Meet Erika Natalie | Multidisciplinary artist with hopes to expand consciousness through words and activism.

We had the good fortune of connecting with Erika Natalie and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Erika, do you have a budget? How do you make lifestyle and spending decisions?
It’s pretty clear that budgeting is necessary in order to build your empire to the level of success you’d like it to be. At one point in our career, we really have to examine our relationships with money. A helpful concept to think about is comparing budgeting to self-discipline. Having this comparison in mind has made me become aware of the every-day essential practices when it comes to budgeting, productivity, and consistency. It took awareness for me to take the steps necessary for my visions to no longer exist solely in my head, but finally have them become my physical reality.

As a person who constantly has such fuel and desire to take action towards their goals, I believe that as creative-entrepreneurs, we go through 4 different levels of awareness during the process of “figuring that sh*t out”;

1. Imagination – the way we want our lives to look like, similar to looking at your own potential reality in somebody else’s perspective.

2. Visualization – we now are able to conceptualize and have a clearer picture of the way we want our life to look like, similar to putting your imaginations in your reality’s perspective.

3. Awareness – we now understand that whatever our lives are meant to look like, that’s what it’s going to look like.

4. Self mastery – practicing losing expectations around what we think should be happening and directing that energy towards what is happening in your present moment.

My ‘4 levels of consciousness’ concept allowed my unconscious mind to stay attentive to my long-term goals and to maintain steady focus by acting conservatively without being in a scarcity mindset. This has presented a healthy balance for spending and saving money in my life. Enjoy the fruits of your work, but also save up for the future. In the end, in order for us to reach our destined path, we must remember not to place too much value on material possessions to the point where we lose sense of self, but at the same time learn how to respect and honor the opportunities that come with wealth as well. This is all a 50-50 game, so live according to your truth and do what feels right; as long as you stay true to you and keep your faith strong, God will always work in your favor.

Can you open up a bit about your work and career? We’re big fans and we’d love for our community to learn more about your work.
I like to say I’m a multidisciplinary activist for the expansion of consciousness through community building, words, and art. I created my brand a little over a year ago in hopes to give myself and other fellow artists an opportunity to express our frustrations, experiences, and messages through a magazine (Frowned Smile Magazine). I started this digital magazine on my own in January 2020, and shared my photography, videography/directing, and writing passions through there. During this time, the world had just gone into lockdown, meaning that the upheaval moments began for me. COVID-19, racial injustice, and environmental crisis had triggered and fueled my fire in a way that made me want to do more for my community, and eventually globally. It wasn’t too long after that, that I realized I wanted to start working in the non-profit field in order to promote peace, support local, and share resources and education opportunities with the Houston community. I have now expanded Frowned Smile, my brand, and have organized several community service efforts towards environmental change. I have many more community cleanups, projects, and events in the works and I am so thrilled to have the opportunity to build this safe space for myself and for my community.

If you had a friend visiting you, what are some of the local spots you’d want to take them around to?
I would take them to any local event where they’re able to get a feel for my community associates’ passions. Getting to know your community members is like getting to know yourself. So in this case, my favorite spots vary.

Shoutout is all about shouting out others who you feel deserve additional recognition and exposure. Who would you like to shoutout?
I’d like to shoutout literally every single person, every single interaction, situation, and experience that has crossed my path. I tend to always want to give props to the energies that have brought discomfort in my life, as that’s what brings in awareness for needed changes and adjustments. But honestly, shoutout to my mom because she has taught me how to conserve my time, money, and energy in a way that will eventually feed my growth. She’s taught me how to safely and effectively save money and build a business by always having a marketing type of mindset. This not only is helping my business grow, but it’s also allowing me to understand what boundaries I need to set in order to continue to reach a higher level of enlightenment during my spiritual journey. My mom has been a mentor throughout my whole life; she has built an empire from basically nothing compared to the amount of resources and opportunities we have now. She inspires me, she motivates me, and her discipline is so empowering that you feel and become golden when she is around. She really makes me feel comfortable with being myself and thinking in the way I do; “What am I gaining out of this opportunity?”.

Always have an intent for expanding awareness and you’ll see the magic in life.

Website: erikanatalie.com

Instagram: instagram.com/erikanatalie__

Youtube: www.youtube.com/erikanatalie