Daily Inspiration: Meet Dalia Chavez

Today we’d like to introduce you to Dalia Chavez.

Hi Dalia, thanks for sharing your story with us. To start, maybe you can tell our readers some of your backstory.
Oh man! Well, I am originally from Nebraska, I know you gasped, most people do! Yes, it is a real place haha! But yea I grew up in Nebraska, and like every small town creative, I always dreamed of moving to a bigger city because I knew it meant bigger opportunities! However, I didn’t always know I’d be able to live out my dream the way I have so far. Like every other child of Mexican parents, I was taught very early on that “creative” jobs and wanting to be in the arts was for rich kids, and I needed to be practical. It’s not that my parents didn’t believe in me or think I was capable, they just knew what it was like growing up with so little, and the fear of me having to do the same terrified them. So, I went to college for four years studying Psychology, Criminal Justice, Communication, and Sociology to become a juvenile probation officer. I was passionate about it, in the sense that I knew it would be taxing on me, but I felt that I was capable and could try to make a difference in at least on person’s life.

Cliche, I know, but it was more about the fact that I knew I had the grit and mental toughness to do the work, and my professors said that was rare. After years of papers, exams, labs, more papers, and studying I GRADUATED… via zoom university of course, because I was a 2020 grad. I bet you know where this story is going! While I quarantined with my fiance’s family because being cooped up in a house was better than in a tiny apartment, I posted my very first *drum roll please* TikTok! And after a few fun little posts, I got my first viral video, and then another, and another! As everyone else around me freaked out, I pretended to not be phased, when in reality, I was proud! I could feel my naturally creative heart start to pump again, even though I had suppressed it for so long. The thought of actually being able to do what I love slowly creeped into my mind. From then on, I started to create like my life depended on it because it kind of did! At least the life I so deeply yearned for. I knew I had a limited amount of time until I had to face reality and start paying for our new apartment and grown-up bills. Luckily for me, this time marked the societal boom of social media as a career as opposed to just a hobby or something your friends could bring up to tease you about! This was the real deal.

From then on, I posted and started to build a small community! Eventually, I got some of my first brand deals, which was so surreal! I remember thinking “Me?? Really?? You want to work with me?” and not that I didn’t think I was cool or funny BECAUSE I AM, but the thought that these companies picked me out of thousands of people was kind of mind-boggling! The imposter syndrome had me in a chokehold for sure, it still does! But after a couple of years, I was contact by AwesomenessTV with an opportunity to become a Social Media Producer, working remotely from Kansas City, MO! (Oh yea I forgot to mention that after graduation I moved to Kansas City, MO for my fiance’s job! Alright, all caught up) So after I accepted the position, I began making content for their channels and eventually decided I was ready to make the move to Los Angeles! Now I know I moved through that part of the story quickly, but it certainly was not a decision I took lightly. All of my life, I had taken the safe road and the road that had no risk. But I knew that if I was going to live the life I had always dreamed of, I was going to have to take the biggest risk of my life, putting all of my trust in myself. So I did.

On October of 2022, we packed up our lives and set forth on one of the most daring journeys of our life. I decided to fiercely take on the challenge to make my dreams a reality, and I thank myself every day that I did. When I start to second guess myself, I stop and think about where I was before versus where I am now. I think about what my past self would think if I told her where I am now. She wouldn’t believe but man would she be proud.

Would you say it’s been a smooth road, and if not what are some of the biggest challenges you’ve faced along the way?
Oh gosh no. The road has been painstakingly long and full of twists and turns. Hell, sometimes the road was actually a long dark tunnel with what appeared to be no end. I have struggled with my mental health all of my life, as so many others have. But making people laugh is and was what kept me afloat. That’s very daunting to think about, but it’s the truth. My journey to get to where I am now could not have been possible without the community I built, as well as my friends, family, and fiancé holding me up. I know my response to the question above made the journey feel quick and like everything just fell into place, but getting to where I am now has taken mental toughness that I didn’t even know was capable of. I have never talked about it, buy the two years after my college graduation were some of the most difficult years of my life. The self-doubt and hopelessness that I felt was insurmountable, and yet I somehow made it through.

As a creative in any field, you are completely dependent on yourself and your mind, but you are also constantly holding a mirror to yourself, critiquing yourself and even comparing yourself to others. And I don’t know about you, but some days I dread looking in the mirror. And yet being a creative is one of the biggest gifts in the world to me! Being the silly little girl in someone’s phone that makes them laugh brings me more joy than any bad day could touch. I’ve cried over people’s comments because of their kindness and knowing that because of something I did or said, they let out laughs that prompted them to comment. And in their life, it is a moment so small and so minuscule I know, but to me it is everything. The road to where I am has been difficult, but imagining myself reach my ultimate dream makes it all worth it.

Alright, so let’s switch gears a bit and talk business. What should we know about your work?
Haha! Well, I am a social media creator! I make content for AwesomenessTV and Paramount Pictures, as well as for my personal social media! I make silly little funny videos online ranging from chaotic story times, GRWMs, and an occasional rant! As I mentioned before I love to make people laugh so if I think it can get a chuckle out of someone, I’m posting it! I also post a lot of Hispanic content which my mom is a very big fan of, but she also thinks I am the funniest person in the world so she may be a little biased! I think I am the most proud of the fact that I haven’t allowed myself to be put in a box, which is why I think this is a difficult question for me to answer I guess! My hope has always been for people to enjoy my content because I am unapologetically myself. This can be a little nerve-racking, but I’ve always been a private person so I think it helps me open up a bit! I think the thing that sets me apart from others is the fact that there is no other me on this earth! When you come to my page, you will get to know me and what I’m like! I am grateful that I have built my platform this way because I get excited every day to just show up online to chat with people, and me showing up is enough for them! Of course, I’m an entertainer at heart, so it’s a little more complex than that, but yea!

We all have a different way of looking at and defining success. How do you define success?
Oh man, that’s a good question. I think the main way that I define success is by thinking about what little Dalia would think of me now. What she would say when she saw all the things I have accomplished. I can’t lie, I think she would think that I’m pretty cool and noooow I’m crying, haha! I just know the things she experienced and had to endure, so her opinion holds a lot of weight. I think that’s why I can be such a private person because I try to keep my success defined by myself as opposed to others. But in my line of work that can of course be difficult. On bad days I define my success in numbers like views, likes, etc., but I always manage to pull myself out from that. Some days it takes more work than others. I think that regardless of how you define your success, it’s important to remember that you’re a human being, and are allowed to have bad days, mundane days even! And don’t belittle your success when you do experience it.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://linktr.ee/daliaelichavez
• Instagram: @daliaelichavez
• Twitter: @daliaelichavez
• Youtube: @daliaelichavez