🙋🏽‍♀️Like this Episode? Text me

📧 NEWSLETTER: Madame Speaker Says (Weekly Truth Bombs)

Why 98% of Immigrant Businesses Fail (And What One Bankruptcy Survivor Learned) | Art Chang on Leadership, Small Business, and the Currency Beyond Money

What happens when your business dies at 27 and still, your employees don't leave you? Art Chang—NYC mayoral candidate, women's studies major, and bankruptcy survivor who went on to build dozens of wildly successful companies—reveals the hidden currency that saved him, why immigrant entrepreneurship myths are dangerous and the systemic failures killing small businesses in America.

IN THIS EPISODE:

• Why a man majored in women's studies—and how it became his framework for understanding power
• Growing up amid racism and trauma: How immigrant childhood shapes resilient leadership
• Running for NYC mayor: Ranked choice voting, coalition building, and sharing the mic
• COVID exposed the tech gap: Why 98% of Chinatown businesses lost revenue
• Storytelling as survival: The hidden advantage separating thriving founders from struggling ones
• Bankruptcy at 27: What the system rewards (hint: not community value)
• Trust as currency: Why his employees stayed when he couldn't pay them
• Beyond networking: Give before you get and build relationships that matter
• Tender-hearted masculinity: Redefining leadership for a new era

SHOCKING STATS:

• 61% of small business owners struggle with cash flow (QuickBooks, 2021)
• Immigrant business owners face 2-3% higher interest rates (Harvard Business School)
• Small business owners often one week of revenue away from collapse

ABOUT ART CHANG: 

NYC Mayoral Candidate 2020 | Bankruptcy Survivor | Small Business Advocate | Women's Studies Major | Champion for Immigrant-Owned Businesses

Art learned the most important business lesson through bankruptcy: real currency isn't money—it's faith in people, confidence you instill in them, and genuine investment in their growth.

🔗 CONNECT with Art:
LinkedIn - http://linkedin.com/in/artchang
Medium - http://medium.com/@achangnyc
Instagram - http://instagram.com/achangnyc
The Tech Mayor Project - https://techmayor.nyc/
CACF: Coalition for Asian American Children and Families - http://cacf.org/

CHAPTERS: 1:00 Show Open And Guest Introduction 3:15 Why A Man Majored In Women's Studies 6:08 Growing Up Amid Racism And Trauma 10:22 Women's Studies As A Framework For Power 14:50 Running For Mayor And The Mic 16:22 Ranked Choice Voting And Power Sharing 20:30 Small Businesses As A Lifeline 24:40 COVID Exposed The Tech Gap 28:10 Storytelling As Survival For Founders 31:00 Privilege, Access, And Who Gets To Start 34:40 Self-Education And Business Basics 38:10 The First Company's Rise And Fall 42:20 Bankruptcy, Balance Sheets, And Capitalism 46:05 Community Value Capital Doesn't Count 49:20 Paying People Back And Earning Trust 52:05 Beyond Networking: Give Before

--
👉🏾 TAKE QUIZ - Stop guessing what your vibe is. Take the quiz to discover your thought leadership type, your secret superpowers, and—let's be real—exactly where you're getting in your own way. Spoiler: it's probably not where you think.

📧 JOIN - Expect fresh newsletters every week or so, where I share bare truths, storytelling tips and plenty of F-bombs.

--

Ready to turn your ideas into influence?

APPLY for 1:1 coaching to transform your voice into your greatest asset.