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Know Your Numbers: The Power Play Behind Financial Clarity
by: Teri Arvesú González
TL;DR: You can’t lead with clarity or be empowered if you’re financially in the dark. Whether at home or work, knowing your numbers is essential to leadership and long-term freedom. This is your roadmap to financial empowerment—without shame, jargon, or overwhelm.
“You Got to Know Your Numbers”
A mentor of mine used to say this one thing over and over again: you need to know your numbers.
She didn’t just mean P&Ls or balance sheets. She meant dominion. Mastery. Over your business, your life, your worth.
What she really meant was: Own your sh*t. Be overprepared. Be unshakeable. Especially when it comes to money. Because confidence isn’t just how you show up—it’s what you know when no one’s watching.
When I write about challenging cultural scripts, teaching lessons in leadership, and navigating both the soft and hard skills at work, I find myself circling back to one unavoidable truth: I cannot fully teach you networking, influence, or execution without addressing the elephant in the room—do you know your numbers? Because leadership without financial clarity is half-built. And empowerment, whether personal or professional, is incomplete if you’re still in the dark about your own money.
This Substack is reader-supported. To receive new posts and support my work, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber.
Why Latinas Are Still Left in the Dark About Money
I’ve seen powerhouse women—la jefa types—run teams, close deals, lead movements. But behind closed doors, they whisper: “I don’t really know our finances.”
It’s not about intelligence. It’s about inheritance.
For decades, women were expected to manage the home but not the accounts. Add cultural silence, religious guilt, and generational survival—and you get women who can lead empires, but leave all financial tracking and decision to their husbands.
The Receipts Don’t Lie
* Only 28% of women say they feel very confident managing investments. Nearly 50% of men do (Fidelity, 2023).
* 1 in 5 women still leave long-term financial decisions entirely to their spouse (UBS, 2022).
* Divorce lawyers consistently say: women often learn their full financial picture after separation.
One of my closest friends—an elite divorce attorney, Aliette Hernandez Carolan—saw this heartbreak firsthand. Again and again, she watched women walk into court heartbroken and financially blind. The devastation was so great that she wrote a book called Lose Your Heart, Not Your Mind. Her message was clear: love deeply, but never be financially naïve. Click here to get her book: https://amzn.to/4nBIzo1
Why Wealth-Building Today Isn’t What Our Parents Knew
Even if your family had wealth, they didn’t have access to the tools we have now.
* 401(k)s didn’t become mainstream until the 1980s.
* Accredited investor opportunities like private equity and venture capital weren’t household conversations.
* Digital investing platforms didn’t exist.
* And for many immigrant families, the stock market felt like a rich man’s game.
Today, we live in a different financial landscape—with new rules and new risks. Which means the old scripts—“save what you can” or “buy a house and you’re set”—don’t apply the same way.
Financial sophistication isn’t a luxury anymore. It’s a survival skill. It’s the new “American Dream,” if you want to call it that. And for many of us, the knowledge of the people we trust the most—our family, the ones who guided us—was built on a different economy, a different era. They taught us how to save, not how to scale. How to survive, not how to strategize. But we’re living in a new landscape, and honoring their sacrifices means evolving their playbook. It’s not about abandoning what they taught us—it’s about expanding it.
Money Isn’t Just Math—It’s Power
This isn’t about distrusting men. It’s about trusting yourself.
Empowerment isn’t exclusion. It’s participation.
Here’s your Latina Money Map:
1. Maximize Your Earnings
* Know your worth. Advocate louder than your imposter syndrome.
* Negotiate, diversify income, and stop shrinking in salary convos.
2. Budget with Intention
* Differentiate between needs and wants—Target and Amazon are not therapy.
* That $30 impulse buy? It could be $300 in compound interest over time.
* Try this frame: “Would I still buy this if I had to write it in a financial journal?”
3. Make Your Money Work
* Don’t let your cash nap in low-yield accounts.
* Use high-interest savings, retirement vehicles, and compound interest.
* Hire a financial advisor—but stay awake. You are your own fiduciary.
4. Retain More of What You Earn
* Taxes are your biggest hidden expense. Get strategic.
* Partner with a CPA. Consider legal structures for protection.
* Build a team that safeguards your peace.
5. Grow Into Financial Sophistication
* As your money grows, so does your responsibility.
* Diversify into real estate, index funds, small business equity, private market opportunities.
* Risk and reward are hermanas—learn how they move.
How Knowing Your Numbers Changes Everything
When you have clarity over your finances:
* You don’t tolerate toxic jobs—or toxic partners.
* You negotiate with backbone.
* You lead your business and your family with peace, not panic.
This is bigger than budgets. It’s about agency. Legacy. Freedom.
✨ What Would It Look Like to Know Your Numbers?Imagine: You walk into the meeting—or the marriage—with your receipts ready. You’re not scrambling. You’re sovereign.
Because true empowerment doesn’t just break ceilings. It builds floors strong enough to stand on.
About the Author
Teri Arvesú González is the founder of The TAG Collab, a consultancy helping mission-driven companies align purpose, brand, and strategy from the inside out.
A Latina media executive with more than 25 years leading newsrooms in Miami and Chicago, she has launched national initiatives, built high-performing teams, and driven transformation across industries. She writes on Latina leadership, cultural duality, bicultural identity, and the neuroscience of resilience.
📌 Connect with Teri:
* Podcast: The TAG Collab
* TikTok
This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit thetagcollab.substack.com/subscribe
View all episodes
By The TAG Collabby: Teri Arvesú González
TL;DR: You can’t lead with clarity or be empowered if you’re financially in the dark. Whether at home or work, knowing your numbers is essential to leadership and long-term freedom. This is your roadmap to financial empowerment—without shame, jargon, or overwhelm.
“You Got to Know Your Numbers”
A mentor of mine used to say this one thing over and over again: you need to know your numbers.
She didn’t just mean P&Ls or balance sheets. She meant dominion. Mastery. Over your business, your life, your worth.
What she really meant was: Own your sh*t. Be overprepared. Be unshakeable. Especially when it comes to money. Because confidence isn’t just how you show up—it’s what you know when no one’s watching.
When I write about challenging cultural scripts, teaching lessons in leadership, and navigating both the soft and hard skills at work, I find myself circling back to one unavoidable truth: I cannot fully teach you networking, influence, or execution without addressing the elephant in the room—do you know your numbers? Because leadership without financial clarity is half-built. And empowerment, whether personal or professional, is incomplete if you’re still in the dark about your own money.
This Substack is reader-supported. To receive new posts and support my work, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber.
Why Latinas Are Still Left in the Dark About Money
I’ve seen powerhouse women—la jefa types—run teams, close deals, lead movements. But behind closed doors, they whisper: “I don’t really know our finances.”
It’s not about intelligence. It’s about inheritance.
For decades, women were expected to manage the home but not the accounts. Add cultural silence, religious guilt, and generational survival—and you get women who can lead empires, but leave all financial tracking and decision to their husbands.
The Receipts Don’t Lie
* Only 28% of women say they feel very confident managing investments. Nearly 50% of men do (Fidelity, 2023).
* 1 in 5 women still leave long-term financial decisions entirely to their spouse (UBS, 2022).
* Divorce lawyers consistently say: women often learn their full financial picture after separation.
One of my closest friends—an elite divorce attorney, Aliette Hernandez Carolan—saw this heartbreak firsthand. Again and again, she watched women walk into court heartbroken and financially blind. The devastation was so great that she wrote a book called Lose Your Heart, Not Your Mind. Her message was clear: love deeply, but never be financially naïve. Click here to get her book: https://amzn.to/4nBIzo1
Why Wealth-Building Today Isn’t What Our Parents Knew
Even if your family had wealth, they didn’t have access to the tools we have now.
* 401(k)s didn’t become mainstream until the 1980s.
* Accredited investor opportunities like private equity and venture capital weren’t household conversations.
* Digital investing platforms didn’t exist.
* And for many immigrant families, the stock market felt like a rich man’s game.
Today, we live in a different financial landscape—with new rules and new risks. Which means the old scripts—“save what you can” or “buy a house and you’re set”—don’t apply the same way.
Financial sophistication isn’t a luxury anymore. It’s a survival skill. It’s the new “American Dream,” if you want to call it that. And for many of us, the knowledge of the people we trust the most—our family, the ones who guided us—was built on a different economy, a different era. They taught us how to save, not how to scale. How to survive, not how to strategize. But we’re living in a new landscape, and honoring their sacrifices means evolving their playbook. It’s not about abandoning what they taught us—it’s about expanding it.
Money Isn’t Just Math—It’s Power
This isn’t about distrusting men. It’s about trusting yourself.
Empowerment isn’t exclusion. It’s participation.
Here’s your Latina Money Map:
1. Maximize Your Earnings
* Know your worth. Advocate louder than your imposter syndrome.
* Negotiate, diversify income, and stop shrinking in salary convos.
2. Budget with Intention
* Differentiate between needs and wants—Target and Amazon are not therapy.
* That $30 impulse buy? It could be $300 in compound interest over time.
* Try this frame: “Would I still buy this if I had to write it in a financial journal?”
3. Make Your Money Work
* Don’t let your cash nap in low-yield accounts.
* Use high-interest savings, retirement vehicles, and compound interest.
* Hire a financial advisor—but stay awake. You are your own fiduciary.
4. Retain More of What You Earn
* Taxes are your biggest hidden expense. Get strategic.
* Partner with a CPA. Consider legal structures for protection.
* Build a team that safeguards your peace.
5. Grow Into Financial Sophistication
* As your money grows, so does your responsibility.
* Diversify into real estate, index funds, small business equity, private market opportunities.
* Risk and reward are hermanas—learn how they move.
How Knowing Your Numbers Changes Everything
When you have clarity over your finances:
* You don’t tolerate toxic jobs—or toxic partners.
* You negotiate with backbone.
* You lead your business and your family with peace, not panic.
This is bigger than budgets. It’s about agency. Legacy. Freedom.
✨ What Would It Look Like to Know Your Numbers?Imagine: You walk into the meeting—or the marriage—with your receipts ready. You’re not scrambling. You’re sovereign.
Because true empowerment doesn’t just break ceilings. It builds floors strong enough to stand on.
About the Author
Teri Arvesú González is the founder of The TAG Collab, a consultancy helping mission-driven companies align purpose, brand, and strategy from the inside out.
A Latina media executive with more than 25 years leading newsrooms in Miami and Chicago, she has launched national initiatives, built high-performing teams, and driven transformation across industries. She writes on Latina leadership, cultural duality, bicultural identity, and the neuroscience of resilience.
📌 Connect with Teri:
* Podcast: The TAG Collab
* TikTok
This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit thetagcollab.substack.com/subscribe