Alright – so today we’ve got the honor of introducing you to Richard Deere. We think you’ll enjoy our conversation, we’ve shared it below.

Hi Richard, thanks for joining us today. Risk taking is something we’re really interested in and we’d love to hear the story of a risk you’ve taken.

Everything in my life thus far has happened because I have taken a risk. None of it happened because I was waiting for someone else to hand it to me. This is the biggest lesson I try to teach both my younger siblings, because I think they got a little spoiled since I moved to America and started gifting them.

From my first job at 15 years old, saving money to realize a dream and go to Europe, to moving to America a year before I finished college. I have always put my foot on the ground and started walking towards something I wanted. No matter how scary it seemed.

Funnily enough, I am on the same spot right now, changing careers. It is a big step, and it’s risky to leave something you know so well, to sail on unknown waters; but that is what it takes if you want to grow in life, specially financially!

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 moved from Brazil when I was 19. I had a rough situation, as most of us immigrants do. I quickly learned the language and the local culture.

I tried to set myself apart from most people by not speaking my native language after I arrived here. That definitely helped me to learn english faster and not have such a strong accent.

To help me better understand American people, I put myself in a position where I was the most exposed to it, bartending.

That helped me not only with communication skills but also social. I lived in Atlanta for 3 years, then moved to LA in 2019, I kept bartending but I knew I needed a 9 to 5 job, where I could rest weekends and be social.

So I moved on to Personal Training; I worked at Equinox, one of the most prestige gyms in the country, and known locally for all the celebrities who visits their facility. Therefore now, working as a private trainer, I train mostly celebrities and business owners. I got their trust, and by working for great companies, I got credentials.

Have you ever had to pivot?

I have been a personal trainer for about 4 years now. I started at Crunch Fitness then moved to Equinox. During that time I was also bartending at The Abbey Food & Bar. By the end of 2022 I was so exhausted and mentally drained of having two jobs, working 7 days a week, and barely be able to afford a $1800 rent in West Hollywood; not only that but I also didn’t have any time for friends or to enjoy the beautiful city I was living in.

I decided to quit both jobs, against everyone’s opinions, because I needed a rest. I did private training for a whole year and have realized there is no room for growth within this business and the money is not stable at all. Even if I open a gym myself, but trying to sell my brand, people will want to have me training them, not other people I hire. So I am starting to pivot to Visual Effects.

I enrolled myself to learn Nuke Compositing at a big college for VFX in Hollywood called Gnomon. One of my previous gym clients told me about that school and I was amazed on everything I learned and heard about it; and I believe there is so much room for growth within that business.

I will start as a junior compositor, move up to positions as supervisor, and eventually open my own visual effects studio. So pivoting my career from working with people, to working with a computer will be a big change. But I know this is where it’s at for me, this is where my passion is.

How did you build your audience on social media?

I started traveling when I was 19 years old. Used my instagram to share trips photos and gathered a huge following. In brazil I was working as a host at the biggest club in town.

Quickly my instagram looked like a travel influencer/ travel guide. When I moved to LA, I had a bit over 70k followers. Working at the most popular bar in the country (The Abbey), working at a gym with so many celebrities (Equinox WEHO), was very helpful to gain lots of attention on social media as well.

With no time I had brands reaching out to me to do sponsored contents. It started with getting things for free and then I started getting paid for posts. The secret is consistency. Whatever you choose to post, keep that coming, so you will find your own niche of people. And once you change, as I did from travel to fitness, try to find those new people and keep them entertained.

What I get the most from my followers is that I am the only real person they follow on ig. If you follow me, you will hear me talking about my love life, sad and happy stories, things I have lost and lots of personal things. BE REAL, people are tired of seeing the same Starbucks morning photo on their timeline.

Contact Info:

• Website: iamdeere.com
• Instagram: @iamdeere