We’re excited to introduce you to the always interesting and insightful Vicky Sasouvong. We hope you’ll enjoy our conversation with Vicky below.
Vicky , we’re so excited for our community to get to know you and learn from your journey and the wisdom you’ve acquired over time. Let’s kick things off with a discussion on self-confidence and self-esteem. How did you develop yours?
Wow. I feel like I’m speaking for everyone when I say we are our own biggest critics. I find myself from time to time being so hard on myself and comparing myself to others. It’s been something I’ve struggled with ever since I had my first daughter but didn’t hit me as bad as it did when I had my second. I’ve learned so much about giving myself grace and showing more love to myself on the daily. Speaking more positive words instead of bringing myself down. Your body hears you and your thoughts. Be kind, love yourself and most importantly take time for yourself to feel each and every emotion. That plays a big role in developing confidence and self-esteem. No one is you so own it and show up for yourself every single day!
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?
So my husband is active duty which means we are constantly moving. As of now, we have been living in such a slow paced state that I sometimes literally have to travel to get some work in. But being that I’ve been so dedicated to growing and creating, I find so much joy in traveling and being able to see different parts of the east coast and incorporate the vibe to my socials. I still get the opportunity to work with brands and that keeps me so busy and because I take my work so serious, I get to plan trips to fit in with the content I have planned for the month. It honestly works out. I make it work. I have to. I’ll find random walls behind grocery stores to shoot sometimes and guess what? It works! When you want something you will find ways to make it work! Consistency can be a little bit of a challenge but I try and give myself time and space away from creating because sometimes it can get overwhelming and it’ll start to interfere with my groove and then things start feeling forced. So don’t be afraid to take things slow. I”ve learned to not be in such a rush and just let things flow. I think the luxury of being able to move every 2-3 years brings excitement to my content because it shows how fast I’m able to adapt to each environment and make the best of what I have!
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?
Ah, this is a great question! So for me, I had to learn the hard way when it came to growing my social media account. People love QUALITY content. In order for your page to stay “relevant” you have to post multiple times a week but this is where I got stuck. I was trying to take photos every single day and some days just didn’t work out how I wanted it to. Either the weather was bad or the outfit didn’t work out and that caused me to lose out on days worth of content. So the best advice I’d have to give is, take advantage of a good day and shoot like 5 plus outfits. The more you shoot, the more content you’ll have prepared for a bad day where you need to post. Second thing I’ve learned is to venture out and have variety. Shop different brands. We fall into this routine of just using products we’re used to and wearing brands we’ve shopped with for years and yes, it’s okay to have our staple items but again, venture out! Tag brands! Even if they don’t notice you right away, trust me.. they see you! The right brands will reach out when you least expect it. This has happened to me so many times! But also, don’t be afraid reach out to brands! Pitch ideas on content you may have planned using their products or wearing their pieces. Find ways to keep them interested. It will take you so far! Last but not least, get out of your own way! You may not know it but sometimes you can be your biggest road block. Stop letting fear get in your way. People will judge you regardless of what you do so just post what you like and love. Share your creativity! Share your love for creating. Don’t let YOU stop YOU from doing what you are destined to do!
One of our goals is to help like-minded folks with similar goals connect and so before we go we want to ask if you are looking to partner or collab with others – and if so, what would make the ideal collaborator or partner?
Yes!! I just love meeting new people! My goal is to work with different makeup artists, stylists and photographers and just shoot. There’s so many dope, creative individuals that I feel can feed off my aesthetic as I would with theirs and together I think we can create some really great things whether it be for my own socials along with theirs or for brands! My goal this year is to work with more brands and get into modeling more. I think my biggest blessing I’ve gotten from being a content creator is having the opportunity to work with some amazing companies so I wanna step it up and shoot more professional content for the brands and if I can work with upcoming stylists and artists to take the content to another level so that they too can have the opportunity to grow and network also then I’m all for it! I think it’s so important to share your love with others that have the same drive and motivation as you and give each other opportunities and also just learn from one another. When I was starting off I was always so happy to share tips and tricks I learned along the way with fellow peers that had the same love for content creating because if I have the tools and resources, why keep it to myself? I’m looking forward to this year so any creatives that would love to collaborate, please reach out via email at ykcivsaeng@gmail.com or through Instagram!
Contact Info:
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/ykcivs/
Image Credits:
Carlos Diaz, Beatriz Diaz and Michael James Sasouvong
