What time do you wake up every morning?
Slower than usual. I currently wake up with a child, so it could be anywhere from 6:30 to 7:30. I went with them. I haven’t set an alarm in six years.
What’s your typical morning routine?
Chaos. Before the kids, it was smooth sailing. I will have a very clear routine. After the kids, it’s making them breakfast, getting them ready for school, getting them dressed, and then taking them to school. Chaos.
How do you drink your coffee?
I like two shots of espresso with a splash of oat milk and some ice.
What was your childhood dream job?
OK, this is one of the reasons Argent exists. I didn’t really know what I could be because I grew up in the southeast, so I thought I could be a doctor or a lawyer or a banker, and I didn’t want to be any of those things, so I just wanted to be in business, period.
Love it. What was your first real job?
I worked in a restaurant as a hostess in Hardeeville, South Carolina, at the age of 14, and they paid me under the table.
What’s the best money or career advice you ever got?
I have two. One of them is speaking up when I have an idea. I had a male boss who once said, “You have really good ideas, but you’re slow at communicating them and you need to use your voice more,” and I appreciated that.
But the advice starting Argent that I got but didn’t listen to was to hire slow, hire fast. I was told that what you build is vulnerable, so you have to be very thoughtful and careful in developing it. This is actually very difficult to do because you just want everyone involved to feel less isolated and lonely. So that was good advice that I failed to take but now I give. I live with it now. I shoot very quickly if it doesn’t work.
How would you deal with rejection in your field if it happened?
I’ve had so many rejections. A huge amount. Investment rejection, customer rejection, lots and lots of rejection. It’s part of the game. If it feels like the wind is really blowing against me, I will walk away from work and come back another time. I’ll even check and watch Netflix, whatever I need to do to clear my head, then come back. I also like to turn to what I’m passionate about, which is our community and customers.