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

Hi Gabypao, why did you decide to pursue a creative path?
At a point in my life (4 years ago) I realized that I’m an artist. So, I took a leap of faith and leave my regular job in an L.A based agency and pursued a different way. The why behind these are my dreams, dreams that are related to a different kind of life that the one that I decided for myself at that moment. I always enjoyed my freedom to create, writing, taking photos, designing, and creating new projects related to arts; so I started to do it. The first thing I did was record a whole Masterclass of Creativity which was sold more than 200 times online to different Latinos entrepreneurs that looked for an extra punch of inspiration. And then the rest is a long story.

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’m Gabypao Barrera a journalist, master in digital strategy, digital creator, certificated life coach, and entrepreneur. When I won the visa lottery (5 years ago) I decided to move from my country Ecuador to Los Angeles, California. I got a job in an Agency and honestly, my life was set up with a good salary, a nice husband, and everything that I “always wanted” but…. 2 years later, I started to notice that I was made for something else. So, I decided to start a new path, one that was more difficult, but also more connected with my soul. The first thing I did was quit my job, the second thing was record a CREATIVITY MASTERCLASS (who are you to teach creativity?, do you believe that you are an artist? haha) that was what my internal voice used to tell me when I took the lip of faith…. To my surprise, 3 months later I sold more than 100 digital courses and that makes me realize that if I want to “teach” creativity I had to go deeper. So I took a master’s degree in life coaching to serve people in a different way… the tools and information that I got helped me to develop a new business mixing all my passions in one. Now I help to transform artists into digital brands and brands into art. In almost 3 years i served more than 300 Latinos, I launched 4 editions of 3 different courses and I’m creating now my own Agency just for artists.

If you had a friend visiting you, what are some of the local spots you’d want to take them around to?
I live in DTLA Downton LA, I’m a city girl, so for me, the plans are: walking for flowers to the Flower Market, going for a good cup of coffee at Nice Coffee… then, of course, I’ll take my friends to a The Broad Museum, later to the secret garden in the Disney hall. Because I’m a fan of photos and urban art I’ll organize a walking photoshoot around my favorite murals in the center of LA; eating tacos in Grand Central market is also part of the itinerary and catching the sunset into one of my favorite spots in LA the Vista Hermosa Park.

Who else deserves some credit and recognition?
There are so many: books, moments, conferences, courses, people, etc. But if I have to pick just a few I would say: Michelle Poler of the Hello Fears community, talking with her encouraged me to start living the life that was made for me. Also, one of the books that I love the more is called “Find Your artist Voice” of Lisa Congdon.

Website: www.gabypaobarrera.com

Instagram: @gabypaobarrera

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/becreativebygabypao/

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