There hasn’t been this much side-eyeing of how an Apple treats men vs women since Genesis.

Buzz from the 12 remaining bees is the shiny new credit cards devised by Apple and Goldman Sachs are offering men up to twenty times the amount of credit as women, even when a lady’s credit score is better.

And here I thought passing up the chance to call it the ‘iOwe’ was going to be the worst of it.

I don’t have to tell y’all that reminding everyone of the days before 1974’s Equal Credit Act, when us skirts, dames, broads, and the like had to have a ring on it and hubby’s permission to open a line of credit is a bad look.

Here’s where it gets worse, though.

When a few gentlemen, Apple co-founder Steve Wozniak included, launched a ‘What the dealio’ Apple’s way, the answer was: ‘Algorithms. Go fig.’ The solution implemented has been isolated credit increases for anyone who was either a big enough name to get them bad press, or complained through the help center.

‘Well, April, you fabulous creature,’ you might be saying. ‘How ever is this a problem, when a solution to subvert the issue exists?’

It’s a big enough issue that the New York Department of Financial Services is getting involved, actually! But yours truly isn’t a lawyer. Instead of breaking down any actual laws, let’s go through a few cardinal rules of business ownership to see what went wrong here from an entrepreneur perspective.

Rule 1: Thou must own thine s**t.

Now that everyone and their prepper uncles know what algorithms are (kinda), the word gets tossed around like a catch-all for tech-based blame even harder than Mercury Retrogrades. The difference here is that the planets’ movements are out of our hands.

Algorithms don’t spring forth from an application fully formed; they’re handcrafted, upgraded, and maintained by paid, human coders. And considering the two big players behind Apple Credit, and the talent they can procure, this fobbing off the blame onto ‘those wacky algorithms’ reeeeeally doesn’t cut it. And people know that. So…

Rule 2: Thou shalt remember always thine customer is smart.

Consumer savviness is on the rise, and it’s not slowing down. For some reason though, too many businesses think that Mary-Jo Mae off the turnip truck doesn’t have access to the same 5 free Medium articles a month that they do.

You can’t fob people off with ‘Eh, technology’ anymore — even at the level of first line tech support. Everyone expects an answer as well as your accountability, and if you didn’t take the steps to build your better mousetrap the first time, you need to have a press release with an apology and an actual fix in hand post-haste!

Rule 3 : Thou shalt never make the customer take extra steps to correct thine mistakes.

Scenario time!

Let’s say you’re at a nice restaurant, like dollops of house-prepared sauce on the plate instead of a cup of ranch kind of nice.

You’re having a great evening, until the waiter drops a bowl of soup on your table, and it gets EVERYWHERE. Management comes over while you’re brushing bisque out of your eyebrows and says ‘I’m SO sorry… the kitchen is down the hall to your left, go grab as many towels as you need, the buckets are in the red cabinet’

You heard that record-scratch sound effect in your head just thinking about it, didn’t you? That’s because, even when there’s an understanding that a solution is fairly simple, when it’s not your eff-up, you expect the people at fault to fix it.

Any institution that can give you a credit approval in seconds has enough power to update unfair decisions in real time. But prompting them to do so shouldn’t be the customer’s duty.

Remember how irritated we all were when Equifax leaked our data? Then, instead of mailing us all a check (which they could), we all had to rely on news outlets to tell us where to go to claim our piece of the settlement (I’ll take my $1.25 where I can get it), and then had to do so again with the implication that we might have been lying if we chose the money over the free credit monitoring the first time? I remember.

What’s going on now has one major difference from the hypothetical and the real-world happening I just presented though. Apple Credit did not have these people’s money yet.

And if anyone offended by this were to pull an En Vogue, they’re “never gonna get it!”

Sometimes launches don’t go perfectly. There are times when campaigns, or software, or hard tech have issues that give off the appearance of systemic malice, even if there’s none behind it. But the fact remains that when there’s a problem, top execs need to come out and speak against it before anyone can start attributing a mistake to intentional discrimination.

Keep your head, beta test everything with as wide and diverse a pool of users as you possibly can, let your firstline staff approach you with trends they’ve noticed, and remain open to telling consumers you made a whoopsie, so you won’t have to scramble later in the game!

If you are reading this, you probably have an LLC for your small business already, or money talk gets you going. If it is the former, let me say CONGRATULATIONS, and insist you pat yourself on the back in honor of your small business’s progression. Your arrival at a point where expansion is necessary is no small feat given half of small businesses fail in the first year. So, kudos to you.

Now, back to the money talk…

For LLC businesses looking to expand, please don’t fret about all of the information you’ve seen on the web. Yes, securing a small business loan of any kind is tedious and depends on varying lending organizations and business needs, but there is a list of general requirements small businesses should be aware of before getting knee-deep in conflicting information.

After some extensive research posing as the owner of imaginary businesses and annoying every loan officer who’d take my call, I’ve found three general lending requirements. I also provide a collection of the tangible information banks will likely review to meet those requirements. Take a gander:

Assets
Small businesses must have necessary assets: steady cash flow, financial reserves, personal collateral to support a variety of business fluctuations (i.e. unexpected employee loss), and a realistic pay off plan. These assets and financial safety nets are necessary for any lending organization to be confident in your business’s ability to support employee expansion in lieu of current expenses.

Proof of past
Just as you will come to expect from your soon to be employees, lenders want proof of the past and how you’ve managed past loans to align with your business goals. Historical evidence will further determine if your expansion is feasible, but also if it is worthy for the company to accept the lending risk.

Specific plans
Finally, be prepared to provide your small business’s explicit expansion plan, including how you arrived at your suggested loan amount and how you intend to divvy out the funds. It is important that you are as specific as possible in your projected numbers, seeing as one employee could make a $60,000 difference, and largely affect your expansion plan and financial need.

Before you go…

Now that you’re equipped with the magic three, you’re probably feeling empowered to walk into your nearest bank and demand your small business loan. Let’s first be sure you have all of the necessary information on-hand and ready to produce.

Lending companies that look for the magic three before investing arrive at their conclusion after collecting data from the following pertinent information:

– Proof of collateral
– Business plan and expansion plan
– Financial details
– Current and past loan info
– Debts incurred
– Bank statements
– Tax ID
– Contact info
– Accounts receivable information
– Aging
– Sales and payment history
– Accounts payable information
– Credit references
– Financial statements
– Balance sheet
– Profit and loss history
– Copies of past tax returns
– Social Security Numbers
– Assets and liabilities details

Now, my friend, do I release you as proud as a parent unto your nearest bank to secure your small business loan and begin growing your staff the way you’ve dreamed. I’m confident you will find the aforementioned information helpful in said quest, and would like to wish one last time (because it’s impossible to over-congratulate) a sincere CONGRATULATIONS on your businesses growth.

If you’ve ever felt like a fraud when it comes to your success, you’re not alone. Impostor syndrome is recognized as a “a psychological pattern in which an individual doubts their accomplishments.”

Typically, impostor syndrome is discussed as it pertains to your career, but it can manifest in other areas, like with finances.

Financial impostor syndrome has many components. You might feel as if you are bad with money and can’t be any different. Maybe you’ve made some bad decisions in the past.

You let these mistakes define your financial future.

Or maybe you dwell on the endless Instagram posts from people in your industry that depict the glamour of their financial successes (not knowing that they don’t own that jet, their client rented it for the weekend, or that they have a Ferrari but are potentially hiding it from being repossessed).

Some people believe money is bad or that they don’t deserve financial stability. Especially freelancers and entrepreneurs.

Alternatively, you may have money in the bank, but feel like a fake or fraud for earning it. You might think it was just luck that you have any resources, rather than believing in your own capabilities.

Financial impostor syndrome keeps you from reaching your potential.

Most people who have impostor syndrome also have low self-confidence and fear that they’ll fail. This can self-sabotage success. Instead of taking initiative and making positive changes, someone with impostor syndrome may bury themselves in work and avoid taking on extra responsibilities that could prove themselves.

When it comes to money, you might think that you can’t make changes, so why try? This type of thinking limits you.

Overcoming financial impostor syndrome isn’t going to happen overnight, but it is possible with some work.

1. Talk about it. You have to look at the reality of your situation versus your perception. Work with a mentor or mental health professional who can help you get information about impostor syndrome and help you manage your symptoms. You may want to consider getting a financial coach or manager.

2. Make a list of your accomplishments and successes. Celebrate your achievements. Learn to recognize what you contributed to your successes.

3. Create a new script for times when you feel like a failure. “I can improve my finances.” “I am able to stick to my budget.” I deserve financial freedom.”

4. Change your habits. Take small steps towards financial success. Spend cash only. Automate your savings and your bills. Cut up credit cards. Learn your strengths and weaknesses. Stick to your budget.

Additionally, you must forgive yourself for past mistakes.

Everyone has at least one or two regrets when it comes to their money. We don’t always see those mistakes, because we only hear about the person’s success. If you can’t learn to forgive yourself, you restrict your ability to make changes. Blame and shame never help anyone change behavior.

Make a plan to change your financial impostor syndrome. No matter what you’ve done in the past, you can start making small changes to your financial situation to find a way out. You deserve it.