We’re excited to introduce you to the always interesting and insightful Gabby Sanchez. We hope you’ll enjoy our conversation with Gabby below.

Gabby, thanks for taking the time to share your stories with us today Let’s go back in time to when you were an intern or apprentice – what’s an interesting story you can share from that stage of your career?

My first real internship was September 2022 into early November 2022. The position was social media content creator for an investment app startup. As Gen-Z, it only made all the sense to get into technology and finance. Thus, this startup allowed me to do both by branching into FinTech.

I can wholeheartedly say that being in your early 20s and being an intern was not easy. I was a full time student, interning, and working another job.

Mondays: Meetings and discuss possible topics to discuss in our content videos + Have 6 video drafted video concepts for TikTok/Instagram Reels

Tuesdays: Film 3 fully ready videos (caption, hashtags, etc) by our Wednesday meetings.

Wednesdays: Meeting to review the teams 3 drafted videos

My only lesson from this internship: PAY YOUR INTERNS.

You, as a possible intern and possible future employee, are more than entitled to ask for pay for your services.

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?

Hi! My name is Gabby Sanchez and I am based in Los Angeles, California. I’m 23 and a podcaster, dancer, and aspiring model and aspiring personal trainer.

Truthfully, I wish I can verbally stand before all those reading to say that I am still learning how to “get into _____ industry.” One thing I do understand well though? Building your OWN brand.

Here is my example: Twitter. Yes, the blue bird app that everyone hates these days.

However, I have been on the Twitter app for over a decade of my life. I didn’t feel like I belonged to any crowd my entire academic career (from elementary school to high school). Thus, I made internet friends and I started building my first singular brand: Fangirl. Even though many people judged and laughed at me for my “fangirl” self back when I was 13, it landed me in a music video for my favorite dance crew turned musical group.

My present day brand: Unhinged persona with a hint of offline freedom.

After getting older and shifting out of the fangirl life, I knew it was time to establish a new self brand for myself but more adult like. Thus, I created my unhinged Twitter persona with the wildest tweets I could possibly think of. The tweets did numbers and I had followers coming in, laughing at what I would say. My Twitter friends would repost my tweets and that’s how my current brand was made. However, as I am adulting and focusing on furthering my career, I have not been as active on Twitter. Thus, I add the “offline freedom” aspect of it all.

You ask me: “What does Twitter have to do with making a brand for yourself?” Everything, actually. Instagram and TikTok are known for having famous content creators and influencers post their various personas: Women humor, men humor, college experiences, work content creators (from different people in various work fields, etc), and countless many and endless out there. Twitter content creators are much more underrated. How often do you see Instagram pages continuously reposting tweets? It’s very unoriginal and sleazy. Thus, you can be known on any app of your choosing. It just depends on what you want to be virtually known for and finding your crowd that gets you.

However, here is my breakdown of how to build a brand through podcasting and dance:

1) Podcast Hosting:
Getting into podcasting was solely for my enjoyment and hobby. I did not jump into podcasting to solely monetize myself. I jumped into podcasting because I have a lot of thoughts running in my mind every day. Unfortunately, our society runs on small talk and does not leave room to get to know one another and the deepest parts of ourselves and others. Thus, my podcast: “Nadie Preguntó” was born on November 2020.

My podcast revolves around navigating my 20s. Furthermore, I’m at a very lost and panicked state of life at the moment. I feel as if I’m not doing enough even though to others I am. I feel as if my discipline is not enough even though in the back of my mind, I know deep within me I am the most disciplined person I know.

Essentially, breaking into an industry and establishing your brand, such as podcasting, is asking yourself: what do you have to say for people?

2) Dance
Dance was and will always be, my very first love. It had made the happiest I have ever been, been my lifeline, my reason for waking up when I feel emotionally devastated. On the other hand, it has disappointed me, broken my heart, caused me frustration at myself and my body, and sent me spiraling. And yet, I would do it again and again, forever.

There are dancers that have their own brands such as a signature move, signature choreography style, and everything else in between. There is no right or wrong way to brand yourself in dance. Dance accepts all who are truly willing to give it their all.

However, building a brand in dance is asking yourself: Why do I feel like I need to dance the way I do? What am I chasing after? Why am I doing this? Can my body handle this? And many more questions.

Thus, it is up to any individual dancer to distinguish their brand. From ballerinas to hip hop dancers, you are bound to find yourself and your crowd.

If you could go back, would you choose the same profession, specialty, etc.?

The simple answer: Yes. I would choose dance and podcasting every time.

The complex answer: As corny as it may sound, I did not choose these specialties. They chose me. It does not get simpler than that.

The telling sign you are meant to do something? You feel disciplined to do it and come out of it feeling proud of your actions.

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

My fitness journey is nothing but an endless cycle of resilience.

I have been working out since I was 14 years old, on and off. I am now 23, going on 24 this June. Nearly a decade of my life has been dedicated to fitness of any kind (gym, dance, etc.)

Dance being part of my fitness regime has been nothing but a never ending resilience lesson.

Working out and all forms of fitness are solely understanding our own bodies and what works well and what doesn’t for us. The resilience I have built throughout the years is accepting where your body is at everyday.

Essentially, wake up, check in with your body in the morning, and see what it needs.

For example, people who menstruate understand what happens to the body once our cycle is nearing. We are tired, going to the gym is harder, lifting is 10x harder, our bodies are simply: sensitive. The resilience it takes to accept that our bodies can shut down in those times such as menstruation is incredibly difficult yet must be done.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://laperuanaquemanda.godaddysites.com/
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/laperuanaqmanda/
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/mwlite/in/gabriela-sanchez-🇵🇪-775b53168
• Twitter: https://twitter.com/laperuanaqmanda
• Other: Link Tree: https://linktr.ee/lvdelinks

Image Credits
ALL white background photos taken at: The Light Committee by Rafael Larin