We recently connected with Zach Hoheisel and have shared our conversation below.

Zach, thanks for taking the time to share your stories with us today Have you been able to earn a full-time living from your creative work? If so, can you walk us through your journey and how you made it happen? Was it like that from day one? If not, what were some of the major steps and milestones and do you think you could have sped up the process somehow knowing what you know now?

I’ll never forget the day I was in a business class of some sort in college. The teacher asked me what I wanted to do for a living, I told him I wanted to hunt, fish, and enjoy the outdoors, but I wanted to do it with a camera in my hand. His answer was “so how do you plan on earning a living?” I could tell this wasn’t a question, it was more of a statement. He didn’t believe it was possible to earn a full time living with a camera doing the things I loved.

I’m glad I believed in my own vision rather than listening to the many people that doubted the fact you could create a taking pictures while out in the field. I would be lying if I said it was an easy path. There were years of working for free, heck, a lot of times I would pay to go “work” just to hone my craft and build a portfolio. The real turning point for me was when I took a job at a creative agency and was tasked with creating content and managing social media pages in more of a corporate setting. This allowed me to have a camera in my hands every single day, and I really grew as a creative. It also allowed me to realize the value that I had as a creative.

Every brand, every company, and every person has a story. If you can bring value to these people and share the story that they want to tell to help accomplish their goals, you are giving them something not many people can. When I figured that out and started applying it to the industries that my true passions laid in, thats when everything clicked.

Now I make a full-time living from my creative work. This mostly revolves around the hunting/fishing and outdoor industry. I love going to work everyday. Telling stories and creating content around the things I love most, while also bringing people true value is a blessing. I’m lucky to have found this career that is so fulfilling.

Zach, 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?

Growing up the only thing I really wanted to do was hunt, fish, and spend time outside. I knew I wanted this to be my job one day so I could do it as much as possible, I just didn’t know how. I picked up a camera at a pretty young age and developed a passion for storytelling and creating compelling imagery around the things I loved.

As time went on, I got better at my hard skills with a camera and I started having people ask me if I could help them promote their brands and businesses. I think where my strength lies is in finding the true story, rather than just introducing the surface level stuff. I want to know why someone does what they do, or why a company exists, rather than just talk about what they have to offer. I take a lot of pride in telling the full story, which I think is more compelling and helps my clients have a deeper relationship with their audience.

Right now I have two sides of what I do. There is Growing Wild TV, which is my personal brand where I share my outdoor life with my audience. My goal is to promote an outdoor lifestyle. Naturally, this provides opportunities to promote products, places, and services that help facilitate these activities and this lifestyle. On the other side of things, I work as a creative in the outdoor industry. So if there is a product or service that needs promotion I help tell that story.

Is there mission driving your creative journey?

There is no doubt that part of what I do is selfish. I love creating, and I love being outside. Having this career allows me to get paid to do what I love which is very fulfilling. That being said, I also think America spends far too much time inside, and I want to promote the outdoor lifestyle. When someone watches my content and decides to try a new hobby like hunting, fishing, or camping, that’s really what it is all about for me. Or perhaps someone use to enjoy these activities, but the life got in the way. They went off to college, started a job, and they got out of spending a large amount of time outdoors. When these people watch my content, and decide to get involved again, or get their kids involved because they remember the value time outdoors brought them, that’s really what drives me. I know the impact living an outdoor lifestyle has on me and my family, I want more people to experience that.

Any insights you can share with us about how you built up your social media presence?

I’ve never had the goal of growing a massive social media following. What I did want is a deep social media following. I’d rather have 1,000 people that are truly interested than 10,000 people following me that don’t really care. The advice I would give to someone starting a personal brand, is to keep it personal. Don’t pay attention to the vanity metrics. Create content around the things you love, and the right followers will show up. They will see your passion, and that will be what sets you apart.

Contact Info:

• Website: growingwildtv.com
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/growing_wildtv/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/GrowingWildTV
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/zach-hoheisel-9b1352187/
• Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@growingwildtv

Image Credits
All of these are my images