We were lucky to catch up with Deija Willis recently and have shared our conversation below.
Hi Deija, thank you for being such a positive, uplifting person. We’ve noticed that so many of the successful folks we’ve had the good fortune of connecting with have high levels of optimism and so we’d love to hear about your optimism and where you think it comes from.
My optimism comes from my parents. I have been blessed to have three parents in my life that contributed to the person I am today. My mom, has always supported anything I showed interest in. Whether it was wanting to learn how to belly dance, being interested in photography, or wanting to travel. She will find articles or information, like books or buying a a small digital camera, to support it. My second mom, has always had the attitude of, “if you want to do then do it”. I remember a conversation we had when I was younger, I was explaining how I did not feel like there was some people who supported my interest at the time. Her response to me, was it shouldn’t matter. If it is something that you really want to do, then you should do it, regardless if you have support or not. Then there is my dad. Regardless if he agreed with what I wanted to do or not. He was always there to support. Giving his knowledge on how I should or should not approach things to get a certain result. Regardless if I failed, or it took me longer to get to a goal, or if I completely changed my mind or interests. These three were always there, with notes and helpful information. The things the told me and the opinions they gave, always keep me optimistic in whatever endeavors I chose to try. I will never give up, and will continue working on creating the life that I want.
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 am the eldest child of a total of 8 children. As an older sibling, it seems it is part of the parent hand book that you must be raised to help and be a good influence on those around you. I also have always had an interest in performing. Whether that’s been actually being in plays, dancing or singing in a choir at church and school. Or even sports, which I did one year of volleyball in Highschool and was a cheerleader for the rest of the years. All of these thing led to the creation of my YouTube channel; The Search. Originally starting off as more of an informational channel. It has always been a channel to share my steps to figuring out this thing we call life. It has also been a way to share with someone out there, that they are not alone with some of the struggles that life brings. I started the channel during the COVID pandemic. When I felt lost in regards to what I wanted to do with my life. I wanted to not only help myself find tools to figure that out. But also share those tools with anyone else who may have been struggling to figure things out for themselves as well. Now, my channel shares my travels, which I share to encourage other black girls and women of the possibility that they can do it too. Especially, because I am not rich and live in Flint, MI, which does not have the greatest reputation depending on who you ask. I also have recently shared parts of my grief journey after losing my Dad. Which unfortunately, when I was looking for some support, other than therapy. There was a lack of representation of people going through grief. My channel, is not always the most cinematic. But I created it to share the ups and downs of life, and also to figure this life thing out together with anyone who watches.
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?
Looking back, the three qualities, skills or areas of knowledge that were most impactful for my journey were confidence. Though I don’t have 100% confidence everyday, you only need a little. Just enough to decide what you want, and make a plan to get, regardless of the nay-sayers. The next, is to have good listening skills. For those who did and do support me, they have there own knowledge on how things should or should not be done. Even though I did not always agree or take the advice, the biggest thing was being open to hear it in the first place. Listening makes things a little bit easier, instead of completely trying to figure certain things out on your own. Lastly, knowing who you are in your current season. This one is a bit tough, it requires you to sit with yourself, look at the good and the bad. Accepting that this is you right now, and even if you currently like this version of yourself, it may change in the future. One of the hardest fights, in my opinion, is when you are fighting with yourself.
For anyone out there who is early in a content creator journey or are still only just a dreamer. Ask yourself, if you are proud of you? Are you proud of where you are, and excited about where you are going? These questions can help with the confidence to take the next step in your journey.
All the wisdom you’ve shared today is sincerely appreciated. Before we go, can you tell us about the main challenge you are currently facing?
The number one obstacle that I have always faced, in the past and currently, in my journey is staying consistent. I do not have the biggest following, or make any money for my videos. It was honestly never about that. However, I do feel bad for those who do follow me because my goal has always been to help and let people know they are not alone. To resolve this issue, I am working on my time management issues. Having specific times set throughout the week to edit videos. I have also been working on using my phone more to record. In the past, I was someone who thought that I always need to use my camera to record, or deciding not to record because I did not want to use my camera in public. I get whatever shots I want, and worry about the rest when I edit the videos. Another way I am working on consistency, is that my post are not always videos. Sometimes there are text or picture post on my community page, which is still a way I can show up for my followers.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCYC318y-Q8I70T_enF-9zLQ
- Instagram: @na_raille
- Youtube: @thesearch810
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