We’re looking forward to introducing you to Christina Olivarez. Check out our conversation below.
Christina, a huge thanks to you for investing the time to share your wisdom with those who are seeking it. We think it’s so important for us to share stories with our neighbors, friends and community because knowledge multiples when we share with each other. Let’s jump in: What do the first 90 minutes of your day look like?
I always believe that a great day begins with a great morning routine! And a great morning routine begins the night before. So the night before, i always set up my workbag and my lunch that I will take. My phone goes on DND starting at 8:45p.m and my last social media scroll ends at 9:15 p.m. when I go to sleep.
I love starting my mornings off by waking up every day at 5:00 am. I normally go to our living room to put on YouTube and do a 20-25 minute Pilates and strength training routine. I then take a shower, followed by 30 minutes of meditation and journaling. After that, I listen to my morning podcasts while I am doing my hair and makeup, and then head out the door to my coworking space or a coffee shop, where I start my workday. My phone is always on DND until I sit down at my desk with coffee!
Can you briefly introduce yourself and share what makes you or your brand unique?
Hi! I’m Christina Jovanna Olivarez. I am an award-winning Visibility & Leadership Coach, TEDx Speaker, Founder & CEO of The Social Butterfly Gal & Hustle + Socialize and host of the podcast, Unapologetically Visible. I have been in business for 10 years and am based out of San Antonio, TX.
My journey into entrepreneurship was by ACCIDENT. I grew up on the South Texas/Mexico Border along the Rio Grande Valley in Mission, TX. (PURO 956) Growing up, I always had a microphone in my hand and loved performing and being on stage. At age 8, I had developed a love for broadcast television while at the same time had discovered the wild west that is the Internet. In the AOL Era, that’s where I started to craft my very first personal brand, “IcEAnGeL4891,” and was at the forefront of community building when I started to engage with others in various messaging boards and chat rooms. Through this, one thing always remained true: My visibility was always about owning myself. Unapologetically.
When I was in college, I was laser-focused on one thing: a career in broadcast television. I wanted to tell stories that mattered, represent my community, and be seen, really seen. I was ambitious, driven, and ready. I did all the “right” things: got the internships, job shadowed, built my connections, etc. When I graduated in 3.5 years, I was ready to take on the news industry. But rejection after rejection reminded me that traditional/legacy media wasn’t designed for someone like me. I had been told by countless news directors that I wasn’t polished enough and that I wasn’t palatable enough. I was “too much” and “not enough” all at once.
So instead of feeling like I wasn’t getting a stage to amplify my voice, I took matters into my own hands and built my own stage.
In 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.
Great, so let’s dive into your journey a bit more. What part of you has served its purpose and must now be released?
This is such a powerful question, especially hitting 10 years in business this year, and now I feel like I am stepping into a new era of my life and business, prioritizing my Human Design with everything I do.
The part of me that has served its purpose and is ready to be released is the performer who built her worth through proving.
She’s the woman who learned to lead through output, who equated momentum with meaning and performance with power. That part of me built the foundation for everything I have now, but her currency was validation, not alignment.
And I have outgrown the need to prove. I’ve evolved into the woman who embodies power, not performs it. My next chapter is all about alignment, peace, and enoughness.
Was there ever a time you almost gave up?
Yes, absolutely. It was actually the most recent. I’ll be real with you. One of the moments I almost threw in the towel completely was last month, right before the 2025 Hustle + Socialize Conference. So many things were shifting right before my eyes:
Corporate Sponsors weren’t stepping up the way they used to due to DEI cuts,
The economy was crippling how our audience was spending their money, and
Influencing what they deemed a priority in that moment.
I lost a lot- including my mental and emotional well-being.
“Was this even worth it?” was a question that I kept asking myself throughout April and May.
I was so burned out. I felt betrayed by my business I had built to empower women like me. And I questioned everything—my purpose, my talent, even my own identity outside of Hustle + Socialize.
What kept me going? Honestly, it was remembering who the hell I am and my God given talents. It was seeing the faces of the women I serve— brilliant Latinas and WOC who told me, “Because of you, I see what’s possible for me.”
After the conference, I felt called to take a break for about a month. It was my initiation into an entirely new paradigm of power, softness, and wealth on my own terms. To reimagine what visibility I want for myself for my next decade in business.
Alright, so if you are open to it, let’s explore some philosophical questions that touch on your values and worldview. What are the biggest lies your industry tells itself?
The industry glorifies visibility as the proof of worth, that the more you post, the more valuable you are. But that’s not visibility. That’s performance art. True visibility isn’t about being everywhere; it’s about being undeniable where it matters. You don’t need algorithms to anoint you. Your visibility becomes sacred when it’s an expression of sovereignty, not survival.
We’ve also been sold the lie that consistency means daily output, that missing a post or pivoting your message means you’ve failed. But consistency without congruence is manipulation.
Real consistency is energetic: showing up when your message is alive, not when your nervous system is fried. It’s trusting your cyclical nature as a woman and a leader, not subscribing to a masculine, industrial pace.
Okay, we’ve made it essentially to the end. One last question before you go. What is the story you hope people tell about you when you’re gone?
I want to leave a legacy where Latinas and Women of Color no longer have to hustle for their worth, shrink their joy, or water down their brilliance to fit someone else’s standards. I want to dismantle that generational script that says our power is only validated when it’s earned through burnout or sacrifice.
Ultimately, I hope to be remembered as a woman who lived richly, not just financially, but richly in love, family, culture, God’s purpose, and unapologetic self-expression. A woman who taught other Latinas that they could build spacious, joyful, culturally-rooted lives and businesses that don’t just accumulate money, but redefine what visibility & wealth even mean for us.
I want hundreds, thousands of Latinas and WOC to one day say:
“Because Christina showed up as her full, vibrant, culturally proud self, I believed I could do the same. I built my business differently. I raised my babies differently. I loved myself more wholly. And I became the cycle-breaker for my entire family line.”
The crazy thing is this is already happening! So many women come up to me while I am alive and tell me that!
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.thesocialbutterflygal.net/
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/TheSocialButterflygal
- 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
