We recently connected with Darius Cornelius and have shared our conversation below.

Alright, Darius thanks for taking the time to share your stories and insights with us today. Parents can play a significant role in affecting how our lives and careers turn out – and so we think it’s important to look back and have conversations about what our parents did that affected us positive (or negatively) so that we can learn from the billions of experiences in each generation. What’s something you feel your parents did right that impacted you positively.

First off, I want to start by saying I have the most amazing parents anyone can ask for. When I hear “what did your parents do right?” I mean the list goes on and on. From always showering me with positive love and energy, to teaching me valuable life lessons that molded me into the man/chef I am today. My parents have not only showed me how to present myself and carry myself in a positive manor but also teaching me right from wrong, how to act in certain situations and the hardworking mentality I have today. I’m truly grateful for them and I can’t wait to fully repay them for all the things they’ve done for me.

As always, we appreciate you sharing your insights and we’ve got a few more questions for you, but before we get to all of that can you take a minute to introduce yourself and give our readers some of your back background and context?

For those who don’t know, I’m Chef D/Darius also known across multiple platforms as ATLCHEFD. I’m a good content creator/chef. I got into the food industry in a very wild way I would say. I never intended to be a chef or consider myself a content creator. It’s something that just happened and fell in my lap. I’ve always been fond of cooking, not to show off my cooking but just something I enjoyed growing up. And with my family and friends they use to always see me posting food here and there on my social media stories. It came to the point where they were telling me “Hey Darius, you know cooking might really be your passion and something you should pursue”. I just never saw myself making money off or food or even pursuing it as a career. But as time went on I saw that it was something I truly enjoyed, so why not show the world my talents. That turned into the creator and chef you all know today.

Can you tell us about what’s worked well for you in terms of growing your clientele?

This one may sound very simple and seem as if it’s the common answer. But the most effective strategy when it comes to marketing is putting yourself out there on social media showcasing your work and also using useful hashtags. These are things that I’ve seen work for myself. It’s been countless times where clients will book or inquire to me and say they found me from a hashtag they’ve searched or came across my page on the explore page. The times we are in now, where social media is as big as it is, it’s pivotal that you use that to your advantage to grow your business and brand.

Have you ever had to pivot?

A good story would actually be how I went from my full time 9-5 job to becoming a full time content creator/chef. I was working my job for about 8 years and some change and I was in a career where I didn’t particularly enjoy it to the fullest. In the midst of working at my job is when I truly found the love for cooking and it’ll be times where celebrities or even friends would inquire about a booking and it’ll be a day I had to work. So I would have to choose between work or something I enjoyed. As my notoriety grew, more people would inquire and it came to a point where I prayed and told myself I would take this leap of faith and pursue cooking full time and it’s been nothing but a blessing so far.

Contact Info:

• Website: Chefdarius.com
• Instagram: Atlchefd
• Facebook: Atlchefd
• Other: TikTok: Atlchefd