This test as told is based on a conversation with Makena Finger Zannini, founder and CEO of The COO Boutique And Brick by Brick Collective. It was published for duration and clarity.
I had known since I was 5 or 6 years old that I did not agree with the principles with which I was raised. My parents were part of an extremely conservative evangelical Community in Pennsylvania Dutch country. There were more cows than people from the city where I grew up.
As a woman, I was shown a few paths. I could become a teacher or a nurse, but it was understood that I leave once I became a momJust as my own mother had done. Obedience was expected and the questioning was discouraged.
At 10, I planned my way to this environment. I saw the university as my opportunity. I essentially lowered my head and worked harder than anyone in my school. I was accepted Wharton school at the University of Pennsylvania for my first cycle diploma.
I went to Wharton and I got a job from Wall Street
Being in Wharton was a culture shock. First of all, I did not know how much Wharton was a big problem until I encountered peers who worked to enter all their lives. I couldn’t identify myself with this or many other things that my peers have talked about. I had barely seen secular movies or television, and I didn’t have much cultural references. Even today, at 29, there are a lot of things that I miss. You cannot compensate as much time spent far from the general public culture.
My parents were not going to pay for the school. As we had lower income, a large part of my tuition fees was covered and I contracted loans to pay more. I also worked four or five jobs at a time to pay my expenses. For four years, I worked and did school – nothing else.
It paid when I was offered a job at Wall Street after graduation. I earned around $ 80,000, which was more money I had never imagined. I was Pay around $ 1,000 per month in student loansAnd living in New York was expensive, but I was always impressed whenever I saw thousands of dollars appear in my current account.
I transformed an independent jostling in a company
I always worked incredibly hard. In addition to my work at Wall Street and later in a technological business, I was also independent. I wanted an additional income to reimburse these loans and increase my savings.
I worked about 100 hours a week. Finally, my independent list was full. I couldn’t tighten hours in my day anymore, so I knew it was time to hire someone. I consider this decision, in October 2023, the real start of my business, the COO of the store. I left my day work about nine months later.
Today, I have around 120 employees and the company generates more than $ 3 million in annual recurring income. We have just launched a second brand, Brick by Brick Collective.
I hire a substitute to become mom
Reaching the millions of dollars in income was a big problem. My husband cooked me brownies and wrote $ 1 million on them in frosting. I am not yet a millionaire, but I can see a path to financial security through my businesses.
But my story is not shiny and perfect. I am not talking to my parents or three younger brothers and sisters. They are evangelical in the true sense of the word: they even try to convert people from the grocery store. Unfortunately, there is no way for them to accept me if I do not agree with them.
I am not motivated by money or material articles. I am uncomfortable in a hotel too stock market, but my financial security allowed me to take care of myself. A key example is that my husband and I started the process of Have a baby by substitution.
For a long time, I was not sure that I wanted to be a woman or a mom. Now I am married and so happy. I want to have a child and see my husband as a father. The use of a substitute is a luxury, but it is like a way to find my own path to maternity, different from the only option that was shown to me as a child. It’s expensive, but it’s also a way to take care of my mental health. It’s worth more for me than a second house or a fancy car, and that’s something I will always spend on money on.
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