We’re excited to introduce you to the always interesting and insightful Lauren Burke. We hope you’ll enjoy our conversation with Lauren below.
Lauren , appreciate you joining us today. Did you always know you wanted to pursue a creative or artistic career? When did you first know?
I’ve always been a creative person, growing up I saw my mom sew all of my Halloween costumes and flip furniture. I was the kid rearranging my room and asking to redecorate any chance I could get. When my husband and I renovated our first home I realized how much I love interior design. We always had the dream to custom build so when the opportunity came I was so excited to design everything myself. As we were nearing the finish line we decided to forgo a lot of trim extras, like beams and accent walls because the costs just kept adding up. My husband is handy and assured me that he could make whatever accent walls I wanted happen. We moved in and weeks went by. In early 2020 as a stay at home mom, I was busy with our three young kids and my husband with his full time job. In reality I got sick of waiting around and decided I was going to watch a couple YouTube videos and do the wall myself. I started sharing my projects and flubs along the way on Instagram and realized that so many women were inspired by seeing me using power tools to create a home I loved. I kept creating and sharing projects and as my skills progressed and my audience grew I knew this could be an incredible business opportunity. I loved that I could turn this into something to help support my family but also help support the hundreds of thousands of women who follow me looking to feel inspired and empowered.
Great, appreciate you sharing that with us. Before we ask you to share more of your insights, can you take a moment to introduce yourself and how you got to where you are today to our readers.
I am most passionate about creating a home I love and sharing that empowering feeling with women across the world. When I get messages from followers telling me that I gave them the confidence to try using power tools or complete a project it is the absolute best compliment I could ever receive. Women are SO capable and I want them to know that you don’t have to know everything to start. Starting is the hardest part, you have to push yourself and you cannot be afraid to fail. Because you will fail, over and over again. But that’s how we learn!
Any insights you can share with us about how you built up your social media presence?
I shared my very first solo project in February of 2020. Right after that the pandemic hit and everyone was stuck at home scrolling social media and looking around their house thinking hmm I’d like to change that. So I do think the timing was definitely in my favor. However building an audience takes TIME. I worked on my Instagram content full time for 10 months before I got my first paid partnership. My best advice is to stay consistent and focused. It can feel really discouraging at times thinking no one is seeing my content and all this hard work I’m putting in. You really have to keep your WHY at the forefront of your mind and push through. Because if you tell yourself you will be successful and put in the work, you will be.
Are there any resources you wish you knew about earlier in your creative journey?
The absolute best resources I found were within the friendships I have made with other creators on social media. I found other creators who were in my niche that I connected with and we became more than just friends, we were confidants and coworkers supporting each other growing our own businesses. Social media can be a very isolating place. Creating a community of likeminded and encouraging people is a key component to success.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://laurenelizabethburke.com/
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/laurenelizabethburke?igsh=MTVjbThieHFsNm91cw%3D%3D&utm_source=qr
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/laurenelizabethburke/
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@laurenelizabethburke
- Other: TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@laurenelizabethburke?_t=8rB2N7KW6KR&_r=1
Image Credits
All photos are my own