We were lucky to catch up with Nate Calima recently and have shared our conversation below.

Nate , looking forward to hearing all of your stories today. Did you always know you wanted to pursue a creative or artistic career? When did you first know?

Pageantry may seem like an odd choice in the western world but in the Philippines and much of Southeast Asia the top 3 national sports are Beauty Pageants, Boxing, & Basketball. I first watched Miss Universe in 1994 when I was 7 and I still have the recorded video tape from the event. Since it was the first sporting event I’ve watched it planted a seed and a dream that would eventually be realized. I worked incredibly hard in business and eventually the opportunity to get into pageantry popped up. It wasn’t until years later that I would go all in. If you were a Los Angeles Lakers fan and you had a chance to be a part of the team in some capacity (even for no pay) would you do it? This is a passion for me and those around me and we work hard to make it one of the most incredible experiences out there. Pageantry can change your life as it likened to a political campaign. With the right mentors, the leader you become through pageantry can take you anywhere.

Nate , 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?

I created cashflow from many businesses and built huge networks through direct sales. I’m currently the Chief Marketing Officer for ION Savings, the first direct sales company where products are around the same price or cheaper than Amazon with free shipping and we pay you to spread the word. Most people do not understand the skills that you learn and the network you build essentially connects you with people all over the world. Your network is your net worth! You must create an ecosystem in where one feed the other. My businesses and investments fund the time in order to do pageantry!

Being PR director for The Miss Philippines California (The official and only Accredited Partner of Miss Universe Philippines, The Miss Philippines, and Mister Pilipinas Worldwide is not always easy. It is a high profile sport and the Miss Universe system is the highest tier possible. It takes someone with heart, passion, skill, and a thick skin to deal with the media and the people. However, my experience in business helped a ton. I understood that if you want to do anything big, you’re going to have to put yourself in the crossfire. I understood just like in politics that in order to win you must engage and be loud and create attention to the brand. Every political superstar was able to create this type of momentum and we teach the candidates and delegates how to handle this massive amount of attention.

I got involved in this because I did so many business and seminars that I was asked to host and be the voice for pageants. I am at a point where I am financially comfortable so I wanted to stretch myself and learn new skills and new industries. You see so many people who have mastered their craft pivot and do something different. Regardless of any possible financial rewards, the ability to pursue what many call “side quests” presents new challenges to dominate.

I noticed many creative organizations do not include business people and that is a huge mistake. John C. Maxwell talks about the “Law of the Lid” and by not creating a complete team you are limiting the success you can create. You put a “lid” on success. Creatives alone have difficulty handling the business and PR side and business people lack the creative skills to put on incredible events (and many times overspend and over-engineer events). Combine the two and you create magic.

What do you think is the goal or mission that drives your creative journey?

To infuse business and self-development skills into the creative space. Vision in seeing where industries are going can help creatives rightly monetize and be independent from mega-corporations (or join with them) in this 4th industrial revolution. We must leave people better than when we first met them. Our journey will never be perfect but if we take the last few years and found that we have created more wins than losses then it has been worthwhile. I believe that we must help creatives understand or partner with those who understand business and PR. You may have a beautiful message but it doesn’t matter if people don’t see it. To share your art with the Universe is important and if you created something unbelievable then we have to go show the world. So many deserving artists and creatives don’t get the proper credit and cash flow because they don’t know how or where to partner with people who can help them achieve their goals.

Can you share a story from your journey that illustrates your resilience?

I was able to get into the Miss Universe system because of a series of incredible events. I was asked to be a voice host for Mutya ng Pilipinas CA which led to Continental Miss Philippines America which sent to Miss World Philippines where I was the National Director. During this time I also hosted for Miss Asia USA. I had to learn how to deal with high levels of drama and issues and it was a growing experience. In business, people have a basic understanding of self-development and what to avoid. Hollywood, entertainment, pageantry has been a emotional roller coaster that ultimately prepared me for The Miss Philippines CA and the Miss Universe Philippines system. I became the best person I could be by constantly being in the spotlight and putting myself in front of comments to protect organizations. This helped me a lot in business because it made me essentially bulletproof. Like politics, high amount of exposure but high level of rewards. The ability to blend creative, business, sales, negotiation, human nature & psychology with a stoic philosophy has led to higher and higher heights. I’m truly grateful for all the opportunities that everyone gave me and I truly want to give back to those who helped get me here. I am incredible grateful for the organizations I’ve been with and my The Miss Philippines CA family.

Contact Info:

• Website: www.natecalima.com
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/natecalima/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/natecalima
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/natecalima
• Twitter: @natecalima
• Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/natecalima

Image Credits
The Miss Philippines CA (California Accredited Partner of Miss Universe Philippines)