There’s a stereotype that needs to change. 

People sometimes think that Hispanic immigrants are capable of little more than manual labor. 

When someone asks me what I do for a living, I reply, “Economic development, we work with everybody. We focus on minorities—a good portion of the clients that we serve are Hispanics.” 

“Workforce?” they ask me. I assume they mean manual labor. “I’m hiring forklift drivers,” they reply. 

“No,” I answer. “We do business development.” 

That’s how first introductions often go at conferences and other similar events. 

Minorities are not just workforce. We’re not just labor. 

We’re skilled. We’re hardworking. We’re responsible. We’re honest. We're resilient.And, when we get the chance, we are also extraordinary business owners. 

My name is Noe Gonzalez, and I am Project Director at CPLC’s Prestamos CPFI Nevada Minority Business Development Agency (MBDA) Business Center.  

My team and I provide support and guidance to small, minority, and socioeconomically disadvantaged business owners in the areas of access to capital, contracting opportunities, and technical assistance. We support all and any business owners to the best of our capacity. 

It could be helping a small business owner obtain a loan from our operator Prestamos CDFI to finance his car wash operation in the rural town of Fallon, Nevada. Or, it could be providing technical assistance in the areas of e-marketing and business social media to help a western wear clothing retail, mom-and-pop store in Arizona increase sales and profit. 

Beyond providing education and small business loans, the most important part of my job is empowering people: it’s about changing mindsets. 

Often, that is what keeps us from achieving our full potential: ourselves. 

I always like to use this small exercise in my workshops. I ask the participants, “If your best friend talked to you the way you talk to yourself, would that person still be your friend?” 

That really makes people reflect. 

Just think about it, would you still be friends? 

I remember one workshop, when a young man told me, “¡O no, creo que acá estoy sintonizando a Radio Calamidad en todo momento!” (“Oh no, I think over here, I’m tuned into Radio Calamity at all times!”) 

It’s easy to get stuck seeing only the negative. That’s why it’s so important to me that I live empowerment as a lifestyle. 

It’s about reframing your thinking from “I could never do this” to “This is what’s in my control, and these are the actions I can take to be successful.” 

Because you can be successful even in an economically adverse environment. 

There's enough cake for everyone. And if there isn’t, we can bake another cake. 

Like Ruth* did. During the COVID-19 pandemic, she found out that local restaurants were struggling to get fresh ingredients because their supplier made deliveries only once a week. 

Sometimes, they’d run out of ingredients before the end of the week. 

“Well,” she thought, “I grew up in Michoacán. I know avocadoes from seed. I know how to get produce to local restaurants fast and conveniently.” 

So, Ruth called the restaurants and told them, “Hey, I can supply you with fresh ingredients twice a week—avocadoes are my specialty. I can deliver two, three times a week. Whenever you need more ingredients, you call me and I will go at any hour to deliver them.” 

Her business model worked. 

Today, she has a successful, fully viable business—that means her business is self-sustaining from the profit she makes, without the need to keep injecting money through loans. 

Eventually, she may need a loan to expand her business and make it even bigger... And we’ll be here to help. 

Where others see disaster, a smart business entrepreneur—like her—sees opportunity. 

But a small business owner with a lot of money and no knowledge will go bankrupt in a small amount of time. On the other hand, a small business owner with little money but who has good knowledge about her industry, operations, and financials—how money flows in and out of a business—can build a successful enterprise. 

That’s why the transfer of knowledge is so important. The greatest resource we provide is knowledge. 

When I meet with an entrepreneur or business owner trying to start or expand a restaurant, I tell them, “You’ve got your ingredients down, let’s get your business plan, financial projections, and logistics.” 

If we can empower someone to migrate from employee to employer, then that’s everything. We are succeeding. 

To me, that’s what empowerment is about. 

It’s helping other people in our community:

It’s getting a small business owner in Fallon, Nevada, a loan for his car wash.

It’s helping a western wear mom-and-pop retailer in Phoenix create a successful business social media campaign and increase their sales and profits.

It’s helping Ruth grow her own produce distribution business in Las Vegas.

So, how will you live empowerment? 

Learn how we are helping other people in our community, like Ruth, start or grow their own business through Prestamos.

Note: Client name and/or identifying information changed to protect privacy.