We were lucky to catch up with Christina Jovanna Olivarez recently and have shared our conversation below.
Alright, Christina Jovanna thanks for taking the time to share your stories and insights with us today. One of the toughest things about entrepreneurship is that there is almost always unexpected problems that come up – problems that you often can’t read about in advance, can’t prepare for, etc. Have you had such and experience and if so, can you tell us the story of one of those unexpected problems you’ve encountered?
I hit 10 years in business in 2025, and it was also one of the hardest years I’ve experienced in business. One of the most unexpected challenges I faced in my business was recognizing that I was no longer aligned with what I had been building. Especially when I think about my next decade in business and next chapter. My offers were no longer
That misalignment was the unexpected problem. A business that looked incredible from the outside but was slowly suffocating me on the inside.
The resolution didn’t come from a strategy tweak. It came from truth.
I asked myself:
What does it look like to build a business that honors the life I actually want? What does success look like if I stop forcing and start responding?
I started to tap into my Human Design and that set off a chain reaction to restructured every offer to protect my energy and elevate my value.
Moving into my 11th year in business, my business is focused on reflecting the woman I am becoming. It honors the future family I’m growing and the legacy I’m committed to leading.
So when unexpected problems hit, instead of pushing harder, I listen. I recalibrate. I lead with my identity intact.
Christina Jovanna, love having you share your insights with us. Before we ask you more questions, maybe you can take a moment to introduce yourself to our readers who might have missed our earlier conversations?
I’m Christina Olivarez, an award-winning Visibility and Leadership Coach, Business Strategist, TEDx Speaker and the founder & CEO of The Social Butterfly Gal and Hustle + Socialize. For the last decade, I’ve built a movement centered around one core mission: helping high-achieving Latinas and Women of Color Founders go from being the best-kept secret to becoming unapologetically visible, sought-after leaders.
n 2015, I founded The Social Butterfly Gal, a blog that then became a, social media management company (2015-2021). For the first couple of years of the company, I was managing the social media of prestigious clients, including Fiesta San Antonio, San Antonio Fashion Week, Urban Bricks Pizza Co, & other regional clients. During this period, I was always speaking at events & conferences and adding coaching and consulting to the brand. I was networking a lot at the time, and every time I networked or stepped into a space, I realized another truth: I was often the ONLY Latina in the room. Noticing just how invisible our visibility & voices were. I got frustrated. But instead of complaining about it on Facebook (which I did) I took ACTION. And once again, built my own table
In 2018, I founded Hustle + Socialize, the premier leadership and business conference for Latinas and Women of Color. For the first four years of the company, I co-owned it with my best friend. Navigating the challenges of the pandemic, along with the fact that I was ready to let go of managing social media. During the pandemic timeline I started to dive head on into coaching. I was attracting high-achieving women who were craving not just social media marketing, but meaning. They didn’t want followers. They wanted visibility. They didn’t want more content. They wanted clarity, confidence, and strategy.
In 2022, my best friend decided to leave the company, to run for office, and just like that, I knew I was being called to step into my power and evolve.
In 2023, I took 100% ownership of H+S, brought it under the umbrella of SBG, and rebranded with a renewed mission: To empower Latinas and Women of Color to become unapologetically visible—through strategic coaching, culturally rooted leadership, and identity-first brand building. And over the last 10 years, I’ve grown a movement. I’ve coached thousands of Latina & Women of Color leaders who’ve gone on to book & land five-figure speaking engagements, scale into multiple six-figures, and walk into leadership roles with a brand that speaks before they do.
I’ve been on the TEDx Stage, featured in USA Today, CNN, and countless podcasts. I was awarded Woman Business Owner of the Year by NAWBO San Antonio in 2023.
I’ve helped thousands of Women of Color Founders step into their next era—and every time, I’m reminded that this is so much bigger than me.
Let’s talk about resilience next – do you have a story you can share with us?
Resilience for me hasn’t been one single moment, it’s been the through-line of my entire decade in business.
I started The Social Butterfly Gal in 2015 with nothing but a mission and a voice. No investors. No roadmap. No connections. Just ambition, cultural pride and a fierce belief that Latinas deserved to be seen and respected as leaders. I built my brand one stage, one story, one bold decision at a time, often as the only Latina in the room, navigating industries not built for women like me.
Over the years I’ve weathered economic shifts, algorithm changes, brand pivots, leadership transitions, client droughts, wrong hires and events that almost broke me financially. I’ve been celebrated one quarter and humbled the next. I’ve built massive momentum and I’ve had to rebuild from scratch. I’ve had people doubt me, imitate me and underestimate the depth of my impact — and I kept going.
In 2018, I launched Hustle + Socialize because Latina founders were invisible in entrepreneurship ecosystems and I refused to let that continue. What began as a conference turned into a movement. But as beautiful and powerful as it was, the pressure to carry the community forward year after year came at a cost. After the 2025 conference, I found myself facing debt, burnout, a body demanding healing and the terrifying realization that I had built success on top of self-sacrifice.
And still, I rose. Every reinvention has asked me to trust that my voice is enough. Ten years later, I am still here, not because it has been easy, but because the transformation I’m creating for Latina & WOC leaders is worth every single challenge I’ve faced.
What do you think helped you build your reputation within your market?
From the moment I stepped into this industry, I made a commitment that I would not wait for permission to lead. I would be the example. I would be the representation. I would create the spaces, conversations, and opportunities that didn’t exist for Latinas and Women of Color in business.
What helped me build my reputation was the combination of three things:
First: Substance.
I wasn’t just posting for attention; I’ve always delivered value rooted in strategy, visibility and identity-driven leadership. My work has helped women be seen, paid, and respected. People remember results.
Second: Storytelling and voice.
I let people into the real journey. I didn’t hide the hard seasons. I didn’t pretend success was linear. I shared the evolution, the setbacks, the breakthroughs. My audience grew with me and trusted me because they’ve witnessed my resilience and transformation in real time.
Third: Community and service.
Launching Hustle + Socialize put a stake in the ground. I didn’t just build a brand I built a cultural movement. I amplified others. I created stages where Latina and WOC leaders were centered, celebrated and poured into. That kind of impact becomes unforgettable.
I’m proud that my reputation is based on credibility, consistency and cultural leadership, not trends or tactics. My brand has stood the test of time because it’s rooted in purpose and excellence. Over a decade into this work, people know what to expect from me: high-caliber strategy, sacred truth-telling and a fierce commitment to helping women rise.
What I want anyone who comes across my work to know is this, I’m not here to teach you how to simply show up online. I’m here to help you take up space in a world that benefits every time you shrink. I’m here to elevate leaders. I’m here to build legacy.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.thesocialbutterflygal.net/
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com
- Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/christina-jovanna-olivarez-14081226/
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@TheSocialButterflyGal
- Other: Podcast: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/unapologetically-visible-for-latinas-woc-founders-personal/id1828485468
Image Credits
Lucero Salinas Photography