Influential Woman · Accounting, Healthcare, Hospitality
Melissa Soliz
CFO, Owner, Mixology Instructor, Liquadas and teach
Pflugerville, TX
Her Story
About Melissa
I grew up in poverty as an abused kid, and we were so poor we had to go to places where they gave us donated food. Despite being homeless at one point, I knew I had to make something of myself. I went to school on my own without my mom's help, had a kid at a very young age, and worked my butt off to raise her. I started in the medical field, became a nurse, and was working internships at a hospital. When I got pregnant, I lost my accounting position because the company didn't want to keep it open during maternity leave. I felt devastated, having just graduated. But then I found work at a genetics lab where I worked both in the lab and helped with accounting, accounts receivable, and accounts payable. I loved it and stayed in accounting forever. I've been with my current company for 18 plus years, starting in accounts payable and quickly taking on accounts receivable and HR within three months, along with raises. My boss, an ex-Navy SEAL who is super tough, kept giving me more responsibilities. He told me to work smarter, not harder, and helped me organize all the departments I was running by myself. I handle everything from daily operations to all accounting functions, human resources, IT conversions, and all personal finances for the owner including his homes and property taxes. I also own my own bartending company called Liquadas and teach mixology for the state of Texas. I even caught an employee who embezzled $47,000 right under my nose by dissecting the accounts and showing investigators exactly what he did. My boss told me during a struggling time that I am his rock, and that's all I need - to be needed. I only have an associate's degree in accounting, but I soared to become a CFO because of my strength, drive, and ability to learn quickly.
Her Interview
Ten minutes with Melissa
01What do you attribute your success to?
I attribute my success to my strength. I grew up in poverty as an abused kid, and we couldn't even afford food - we had to go to places where they gave us donated food. That gave me strength. When I grew up and knew it was all on my own, that there was nobody else that was gonna help me because I was homeless, it was all due to the strength I had as a kid going through all of that torture. I will always go back to that - I was strong, I was independent, I was able to see the other side of it without even having a vision at that point, because I had nothing but poverty and abuse. I said I can't live like that, that's not what I want to be living in. I went to school and took my own little butt to school. My mom didn't help me get anything, I did it all on my own. I had a kid at a very young age and worked my butt off because I knew I had to raise her. It was just all about strength, all about what I grew up in, and that helped mold me to get through everything. I was molded that way as a kid - I was taught you're gonna go through a lot of shit, now can you put up with it? And I'm still here, thanking God every day.
02What’s the best career advice you’ve ever received?
The best career advice I ever received was to always work smarter, not harder. My boss told me this when he was giving me all these positions under my belt. He said, 'I know you work hard, I know you work hard. But you gotta be a little smarter with it. This is what you gotta do. Because I'm giving you all these positions under your belt, and I don't need you to work harder. I just need you to organize it so it's easier for you to work all these departments.' After he told me that, I started to really manage my time in all the departments that I had with me running it by myself, with no help. I burned the midnight oil here and I climbed the ladder here, and it's because of what he told me.
03What advice would you give to young women entering your industry?
I tell young women entering my industry that if I'm giving you an opportunity to dip your toes in there right now, without even a degree, take it. People who have a degree in the accounting field right now act like big shots, like you hire me for a higher amount and I'm just gonna come in as green as I can. People put resumes together and it's all fake. I don't know if I believe your resume - I wanna see what you got to show me. I need you to step up and show me your worth. Show your worth! Work hard at it! Because anybody sitting down, you ain't getting nowhere with that. Work hard, if you gotta step up, and if you gotta get dirt under your nails, then do it. There shouldn't be anything that's stopping you, because later on, it's gonna be smooth sailing because you worked so hard to get there. Put your work in! You ain't gonna get nowhere sitting down! Don't sit down! You gotta want to go get something. It can't come on your lap and just all of a sudden just be there. If you're not promised an inheritance, you better make good with your life and you better work at it.
04What values are most important to you in your work and personal life?
The values most important to me in my work and personal life are honesty, integrity, and loyalty. I follow all of those - being an honest person, being super loyal, and having integrity.
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