Meet Mikayla Malik

Alright – so today we’ve got the honor of introducing you to Mikayla Malik. We think you’ll enjoy our conversation, we’ve shared it below.

Hi Mikayla , we’re so appreciative of you taking the time to share your nuggets of wisdom with our community. One of the topics we think is most important for folks looking to level up their lives is building up their self-confidence and self-esteem. Can you share how you developed your confidence?

I did struggle with self-esteem, especially when I first started to put my work out in the world. I learned to be my own fuel, and to stop seeking external validation. I stopped letting my confidence and self worth depend on if others recognized it, because I knew it was there and that’s all that matters.

Let’s take a small detour – maybe you can share a bit about yourself before we dive back into some of the other questions we had for you?

I’ve been an athlete all of my life and always had art as a my hidden side hobby. It wasn’t until last year when I became an Art major for my grad year that I realized just how passionate I was about my work. The past year has really opened my eyes to just how much is really possible with art, and how I could take a side hobby and turn it into a career. For the longest, I was always branded as the shy girl who never really said much. However, my art has allowed me to be more confident in my voice and know that I actually have a lot to say. Art is so important in communicating and bridging gaps that I feel so blessed to be able to have this avenue to express my innermost experiences and thoughts, and to also be able to possibly say something that someone else hadn’t quite found the words for. Through my portraiture, I aim to celebrate the presence of Black people and provide a multidimensional approach to the Black experience.

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?

The three things that helped me the most so far on my journey would be to never compare your journey to another, take everything as a lesson, both wins and losses, and to just keep going and trust the process. Comparison is the thief of joy. Most people have heard that before, but when it comes to starting a new journey especially, you have to give yourself grace and time to adjust before you look at the next person. I think evolving as a person is being able to grow from the things you experience. Whether it’s a win or a loss, learn from it and apply it to your next move so that way, you’ll always be on the rise. The most important thing to reiterate would be to trust the process. If it’s something you truly want, you have to be willing to keep going even when it doesn’t look like anything is happening.

Thanks so much for sharing all these insights with us today. Before we go, is there a book that’s played in important role in your development?

My favorite book of all time is “Be Water, My Friend” by Shannon Lee. It’s a book about the teachings and philosophies of Bruce Lee written by his daughter. At the time I read that book, I was in a really dark place and it changed my entire outlook on life. It taught me to be adaptable, and to flow with the universe rather than against it. It taught me to change what I could and accept what I couldn’t. It emphasized growth by reminding us to not be rigid but to flow and be open to new experiences and knowledge. It also taught me to overcome the limitations I put on myself. I think that is a big thing when it comes to starting a new journey. We tend to limit ourselves and put caps on our success before anyone else has the chance to. I think it’s most important to let go of those limiting beliefs and actualize your full potential.

Contact Info:

• Instagram: @artby.malik