two years that I
paid off, and that was and I was still working
in corporate America. I had no idea that I was
going to eventually use that process and that time in
my life to create the business that I have for
the last fifteen years. But going through those steps and
(21:36):
what it helped me do when it comes to a
debt free business is because I know that if my
personal finances are not where they need to be, it's
so hard for me to focus on my business. And
so that's actually what I taught in that Department of
Transportation workshop was about personal finances because there's a lot
of things that you can't do. First of all, you
can't be creative, you can't think of new ways to
(21:59):
go and get business. And then if you have an
opportunity to go meet a client, go to a conference
and the money's not there, then you've lost out on it.
So I had all of that in the back of
my hole. I was growing to, you know, start my
business and just have kept it that way. Now with me,
I am a majority service based business. The only products
that I have is my books, right, and then outside
(22:22):
of that, you can call my online curriculum a product,
but it's still online, right, And so my overhead is
lower than people who might have a product business of
people who have something, you know, cybersecurity or technology. But
majority of people have a business that can be cash
funded if they need to be. But like you were saying,
(22:44):
with business credit, if your personal stuff is all messed up,
no bank is going to deal with you. They're just
not because they're like, you got all this debt over here,
and you want us to give us give you money
because you believe in your business. No, it's just not
going to happen.
Speaker 1 (23:03):
Yeah, I mean, and that is the reality of it.
And so there are programs out there that can help
people with their personal credit in order.
Speaker 2 (23:11):
To get things together.
Speaker 1 (23:12):
But I think that people feel like this is true though,
there is a separation between business and personal Okay, but
because you're just starting a business, they want to see
that you can personally handle more financials that are going
to come along with it, and so then that puts
people in a buying where it's just like they're like, well,
(23:33):
nobody will give me money. Well, you might be the
first person to give you money, like, honestly if you
really look at reevaluating what you're spending on. So if
I wanted to go get a certain amount of money
right now, which I don't particularly, I do work with
a lot of companies and we have some new stuff
that's going to be coming up, I just can't share
it today.
Speaker 2 (23:54):
I wish I could have.
Speaker 1 (23:55):
I thought it was going to be in place by
the time that we got here, because it would have
been a perfect little segue with what we're talking about.
But it'll be coming out soon where there are products
out there that can help you coaching wise to do
better with your money, so that this way, personally and
professionally you can do what you need to do and
get the funding that you're looking for. But it's also
a certain area of discipline. So if there was money
(24:17):
that I'm looking for because I need more money, the
first thing that I do is I look at my
spending habits and I look at what I can just
bring on in rain in a little bit and then
I make the adjustment. And then every time that I
do that, it gives me the money that I was
probably looking for. Now, I may be a different type
(24:41):
of business owner just because it's things that I'm definitely
going to spend on. But even if it is like, Okay, listen,
we don't need to do as much of that, I'll
go look at, you know, all the expenses that we
have and say, okay, we can cut back on this.
Speaker 2 (24:56):
We don't have to do that right now.
Speaker 1 (24:59):
And you have to to do that sometimes in order
to just look at the whole picture. So if that
means I have to cut back for two months or
three months, I hate it. I'm gonna be honest with you.
Speaker 2 (25:09):
I hate it.
Speaker 1 (25:10):
But usually I've already found some of the money that
I need in my business just by myself. Now, if
there were an opportunity where I'm like, okay, well let
me get this loan, let me see you know whatever else,
the biggest thing I want people to do is say
what do I really need it for? Am I really
going to spend this on? This is the business thing
and I don't have to buy it again? Anytime soon.
(25:31):
And my biggest tip is always is this going to
make me more money? Because it's borrowing money just to
be borrowing money? Iss, Like what are we doing out here?
Speaker 3 (25:41):
Yeah?
Speaker 1 (25:41):
So what is one of the like, if people are
trying to get money, what's one of the biggest mistakes
that you see that they make that maybe you've been
able to kind of turn people around.
Speaker 3 (25:51):
Yeah, because a lot of times, like if they're trying
to of course that was like a great tip. You know,
being able to cut back and your business has spent
personal expenses and you know, finding the money there. Like
that's why I tell people all the time, like cut back,
sell things. How can you bring money in? First and foremost?
But what I tell people that the mistakes that they
(26:11):
usually make, I tell them said, you don't have the
money now, So what is the plan to make sure
you have the money to pay these people back? Because
if you don't pay them back in time, that percentage
is going that thing is going to that interest rate's
going to hit you and it's going to be even worse.
And so you might be even a worse position. So
(26:33):
you whatever you're borrowing this money for, you better have
a concrete plan that you gonna make that money back
plus more in order to pay these people back. And
so that's the biggest mistake. I think people sometimes are
in des remote and haven't figured out how am I
gonna pay these people back? And it becomes a cascade effect.
Speaker 1 (26:51):
Yes it does, and I mean I hate that. That's
why that's always my number one thing, Like, Okay, so
if I borrow this, then this is what my payment is,
and how long is it going to take me to
pay it off?
Speaker 2 (27:02):
And I always.
Speaker 1 (27:03):
Look at it like that, So I look at how
quickly can I make that money back? So let's just say, hypothetically,
I'm just gonna use like a simple example.
Speaker 2 (27:11):
Let's say you needed a new piece of equipment.
Speaker 1 (27:13):
Okay, that equipment's going to produce revenue? Yes, how many
jobs do you need to do in order for that
equipment to pay that loan off?
Speaker 2 (27:20):
You know what I mean?
Speaker 1 (27:21):
And so if you didn't take any money from it,
like as far as trying to make a profit or
anything like that, and you just took the revenue that
it generated, how quickly could you pay that off? And
I look at how quickly could you pay that all?
For a reason, because they're going to give you a payment,
and that payment is going to be something that should
be affordable. But how long is it going to take
(27:42):
you to pay that payment? The quicker you pay it off,
they'll either give you some more money or maybe you
won't need to meunt more money. But now you know
that that debt is done, you know, And so I
always look at it like that. I know that you know,
credit is out there and you can use it, and
you can have those nice, smaller monthly payments. But if
you did can take any extra profit from it for
the first month, two months, three months, yeah, boom, you
(28:04):
might be able to pay that loan off really quickly.
But that's also continued on how much it is, you know,
Like it's not like that's going to work for everybody.
But if you're borrowing small dollar things, there are micro
loans out there that are like five thousand dollars, you
know what I mean. So there are companies that are
willing to loan that money. Now, this question I'm about
to ask you next is a very personal question for
(28:27):
me because I need to book a flight. Okay, and
Janey listen, I thought about it. I said, you know
what I want to go home and it was my
birthday last so I was like, I said, I said,
I found an event I want to go to. He
was like, where is it. I was like, it's in
Brooklyn and he was like when is it. I was like,
it's this weekend. And he was like, find know how
(28:48):
much the flight's?
Speaker 2 (28:48):
All right?
Speaker 1 (28:49):
So I said, well, listen, I'm looking online now, but
I'm going to get online with Janay.
Speaker 2 (28:54):
So I know Jenay may have a little tip.
Speaker 1 (28:56):
So one thing that she does that's amazing is you know,
and what she teaches too is not just about like
just being debt free, but spending better. Right, So we
can't just actly we don't have to spend. So what
would one tip be for me to try to get
a lower price on this this ticket that I need
to get for this weekend?
Speaker 3 (29:17):
And like, and it's this weekend, that's the that's.
Speaker 2 (29:19):
The it's this weekend.
Speaker 1 (29:21):
I mean, I'm listen, I am prepared to pay for
a price, okay, but if I could get it a
little bit cheaper than that, then that would be a
great thing. But I love you know that you give
things that are practical again and actionable too.
Speaker 3 (29:35):
Yeah, I would look at you know, off the off
the top of my head, like secret Flying dot com.
So Secret Flying dot com at has a website. It
also has an app, so in the future for future reference,
like you'll be able to put your home airport and
you can do you can do where you live at,
(29:58):
and then of course an hour way close where I'm
at as well. So you see, I'm in the middle.
So I got three airports to choose from. Yeah, and
then to the places that you want to go. So
it could be New York, it could be La like
places you want to do, and it'll always give you
those alerts like this is the price for right now,
those kind of things. But I would go, you know,
(30:18):
the secret fly dot com and see if there are
any you know, last minute flight deals to New York
from here, so that you can see if you can
even say fifty dollars, We'll be.
Speaker 1 (30:29):
Okay, fifty dollars and fifty dollars, you know what I mean.
So I'm here for that. I just knew you were
going to have the answer to that, and I kind
of threw you a loop when I said, I have
a personal question. But no, I think that you know,
when we when we're trying to do our business. We
do want to do things, go places, right. Oh yeah,
so conferences, right? And when we look at that and
(30:50):
how much it costs. So one thing you mentioned earlier
was I did put more money into my business simply
by not traveling as much.
Speaker 2 (30:57):
Right.
Speaker 1 (30:58):
But you also understand travel brings in the money too,
So it's not that you'll never travel again. It's just
that you literally couldn't do that at one point in
twenty twenty. So then you shifted to do some things.
So now still being able to go places and do things,
you want to spend your time and your money where
it's going to be the most valuable. So I want
(31:19):
to just ask another small question, which is technically a
big question the economy.
Speaker 2 (31:25):
Okay.
Speaker 1 (31:26):
I put out an article that talked about the fifteen
different agencies and things that were getting cut back that
the federal government is making those cuts on. Luckily, for us,
most of our contracting is with the state, not with
the FADS, so that has an effect on it. But
a lot of those things are affecting businesses that are
right here, like RTI, the farmers, and most recently job Corps.
(31:51):
So if you had a synopsis of the economy. But
what should we as business owners to combat all of
the foolishness that's happening right now? What would that little
synopsis slash advice be. I know I told this a
little question, but it's a big question too.
Speaker 3 (32:13):
Okay, So what I would tell businesses at this time
for the economic environment that is to come If things
don't change soon the fourth quarter and into next year.
And I'm not trying to be Debbie Downer, it's not
gonna look nice. And so I would love for businesses
(32:34):
to start raining in their expenses for sure, making sure
that you're cutting back where you can so you can,
you know, build that kind of treasure chest around you.
I will also start thinking about how can you make
sure that your client base is bulletproof?
Speaker 2 (32:54):
All right?
Speaker 3 (32:55):
And if they're not bulletproof, to starting yesterday, you need
to start thinking about clients that you can work with
that are bulletproof. Okay, So the federal let's say it
was government. The federal government is in shambles, like they're
not They're I'm not going after them right now. You know,
I still got my eyes open looking making sure things
(33:15):
are there. But they're going through a shift. So what
what looks like for the local and state government right now?
If I'm somebody that just deals with government, right if
I'm dealing with corporations, what are there what are they
buying right now? You know, before it was all the
DEI stuff in it, and now I've never was in
d I. But now they're shifting from that. So are
(33:36):
you ready to shift with them? You You, as a
small business going forward into this economic thunderstorm that's going
to start in the fourth quarter, you got to really
ask yourself some questions. You can't just continue to think
that what happened in the past is going to work
going forward. You cannot. There are things, there's budgets being cut,
(33:57):
there are people being fired, there are contracts being taken away,
there's unrest around the world, even here in the United States.
You've got to move forward in a different way because
if not, you AI is another way, like you're going
to be left behind. And so I think this is
a shift for all of us to really think about
(34:21):
where are we going next? How are we going to
thrive going forward? Because the changes have been happening. We've
been seeing it for a year. When I tell you,
I have been watching it closely. I don't always say
when I see businesses go out of business, whether it's
locally or whether it's nationally. The one that just went
out of business that I got an email for it
was a national business that I just got an email for.
Speaker 2 (34:43):
And so I.
Speaker 3 (34:44):
See all the things, all the dominoes starting to fall.
But for small businesses, you need to get yourself ready definitely.
Speaker 2 (34:54):
Now.
Speaker 1 (34:54):
That's why somebody said to me the other day, Oh, well,
you're leaving this event early. I say, yeah, because I
have a I has to teach, I said, But I
also have meetings where we're talking about stuff for next
year and they're like, you're in twenty twenty six already,
and I'm like, yeah.
Speaker 2 (35:06):
Not, like I don't understand. When June gets here, that
is my signal. It is my birthday.
Speaker 1 (35:13):
I tell people that it's the official start of summer
as far as I'm concerned. But it is also if
you didn't already start get it in alignment for the
next year, Like I'm not waiting until December to get
things for January, February and March. This mid year point
is my point to really really push for next year
things and to see who's in charge. What's changing This
(35:38):
year has been drastically different than any other one though,
and why because things that were in place. The year
end for most government agencies and businesses or not most
but a lot, but definitely go from agencies is June.
Then they get a new budget in line, whereas typically
(36:00):
you would get contracts now that would be like, oh, okay,
let's go into the next year. Right, they're planning for
their next year, which is July through December. Right, But
people have held back their money exactly because they weren't
sure what was literally happening this first six months.
Speaker 2 (36:16):
And one thing that touched on was those contracts.
Speaker 1 (36:19):
People had contracts, Okay. I have seen people that have
hired people that now have to fire people because they
took those contracts that should have been guaranteed contracts back.
And you just have to understand, this is a whole
new game plan, and people are writing the plan as we're.
Speaker 2 (36:40):
Going along, and they're taking.
Speaker 1 (36:42):
Away things that affect us on a local level, you know,
and it's just like you don't know what's going to
happen each day. So I love when you said make
it bulletproof, you know, like, let's go for the things
that are definitely more guaranteed where they have security, where
they they're maybe not even worried about the DEI practices
(37:02):
because they're going to keep going on if that was
something that was a part of your business. But that's
that's that's great advice for people. So is there anything
that you have coming up that you want to let
the people know?
Speaker 3 (37:13):
Let's see. Well, I always, I mean, I think people
going to my website is always the best because a
lot of the speaking engagements and the work that I
do is done privately, and you know, people can't just
show up. So for people always ask me Jenaday saw
they coming up and I was like, it's best, you know,
for just to go to the website and then to
(37:34):
see you what courses I have Always my books are
always available on Amazon if you're looking for it to
help with your finances. But I am pitching tomorrow. I'm
I'm pitching my business to corporations as part of a
women owned business firm, women own business certification that I'm
a part of, and and so that's that's what I
(37:54):
got coming up.
Speaker 1 (37:55):
Okay, Well, we're just gonna send you out good wishes.
Me and Tammy.
Speaker 3 (38:00):
I love Tam right now.
Speaker 1 (38:03):
Listen, Tammy will give you all a little energy and
wishes and lessons.
Speaker 2 (38:07):
And stuff, and I love that.
Speaker 1 (38:09):
But yeah, we wish you much success on that and
for everybody else, I'm not sure. Again, hopefully you were
able to see everything. If not, I've double recorded it audibly,
so if we just have to let you hear it,
we may have to do that too, but there's always
a backup. But we have plenty of events that are
coming up and I was gonna show them. I'm just
not sure if they're showing on TV or not on
TV on online right now, so I'm just gonna hold
(38:32):
that off and then I'll do a whole other thing
and just record a video and put that out. But
please join the membership because the thing is is that,
you know, until more people join, we want to make
it more comprehensive. We do have some more events that
are going to be around the state as well, so
there won't just be stuff that's here in Durham, but
there's a lot of stuff that'll be in Durham. And
I can promise you everything that we do it's worth
(38:53):
driving for, it's worth spending the money, So please do
that and Our final thing, Our biggest event is the
Black Bus Summit, which is all Ugust first. It'll be
from technically nine am until five pm. And I'm saying
technically because we're you know, letting you come in in
the beginning and you can network. But we're gonna kick
off like nine to forty five, so it gives you
time enough to get into the building, park and all
(39:14):
of that stuff.
Speaker 2 (39:15):
It's gonna be fabulous this year.
Speaker 1 (39:16):
Some of the big people in money that I know,
Jenney probably likes the money people are gonna be there,
so Kevin Price, Kevin Dick, both of them with the
CDFI's yeah. Also have Carolyn Rose that's going to be
coming from NC Rule Center. We have Mayor Barbara Fouchi,
first black woman mayor of Carborough. Uh Didriana Freeman and
(39:39):
she is on the city council here in Durham.
Speaker 2 (39:42):
We have a whole host of great people that'll be
there as well.
Speaker 1 (39:45):
So I just suggest get your tickets now because this
one is going to sell out. We have one hundred tickets.
Once that's gone, that's it, okay, So go ahead and
get those things now. And if you're a member, you
should already have gotten your email, but we'll be sending
another one. You get a disc count on that as well.
So since this is open to the public, if you
join the membership, that's when you'll get the information, so
(40:06):
you can get your discount on that as well. All right, well, Janey,
thank you for spending time with us today. And I
think this was very insightful. I think, you know, you
just have given a lot of energy and I appreciate
the things that you do. And I'm gonna do some
more news stuff because I'm like, you know, this little
chocolate face needs to be back on the news, right.
Speaker 3 (40:29):
But yeah, and it's a gap for what you do,
Like I remember your segments. It's a gap for that
right now. So you got to get back on TV.
Speaker 1 (40:37):
Yes, so we're going to do that up here in
this area. I mean, we still could come back up
there too. It's not like it's you know, I don't
have a problem traveling, but definitely doing that because it's
so much business stuff that people need to know that
maybe they're just missing that, and so we'll try to
fill that gap in there.
Speaker 2 (40:51):
All right, Well, thank you so much.
Speaker 1 (40:53):
Make sure you guys always show up and show out
and continue to give it to the people.
Speaker 2 (40:56):
Bye guys,
Okay, I'm hoping you guys are getting all of this
love that I'm putting into today. I do not know
what's going on in the background, but I'm just gonna
turn the music down.
Speaker 2 (00:18):
We were having some technical difficulties.
Speaker 1 (00:20):
I am really hoping that you can see us, because
it's two pretty little chocolate faces that really would love
to just share all of the energy.
Speaker 2 (00:28):
And everything that we have with you.
Speaker 1 (00:30):
We're still gonna go ahead and record though, because I
know it's gonna record the sound and everything, but you
should see these little faces up on the screen. So
I want to welcome you out today. I'm gonna turn
the music off and just pop everything up. Hopefully you'll
be able to see things the way that they are intended,
because for us, it's not showing in that same way.
(00:51):
I have no idea what's going on with the internet
or how it is reflecting to you, but I'm hoping
that you can see.
Speaker 2 (00:58):
What we have here.
Speaker 1 (01:00):
So today I have a marvelous guest who I have
not interviewed in a long time. It's actually been a
couple of years, Jenny Adams, and she is a person
who is about that money, okay, about saving that money.
But also spending that money wisely. And so today we
want to kind of talk to her about building a
debt free business. I do not have a debt free business, okay,
(01:21):
but part of that starts with some discipline.
Speaker 2 (01:23):
Part of that starts with what you do in the.
Speaker 1 (01:25):
Background, and so those things make a difference when you're
talking about business. Right, So let's get into what this
series is, and I'm going to bring Jannae on. So
the giv It Geted Business Series is a dynamic webinar
series designed to bring clarity and actionable insights to business owners.
We want to give you stuff at every one of
these that you can immediately do for your business. We
don't want it to be something where it's just theory
(01:47):
or where we're just talking trying to have a kiki. No,
we can have a kiki, but we also need to
invest in you mentally. And so with our give It
Geated business membership, that's part of what we do. And
this is something that we do on at least a monthly,
sometimes twice a month in order to be able to
let you know who the members are, but also our
business service organizations things your business just needs to know about.
(02:07):
We work with government agencies and all of that stuff
that seems like it's just too overwhelming, that might be chaotic.
We want you to be able to pull this in
and control it, and at least every time we do this,
you learn one or more new things in order to
increase your business acumen. So today we are with Janay Adams,
who I'm bringing on right now. And Janay, listen, it's
(02:31):
been a long time, all right, and we have done
individually collectively just in the state of North Carolina, out
of the state, some marvelous things, okay, And I just
want you to let people know just who you are
in general, and then we'll dig deeper a little bit.
Speaker 2 (02:47):
Yeah.
Speaker 3 (02:47):
So I first of all, thank you for having me on.
It's always like I love doing interviews. I love when
I see you in person. You just one of my
favorite people. So thank you again for having me on.
I am Janay Adams. I am the owner of eMac
and SO, which is a financial wellness and economic mobility firm.
We've been in business for the last fifteen years and
we have clients from corporations to government to higher edge
(03:10):
at even K through twelve and so I'm just happy
to be here and help in any way that I can.
Speaker 1 (03:15):
Yes, now with your company and just looking at eMac
Consulting and looking at how it's grown, and I'm going
to say, I don't know how long we've known each other,
but I'm thinking it's in at least the eight to
ten year range.
Speaker 2 (03:31):
Somewhere in there.
Speaker 1 (03:32):
I'm not sure how long, but it's somewhere in that range.
When we first started back in the back in the
good old days, right before AI, you know, jump into
the into the mix, right, you know, like cause you
have to realize sometimes you don't even realize how fast
the technology is moving, right, But this was back in
the days we actually had to have real conversations with
(03:53):
people and you actually had to go to networking events
to try to get your business out there. And I'm
not saying social media wasn't there, but I just think
that it wasn't relied on this heavily. What would you
say has been one of the biggest changes in your
business from when you started to where you are now.
Speaker 3 (04:11):
I think the biggest change has been the way that
the economy has changed. We have you know, I started
my business after the Great Recession, but since then we
have went through a pandemic, and then now we're probably
going into another economic storm and so being able to
navigate my business in and out of that and really seeing,
(04:31):
you know, how the easy money was coming in twenty
twenty and twenty twenty one, and I think now we
are going to see exactly who the real businesses are.
And we're starting I'm sure you've seen it too, we're
starting to see the ones coming, you know, basically falling
to the wayside. I actually seen an email before we
got on here of another company closing. So it's just
(04:54):
that I think that's what's been the biggest change for
my business is seeing the the progression of the clients
that I'm working with, seeing the progression of the way
that my services have to be done, all of that stuff.
Like we've been I've been having to basically evolution has happened.
Happened in my business for you.
Speaker 2 (05:15):
Yeah.
Speaker 1 (05:15):
Now, I like the fact that you touched on so
many different things, and I have to go to this
one because you said one phrase that touched my spirit.
You said the easy money. Now, let me explain what
I think she means by that. Twenty twenty and twenty one,
Even though it was the pandemic, the pandy, however you
(05:39):
want to call it. I made a whole bunch of
money in twenty twenty two and twenty twenty one. But
part of that was already being in position to put
yourself in online platforms to be in demand before everything happened,
and then to be able to execute things in a
way that was helpful to people exactly when they needed it.
(06:01):
And so one thing I've always been about, and you know,
I say this is being immediately actionable. And the technology
of zoom I used, go to webinar or whatever platforms
you were using during that time allowed businesses like hours
to thrive during that time. And so I told people,
I said, you know, one of the things is, you know,
people like, why don't you take out a PPP loan?
(06:23):
And I told them, I can't justify that my business
is losing money like you would need to show that
that didn't happen during that timeframe. And it was so
easy because people would just send you messages and say,
can you counsel somebody can teach your class? So what
happened for you during that time frame?
Speaker 3 (06:42):
Yeah, And you're right. And when I was saying easy money,
of course, just like your business went up, my business
went up as well because I didn't have to fly anywhere.
I could just be online. But when I was saying
with easy money, it was a lot of people that
got into so called business during that time. They can
make it because we had the child tax credit money,
(07:04):
we had the uh, you know, the stimulus checks coming.
So these people who were all all of a sudden
on social media, we're getting that money. And now we're
starting to see how that money has dried up and
they're struggling. But people like you and I, like you said,
had already built a business before that time, and we
had a system. And I have definitely seen how you
(07:25):
have been able to just go even at higher levels
from what you were doing before. And I'm sure demanding
even more money than you did before because you're you're
just doing everything bigger and better. And yeah, yeah, so
what I'm seeing, you know, for me, during that time,
like I said before, the money definitely went up, and
since then it has helped me grow because I'm like, Okay, now,
(07:49):
the next step is the government contracting, right, the next
step is to offer even a more elevated service to
my past clients and being able to charge more. So
those who knew business before the pandemic, before the easy money,
those are the ones that's going to survive now and
more than likely have even better businesses and stronger businesses
(08:10):
going forward.
Speaker 1 (08:11):
Yeah, and I'm glad you mentioned that because I have
some people that I know that receive funding because they
were HUB certified. I have people that I know that
received a bunch of grants during that time because of
the nature of their business, and now they've either had
to go out of business or they've had to shift
what they do in a way that is palatable for
(08:34):
the current situation, but also looking at things going forward.
So things that you may have said, Okay, well during
the pandemic, no this is not even possible, but we
need to stay in business. And then now some of
those things are like, well, people don't really want that
anymore because now we can be around each other again,
So it changes that whole dynamic. So I'm glad be
could see when I say easy money, my easy money
(08:55):
was different than your easy money. Like you were just
given the idea of a lot of people had money
come into them, but then they still couldn't sustain And
so that's a difference in those businesses, and we are
seeing that shift happen now and one of the reasons
I definitely want to have you on. So Jenny is
a member of the Givin Gated Business membership. But in
addition to that, the thing that I think that's always
(09:18):
been great and that I've seen expand specifically in your
business is being on the television. And I think that
being able to be seen even when you know things
were going bad, and still being able to relay that
information and parlaying it into really current trending topics, to me,
has been something that I think a lot of people
(09:39):
would be interested in, even you know, just knowing about that.
So one thing about Jane is she's on the news
on a regular basis. Okay, and I was on the
news on a regular basis, but then we changed, we
moved up here, and I'm like, I gotta get back
on the news, you know what I'm saying. So every
time I see jene little face pop up, I was like,
I need to send somebody something right like it just
it's just a motivator for me. So I'm never gonna
(10:01):
be the person that's like, look at her being on
the news.
Speaker 2 (10:04):
You know like that.
Speaker 1 (10:05):
No, I'm like, girl, look at her you and it
inspires me and keeps me like, you know what, we
need to consistently do some things, because I could say
that there are things that we're way more consistent at
certain times that because of what you're doing now maybe
you can't be as consistent. Doesn't mean you're still not working.
It just means you have to change what you do.
(10:26):
But can you talk to that about being on the
news and how that has affected your business on a
regular basis, whether that is social capital, whether that is
speaking engagements or whatever.
Speaker 3 (10:37):
Definitely, And I have been on the news and now
I think probably like twelve years, which is which is
wild to me. And what it does because people are
always saying, well, why do you keep doing it? I'm saying,
because my face is on TV every week or every
other week.
Speaker 2 (10:56):
Yeah.
Speaker 3 (10:56):
And what it does, like you said, it gives you
social capital, is shows that someone wants to hear from you,
You want your thought leadership in the area that you're in.
And it's only expanded from when I started. When I
first started, it was just me and Tracy every once
a month actually, and now I think I've worked with
(11:17):
eight people on that show now within that network, and
then it's also expanded, so it's not only making my
face be seen here locally, but also around the country.
I even did you know I take from South Africa
one time. And so what that does is it justifies
my price. And so that's why I tell people all
(11:38):
the time, having media, whether you're on TV or whether
you have different articles within magazines or in newspapers, that
justifies your price. Yes, that helps you raise it up,
for sure.
Speaker 2 (11:51):
It definitely does.
Speaker 1 (11:52):
And I really I mean, you know, like I said,
you were doing the news before I was doing the news,
and I was like, you know what, I have some
stuff to say too, So I want to get on there.
And I think that that you just, you know, one
of the things that is important that people need to understand,
and I say this on multiple platforms whenever we're out,
is the relationships matter.
Speaker 2 (12:09):
Right.
Speaker 1 (12:10):
So the thing is, Tracy's not even at the station
anymore because from what I saw, Tracy moved to Connecticut, right,
And Tracy was one of the reporters that was on WFMY,
so she was there for years, but now she's moved.
Because that's a lot of times what happens in the
journalistic world. They go from a different station to a
different station, and so it could have been something where
it's like, Okay, well she's gone, so we're not doing
(12:32):
your segment, are right, But you still have to have
those relationships with those producers, with the station, with the
other newscasters who felt like it was valuable to hear
the things that you were talking about exactly.
Speaker 3 (12:43):
And that's the key I would give to people. You
they be an expert in what you're doing and what
you're talking about, because if then you just become the
go to person. I'm pretty much sure in that newsroom
if it's something about money, they're just like, just call Jenna,
see if she's available. Because that's what it has been
on multiple occasions that people I have never met before
(13:04):
that would call me and say, yeah, Janny, I know
you don't know me, but I work at w F
and Y could you do a segment with me on this?
And it could be the same day. They're like, are
you ready? Could you be ready in like two hours?
And that's another thing. You've got to be ready all
the time, stay ready so you don't have to get ready,
especially when it comes to the news.
Speaker 1 (13:23):
Yeah, And I mean when it comes to that, I
think of the things of like even when we said
we were prepared, not necessarily, we didn't know COVID was
going to happen, but we were prepared in business to
be in place, right.
Speaker 2 (13:34):
And so when I look at, well, how do people
get so many things?
Speaker 1 (13:38):
How do they get so many offerers to do this
or to speak or whatever the thing is, they're ready.
So that means they have their photos, That means they
have their bios together. That means that they have their
website together. They probably have a booking link. They probably
have their calendar together, you know.
Speaker 2 (13:53):
What I mean.
Speaker 1 (13:54):
And so people, I think take the what I like
to call it is still the pretty stuff, right, the
pretty stuff for granted, but that's kind of like the basis.
That's the foundation of the things that you need to have.
So when people ask you for those things, you can
send them. And let me tell you something. I want
to transition to the government contracting area that we talked
(14:15):
about a brief that you talked about. What I've seen
is the people that are it tends to be the
higher up they get, the worse their pictures are. Okay,
and I'm just it's like, you know you have this position,
you know you're going to be asked to speak. Why
is this not something that's readily available and you have
(14:37):
to wait a week for them to get a picture
or they'll send you something that's like, we don't really
want to use this picture. So I'm always consistent about
telling people take great pictures, you know what I mean,
because it does make a difference. And even in your branding,
I could see the transition and the changes in the
level of what you're doing where it's like, okay, like
(14:59):
when you say, does it justify the price? Does it
look like you should pay me the money that I'm
asking you? And I think all of that makes a
big difference. But the government people, for some reason, they
I don't know, like they need somebody just come in
and say let's just hey, everybody, let's just take some
headshots because a lot of times they don't have a
really great headshot. But it does make a difference, right,
(15:20):
especially if you're going to be speaking and people are
going to ask you stuff all the time. Anyway, have
those things ready. So that's just a lesson, just a
little bit of tip. Now let's go back because now
I know exactly when this was. We're going to go
back to the year twenty twenty. We're going to go
back to January twenty twenty when we did the largest
small business summit that GTCC and Geiffer County has ever had.
(15:44):
We had twenty some sessions going and one of the
things that I was adamant about was Okay, well, what's
going to be the return of investment for people? And
what are some metrics that we can really measure to
say we did that this day. One of them was
preparing people to get their hub and MWB certification. Yeah,
and that day tell them what happened with you girl?
Speaker 2 (16:05):
Yeah?
Speaker 3 (16:06):
So I think it was shame that was in there.
Speaker 2 (16:09):
Yeah.
Speaker 3 (16:09):
Yeah. And so like before I was before before that,
you know, I it was. It was actually like a
two set process. First, I had got help from Hassani
Mitchell who was working working downtown, but either way, he
helped me walk through the application because I just had
(16:29):
no idea right at all. But then when I went
to the conference, there she was. There was the person
that needed to get done, and I was just like,
this is perfect because if not, I would have had
to mail it in try to figure things out. But
having someone there that is the person who gives you
the certification or at least gets the process started. That
was like a game changer. And like you said that
(16:51):
people were getting funding because they were HUB certified. It
set me up for that in twenty I think it
might have been twenty twenty one when they had the
Retool your Business.
Speaker 2 (17:01):
Yep, yep, reach too. It was taking new one yep.
Speaker 3 (17:03):
Yeah. It was a grant and it was free money.
And I think out of that So that conference being
there with Shade getting my Hope certification a year later,
there's after that year, twenty thousand dollars because I was
Hope certified. So you us all about returnal investment. I
got you at least twenty thousand.
Speaker 2 (17:23):
Okay, there you go.
Speaker 1 (17:24):
So I just wanted you to say that because I
knew what the situation was and it was cute because
after what she was like, oh, they sent me myself
in the state, and I was like, yay, So now
it's official. If people are intentional about really helping businesses,
and this is just my take on it, they will
make sure that you get access to the things that
you need, and not only just access.
Speaker 2 (17:46):
The follow through.
Speaker 1 (17:47):
Yeah, because I can give you a list of different things,
but if you don't fill them out, okay, nothing happened.
Speaker 2 (17:53):
Right, Like, I can.
Speaker 1 (17:54):
Tell you all of the events to go to, but
if you don't go to them and talk to this person,
it's nothing going to happen. But that alone lets me
know that one person, Okay, So if nothing else, that
one event that was free got her twenty thousand dollars.
Speaker 2 (18:08):
She didn't give me no money for this though, y'all.
But it's okay, it's all right. I still love her, but.
Speaker 1 (18:13):
Well, look but she got the twenty because the thing
was I was, I was really serious about what do
we need to do to help people?
Speaker 2 (18:20):
And so there are which is why we created the membership.
Speaker 1 (18:22):
Anyway, there are gaps, right a lot of times when
you're working with these organizations, specifically if they are state
county things, they have metrics to meet and they want
to meet them in a short amount of time. You
getting your certification to be hub a MWBE may not
turn into anything for a year, right, yeah, because then
(18:44):
you have to go through the bidding process or you
have to you know, go meet the people and have
those relationships in order to see where there is an
opportunity for you to have a contract. But that one
thing gave you the money that it was like, okay,
this was something that was free because of that certification,
whereas a lot of people would have said, oh okay,
well yeah I saw that, but I didn't pay attention
to it or I didn't do it. I didn't fill
(19:05):
out my paperwork. And the thing about it is it's
a free certification. Yes, that that transitions into tell us
what you have coming up?
Speaker 2 (19:13):
Because I saw a little a little post.
Speaker 1 (19:16):
That you have something coming up, and I don't think
we missed it yet, but it's the is it Department
of Transportation.
Speaker 3 (19:20):
Also, I did do that one. Okay, I did do
that one. I spoke on spoke to their small businesses
that are up under them with Department of Transportation, and
they actually did partner with Shaye. So it like the
the relationship that started that day is continuing, like like
I call her Shaye now and I've seen her in
multiple different you know, avenues and we're good friends. But uh, yeah,
(19:45):
that one has happened, and we partnered with the Hub
office and Jay invited all her business owners as well.
So it was really a really good workshop.
Speaker 2 (19:53):
For sure. I love it.
Speaker 1 (19:55):
I love to hear these wonderful success stories like this
because it is connection.
Speaker 2 (20:00):
It is who you know. It is sending people stuff
we've sent sent each other stuff. This is coming up.
Speaker 1 (20:05):
I'm not sure if you're interested in it, but I
just thought i'd let you know. And so that connection
has never never gotten severed, right, because it was intentional
to stay in contact with each other even though she's
usually out of the state ripping and running. I'm usually
somewhere in the state ripping and running. But you still
are like, oh, I see that. I'm going to send
that to you because it could be beneficial to you.
(20:26):
So when we transition and we talk about, you know,
building a debt free business, I don't want to leave
out of here without letting people know about that specifically. Now,
her story is unique because she had all of the
energy to say, I'm going to pay off all my
personal stuff, okay, And so I want to kind of
(20:46):
approach it from that that way, because a lot of
times with business owners, and I keep getting this over
and over, their personal things are messed up, their personal finances,
but that's why they then can't get the business credit,
So can you talk about what was the intent behind
it personally and then how that has then transferred into
(21:07):
not only that a book, but also classes and speaking
engagements about how you got that free.
Speaker 3 (21:14):
Yeah, so it was definitely from the beginning it was personal.
Fifty thousand dollars a debt in two years that I
paid off, and that was and I was still working
in corporate America. I had no idea that I was
going to eventually use that process and that time in
my life to create the business that I have for
the last fifteen years. But going through those steps and
(21:36):
what it helped me do when it comes to a
debt free business is because I know that if my
personal finances are not where they need to be, it's
so hard for me to focus on my business. And
so that's actually what I taught in that Department of
Transportation workshop was about personal finances because there's a lot
of things that you can't do. First of all, you
can't be creative, you can't think of new ways to
(21:59):
go and get business. And then if you have an
opportunity to go meet a client, go to a conference
and the money's not there, then you've lost out on it.
So I had all of that in the back of
my hole. I was growing to, you know, start my
business and just have kept it that way. Now with me,
I am a majority service based business. The only products
that I have is my books, right, and then outside
(22:22):
of that, you can call my online curriculum a product,
but it's still online, right, And so my overhead is
lower than people who might have a product business of
people who have something, you know, cybersecurity or technology. But
majority of people have a business that can be cash
funded if they need to be. But like you were saying,
(22:44):
with business credit, if your personal stuff is all messed up,
no bank is going to deal with you. They're just
not because they're like, you got all this debt over here,
and you want us to give us give you money
because you believe in your business. No, it's just not
going to happen.
Speaker 1 (23:03):
Yeah, I mean, and that is the reality of it.
And so there are programs out there that can help
people with their personal credit in order.
Speaker 2 (23:11):
To get things together.
Speaker 1 (23:12):
But I think that people feel like this is true though,
there is a separation between business and personal Okay, but
because you're just starting a business, they want to see
that you can personally handle more financials that are going
to come along with it, and so then that puts
people in a buying where it's just like they're like, well,
(23:33):
nobody will give me money. Well, you might be the
first person to give you money, like, honestly if you
really look at reevaluating what you're spending on. So if
I wanted to go get a certain amount of money
right now, which I don't particularly, I do work with
a lot of companies and we have some new stuff
that's going to be coming up, I just can't share
it today.
Speaker 2 (23:54):
I wish I could have.
Speaker 1 (23:55):
I thought it was going to be in place by
the time that we got here, because it would have
been a perfect little segue with what we're talking about.
But it'll be coming out soon where there are products
out there that can help you coaching wise to do
better with your money, so that this way, personally and
professionally you can do what you need to do and
get the funding that you're looking for. But it's also
a certain area of discipline. So if there was money
(24:17):
that I'm looking for because I need more money, the
first thing that I do is I look at my
spending habits and I look at what I can just
bring on in rain in a little bit and then
I make the adjustment. And then every time that I
do that, it gives me the money that I was
probably looking for. Now, I may be a different type
(24:41):
of business owner just because it's things that I'm definitely
going to spend on. But even if it is like, Okay, listen,
we don't need to do as much of that, I'll
go look at, you know, all the expenses that we
have and say, okay, we can cut back on this.
Speaker 2 (24:56):
We don't have to do that right now.
Speaker 1 (24:59):
And you have to to do that sometimes in order
to just look at the whole picture. So if that
means I have to cut back for two months or
three months, I hate it. I'm gonna be honest with you.
Speaker 2 (25:09):
I hate it.
Speaker 1 (25:10):
But usually I've already found some of the money that
I need in my business just by myself. Now, if
there were an opportunity where I'm like, okay, well let
me get this loan, let me see you know whatever else,
the biggest thing I want people to do is say
what do I really need it for? Am I really
going to spend this on? This is the business thing
and I don't have to buy it again? Anytime soon.
(25:31):
And my biggest tip is always is this going to
make me more money? Because it's borrowing money just to
be borrowing money? Iss, Like what are we doing out here?
Speaker 3 (25:41):
Yeah?
Speaker 1 (25:41):
So what is one of the like, if people are
trying to get money, what's one of the biggest mistakes
that you see that they make that maybe you've been
able to kind of turn people around.
Speaker 3 (25:51):
Yeah, because a lot of times, like if they're trying
to of course that was like a great tip. You know,
being able to cut back and your business has spent
personal expenses and you know, finding the money there. Like
that's why I tell people all the time, like cut back,
sell things. How can you bring money in? First and foremost?
But what I tell people that the mistakes that they
(26:11):
usually make, I tell them said, you don't have the
money now, So what is the plan to make sure
you have the money to pay these people back? Because
if you don't pay them back in time, that percentage
is going that thing is going to that interest rate's
going to hit you and it's going to be even worse.
And so you might be even a worse position. So
(26:33):
you whatever you're borrowing this money for, you better have
a concrete plan that you gonna make that money back
plus more in order to pay these people back. And
so that's the biggest mistake. I think people sometimes are
in des remote and haven't figured out how am I
gonna pay these people back? And it becomes a cascade effect.
Speaker 1 (26:51):
Yes it does, and I mean I hate that. That's
why that's always my number one thing, Like, Okay, so
if I borrow this, then this is what my payment is,
and how long is it going to take me to
pay it off?
Speaker 2 (27:02):
And I always.
Speaker 1 (27:03):
Look at it like that, So I look at how
quickly can I make that money back? So let's just say, hypothetically,
I'm just gonna use like a simple example.
Speaker 2 (27:11):
Let's say you needed a new piece of equipment.
Speaker 1 (27:13):
Okay, that equipment's going to produce revenue? Yes, how many
jobs do you need to do in order for that
equipment to pay that loan off?
Speaker 2 (27:20):
You know what I mean?
Speaker 1 (27:21):
And so if you didn't take any money from it,
like as far as trying to make a profit or
anything like that, and you just took the revenue that
it generated, how quickly could you pay that off? And
I look at how quickly could you pay that all?
For a reason, because they're going to give you a payment,
and that payment is going to be something that should
be affordable. But how long is it going to take
(27:42):
you to pay that payment? The quicker you pay it off,
they'll either give you some more money or maybe you
won't need to meunt more money. But now you know
that that debt is done, you know, And so I
always look at it like that. I know that you know,
credit is out there and you can use it, and
you can have those nice, smaller monthly payments. But if
you did can take any extra profit from it for
the first month, two months, three months, yeah, boom, you
(28:04):
might be able to pay that loan off really quickly.
But that's also continued on how much it is, you know,
Like it's not like that's going to work for everybody.
But if you're borrowing small dollar things, there are micro
loans out there that are like five thousand dollars, you
know what I mean. So there are companies that are
willing to loan that money. Now, this question I'm about
to ask you next is a very personal question for
(28:27):
me because I need to book a flight. Okay, and
Janey listen, I thought about it. I said, you know
what I want to go home and it was my
birthday last so I was like, I said, I said,
I found an event I want to go to. He
was like, where is it. I was like, it's in
Brooklyn and he was like when is it. I was like,
it's this weekend. And he was like, find know how
(28:48):
much the flight's?
Speaker 2 (28:48):
All right?
Speaker 1 (28:49):
So I said, well, listen, I'm looking online now, but
I'm going to get online with Janay.
Speaker 2 (28:54):
So I know Jenay may have a little tip.
Speaker 1 (28:56):
So one thing that she does that's amazing is you know,
and what she teaches too is not just about like
just being debt free, but spending better. Right, So we
can't just actly we don't have to spend. So what
would one tip be for me to try to get
a lower price on this this ticket that I need
to get for this weekend?
Speaker 3 (29:17):
And like, and it's this weekend, that's the that's.
Speaker 2 (29:19):
The it's this weekend.
Speaker 1 (29:21):
I mean, I'm listen, I am prepared to pay for
a price, okay, but if I could get it a
little bit cheaper than that, then that would be a
great thing. But I love you know that you give
things that are practical again and actionable too.
Speaker 3 (29:35):
Yeah, I would look at you know, off the off
the top of my head, like secret Flying dot com.
So Secret Flying dot com at has a website. It
also has an app, so in the future for future reference,
like you'll be able to put your home airport and
you can do you can do where you live at,
(29:58):
and then of course an hour way close where I'm
at as well. So you see, I'm in the middle.
So I got three airports to choose from. Yeah, and
then to the places that you want to go. So
it could be New York, it could be La like
places you want to do, and it'll always give you
those alerts like this is the price for right now,
those kind of things. But I would go, you know,
(30:18):
the secret fly dot com and see if there are
any you know, last minute flight deals to New York
from here, so that you can see if you can
even say fifty dollars, We'll be.
Speaker 1 (30:29):
Okay, fifty dollars and fifty dollars, you know what I mean.
So I'm here for that. I just knew you were
going to have the answer to that, and I kind
of threw you a loop when I said, I have
a personal question. But no, I think that you know,
when we when we're trying to do our business. We
do want to do things, go places, right. Oh yeah,
so conferences, right? And when we look at that and
(30:50):
how much it costs. So one thing you mentioned earlier
was I did put more money into my business simply
by not traveling as much.
Speaker 2 (30:57):
Right.
Speaker 1 (30:58):
But you also understand travel brings in the money too,
So it's not that you'll never travel again. It's just
that you literally couldn't do that at one point in
twenty twenty. So then you shifted to do some things.
So now still being able to go places and do things,
you want to spend your time and your money where
it's going to be the most valuable. So I want
(31:19):
to just ask another small question, which is technically a
big question the economy.
Speaker 2 (31:25):
Okay.
Speaker 1 (31:26):
I put out an article that talked about the fifteen
different agencies and things that were getting cut back that
the federal government is making those cuts on. Luckily, for us,
most of our contracting is with the state, not with
the FADS, so that has an effect on it. But
a lot of those things are affecting businesses that are
right here, like RTI, the farmers, and most recently job Corps.
(31:51):
So if you had a synopsis of the economy. But
what should we as business owners to combat all of
the foolishness that's happening right now? What would that little
synopsis slash advice be. I know I told this a
little question, but it's a big question too.
Speaker 3 (32:13):
Okay, So what I would tell businesses at this time
for the economic environment that is to come If things
don't change soon the fourth quarter and into next year.
And I'm not trying to be Debbie Downer, it's not
gonna look nice. And so I would love for businesses
(32:34):
to start raining in their expenses for sure, making sure
that you're cutting back where you can so you can,
you know, build that kind of treasure chest around you.
I will also start thinking about how can you make
sure that your client base is bulletproof?
Speaker 2 (32:54):
All right?
Speaker 3 (32:55):
And if they're not bulletproof, to starting yesterday, you need
to start thinking about clients that you can work with
that are bulletproof. Okay, So the federal let's say it
was government. The federal government is in shambles, like they're
not They're I'm not going after them right now. You know,
I still got my eyes open looking making sure things
(33:15):
are there. But they're going through a shift. So what
what looks like for the local and state government right now?
If I'm somebody that just deals with government, right if
I'm dealing with corporations, what are there what are they
buying right now? You know, before it was all the
DEI stuff in it, and now I've never was in
d I. But now they're shifting from that. So are
(33:36):
you ready to shift with them? You You, as a
small business going forward into this economic thunderstorm that's going
to start in the fourth quarter, you got to really
ask yourself some questions. You can't just continue to think
that what happened in the past is going to work
going forward. You cannot. There are things, there's budgets being cut,
(33:57):
there are people being fired, there are contracts being taken away,
there's unrest around the world, even here in the United States.
You've got to move forward in a different way because
if not, you AI is another way, like you're going
to be left behind. And so I think this is
a shift for all of us to really think about
(34:21):
where are we going next? How are we going to
thrive going forward? Because the changes have been happening. We've
been seeing it for a year. When I tell you,
I have been watching it closely. I don't always say
when I see businesses go out of business, whether it's
locally or whether it's nationally. The one that just went
out of business that I got an email for it
was a national business that I just got an email for.
Speaker 2 (34:43):
And so I.
Speaker 3 (34:44):
See all the things, all the dominoes starting to fall.
But for small businesses, you need to get yourself ready definitely.
Speaker 2 (34:54):
Now.
Speaker 1 (34:54):
That's why somebody said to me the other day, Oh, well,
you're leaving this event early. I say, yeah, because I
have a I has to teach, I said, But I
also have meetings where we're talking about stuff for next
year and they're like, you're in twenty twenty six already,
and I'm like, yeah.
Speaker 2 (35:06):
Not, like I don't understand. When June gets here, that
is my signal. It is my birthday.
Speaker 1 (35:13):
I tell people that it's the official start of summer
as far as I'm concerned. But it is also if
you didn't already start get it in alignment for the
next year, Like I'm not waiting until December to get
things for January, February and March. This mid year point
is my point to really really push for next year
things and to see who's in charge. What's changing This
(35:38):
year has been drastically different than any other one though,
and why because things that were in place. The year
end for most government agencies and businesses or not most
but a lot, but definitely go from agencies is June.
Then they get a new budget in line, whereas typically
(36:00):
you would get contracts now that would be like, oh, okay,
let's go into the next year. Right, they're planning for
their next year, which is July through December. Right, But
people have held back their money exactly because they weren't
sure what was literally happening this first six months.
Speaker 2 (36:16):
And one thing that touched on was those contracts.
Speaker 1 (36:19):
People had contracts, Okay. I have seen people that have
hired people that now have to fire people because they
took those contracts that should have been guaranteed contracts back.
And you just have to understand, this is a whole
new game plan, and people are writing the plan as we're.
Speaker 2 (36:40):
Going along, and they're taking.
Speaker 1 (36:42):
Away things that affect us on a local level, you know,
and it's just like you don't know what's going to
happen each day. So I love when you said make
it bulletproof, you know, like, let's go for the things
that are definitely more guaranteed where they have security, where
they they're maybe not even worried about the DEI practices
(37:02):
because they're going to keep going on if that was
something that was a part of your business. But that's
that's that's great advice for people. So is there anything
that you have coming up that you want to let
the people know?
Speaker 3 (37:13):
Let's see. Well, I always, I mean, I think people
going to my website is always the best because a
lot of the speaking engagements and the work that I
do is done privately, and you know, people can't just
show up. So for people always ask me Jenaday saw
they coming up and I was like, it's best, you know,
for just to go to the website and then to
(37:34):
see you what courses I have Always my books are
always available on Amazon if you're looking for it to
help with your finances. But I am pitching tomorrow. I'm
I'm pitching my business to corporations as part of a
women owned business firm, women own business certification that I'm
a part of, and and so that's that's what I
(37:54):
got coming up.
Speaker 1 (37:55):
Okay, Well, we're just gonna send you out good wishes.
Me and Tammy.
Speaker 3 (38:00):
I love Tam right now.
Speaker 1 (38:03):
Listen, Tammy will give you all a little energy and
wishes and lessons.
Speaker 2 (38:07):
And stuff, and I love that.
Speaker 1 (38:09):
But yeah, we wish you much success on that and
for everybody else, I'm not sure. Again, hopefully you were
able to see everything. If not, I've double recorded it audibly,
so if we just have to let you hear it,
we may have to do that too, but there's always
a backup. But we have plenty of events that are
coming up and I was gonna show them. I'm just
not sure if they're showing on TV or not on
TV on online right now, so I'm just gonna hold
(38:32):
that off and then I'll do a whole other thing
and just record a video and put that out. But
please join the membership because the thing is is that,
you know, until more people join, we want to make
it more comprehensive. We do have some more events that
are going to be around the state as well, so
there won't just be stuff that's here in Durham, but
there's a lot of stuff that'll be in Durham. And
I can promise you everything that we do it's worth
(38:53):
driving for, it's worth spending the money, So please do
that and Our final thing, Our biggest event is the
Black Bus Summit, which is all Ugust first. It'll be
from technically nine am until five pm. And I'm saying
technically because we're you know, letting you come in in
the beginning and you can network. But we're gonna kick
off like nine to forty five, so it gives you
time enough to get into the building, park and all
(39:14):
of that stuff.
Speaker 2 (39:15):
It's gonna be fabulous this year.
Speaker 1 (39:16):
Some of the big people in money that I know,
Jenney probably likes the money people are gonna be there,
so Kevin Price, Kevin Dick, both of them with the
CDFI's yeah. Also have Carolyn Rose that's going to be
coming from NC Rule Center. We have Mayor Barbara Fouchi,
first black woman mayor of Carborough. Uh Didriana Freeman and
(39:39):
she is on the city council here in Durham.
Speaker 2 (39:42):
We have a whole host of great people that'll be
there as well.
Speaker 1 (39:45):
So I just suggest get your tickets now because this
one is going to sell out. We have one hundred tickets.
Once that's gone, that's it, okay, So go ahead and
get those things now. And if you're a member, you
should already have gotten your email, but we'll be sending
another one. You get a disc count on that as well.
So since this is open to the public, if you
join the membership, that's when you'll get the information, so
(40:06):
you can get your discount on that as well. All right, well, Janey,
thank you for spending time with us today. And I
think this was very insightful. I think, you know, you
just have given a lot of energy and I appreciate
the things that you do. And I'm gonna do some
more news stuff because I'm like, you know, this little
chocolate face needs to be back on the news, right.
Speaker 3 (40:29):
But yeah, and it's a gap for what you do,
Like I remember your segments. It's a gap for that
right now. So you got to get back on TV.
Speaker 1 (40:37):
Yes, so we're going to do that up here in
this area. I mean, we still could come back up
there too. It's not like it's you know, I don't
have a problem traveling, but definitely doing that because it's
so much business stuff that people need to know that
maybe they're just missing that, and so we'll try to
fill that gap in there.
Speaker 2 (40:51):
All right, Well, thank you so much.
Speaker 1 (40:53):
Make sure you guys always show up and show out
and continue to give it to the people.
Speaker 2 (40:56):
Bye guys,
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