Making Good Money

When purpose stops paying the bills with Ashlyn Baum

Ashlyn Baum spent five years bootstrapping a due diligence platform for NGOs and public sector organisations in New Zealand before moving back to the US, having a baby, and taking a tech job. We get into what happens when purposeful work stops providing the security you need, why people in the impact space have an allergic reaction to sales and fundraising, how AI is reshaping her thinking on money and career longevity, and what "success" actually means when you're caught between the corporate machine and the work that matters. Hosted by Elina Ashimbayeva - follow me on my adventures with money and impact on ⁠LinkedIn⁠ [https://www.linkedin.com/in/elina-ashimbayeva/] and Instagram [https://www.instagram.com/makinggoodmoneypod/] Here is Ashlyn's LinkedIn [https://www.linkedin.com/in/ashlynbaum/] Music by ⁠Mark Michele⁠ [https://open.spotify.com/artist/5AmEK91Li1IFyhfh7rrdAR] Edited by ⁠ [https://www.ethanah.com/]Jemilah Ross-Hayes [https://jemilah.myportfolio.com/]

How to run (and close) a values-driven rental shop with James Dong

James Dong was the first person I was suggested for this podcast. I read a 41-page doc on his approach to work & values and was like… umm… yes please, can we talk?! He studied at Berkley, consulted at Bain & Company, worked in early-stage nebulousness at a number of tech startups, and launched Last Minute Gear. Last Minute Gear [https://snow.lastminutegear.com/] was an outdoor gear rental shop. James has just closed it down after 10 years of operating, and this episode is all about that. We talk about the necessary switch from scale-everything to going-local-and-small. How much James paid himself, how he operated, what he learned about triple-bottom-line businesses, and whether ‘sustainable businesses’ even exist. James is incredibly thoughtful, and I can guarantee that he will make you reflect on how you live your life. Enjoy! ✨ Useful links and resources: * James’ Approach to Work doc [https://cutt.ly/hwTsETmc] * His LinkedIn [https://www.linkedin.com/in/jmzbond/] * @blackforager [https://www.instagram.com/blackforager/] and the specific link [https://www.instagram.com/reels/C3RUXvkLrR8/] about anti-trespass laws * The study on food waste % in the US from USDA [https://www.usda.gov/about-food/food-safety/food-loss-and-waste/food-waste-faqs] * A great recent read on what's going on with Buy Nothing [https://www.wired.com/story/the-battle-for-buy-nothing/] * Triple bottom line [https://online.hbs.edu/blog/post/what-is-the-triple-bottom-line] business explanation Hosted by Elina Ashimbayeva - follow me on my adventures with money and impact on ⁠LinkedIn⁠ [https://www.linkedin.com/in/elina-ashimbayeva/] and Instagram [https://www.instagram.com/makinggoodmoneypod/] Music by ⁠Mark Michele⁠ [https://open.spotify.com/artist/5AmEK91Li1IFyhfh7rrdAR] Edited by ⁠ [https://www.ethanah.com/]Jemilah Ross-Hayes [https://jemilah.myportfolio.com/]

How to run an ethical real estate company in Brooklyn with Victoria (Hagman) Alexander

I’ve been an avid goer to all the events NYC has to offer since moving here recently. I bumped into today’s guest, Victoria at two events, which, you know, feels like universal serendipity in a huge city. Victoria runs a bunch of hyperlocal ventures and initiatives around planning and historic preservation issues across Red Hook, Brooklyn. And she sustains herself by running a real estate company, Realty Collective. It feels like ethics and real estate do not belong in the same sentence but that’s why I wanted to interview Victoria! In a world of huge real estate conglomerates like Compass, how does one operate a small, local, community-connected business? Resilient Red Hook [https://resilientredhook.com/] Realty Collective [https://realtycollective.com/] Hosted by Elina Ashimbayeva - follow me on my adventures with money and impact on ⁠LinkedIn⁠ [https://www.linkedin.com/in/elina-ashimbayeva/] and Instagram [https://www.instagram.com/makinggoodmoneypod/] Music by ⁠Mark Michele⁠ [https://open.spotify.com/artist/5AmEK91Li1IFyhfh7rrdAR] Edited by ⁠ [https://www.ethanah.com/]Jemilah Ross-Hayes [https://jemilah.myportfolio.com/]

How to sue your landlords and make your building rent-controlled? with Liv Malone

I met Liv in 2023 when we both came to NYC for a 6-week summer acting school. Years later, we reconnected, and I learned Liv is living this beautiful double (triple?) life. She's pursuing acting (I went to see her in this amazing Lesbian Bigfoot play, yes you heard that right). She's working a day job. And she's organizing to make the 72-unit apartment building where she lives in Jersey City rent-controlled — which means suing her landlords. We talked about what that process actually looks like, what it costs, how she supports herself through it all, and how she holds these three lives together. We disagree, we agree, we laugh — I feel like I got to know Liv better through recording this, so hope you enjoy a little sneak into our friendship! Find Liv's GoFundMe here [https://www.gofundme.com/f/help-bergen-grand-tenants-secure-legal-rents-and-repairs?attribution_id=sl:a04353a6-605a-432b-97aa-e2e080767870&utm_campaign=natman_sharesheet_dash&utm_medium=customer&utm_source=copy_link] and her IG here [https://www.instagram.com/liv_malone711/] Hosted by Elina Ashimbayeva - follow me on my adventures with money and impact on ⁠LinkedIn⁠ [https://www.linkedin.com/in/elina-ashimbayeva/] and Instagram Music by ⁠Mark Michele⁠ [https://open.spotify.com/artist/5AmEK91Li1IFyhfh7rrdAR] Edited by ⁠ [https://www.ethanah.com/]Jemilah Ross-Hayes [https://jemilah.myportfolio.com/]

How a small NYC accessibility consultancy runs with Thomas Logan

Thomas has been running Equal Entry, an accessibility consulting company, for 12 years. Twelve years of helping organizations make their apps and websites usable for the billion-plus people worldwide who experience disability. No big exit, no venture funding, no hockey stick growth - just a small team doing essential work that most of tech still ignores. (Fun fact: only 40% of the top 100 websites are actually accessible.) I met Thomas at his accessibility meetup in NYC, and then we went to a Heated Rivalry spin class together 😛 because that's how friendships start on this podcast. We got into the real stuff: how he runs the business, what it actually earns, how much he pays himself, and what 'contribution' means when your work matters but the market doesn't always reward it. Find Thomas's work here: * a11y NYC meet up [https://www.meetup.com/a11ynyc/] * Equal Entry [https://equalentry.com/] * Thomas Logan LinkedIn profile [https://www.linkedin.com/in/techthomas/] Hosted by Elina Ashimbayeva - message me on LinkedIn [https://www.linkedin.com/in/elina-ashimbayeva/] or check out Making Good Money on Instagram Music by Mark Michele [https://open.spotify.com/artist/5AmEK91Li1IFyhfh7rrdAR] Edited by Ethan Alderson-Hughes [https://www.ethanah.com/]