The Real Cost of Being Cut Off and What We Do About It

This morning it clicked.

I sat in a business strategy class and finally understood, in a new light, why EBITDA (Earnings Before Interest, Taxes, Depreciation, and Amortization, basically what’s left after you pay your bills) is supposed to be negative in the early stages. You need funding to cover the gap: hiring, technology, patents, growth. That’s what VC money is for. (I knew this, but it FINALLY clicked.)

But what happens when you’re systemically cut off from that money?

You bootstrap. You work two jobs. You grind until you’re depleted. And if you lose your job, which Black women are disproportionately experiencing, you build with whatever’s left.

Build the Table. Build It Well.

So we build our own table. But let’s build it well. That means getting your foundation right: your brand, your brand experience, your systems. Who are you serving? What happens when someone works with you from start to finish? Can they refer you? Because without a massive marketing budget, referrals keep your lights on. That’s what I help build at BlkBld: strong foundations so Black businesses don’t just survive, they thrive.

My client Jason 4x’d his revenue in two years. Not luck. We built a brand experience, the way he works with clients from first touch to final delivery. Everything cohesive. Everything intentional. Referral-based business that grows itself.

The Deeper Layer

But there’s a deeper layer.

If society has told you over and over that you’re not worthy, not lovable, not enough, loving yourself becomes revolutionary work. And that work takes time, money, and energy that’s already being drained by survival.

I know this because I live it. Every time I don’t get chosen for a project, the worthiness stuff gets loud. Thank God for therapy and the inner work I’ve done. I can notice it now, name it, adjust. But what happens when you’re not aware? You’re just moving through life, running a business, and you don’t see how your unhealed stuff is spilling out. Jealousy. Scarcity. Sabotage. You don’t even know it’s happening.

Hurt people hurt people. Sometimes those hurt people are the ones we hire, partner with, try to build community with. That’s why collaboration feels so hard sometimes.

So maybe the foundation isn’t just a business plan. Maybe it’s the healing first.

Five Things to Start the Healing Revolution

As a strategist who loves systems, of course I have to leave you with something. I recently attended a workshop by Pastor Hamilton Williams (check out his book Programmed for Success: Dynamic Change) that changed how I move. Here are five things he gave us as homework. They don’t require therapy or money, but they’ll help you start the healing revolution:

1. Write 5 things you’re grateful for every morning. I’ve done this for three weeks. The shift is powerful.

2. Walk in the morning and after dinner. Seven minutes out, seven minutes back. Vitamin D, better sleep, lower blood pressure. Walking after dinner forces you to eat earlier. Your body heals while you sleep.

3. Do one good deed daily. Call a friend. Write a note. Give to someone unhoused.

4. Read one page a day. Fiction to spark your imagination and step into someone else’s world. Self-help to build yourself.

5. Pause and ask: Is this my sick self or my healthy self? Ninety-five percent of what we do is subconscious, patterns trying to protect us. Your sick self reacts. Your healthy self responds. That email made you furious? Pause. About to spend money to prove something to someone who doesn’t matter? Pause. That moment of awareness will change your life.

If you need structure, my sister created Reset, journals and workbooks to walk you through feeling stuck or unworthy.

The Pickle Jar

The generations before us loosened the lid so we could be here. Now it’s our turn. We loosen it further, so our children start with a stronger foundation of love, collaboration, and wealth. So they don’t have to fight systems never built for us. So they can build their own.

Listen, it’s hard work loosening this pickle jar. I’m not saying it’s easy. The game is rigged. But we still have to play it. And I serve a God who created this world out of nothing. So I stay a little delusional.

Despite everything stacked against us, why not us? Why not me?

Let’s build!

The Receipts

Here the key stats, so you know i didn’t make them out of thin air:

Black Founders:

  • In 2024, Black-founded startups received just 0.48% of total US venture capital, down from 1.3% in 2021 POCIT
  • Only $730 million went to Black founders out of $314 billion total funding POCIT
  • Black business owners who apply for funding have a rejection rate that is three times higher than that of White business owners J.P. Morgan

Women Founders:

  • In 2024, only 2.3% of global VC went to female-only founding teams ($6.7 billion of $289 billion) Founders Forum Group
  • Women of color received just 0.39% of VC funding Women Who Code

Black Women Specifically:

  • Black female startup founders have received just 0.34% of total venture capital Crunchbase News
  • Black female founders earn an average revenue of just $24,000, compared to $142,900 among all women-owned businesses J.P. Morgan
  • 61% of Black women self-fund their startup capital J.P. Morgan
  • Less than 100 Black women raised $1 million or more in venture capital funding in 2020 J.P. Morgan

The numbers speak for themselves. 

This is part of my Learning Curve series, where I’m learning and relearning out loud so we can build with clarity, together. What lesson are you learning in this season? If this resonated, stay close.