I’ve ghosted y’all — not on purpose, but real talk, I owe you an explanation. Here’s why the bigger my numbers got, the quieter I became, and why I’m done hiding.
The Ghost You Didn’t Know About
If you’ve been following this podcast for a while, you know I used to share everything. The brand deal that felt like winning the lottery. The month my blog outearned my corporate paycheck. The $144,000 I made in 2020 that let me quit my job for good. I was an open book.
But somewhere after I crossed a quarter million dollars in revenue, back around 2022, I got quiet. The bigger the numbers became, the less I talked about them. And I’ve spent a long time asking myself why.
From $125 Brand Deals to a Quarter-Million Dollar Business
Yo Quiero Dinero started as an accidental business in 2019. I was documenting my own journey out of student loan and credit card debt, using my food blog as a side hustle, because I couldn’t find any Latinas talking about financial independence, investing, or building a business of their own.
Back then, a $1,200 brand deal felt like winning big. Today, a single brand partnership can bring in $50,000. I’ve gone from $125 for my very first deal to building a business that’s brought in roughly $500,000 a year in revenue for four years running, making me the first millionaire in my family.
“The bigger the numbers became, the less I started to share them — and I had to ask myself why.”
Why Success Felt Harder to Talk About Than Struggle
Here’s the uncomfortable truth: I was afraid. Afraid you’d think I was bragging. Afraid my success would make me less relatable. Afraid of the side comments from family that crept in the more financially free I became — the “lucky you” and “must be nice” comments that come with being the one who made it out.
In our community, the struggle story is the familiar one. We know the narrative of the parent who worked a shitty job for low pay, the grandmother who couldn’t leave because she had no financial freedom of her own. What we don’t have enough of are the stories of Latina founders, investors, and entrepreneurs. So when I started actually becoming one, it felt like uncharted, uncomfortable territory — for me and for the people around me.
The Real Cost Nobody Talks About
I built this platform to destigmatize money and break the shame around it. And then I found a different kind of shame waiting for me on the other side of success. I minimized my own wins, and in doing that, I let imposter syndrome dig in deeper — for me, and probably for some of you watching from the outside.
On top of all of this, I’ve been on a deeply personal journey: I found out I was pregnant in April 2024, went on a three-month book tour two weeks later, and I’ve spent the last year and a half becoming a mom while my business and my sense of self both kept evolving. I haven’t had a lot of time to sit with any of it — until now.
“Who benefits when Latinas don’t talk about money? It’s not us.”
Committing to Radical, Responsible Transparency
So here’s what changes starting today: I’m committing to radical, responsible transparency. That means when I share a revenue win, you’re also getting the expenses, the contractor costs, the ad spend, the taxes, and the difference between revenue, profit, and what actually lands in my pocket. Wins and struggles both get airtime from here on out — because they both live here.
Key Takeaways
- Success isn’t bragging — hiding your wins can do more harm to your community than sharing them ever could.
- Revenue isn’t profit. Real transparency means sharing the full picture: income, expenses, and what you actually take home.
- The discomfort of outgrowing people or versions of yourself is normal — it’s a sign you’re actually changing, not a problem to fix.
- Latina wealth deserves to be visible, because representation is what makes financial freedom feel possible for the next person.
- You can hold both the wins and the struggles at the same time — neither one cancels out the other.
Resources Mentioned
Work With Me: https://yoquierodineropodcast.com/work-with-me
Financially Lit! (English & Spanish, plus audiobook): https://financiallylitbook.com
Create & Cultivate Festival, LA (Sept 19–20): https://createcultivate.com
Listen to This Episode
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This episode is also sponsored by Headspace.
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