Taking the Entrepreneurial Leap | Jamila Souffrant from Journey to Launch

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In today’s episode, Cody and Justin bring you a really interesting story full of dynamics different than their own lives. Jamila is a mother and an immigrant and both of those parts of her story helped shaped her unique path to financial independence. She was heavily inspired by the strong women in her life who passed down the qualities of saving and hard work.

Jamila also has a natural gravitation towards entrepreneurship. Whether it was previous companies she has attempted, venturing into investment real estate at 22 in New York City, or stepping away from a safe corporate job to pursue Journey to launch, it’s clear that she has a passion to be different and take control of her own path.

Episode Summary

Immigrated to the US at 18 months from Jamaica
She had a happy childhood in Brooklyn
Her mom had a large emphasis on education and reading
She also gained a lot of inspiration from her grandmother
Her mom didn’t really pass down investing but she did pass down the importance of saving
She talks about the importance of passing down grit and making her kids financially responsible even though they’re growing up in a more privileged upbringing
Fresh out of college she made an incredible real estate investment
She put down a down payment on a new condo build in the DUMBO district of Brooklyn
The unit she got was $338k and required a $30k down
She lived with her mom for 2 years while the unit was built so she was able to save up the rest of the money she needed to close on the property
The unit is now valued closer to $680k
She tried starting a couple of small businesses including a magazine company
Then she started a standard job that came with a really long commute
Having children made her realize how important financial independence is to her
She had a little breakdown on the way home stuck in traffic which was her “Ah-ha” moment
After having three children she decided to step away from the standard workforce and go full-time entrepreneur through Journey To Launch
She started Journey to Launch as a way to keep herself accountable
Her recommendation for entrepreneurs is to just start because she learned so much from her early business failures
For her early retirement doesn’t mean not working just not making it through the corporate world
She is married and her husband still works which provides healthcare and the flexibility for her to build up her business
Her plan is to really focus on Journey To Launch and if it doesn’t work out after two years she would be willing to go back into her corporate work
She also thinks you should focus on increasing income and looking at your career to see if it’s better to avoid side hustles and spend that time to make promotions and bonuses or if side hustles are the better option
Drake’s plan “God’s Plan” was the answer to the wildcard question but you’ll have to just listen to understand why!

Key Takeaways

Learn from, improve on. We are often surrounded by people who influence us whether we know it or not. Some may be more obvious like parents but it may be a more obscure co-worker. It’s important to always learn from them but then try to take it one step further and evolve their idea. Learn from them, but improve on their ideas.
Strengthen your “Side-Hustle Muscle”. Jamila hasn’t had every entrepreneurship venture succeed and she hasn’t had everyone fail, but she has refined her skills with each attempt. It’s like any skill or muscle, it needs practice and work. Find something low risk and just start practicing your side hustle muscle and see what you need to work on for success.
Keep your motivation front and center. Jamila had that breakdown on the way home as she was stuck in traffic because it was keeping her from her kids. Too often we get stuck in a daze of the grind. We forget why we’re doing it, what we’re missing, or what we’d rather be doing. Don’t obsess on the future so hard that you don’t enjoy the journey, but always have a motivation to help point your efforts.

Call to Action

Take account of those people and places that your corporate job is keeping from you and keep that motivation front and center!

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