Thoughts become things, choose the good ones – MJ Cunningham

MJ Cunningham was a Senior Principal Financial Planning Analyst for 10 years before deciding to take the leap to escape the 9-5. She started freelancing in Finance roles (Accounting, Bookkeeping, Tax Preparation, etc.) as a way to get extra cash. MJ soon found that she could make more money freelancing than she did at her full-time job of 10 years. When trying to find freelance opportunities, she quickly realized that most of the popular platforms featured foreign freelancers. “I then set out to create a platform that would bring freelance opportunities to African Americans, thus Afrofreelancer.com was born. I have completely left my 9-5 and I am currently focusing on growing the platform to bring this opportunity to others”.

MJ can now can do things on her own terms and set her own rules and expectations. If she wants to take time off, she doesn’t have to request it. If she needs to pick up her child or attend a school event or volunteer within her city… she doesn’t have to ask anyone. “I am the boss. I absolutely love that feeling”.


Lessons Learned

MJ learned through all of this is to just take the leap and bet on yourself. “Honestly, I wish I had done it sooner”. Her biggest mistake was not delegating and hiring help sooner than she did. MJ didn’t realize her company would grow at the pace it did. She was not prepared to handle all of the work that was coming her way early on. But delegation, automation, and having amazing systems in place is definitely the key.

Her top tip to remain successful is to actually create some sort of schedule or to-do list as a framework. “My highest level of productivity is from 3am – 8am, but I can power through things because I have a very detailed and organized method to my madness. #2 tip is to actually take your breaks and time off”. When working for yourself and doing what you love, it’s difficult to stop working sometimes because you are so in love with a certain project or because it’s actually just fun. “Those brain breaks and saying to yourself “Nope, I am not going to work on Wednesdays” and honoring it is invaluable to your peace of mind and definitely assists with burnout prevention”.

MJ has a few reading suggestions that helped her on her entrepreneurial journey.

Emergence of Remote Work

Covid 19 started to help shift the mindsets of companies that remote work environments can still be very profitable and productive. So hiring a freelancer to do the work from their couch was no longer a “stigma” because most business models has to shift to remote work environments. It also allowed freelancers to realize that they could be productive at home, have more flexibility with their schedules, and take on multiple clients since it didn’t require them to be in person at an office.

AfroFreelancer will be connecting with HBCU’s and going on a tour to educate and empower students in the world of freelancing, working locally to empower and provide resources and connections to our businesses and freelancers in San Antonio, as well as
partnering up with the Black Chambers and Greek organizations across the United States.

MJ still struggles with the funding aspects of being a startup. “It is difficult to get venture capitalists, angel investors, and grants. We have literally financed the entire company with our own money, maxing out credit cards, and calling in favors from friends, and doing some things on our own. If we had the funding, the sky is the limit. But we will get there”.

In addition to Afrofreelancer.com, MJ has several other projects in the works.

www.MJFuego.com is a site she is currently working on to provide free downloadable content and training for entrepreneurs