Antonella Pisani spent her career rising through the corporate ranks, finally reaching the level of vice president at a global watch manufacturer. But all the while, she dreamed of other projects.
So she struck out on her own and founded an e-commerce consulting firm called Eyeful Media. The new role gave Antonella the freedom to travel and remotely work from anywhere in the world.
Shortly after founding her new company, two of her close friends went through world-rocking health challenges: one became paralyzed, and the other went into treatment for stage four Lymphoma, which was ultimately successful. That experience led Pisani to launch another start up called FACT goods (Find a Cure Today), whose mission is to sell positive, inspirational products that help fund charities focused on research.
“I decided to connect e-commerce with a way to bring more positivity into the world and give back to charities that are often underfunded,” she says. “We donate to charities that often don’t get as much press as the big guys, but do amazing research work. We also strive to bring more positivity into people’s everyday lives with items that feature words and phrases that are meant to be inspirational.”
Here’s what she’s learned about money through the years:
What do you spend too much money on?
“Photography is a passion of mine, and I know that I spend too much money on camera lenses. I probably have over 20 lenses for three different camera bodies. It seems like I can come up with an excuse on why I need a faster, wider or longer lens for each of my major trips, which adds up over the course of a year.”
What do you spend too little on?
“Travel. While I likely spend far more on travel for pleasure than most people, I have the time and ability to travel even more, and should take advantage of that. As a young and healthy person, I want to explore as much as I can. One of the things that I still really want to see is the Northern Lights. There are so many places to go. I just need to make sure that I can work enough while I am on the road to meet our clients’ needs and keep things running smoothly with FACT goods.”
What’s your biggest money regret?
“My biggest money regret is centered around selling certain stocks too early. I was younger and didn’t have a large financial cushion to lean on, but I wish that I had held on to a few stocks for a while longer! I now have much more tolerance for riding ups and downs, and tend to buy when there’s an irrational drop. It can be hard to stomach sometimes, especially being self-employed, but I know it’s the right thing to do for the long term.
What money moves do you feel most proud of?
“I am most proud of feeling confident enough to have stepped away from a secure job three years ago in order to create my own businesses and travel the world. Over the past three years, I’ve founded various businesses and been to Antarctica, the Arctic, Bhutan, French Polynesia and countless other locations, all on my own terms.”
Maridel Reyes is a journalist based in New York. Her work has appeared in Forbes, Bloomberg Businessweek, the New York Post, USA Today and The Boston Globe.
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