We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Trey Bates a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.
Trey, thanks for joining us, excited to have you contributing your stories and insights. We’d love to hear about the things you feel your parents did right and how those things have impacted your career and life.
My parents were absolutely amazing and I know fully well how fortunate I am to have that. While they could be very stern in times of conduct or academic discipline, they also gave my brother and I every opportunity to be creative and expressive. Whether it be by choice or force in some instances. Getting us to learn instruments, putting in all the sports, or playing video games and drawing together, they always allowed my brother and I to express ourselves in all forms!
Awesome – so before we get into the rest of our questions, can you briefly introduce yourself to our readers.
I grew up in Houston and attended Booker T Washington High before receiving my Bachelors degree at The University of Texas at San Antonio and then receiving my Masters from the University of Houston – Victoria.
I started The Creative Geek while I was working in the education sector. I was enjoying my job at the time but I just felt something missing. Passion. Creating. Building something of my own. I had always had an immense love for all things gaming, geek, pop culture, fantasy fiction, so I wanted to find a way to express myself.
Now, for the last few months I have been fully self-employed while building several new businesses (Amazon automation, ATMs, HR Consulting, Swim Coach, etc hehe) in order to create the income as well as time to enjoy creating for The Creative Geek any time any place! Finally getting out of Corporate America was easily the biggest step in the right direction I think I have made in my adult life thus far!
The Creative Geek isn’t just a brand, but a mindset and way of life. Being a creative and/or geek is something that should be celebrated as you are truly proud of what you love, no matter what it is!
: Is there a particular goal or mission driving your creative journey?
The goal that has always been my guiding light has always been freedom of expression. The freedom to create whatever you want and show it to the world. If they like it, they can purchase it. If not, that’s ok too because at least I had the confidence to put myself out there and give it a shot. And if I have the confidence to do that for the rest of my life, that would be a dream.
Are there any resources you wish you knew about earlier in your creative journey?
PINTEREST. IS. AMAZING! Growing up we were always told that Pinterest was for girls and vision boards, so I never took the chance to check the platform out. But once I did, I found a safe space for millions of artistic and creative ideas. 10/10 would recommend!
Contact Info:
- Website: Www.TheCreativeGeekShop.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/creatvgeek_trey/
- Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/william-trey-bates-m-ed-13960a69/
- Youtube: https://youtube.com/channel/UCSQRAIsA9C8sBrGioouPG2Q
- Other: Pinterest: https://pin.it/2XuV1ML