We’re excited to introduce you to the always interesting and insightful Taryn Lewis. We hope you’ll enjoy our conversation with Taryn below.

Taryn, thanks for taking the time to share your stories with us today. Before we get to all of that, can you take a minute to introduce yourself and give our readers some of your background and context?

Ever since I was little, I’ve always been the “artsy” one – you’d catch me drawing pictures for my friends after elementary school, painting ceramics at my grandma’s house over the years, dabbling in photography and taking up acting in high school through undergrad. I even tried out dance classes at one point!

Social media, however, was a totally different story. I actually intentionally avoided it entirely up until I turned 24. Throughout high school and undergrad, people would always ask me:

“Tare, give me your Insta so I can tag you!” I don’t have one.

“Okay how about Facebook?” Nope.

“You’re joking, right?” Not even a little.

“Well why not? I’ll help you make one!”

The answer was plain and simple: I’d knew I’d be addicted to it. And I am.

4 years and 95,000 followers later, here we are. Social Media is my literal JOB. I live and breathe it through my content.

I started just like anyone else – made a Facebook to stay connected to family. Instagram, to keep up with friends. Pinterest, to manifest my future. The occasional Snapchat for, well ya know. And then I joined TikTok in 2020.

My friend at the time wouldn’t stop sending me these stupid TikToks… It was during COVID, we were all bored out of our minds, so I thought what the heck, let me download this thing. Not even 24 hours later, I’d already ordered my first ring light tripod from Amazon. I loved watching, but I knew I loved creating even more.

The first year I spent doing embarrassing dance trends, movie night lives and acting voiceovers, which shockingly garnered a small audience. Over time, I dabbled in transitions showcasing colorful outfits and makeup. Turns out I’m really good at them – so good, that my audience started calling me a “Transition Queen T” and I began making tutorials to teach them how I did it. I enjoy giving my community a peek behind the curtain.

Transitions and tutorials are still a huge part of my brand, now along with beauty vlogs and branded content. Get Ready With Me’s’ (GRWMs), Transitions, ‘Outfit of the Day’s’ (OOTDs), demos, reviews, tutorials, applications, unboxings, stop-motion, quick-edits, vlogs, voiceovers, text-overlays, or talking heads – you name it, I’ve probably made it!

Through it all, I aim not only to educate, but to inspire my audience with behind-the-scenes footage and ‘Day In The Life’ videos to shed light on the realities of being a full-time Creator. My audience often tells me they love how authentic I am. I try my best to be genuine in sharing the good, bad and downright ugly parts of my journey. More and more we hear about Creators being out of touch, so I always promised myself regardless of the size of my platform, I want to stay true to myself and I want my audience to feel like part of my family, because in my eyes, they are. I don’t see them as followers or fans, I really hate those terms like they place me on a pedestal or something. We’re mutuals, it’s a two-way street just like any other relationship for me.

It wasn’t until we hit 90K on TikTok that brands started reaching out to me. Collabs had never even crossed my mind, I was so consumed by my community. Up until 2022, TikTok was really just a hobby for me. I had my cushy 9-5 at the DOJ, so it was like the best of both worlds!

I’ll never forget my very first partnership was with a cutie brand called Dorm Vibes. It was gifted, but they sent me enough product to give my bedroom a complete makeover! They’re the absolute sweetest, I couldn’t believe anyone would send me free stuff just to create content with.

With the support of my family, a few close friends and my community, I slowly started landing more partnerships. I refined my craft, created a media kit, built up my portfolio and finally got the nerve to start reaching out to brands myself. Before I knew it, I became an Ambassador for brands like Adore Me, thredUP and Truly Beauty.

For the first time in three decades, the little girl who questioned her creativity realized she was right all along.

I was born an artist. Creating comes naturally to me, it’s so much more than a hobby. It’s my life’s purpose.

The household brands I’ve known, used and loved for years now pay me to do what I love: create. Two years and over 100 clients later, I am blessed beyond belief to be able to say I turned my passion into my profession. I’ve said it a million times, I’ll say it a million more – I have the absolute best clients and community.

From Dorm Vibes to my first repeat client I AM PROUD, to working with Lancôme and Dyson, to representing Steve Madden, Olaplex and Truly Beauty to becoming a partner with Victoria’s Secret / VS PINK and American Eagle — I am forever grateful. The people behind these brands (and SO many others) not only helped me grow my business, they have shown me what true partnership looks like and some have even become good friends of mine I hope to meet someday.

As always, we appreciate you sharing your insights and we’ve got a few more questions for you. Are you happier as a creative? Do you sometimes think about what it would be like to just have a regular job? Can you talk to us about how you think through these emotions?

Yes, being a full-time Creative is a dream come true! I love the flexibility that comes with being my own boss, working from the comfort of my own home with my furbabies. I have the freedom to travel as my production calendar allows, spend time with my family and create content on the go. The best part is, I can work anywhere, anytime, as much or as little as I please.

Before becoming a Creator, I had my share of 9-5 jobs, so I know what it’s like to pursue a conventional career. I’ll admit that sometimes I miss the stability, security, and benefits that come along with that, but switching career paths was not a decision I made lightly. I weighed the pros and cons carefully so I knew that there would be trade-offs just like any other job.

I knew I’d be trading my 9-5 for a 24/7.

Trading security for flexibility.

Trading corporate benefits for entrepreneurship.

Trading traditional office space for the freedom of remote work.

Trading a triggering environment for a personal sanctuary.

But most importantly, I was trading others’ dreams for my own.

With these perks, also comes a certain amount of pressure and responsibility. The pressure to create, to keep up and to ensure consistent income. The responsibility to set my own hours and boundaries. Being a full-time Creative, the line between work and play becomes blurred, as my passion is now my profession. It’s true what they say, if you love your job, you’ll never work a day in your life!

Are there any resources you wish you knew about earlier in your creative journey?

There’s a wealth of resources out there, so it takes time to discern which ones are truly valuable unless you’ve connected with other Creators to point you in the right direction. Thankfully, Canva and Capcut were among the very first resources I discovered as a Creator and I’m so glad I did. Canva, my go-to tool from the start (and still is), instrumental in creating my social media posts, media kits, and portfolios. It’s a free online graphic design tool that offers thousands of templates. Outside of TikTok, Capcut is my-go video editing app. The features are very similar but with more bells and whistles, which I love!

However, my journey to finding legitimate Creator resources for brand collabs, was unfortunately a long and tedious one. I’ve spent hundreds of hours researching, bookmarking posts, capturing screenshots, and scouring through the internet for PR contacts, pitch templates and sponsorship platforms. I desperately wish I had stumbled upon some of these resources earlier, but there’s no one-stop shop for Creators.

For me, Justin Moore’s ‘Brand Deal Wizard’ (BDW) Course was a game-changer. I invested in it the year before last, and it was worth every penny. In this 4-week course, Justin taught us how to locate and negotiate our dream sponsorships effectively through weekly live trainings, sessions with industry experts, on-demand replays, digital resources, and a lifetime membership to his Creator Community! Brands Meet Creators (BMC) is another great resource; they offer an Academy course that’s similar to BDW. They also share weekly sponsorship opportunities and valuable insights to help Creators thrive!

Being part of BDW and BMC quickly taught me the value of networking. Don’t underestimate the value of fostering relationships with fellow Creators. Sometimes it can open just as many doors as pitching brands directly, which is why I was thrilled to find Canopy and FYPM in 2023! Canopy is an anonymous community for Creators to network and share industry insights in a safe space. Similarly, F*ck You Pay Me (FYPM), is a platform where Creators can anonymously share their experiences collaborating with different brands and search compensation data, making it easier to negotiate with brands. Both platforms not only provide transparency but also an invaluable sense of community.

Last but not least, is Snipfeed. Looking back, I wish I had known about Snipfeed when I first started out. It’s a ‘link in bio’ platform that allows us as Creators to monetize our social media platforms. I can link my socials, discount codes, digital products and portfolios all in one place for my audience! Being a full-time Creative, I’m always scouting for new ways to diversify my income streams and Snipfeed has been a great source of passive income.

Soooo, with that said, if you’re a fellow Creator wanting to invest without breaking the bank, feel free to check out the resources in my Snipfeed (shameless plug)! Imagine having immediate access to over 120 of brand deal platforms and nearly 50 email pitch templates at your fingertips. Gone are the days of favoriting posts, screenshotting pitch examples, or scouring the internet for PR contacts. No more taking notes only to misplace them later. I’ve done it all for you — I offer a variety of templates and intuitive Notion dashboards designed with you in mind to help you land and nurture long-term partnerships with their dream brands. My resources are a labor of love, sweat, and tears, carefully crafted over the past 9 months. They represent everything I wished for starting out, and now, are my personal offer to you – saving you hundreds of hours of research, organization and precious time.

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

I’d always pictured myself doing something creative, as it came so naturally to me but as I entered undergrad, I found myself questioning this career path based on others’ concerns. Is it stable? Can I make money with my “art”? Isn’t that just a hobby? Why don’t you do something that’s more secure long-term? Other people’s questions became my own. I let their doubts convince me that my creativity could never be taken seriously as a legitimate career path.

So, I went with the next best thing: Psychology.

As a full-blown empath with generalized anxiety, I love learning about people and studying them. I also loved true crime. So naturally, I convinced myself I could be a “Criminal Profiler”. Seemed interesting enough, came somewhat easily to me but most importantly, it was “stable”.

And that’s exactly what I did…(or tried to). I got my Bachelor’s Degree in Psychology and Socially with a Criminology Concentration. A Master’s in Forensic Psychology, too. Secured a highly coveted job with the DOJ for nearly three years well on my way to becoming a Crime Analyst.

Or so I thought. But, life had other plans.

I witnessed two of my colleagues get shot to death… The rest are physically and/or mentally injured… Close friends became complete strangers… My oh-so “stable” dream job became a literal nightmare. PTSD was (and still is) something I battle every. single. day.

I not only lost friends to the shooting but to my PTSD that followed. They didn’t know how to navigate it and neither did I. My already small circle dwindled and so did my trust in people. I isolated myself into a cocoon for protection and what started as a necessary coping mechanism turned into a detrimental crutch.

After the incident, I spent every second outside of work with my family or in weekly therapy sessions. Every second inside work leaning on the few friends I still trusted. Even with my support system, I still was barely surviving. I felt dead inside. lost. alone. tired. angry. numb. Part of me died that day with my colleagues.

Little did I know that some silly little app would change that. Strange as it sounds, TikTok was instrumental in helping me break out of my trauma cocoon; it healed me in ways that others unfortunately just couldn’t. During the times my therapist wasn’t available, when my friends didn’t always understand or when my family couldn’t physically be there, I turned to TikTok — it was my safe space.

From the dance videos and voice overs, to transitions and tutorials now to fashion, beauty and branded content, I found myself again (that little girl who loves creating). I shared bits of my story and connected with other shooting survivors, PTSD warriors and so many other beautiful souls around the world. Not only did TikTok reignite my passion for creating, it gave me an outlet to occasionally escape from my trauma…

So much so, I decided to make it my reality. After months of weighing my options, it became clear I had two choices – I can choose to continue merely surviving in a traumatic environment at the DOJ, or I can choose to honor myself by thriving in my sanctuary of creativity. Through all the questioning, self-doubt, PTSD, the shooting, I realized life is too damn short. Took me 30 years to figure that out, I wasn’t about to spend another 30 years neglecting myself, so I left the DOJ to become a full-time Content Creator!

I now specialize in producing engaging content for fashion and beauty brands. I leverage my personal platform to spotlight products through shopping links, aiding smaller brands in expanding their visibility and reach. Simultaneously, for larger brands, I curate organic, user-generated content to present their products in a more relatable, authentic light.

Looking back on my journey, I’m obviously very proud of my work and my partnerships but I’d say I’m most proud of my resilience. I don’t think of myself as strong but reflecting on everything it took for me to get here, I know that I am. I think others in my position would’ve given up a long time ago. I’d be lying if I said that never crossed my mind, but I’m so glad I didn’t. I wouldn’t be where I am today if I had given into my trauma and fear, if I hadn’t taken a leap of faith.

And I certainly wouldn’t be here today without the support of my mom, dad, sister, stepmom and my three furbabies. My closest peeps IRL Lexi, Dana, Lauren, Sujey, Sarah, Precious, Vee and MJ thank you for being such amazing friends and for sticking by me on this journey. All 95,000 (too many to name and counting) social media besties, thank you for giving me a safe space to share my story with you. You all have saved me in more ways than you’ll ever know.

There aren’t enough words to express my gratitude for your endless love and support day in and day out. Thank you for being here. Thank you for reading. Thank you for giving me a safe space to heal and share my creativity with you and for making this community everything that it is. And lastly, thank you to my girl, Anna Kilby, for being a wonderful friend in this space and for nominating me for this incredible opportunity. I’m forever grateful to you all. I <3 you endlessly.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://tiktoktare.com/#portfolio
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/tiktoktare/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/tiktoktare
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/tarynlewis/
• Twitter: https://twitter.com/tiktoktare
• Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCkaeNfe-Lu2rrCJvaCn9zww
• Other: TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@tiktoktare?lang=en Snipfeed: https://snipfeed.co/tiktoktare

Image Credits
VB2Photography, Brooklyn, Crimson Tiaga, Izzy Baker, Sam Navarro