The Latinista's coffee hack helped her save $60,000 and start her business—without giving up lattes

In 2018, Yai Vargas decided to quit her job and become the CEO of her own company, The Latinista.

To some coworkers, her decision may have seemed abrupt. But Vargas had been putting the pieces in place to walk away from corporate America for several years.

It wasn't without a little sacrifice: For more than a decade, Vargas hustled to pay off her student loan debt then save a $60,000 emergency fund so she'd be ready to leap when the time was right. She also downsized her apartment, sold her home and worked with The Financial Gym to make sure all her finances were in order.

But when it came to spending, Vargas still had one habit that she decided not to kick: her daily latte.

Below, Vargas shares how she developed a "hack" so she could treat herself to expensive coffee drinks — without sacrificing any savings.

Throughout Vargas' 16-year career in multicultural marketing and diversity strategy, she helped corporate teams across multiple sectors recruit and sustain diverse employees.

She took great satisfaction in her job: "I was using my experience as a Latina, as an immigrant, as a Spanish speaker who went to school in New York City and someone who is bilingual," Vargas tells CNBC Select.

In time, Vargas started to see that other organizations were hungry for the kind of expertise she brought to the table, and she wanted to do more with her talents and skills.

"I knew I could offer so much to organizations who are dying for this type of work," says Vargas.

So she began envisioning what would ultimately become The Latinista, a company that helps Latina and Latinx women of color build professional communities and thrive in their careers, while also working directly with businesses to promote diversity within the corporate culture.

In 2012, her side hustle was born. She didn't make a lot of money at first and instead focused on building a professional network.

But there was a problem: Though Vargas was able to keep herself to a strict budget and put a big chunk of her 9-to-5 salary into savings, she struggled to kick her expensive coffee habit.

"Sometimes I was spending $14 a day on coffee," says Vargas. "I was going into work at 8:00 in the morning and I wasn't coming home until 2:00 in the morning because of the events that I was a part of."

So she found a way to network and stick to her budget by taking coffee meetings.

"When women started to reach out to me and say, 'Can I pick your brain and grab some advice?' I would say 'Sure, absolutely,'" Vargas says. "''It will only cost you taking me out to coffee.'"

In turn, Vargas drew inspiration from her meetings, getting a better understanding what challenges her target demographic was facing. She used the information to develop workshops and conferences for Latina and Latinx professionals.

Vargas also took coffee meetings with corporate professionals who needed ideas to build diversity within their own organizations. She couldn't always charge these clients (more than a cup of coffee anyway), as she was still employed with another company. But simply sharing insights from her own experiences and takeaways from her workshops was enough to make an impression.

Over time, she developed relationships with potential corporate clients who were waiting for her when she finally quit her job and devoted herself full-time to the Latinista.

While Vargas built her professional network and worked on reducing her spending, she also padded her emergency fund by depositing her savings into a high-yield savings account.

Opening a high-yield savings account helps you earn interest faster than a traditional account (the national average APY on regular savings accounts is just 0.35%). Go with an account that is FDIC-insured, has zero monthly maintenance fees and comes with low (or no) minimum balance requirements.

Here are CNBC Select's picks for the top high-yield savings accounts:

• Best overall: Marcus by Goldman Sachs High Yield Online Savings
• Best for checking/savings combo: Ally Online Savings Account
• Best for easy access to your cash: Synchrony Bank High Yield Savings
• Best for earning a high APY: Vio Bank High Yield Online Savings Account
• Best if you want extra help saving: Varo Savings Account

The Varo Savings Account ranks on CNBC Select's list of the top high-yield savings accounts because it offers a unique tiered APY program that encourages customers to save more: Earn up to 4.09% APY on your balance up to $5,000.00 for next month by meeting these two requirements this month:

• Receive direct deposits totaling $1,000 or more
• End the month with a positive balance in both your Varo Bank Account and Savings Account.

You'll continue to earn 2.50% APY on any additional balance above $5,000.00. No fees, no minimum balance required.

Information about Synchrony High Yield Savings has been collected independently by Select and has not been reviewed or provided by the banks prior to publication. Goldman Sachs Bank USA is a Member FDIC.