When I started my business in 2023, I made the mistake of turning to the wrong people for help.
At a free business owners’ support group for people of color, a Filipina boomer who reminded me of one of my conservative aunties told me, “Most businesses don’t make it past the five-year mark. So just look for another job. I don’t think your business model is going to work out.”
A mentor at my local small business development center once told me, “You’re sleeping too much.” All I told him was that I had trouble balancing current client work with generating new income at the same time. He added, “If you’re not making enough money, you eat ramen. You need to wake up earlier. Every minute of your day should be all about emails, phone calls, chasing leads.”
The small business world is filled with “Pull Yourself Up By The Bootstraps” capitalist propaganda, and it was making me physically sick. I was working 10- to 14-hour days from home. I tossed and turned at night due to work stress, but I got up at 7:30 every morning like clockwork because of my ex-mentor’s words: You’re sleeping too much. Every minute should be about chasing leads.
Finally, something snapped: After a therapy session that left me in tears, I got a case of the fuck-its. I made a list of non-negotiables that were keeping me sane and somewhat balanced. Then, I started feverishly touring office spaces and comparing quotes from different vendors.
Using the same framework I built for my clients as a financial coach, I made earning goals for myself that covered my bills and these new non-negotiables. Everyday that I let myself have what I need to survive and tolerate the systems we live under, I am forced to redefine what success means to me as a queer and trans immigrant and small business owner.
My complete list of non-negotiables
My name is Leo Aquino. I’m an award-winning journalist, who previously covered personal finance at Business Insider, and I’m the founder of Queer & Trans Wealth.
I’m a financial coach who serves queer and trans people (and our allies!) across the US. I am nothing like the traditional white, cisgender, straight finance bros out there in a suit and tie. My approach is compassionate, trauma-informed, anti-capitalist, and pleasure-forward.
I also write a newsletter with free tips, news, and resources. I use the newsletter to share relatable stories — my own, and other queer and trans people who are using their time, money, and labor for good.
To do my work well, I have a list of monthly non-negotiables. No matter what happens, I’m committed to earning enough money to afford the following:
- My AMC A-List subscription, which lets me see up to 4 movies per week for less than $30 per month. My girlfriend and I love watching movies together, and this subscription gives us a built-in date night.
- Traveling. The whole reason I wanted to start my own business in the first place is so I could clear my calendar for adventures.
- Trying new restaurants. I believe food is art, too, and I love supporting artists! It’s such a connective experience for me and my friends.
- Going to the Korean spa once a month with my friends, who are also small business owners, to kiki about our wins and challenges in a relaxing setting. Each visit costs $43, including parking.
- A workspace outside my house so I can cultivate some kind of work-life balance, and make small-talk with the security guards, front desk staff, and neighboring businesses.
Every single thing on this list makes me feel alive — and it makes me a better coach and writer.
In October 2024, I started renting a small office for $750 per month. The office is less than a 10-minute drive from my house, and it’s also accessible by bus. My rent has gradually increased to $980 per month. Thankfully, I’ve been able to pay for the office solely from the profits of my business. Working from my office helps me leave work at work and be fully present with my girlfriend once I get home. Having the office also helps me establish a routine. The commute home tells my brain to start winding down from the workday, and that’s been a game-changer for work-life balance.
In the last three years, I’ve also been able to travel to Mexico, Japan, and the Philippines. I’ve also taken hybrid trips for work and pleasure to Chicago, New York, Baltimore, New Orleans, Houston, San Francisco, and more. Traveling refills my cup creatively. It makes me a better, more curious writer.
I create a fluid budget for each trip, and I also make a detailed plan to pay the bills I’ll owe once I’m back. During each vacation, I worked minimally for about four or five days. But the rest of the time, I shut my laptop and turn on my OOO responder.
But how can you afford it?
In 2024, the business brought in $60,000 in revenue, and I paid myself $36,000. In 2025, the business brought in $90,000, plus a $10,000 gift from a long-time supporter, and I paid myself $45,000. Both years, roughly 60% of my revenue came from 1:1, couples, and group coaching. The rest came from small grants and speaking engagements. About 5% of 2025’s revenue came from paid newsletter subscribers and paid social media partnerships.
2026 has been a considerably slower year, especially because we have a homophobic, transphobic, xenophobic president in office whose policies directly affect my audience and client base.
I’m noticing that the demand for higher-priced offers, like 1:1 coaching, is a lot slower this year. Plus, I’m committed to seeing less clients this year to make space to write and sell a book. I’m planning on replacing that revenue by amping up my newsletter and pitching paid partnerships through social media.
I have very simple and specific monthly revenue goals set for the rest of the year:
- $2,500 in revenue from financial coaching covers my rent at home, my rent at the office, money in my travel sinking fund, and the other monthly bills for the business. This goal is pretty easy to meet because I’ve already got momentum and brand recognition.
- $2,500 in revenue from social media partnerships would cover my debts, and bills. I’ve resisted tapping into brand partnerships because it’s cringy as hell, but my Instagram stats are pretty high.
- $2,500 in revenue from grants, teaching gigs, and speaking engagements would cover what I need for taxes each month. I’ve also built strong momentum and relationships in philanthropy in the last couple of years, but it’s always hard to predict this income. If this income doesn’t come through, I have made peace with carrying some tax debt until the business brings in more profit.
- $500+ from the newsletter to cover fun spending. Right now, I only make $250 per month from newsletter subscriptions. I’m setting a humble goal of doubling that revenue by the holiday season.
When I receive a larger payout from a project, I’ll pay bills in the order listed above. For example, I just learned that I’ll be receiving a $10,000 grant for trans content creators. When I get that $10,000 in my account, I won’t put it all toward taxes. I’ll put $2,500 toward my rent at home and my aforementioned non-negotiables, then $2,500 toward debts and bills, and so on. I tend to pay bills in advance when I receive a windfall, or I’ll tuck the money away in a savings account separate from my personal and business checking accounts so I’m not tempted to spend it.
Cards on the table, I only feel confident about making money through financial coaching because it’s been such a consistent revenue stream for me in the last three years. In some ways, the last three revenue streams on my list still feel like they’re hatching. No matter what happens next, I’m giving myself permission to fail, to experiment, and to meet uncertainty with pleasure and joy.
A lot of small business owners left their 9 to 5 corporate jobs because we’re tired of being exploited and taken for granted. When we start our own businesses, we bring those same impulses to crack the whip on our own backs.
I’m just not willing to do it anymore. I refuse to shrink my life to run a successful business.
Leo Aquino (they/he) is an award-winning journalist covering personal finance at Queer & Trans Wealth. Leo also serves as a financial coach for queer and trans people (and our allies!) who want to pay off debt, build emergency savings, and start saving for retirement. Learn more about Leo's work at queerandtranswealth.org, on LinkedIn or on Instagram.
