Running a business isn't just about strategy and numbers—it tests your patience, emotional resilience, and sense of self in ways nothing else can. In this powerful episode of Beneath the Calm, host Jacinta Yang, RRPr. CCH—author, holistic healer, and RRCO member—sits down with Christina Liu, an award-winning Economic Development Officer who has spent nearly a decade supporting entrepreneurs through their toughest moments. Together, they dive into the real struggles business owners face: the sleepless nights, the self-doubt, the pressure to always perform, and the weight many men carry trying to be strong providers. This isn't surface-level advice—it's an honest conversation about the emotional toll of entrepreneurship and how to navigate it without losing yourself.
If you've ever questioned whether you have what it takes, felt overwhelmed by the demands of building something from scratch, or wondered how others keep going when it gets hard—this episode is for you. Christina shares practical strategies, community resources, and real stories of resilience that prove bending doesn't mean breaking. Jacinta brings her holistic perspective on mental health and healing, creating a space where vulnerability meets actionable wisdom. Whether you're an entrepreneur, aspiring business owner, or simply facing life's pressures, you'll walk away with tools to stay strong, permission to ask for help, and the reminder that true resilience is about flexibility, not perfection.
The real struggles entrepreneurs face that nobody talks about—from 3 AM anxiety to self-doubt—and realize they're not alone. Christina Liu brings nearly a decade of experience working directly with business owners to share honest insights into the emotional weight of entrepreneurship.
Practical, actionable strategies for managing stress, protecting mental health, and building resilience without burning out. These aren't theories—they're proven tools Christina has seen work for countless entrepreneurs navigating their toughest moments.
Permission to seek support and be human while pursuing your dreams. This conversation breaks down the myth that you have to handle everything alone, especially for men who feel pressure to show no weakness.
Bottom line: Listeners will leave feeling less alone, better equipped with real tools, and reminded that true strength isn't about being unbreakable—it's about knowing how to bend without breaking. This is the honest, empowering conversation many people need but rarely find.
Connect with Jacinta at www.JacintaHealingArts.com, follow @jacintaHealingArt on Instagram, or visit her YouTube channel at youtube.com/@jacintahealingarts for more resources on holistic healing and navigating life's challenges with grace.
https://www.linkedin.com/in/cristinaliu/
In this episode of Beneath the Calm, host Jacinta Yang welcomes guest Kristina Liu to explore the unique struggles entrepreneurs face and the importance of community, mentorship, and accessible resources. Together, they discuss how government-funded programs, local networks, and hands-on support can empower business owners who feel overwhelmed or unsure where to begin. Through Jacinta’s own story of overcoming a fear of technology, the conversation highlights how guidance, persistence, and openness to learning can help entrepreneurs grow with confidence.
Jacinta and guest Christina Liu explore the theme “Bend, Don’t Break,” focusing on building resilience as an entrepreneur. Christina discusses the rapid changes in technology, shifting customer expectations, and the pressure small business owners face to constantly adapt. She emphasizes the importance of flexibility, strategic reflection, and building supportive networks to navigate these challenges. Jacinta adds that staying open to learning, seeking community resources, and embracing new skills—especially in marketing and technology—can help entrepreneurs grow through uncertainty.
Jacintha kicks of the third segment by discussing the realities of starting and sustaining a business, the value of having a solid business and financial plan, and the toll entrepreneurship can take on mental health. Together, they encourage listeners to seek out local resources, training programs, and grants that can support their journey toward building a resilient and sustainable business.
Jacinta explores the many challenges entrepreneurs face, especially around finances, technology, and navigating business growth. She shares her own experiences as a longtime floral designer, author, and holistic practitioner, highlighting how government programs like CDAP, Digital Main Street, and various regional grants helped her digitize and expand her business. Christina adds valuable insight into different funding opportunities—such as tourism grants, microgrants, and partnership programs—and offers practical guidance for applying. Together, they encourage business owners to seek out available resources and support systems to move through their challenges with confidence.
00:00:33.760 --> 00:00:45.589 Jacinta Yang: Welcome to Beneath the Calm. Thank you for joining us today. I'm Jacintha Yang, your host and your guide… personal guide to personal and spiritual growth.
00:00:45.890 --> 00:00:50.920 Jacinta Yang: This space beneath the comm was, created specifically
00:00:51.100 --> 00:01:00.370 Jacinta Yang: For anyone and everyone, specifically men, that feels they have to be strong and suffer in silence.
00:01:00.770 --> 00:01:06.290 Jacinta Yang: So I created the space so everyone can feel safe to come and share.
00:01:06.510 --> 00:01:10.860 Jacinta Yang: Tools and insights on navigating life challenges.
00:01:11.130 --> 00:01:16.669 Jacinta Yang: As we all know, that… No matter how long we live.
00:01:17.080 --> 00:01:25.400 Jacinta Yang: Life will always present us with challenges, and the important thing is, how do we navigate through them?
00:01:25.680 --> 00:01:35.490 Jacinta Yang: And sometimes we are knocked down, but we learn through Experience and support around us.
00:01:36.010 --> 00:01:38.810 Jacinta Yang: To get through these challenges.
00:01:39.210 --> 00:01:52.689 Jacinta Yang: As we learn to navigate through them, we do get better in overcoming struggles and challenges, so we share those stories and insights with others to help them.
00:01:53.680 --> 00:02:00.139 Jacinta Yang: Now, part of life challenges is, of course, many people who are,
00:02:00.380 --> 00:02:06.640 Jacinta Yang: entrepreneurs, that is a challenge in itself, and today's,
00:02:06.750 --> 00:02:14.630 Jacinta Yang: Episode is all about, how to navigate through challenges that entrepreneurs faces.
00:02:14.740 --> 00:02:32.329 Jacinta Yang: Today, joining us is Kristina Liu, who is going to share her insights and share her knowledge in helping entrepreneurs how to navigate through these challenges that entrepreneurs faces, and also
00:02:32.440 --> 00:02:41.810 Jacinta Yang: She's going to share resources, right? Kristina, Kristina, welcome, and thank you for joining us today, and it's been a pleasure knowing you.
00:02:41.900 --> 00:03:01.590 Jacinta Yang: I met you, when I joined YSpace at Town of Georgina. It's an entrepreneurship hub where there are programs and supports available to help new businesses or businesses that are, navigating through different
00:03:01.810 --> 00:03:04.770 Jacinta Yang: Challenges such as,
00:03:04.940 --> 00:03:15.040 Jacinta Yang: I guess now with the digital world and techno… technology and all that, and all areas, and it has been a great,
00:03:15.540 --> 00:03:25.010 Jacinta Yang: Great resource for me. I've learned a lot through these programs that was offered through YSpace, and christina, please join us.
00:03:26.120 --> 00:03:40.960 cristinaliu: Hi, Jacinta, thank you for having me. I'm excited to be here and to have this casual chat. I was promised this was going to be a casual chat between you and I. And yeah, absolutely, what you said, I think entrepreneurs face
00:03:41.290 --> 00:03:51.520 cristinaliu: A ton of challenges, whether it be, you know, tariffs, or mental health, or, you know, just self-doubt, so…
00:03:51.580 --> 00:04:04.399 cristinaliu: Yeah, I'm excited to talk about the resources that are available. I think no matter where you are, there's always a community that's available around, and it's about finding that community.
00:04:05.960 --> 00:04:08.960 Jacinta Yang: So, Christina, you met me…
00:04:09.110 --> 00:04:15.360 Jacinta Yang: just when I first joined, YSpace, starting this,
00:04:15.490 --> 00:04:18.659 Jacinta Yang: New business and, holistic healing.
00:04:19.230 --> 00:04:22.590 Jacinta Yang: And I have to say, it was you…
00:04:22.840 --> 00:04:28.279 Jacinta Yang: who encouraged me to do podcasts. I remember the day that we did this,
00:04:28.500 --> 00:04:30.899 Jacinta Yang: Take us back to that day.
00:04:32.680 --> 00:04:41.070 cristinaliu: Yeah, absolutely, for sure. I don't know if we talked exactly about podcasts, I'm trying to remember the exact moment.
00:04:41.070 --> 00:04:42.230 Jacinta Yang: The meditation.
00:04:42.230 --> 00:04:50.249 cristinaliu: I do remember you saying to you, Jacinta, you have a beautiful voice, because we were… I think it was the women's.
00:04:50.250 --> 00:04:51.000 Jacinta Yang: Women's Day.
00:04:51.000 --> 00:04:56.770 cristinaliu: Yeah, event that's right here in Georgina, and you led a meditation for
00:04:56.870 --> 00:05:05.929 cristinaliu: You know, a group of us, kind of in between all the entrepreneurship chats, just to get us to refocus and resettle and…
00:05:06.210 --> 00:05:08.240 cristinaliu: You had a beautiful voice, so…
00:05:08.360 --> 00:05:17.249 cristinaliu: I just… I just remember saying that to you, and I said, you know what? You should record it, because it's… it… it's very calming.
00:05:18.170 --> 00:05:29.110 Jacinta Yang: And I remember telling you that I barely can even navigate through technology, and you asking me to do something that is just so foreign to me.
00:05:30.330 --> 00:05:36.040 Jacinta Yang: So, in your experience of, meeting, businesses.
00:05:36.280 --> 00:05:39.669 Jacinta Yang: Business owners like me, that was just…
00:05:39.960 --> 00:05:45.820 Jacinta Yang: barely getting my, I guess, footing around business world.
00:05:45.960 --> 00:05:51.070 Jacinta Yang: So, can you share some of that, and… Tell us, like.
00:05:51.360 --> 00:05:56.830 Jacinta Yang: What are the things that you usually see that businesses struggle?
00:05:58.390 --> 00:06:17.670 cristinaliu: You know, what I… I think there's a lot of challenges that business owners face. Maybe we can dive into each one, kind of, one at a time, because trying to summarize everything in one go or in one sentence is very, very difficult. But,
00:06:17.890 --> 00:06:21.610 cristinaliu: To your first point about, entrepreneurs
00:06:22.250 --> 00:06:38.350 cristinaliu: you know, like yourself, facing something new to them. So, you know, you mentioned technology was something that you were struggling with, and… and thinking about doing a podcast, you were thinking to yourself, okay, where do I even start with that?
00:06:38.730 --> 00:06:44.639 cristinaliu: Most business owners have that question, you know, I want to do something, I have an idea, how do I get there?
00:06:44.810 --> 00:06:45.940 cristinaliu: So…
00:06:46.320 --> 00:07:00.570 cristinaliu: you know, there are a lot of, resources that are available to entrepreneurs. I can only speak to my experience within the Ontario region, specifically York Region, but we do have
00:07:00.690 --> 00:07:10.909 cristinaliu: a ton of organizations that are government-funded, that provide those supports. Most of those supports are at no cost, so,
00:07:11.030 --> 00:07:15.490 cristinaliu: Even starting locally, a business owner can
00:07:15.540 --> 00:07:32.340 cristinaliu: meet with… with their local economic development office, which their whole purpose is to support business growth and to support entrepreneurs and startups. From there, they can also meet with their chambers of commerce. That's an organization that is usually within
00:07:32.390 --> 00:07:39.540 cristinaliu: each kind of region, municipality, or, even province. There's provincial chambers.
00:07:39.820 --> 00:07:43.320 cristinaliu: And then starting from there, so I think just connecting with
00:07:43.480 --> 00:07:57.789 cristinaliu: your local resources and seeing what's available to you, depending on what it is that you want to learn, and going from there. Jacinta, did you find it was easy for you to kind of navigate where to look for resources?
00:07:58.600 --> 00:08:06.280 Jacinta Yang: No, I think I would say I was very fortunate, because I met Stephanie at a networking event.
00:08:06.460 --> 00:08:15.019 Jacinta Yang: And she went on to tell me about a program that'll be starting up here in Georgina, and to help
00:08:15.250 --> 00:08:21.089 Jacinta Yang: a new entrepreneurs, when I was telling her that what I was planning to do with my holistic healing
00:08:21.980 --> 00:08:40.679 Jacinta Yang: Quite honestly, because she was so friendly and so sweet, I was, willing to meet with her again, and I didn't… I didn't really know what I was getting myself into. I met with her, we had an idea, consultation, and
00:08:41.360 --> 00:08:45.220 Jacinta Yang: Things she told me that is possible.
00:08:45.420 --> 00:08:55.310 Jacinta Yang: And of course, at that time, I could barely navigate through emails, or even, I would say, surf the net. I would…
00:08:55.430 --> 00:08:57.390 Jacinta Yang: I would never get on…
00:08:57.610 --> 00:09:09.369 Jacinta Yang: online to serve the net, or do any of those things, because I… I guess I used to have this fear of technology where I could… I feel like if I clicked on something, I would just…
00:09:10.820 --> 00:09:14.430 Jacinta Yang: I guess, damage there.
00:09:14.430 --> 00:09:18.229 cristinaliu: So, I understand.
00:09:18.230 --> 00:09:22.950 Jacinta Yang: I would never even try to attempt to click on anything at all.
00:09:23.070 --> 00:09:28.939 Jacinta Yang: And… some of the things that she told me… okay, so you're an author.
00:09:29.460 --> 00:09:36.699 Jacinta Yang: You can have your books on Audible. And then she mentioned, of all the possible
00:09:36.840 --> 00:09:42.660 Jacinta Yang: thing that I could do through the support of YSpace.
00:09:44.030 --> 00:09:49.460 Jacinta Yang: And, in all honesty, I didn't understand a lot of that.
00:09:49.930 --> 00:09:54.369 Jacinta Yang: But I guess I was… I am always open to learning.
00:09:55.670 --> 00:10:00.959 Jacinta Yang: So, when she told me about the Business Foundation workshop.
00:10:01.080 --> 00:10:05.920 Jacinta Yang: That was online because we had just come out of the, second lockdown.
00:10:06.600 --> 00:10:11.230 Jacinta Yang: And so I did… I did that. I have to admit, the first whole
00:10:11.330 --> 00:10:13.789 Jacinta Yang: I think 8 or 9 series.
00:10:14.180 --> 00:10:22.789 Jacinta Yang: Everything went just past my head. I… Could not comprehend anything.
00:10:22.900 --> 00:10:31.789 Jacinta Yang: I managed to probably… Understand the little bits and pieces of those, workshops.
00:10:32.840 --> 00:10:38.830 Jacinta Yang: But I guess something about me, I never give up until I can make sense of something.
00:10:39.100 --> 00:10:51.380 Jacinta Yang: So, I took it the second time, a third time, and a lot of the workshops, related to, you know, marketing, how to use Facebook.
00:10:51.660 --> 00:10:57.740 Jacinta Yang: I knew how to get on Facebook, I didn't know how to post on Facebook.
00:10:57.870 --> 00:11:00.120 Jacinta Yang: I… I just know how to view it.
00:11:00.620 --> 00:11:05.270 Jacinta Yang: So a lot of that, I guess, was…
00:11:05.810 --> 00:11:11.090 Jacinta Yang: New, so anything they were talking outside of just viewing.
00:11:11.200 --> 00:11:12.750 Jacinta Yang: was beyond me.
00:11:13.460 --> 00:11:17.100 Jacinta Yang: And I didn't understand any of that at all.
00:11:17.350 --> 00:11:19.380 Jacinta Yang: Completely and…
00:11:19.770 --> 00:11:28.760 Jacinta Yang: Okay, so I said, I don't understand what you mean by pre-scheduled posts. I don't understand… what do you mean the post is a waste without a hashtag?
00:11:28.900 --> 00:11:31.620 Jacinta Yang: And I didn't even know what hashtag meant.
00:11:31.900 --> 00:11:36.149 Jacinta Yang: So, it was quite a… for me, that was quite a challenge.
00:11:36.360 --> 00:11:39.910 Jacinta Yang: But, Stephanie was very patient.
00:11:40.130 --> 00:11:49.730 Jacinta Yang: She's… she's so patient that she showed I mean, step by step, And, I would forget.
00:11:50.700 --> 00:11:56.839 Jacinta Yang: But she never… I guess she never gave up, on me.
00:11:57.460 --> 00:12:09.080 cristinaliu: No, she didn't. She's… she's great that way. Yeah. I also… for the listeners, we all know who we're talking about. Stephanie is a fantastic resource at YSpace, but…
00:12:09.080 --> 00:12:17.910 cristinaliu: What I wanted to say in regards to your conversation, what prompted some of my thoughts is, you know, some people, they excel
00:12:18.020 --> 00:12:30.759 cristinaliu: at online learning, and there's a ton of online resources that are available, through Coursera, or just online through YouTube. You can find a lot of how-tos, but some people need hands-on.
00:12:31.040 --> 00:12:38.039 cristinaliu: So they need somebody, like Jacinta, it sounds like you needed somebody to teach you in person.
00:12:38.550 --> 00:12:44.899 cristinaliu: be available that way, and so there… there are a ton of hands-on resources that are available, and
00:12:45.010 --> 00:13:04.030 cristinaliu: If you are a entrepreneur that's living quite remotely, let's say you're in a more rural community, you're not really connected to that urban community, you don't have a lot of resources right around you, even going to the local library and asking the local library what kind of resources are available, you'd be surprised.
00:13:04.030 --> 00:13:07.349 cristinaliu: There's probably some entrepreneurship resources that are
00:13:07.350 --> 00:13:12.300 cristinaliu: That are at your fingertips, and you're just not aware that they're there.
00:13:13.090 --> 00:13:23.830 Jacinta Yang: You know, actually, before I learned about YSpace, I was in my own little world. As a floral designer, I never had to market myself, I never had to…
00:13:24.010 --> 00:13:30.209 Jacinta Yang: I didn't even know there's a world out there that was so different from the world I knew.
00:13:30.320 --> 00:13:40.440 Jacinta Yang: And I honestly wouldn't have even thought of, going to library or looking for resources. So, I'm just wondering for people…
00:13:40.750 --> 00:13:50.540 Jacinta Yang: who would be in my position where I was before I met Stephanie, where I didn't know outside.
00:13:50.670 --> 00:13:54.639 Jacinta Yang: I call it outside world, because it was an outside world for me.
00:13:54.640 --> 00:13:56.080 cristinaliu: So…
00:13:56.490 --> 00:14:00.579 Jacinta Yang: How would… how could… we actually…
00:14:00.860 --> 00:14:06.749 Jacinta Yang: Get that information to those people that there are resources available.
00:14:07.750 --> 00:14:17.479 cristinaliu: I think the… again, my experience is just with the local government here in York Region, but I think the municipalities here do a pretty great job at,
00:14:17.760 --> 00:14:33.639 cristinaliu: promoting the resources that are available to you, you just need to know where to look, and that's always the question. If you're not looking, if you're not open to looking for the information, you're not going to find it. It's not going to be delivered to you in an envelope, in the mail. Sometimes it is, but…
00:14:33.640 --> 00:14:36.630 Jacinta Yang: But sometimes these, these entrepreneurship, I…
00:14:36.630 --> 00:14:38.720 cristinaliu: opportunities, I guess, are not
00:14:38.920 --> 00:14:56.139 cristinaliu: going to be right at your doorstep. You do have to either Google it, or you have to call your local government, see what's available to you, go to your local library and find out what's available, so actually making that little bit of effort to go to the right resource to find out what's there.
00:14:56.140 --> 00:15:10.699 Jacinta Yang: I'm just wondering if there's such a thing as, some kind of an information workshop, session, to let entrepreneurs know that there are such resources, because,
00:15:12.320 --> 00:15:19.699 Jacinta Yang: I… I think sometimes I don't watch the news, I don't check mails.
00:15:19.910 --> 00:15:28.319 Jacinta Yang: So… if I didn't step up… if I didn't… stumble upon this Y space.
00:15:28.550 --> 00:15:35.659 Jacinta Yang: I… didn't know there was such a thing even available. I probably will be… have been trying to,
00:15:36.930 --> 00:15:38.669 Jacinta Yang: Struggle on my own.
00:15:39.830 --> 00:15:46.770 Jacinta Yang: And try to navigate, because I… thinking back, before all this.
00:15:46.960 --> 00:15:53.410 Jacinta Yang: Many years ago, when I was going through a lot of the challenges, I… I,
00:15:53.790 --> 00:16:02.259 Jacinta Yang: I had no idea, and then thinking back, I was thinking, gosh, if I knew there was so much resources available.
00:16:02.950 --> 00:16:06.820 Jacinta Yang: I could have looked for it, but I… I didn't know.
00:16:07.100 --> 00:16:07.630 Jacinta Yang: They will.
00:16:07.630 --> 00:16:08.100 cristinaliu: Oh, man.
00:16:08.100 --> 00:16:08.790 Jacinta Yang: Boom.
00:16:08.960 --> 00:16:13.460 Jacinta Yang: That's, that's a problem.
00:16:13.460 --> 00:16:34.120 cristinaliu: Well, you know what, I think everybody that listens to this particular episode will start googling, calling, and going to the local library, so they will now know that there are resources available. A lot of them, as I said, at no cost. So, it's… it's about making that effort, and hopefully, if you're watching, you now know that there's something there for you.
00:16:34.240 --> 00:16:36.530 Jacinta Yang: Okay, I think we're going on a break, I forgot.
00:18:23.600 --> 00:18:31.309 Jacinta Yang: Welcome back to Beneath the Calm. Today's episode, Bend, Don't Break. Basically, we'll be discussing about
00:18:31.370 --> 00:18:45.290 Jacinta Yang: Going through, challenges dealing with business, how we should, try to, not, break, but rather bend and,
00:18:45.660 --> 00:18:47.260 Jacinta Yang: I guess so.
00:18:47.690 --> 00:18:50.190 Jacinta Yang: Face resilience, or,
00:18:51.350 --> 00:19:00.810 Jacinta Yang: I would say, what do I really want to say here? Build resilience. So, Christina's here joining us, who has,
00:19:01.420 --> 00:19:11.910 Jacinta Yang: Has experienced, meeting many business owners, entrepreneurs, that goes through different challenges. So, Christina.
00:19:13.030 --> 00:19:18.420 Jacinta Yang: What are the most common challenges that entrepreneurs face?
00:19:19.840 --> 00:19:24.980 Jacinta Yang: That, you have insights to share?
00:19:26.170 --> 00:19:32.440 cristinaliu: I think, depending on the industry, everyone has their own kind of cluster of challenges, but…
00:19:32.510 --> 00:19:38.140 cristinaliu: Speaking just for small and medium-sized businesses,
00:19:38.190 --> 00:19:55.539 cristinaliu: I think one of the major challenges over the last 10 years is the… the rate at which technology is changing, and how their customer base is changing. And just trying to keep up… trying to keep up with marketing, promoting yourself, so, you know.
00:19:55.730 --> 00:20:14.779 cristinaliu: Many moons ago, you had a storefront, and people would just come, and you would build a great relationship with them, because they were geographically close to you, and so you were a convenient location for them, and as long as you left a good impression, your product was good and top-notch, that customer would come back.
00:20:15.220 --> 00:20:21.690 cristinaliu: And then you could really build on retaining that customer and growing from there. But I think nowadays.
00:20:23.110 --> 00:20:34.149 cristinaliu: from my experience, customers are smarter than ever. We are a very educated customer base, which means they have access to information at their fingertips. Most people have cell phones.
00:20:34.150 --> 00:20:51.999 cristinaliu: Most people have access to intranet, so if they're looking for a couch, for example, they can Google couch, or the type of model that they're looking for, and they can find out all about price, quality, where it's coming from, all the locations that sell that couch. Before they even walk into your storefront.
00:20:52.190 --> 00:21:05.789 cristinaliu: And even when they do walk into your storefront, they can take a picture, they can Google image search where else they can find this couch. They're more price sensitive now because of the way the economy is nowadays, so…
00:21:06.520 --> 00:21:13.700 cristinaliu: just adapting to all those changes, I think, is very challenging for most small to medium-sized business owners.
00:21:13.900 --> 00:21:16.049 cristinaliu: Keeping up, and…
00:21:16.270 --> 00:21:22.879 cristinaliu: Do you feel like that's something that you also face, just adapting to how things are changing, Jacinta?
00:21:23.260 --> 00:21:29.540 Jacinta Yang: Oh, yes, oh yes, it's, like I said, I didn't know there was a world of marketing.
00:21:30.060 --> 00:21:31.900 cristinaliu: And.
00:21:32.150 --> 00:21:43.319 Jacinta Yang: And the challenge of how to keep up, and learning all the different skills to actually, creating social media posts.
00:21:44.240 --> 00:21:50.529 Jacinta Yang: And, being out there, how should I say? Being visible.
00:21:51.530 --> 00:22:00.119 Jacinta Yang: But, what would you advise to business owners how to be resilient through challenging times?
00:22:01.840 --> 00:22:02.710 cristinaliu: I think…
00:22:03.460 --> 00:22:12.190 cristinaliu: Mmm, I… it's a very good question. I think, first and foremost, I think adaptability as a skill for business owners is very important.
00:22:12.410 --> 00:22:24.850 cristinaliu: It's probably one of the most important skills to have, being flexible, adaptable, moving with the times. In my opinion, I don't think you can run a business the same way
00:22:25.060 --> 00:22:34.159 cristinaliu: For 20 years and expect the same result. As, again, your customers are changing, their expectations are changing, and…
00:22:34.730 --> 00:22:38.309 cristinaliu: I think… I've heard from some entrepreneurs
00:22:38.410 --> 00:22:40.730 cristinaliu: That the challenge is that
00:22:41.220 --> 00:23:01.179 cristinaliu: You know, they're doing the exact same thing, but for some reason, you know, their customers are dwindling, their business model isn't working, and instead of looking inwardly on their business model, and what they're doing, and whether that's working, they tend to blame external factors on why their business is failing, and
00:23:01.450 --> 00:23:19.310 cristinaliu: business ownership is tough. It's not an easy industry to be in. You're working more than 9 to 5, if you've ever thought that owning a business is easy. It's not. It's probably harder than working for someone else. You have a lot more freedom, but it's all on you, and you're working all the time, so…
00:23:20.170 --> 00:23:30.350 cristinaliu: I think, yeah, just being adaptable is very important. And also, another piece of advice is, build a network
00:23:30.580 --> 00:23:33.900 cristinaliu: around you that could support you. You're not alone.
00:23:34.270 --> 00:23:52.590 cristinaliu: I think that's one of the things business owners feel most, is that they feel they're alone in their own world, and they don't get to connect with other entrepreneurs, and they don't know who to go to for a device, and they feel like they're struggling by themselves. But the reality is that most…
00:23:52.770 --> 00:24:02.240 cristinaliu: Most small business owners are kind of going through the same challenges, so finding a network of other entrepreneurs, will help you.
00:24:02.440 --> 00:24:13.129 cristinaliu: there's no reason to reinvent the wheel. There's something that might be working for someone else that you can utilize as well. You can be inspired by what they're doing and use that to support your business.
00:24:13.540 --> 00:24:21.000 cristinaliu: So building that network again is so important. Going to networking events, really connecting with your local chamber.
00:24:21.100 --> 00:24:28.110 cristinaliu: If, you know, chambers are a membership-based, so let's say you don't have the financial means to join.
00:24:28.110 --> 00:24:36.370 cristinaliu: a chamber membership, you might just connect with their stakeholders if you can find industry clusters that are similar to yours.
00:24:36.370 --> 00:24:51.510 cristinaliu: let's say you're a cafe owner, and there's another cafe owner within the same kind of geographic location, connect with them. I feel like a lot of business owners are quite open and happy to support each other, they just don't have the time, because they're in the weeds, they're just running their business, so…
00:24:51.700 --> 00:25:04.720 cristinaliu: I think the strategy part of running a business is really important. Taking the time, setting the time aside to reflect on what's working, what's not working, connecting with other business owners is really important.
00:25:04.910 --> 00:25:09.900 cristinaliu: And, yeah, just connecting with your local economic development offices if you have one.
00:25:10.260 --> 00:25:18.689 cristinaliu: As I said, most municipalities do have at least one person, if it's not a full-on division that's kind of responsible for that stakeholder engagement.
00:25:19.250 --> 00:25:22.069 cristinaliu: So yeah, though that would be my advice. What do you think?
00:25:22.070 --> 00:25:33.609 Jacinta Yang: So, as you said, connecting with the economic development of your local municipality would be a great resource to start with, right?
00:25:33.820 --> 00:25:35.520 Jacinta Yang: Because,
00:25:35.910 --> 00:25:49.110 Jacinta Yang: I guess, I wouldn't have, actually, to tell you the truth, I wouldn't have thought of it. It wouldn't have crossed my mind that, it… that was possible. So basically, any local…
00:25:49.340 --> 00:25:54.290 Jacinta Yang: Offices… government offices?
00:25:54.630 --> 00:26:00.099 Jacinta Yang: And libraries would be a good, resource to look for. And,
00:26:00.510 --> 00:26:05.640 Jacinta Yang: I just want to share with the audience today that,
00:26:05.780 --> 00:26:10.080 Jacinta Yang: Sometimes we may not be able to find information.
00:26:10.240 --> 00:26:23.059 Jacinta Yang: But let's, Christina said, if we go to, the library, or even just talking to people, maybe somebody that you talk to may already know about it, right? And,
00:26:23.750 --> 00:26:27.570 Jacinta Yang: I think the most important thing is really being open.
00:26:27.680 --> 00:26:31.079 Jacinta Yang: Open to learning, open…
00:26:31.530 --> 00:26:47.710 Jacinta Yang: and be flexible to change, because unless we are open to be flexible to learning, we cannot really succeed. Like, if I… if I told myself, okay, I don't understand technology, I…
00:26:47.940 --> 00:26:52.439 Jacinta Yang: Don't want to deal with it, it's too much, it's overwhelming. It was overwhelming, but…
00:26:52.960 --> 00:26:58.379 Jacinta Yang: I was open. I was open to learning, I was open to trying.
00:26:58.680 --> 00:27:12.999 Jacinta Yang: and understand what people are trying to teach me. One thing I knew, everybody was trying to teach me and trying to help me. I know, Christina, you said you didn't think I would take you seriously about doing this podcast.
00:27:13.090 --> 00:27:21.879 Jacinta Yang: But I did give it a thought. I mean, I'm always open to any suggestion people has to help me grow.
00:27:22.070 --> 00:27:30.389 Jacinta Yang: And, I didn't turn anybody's suggestion down without analyzing it, so…
00:27:30.920 --> 00:27:39.070 Jacinta Yang: I would suggest to the listeners that are, doesn't matter whether it's business or personal life.
00:27:40.460 --> 00:27:43.810 Jacinta Yang: There are people around us who cares?
00:27:43.980 --> 00:27:50.320 Jacinta Yang: Even people that, maybe strangers, I mean…
00:27:50.460 --> 00:27:57.069 Jacinta Yang: At that time, I didn't really know Christina too, too well, but… She had the,
00:27:57.170 --> 00:27:58.760 Jacinta Yang: She had the kindness.
00:27:59.220 --> 00:28:01.829 Jacinta Yang: To share her thoughts.
00:28:02.220 --> 00:28:10.020 Jacinta Yang: about, my voice, and the meditation I did, and so, that's how it all started. I…
00:28:10.290 --> 00:28:11.840 Jacinta Yang: Got on the YouTube.
00:28:12.380 --> 00:28:21.640 Jacinta Yang: My channel's at Jacintha Healing Art, and I also have a podcast called Self-Aware Soul, courtesy of Christina Liu.
00:28:21.970 --> 00:28:22.770 cristinaliu: Thank you.
00:28:22.770 --> 00:28:28.280 Jacinta Yang: I recall when I was taking mentorship on digital skills with,
00:28:28.610 --> 00:28:46.499 Jacinta Yang: Vanessa, she was one of our guests here earlier in the episodes, and I said to her, oh, Vanessa, somebody just told me I gotta be on a podcast. I have no idea what I'm supposed to do. Can you teach me? So that's what I did. Basically,
00:28:46.740 --> 00:28:48.990 Jacinta Yang: No suggestion.
00:28:49.550 --> 00:28:53.650 Jacinta Yang: is… Meaningless.
00:28:53.760 --> 00:28:58.810 Jacinta Yang: Just take it in. Maybe it is for you. Maybe it's not.
00:28:59.150 --> 00:29:04.309 Jacinta Yang: But… Give it some thought and see where it can take you.
00:29:04.790 --> 00:29:11.400 Jacinta Yang: And just as I did, I started on Spotify, and here we are on…
00:29:11.560 --> 00:29:15.809 Jacinta Yang: Oh, talk radio podcast here. So…
00:29:15.940 --> 00:29:19.450 Jacinta Yang: We just never know where life will take us.
00:29:19.680 --> 00:29:27.980 Jacinta Yang: just be open… open to anything that people are sharing with you. It may not make sense.
00:29:28.730 --> 00:29:35.429 Jacinta Yang: And I've attended workshop, on a regular basis with TechConnect.
00:29:35.600 --> 00:29:40.020 Jacinta Yang: And a lot of the workshop may not pertain
00:29:40.570 --> 00:30:00.230 Jacinta Yang: to my business, but it's still knowledge. It may be all related to corporate world, and here I am, doing holistic practice. It's a totally different world, right, Christina? If we're open to learning.
00:30:00.620 --> 00:30:04.249 Jacinta Yang: and growing… We will always get some nugget.
00:30:05.040 --> 00:30:24.320 cristinaliu: For sure, I agree. I learn from every entrepreneur that I speak to, and I'm very lucky in my position that a lot of entrepreneurs get to tell me exactly how they're feeling, the challenges that they're facing, and confidence. And so, it's really nice to have that trust as well, and to learn.
00:30:24.370 --> 00:30:27.749 cristinaliu: How we can support them from a government side.
00:30:28.030 --> 00:30:33.020 Jacinta Yang: We're gonna go into break again, and we'll come back and, continue.
00:32:17.040 --> 00:32:22.410 Jacinta Yang: Welcome back to Beneath the Calm. Today's episode, Bend, Don't Break.
00:32:22.520 --> 00:32:27.080 Jacinta Yang: Basically, we're talking about, challenges.
00:32:27.260 --> 00:32:34.099 Jacinta Yang: This space is about, having a safe space where we can get together and share
00:32:34.210 --> 00:32:37.290 Jacinta Yang: Our stories without judgment.
00:32:39.290 --> 00:32:50.199 Jacinta Yang: men, particularly, suffer in silence. That's what I've… I have come to learn, from close friends and,
00:32:50.380 --> 00:32:52.239 Jacinta Yang: Even family member.
00:32:52.410 --> 00:33:03.209 Jacinta Yang: And a lot of men feel that they have to be the strong one, carry the weight, to be the provider, and of course, a lot of men also.
00:33:03.840 --> 00:33:12.829 Jacinta Yang: the entrepreneurs, even though nowadays a lot of women are, joining the business world, and…
00:33:12.950 --> 00:33:15.720 Jacinta Yang: Becoming, entrepreneurs.
00:33:15.910 --> 00:33:22.170 Jacinta Yang: A womanpreneur, and challenges arises.
00:33:22.280 --> 00:33:26.709 Jacinta Yang: The main thing is, how do we navigate through them?
00:33:26.870 --> 00:33:32.760 Jacinta Yang: And, if any of you feel that you are,
00:33:33.690 --> 00:33:44.760 Jacinta Yang: struggling with, growing your business and need to find resources. As, Christina has mentioned, always this
00:33:44.910 --> 00:33:57.809 Jacinta Yang: places that you can find information. Google, or the library, or even go to, your, local office, economic development offices.
00:33:57.950 --> 00:34:14.289 Jacinta Yang: There will be someone, if they don't have the resources, they can kind of guide you. Actually, recently, I've also found out even job skills, even though it is more geared towards,
00:34:14.719 --> 00:34:31.239 Jacinta Yang: people that are looking for a job, but I also learned they have a program called Better Jobs that actually help people to… it's a second career, maybe, find resources, to…
00:34:32.040 --> 00:34:39.340 Jacinta Yang: Be educated in certain areas that you can either find a job, or maybe start your own business.
00:34:40.280 --> 00:34:45.960 Jacinta Yang: Christina's here with me, who has been with the Economic Development
00:34:46.190 --> 00:34:52.580 Jacinta Yang: in Georgina, now in Stoweville, where she often meets,
00:34:53.010 --> 00:35:01.650 Jacinta Yang: new businesses or entrepreneurs that shares their, struggles with her. And,
00:35:02.190 --> 00:35:04.619 Jacinta Yang: She also guides them, and I…
00:35:04.840 --> 00:35:20.000 Jacinta Yang: I… what I really love about Christina is that since she knows what I do, she's always so happy and willing to connect me with the people in the industry that might be,
00:35:20.120 --> 00:35:26.589 Jacinta Yang: good fit for me, and I appreciate that. So, there… it's something like that. I mean,
00:35:27.260 --> 00:35:42.649 Jacinta Yang: If you have challenges, you're struggling, and you feel helpless and hopeless, and don't know where to turn, start with Google, start with libraries, start with the, your local, region office.
00:35:42.730 --> 00:35:55.990 Jacinta Yang: So, Christina, what have… what can you share about the emotional toll it takes on business owners while they are navigating through the struggles?
00:35:57.620 --> 00:36:11.310 cristinaliu: I think the natural feeling that most people have is not only frustration, but just feeling alone in their own struggles. And that's why they reach out, to just seek some help.
00:36:11.540 --> 00:36:17.710 cristinaliu: But yeah, I think it could be… it could be very stressful. It could be very stressful when…
00:36:17.820 --> 00:36:21.230 cristinaliu: you know, your business is your livelihood. So…
00:36:21.430 --> 00:36:25.220 cristinaliu: If your business is failing, you…
00:36:25.520 --> 00:36:44.700 cristinaliu: can't put food on the table, right? Or you can't support your family, or whatever it may be that's riding on this. And a lot of times, your business, within the first year, you're lucky to break even. If you're breaking even in the first year of starting your business, and let's say this is the only thing that you do,
00:36:44.810 --> 00:36:58.289 cristinaliu: Actually, it's a success, because a lot of businesses fail in the first year. Second year, you're hoping to give yourself a salary, which is great, and then hopefully you're able to make profit moving forward.
00:36:58.290 --> 00:37:14.079 cristinaliu: But yeah, it's not an easy task to take on, and I think there's not a lot of education out there that… that you receive in high school prior to… to becoming an adult, and a lot of times you don't go straight into business ownership, you go into a career of some sort, and then you have an idea, and you think of…
00:37:14.180 --> 00:37:26.950 cristinaliu: launching that idea. Most businesses don't launch, or most entrepreneurs, I should say, don't launch a business with a business plan. So a lot of times, it's just an idea, and they get… they jump straight into it. And…
00:37:27.020 --> 00:37:45.470 cristinaliu: that's, you know, as an economic development officer, I would say always have a business plan, always have a marketing plan, always figure out your financials and how long it's actually going to take you to break even, how long it's actually going to take you to not only break even, but support yourself. It's very important. Without a plan, you're…
00:37:45.690 --> 00:37:57.790 cristinaliu: You're… you're kind of destined to doom and gloom and failure, and certainly, if you're very lucky, you'll… you'll do great, or you have a fantastic idea, you'll do… you'll do well, but it's not…
00:37:57.950 --> 00:38:07.830 cristinaliu: You don't have high chances of that happening. So, yeah, developing a plan will reduce the stress, maybe, that you will have starting a business.
00:38:08.180 --> 00:38:09.000 cristinaliu: So basically…
00:38:09.000 --> 00:38:09.550 Jacinta Yang: bleh.
00:38:09.550 --> 00:38:10.950 cristinaliu: Yes, go ahead.
00:38:10.950 --> 00:38:20.860 Jacinta Yang: basically anybody who is plan… or thinking of doing a business should start that. I can totally relate to what you're saying, because
00:38:21.740 --> 00:38:33.090 Jacinta Yang: I fell into this profession. I did not have any plan. I've been a floral designer, I've been freelancing for 40-odd years.
00:38:34.130 --> 00:38:37.520 Jacinta Yang: And during that time, my health…
00:38:38.040 --> 00:38:40.889 Jacinta Yang: Took a turn, and I struggled.
00:38:41.040 --> 00:38:45.370 Jacinta Yang: with my health for nearly, I would say, 20 years.
00:38:45.510 --> 00:38:57.999 Jacinta Yang: Out of that 20 years, I spent 8 years in and out of the hospital, going through different treatments, and finally I found alternative healing, and I started doing alternative healing.
00:38:58.060 --> 00:39:10.289 Jacinta Yang: And I started doing part-time, and next thing you know, everybody's telling me this is what I should be doing. And so, yes, I just fell into this profession, and…
00:39:10.430 --> 00:39:17.639 Jacinta Yang: No, I did not have a business plan. I did not have financial projection and all.
00:39:17.640 --> 00:39:18.100 cristinaliu: All those…
00:39:18.100 --> 00:39:30.669 Jacinta Yang: those things, fortunately, I, I actually had, I had received a training through Y-Spec, they had the, what do you call, startup.
00:39:31.200 --> 00:39:50.049 Jacinta Yang: Startup Company Plus. Yes, Startup Company Plus, where they had training on all aspects of, writing a business plan. So, I would say it did help me, but I got into this business without any plan.
00:39:50.520 --> 00:39:58.700 Jacinta Yang: And… I… I have to say I was very fortunate that I found all the different programs.
00:39:58.860 --> 00:40:04.089 Jacinta Yang: So, for the listeners who are thinking that you like to work for yourself.
00:40:04.280 --> 00:40:11.959 Jacinta Yang: It's great, but it has a lot of challenges, because,
00:40:12.320 --> 00:40:21.379 Jacinta Yang: Even when they say you make your own hours, yes, you make your own hours, which is all the hours.
00:40:21.380 --> 00:40:22.830 cristinaliu: All the hours of the day, yeah.
00:40:22.830 --> 00:40:24.550 Jacinta Yang: All the hours of the day.
00:40:24.750 --> 00:40:31.799 Jacinta Yang: So, it's not as, as freeing as it may sound.
00:40:31.990 --> 00:40:35.209 Jacinta Yang: Because you're working for yourself, you have to really…
00:40:36.360 --> 00:40:42.999 Jacinta Yang: Struggle, first to make sure that you get the business coming in.
00:40:43.670 --> 00:40:48.130 Jacinta Yang: And also, the time.
00:40:48.410 --> 00:40:56.069 Jacinta Yang: To manage, manage the time, unless you really put your full heart into it.
00:40:56.190 --> 00:40:58.820 Jacinta Yang: It's not going to be that easy, right?
00:40:59.110 --> 00:41:00.350 Jacinta Yang: Christine?
00:41:00.350 --> 00:41:08.780 cristinaliu: It's pretty challenging. I think it's… it helps when you're passionate about what you do, because you don't mind putting in, you know, 48 hours a day.
00:41:08.780 --> 00:41:25.240 cristinaliu: into it, you sleep, you breathe, you think about it all the time, your business, how do you improve it? That passion really helps drive your business forward. If you're not passionate about something, you're just trying to make a profit, that might be challenging. Giving up those hours might be challenging.
00:41:25.330 --> 00:41:31.899 cristinaliu: But speaking of financial support, I just wanted to mention that there are a number of grants
00:41:32.000 --> 00:41:41.940 cristinaliu: And partnership funds that are also available to entrepreneurs, and when you do connect with your local offices, and you do connect with your local networks, you will learn that they're out there, and so…
00:41:41.940 --> 00:41:58.610 cristinaliu: there is money out there that's available, and a lot of them are being managed by these external resources. So, for example, in York Region, we have Venture Lab, you know, we have the Chamber, we have your local economic development office that do have some
00:41:58.650 --> 00:42:05.529 cristinaliu: Either they have a connection with a grant, or they can advise you on it. They have applied to something, so they can provide you with
00:42:05.560 --> 00:42:23.460 cristinaliu: information on how to do that, because the application process is quite lengthy a lot of times, or they actually administer the fund themselves, so they have money set aside, and they're just waiting for you. They're waiting for a business within that particular niche to apply, and…
00:42:23.620 --> 00:42:31.830 cristinaliu: And, yeah, something that a lot of business owners maybe are not aware of, so check out your local area for those opportunities.
00:42:32.240 --> 00:42:36.630 Jacinta Yang: Thank you, Christina. We're going to go on to break, and we'll come back and talk some more about this.
00:42:36.750 --> 00:42:40.039 Jacinta Yang: Funds that are available for businesses.
00:42:40.300 --> 00:42:41.450 Jacinta Yang: Thank you.
00:44:15.460 --> 00:44:29.140 Jacinta Yang: Welcome back to Beneath the Calm. Thank you for joining us today, a space where we get together and share tools and insights about Life Matters, conversation about Life Matters, CALM.
00:44:29.790 --> 00:44:34.690 Jacinta Yang: And, life has so many areas.
00:44:35.010 --> 00:44:42.390 Jacinta Yang: M… Emotional, mental, physical… financial,
00:44:43.120 --> 00:44:47.079 Jacinta Yang: So many areas that where we often face
00:44:47.560 --> 00:44:51.350 Jacinta Yang: Challenges, obstacles that comes along the way.
00:44:51.760 --> 00:45:09.799 Jacinta Yang: and the whole idea of this space is where people can come together and share insights and stories of how to navigate through these challenges. And today's episode is about navigating through business challenges.
00:45:10.030 --> 00:45:11.750 Jacinta Yang: as a,
00:45:11.850 --> 00:45:24.719 Jacinta Yang: business owner myself. I've been a floral designer for over 40 years. I'm also an author and a holistic practitioner. I founded Jacinta Healing Arts.
00:45:24.750 --> 00:45:39.110 Jacinta Yang: Where I offer healing journey programs, to help people navigate through, basically life challenges, as we do here in this space. And today's is all related to entrepreneurship.
00:45:39.340 --> 00:45:51.299 Jacinta Yang: Which is a very heavy challenge. And as a entrepreneur, I can say I've gone through those challenges, and I'm still going through those challenges.
00:45:51.560 --> 00:46:01.710 Jacinta Yang: And… The challenge is not only navigating through the different areas of business, whether it be marketing or sales.
00:46:01.890 --> 00:46:08.120 Jacinta Yang: But I think the biggest challenge in… in entrepreneurship is finance.
00:46:09.180 --> 00:46:17.139 Jacinta Yang: Before I bring, Christina back in, I want to share that through the Y space, or YSBEC,
00:46:18.370 --> 00:46:27.149 Jacinta Yang: the program that is offered by the government to help businesses has been really great for me. Having the…
00:46:29.300 --> 00:46:41.119 Jacinta Yang: lack of digital and technical skills. I was, hooked up to Digital Main Street, and they had offer… they have programs as,
00:46:41.420 --> 00:47:00.740 Jacinta Yang: CDAP, or some digital adaptation to your business. So, if your business is qualified for that, you can apply for that grant, as I have applied for that grant, and I was able to help,
00:47:01.660 --> 00:47:21.619 Jacinta Yang: adapt digitally, my business digitally, so anyone that is interested to, add that to your business, they have programs that you can actually… they can support you building a website and building e-commerce.
00:47:21.860 --> 00:47:30.300 Jacinta Yang: And, also, a wise back offered this… what was that called? Startup Company Plus.
00:47:30.610 --> 00:47:39.019 Jacinta Yang: That offers, a grant at the end of a training on how to write a business plan.
00:47:40.040 --> 00:47:45.199 Jacinta Yang: And there's more that, christina can share, and…
00:47:45.630 --> 00:47:49.480 Jacinta Yang: have some insights on those that I don't know about.
00:47:49.950 --> 00:47:55.160 cristinaliu: For sure. There are a number, so I definitely can't name off.
00:47:55.400 --> 00:47:57.810 cristinaliu: All of them, but just…
00:47:57.930 --> 00:48:05.409 cristinaliu: as an example, for any businesses that are within the tourism realm, as I handle the tourism portfolio.
00:48:05.530 --> 00:48:20.199 cristinaliu: if you run a festival, an event, or you're just a general tourism business within Central Counties Tourism, which is York-Durham Headwaters, which is the location of where we are, there's a number of
00:48:20.240 --> 00:48:23.680 cristinaliu: supports that are available to you. So, if you run an event.
00:48:23.710 --> 00:48:33.749 cristinaliu: You can apply to the York Region Tourism Fund. You can receive up to $5,000 to support your event. You can apply to Central County's Tourism
00:48:33.750 --> 00:48:51.860 cristinaliu: You can receive up to $10,000 if you're a tourism partner and you're developing some kind of tourism development experience, but they also have microgrants, so you can receive up to $2,000 if you're just a business looking to market to a visitor, or a tourist in particular.
00:48:51.860 --> 00:48:59.720 cristinaliu: And there's also, if you're in Georgina, as you are, Jacinta, there is the Georgina Has event
00:48:59.720 --> 00:49:07.819 cristinaliu: type grants, which you've actually received, Jacinta, so maybe you can talk a little bit about your experience with that, and…
00:49:08.050 --> 00:49:10.799 cristinaliu: And, did it help?
00:49:10.800 --> 00:49:16.379 Jacinta Yang: Yes, actually, I created two events. One is a…
00:49:17.190 --> 00:49:30.169 Jacinta Yang: actually, one was a fundraising event, and one was a wellness. So, I think for that was basically the event, created was supposed to bring in,
00:49:30.650 --> 00:49:35.269 Jacinta Yang: Visitors outside of, our town, that helps.
00:49:35.760 --> 00:49:39.859 Jacinta Yang: And, so there is a process, and yes, I did get the
00:49:40.100 --> 00:49:45.200 Jacinta Yang: Both of them. So it all depends on, again, your budgeting.
00:49:45.590 --> 00:49:56.350 Jacinta Yang: And I think you helped me create that, budget, because I didn't… I didn't know how to do that, and thank you for that. And, yeah, so there are,
00:49:56.850 --> 00:50:11.699 Jacinta Yang: there are different grants available, and if I'm not mistaken, I think there's a way that you can go Google to see what are available. How would you… what would you type in?
00:50:11.920 --> 00:50:15.209 Jacinta Yang: Looking for grants that are available.
00:50:15.360 --> 00:50:21.290 Jacinta Yang: I am… I'm assuming… I know we're in New York region, And, it's different, and…
00:50:21.700 --> 00:50:31.449 Jacinta Yang: Do you… do you know, or are you aware if these type of grants are available in different provinces? Do you know anything of that?
00:50:32.170 --> 00:50:50.110 cristinaliu: I think there are grants and funding opportunities that are available across country, and I would assume, I do not know this from experience, that even if you're in the United States, they have regional grants that are available to businesses, and partnership funds. I shouldn't just say grants, because usually with a grant.
00:50:50.150 --> 00:50:57.350 cristinaliu: What it means is you're receiving… you're receiving money towards your… your particular project or event.
00:50:57.390 --> 00:51:18.040 cristinaliu: But it may not necessarily require a split of funds, where they're… when you're talking about a partnership fund, usually it means that you're putting in some money, they're putting in some money, and they're supporting you, and it's a split. Sometimes it's 60-40, sometimes it's 50-50, so if you're paying $10,000 for something.
00:51:18.080 --> 00:51:26.159 cristinaliu: And the partnership fund allows for 50% coverage. They would pay 5, you would pay 5. So, each one is different and unique.
00:51:26.390 --> 00:51:45.570 cristinaliu: The one thing I should mention about applying to any sort of funding is there's a lot of paperwork, so you have to know a lot about what you're doing, and they need to, you know, it's necessary, it's necessary because they need to report on the money, and where it's going, and what it's supporting, so…
00:51:45.610 --> 00:51:51.439 cristinaliu: The more information that you know about your particular event, business,
00:51:51.510 --> 00:52:00.900 cristinaliu: Whatever it is that you're creating, initiative, let's say, the better it is for you to apply to that particular funding stream.
00:52:01.060 --> 00:52:18.930 cristinaliu: And then there's reporting not only when you're applying, but there's also reporting after. So keeping track of what's happening, you know, what successes you have through your program is important, because it'll help you, submit all of that at the end. Sometimes they ask for receipts, sometimes they ask for more payments, so
00:52:19.020 --> 00:52:29.130 cristinaliu: where the payments have gone to, some descriptions, some screenshots, some physical material, so it just depends. I think every opportunity, as I said, is different, so…
00:52:29.340 --> 00:52:47.749 cristinaliu: connecting with your local stakeholders that run the grants, a lot of them are very open to answering those questions before you even go through the application process, so the more information you have, the better. And it reduces that stress, right? So you can stay calm during this process.
00:52:48.070 --> 00:53:02.750 Jacinta Yang: I just heard you earlier, you mentioned something about the micro-grant. I… we certainly heard of that… that… but I didn't… I didn't have enough information. Can you expand on that a little bit, what this micro-grant is?
00:53:03.720 --> 00:53:12.779 cristinaliu: So, a micro-grant… the term micro-grant just means they're giving you a small amount of money. It's usually under $2,000, usually between
00:53:13.210 --> 00:53:17.920 cristinaliu: $500 to $2,000. It's different in every region, but.
00:53:18.370 --> 00:53:22.710 cristinaliu: A microgrant is a… is a very quick
00:53:23.370 --> 00:53:36.679 cristinaliu: a turnaround grant application that's usually less paperwork, and it's not always available. A lot of times, grants are a little bit larger in scale and do require a lot more
00:53:36.900 --> 00:53:37.980 cristinaliu: Work?
00:53:38.140 --> 00:53:54.130 cristinaliu: But yes, the micro-grant that I was speaking to is the marketing fund from Central Counties Tourism. They have a business support marketing fund where you receive up to $2,000. And that's a funding partnership, it's not necessarily a grant.
00:53:54.630 --> 00:54:02.760 Jacinta Yang: When you say funding partnership, mean, like, the, where you… Putting out some, and they're…
00:54:03.090 --> 00:54:05.100 Jacinta Yang: putting out there. Correct. Okay.
00:54:05.100 --> 00:54:05.980 cristinaliu: Correct, so…
00:54:06.510 --> 00:54:07.060 Jacinta Yang: Okay.
00:54:07.060 --> 00:54:25.600 cristinaliu: So it's a split, and it's, it's a way for the organization to ensure that you're also… you're paying to play, so you have more stake in what's going to happen to the initiative, they know that you're invested, and so they're there to support and amplify your initiative or investment.
00:54:26.410 --> 00:54:34.109 Jacinta Yang: Thank you, Christina. We are coming almost to a close, so I just wanted to say that it has been such a pleasure
00:54:34.650 --> 00:54:44.059 Jacinta Yang: And thank you for sharing your, insights, and I hope this, episode has been helpful to many of the,
00:54:44.170 --> 00:54:49.220 Jacinta Yang: New business owners, or business owners that are struggling.
00:54:49.380 --> 00:54:55.360 Jacinta Yang: And, are not available… are not aware of these available resources.
00:54:55.580 --> 00:55:12.119 Jacinta Yang: As Christina said, there's resources that can be found, at the library or your economic development offices in your town or region, anywhere. It is publicly
00:55:12.480 --> 00:55:18.050 Jacinta Yang: available if we look for them. And I have to say, as,
00:55:18.440 --> 00:55:22.469 Jacinta Yang: participant of these programs, I have benefited
00:55:22.680 --> 00:55:38.180 Jacinta Yang: quite a lot. It's been really good for me. As I said, I've received the CDAP grant that helped me to digitize my business, so I'm able to go online.
00:55:38.560 --> 00:55:46.269 Jacinta Yang: And have my, calendar booking through online as well. So, this is all, with the…
00:55:47.660 --> 00:55:53.030 Jacinta Yang: with the benefits of, getting the CDAP, and…
00:55:53.310 --> 00:55:59.070 Jacinta Yang: also marketing. There's a little bit, Funds…
00:55:59.350 --> 00:56:11.579 Jacinta Yang: the CDAP, covers is the marketing. So there is a lot of information and resources available. So, I hope this
00:56:12.240 --> 00:56:16.080 Jacinta Yang: Episode gives you some insights and knowledge.
00:56:16.340 --> 00:56:20.150 Jacinta Yang: To, feel your way through your,
00:56:20.510 --> 00:56:28.459 Jacinta Yang: business, challenges that you face. I hope you have been able to, guide some of you.
00:56:28.950 --> 00:56:29.700 Jacinta Yang: And nope.
00:56:29.700 --> 00:56:31.140 cristinaliu: Thank you, Jacinta.
00:56:31.580 --> 00:56:46.709 cristinaliu: Thank you, Jacinta, for everything, and I just want to say before, you know, we sign off that if anybody has any questions, they can connect with me, and I'm happy to provide them with some additional resources. Thank you for listening.
00:56:46.710 --> 00:56:52.110 Jacinta Yang: and your, info, they can find you on LinkedIn.
00:56:52.640 --> 00:56:58.579 cristinaliu: Correct. I think it'll be part of the description of this wonderful episode, so check out the description.
00:56:58.580 --> 00:57:08.149 Jacinta Yang: Exactly. And do you… if anybody wish to reach out to me for any information, or even about my services, about my books.
00:57:08.170 --> 00:57:27.900 Jacinta Yang: Jacinthahillingarts.com, or email me directly, jacintha athealingarts at gmail.com. Follow me on YouTube at Jacinthah Healing Arts, or on Spotify, Self Aware Soul, and thank you. Until next time, love and light.
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