We caught up with the brilliant and insightful E.C. Pizarro III a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.

E.C., looking forward to hearing all of your stories today. Can you talk to us about a risk you’ve taken – walk us through the story?

My big risk came during my time in corporate America in 2017. The company I worked for had been purchased by a larger firm and I was officially transitioned to remote work. With that came staff shifts. I was moved to a different department and within a few months, notified that I would be laid off in 90 days. Then, in November 2017, my life changed through three major losses, the death of my maternal grandfather and paternal grandmother, and my fiance decided that she wanted to “just be friends.” Everything I knew about the life I thought I was creating had shifted within 90 days. I was unemployed, single, and sitting in an empty apartment with an expired lease.

As anyone would have, I applied for many different jobs but very few opportunities came up. Full transparency, I thought about leaving design behind and picking up something to pay the bills. In my eyes, life was spiraling and I was losing control. Within a few months, I received a contract position that wasn’t too consistent. But with the help from friends I stayed above water with bills and groceries. Then the pandemic hit; contracts started to dry up, and agencies closed. Thankfully, many of my friends found themselves working remote and still needing graphic support at their jobs. With agencies closing and design projects still needing to be done, I stepped in to offer services like video editing, design, audio editing, web services, and anything else within my skillset. I replaced their creative agencies. Honestly, I thought I was only doing what I needed to do in order to survive.

By February 2021, I was working a consistent contract position while also serving my own clients directly. The contract position called and asked me to pick up some additional work (in the past, this would be have been an amazing opportunity). But, after consideration I realized that it would have taken me away from my clients, pushed out deadlines, and made me less money with three times the work load! That was the moment I knew a hard decision had to be made. Insert “taking a huge risk.” I knew what needed to be done but I also remembered months of being behind on rent, coming home to eviction notices, cellphone and internet being off, and being flat out hungry! I was scared to step out on my own but I was losing potential money and growth by staying with the contract. Nervous as hell, I quit the steady contract, finished out the month, and went all in on my firm with my own clients.

From then on, I focused solely on my firm and work with clients that genuinely wanted to work with me. Choosing to step away from a traditional 9-5 and work for myself has changed my life. Doing work that I love (even when it drives me crazy), graphic and web design, website management, and branding services, allowed me to provide myself with a lifestyle I didnt know I needed.

E.C., 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?

If someone had told me, in 2008, that I would be an award-winning digital and graphic artist, I would have laughed right in their faces.
At the time, I was working 12+ hour days and managing a full-time class load as a Civil Engineering student. Nothing about where I spent my time was inspiring, creative, or fulfilling. Day after day, I showed up for work and class – just as I felt “I was supposed to do.”

But in 2009, my grandfather passed away and changed the trajectory of my life. He was a lifelong artist, musician, kindergarten teacher, and painter. Throughout my life, he was my biggest inspiration to always strive for the best; he was my everything. His passing left a space in my life that I struggled to navigate, but it also gave me a deep sense of knowing that I was not living the freedom he showed me. Through the grief, I was determined to live a life full of artistic adventure, chosen family and community, freedom to explore, and unfiltered joy.

One year later, my travels and life experiences led me to register with the Art Institute for Graphic Design. Through my studies, I discovered that I had not only a natural talent for graphic design but a genuine love for the limitless possibilities it offered my art. The design industry has allowed me to show up for my communities (and for myself) in ways I never imagined.

As a professional Brand Designer and Digital artist in the corporate world, I won awards like the Marcom Award 2016 and 2017, gold and platinum winners, respectively.

Navigating the corporate jungle as a Black man of trans* experience, required me to learn how to overcome many challenges and hurdles along the way. However, with these experiences and my training as a public speaker, I have confidently educated and encouraged emerging designers to find their style in the white male-dominated design industry.

In 2018, I officially left the corporate world and began working strictly on my terms as a designer, consultant, and artist. That decision has allowed me to use my talent and skills to create timeless branding and digital content for entrepreneurs and fortune 500 companies.

My goal is to empower companies and organizations to connect authentically with their business while creating a seamless brand; positioned for maximum profit and success. Throughout the years, he has had the opportunity to speak and work with BuzzFeed, Yale University, Power to Fly, Trans Tech Summit, and many others. His work represents and celebrates the beautiful intersections of the Black and Black trans communities.

We’d love to hear the story of how you turned a side-hustle into a something much bigger.

In 2008, I’d started to do random “odds and ends” graphic projects for family, when I had time between work and school. That grew into do it for their friends and it eventually grew through word of mouth. My first non family paying client was a woman named Charron (we are still close on social media til this day). She asked me to create the highschool graduation announcement for her daughter. I was excited and nervous but completed the project from design to print (people were still printing then). Gosh I miss those days! There is a level of validation in your “side hustle” when someone who isn’t a family member or a friend of the family actually pays you!

Fast forward a few years and I was still actively working my side hustle but for more friends and community than family. Being a low disclosure/stealth man of transgender experience meant that I was working in my community with different organizations but behind the scenes. This is where I found my space with orgs like TransTech Social, National Transgender Visibility March 2019, HIPS, and Miss Ross Inc. This work provided me with a network of people that saw my work ethic and quality. Many of my old and current clients are from a connection that I made on the NTVM in 2019. Working with TransTech connected me with Ronny Parks who helped provide the framework to scale and implement the systems to better serve the clients I had.

The key milestone in my growth as an entrepreneur was my network and having people around me that were willing to help, especially when I finally learned to ask for it.

We’d love to hear a story of resilience from your journey.

As a person that has dealt with mental health issues since my teens, when my life crumbled in 2017, so did my mental health. With no end to the chaos in sight, I had no choice but to fight. I began working out, going to the beach, journaling, biking, and genuinely centering the things that brought me joy and peace. The more I worked on my mental, spiritual, and physical wellness, the less bleak my thoughts became. Trust me when I say, it’s hard when your mind is cold, dark, lonely and hungry! But with the support of my chosen family I made an active choice everyday to choose myself and my peace. I was dedicated to fighting for my life and things started to fall into place!

In 2021, I realized the struggles of my current home were making my mental health struggles worse. So, with the assistance of my Aunt/Godmother I was able to move into a place that felt more aligned with where I was headed, However, at that time, agencies were beginning to open again and client work was starting to dry up. Still scared but hopeful, I kept going. I moved in June 2021; in that same month I secured a new long-term client. As their creative director, I would work on the graphics and digital identity for all of their hybrid summit events. I had taken another chance and it paid off, literally 2 days before my rent was due.    

Contact Info:

• Website: ecpizarro.com
• Instagram: instagram.com/ecapthree
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/ecapthree
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/ecapthree/
• Twitter: twitter.com/ecapthree

Image Credits
Capture Studio Photography Ashleigh Bing Photography Lex Webster Photography