Lessons From FinCon aka FunCon
(Note: bookmark this article and come back because there are lots of good links you need in here!)
You might have noticed in my feed on social media that I was at FinCon22 last week. The energy from thousands of really smart content creators in one place is literally unmatchable. If you have no idea what FinCon is about, let me tell you a few things I learned and share a few people I met.
This is my second FinCon and I was surprised by how many 1st timers were there! I love that this community keeps growing with fun and inspiring people. Imagine sitting next to 10 people with followings online from 10K – 2M people. Or having lunch with Dr. Hans (someone I’m actually friends with) and having 3 fake accounts pretending to be him follow you immediately… one of them even has 10K followers!
The point isn’t how many people follow all these folks. It’s more about the impact they’re making. Imagine how many lives collectively this community has changed. FinCon creators share information about how to invest, stocks, real estate, the FIRE movement, frugality, taxes, credit repair, and the list goes on and on. Many of them share because of their personal experience and desire to help others.
The FinCon community is more than a bunch of money nerds who want to have a good time, it’s a community full of giving souls who believe profit drives impact and you should live your life following your passion. Financial independence is a huge goal amongst these folks and it’s inspiring to hear how many different ways there are to get there.
Here are are few of my favorite takeaways from last week and the source of this genius information.
Content Creation is Lonely
For solopreneurs, content creators, and small businesses it can be a lonely journey. You put stuff out but no idea if the algorithms let people see it. Of if anyone really understands your message and ideas.
Even worse, you feel like you’re the only one who feels this way and you’re doing it wrong. Many people quit and don’t stick with their strategy or keep creating.
Then you go to FinCon and you hear other creators talking about the same things. You start to think “I didn’t even know you existed, and that you feel exactly like me!”
Just Keep Creating
The truth is, no creator is alone. Being original feels lonely beause it’s you being you in a way the world has never seen before. Of course standing out feels weird/different/lonely.
That’s the beauty in a place like FinCon. You can hear from others who are where you apsire to be and know that they had lonely days too.
The top advice I heard from the main stage speakers was to just keep creating. If you stop, you stop and may not start again. If you keep creating (even when it’s ugly at the beginning) you will get better and you will find your audience.
This is a hugely supportive piece of advice that the FinCon veterans had for everyone. So glad that they were called to challenge the rest of us to keep creating, even through the small audience-no-email-list-having-loneliest of times.
Keep it Simple
One of my favorite messages was delivered by my girl Lauren Cobello. She challenged me to simplify my business.
What a message. So clear and well, simple.
Making your business too complex means you might miss the life and freedom you tried to create in the first place. Missing time with family and friends, or life experiences because you’re doing too much is real. This is a legit problem.
After FinCon I have been looking for ways to simplify my business life so I can keep living my real life.
Build Your Business at Your Own Pace
No one is in a race. If you’re comparing yourself to someone else you’re likely wasting time and energy you could be putting into your own growth. I know for a fact this is real and legit advice.
FinCon speakers repeatedly emphasized that you doing you at your level and your rate is OK. You don’t need to grow the way someone else did. You don’t need to go viral and instantly be a success.
You can build your brand at your own pace. You can build your business at your own pace. The one thing that won’t help you is comparing yourself to someone else. Their success has no indication of what your success will or should look like.
Email Marketing is not Dead, You’re Just Doing it Wrong
Email marketing is still popping, but your email list might be dying. It’s probably dying because you aren’t sending emails to your list! (I’m guilty of this too, I definitely have one dormant list that needs to wake up!)
The email marketing workshop hosted by Caroline Vencil, Angel Marie & Allea Grummert was so full of great information it went over. We learned everything from how to set up a sales funnel to what types of info to send in a weekly newsletter. This was one of the most valuable sessions for me because the simplified approach is exactly what most of us needed.
So happy FinCon offers so many types of sessions beyond content creation so you can learn more about running and marketing your business.
Podcast, Podcast, Podcast
If there’s one thing I’m missing, it’s getting my podcast out there! It was so inspiring to hear how many people are using podcasting to share their message with the world. The most important thing I heard about podcasting was that it’s slow going.
So don’t give up!
If you have a podcast it’s a huge asset! So you can’t stop just because you think no one is listening. I definitely have had those weeks where I thought no one was listening to the podcast.
Then I realized at FinCon, I haven’t done enough to tell everyone to listen to the podcast! I hadn’t created a website or put it on every podcast platform known to man. I haven’t even made sure all of you are listening to the podcast!
Thanks to Chris Hutchins of the All the Hacks podcast for the amazing session and reminder to just keep podcasting!
Freedom!
Hands down my favorite session was on how to be an incredible speaker from Adam Carroll. He shared some very funny zingers but he also shared these very important messages.
Legacy = financial freedom = time freedom = relationship freedom = service freedom
You were not put on earth to be employed, you were put on earth to be deployed.
When you build your legacy, that can equal freedom on multiple other levels. You have the opportunity to chagne your life and serve how you want to serve. Financial freedom allows you to do that.
He also shared that we are here to be deployed to serve through our passion, not to be employed. Simply working to be employed vs. finding your passion and sharing it with the world likely wasn’t the highest plan out there for you.
There was so much value in Adam’s story about how he became a speaker.
Until Next Year Finance Nerds!
In 2019 I went to Fincon thinking I didn’t belong because I had a wellness blog that was just starting out. I knew I wanted to create financial wellness content but I didn’t think I had enough authority to talk about finance.
Luckily I made friends with so many people at FinCon who create in this space and are willing to share their knowledge with my people too.
Can’t wait to see all my finance nerd friends next year, join us! Here’s the soon to be released deets on FinCon23
FINCON23 details:
Join the crew next year in NOLA!!
- Location: New Orleans, Louisiana
- Venue: Sheraton New Orleans
- Dates: October 18-21, 2023
- Tickets coming soon to FinconExpo.com
Notable Creators You Need RIGHT NOW!
Here are a few notable resources and folks you should follow right now. I promise you won’t regret it! Follow these folks on as many platforms as you can! They create regularly all over the place.
LatinX Creators (happy Hispanic Heritage Month BTW)
- Dr. Hans (@theinvestingtutor) Beware of fake Dr. Hans accounts, this is the legit man helping underrepresented communities create wealth
- Jannesse Torres (@YoQuieroDineroPodcast) The big winner for best podcast! Such great content subscribe here.
- Yanely Espinal (@missbehelpful) Talks about financial education (especially for Latinos!)
- Sonia Castelan (@castelantaxservices) Talks about 1st Gen experiences & tax planning
- Maribel Francisco (@ourwealthmatters) My girl from Whittier, CA too!! Talks about immigrant & 1st gen folks building wealth
- Kat (@beyondjustnumbers) Talks about real estate investing
- Myra (@dosdolares) Talks about FI/RE and positivity
POC Creators
- Sharita Humphrey (@sharitamh) Financial coach & my entrepreneurial idol BTW she’s awesome!
- Queen (@thequeenblueprint) Financial psychologist focused on shifting to a wealth mindset & creating an asset-building lifestyle
- Chloe Choe (@offhourhustle) Talks about side hustles & cool stuff like passive income
- Nia (@moneyperspectives) Talks about finance & real estate
- Avanti Shetye (@foolprooffinancialfreedom) Talks stock tips and other helpful advice on YouTube
- Clifton (@yourkidstheirmoney) Talks about kids & finance plus he’s just a great guy!
- David (@theawesomestuff) Talks about fun ways for kids to learn money
- Melodye Johnson (@thecourseconsultant) Helps course creators blow up their spot! Plus has a great community you can join!
- Leonidas (@Funnyleonidas) Super helpful with credit repair and anything credit card related (the dude has over 50 credit cards in hand all the time!)
- Natasha Triplett (@tashatriplett) Talks about financial education & she’s just a fun person!
Financial Wellness Creators
- Bob Wheeler (@bobwheelerr) Talks about money and emotions
- Ed Coambs (@healthloveandmoney) Helps you and your honey get your money right
- Rosa Colin (@MujeresBuildingAbundance) Helps women of color shift their money mindset
- Eric (@thefinancialhomie) Your financial mindset accountability partner
Good Stuff to Check Out
- Jeff (@homo_money) Talks about FIRE and taking back the word “homo”
- Ruben Garcia (@provenbyruben) Did this amazing FinCon recap video– like & Subscribe on YouTube.
- Sarah Weaver- (@Sarahdweaver) Talks about real estate investing & hosts epic events
- Rachel Covert (@rachel_talksmoney) Financial freedom & retired at 36!! Plus she’s a great dinner partner 🙂
- Logan Allec (@loganallec) Talks about tax debt relief
- Jon Dulin (@moneysma) Talks about paying off debt and building wealth
- Tommy Gallagher Gives you the run down on mobile banking options
- Tina Gleisner Talks about homebuying for women
- Andy Chang Helps you compare financial services
- John Pham Options to maximize your money
- Rachel Jimenez (@moneyhackingmama) So many helpful money hacking tips, I can’t keep up!
- Daniel Shin Talks about paths to financial independence
- Carly DeFelice (@bestmoneyclassever) Very helpful course on personal finance
- Michael Temple Cool content on entrepreneurship, alternative investing and economics
- Garit Boothe Helpful tips on credit, saving, and building wealth
The FunCon community is made of some wicked smart people. These are just a FEW of the folks I got to connect with at FinCon. Check out their stuff on all the platforms, you won’t be disappointed!
Don’t forget, these are real people! You might see them with thousands of followers but they’re REAL living and breathing finance content creators who are making an impact every day with their message.
YOU CAN SHARE YOUR MESSAGE TOO! You have a gift to share just like these folks do. Don’t forget that! Create some content, share your message, be a boss just like all the folks in the FinCon community.
Cheers! Happy connecting, and remember- we all have financial wellness. Use the tools, resources, and people l connect you with to boost your financial wellness right now!
