Alright – so today we’ve got the honor of introducing you to Chanell Huecker. We think you’ll enjoy our conversation, we’ve shared it below.

Alright, Chanell thanks for taking the time to share your stories and insights with us today. Earning a full time living from one’s creative career can be incredibly difficult. Have you been able to do so and if so, can you share some of the key parts of your journey and any important advice or lessons that might help creatives who haven’t been able to yet?

After working a 9-to-5 for a while, I realized it was time to take my years of experience in content creation to live by my own lights and listen to the part of me that is always looking for the story.

I spent my weekends and hours after I was off the-clock finding my footing and establishing my business. Simply put, I hustled. After 6 years of working a full-time job and creating on the side, I had enough consistent work to quit and pursue my dreams.

It wasn’t a cake walk at first. I’ve been a creative for over 15 years and never truly pursued it in a way that I am now. Everything I know about the creative industry has all been self-taught. I’ve experienced a rollercoaster of highs and lows over the years and recently hit my very first creative burnout. I struggled with it for
months, but remained determined to break through it—and I did. I gave myself some grace and set attainable goals to help pull myself up for air. Thus, my “Hocus Pocus” series came about in October. I rediscovered myself and found my groove.

Opportunities started to pour in and I couldn’t believe I was making more money freelancing than I was at my 9-to-5. It has been such an honor to work with dream clients who believe in me.

There is nothing more rewarding than being able to create with joy and share that warm feeling with others who feel it, too.

Chanell, love having you share your insights with us. Before we ask you more questions, maybe you can take a moment to introduce yourself to our readers who might have missed our earlier conversations?

I am a self-taught creative and have been in the creative industry  since I was 12-years-old. I started out sharing my content (short  films and music video remakes) on YouTube from 2006-2019. 

‘bychanell’ was created last summer to serve more than one purpose.  There are so many layers to my craft without limitations in place:  creating for the sake of creating — all done with love and bycahnnel.

I think my greatest strength is how much I value and exude quality  over quantity. I ensure my heart is fully immersed from start to  finish when creating. I never share content on a whim or half-ass my  work. I fully recognize what I put out in the world reflects who I am  and I always strive to be warm, kind and vibrant! 

I only represent brands I truly believe in. I  am also a huge advocate and believer in supporting small  businesses, so it always very special to work with  some incredibly talented people who radiantly share their gifts with the world. 

I created my TikTok account January 2022 with my initial intention  of creating videos solely centered around photography. However, I  quickly began to evolve my content to  become more of what made me feel the most joyful. Anyone who  knows me knows I’m a huge movie buff. I love everything about  movies and respect how much goes into them. I’ve always aspired  to be a part of that industry, so recreating some of my favorite  comfort movies from home and sharing them with the world makes  my heart happy. Spreading joy and  laughter is all I ever want to radiate through my work. Comfort 

movies are exactly what they sound like: comforting. They’re  movies that feel like a warm hug and I hope my audience feels it  through my content, too. 

I decided to merge my passions of movies and creative photography  together on Instagram and it was one of the best decisions I’ve made  thus far. I love connecting with my audience in any and every way.  Their support is relentless and ever inspiring. I show up for them  everyday with a grateful heart.

Have you ever had to pivot?

Whether you’re in the creative industry or not, I think it’s fair to say  everyone experiences hurdles of some kind in their career. I’ve  definitely faced some challenges, but I wholeheartedly believe  they’ve helped shape me into who I am today. 

When I started this journey over 15 years ago, I struggled with  consistency. I believe consistency is one of the most important  factors when it comes to success and while I’ve always known it, I  struggled to maintain it early into my career because my focus  wasn’t completely narrowed in on creating content. I prioritized my  education and honed in on my studies to earn my degree in college.  Creating content was always seen as a hobby in my eyes and, for  years, I never wanted it to become anything more than that. 

I produced videos on YouTube, beginning in 2006, and decided to  close that chapter of my life in 2019. It was the year I was getting  married and I prioritized what it meant to “be in the moment”. I 

decided to completely fall off the radar, so I could pursue a more  private life. This was such a pivotal time for me because I created  the most treasured of memories with my family while also healing  and working on my mental and physical health — which is still a  continuous, evolving journey I’m on. 

I never knew when I’d return to the “public eye”, but I always knew  that when I did, it would feel absolutely right—and January 2022  was truly the perfect time for me to come back. It’s been so uplifting  and encouraging to reconnect with those who have been with me  since the very beginning and build new connections through the  content I share. 

What’s the most rewarding aspect of being a creative in your experience?

I’ve hit some incredible milestones on both Instagram and Tiktok.  All of which are beyond my wildest dreams. 

My first viral video on TikTok, posted in March, amassed over 10  millions views. By April, I had over 100,000 accounts following me.  Since then, I’ve had a handful of content reach over 1 million views. 

I launched my Instagram page July 2021 with the original intent of  it serving as my photography portfolio. By the top of 2022, I  switched gears and transformed my profile to be a place to connect  with my community by sharing more of myself through movie  recreations and creative photography. By August, I hit 25,000  followers. I also got to shoot my very first wedding (a bucket list 

dream / new years resolution of mine) on September 24, 2022.  Lately, I’ve been loving how much I’ve learned from other creatives  simply through networking. 

I never believed I would ever achieve all of these incredible  milestones,  so quickly, but every day I am beyond grateful for having such a supportive and encouraging community.  These milestones are absolutely important to me because it has  always been done organically and I attribute so much of my success  to who got me here in the first place: my followers. Their loyalty is  completely admirable, and often times, I’m rendered speechless by  their unwavering support. It is the most rewarding feeling to know  the support I have is because others feel joy/laughter from my work.  Kindness and building heartfelt connections is also very special to  me. I want people to feel warmth when they interact with me and  my content.

Contact Info:

• Website: bychanell.com
• Instagram: instagram.com/by.chanell
• Facebook: facebook.com/bychanell
• Other: tiktok.com/@by.chanell

Image Credits
Brian Huecker