Earlier this year, I posted a question on Instagram asking Latinas making over $200K what they do — and the answers revealed something that most people in personal finance aren't willing to say out loud: you cannot build wealth on a median income when the cost of just existing has gone through the roof. In this solo episode, I'm breaking down why traditional money advice keeps failing us, what high earners actually have in common, and why your problem isn't discipline — it's your strategy.

WE GET INTO:

00:00 Introduction to Financial Realities

02:42 Understanding Income Limitations

05:58 The Path to High Earnings

08:47 The Disconnect in Personal Finance

11:53 The Rise of Latina Entrepreneurs

14:48 Reevaluating Job Security and Income

17:55 Strategies for Financial Freedom

KEY TAKEAWAYS:

• Most people cannot build financial freedom on $65K/year — not because they're doing something wrong, but because the math literally doesn't work when cost of living is this high.
• High earners are either in high-level leadership or ownership. That's it.
• Jobs are tools, not automatic wealth-building vehicles. Your employer controls your ceiling.
• A paycheck is predictable. Entrepreneurship is scalable.
• The only difference between a job and a business is the middleman selling your skill set.
• Your income problem won't be solved by better budgeting — it requires a strategy shift.

TAKE THE NEXT STEP:

• Download the FREE Dinero Guide
• Read my book, Financially Lit!
• Book a Call with Jannese

This episode of Yo Quiero Dinero was produced by Heart Centered Podcasting.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

What does it actually look like to not become a statistic? Dr. Xochilt Alamillo — Chicana therapist, PhD, business coach, podcast host, and retreat creator — is the living proof. She grew up in Compton, moved to Colorado as a teenager and experienced full-on culture shock, fell into the wrong crowd, and ended up with a criminal record by 20. Fast forward through community college, side hustles, three kids, and a whole lot of tunnel vision: she became the Latina therapist she couldn't find when she needed one most. In this episode, Dr. Xochilt and Jannese get into ALL of it — bicultural stress, emotional neglect in Latino families, what healing actually looks like (spoiler: it's not the cute Instagram version), survivor guilt as a first-gen cycle breaker, and how she built multiple income streams as a therapist while everyone in her field was taking a so-called vow of poverty.

WE GET INTO:

00:00 – Welcome and Intro: Meet Dr. Xochilt Alamillo

02:02 – Growing Up in Compton: Not Knowing What You Don't Know

04:22 – Culture Shock, the Wrong Crowd, and a Criminal Record

08:25 – Becoming the Latina Therapist She Couldn't Find

10:24 – First-Gen Resilience and Why It Can Also Hurt You

11:00 – The Biggest Mental Health Struggles Latinas Carry in Silence

12:31 – When "Being Strong" Becomes Self-Abandonment

14:05 – Bicultural Stress: Not Latino Enough, Not American Enough

19:52 – Emotional Neglect: The Harm We Normalize in Latino Families

24:53 – What Healing Actually Looks Like (It's a Process, Not a Glow-Up)

29:04 – Survivor Guilt and the Weight of Being the Enlightened One

34:37 – Navigating Family Expectations vs. Your Ideal Life

36:45 – Why Finding Your People Is Non-Negotiable

37:45 – Debunking Therapy Stigma in the Latino Community

43:32 – Dr. Xochilt's Entrepreneurial Journey as a Therapist

47:46 – Hosting Latina-Only Healing Retreats (Including One in Oaxaca!)

51:22 – The First Step Out of Survival Mode

KEY TAKEWAYS:

• Being rejected by both your culture and mainstream America has serious mental health consequences, and you didn't make it up.
• Anxiety in Latinas isn't just personal worry. It's your whole family's future sitting on your chest, and the weight is not yours alone to carry.
• Emotional neglect is one of the most normalized (and damaging) patterns in Latino households. Naming it isn't talking trash on your cultura but the first step to changing it.
• Healing is not a cute Instagram journey. It hurts. But the goal isn't a pain-free life, it's being equipped to handle whatever comes your way.
• Survivor guilt is real when you're the first to "make it out." Surrounding yourself with people who get it is how you stay grounded.
• Therapy doesn't have to look like a couch and a notepad. It's a conversation with someone who has no skin in the game.
• When therapy isn't accessible, lean into what your cultura already does well: cafecito with amigas, curanderismo, time outside — do more of it with intention.
• Therapists: you do not have to take a vow of poverty. Retreats, groups, trainings, and coaching are all legitimate income streams.
• Finding your people — online or off — is one of the most radical acts of self-preservation a first-gen woman can make.

CONNECT WITH DR. XOCHILT

• Website
• Instagram
• Podcast: The Chicana Therapist Podcast (all major platforms)

TAKE THE NEXT STEP:

• Yo Quiero Dinero Private Membership
• Read my book, Financially Lit!
• Leave me a voicemail

This episode of Yo Quiero Dinero was produced by Heart Centered Podcasting.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

What does your financial plan look like when the traditional script doesn't apply to you? In this episode, I'm sitting down with Bri Conn, CERTIFIED FINANCIAL PLANNER® and co-host of the Child-Free Life by Design podcast, to break down everything child-free people need to know about building wealth, planning for the future, and defining legacy on their own terms. If you've ever been asked "but who's going to take care of you when you're old?" — this episode is for you.

WE GET INTO:

0:00 – Welcome + Jannese's personal journey with child-free financial planning

0:57 – Introducing Bri Conn: CFP® serving the child-free community

1:11 – How Bri accidentally fell into child-free financial planning

4:04 – Who is actually seeking child-free financial planning (hint: it's not who you think)

5:14 – What traditional financial advice gets wrong for child-free people

7:09 – Redefining legacy when children aren't part of the equation

9:06 – Navigating cultural expectations around family obligation and caregiving

11:30 – Estate planning without default heirs — and why Child-Free Trust exists

13:56 – Busting the myth: do child-free people automatically have more money?

17:02 – Long-term care planning: who's actually going to take care of you?

20:42 – Life insurance: do child-free folks even need it?

22:29 – Building your "bench" of decision-makers (healthcare proxy + POA)

24:34 – How to find a financial planner who actually gets it

26:18 – What happens if you die or become incapacitated without an estate plan

29:05 – FIRE vs. FILE: Financial Independence Live Early

34:41 – Myth-busting: the worst financial advice child-free people always get

36:44 – The one traditional money milestone you have permission to skip

40:41 – What wealth actually means when you're child-free

43:01 – Permission to want freedom and happiness — fully and unapologetically

KEY TAKEAWAYS:

• The single most important question child-free people need to answer: Do you care how much money you leave behind when you die? Your entire financial plan changes based on your answer.
• Legacy doesn't require children. It can look like a garden that inspires strangers, a community you've poured into, or friendships you've built with intention.
• You are NOT the default family ATM just because you don't have kids.
• Long-term care currently costs ~$129,000/year and is rising 5% annually. Women average 3.7 years of care. This is not a plan-later situation.
• If you don't have estate documents in place, the state decides who makes decisions for you — and that could be someone you're estranged from or have never met.
• FIRE = grind now, quit later. FILE (Financial Independence Live Early) = redesign work now so you can enjoy life sooner
• Homeownership is not a mandatory financial milestone, Renting can absolutely be a wealth-building strategy
• Build your "bench" early: medical professionals, estate planning decision-makers, and financial advisors who actually understand child-free planning.
• If your financial planner looks at you like you have three heads when you say you're not having kids — find a new one.

CONNECT WITH BRI:

• Instagram
• Website

TAKE THE NEXT STEP:

• Yo Quiero Dinero Private Membership
• Read my book, Financially Lit!
• Leave me a voicemail

This episode of Yo Quiero Dinero was produced by Heart Centered Podcasting.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.