Belle Sisters: Hi everyone, welcome to Belles Beyond Podcast by Belle Sisters. Today, I have with me Stephanie, the founder of Avatar Buddy, an AI company. Welcome to the show, Stephanie.

Stephanie: Thank you for having me. I’m super excited to be here today.

Belle Sisters: We’re excited to have you. Can you tell us a little bit about yourself?

Stephanie: I grew up in Belize and moved to the U.S. just before my 18th birthday. I attended the University of Southern California and lived in Los Angeles for four years. After that, I moved to Miami, and I’ve been there ever since. I live in Coconut Grove and have been there for the last 24 years. I always say I “bleed orange and green,” which are the City of Miami’s colors.

A lot of people say they live in Miami, but they don’t actually live in the city, I do. I have over 30 years of experience in corporate IT. I started my career as an intern at Hewlett-Packard, where I had the opportunity to meet one of the people who helped write Unix, the original operating system that runs computers. He gave me a masterclass in computer science, and the rest is history.

Before Avatar Buddy, I served as a Chief Information Officer and Chief Programs Officer at a local government entity. Now, I run Avatar Buddy, where we create AI agents and digital twins to amplify people and help them become the best versions of themselves.

Belle Sisters: Thank you so much for that. I actually want to touch on something you said, it’s funny. You mentioned that a lot of people say they live in Miami, but they don’t actually live in the city. It’s the same thing with Atlanta. I live there, and many people say they’re in Atlanta when they’re actually in the suburbs. I found that really relatable.

Stephanie: Yes, absolutely.

Belle Sisters: You’ve worked in corporate for a long time, then moved into government, and now entrepreneurship with Avatar Buddy. Tell me about that transition. How did it go?

Stephanie: I went from corporate to government, then to entrepreneurship. Corporate was very easy, I loved working in that environment. Government was much harder. I didn’t think anything could be harder than government until I started entrepreneurship.

The transition required me to significantly increase my risk tolerance. When you work in an environment where your salary is guaranteed and your responsibilities are clearly defined, you can become a bit complacent. Entrepreneurship is entirely different, it’s all on you. You decide what happens in your company, how you respond to challenges, and you’re constantly operating on the edge.

The biggest challenge is the emotional rollercoaster. You could have a big win and be celebrating, and five minutes later, something breaks or a client decides not to renew. It’s intense.

Belle Sisters: That emotional rollercoaster is real. It’s something no one really prepares you for. With a steady paycheck, there’s predictability, you know when money is coming in. But in entrepreneurship, it’s completely different. You could earn multiple times in a week and then go months without income.

Stephanie: Exactly.

Belle Sisters: You mentioned that government work was harder than corporate, which I found interesting because many people say the opposite.

Stephanie: It’s relative. It depends on what you’re used to and what you want. If you like moving fast, government isn’t for you. Innovation is more limited, and people often focus on why something can’t be done instead of why it should be. It’s just a different mindset.

I was in government for eight years, which is longer than I’ve been at any other job. Typically, I follow a pattern, six months learning, nine months excelling, nine months riding that success, and then either getting promoted or moving on. But some people prefer stability. That’s just not me.

Belle Sisters: Given your personality, would you say you’re adapting well to entrepreneurship?

Stephanie: Entrepreneurship is exciting and fun, but I think I’m more of a corporate person. The emotional ups and downs can be taxing. I’m not someone who enjoys that kind of unpredictability.

I’m more of a builder, I like to create, disrupt, and then hand things over for others to maintain. My co-founder and I often test whether the business can run without us. For example, I traveled recently, and the company held up fine. That’s the goal.

Belle Sisters: What problem did you see that made you start Avatar Buddy?

Stephanie: We don’t have enough mentors, especially qualified ones who truly know what they’re doing and are willing to guide others. I saw so many talented young Black and Brown individuals without access to mentorship.

One night, I was discussing how to make the world a better place, and the idea of a “digital mentor” came to me. With AI, people could have 24/7 access to guidance, regardless of their background or location. That’s how Avatar Buddy started.

Now, we’re building a virtual community of digital twins, mentors people can interact with anytime. The goal is to scale this to hundreds of thousands, even millions of mentors.

Belle Sisters: That’s powerful. Mentorship really does save years of mistakes. What was the hardest part of starting that no one prepared you for?

Stephanie: You receive a lot of advice, most of it not relevant. You have to trust your instincts and filter what works for you. Early on, I followed advice I knew wouldn’t work, just because it was recommended. That wasn’t effective. You need guidance that aligns with your personality and approach. Also, you have to reframe rejection, it often means there’s a misalignment, not failure.

Belle Sisters: That shift in perspective is important. How has the company evolved over time?

Stephanie: It evolved gradually. From 2016 to 2019, we were in the ideation phase. In 2020, we incorporated. In 2021, we reincorporated in Delaware and got our first code release. By 2023, we went to market.

So depending on how you look at it, we’re either a three-year or five-year company. Before 2021, it was mostly ideas.

Belle Sisters: Why did you reincorporate in Delaware?

Stephanie: Our legal advisors said it would make fundraising and scaling easier compared to being a Florida company.

Belle Sisters: How was your go-to-market experience?

Stephanie: Honestly, we just decided to start selling.

As for accelerators, I have a love-hate relationship with them. Some are helpful, but many offer generic advice that doesn’t apply to your specific business. If your business model is very different, the guidance may not be useful.

Belle Sisters: I can relate to that. At a certain stage, accelerators only make sense if they provide funding.

Stephanie: Exactly. I’ve found books and targeted insights to be more valuable.

Belle Sisters: Was there ever a moment you questioned if entrepreneurship was for you?

Stephanie: All the time. You constantly ask yourself if it will work. But at some point, you decide you have no other option but to succeed.

Your brain is wired for self-preservation, so doubt is natural. The key is recognizing when it’s just fear versus something deeper. Ultimately, you have to believe in yourself more than anyone else does.

Belle Sisters: That’s powerful. As we wrap up, what’s one thing you want listeners to take away?

Stephanie: Ask yourself why you want to be an entrepreneur. Make sure it aligns with your values. And understand that you must be willing to lose everything to succeed. If you’re not, then entrepreneurship may not be for you.

Belle Sisters: Ask why, such an important reminder. Thank you so much, Stephanie, for being here.

To our readers, Belle Sisters is a safe, intentional community for women navigating business and life. If you’re looking for genuine sisterhood and conversations like this, feel free to join us through our website.