We recently connected with Lilia Kazakova and have shared our conversation below.
Lilia, looking forward to hearing all of your stories today. Have you been able to earn a full-time living from your creative work? If so, can you walk us through your journey and how you made it happen? Was it like that from day one? If not, what were some of the major steps and milestones and do you think you could have sped up the process somehow knowing what you know now?
My journey of becoming a full-time online creative in Los Angeles began on the other side of the world. I was born and raised in Amsterdam, the Netherlands, and moved to the States as an exchange student. I moved to Washington DC to study law at the George Washington University. Even though I immensely enjoyed my studies, I was missing something creative. I decided to “fill” this inner gap by starting an online blog and YouTube channel about my experience as a law student, as well as my love for fashion, beauty & anything aesthetics. I gained quite a following and was able to balance my challenging degree with posting daily content on my platforms. It was hard but so worth it in the end.
After graduating with my Master of Laws, I made the difficult decision to part ways with law. I used my degree to start an LLC focused on social media content creation, filed my own trademark & drafted my own brand deals and contracts. I was working as an influencer as well as creating social media content for major beauty & fashion brands. I moved to Los Angeles since most of the brands I worked with were based there.
Right after I moved, the pandemic hit. I didn’t know anyone in LA and felt incredibly isolated and depressed. Growing up, I was a competitive figure skater, and the ice rink was always my happy place. However, all ice rinks were closed due to the pandemic. At that time, roller skating was blowing up on social media, and I wanted to try it out too. I splurged on a pair of skates and was worried I made a bad investment. Instead, it became one of the most life-changing purchases of my life.
Fast forward to 2023, I’m now balancing being a full-time social media content creator & influencer with performing, coaching, competing & modeling as an artistic inline roller skater. Connecting with my skating past was one of the best things I’ve ever done for myself, both mentally as well as career-wise. As a multi-faceted creative, I’ve been able to monetize my various creative outlets and passions into a full-time income stream for three years, and hopefully many more years to come.
Looking back, I would have never imagined ending up where I am now. Sometimes I still need to pinch myself that this is my reality. I would have been able to speed up my process of becoming a full-time creative if I would have believed more in myself and my capabilities. I’ve struggled with imposter syndrome all my life, and still do. It has made me second guess myself or avoid taking opportunities, just because I didn’t feel qualified enough. So this is a gentle reminder that you, in fact, are capable enough – you just have to believe in yourself.
Lilia, before we move on to more of these sorts of questions, can you take some time to bring our readers up to speed on you and what you do?
My name is Lilia Kazakova, and I’m a multi-faceted online creative at my company Lily Like LLC. I work as an online inspirer (I prefer using this term over influencer), and social media content creator for brands and businesses in the beauty, fashion & lifestyle industries. I’ve built an audience of over 300,000 followers on my socials and worked with big brands such as L’Oreal, Revolve & Clif Bar, but also small and local businesses like Hammitt or Coffee Attic LA. I’m very passionate about creating unique, beautiful & relevant content for brands that truly speaks to their brand identity and customer base. I’m a very visual and aesthetics-oriented person, and I pride myself on seeing every post I create as a little work of art. What sets me apart from others is my ability to truly capture a brand’s ethos and create content through different “lenses”. For example, I’ve been able to make unique content by combining roller skating with various types of products, or by creating very dream-like and romanticized imagery for the right brands.
In addition, I’m also an artistic inline, ice & roller skater. I am currently competing and preparing myself for regionals (and hopefully nationals after), as well as working as a live performer, modeling for commercials, and teaching skating as an instructor.
What I love most about my day-to-day is that it’s different all the time. One day I find myself shooting content and working as a photographer at a cool location or studio. The next day I’m roller skating and teaching classes at Venice Beach. This diverse lifestyle and routine is what keeps me inspired as a multi-dimensional creative.
Looking back, are there any resources you wish you knew about earlier in your creative journey?
It might sound like a cliché, but I sincerely believe that your network is the best resource you can have as a creative. I’ve noticed that creatives tend to be rather independent and adopt this “I need to do everything myself” mentality. I’m guilty of living by that mantra as well, but as I’ve grown older, I’ve realized how valuable the people we have in our circle truly are. Especially since I moved to LA right before the pandemic started without knowing a single soul in the city, meeting new people has been key for me. By stepping out of my comfort zone and connecting with people from all walks of life, I’ve been able to learn about unique perspectives, access new opportunities, and create inspiring collaborations. Networking has been important for my career and personal life – which as a creative, often tend to blend together.
Going to networking events, approaching a person for a business chat, and putting yourself out there can feel daunting at times. However, it will allow you to grow and form meaningful and genuine connections that are truly worth it and priceless. I believe every person you meet is a life lesson waiting for you. I’ve noticed that even the people I seemed to have nothing in common with, ended up saying something that resonated with me or taught me a new perspective. They all taught me something I needed to hear or experience to grow and further myself. So relying on your network as a resource for your creative journey is something I wish I’d done much earlier in my career.
What do you think is the goal or mission that drives your creative journey?
Throughout my life, my driving force has always been to inspire people to chase their dreams. I’ve always been a bit of a dreamer growing up, and I think that’s why I ended up in the ultimate city for dreamers, LA. I have a passion for motivating people to go after their goals, even if they seem atypical, unrealistic, or too big to ever come to fruition. Through my work, I hope I can at least inspire someone to take that leap of faith and bet on themselves. Being raised by a single immigrant mom, in a small town in The Netherlands, I never imagined myself living in the US, let alone in Los Angeles. But here I am. I’ve been fortunate to be raised by the most amazing mom and fellow inspirational entrepreneur, who always supported my dreams. However, I know that’s not the case for many people out there. If I can be that person for anyone else – off- or online – and inspire any fellow dreamers to turn their imagination into reality as well by having a positive outlook on life, discipline, and resilience through my hardships, I truly feel like I’ve fulfilled my mission driving my creative journey.
Contact Info:
- Website: lily-like.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/lilylikecom/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/lilylikecom
- Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/liliakazakova/
- Twitter: https://twitter.com/lilylikecom
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/lilylikecom
- Other: Stationery line suppliedbylily.com
Image Credits
All photos taken by me, Lilia Kazakova, Lily Like LLC