Influential Woman · Notary
Esperanza Cortez
Mobile Notary / Owner, Pink Stamp Notary
Dallas, TX 75211
Her Story
About Esperanza
I own and operate Pink Stamp Notary, a mobile notary business I've been running for about 5 years. As a mobile notary, I don't have a stationary office - instead, I travel to meet my clients wherever they need me. My main area of expertise is loan signings for homes, and I work extensively with businesses that are expanding or purchasing and selling property. A typical day for me involves being on the road for 2 or 3 hours, going back and forth to appointments, and then handling the backend work of scanning documents and getting them FedExed and shipped the same day. My journey into this field has an interesting origin story. One day I needed something notarized, and it was honestly so hard to find someone to do it. I went everywhere, was Googling it, and kept hearing 'no, not here, we don't do this.' It was crazy how difficult it was. That experience made me realize there's such a tremendous need for notaries, but there aren't enough of them available. I started off as what we call a basic notary - if you need a document notarized, I'm here. I began this while working for the school district, notarizing documents for parents who were facing the same challenge I had experienced. The demand was incredible. I even had someone approach me at a gas station one day because they saw the magnet sign on my car, and I ended up doing an order right there in the parking lot. Before starting my notary business, I worked for the City of Dallas in the Economic Development Department for 4 years pre-COVID, which taught me a lot about the business industry. After that, I became an office manager for an elementary school in the ISD, a position I held for 5 years. It was during those 5 years as an office manager that I started building my notary business on the side. My most notable professional achievement is starting my own business as a single mom, trying to juggle a full-time job to support my family while pursuing my dream of being my own business owner, and eventually being able to use that business to take care of my family. I'm proud that I was able to do all of that on my own.
Her Interview
Ten minutes with Esperanza
01What do you attribute your success to?
I'm honestly going to have to say my mom. I am where I'm at, I've succeeded - I feel like if I had not had such a strong example, I wouldn't be where I'm at. I really feel that where I'm at, I owe it to my family. My family has stood behind me, my kids are encouraging me, but my mother and my older sisters - I see them, and I want to be a strong woman like they are. My mother was very honest and open with us, she didn't sugarcoat it, and I feel like had it not been for her, I would not be the woman I am today. I owe myself to her. You always want better for the next generation. My mother wanted better for us, and we want better for ours, so I try.
02What’s the best career advice you’ve ever received?
The best career advice I've ever received is to not be discouraged. No matter what field you're in, whether it's for yourself or if you work for a company, there's always going to be a point where you feel like, oh, I'm not doing this right, or maybe I'm not knowledgeable enough to be in this position. You get distracted, you get discouraged. But the best advice that I've ever had is if you do it wrong, learn from it and do it right. It's typical 'learn from your mistakes' - that's the only way you're ever going to get it.
03What advice would you give to young women entering your industry?
Don't give up. Because if you do, it's over. I feel no one will fight for your life or your family as hard as you will. If I don't get up in the morning, then who's going to do that? Who's going to take care of my children? Who's going to take care of my family? That's my advice - don't give up.
04What are the biggest challenges or opportunities in your field right now?
One of the biggest challenges in my field, for me personally, is being a woman. The loan industry, the home industry - you see more women in the field, but it's still a male-dominated field. You go into the lawyers' offices, and you talk to lawyers and brokers, and it's mostly males. So it's still that 'let me get your attention, I know what I'm talking about.' It's still there, even now, so that would be a challenge - still trying to prove myself. My accomplishment would be I'm here. I'm here, and I'm doing it, and I'm walking in, and you can tell me no 10 times, but that 11th time, I'm going to get a yes. And then that one yes can completely change everything. I got that one yes, and here I am.
05What values are most important to you in your work and personal life?
I try to live by treating everyone fairly and treating everyone equally. I try to teach my family - my family is my rock, and even if I think they're not watching me, they're watching me, so I try to lead by example. That's my thing. I don't care if you're the cleaning lady or the CEO of the company, I treat you the same. Because I feel like it doesn't matter what your position is, it's still valuable. If it wasn't for you doing what you do, who's going to do it? How would it get done? I try to see everyone as equal. And I know sometimes that's hard, but that's my goal. My goal is to be as equal across the board as possible. And I hope that my children learn that. People that are not looking at your value are the ones that are not okay with themselves.
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