Pride is not an asset. 🎤 Not everyone needs to like your product for it to be successful. + Investing in yourself.
​​​​​La Onda is a newsletter by Sandra Velasquez, founder of Nopalera, with actionable insights around brand building and selling.
​I've just returned from one of the most amazing mastermind conferences of my life.
Over the course of 2 1/2 days, I had the opportunity to hang out with some of the most badass women I have ever met. Some of them were even my sheroes — like, Arlan Hamilton.
If there is the slightest chance that you don't know who Arlan is, a quick google or youtube search will fix that. Here's one of many.
​Anyway...
I almost didn't attend this conference because it was thousands of dollars. EVEN WITH the scholarship, which I won. But, I simply have too much proof at this point in my life that when I invest in myself, it pays off.
To be an entrepreneur requires you to push the boundaries of what you thoughts was possible. Sometimes it costs money.
And what I also know is this: money is a renewable resource. Your time is not.
I put this event on my Amex. Rented a car on my Amex. Rented an Airbub on my Amex.
And it was all worth it.
Do you hear me? I have thousands of dollars in student loan debt right now, no real savings, and I invested in myself anyway.
Being in the room with next level people will force you to level up.
I cried tears of clarity. I cried at my fears and felt them release.
In short: I am transformed.
Lesson: put yourself where amazing people are even if it costs you money.
​One of the gems from the conference was something Arlan Hamilton said: "Pride is not an asset." [insert mic drop]
This is coming from a woman who used to be homeless and was sleeping on the floor of the San Francisco airport when she decided she was going to start an VC fund for underrepresented founders and went to meetings to ask for the money. Do you think they all said YES and that's why she's here? No. She heard NO over and over and over again.
Lesson: Every road to success is littered with Nos.
If you are out there feeling defeated because you tried to get your product into 10 stores and they all said NO, keep going.
If you are out there looking for loans or investment and 10 people have told you NO, keep going.
Don't complain until you have HUNDREDS of Nos.
Most people give up too early because their pride is hurt.
They are embarrassed. They are worried about what people with think of them.
Family, friends, even strangers.
Pride is not an asset.
got it?
​As you may know, I've been teaching classes to CPG founders since 2019. I used to vet them to understand where they were in their business and where they wanted to be.
90% of them used to say they wanted to be the #1 blah blah blah.
Listen, I want you to reach for the stars. But I also want to invite you this reality: You don't need everyone to like your product to build a million dollar brand.
There are 329 million people in the USA alone. Can you even picture how many people that is? That's enough for everyone's brand to win. You don't need them all to like you. In fact, my experience has been that when you great a brand that stands for something strong (like celebrating Mexican culture) some people will come out to hate you. Let them come! That's what the block feature is for!
Every person in history that has made a impact for good has haters.
Focus on speaking to your customers about things they care about. Your values. Your WHY.
xx
Sandra
​p.s. if you missed the last margin magic masterclass, there's another one next month
https://lu.ma/lo8mk960