Financial literacy is a skill that most adults learn — or teach themselves — over time. Balancing a budget, building credit, and growing a savings is no easy task. That’s why Erin Winters — a visual storyteller and creative content strategist from Detroit, MI — uses her platform to share her experience on how she monetized her business and teaches her audience of nearly 300,000 YouTube subscribers and eBrand Club members how to do the same.

The Howard University graduate started her YouTube channel full-time in 2018 after an epiphany led her to stop working temporary one-year contracts and pursue a more sustainable career as an entrepreneur.

“I was very torn. I felt helpless because I didn’t know what direction to go in, if I should take the risk on myself and do what I believe,” said Winters. “Or if I should kind of keep following this path that I had already kind of mapped out for myself.”

Winter says while she knew entering broadcasting would have been the safer path, she decided to do something that had never led her wrong before — follow her gut.

“My gut is my best business tool,” said Winters. “If you don’t listen to yourself, and follow this thing that brings you joy, like nothing is going to be worth it. And that’s one of the biggest things that I try to train.”

After her short but successful stints as the spokesperson for Michigan First Credit Union and Digital Correspondent for National Geographic, she decided to work for herself. While creating what she calls “So-Mercials,” social media commercials, and sharing that content on YouTube, she started getting requests for tips on how she built and monetized her brand.

Now, Winters creates content about how people can boss up their businesses and provides resources like masterclasses and reading materials and coaching through her eBrand Club, a membership of mostly young Black women hustlers and entrepreneurs.

“My club is full of resources. I try to share other opportunities, like scholarship opportunities,” said Winters. “I never try to make it seem like I’m perfect with managing my money, but I understand how patience and sacrifice can play a part in your finances, and how resources or the people that you attract can add value.”

One resource she created was the Top 3 Daily Priority system, a productivity method that challenges people to list their top three things they must do each day, and complete them ⁠with the goal to motivate and prioritize their tasks and take action.

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One of her Top 3 financial tips is to really believe you can make the money you want to make.

“I think that a lot of financial growth comes from your mindset,” said Winters. “That’s why I provide tips on how to reverse engineer your financial goals. Really try to make them make sense for your audience size, whether or not you choose to run ads and just kind of pushing yourself to go get it.”

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