Meet Maiana Rose

We recently connected with Maiana Rose and have shared our conversation below.

Maiana, we’re thrilled to have you sharing your thoughts and lessons with our community. So, for folks who are at a stage in their life or career where they are trying to be more resilient, can you share where you get your resilience from?

When I contemplate the concept of “resilience,” the word brings to mind a memory from a yoga class where the instructor shared her words of wisdom with her students: “The goal of life isn’t to be happy all the time; the goal is to become resilient.” This seemingly simple statement stuck in my mind for the rest of the class, and far beyond the mat. Whenever I find myself facing moments of doubt, obstacles, or what might look like failures, I instinctively turn to the idea of resilience as an intrinsic state of being. This principle can be applied to every facet of life: from relationships to career endeavors, and even the journey of overcoming emotional obstacles and traumas.

As a creative, I’ve had to cultivate a certain level of resilience to prevent burnout. Resilience, however, doesn’t mean pushing forward relentlessly, come whatever weather. It involves staying keenly attuned to one’s own life, engaging in honest self-reflection, and discerning when there’s genuine enthusiasm and energy behind a pursuit, or when it’s time to head back to the drawing board. For example, being a resilient creative doesn’t mean I’m constantly inspired, painting, generating ideas, or promoting myself. It means keeping faith in myself (and the universe) and believing deep down that I’ll return to my creative passions when the energy aligns and the timing is just right – because timing, with the right intent, truly is everything. I’ve often found that time and space are essential ingredients in refining an idea, and significant growth accompanies that process. (To illustrate, for example, it took me nearly two years to complete my first book because the crystal-clear vision only emerged in the final stretch.) This can be incredibly frustrating in a world that often craves instant gratification.

What has genuinely sustained me is the development of a robust meditation practice and my spiritual journey. Another significant aspect of my resilience lies in recognizing when it’s time to retreat and recharge, (lot’s of alone time) ensuring that I’m fully prepared and reinvigorated for the right moment. Flexibility and adaptability have proven to be invaluable. Since my career predominantly lies within the entertainment industry (accompanied with plenty of freelance work as an artist and creative director), I’ve come to understand that certain factors are simply beyond my control – auditions, project timelines, or even unexpected hiccups like union strikes. Despite moments of disappointment (which have been more frequent than I’d like), I’ve taught myself not to overly attach my identity to my career, my successes, or how others perceive me. When I’ve been brutally honest with myself and let go of what I thought I wanted, I’ve often discovered new paths to move forward.

The fascinating outcome of this approach is that I often end up attracting opportunities in the very areas I had recently released my attachment to. Like when you finally have moved on, and then your ex suddenly decides to make an effort, or that moment at a restaurant when you decide to dash to the bathroom before your food arrives, only to return and find your meal waiting for you. If metaphors aren’t your cup of tea, what I mean to say is that whenever my attention is focused elsewhere, I somehow manage to draw opportunities from the very areas I’d decided to let go of. This pattern has become rather recurrent for me, and given the plethora of manifestation podcasts I’ve been tuning into, there seems to be some scientific truth behind it. Continuously working on disentangling my identity from specific outcomes has been a liberating journey. I won’t claim it’s easy, but with consistent practice, it has become a foundational aspect of my life, closely resembling the concept of resilience.

To paint a picture of what this actually looks like, I can’t leave out some of the specifics of how I’ve worked through certain periods of feeling stuck or giving up. For one, right after college, I made the move to LA with big hopes and dreams of breaking into the entertainment industry (and just like everyone else), with certain hopes as to how that would go. Up until the pandemic hit, I was making steady progress in my career as a producer – in Reality TV, no less. I knew it wasn’t my ultimate goal, but I stuck with it and gained a wealth of experience. Meanwhile, in the process of developing one of my own concepts for a TV series that was animated, I began dabbling in digital art to illustrate the series (I majored in art, but at the time decided not to pursue it as a career). I found myself creating artwork that grew into working with various local spots and brands around LA and crafting a concept that would eventually become my company, Drawlaland. However, doing art for social media wasn’t exactly paying the bills; it was more of a side hustle.

Nevertheless, leveraging my writing skills and knack for illustration, I came up with the idea to write my first illustrated book, “Oh, The Pics That You’ll Post!” During the pandemic, I had a natural break from producing, and I decided to delve into acting. (If astrology means anything to you, I’m a Leo, and grew up in the performing arts, so while it was new for me as a professional, it felt like a return to exploring my long lost performative side.) Since all the classes were still available over zoom I was able to make some progress in this area. While seeking representation and working toward this new goal, I received the news that my book was going to be published… and once again I pivoted my focus towards something entirely new. Leading up to the book’s publication date, I devoted all my free time to its launch, effectively becoming my own PR agent and event planner. In many ways, I succeeded, and it was a fun and highly engaging experience for me. However, after six months, I found myself burnt out and didn’t think I wanted to touch it again. I was also feeling drained by the entertainment industry, despite having some promising TV and film projects on the horizon, and my next book already written and waiting in the queue (a humorous take on dating). I was so tired of living in the world of ‘hope and potential’, and didn’t have the drive to push things forward. In my mind, I had failed at turning my creative aspirations into a career and felt I needed something concrete.

So, I took a job as a project manager for a metaverse platform – certainly not where I had envisioned myself after the book launch or dedicating countless hours to developing television projects. But for the first time, I had no self-directed goals. This role led to more work outside of the entertainment sector, as I started collaborating with Alphaa.io (a fan engagement solution / tech company) as a creative director and artist, serving their diverse clients with artwork, and creative engagement and marketing strategies. (Omit While here) I enjoyed the work (and still do!), however something still felt amiss. It was as if I had lost my creative drive and the motivation to push any of my own creative projects forward. I felt like I had lost touch with my own goals, and held the belief that my past experiences had shown me that my creative pursuits wouldn’t lead to success. I had stopped painting, writing, or trying to promote my next book, and the creative spark to “do my own thing” just wasn’t there anymore. Around the same time, I learned that the house I was renting in Laurel Canyon was going to be put on the market. Suddenly, I had an opportunity to leave LA and knew I needed to figure out my next life direction, even if it meant abandoning my former goals and the city I had considered my home.

Despite my initial resistance, I moved out of my amazing canyon home and returned to Santa Fe for the summer to regroup, get a part time job, eat out of my mom’s pantry (LOL), and chart a new path forward. Should I go back to school for art? But once again, that felt like a substantial commitment and a significant financial investment for what appeared to be yet another career path subject to luck. Should I take a tech course? “But I’m a creative!” the voice in my head protested. I’ll admit, I felt lost. That’s when I turned back to meditation and my spirituality. I have to give credit to several audiobooks that I listened to during this transitional period: “The Untethered Soul” by Michael Singer, “The Surrender Experiment,” also by Michael Singer, ” and “Return to Love” by Marianne Williamson. Each book reinforced the lessons I had learned on my journey and solidified my newfound attitude and approach toward my goals. The main takeaways were: happiness comes out of a decision to accept circumstances and remain unattached, surrendering to life’s unfolding without the need for control, and giving your goals to a higher power, allowing yourself to be a channel for something greater.

Although I’m not where I want to be just yet (are we ever really there?), I’m grateful to share that I’ve found my way back to all that was lost. I’m finally developing a film I’ve been eager to make for years, I have a clear understanding of the types of jobs that align with my interests and skills that align with what I began with drawlaland, I continue to pursue my entertainment track both in auditioning for roles, developing and producing projects, I’m working on a new series of paintings, and after a long hiatus, I’m rekindling the promotion of my first book, “Oh, The Pics That You’ll Post!” with a mission to raise awareness about mental health and offer healthy engagement with social media as it remains a big part of our foreseeable future.

I hope that (for anyone who’s journeyed through my story), the key takeaway is that by embracing the notion of resilience, even when you feel like you’ve taken a detour, it’s that very resilience that propels you forward, and sooner or later, you’ll rediscover your path. Our task is to let all the pieces fall into place and spring into action when the moment is right. You never know what magical surprises awaits when you remain open, adaptable, and full of resilience! 🌟

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?

As I mentioned, I have my fingers in many pots, which, I must say, is par for the course when you’re neurodivergent (a fancy way of saying ADD). While, at times, I’ve struggled with scattered focus, I’ve discovered ways to hone in on specific areas and drive them forward. (And in some ways, ADD can be a super power).

As mentioned before, amongst many things, one of my main focuses now is how to tie my work to a larger cause— Which is the inspiration for reigniting my efforts to promote my first book. This endeavor isn’t meant to be about me as an author, or facilitating the publication of my next book(s) (although I’m equally excited about the sequel, titled “Oh, The Dudes That You’ll Date”), but it also aligns with a larger mission to tackle a mental health crisis in this current generation of young people. Despite having written the book some time ago, I realized it hadn’t yet reached its intended audience or served its purpose. Inspired by the opportunity to host a book signing at the Barnes & Noble location in the Grove during the upcoming graduation season, I reimagined how I could connect the book to a broader cause. While I don’t have the specific dates, the event is set to take place in May for Mental Health Awareness Month, and in addition to a book signing, I’m working on getting some really fun and exciting partners to be involved! So please stay tuned via my social media or join my email list! Whether it’s for this event or other initiatives, I aim to collaborate with organizations advocating for mental health in the context of social media or causes supporting educational resources for teenagers, helping them engage with social media responsibly while pursuing purposeful careers that benefit their future and our collective future, even if social media serves as a tool to do so.

As I mentioned, I’m delving into abstract art with my upcoming series, a departure from my illustrated works that I’m thrilled to share. Some of these pieces are featured in the photos. Once the series is completed, I plan to host an art show, and you can find information on dates and locations through my social media channels and email list.

And, I’m actively pursuing my entertainment goals as a producer and actor, although I’m currently unable to disclose specific details due to proprietary reasons. I can share that all my projects strive to convey messages that I am deeply passionate about and believe our world sorely needs.

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 most impactful experiences I had on my journey would have to be moving to LA, and living on my own for the first time, and navigating the entertainment industry , becoming an author and for the first time having to stand behind my own work, and lastly, surrendering to the unknown as I had lost sight of my goals, and just seeing what came through. I also can’t leave out, as I mentioned before, my spiritual evolution, education and meditation practice has really come to my aid.

Advice I have for anyone first embarking on a career track, unless you land your dream job right away (which is amazing but also quite rare), the key is to “just do it,” as the Nike slogan suggests. Dive into whatever opportunities come your way without overthinking whether or not they’re the perfect fit. My greatest advice is to embrace the journey, even if you’re not particularly fond of your current job. There’s something within it that is guiding you along the right path. Throughout my career, I’ve had many chapters and held various jobs in different industries. I’ve discovered that all the skills I’ve acquired from each of those experiences are valuable to me now in ways I never expected.

Many people may have heard of “Imposter syndrome” – it’s a real phenomenon that can hinder you from fully recognizing (or feeling confidence) in your expertise and abilities. I would encourage anyone feeling this way to understand it as a natural part of the process of trying different roles on for size. Similarly, just as I’m working on detaching from outcomes as I progress on my journey, I would recommend the same practice to anyone starting out. There’s immense growth that arises from being in a position that may not align perfectly with your goals. Much like dating, it often takes a series of wrong experiences to lead you to the right one. Oftentimes, a job that seems “wrong” can serve as the catalyst for discovering what you truly want and your underlying “why.”

Okay, so before we go we always love to ask if you are looking for folks to partner or collaborate with?

Due to my current mission to reengage and connect my first book with a larger movement centered around healthy engagement with social media, I am actively seeking collaborators—whether individuals or organizations—whose values align with the cause that my book promotes.

About the Book and Its Mission: “Oh, The Pics That You’ll Post” is a millennial twist on the classic Dr. Seuss style, humorously illustrating the somewhat absurd yet emotionally tumultuous journey of attempting to build a social media following.

Unlike some other books addressing social media and its adverse effects on mental health, my book does not fall into the category of expert advice. Instead, it serves as a voice representing the perspective of millennials, for millennials (and Gen Z-ers), speaking directly to these generations rather than lecturing them. Through humor and accuracy, my book aims to encourage its readers to stay present in real life (“IRL”) and avoid making social media the sole focus of their lives or purpose.

Due to some alarming statistics I have come across (e.g., a Bloomberg study revealing that 98% of middle school and high school students aspire to become social media influencers, or “Teens who use social media for more than three hours a day face double the risk of depression and anxiety symptoms, which is particularly concerning given that the average amount of time that kids use social media is 3 1/2 hours a day,” – Surgeon General Dr. Vivek Murthy),

I would greatly appreciate it if any of my readers who are aware of or work with causes contributing to conversations around how to mitigate the negative impact of social media would reach out. I would love to explore opportunities for collaboration or to use my book as a tool to advocate for this cause in a fun and engaging manner.

Furthermore, other artists or curators who may want to collaborate on an art show. Also I thoroughly enjoy collaborating with brands as a creative director, artist, and copywriter. If you have a brand or company and believe our visions align, please don’t hesitate to reach out via my website or any of the provided contact info.

Contact Info:

• Website: www.drawlaland.com
• Instagram: @maiyonce_ / @drawlaland
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/maiana-rose-85a37753/
• Other: If you wish to engage with me on any of the topics mentioned, you can certainly reach out via email: [email protected]

Image Credits
Sara Grab – Photos of me in the Pink and Yellow