We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Acquania Escarne a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.

Hi Acquania, thanks for joining us today. Let’s talk legacy – what sort of legacy do you hope to build?

I want to be known for helping thousands of women build legacies through life insurance and real estate.

I became a life insurance producer because I got tired of seeing GoFundMe accounts and church fundraisers to pay for funerals in Black communities. I knew from personal experience that even middle-class employees with good government jobs sometimes failed to save for emergencies, get life insurance outside of work, and worse–were not prepared when life happened.

That’s why I started a savings challenge on Facebook in 2015 to help families save $500 for an emergency. I got so much positive feedback from the savings tips that I decided to get licensed to sell life insurance and turned up my financial literacy content a lot.

Today, I talk about everything from being the mom of a special needs child to life insurance to investing in hotels. So many people say I’ve inspired them to do more with their time and money. I was the first hotel owner in my family, but two more have been created since my first deal, and I’ve gotten friends to invest in real estate and business opportunities too.

When I’m not talking about money, I’m traveling the world. I visited 40 countries before 40, I lived abroad in four countries, and take my kids everywhere! Exposing my family to as many cultures, experiences, and opportunities as possible is my dream.

Awesome – so before we get into the rest of our questions, can you briefly introduce yourself to our readers.

I’ve always loved to talk about money. My dad gave me a copy of Rich Dad Poor Dad by Robert Kiyosaki in high school. At 16, after reading that book, I knew I wanted to retire early. And mind you, this was well before the FIRE movement was a thing. So, when I got my first summer job as a retail store cashier, I took my first paycheck of $252 and invested it in a Roth Individual Retirement Account. It was something I learned from the book and one of the only steps I could do at 16 years old.

After that, I saved money from babysitting and my change each year to make annual deposits to my retirement account. Some years the deposits weren’t much, but I remained consistent and established a discipline to save for my future.

I still have that account today. Although, now I’ve increased the ways and amounts I save and invest each year. These days, I’m much more focused on creating passive income and multiple streams of income. But Rich Dad Poor Dad sparked an interest in personal finances that I never knew I had.

In my business, I help families plan their legacies. With clients, I discuss their life insurance needs, budget, financial habits, and goals. With my help, families are prepared for emergencies, invest consistently, and are ready if the worst happens. No one wants to think about what happens if they die too soon, but at least with life insurance, they know their family will be taken care of.

I teach families the importance of having life and disability insurance and how it can help them protect their families against risks such as loss of income due to sickness, injury, or death.

Life insurance is a guaranteed way to leave a legacy because when you die, the insurance company pays a tax-free death benefit to your family. Since we are all going to die, why not be prepared? I also help individuals understand how much and what type of insurance they need.

I always tell people, “you need life insurance if anyone depends on you for income.” Just ask yourself, “if I died tomorrow would my family be able to bury me without it being a burden on their finances? Without my income, would my family be able to maintain their current lifestyle?” If the answer is no, you need life insurance.

My generation especially needs to think about their parents too. Sometimes, our parents who didn’t save well for retirement are also people who can or will depend on us for income, so you should get insurance for them as well.

Please don’t rely on your job for your life insurance. It’s not your job’s responsibility to take care of your family if you die too soon. In addition, a company can terminate you at any time, and most life insurance provided by a job is either too expensive to keep after employment, or it’s not transferable. But one thing remains true: life insurance costs more the older you get. So, it’s always best to get your own coverage while you’re young, healthy, and insurable.

Because insurably in the future is not guaranteed.

How about pivoting – can you share the story of a time you’ve had to pivot?

My life insurance business skyrocketed in 2020. Unfortunately, the pandemic made people reflect more about their life and what plans they had in place if something happened. In addition, all the virtual summits and meetings that took place made it easier for me to connect with more people without leaving my home.

But in 2021, I learned I had another business inside of me—Email Marketing! I used to be a freelance writer from 2016-2020. I stopped because my life insurance business was growing so much that I had to focus on my clients and give up the revenue I earned from writing.

It was the best business decision at the time. Writing took up so much time and wasn’t as lucrative or rewarding as selling life insurance. But one day, in early 2021, a client I used to write blogs for asked me to come back and write his emails.

I discovered I loved to write short and long-form emails. I could take on another person’s persona and share valuable tips. Over the next two years, I grew my email marketing business through referrals only. That business made six figures in 2022.

Today I manage the life insurance and email marketing businesses but hope to turn both into their own agencies.

Any insights you can share with us about how you built up your social media presence?

I grew my presence on social media by being consistent on one platform. I picked Instagram because I was also a full-time employee when I started my business. I didn’t have the time to be on all the platforms, posting all the time. I used schedulers and planners to help me, but it was just too much.

So, I looked at where I had the most followers and engagement and then dived all the way in. I started going live on Instagram, posted content consistently, and took advantage of new features like reels. I made life insurance content fun and funny.

Then, when I wanted to get more strategic about my content, I hired a social media manager. We share responsibility for the content and plan content around key themes, events, and trending subjects. The social media team does social media graphics, and I have fun going live and posting reels. By outsourcing, I get to do what I love and avoid what I don’t (think: graphic design and caption writing). While still giving my followers tons of value.

Today, I get tons of leads from Instagram, and I’m helping young people get life insurance, invest in real estate, and create their legacies. I’m still present on other platforms, but I don’t stress myself trying to post on all platforms simultaneously.

Contact Info:

• Website: http://thepurposeofmoney.com/
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thepurposeofmoney/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/thepurposeofmoney
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/acquania-escarne/
• Twitter: https://twitter.com/purpose_money
• Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC9gVCdg9Niul7BKlwZGt7Zg