We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Zaneishia Lynch a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.
Zaneishia , thanks for taking the time to share your stories with us today Let’s jump back to the first dollar you earned as a creative? What can you share with us about how it happened?
I’ve always been a creative person. As a young girl when I received a project in school that required poster boards, visuals, PowerPoint presentations I instantly would get excited. It was through these assignments I could shine ✨ + express who I really was. But it was during the 2020 pandemic that I decided to take my creations seriously and make an income. So picture this: it’s 2020 we’re all locked down, trapped in the house with our spouses or as the world was saying; trapped in the house with bae. A popular term that I couldn’t relate to cause I did not have a spouse or significant other. I had just had a breakup, lost my job, and was bored and scared in the house just like everyone else. So I took the term bae and made it work for ME. Big Alchemist Energy. An alchemist turns lead to gold or coal into diamonds. I took my pain from the breakup and just loved on myself and became my own bae. We were all sitting at home on socials so I posted a video of me chilling in my bae sweatshirt and said “me + bae”. That’s it. I was scared thinking no one would like but hey we trying new things. I stayed in the comments that if anyone else is without a bae you can purchase your own bae( shirt) and you’ll be fine. First customer was a social media friend I’ve been talking to over the past 2 years. She’s all the way in Detroit and said she wanted a bae. Lol I instantly thought holy sh*t someone actually wants my creation. I had no website or anything just me + send payment to my cashapp. Didn’t even have a price cause I really had no intention on selling. I was just expressing I had no bae. I was really excited. So excited I shipped it the same day!
Awesome – so before we get into the rest of our questions, can you briefly introduce yourself to our readers.
I came into this industry of entrepreneurship naturally. Quirky sayings, quick wittedness, and my love for graphic tees brought me here. Walmart + Spencer’s graphic tee section was my jam. Still is. I’ve always loved expressing my individuality through clothing. So me being a creative and wanting my own clothing line came naturally. I was pushed into entrepreneurship through the pandemic. I believe that’s a time where we all had to find creative ways to pay the bills. I’m also a licensed massage therapist but the spa industry took a big hit with the pandemic so I really had to make something shake. I chose to put my money into myself + my authenticity. Being yourself always pays. I’m most proud that when my clients + customers see me they see a guide to being themselves. Be your quirky weird self fully. Someone out there will gravitate towards it. This is the mission with my clothing line- alignment with your true self. When I started in 2020 I had no name or website. Just vibes. I now have a name + puporse + a website. Soul Aligned.—“creative designs for the spiritually aligned.” We focus on self love, mental health, + spirituality as these are all things to help embrace the real YOU. Through this endeavor I’ve also learned to discover + embrace who I am. I wasn’t always outgoing or quick to share what I’m about, but now I can’t wait to create a video, reel, or post to share. I’m no longer scared to spark a conversation. Whether someone likes my posts or not. I still had the courage to put myself out there. And for most that is what holds them up. I’m not special plenty of people have great ideas and can do what I do or better; the only difference is I no longer care what people think + I’m not scared to show myself.
Learning and unlearning are both critical parts of growth – can you share a story of a time when you had to unlearn a lesson?
Number one lesson I’d like to share is stop comparing your self to others. Your journey is not their journey. You are right where you need to be even if it feels like you’re stuck. Growing up I was a people pleaser never really had my own voice until I found self love. I wasn’t a follower I just didn’t like confrontation. I stayed in my little bubble, I didn’t rebel, I didn’t give problems. But that life gets boring. I’m 31. It wasn’t until I became a mom at 28 that I said things have got to change. My life felt boring because I wasn’t loving me. I didn’t believe in me. And it didn’t help that all day I would just scroll and watch younger people do better than me. 22 year olds in Lamborghinis and taking trips every month was sickening and made me jealous. So I decided to heal those wounds of feeling less than and I gave myself full attention. Self love + self care is a loose term now and pretty cliche but it really does start with self. Your relationship with yourself determines all your other relationships. I had a shitty relationship with me + it led me to comparing + wishing I had others’ life. Like what girl? You don’t even know what this person did to get that life. So a beautiful reminder to love yours don’t compare, this was a tough lesson for me but it ultimately led to me being this radiant being today.
What do you find most rewarding about being a creative?
I simply get to be me. I get to do me, freely. What I am creating is from my experiences. There’s a story behind every creation. No one can do or be me better than me. And I get to express that with my clothing. I get to say I DID THAT!!
Contact Info:
- Other: linktr.ee/honeebee.zee