Meet Pearl Kowalke

We recently connected with Pearl Kowalke and have shared our conversation below.

Pearl, thanks so much for taking the time to share your insights and lessons with us today. We’re particularly interested in hearing about how you became such a resilient person. Where do you get your resilience from?

I get my resilience from my family. My three brothers gave me thick skin from all the teasing I got. My parents taught me to get over people’s negativity towards me. My sister taught me to look to the future and the art of distraction.

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?

I’m working to grow both my art and my cleaning business, but living in a small Midwest town has its challenges. It’s tough to get my work seen or to make a real impact when the audience is so limited. I’ve reached out to local businesses to showcase my art, but there’s little interest or market for the style I create. It’s definitely discouraging at times—trying to build something meaningful in a place that doesn’t quite understand or support it. Still, I’m determined to push forward and find ways to share my vision beyond the boundaries of my town.

Looking back, what do you think were the three qualities, skills, or areas of knowledge that were most impactful in your journey? What advice do you have for folks who are early in their journey in terms of how they can best develop or improve on these?

Three qualities I highly recommend having are confidence, resilience, and the courage to start fresh when needed. Confidence even if you have to fake it at first—can open doors and help you push past self-doubt. Resilience keeps you grounded through setbacks and helps you bounce back stronger. And sometimes, the bravest thing you can do is pivot—letting go of what isn’t working and having the courage to try something new.

What is the number one obstacle or challenge you are currently facing and what are you doing to try to resolve or overcome this challenge?

My number one obstacle is getting my art into the world. There isn’t a market for my art in the small town of New Ulm MN. I’m looking to move to a bigger city to hopefully further my art career.

Contact Info:

• Instagram: Pearl.kowalke
• Facebook: Squirrely Pearly or Pearl Kowalke