As part of the Te digo lo que sé (I Tell You What I Know) initiative we are carrying out at OnCuba, we are launching today, with this installment, the series “My Journey as a Cuban Entrepreneur. Breaking Myths,” by Yulieta Hernández Díaz, CEO of πlares Construcciones SRL, a Cuban startup founded in 2018 and dedicated to offering construction, maintenance, repair, rehabilitation and remodeling services for properties.
I never imagined I would become an entrepreneur, much less out of necessity. Life led me down this path at a very difficult time in my life: going through a personal financial crisis and a family grieving process. My mother, retired and widowed, depended on me, as did my two young children, while I grieved a separation. I had no room for comfort or time to doubt: I had to step out of my comfort zone (although at the time I didn’t even know it was a comfort zone) and find a solution that would allow me to support myself and my family.
Like many people, I initially thought entrepreneurship would be an easy option, a way to achieve independence without so many complications. But the reality was very different. I encountered unexpected challenges, myths that seemed like absolute truths and obstacles that required strategy and determination. Over time, I learned that the key to entrepreneurship isn’t following magic formulas, but rather unlearning myths and building a realistic vision of the business. Here I share my experience confronting some of the most common myths.
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Being born an entrepreneur vs. becoming one.
I always heard that entrepreneurship was something you were born with, an innate talent that only some people possessed. But the reality was very different for me. I never had the skills to be an entrepreneur, nor did I even consider it part of my life. I was an introvert, unfamiliar with the world of business and strategy. Necessity was what led me to start my own business, without any clear plans or expectations, simply as an attempt to survive.
But what began as a forced decision gradually became a process of personal transformation. During my entrepreneurial journey, I not only learned how to run a business, but I also rebuilt myself as a person. It was a process of trial and error, a lot of studying, preparation and learning; each obstacle taught me more about myself. A crucial turning point was the CubaEmprende Project’s Emprende Workshop, during a very difficult stage of my life. I was in crisis, going through deep grief, and the personal development module completely changed my perspective. It made me think of myself as the center of my life and understand that the most important person on my path should be me.
That’s why, when I hear that entrepreneurs are “born,” I know it’s a myth. I wasn’t born an entrepreneur. I trained as one out of necessity, with effort and with mistakes that were part of the learning process. Entrepreneurship, more than an innate talent, is a building block of resilience and transformation. Even today, I’m building myself as a person, as an engineer, as a mother, as an entrepreneur and as a businesswoman.
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Having a revolutionary idea vs. seeking opportunities and adapting.
When I started, I didn’t have any innovative ideas or a grand visionary project in mind. My only priority was to find work in the private sector to support myself and my family. After a long search, I found a position as a waitress in a cafe/bar and would start on Wednesday. I thought that, although it wasn’t my field, at least it was an opportunity to generate income.
But everything changed the previous Friday, when a friend mentioned a vacancy at a construction cooperative and encouraged me to go to the interview on Monday. As a civil engineer, the proposal seemed much more attractive than the bar and cafe sector, so I decided to give it a try. I went to the interview and that same Monday they offered me the job.
I worked for three months under a trial contract, but just as that period was up, my contract closed. At that time, Non-Agricultural Cooperatives (CNA) in Cuba had legal restrictions that prevented them from increasing their membership, so the three-month contract only served to cover the demand generated by the construction boom for Havana’s 500th anniversary.
When they closed my contract, I naively said to myself: I can do this on my own. I didn’t know that at that time new cooperatives couldn’t be opened in Cuba, so my only option was to register as a TCP (self-employed worker). I basically replicated the business of a construction services cooperative, adapting it to a smaller scale according to my capabilities. I also made modifications based on what I learned during those three months, my university studies and my experience as an engineer in different areas at public companies. Some decisions were correct, others were rookie mistakes, but each step was key to my training.
That’s why, when I hear that entrepreneurs should start with a great, revolutionary idea, I know it’s a myth. In my case, I started out without a prior plan or radical innovation, only with the need to create an opportunity when another one closed, during a personal economic crisis and a period of grief. The real key was the ability to adapt and learn at every stage of the process.
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Work hard vs. having a strategy, leadership and seizing opportunities.
It’s always said that “the early bird catches the worm,” and while effort is important, it alone doesn’t guarantee results. In my experience as a Cuban entrepreneur, working hard without a clear direction is like rowing without knowing where the boat is going. The key isn’t just sacrifice, but having a concrete vision and learning how to develop it along the way.
The first thing I understood is that entrepreneurship requires clear objectives and well-defined strategies. It’s not enough to want to grow; you have to draw up a plan, set realistic goals and, even if the vision is a dream, the actions must be grounded in reality. In Cuba, where economic and regulatory changes can be abrupt, planning must be flexible, capable of adapting without losing the way.
I also learned that luck, although it exists and can play an important role, is not enough to achieve success. It’s not enough for an opportunity to arrive; you have to know how to look for them, identify them and take advantage of them. When I started, I didn’t really understand the importance of seeking out opportunities. Later, when I finally understood, I still made mistakes by passing up some that could have made a difference in my business.
To seize opportunities, personal development is essential. No business can be successful without a solid leader behind it. The leadership of a business defines its direction, its capacity for adaptation and its growth. Furthermore, personal relationships are crucial: building networks, nurturing networking and surrounding yourself with people who can contribute knowledge and collaboration makes a huge difference.
Success doesn’t come from effort alone, but from the ability to create strategies, evaluate scenarios, seek out and seize opportunities and develop the leadership necessary to make a business thrive.
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Being my own boss vs. having multiple responsibilities and commitments.
When I started my business, I believed in the myth that being an entrepreneur meant being my own boss, having absolute freedom and making decisions without restrictions. Over time, I discovered that, paradoxically, I am less of a boss today than when I worked at a public enterprise. Now I have more responsibilities and many “bosses”: my direct work team, the rest of the company’s team, clients, the nation and, of course, my family.
Although I exercise leadership within my business, my decisions are not completely autonomous. First, they are influenced by my team, because the venture’s success depends on their commitment and well-being. Second, by my clients, who set expectations and needs that we must meet. Also, by the country’s regulatory framework and economic context, which directly influence the company’s development.
But my family is also a key factor. Not only because my business was born from the need to support them, but because their needs and dynamics also affect my time, priorities and decision-making. My role as a mother, daughter, wife and entrepreneur must be balanced, and that means making decisions that not only benefit the business but also the stability of my home.
I firmly believe in Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) and have made it a key strategy within my business. Even when I wasn’t familiar with the term CSR, we were already practicing CSR. For me, entrepreneurship not only involves generating income, but also positively impacting the environment, building strong relationships and contributing to sustainable development. Learning to balance leadership with responsibility has been one of the most valuable lessons of my entrepreneurial journey.
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A good product sells itself vs. the importance of marketing, branding and communication.
When I started, I knew nothing about marketing, branding or business communication. I also didn’t understand what a value proposition was, although I learned tools to create a business plan at the CubaEmprende workshop. However, I still lacked a lot of study and preparation.
What I did understand from the beginning, thanks to my experience in construction cooperatives, was that I had to provide trust and security to my clients. I didn’t know that this would be part of the core values of our brand, but I was clear that I had to differentiate myself and build credibility. I also relied on principles I learned during my training as a civil engineer in business studies, such as the focus on time, cost and quality, adapting it to what the Cuban context allowed. Unfortunately, Cuban education has a debt to business training.
I knew I needed a logo, although at the time I didn’t understand what it was really supposed to represent. With the help of an architect friend, we designed what we thought was a logo, but over time we realized that, more than a true logo, it was a graphic image that we used as a visual identifier. I also knew from day one that I needed social media and a business card, although I knew nothing about these topics and made many mistakes. I also didn’t know at the time the impact those decisions would have on the business.
Over time, with a lot of study, mistakes and learning, I realized that, unknowingly, from day one I was building a business brand and a personal brand with clear values. This evolution, although not planned at the beginning and not free of mistakes, was key to achieving the position we have today in the Cuban market. So I can say with certainty that it’s not enough to offer a good product or service: marketing, branding, communication, strategy and leadership are essential for a business to thrive.
To be continued…
