We recently connected with Mikael and have shared our conversation below.

Mikael, looking forward to hearing all of your stories today. We’d love to hear the backstory of how you established your own practice.

When I think about the early days of starting my own practice, it didn’t begin with a business plan or some perfectly structured blueprint. It really started from the roots, the experiences, the struggles, and the work I was already doing in the community.

Before anything was official, I was already involved in work around implicit bias, emotional intelligence, and community dialogue. I partnered with different nonprofits, facilitated conversations, and used art as a bridge to connect people to deeper awareness. Art for me wasn’t just creativity; it became a tool for truth, reflection, and healing.

As an artist and organizer, I started realizing that the work I was doing had a bigger framework behind it. I wasn’t just creating art or hosting conversations. I was helping people look at systems differently, reflect on their own experiences, and build new perspectives.

That realization is what led me to establish my own practice and eventually develop the concept of From Roots to Branches. The idea is simple but powerful:
everything begins with the roots, our history, our experiences, our culture, our mistakes, and from those roots we grow branches that reach into the future through wisdom, action, and legacy.

The first real steps in building my own practice were:

• Defining the mission. I had to be clear about why I was doing the work. For me it was about awareness, education, and empowering communities through creativity and truth.

• Building partnerships. Much of the early work came from collaborating with nonprofits and organizations that believed in the value of these conversations.

• Turning art into a methodology. I began using visual art, storytelling, and dialogue as tools to help people engage with difficult topics like bias, identity, and systemic thinking.

• Learning the business side. This was one of the biggest challenges. Being passionate about the work doesn’t automatically mean you know how to run a practice, structure contracts, secure funding, or sustain income.

And to be honest, there were challenges.

One of the biggest was being taken seriously. When you’re doing work that sits at the intersection of art, activism, education, and spirituality, people don’t always know where to place you. Some institutions are comfortable with safe conversations, but the deeper truths can make people uncomfortable.

Another challenge was sustainability, figuring out how to continue doing meaningful work while also making sure the work could support your life.

But those challenges also became lessons.

Every mistake, every door that closed, every partnership that didn’t work out became wisdom. And that wisdom shaped how the movement evolved. What started as scattered projects slowly became something more intentional something rooted in legacy.

Looking back, would I have done anything differently?

I probably would have spent more time early on learning the business infrastructure contracts, branding, funding streams, and ownership of intellectual work. When you’re mission-driven, it’s easy to focus only on impact and forget about sustainability.

My advice to young professionals thinking about starting their own practice would be this:

First, start with your roots. Know why you do the work and what experiences shaped that purpose.

Second, build community before building a brand. The relationships you cultivate will often be more powerful than any marketing strategy.

Third, embrace mistakes as part of the process. The missteps are not failures; they are lessons that refine your vision.

And finally, think in terms of legacy, not just projects.

Projects come and go.
Movements grow.

If your work is rooted in truth, wisdom, and service to the people, those roots will eventually grow branches that reach far beyond what you can see today.

That’s what From Roots to Branches represents for me: the journey from lived experience to collective wisdom, and from individual work to legacy building.

Mikael, 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?

When I think about the early days of starting my own practice, it didn’t begin with a business plan or some perfectly structured blueprint. It really started from the roots, the experiences, the struggles, and the work I was already doing in the community.

Before anything was official, I was already involved in work around implicit bias, emotional intelligence, and community dialogue. I partnered with various nonprofits, facilitated conversations, and used art as a bridge to foster deeper awareness. Art for me wasn’t just creativity; it became a tool for truth, reflection, and healing.

As an artist and organizer, I began to realize that the work I was doing had a broader framework behind it. I wasn’t just creating art or hosting conversations. I was helping people look at systems differently, reflect on their own experiences, and build new perspectives.

That realization is what led me to establish my own practice and eventually develop the concept of From Roots to Branches. The idea is simple but powerful:
Everything begins with the roots, our history, our experiences, our culture, our mistakes, and from those roots we grow branches that reach into the future through wisdom, action, and legacy.

The first real steps in building my own practice were:

• Defining the mission. I had to be clear about why I was doing the work. For me, it was about awareness, education, and empowering communities through creativity and truth.

• Building partnerships. Much of the early work came from collaborating with nonprofits and organizations that believed in the value of these conversations.

• Turning art into a methodology. I began using visual art, storytelling, and dialogue as tools to help people engage with difficult topics like bias, identity, and systemic thinking.

• Learning the business side. This was one of the biggest challenges. Being passionate about the work doesn’t automatically mean you know how to run a practice, structure contracts, secure funding, or sustain income.

And to be honest, there were challenges.

One of the biggest was being taken seriously. When you’re doing work that sits at the intersection of art, activism, education, and spirituality, people don’t always know where to place you. Some institutions are comfortable with safe conversations, but the deeper truths can make people uncomfortable.

Another challenge was sustainability, figuring out how to continue doing meaningful work while also making sure the work could support your life.

But those challenges also became lessons.

Every mistake, every door that closed, every partnership that didn’t work out became wisdom. And that wisdom shaped how the movement evolved. What started as scattered projects slowly became something more intentional, something rooted in legacy.

Looking back, would I have done anything differently?

I probably would have spent more time early on learning the business infrastructure, contracts, branding, funding streams, and ownership of intellectual work. When you’re mission-driven, it’s easy to focus only on impact and forget about sustainability.

My advice to young professionals thinking about starting their own practice would be this:

First, start with your roots. Know why you do the work and what experiences shaped that purpose.

Second, build community before building a brand. The relationships you cultivate will often be more powerful than any marketing strategy.

Third, embrace mistakes as part of the process. The missteps are not failures; they are lessons that refine your vision.

And finally, think in terms of legacy, not just projects.

Projects come and go.
Movements grow.

If your work is rooted in truth, wisdom, and service to the people, those roots will eventually grow branches that reach far beyond what you can see today.

That’s what From Roots to Branches represents for me: the journey from lived experience to collective wisdom, and from individual work to legacy building

Other than training/knowledge, what do you think is most helpful for succeeding in your field?

I engage in mental health, spiritual health, and helping people reconnect with who they are at their roots. Success goes beyond training or knowledge. What I believe is most helpful is personal observation and inner work. To guide others, you have to be willing to do the work within yourself first.

Understanding your own patterns, healing your own wounds, and evolving into the greatest version of yourself creates authenticity. People don’t just connect with information—they connect with lived experience. When you’ve walked through transformation personally, you can help others navigate their own journey with clarity, empathy, and truth.

In this field, growth, reflection, and alignment with purpose are essential. The more we commit to evolving ourselves, the more effectively we can inspire and support others on their path.

Let’s talk about resilience next – do you have a story you can share with us?

One of the biggest lessons in resilience in my journey has been learning how to keep moving forward even when doors seem closed. As an artist, community advocate, and someone who works in spaces connected to mental and spiritual wellness, I’ve had moments when opportunities I believed were aligned didn’t come through the way I expected. There were times when I felt overlooked or when financial pressures and life responsibilities made the path feel uncertain.

Instead of allowing those moments to define me, I chose to see them as opportunities for deeper reflection and growth. I leaned more into understanding who I was at my roots, mentally, spiritually, and creatively. Through that process, I realized that resilience isn’t just about pushing forward; it’s about evolving, refining your purpose, and staying aligned with the work you feel called to do.

Those experiences strengthened my commitment to helping others navigate their own journeys of self-discovery and healing. They reminded me that resilience is built through faith, discipline, and the willingness to continue doing the inner work even when the external results take time.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.instagram.com/illse7en/
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/from_roots_2_branches/
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/michael-acu%C3%B1a-35643453/

Image Credits

Photographer David’s Day off

Photographer Cory McCowan

Photographer Scott Trimble