This Entrepreneur Went From Being Overworked To Earning $40K A Month In A Pandemic
Money Talks is an xoNecole series where we talk candidly to real women about how they spend money, their relationship with money, and how they spend it.
Meisha Amia, originally from Cambridge, Maryland, has changed the game in the healthcare industry. While she has been in the industry for over eight years, she has taken her passion in helping people into multiple streams of income, where she can live the lifestyle she deserves. In 2012, Meisha Amia started blogging to share her journey as a travel nurse. This led to her writing her own self-help book entitled The Bedside Boss: From Scrubs to Six Figures. This book has inspired so many other nurses to step outside of their comfort zones and strive to generate more wealth.
Courtesy of Meisha Amia
In 2016, Meisha Amia created the online platform, Chicks with Cheques. Chicks with Cheques is a full membership based curriculum that teaches hundreds of digital strategies needed to run an online business and grow a profitable brand. This community has grown to more than 30,000 female entrepreneurs and nurses. Meisha Amia is not only passionate about helping nurses create wealth for themselves, but she is adamant about changing the narrative of black women who deserve to have the finer things in life. Meisha does not believe in the idea of cheating ourselves in financial freedom and is determined to teach others how it's done.
In this installment of "Money Talks", xoNecole spoke with Meisha Amia about how she pivoted from dealing with a traumatic loss, the importance of being strategic with money, and how every woman deserves a Chanel bag.
xoNecole: How much money do you make in a year? A month?
Meisha Amia: I am used to having a $20K - 40K monthly income since becoming a travel nurse. Basically, I am contracted independently or through a third party via hospital organizations that are short staffed. I usually negotiate my contracts and before the pandemic, I was making around $20K a month. But during the pandemic, it has been $40K a month.
What do you define as “wealth” and “success”?
Wealth to me is freedom. What I mean by that is having the freedom to say "no" or taking a vacation for a month when you feel like it. Just being able to have the freedom to make choices that doesn't jeopardize your net worth. That is what wealth looks like to me. Now success, success is being able to serve and make an impact on others. It's not really the monetary side in my opinion. I can find success through the amount of people I've helped during this journey or the amount of people I've inspired because of my story.
What’s the lowest you’ve ever felt when it comes to your finances?
Being a contractor can be up and down. So at those low moments, I have definitely felt hopeless and depressed. I went through a traumatic loss two years ago and within those two years, I was not motivated to work. I unfortunately lost a lot of money that eventually got me into debt. What got me through was getting into therapy. Therapy was a game-changer for me and I was able to find my motivation again. Once I gained my motivation, I also became more aggressive in paying off the debt I created within six weeks.
"I unfortunately lost a lot of money that eventually got me into debt. What got me through was getting into therapy. Therapy was a game-changer for me and I was able to find my motivation again. Once I gained my motivation, I also became more aggressive in paying off the debt I created within six weeks."
Courtesy of Meisha Amia
Be honest, what’s been your biggest splurge so far and why did you purchase it?
I have always been a saver. I usually save 20 percent of my earnings a month. But I also live a lavish rich lifestyle. I'm not gonna lie, I am definitely into buying the finest of everything. So I would say my biggest splurge last year was a Chanel bag. I really want the world to normalize women of color, especially black women, having luxury and wealth. It can coexist. Us women just have to learn more about financial literacy and we would be good (laughs).
Never cheat yourself or feel you are not worthy of something nice. If your bills are paid, your savings account is good, and you have your investments, you deserve that bag, girl.
What are some unhealthy habits about money or some unhealthy mindsets about money that you had to let go of to truly prosper?
That 'spend a check and get it right back' attitude (laughs). I say that in the most humble way. Being a nurse, you can get used to having that mindset. But we forget about the physical part of putting in those extra hours and what it does to our bodies. I have taught myself that once I see my account at a certain amount, I am in panic mode. I still have a good amount in there, but it helps me be more intentional about my spending. It's important to be very strategic about how you save, how you invest, and how you splurge.
"I have taught myself that once I see my account at a certain amount, I am in panic mode. I still have a good amount in there, but it helps me be more intentional about my spending. It's important to be very strategic about how you save, how you invest, and how you splurge."
Courtesy of Meisha Amia
What is the money mantra you swear by?
"I don't work hard for money, money works hard for me." For me, that is when I use my earnings and invest it into my other businesses. I am always thinking about if I put an X amount of dollars here, then Y amount should be my return. This is how we should all be thinking when it comes to money.
What is the most important lesson you’ve learned through being a business owner and running multiple businesses?
The most important lesson I've learned is having multiple streams of income does not mean you need to have multiple businesses. You should not exhaust yourself being a CEO of multiple things. That is where the burnout will come from. If you are passionate about different things, focus on that. But make sure you are thinking about how to create most of your revenue under one roof.
What’s the best advice that you’ve received about finance during your first year of entrepreneurship?
One thing about being an entrepreneur is that I do not do this alone. I have my mentor and I have invested in multiple coaches to help me reach my goals. The best advice I have received is to set those prices and be firm with them. When you are starting a business, people usually start with low prices. We have this mentality and fear that people are not going to show support if we come off too "expensive". But what I have learned is that we are actually cheating ourselves when we set the bar low. Because when you want to change your price and increase it, the people that were supporting you before are no longer interested. You have already told them your worth.
To be better respected, set those prices at a quality rate and the right people will pay you exactly what you are worth.
To learn more about Meisha Amia, you can follow her on Instagram and check out her business here.
Featured image by Meisha Amia
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'K' is a multi-hyphenated free spirit from Chicago. She is a lover of stories and the people who tell them. As a writer, 9-5er, and Safe Space Curator, she values creating the life she wants and enjoying the journey along the way. You can follow her on Instagram @theletter__k_.
ItGirl 100 Honors Black Women Who Create Culture & Put On For Their Cities
As they say, create the change you want to see in this world, besties. That’s why xoNecole linked up with Hyundai for the inaugural ItGirl 100 List, a celebration of 100 Genzennial women who aren’t afraid to pull up their own seats to the table. Across regions and industries, these women embody the essence of discovering self-value through purpose, honey! They're fierce, they’re ultra-creative, and we know they make their cities proud.
VIEW THE FULL ITGIRL 100 LIST HERE.
Don’t forget to also check out the ItGirl Directory, featuring 50 Black-woman-owned marketing and branding agencies, photographers and videographers, publicists, and more.
THE ITGIRL MEMO
I. An ItGirl puts on for her city and masters her self-worth through purpose.
II. An ItGirl celebrates all the things that make her unique.
III. An ItGirl empowers others to become the best versions of themselves.
IV. An ItGirl leads by example, inspiring others through her actions and integrity.
V. An ItGirl paves the way for authenticity and diversity in all aspects of life.
VI. An ItGirl uses the power of her voice to advocate for positive change in the world.
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Sheila Rashid's Androgynous Approach To Unisex Clothing Is A Lesson In Embracing Individuality
The ItGirl 100 List is a celebration of 100 Black women who aren’t afraid to pull up their own seats to the table.
For Sheila Rashid, it all started with some free-hand drawings and a few strokes of paint.
The Chicago-based clothing designer and creative director of Sheila Rashid Brand recalls using her spare time in high school to hand paint designs on t-shirts and distressed hoodies, distributing them to classmates as walking billboards for her art.
Rashid sought to pursue fashion design at Columbia College in Chicago but eventually took the self-taught route to build upon her knack for crafting one-of-a-kind, androgynous pieces.
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Thanks to the mentorship of local designers taking her under their wings, Rashid was able to gain valuable experience in putting together collections and creating patterns; equipping her with them with the necessary skills to pursue her own collections.
After two years of living in New York, Rashid returned home to the Chi and uncovered the unique flair she could offer the city. “I moved to New York after that because I wanted to be in the fashion capital world,” she tells xoNecole. “That's when I really got a leg up. I found myself when I moved back to Chicago after moving to New York.”
For the Midwest native, inspiration comes from her time around creative peers and the city’s notorious winters — known to be a main character in many Chicagoans stories. “It's a different perspective and mindset when I'm making stuff because of the weather here,” she explains. “When we get summer, it’s ‘Summertime Chi’ — it's amazing. It's beautiful. Still, I find myself always making clothes that cater to the winter.”
"I moved to New York after that because I wanted to be in the fashion capital world. That's when I really got a leg up. I found myself when I moved back to Chicago after moving to New York.”
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Many designers have a signature aesthetic or theme in their creations. In Rashid’s design story, dancing between the lines of femininity and masculinity is how she’s been able to distinguish herself within the industry. Her androgynous clothing has garnered the eye of celebrities like Zendaya, Chance the Rapper, WNBA star Sydney Colson, and more — showing her range and approach to designs with inclusivity in mind.
“I think I do reflect my own style,” she says. “When I do make pieces, I'm very tomboyish, androgynous. My work is unisex because I feel like everybody can wear it. I cater to everybody and that's how I try to approach my clothes.” From denim to overalls, and color-drenched outerwear, Rashid has mastered the structure of statement pieces that tell a story.
“Each collection, I never know what's going to be the thing I'm going to focus on. I try to reflect my own style and have fun with the storytelling,” she shares. “I look at it more like it's my art in this small way of expressing myself, so it's not that calculated.”
"My work is unisex because I feel like everybody can wear it. I cater to everybody and that's how I try to approach my clothes."
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Still, if you were able to add up all the moments within Rashid’s 20-year career in design, one theme that has multiplied her into becoming an “ItGirl” is her confidence to take up space within the fashion industry as a queer, Black woman. “Being an ItGirl is about being yourself, loving what you do, finding your niche, and mastering that,” she says.
No matter where you are on your ItGirl journey, Rashid says to always remain persistent and never hesitate to share your art with the world. “Don’t give up. Even if it's something small, finish it and don't be afraid to put it out,” she says, “It's about tackling your own fear of feeling like you have to please everybody, but just please yourself, and that's good enough.”
To learn more about the ItGirl 100 List, view the full list here.
Featured image Courtesy