We were lucky to catch up with Courtney Warner recently and have shared our conversation below.
Courtney, we’re so excited for our community to get to know you and learn from your journey and the wisdom you’ve acquired over time. Let’s kick things off with a discussion on self-confidence and self-esteem. How did you develop yours?
Well I’ve had a lot of experience over the years growing up in public schools and living in a suburb/ urban area, a lot of the kids in my area and at my school were extremely mean lol. Don’t get me wrong those parts of my years I would never change because they helped to develop my overall character, but experiences like bullying and certain abuses at home really take a toll on your mental and play a huge role in low self- esteem. I spent years of dealing with bully’s, name calling and overall verbal abuse to finally just accept who I am; so I can piss off the ones who didn’t. I made it my mission that no matter what the little girl I use to be would never have to hate the person that she blossomed into, and I have to say I’m pretty damn proud of the person I am today and love myself to the fullest. I still have my insecure moments but they are easier to dissect and dive deeper into because I took time to learn the type of person I am and who I wanted to become.
Thanks for sharing that. So, before we get any further into our conversation, can you tell our readers a bit about yourself and what you’re working on?
So I started creating in 2016/ 2017 but I’ve always been a creative at heart since I was little, but 2016/ 2017 is when I created my first brand name called AnyThingButFreeLLC. I wanted my brand to be the representation of freedom when it came to self expression, I wanted people to know that when they see my brand I created it.
So overall In order to do that I had to step outside my own comfort zone which ultimately lead to me venturing in other avenues such as wadrobe styling and coordinating showcases like fashion shows.
Directing music videos and photo shoots, so much happend so fast and within a time span of 3-5 years I just couldn’t believe where my progress was taking me, I had my first few celebrity features within my first 3 years of creating!
Of course everything has its ups and downs as I experienced a lot of hate while going on this journey and it effected my confidence tremendously, I spent years trying to shake the feeling of “why should I care what others think” and I learned to embrace it.
I ended up taking a year off to get my mental health back in order and to reintroduce myself and my new brand name “O3” or “Omniii 3” to the new creative scene here in Cleveland, so far everything has been just as successful as it was before I even left.
I recently was apart of the Evolve fashion show curated by platinumtwentytwo and the creator Zoe-Lanese Martin, also known as @_zlim on social platforms, and let me just say that the way this woman’s creativity is and how she stands in her power as an authority and overall force? Is exactly the kind of people I want to be around and adore working with.
All I can honestly say is I am happy that she saw something in my brand that she felt was enough to help bring something to her table as well as mine.
That show genuinely gave me the momentum I needed to continue this creative journey and never stop until I see where it takes me, and I am so thankful and grateful to God for that opportunity, truly. As far as upcoming launches and projects, I hope to work with more creatives in the city but I definitely have a few more events/shows and shoots on the way for some groovy new looks, also a show is in the works for next year so hopefully all goes according to Gods plan.
There is so much advice out there about all the different skills and qualities folks need to develop in order to succeed in today’s highly competitive environment and often it can feel overwhelming. So, if we had to break it down to just the three that matter most, which three skills or qualities would you focus on?
The main three qualities/ skills that I feel were most important and impactful on my journey are self-confidence no matter what the circumstances, optimism and/or an open mind, and versatility. My over all skill as a person is that I can adapt to whatever my environment is at the time, therefore it makes it a whole lot easier for me the maneuver through certain things to accomplish my goals. Me also being open minded and optimistic allows me to think in spaces that others necessarily can’t, I don’t have boxed in thinking so there is never a moment for me where I cannot find a solution to a problem, I’m just not wired that way and I like to think of it as a super power lol. And of course last but not least my self-confidence is what drives me to continue even with in my hardest times, no matter how old the accomplishments I use them to remind me that “if you did it before then you can do it again, or you can do BETTER” and from then on I’ve only been looking towards better!
Looking back over the past 12 months or so, what do you think has been your biggest area of improvement or growth?
I think my biggest area of growth has been not allowing others to steal my joy, no longer giving people the benefit of the doubt or allowing others to make me feel like my role in life is meaningless. My life has meaning because I say it does and that is all I need, no one can tell me other wise and it’s up to me to give my life meaning, no one else.
Once I realized that? That, overall was enough for me to understand my place in this world, and I am at such peace with knowing that understanding myself enough to know that because I matter to me? Means I matter period. So that’s all I need to be happy and to keep pursuing my goals.
Contact Info:
- Instagram: Omniii.3_
Image Credits
@_zlim @platinumtwentytwo @blackhare13 @ariyasomi @therealcalliecal @moparopisopa @oooosaige @trustdvsn @sxsudrai @semaj_pendergrass_
