We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Joana Sosa a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.
Joana, appreciate you joining us today. It’s always helpful to hear about times when someone’s had to take a risk – how did they think through the decision, why did they take the risk, and what ended up happening. We’d love to hear about a risk you’ve taken.
I have taken a couple major risks in my life and they have all brought me to a point in my life where I can’t help but be thankful to God for letting me get to this moment. Growing up in Kentucky, I was surrounded by creative minds (I know that’s surprising) but I genuinely had some amazing and out of the box people around me. Seeing how my friends were pursuing their talents, I realized that I had something to offer, albeit something that wasn’t going to be so mainstream. I had loved fashion but didn’t think it was something that would be interesting to anyone outside of my church realm, therefore I ventured into Youtube and Photography. After years of creating Youtube videos and pursuing different mediums of art, I realized my spiritual life was and had been at a stand still. I needed God and I needed Him fast. I had made friends online and after lots of prayer, I realized that moving out of my state and moving to a big city was my next step. This was insanely scary to me because I had never dealt with being on my own before, let alone living in a new city with new cultures and rules that I had never experienced. I took a risk while holding God’s hand and truly, He never let me go. I went through hardships and tough times but God continued to pave the way for me. After working full time for a year and a half I realized that I was being pulled back to sharing modesty (where my first passion began). After posting for some time and gaining a following, I realized that I was better suited sharing my fervent love for God and obedience through my way of dressing online rather than sitting behind a desk for 8-10 hours a day. God led me out of the workplace and into an entirely new realm. Once again, the Lord has paved a way for me to excel and grow all while being in His will and not compromising my faith. He is truly an awesome God.
Awesome – so before we get into the rest of our questions, can you briefly introduce yourself to our readers.
In simple terms, I post fashion related content online. In a more complex way, I would describe myself as someone pursuing God and using my obedience and love for God to inspire and motivate others to lean into their convictions/obedience and follow what God has placed on their hearts. I feel as though this may seem religious and people often ask me if it’s just an “appearance thing.” Unfortunately, I have to tell them that I am just genuinely this insane that I love God so much to reject my formative mode of dressing and thinking to now cover myself despite never being told to do so by a man.
Open-minded, experimental, and goal-getter are words that I would describe myself. I have been in the content creating realm for about 14 years, first starting off just making videos at my school and then turning it into a hobby then getting into photography and understanding social media, like most people I have grown up and involved with social media. In 2021, I started posting my modest fashion online and quickly gained a following. Since then, I have found myself in rooms and in conversations with people about modesty, pursuing your calling and passion, and how to excel when you feel as if you’re not ready or the person for the job. I feel as though I have troubleshooted a lot of issues that would arise with dressing modestly and have helped many realize that modesty does not mean ugly, frumpy, or expensive. You can dress modestly with thrifted clothes all while having style and expressing yourslef. Modesty is not a limitation but a liberation from what the world has spoon fed to us since we were young. It’s also cool to love God! And even if the world doesn’t agree, we’re not of it anyway!
We often hear about learning lessons – but just as important is unlearning lessons. Have you ever had to unlearn a lesson?
Being broke, limited, and undervalued is a mindset. After years in this industry and being on both the influencer and brand/creative side I have come to realize that being in a consistent state of financial distress is mental. You are truly capable of more than you think. I grew up in a small-town and low financial status mindset. We “never had money” for things. As an adult I realized that I would penny pinch and have an intense fear of lack. God has put me in situations time and time again where I have realized that being undervalued is a YOU problem. If you present yourself as a certain way and undermine yourself before strangers, they will take you at your value. It’s an innate thing! I have come to terms with my previous way of thinking and have noticed that holding myself at a higher standard has opened doors that I never would have expected.
We’d love to hear the story of how you built up your social media audience?
Easy: post, be consistent, be genuine. People can smell fake from miles away. It’s funny since social media is a highlight reel, but people seek genuineness. They love to see people they can relate to and cling to those that share the same experiences as them. This is a floaty way of saying, SHARE YOUR STORY! Share your moments of vulnerability! Share your passions and what you get excited about! To grow an audience that sees you more than just an internet personality, you need to achieve a level of trust that can only happen when you share yourself so others can relate.
This is exactly what I did while I was posting about my outfit of the day. To this day, I love connecting with my audience, DMing them, and even video calling on occasion! Being available and genuine truly helps build a stronger connection. The craziest part is, you can’t buy that.
Contact Info:
- Instagram: @imjoanasosa