Alright – so today we’ve got the honor of introducing you to Bola Sokunbi. We think you’ll enjoy our conversation, we’ve shared it below.

Bola, looking forward to hearing all of your stories today. How did you come up with the idea for your business?

Clever Girl Finance came from a very personal place, shaped long before I ever thought about starting a business. I’m the last of four children and the only girl. Growing up, my father was the breadwinner and my mother was a stay at home mom who married very young, at 19. Over time, my mother began to notice something that didn’t sit right with her. She didn’t have much insight into our family finances because my father managed the money, and she wanted more; more understanding, more agency, and the ability to contribute financially and have something of her own.

Instead of accepting that limitation, she changed her life. She went back to school, earned multiple degrees, worked as an investment banker, owned businesses ranging from a hair salon to a typing school, served as the principal of a girls’ school, and even ran a Coca-Cola franchise. Her driving motivation was financial peace of mind, and she was relentless about creating it. Watching her reinvent herself showed me, very early on, that money is deeply tied to freedom, choice, and self-determination.

That lesson became even more real when my father was forced into early retirement due to job loss and health concerns, years earlier than planned. Much of his income had gone toward educating my three older brothers abroad, which left limited time to rebuild his retirement savings. When it came time for me to think about college, my mother made a life altering decision. She chose to send me to college in the U.S. so I could have access to greater opportunities, and because I was an international student and ineligible for loans, she paid for all four years of my tuition, alongside a partial scholarship. She did this using money she had worked and saved for over many years, at the expense of her own retirement plans.

That sacrifice changed my life. It made me understand, in a very real way, that having money creates options and that financial independence allows you to live life on your own terms. It also gave me a deep sense of responsibility to make that opportunity count.

After college, my parents set me off to figure things out on my own. Using the lessons I had absorbed, and a lot of trial and error, I taught myself how to manage money. As a single woman earning a starting salary of $54,000, I saved my first $100,000 in just over three years while carrying a mortgage and other expenses. I did it by contributing consistently to my retirement accounts, keeping my expenses low, saving a significant portion of my income, and increasing my earnings through a side business. That milestone became the foundation for achieving financial independence and living life on my own terms but it wasn’t a straight line, and I made plenty of mistakes along the way.

Despite all of this, as a first-generation immigrant and a woman of color, I struggled to find personal finance resources that felt relatable. I wanted to talk openly about money with friends without shame, but those conversations felt awkward or avoided altogether. One moment that really stayed with me was walking into a bookstore looking for a personal finance book for women, only to find that the best-selling option marketed to women was written by a man. It was a good book, but I remember thinking, “why aren’t more women leading these conversations about our money, our experiences, and our lives?”

Years later, after becoming a mom to twins, that question resurfaced. I wanted to build something meaningful, something rooted in purpose and legacy. That’s when Clever Girl Finance became a reality for me. I began by writing honest articles about my own money journey and interviewing other women with similar stories. I shared that content on social media, not with a polished business plan, but with the intention of creating the kind of space I had always needed.

The logic behind the business became clear quickly. Women weren’t lacking intelligence or ambition. They were lacking representation, relatability, and judgment-free guidance. Personal finance wasn’t new, but the approach was. Clever Girl Finance centered women’s voices, acknowledged culture and emotion, normalized mistakes, and made money education feel accessible instead of intimidating.

What excited me most was how quickly women leaned in when they felt seen and understood. The audience grew organically because the need was real. I wasn’t trying to be flashy or disruptive for the sake of it. I was solving a problem I had lived myself, inspired by my mother’s example and my own journey. That authenticity became the foundation for Clever Girl Finance and continues to be the reason it resonates with women who want to build confidence, clarity, and long-term wealth on their own terms.

Bola, before we move on to more of these sorts of questions, can you take some time to bring our readers up to speed on you and what you do?

My background is in computer science, but I didn’t enter the personal finance space from a traditional business or finance path. I got here through personal interest and lived experience. Like many women, I had to learn how to manage money largely on my own, and that curiosity turned into deep study and eventually formal training as a Certified Financial Education Instructor (CFEI). What started as personal education became a calling to teach and create access for others.

I’m the founder and CEO of Clever Girl Finance®, which has grown into one of the largest personal finance media and education platforms for women in the United States. At its core, Clever Girl Finance exists to help women learn about money without shame and build wealth on their own terms. We focus on practical, real life financial education that meets women where they are, whether they’re paying off debt, learning to budget, investing for the first time, or thinking about long-term wealth and legacy.

Clever Girl Finance has earned the Distinguished Personal Finance Content designation from the National Financial Educators Council (NFEC) after a rigorous review process. This recognition reflects our commitment to providing high-quality, research-based financial education that aligns with industry best practices, while still remaining accessible and relatable.

We serve our community through completely free resources, including over 30+ personal finance courses, one-on-one mentor calls, articles, audio and video content, and a highly supportive community. Our approach is intentionally engaging, practical, and non-judgmental because we understand that money is emotional, and learning works best when people feel safe, supported, and seen.

What sets my work and our platform apart is that we don’t just teach information, we change the experience of learning about money. We normalize mistakes, encourage accountability without shame, and emphasize progress over perfection. I’m most proud of the impact we’ve had in helping women feel confident having money conversations, take control of their finances, and build real wealth in a way that aligns with their values and lives.

The main thing I want people to know about me and Clever Girl Finance is that this work is rooted in trust, accessibility, and empowerment. We’re here to remind women that they’re capable, deserving, and fully able to create financial stability and wealth, no matter where they’re starting from.

How did you build your audience on social media?

I built my audience by starting small and staying focused. I began on one social media platform, Instagram, sharing my honest personal story with money. Specially, the wins, the mistakes, and the lessons in between, along with interviews and stories from other women. I wasn’t trying to go viral or present a perfectly polished image. I was focused on being real and starting conversations women weren’t having openly elsewhere.

From the beginning, I made engagement a priority. I responded to comments, asked questions, and treated social media as a two way conversation street. That connection helped build trust and community. I also stayed consistent with my posting cadence, even when growth felt slow, because I understood that consistency compounds just like money does.

As the audience grew, Clever Girl Finance expanded its reach across Instagram (358k), YouTube (230k), our website and the Clever Girls Know podcast, meeting women where they prefer to learn. Each platform serves the same mission, judgment-free financial education, but in different formats that fit different lifestyles.

For anyone just starting out, my advice is simple: pick one platform and do it well. Share your story honestly, engage with the people who show up, and commit to consistency over perfection. Growth takes time, but when you focus on serving a real need and building genuine connection, the audience follows.

What else should we know about how you took your side hustle and scaled it up into what it is today?

Yes, Clever Girl Finance started as a side hustle and eventually became my full-time business, but the transition was very intentional. At the time, I was working full time in technology consulting, running a wedding photography business on the side, and navigating life as a new mom to twins. Clever Girl Finance began as an idea I was exploring alongside everything else, not something I immediately planned to turn into a business.

Over time, I started to see real traction and potential with Clever Girl Finance. The audience was growing, engagement was strong, and women were actively asking for more support. I reached a point where I knew something had to give. I couldn’t continue to give everything equal attention and expect meaningful growth without burning out. So rather than making a risky, impulsive leap I made a calculated decision.

I began winding down my photography business and intentionally built an 18-month financial runway. That runway gave me the freedom to dedicate focused time to Clever Girl Finance without jeopardizing my financial responsibilities or family stability. I was very clear with myself that if the business didn’t gain enough traction during that period, I would return to full-time work.

uring that time, I focused on validating the business. I started offering one-on-one financial coaching and launched my first physical product, a financial planner. These were important milestones because they confirmed that women were not only engaging with the content but were willing to invest in support and tools. From there, Clever Girl Finance continued to scale into the platform it is today; we are now an educational platform offering free resources to our audience and monetizing through brand partnerships, advertising, books, planners and content creation.

The key milestones weren’t just about revenue, they were about proof of demand, sustainability, and alignment. The business grew because it solved a real problem, and I scaled it carefully, with intention and financial discipline, rather than rushing the process.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://clevergirlfinance.com
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/clevergirlfinance/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/clevergirlfinance
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/bola-sokunbi/
• Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/clevergirlfinance
• Other: Podcast on Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/5iJbqIwN9AaQ6DzsQl9xCj

  Personal website: https://bolasokunbi.com

Image Credits

Image of me wearing white – David Asega Photography