We recently connected with Natalie Palik and have shared our conversation below.

Natalie, thanks for joining us, excited to have you contributing your stories and insights. Can you open up about a risk you’ve taken – what it was like taking that risk, why you took the risk and how it turned out?

One of the biggest risks I’ve taken in my 25 years, was taking the risk to bet on myself. While it may sound cliche, it is something I am extremely proud of. Growing up, I knew there was a clear path to be viewed as “successful” by my peers and society in general. That path was graduate high school, get into a great college, get a job in the corporate world, work 40+ hours a week and hope to climb the corporate ladder a few years into said job.

I followed that path and while it did pay off for a few years, I found myself constantly drained and losing a very important part of myself. I knew I was meant for more than reporting to a manager, and job – that at the end of the day, just saw me as a number on a payroll. I don’t believe that I went through all of the experiences that I did in high school and college, just to table my passions and talents – so one day I decided to start a podcast. I always say I am plagued with nostalgia, feel entirely too much, and my podcast became my outlet. Starting my podcast was one of the most vulnerable things I have done to date – I have always overshared on the internet, but that was typically to my Instagram stories (which stay up for all of 24 hours).

My podcast is not only a creative outlet for me, but a beautiful community has been built around it – which has opened the door for me to make money from my passion. While I didn’t receive instant support from those closest to me, the support and love that I’ve received from strangers on the internet has been beyond words! I want to be a light for anyone who has ever needed it, and I am so happy that my podcast has been that so far.

Awesome – so before we get into the rest of our questions, can you briefly introduce yourself to our readers.

I am a 25 year old entrepreneur / creator. I create content through my podcast, my social media pages, and do UGC work for various brands. I have always had a love for creating and putting on a show from a very young age. I am extremely proud of both the authenticity and creativity within my content across all platforms.

I know all too well how it can feel being isolated and allowing your thoughts to take over, and then opening social media to what seems to be a perfect person/ their perfect life. Obviously I capture things and try to portray things in an appealing way, but I am not one to shy away from getting real and raw with what is going on in my life and normalizing daily struggles.

Is there mission driving your creative journey?

The mission, or my “why” for my creative journey – is to create a space online that I wish I had growing up. I want to be a space for anyone, of all ages really, to feel seen, heard, less alone, and be entertained! In this digital age, we are flooded with so much information, I have my own “comfort creators” and I strive to be a comfort creator for as many people out there as possible.

What do you find most rewarding about being a creative?

For me, the most rewarding aspect of being a creative, is putting my own personal twist on things. I love when people tell me that my content feels like a FaceTime call, or they look forward to my daily posts. I love feeling like I am making a difference in the world, whether if it’s through a silly video, a tutorial, or a long depth podcast episode! It is always so exciting to connect and collaborate with other creators, as we are all in this for our own reasons but can all come together and lift each other up. Most people that aren’t in the creative space may not understand all of the time and effort spent into sharing parts of your life, but the ones that get it truly make all of the difference.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://naptimecreations-shop.fourthwall.com/
• Instagram: nataliexpalik
• Other: Tiktok: nataliexpalik
  Spotify & Apple Podcast: It’s NAP Time