Today we’d like to introduce you to Tanya Zielke.
Hi Tanya, thanks for joining us today. We’d love for you to start by introducing yourself.
I worked in tech sales for years until the pandemic wouldn’t let me live. I always knew I was settling when it came to a job, but the security of being in a well-paid job with good benefits was good enough for me. Four weeks into the pandemic my company let go of their entire sales team. I was forced to face reality and answer the question… What does Tanya want?! Such a hard question at the time. I started to lean into my past creative passions to distract myself from my life that was falling apart quickly. My niece told me to download the app TikTok and that it would bring me a smile on days I was down. Shortly after downloading the app, I made my first video, which ended up getting 20,000 views. I was shook and none of my friends knew that I was making videos on an app “that is for kids.” Well fast forward one month of being on the app posting consistently and I was over 90,000 followers. I was landing brand partnerships with brands like NYX Cosmetics and realized I could actually make money doing something that brings me so much joy. Fast forward a year and half later from getting let go of my corporate job and I have over 715K followers on TikTok, 90K on Instagram, became part of Sephora Squad, hired a team, traveled for work opportunities, and made over 400K in revenue in my first year a full-time influencer. I truly am living in a dream I couldn’t even dream up if I tried.
I’m sure you wouldn’t say it’s been obstacle-free, but so far would you say the journey has been a fairly smooth road?
NOOOOOOOO! It has been a trip on the fastest and rockiest speedway ever. I grew so fast, like over a very short period of time. I had no idea what I was in for when I started. I never imagined having a team, paying contractors, creating mentorship online courses, being a leader in the social media space, and more. I have growing pains constantly. Being a manager was probably the biggest growing pain I have experienced. I want to make sure my contractors are happy and find joy in the work. I have had horrible managers in the past and I refuse to be one of them. So, the pressure I apply to myself is sometimes unbearable. But the challenges are what keep me going. I know I am constantly growing and becoming a boss babe every day. I love that for me!!
Thanks – so what else should our readers know about your work and what you’re currently focused on?
When it comes to me, I am complicated and just a girl trying to figure out life one day at a time. I am a first-generation Congolese American. Ever heard of that? It’s totally fine if not. But my African roots run deep and my culture is a huge part of my identity! In addition, I turned my back to corporate America and that is where it all got complicated. I was forced to go back to the drawing board and figure it out… WHAT DOES TANYA NEED AND WANT FOR HER FUTURE?
My social media presence is a reflection of just that. I want to create a community of queens that are pursuing a self-growth journey and are dedicated to living a more intentional life, like me. We focus on living a balanced lifestyle, practicing a positive mindset, having a good laugh/not taking life too seriously, beauty/fashion/hair tips, etc. What started as just an idea, is now growing into something so beautiful, thanks to my community. Now, I have mentorship classes, community events, and share all my life tips and secrets with the world!!
We thrive off each other’s success queens and support one another through investing in ourselves and learning as we go. I will continue to share all the parts of me online–my weirdness, sense of humor, my pain, my growth, etc. because authenticity is what I live for. I look forward to continue on this journey of growth not just for myself but my community as well and truly excited for what the future holds for all of us!!
What does success mean to you?
Success to me is living through my passions, finding happiness in my work, and getting paid for it. I truly feel like I have reached success because I am living out my passions, surrounded by a team I made, being pushed by talented people to grow and be better, and I am in a very lucrative space that rewards me for being my creative self.
My most proud moment was when I had a team dinner with my entire team present. We got all dressed up and I got us a private room to bond at the end of the year. To think, at the beginning of the year I was in a team of one and I had 8 people in the room with me at the end of the year. That is big. We are family and I am so proud of each person I work with. I can’t wait to see what we do in 2022.
Contact Info:
- Email: lifeoftanyamarie@gmail.com
- Website: lifeoftanyamarie.com
- Instagram: @lifeoftanyamarie
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC9Gx0dF80bPbS9ISmSMMpBQ
- Other: @lifeoftanyamarie TikTok
Image Credits
@victoriasaperstein
