Meet Kay Erickson

We’re excited to introduce you to the always interesting and insightful Kay Erickson. We hope you’ll enjoy our conversation with Kay below.

Hi Kay, appreciate you sitting with us today to share your wisdom with our readers. So, let’s start with resilience – where do you get your resilience from?

I grew up in the 50s/60s and witnessed the change in attitudes towards women, career, college, etc. My parents discouraged me from attending college, their reasoning being that no man would want a woman who was smarter than he was. Well, that’s all I needed to hear, and I enrolled in the University of Minnesota, and made it through with a BFA in photography, Summa cum Laude. Then I went on to earn a MS degree from Mankato State University. I had no role models to give me advice or show me the ropes to get through college and continue on to my various careers including Media Technologist for the Minneapolis Public Schools. I then decided to become a film editor after watching Truffaut films. and made my way to Los Angeles with no prospects, but ended up being a member of the Editor’s Guild, and working on Stephen J. Cannell’s television series, a feature film, and spent some time pulling stock footage from feature length films at Paramount Studios.
With that track record, I realized that I could do most anything that I wanted, if I put my mind to it, including starting a photographic greeting card company, setting up a video/CD library at Yahoo Music, and teaching after school art at an inner city school in Long Beach, California.
Looking back, I see that getting what you want does take resilience, and especially going against what others tell you is not achievable.

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 am retired from the film industry, and Yahoo Music, but I am and always have been an avid photographer.
I worked with several NGOs in Calcutta, India, documenting the Society For Indian Children’s Welfare; and Calcutta Rescue, which helps school children, operates a. health clinic, and teaches handicrafts to people who want to learn a skill.

I also worked on a project with the Ojibwe Native Americans, interviewing elders to tell their stories of growing up on reservations, and being forced to live in boarding schools away from their families. https://www.ojibweproject.com/

Another project that I worked on was teaching math standards to Middle School students, using photography, creating a pictorial math booklet.

I love meeting new people and experiencing their cultures. Helping people through art, to me, is one of the most rewarding experiences.

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?

One should read a lot, especially in the area of your desired field or project.

Networking is very important as well. Find people who are involved in where you want to go, and get their advice.

Travel and meet people. Experience their culture, and never give up.

Before we go, maybe you can tell us a bit about your parents and what you feel was the most impactful thing they did for you?

To me, as a reaction from my parent’s edicts about not going to college, and not pursuing my dreams; gave me the strength to overcome a lot of hurdles. It proved to me that I can do pretty much what I set my mind to, and to proceed, often without moral support.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.ojibweproject.com/ https://kayerickson.com/
• Instagram: holgalens
• Facebook: Kay Erickson Photography
• Linkedin: Kay Erickson
• Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@okaycards

Image Credits

Kay Erickson Photography