Alright – so today we’ve got the honor of introducing you to Alirien. We think you’ll enjoy our conversation, we’ve shared it below.
Alirien, thanks for joining us, excited to have you contributing your stories and insights. It’s always helpful to hear about times when someone’s had to take a risk – how did they think through the decision, why did they take the risk, and what ended up happening. We’d love to hear about a risk you’ve taken.
The biggest risk I’ve taken was quitting my 9-5 retail job in 2021 to go full-time as a self-employed creator. I technically did things wrong if you ask any other creator out there; I should have muddled through until I was more financially stable before I made this move. However, I had overwhelming support from my mom (gods bless her!) and my boyfriend (he’s a keeper!) to make the leap, so I did! While I must admit my growth has been slow, it’s been only positive since walking away from my “normal day job,” and I don’t regret it one bit. I’ve been so happy and fulfilled to focus on my sewing and DIY projects, tarot reading, event and travel plans, video game streaming, and video editing over the last three years, and I’m eager to see what the future holds.
Alirien, before we move on to more of these sorts of questions, can you take some time to bring our readers up to speed on you and what you do?
I’d say it all started when I was a child. My mom made my Halloween costumes for many years: a pumpkin, a black cat, Cinderella, Ariel, etc. As I got older, I wanted to use the “real” costumes for some of the characters, but in high school, I rediscovered the magic that is making it yourself. That was when I delved into the world of cosplay. I’ve always been drawn to creative and performative pursuits, be it writing, photography, theatre, music, or video, so it was a natural segue.
I started making my videos in 2015, and over time I kept hearing other creators emphasize that to do well in the ever-concerning social media algorithms, you had to pick only one interest to post about. Unfortunately, I have far too many interests, and it seems absurd to me to limit my online presence to such a narrow aspect of myself. I refuse to put myself in a single box that may or may not bring in more followers, so I post about multiple topics and often have them overlap. My running motto of late is, “Life’s too short to niche yourself down.” I want to show people that, while it might not be viral or enormous, you can succeed online by showing multiple interests on a single social page.
Learning and unlearning are both critical parts of growth – can you share a story of a time when you had to unlearn a lesson?
I had to (and still am) un-learning my perfectionism. I come by perfectionism honestly, as my dad was practically a professional at it. I’d take longer to finish what I was doing, but it would be done right. I’m realizing that there’s a lovely middle ground between finished and flawless and that I can find a nice spot somewhere in that middle ground to aim for with my projects. This also means I don’t wait for everything in the universe to align before I get started on something. If you wait too long, you may never start, you know?
Are there any books, videos or other content that you feel have meaningfully impacted your thinking?
I’d say there are two books I’ve read in the last few years that have significantly helped me keep going and think more positively about my professional journey. These books are Don’t Keep Your Day Job by Cathy Heller and Disney’s Land by Richard Snow.
The first one is part autobiography, part self-help, in which Heller describes her journey from her day job into her creative career as well as the journeys and advice of several other creatives, many of whom have been guests on her podcast. My point at the end of the last question comes from something she stressed in her book: don’t keep waiting to change your life. Instead, ask yourself what one thing you can do each day to get closer to your goal and make your art a career.
The second book is written about the process and village of people it took to build and open Disneyland in Anaheim. Walt Disney went bankrupt multiple times while building that park, and it wasn’t pristine or perfect when it opened in 1955, yet look at the park now, and look at his legacy! The story of Walt’s career is inspirational in so many ways: he came from a small, middle-of-nowhere town, he had his initial art stolen from him by the studio he worked for, and he failed multiple times before he asked his brother, Roy, to help. His entire story reminds me to keep going, no matter how many times I failed before, how long my goal is taking, or how low my situation feels; and to never be afraid to ask for help, because that help may be what finally tips the scale in my favor.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://aliriencosplay.com
- Instagram: @alirien14
- Facebook: @Alirien14
- Twitter: @Alirien14
- Youtube: @Alirien
- Other: https://linktr.ee/alirien
