Op-ed: ‘Jefa in Training’ is the First Spanglish Business-Launching Book for Latinas
Story written by Ashley K. Stoyanov Ojeda
Ashley K. Stoyanov Ojeda, author of ‘Jefa in Training’
On February 22, 2022, I celebrated the milestone of publishing my first book — Jefa in Training, the first-ever Spanglish business-launching toolkit, and workbook for Latinas.
I dreamt of this moment my whole life — the moment I could add the word “author” to my bio and see my book being sold on the shelves of all my favorite bookstores. But the truth is that this book is way bigger than just checking off a “to-do” on my bucket list. It is about sharing experiences and knowledge to empower other women with similar life paths and not be afraid to build something for themselves. It is about creating change and cultivating opportunities in spaces where we feel like we don’t fit in. And it’s about providing the inspiration, tools, and strategies for aspiring emprendedoras to go ahead and launch that podcast, blog, or small business.
“Latina entrepreneurs make up one of the fastest-growing entrepreneurial segments in the U.S. but are given very few resources to succeed. I wanted to write the book I never had when I was just getting started.”
Amid my quarter-life crisis at 24, I somehow magically and unexpectedly started my first entrepreneurial venture, #WomxnCrush Music. The experience of being a founder forced me to learn so much in so little time. So I looked to every resource under the sun to help me through the beginning of setting a solid foundation for the project that would help me find my true calling: to help other people like me launch their projects and grow their businesses.
I never found a resource created by someone I could relate to. The majority of the books I found were written by white men or already wealthy women — and while some of these books were helpful, others just made me question if I belonged in the entrepreneurial space.
Fast-forward about five years, and I began to work with other new majority founders to help them grow their businesses. However, it wasn’t until I asked them where they were turning to for resources and support when building the foundation of their business that I realized I wasn’t the only one who felt like we needed a book that made us feel included.
Jefa in Training is the first step-by-step guide to launching and growing your business, written in Spanglish. It covers everything from conducting market research to creating a financial plan, from how to grow your community to develop your thought leadership, a pre-launch checklist, what to expect after launch - and so much more. The chapters in the book are called “lecciones,” and in each leccion, you’ll find inspirational tips or a story from my collaborators, including Marivette Navarrete, founder of The Mujerista; Ana Flores, founder of #WeAllGrow Latina; Julissa Prado, founder of Rizos Curls; to name a few. Plus, writing prompts and exercises to help you flesh out what you have learned. As you are going through the book, you’re slowly developing your business plan and have me as your hada madrina to guide you every step of the way.
There is a lack of representation in publishing, media, tech, music, and business. Because of that, so many women, especially women of color and first-gen entrepreneurs, feel like they don’t have a shot at building something great — something that can create change and generational wealth.
REPRESENTATION. It matters. And so, this book is for them. This book is for my 24-year-old self, who was ambitious and lost simultaneously. This book is for my mom, my abuelitas, and all of the jefas who have shown me we can create our tables instead of waiting to be invited to sit at one.
Jefa in Training is for us.