Meet Maiya Michelle

We were lucky to catch up with Maiya Michelle recently and have shared our conversation below.

Maiya , we’re thrilled to have you on our platform and we think there is so much folks can learn from you and your story. Something that matters deeply to us is living a life and leading a career filled with purpose and so let’s start by chatting about how you found your purpose.

We are all trying to find something, the very thing that has been living within us all along. Purpose lives within you and you can’t find it in the external things, you must look within yourself. You must break down the barriers in your mind that are telling you who you should be, instead of reminding you of who you are. My purpose was found when I started walking in who I am and not being so worried about who I could be to other people. Ultimately your purpose is what fuels your soul and what naturally comes to you. I’ve always told stories with my art and felt fulfilled when I was creating. I stopped telling myself what would and would not work out, based on what was happening in the now. If you feel strongly about your abilities then you don’t have to find your purpose, you live it. And if you’re still searching remember that it’s something inside you that wants to be birthed.

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?

Hi, my name is Maiya Michelle. I am an Artistic Visionary many know me for my creative direction and photography. Ive been gifted with many talents and I’m not afraid to bring the things in my mind to life even if it seems impossible. I’ve been working my craft for the last five years. Striving to be better I’ve taken time to master my work and connect with other artists in my city. I am grateful to say that I have been publishing in multiple magazines and my work has been in exhibitions. I have created and directed my own web-series called Culinary Chaos on YouTube. Bringing together artist in major cities to build community. All in all I love what I do, and photography has been my way of expession, I love to tell stories through photos that’s what makes them so special. To be able to move people with your art is amazing. I strive to continue to create that feeling for anyone who comes across my work.

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?

If I had to start all over again, I would say the best qualities you can have is. Patience, persistence, and integrity I believe as artist the minute we change the tide and start going after our dreams we become very impatient. It can be daunting looking for opportunities with little experience but a lot of talent, and just wondering when your next break is. You must have faith or a sense of knowing that what is for you will never miss you. You cannot control when you moment will come. You must persist in time of your adversities, things will become very difficult and it will make you want to quit, to turn back to your old life. It is natural design for the world to make you fail, which is why you have to press on. There is something great on the other side of the pressure you feel at this time. Be a person of your word, stand for what you believe in and carry them with you throughout all that you do. Your integrity is important, it helps you stay true to who you are. To not shrinking yourself for anyone else but showing up authentically you in all spaces. Being honest even when it’s hard, those are skills I had learn and master early on in my journey.

Do you think it’s better to go all in on our strengths or to try to be more well-rounded by investing effort on improving areas you aren’t as strong in?

I believe balance is always good, playing into all of your strengths can be beneficial. I will say there is little reward in that, the true reward is in the challenge. Investing your time in things you’ve never tried, being a well rounded person can help you discover hidden truths about yourself. Giving you more clarity of what strength to lean on, and what you still need to work on. Investing time into your strengths and new ventures can grow your confidence. Balance comes into play when you know more about what your strengths are and you put your focus on that one quality. Consistently working the muscles so it can grow strong, the best painters didn’t just become the best over night. It took countless hours of doing the same mundane task, and even making bad paintings at times. I believe you must go out and explore, try what interests you also be open to doing things that you may not normally do. Play into your strengths and build that muscle. Ultimately, you must find your happy medium and learn to balance.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://maiyamichelle.my.canva.site/#my-portfolio
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/itsmaiyamichelle?igsh=MTk5dDc5a2hxNHVoNA==
• Youtube: https://youtube.com/@maiyamichelle?si=2l3fNd2UEduMxKrT

Image Credits

Lunyè Fatima
Jennifer & Keon
Merdie
Davesha