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

Hi Brian, is there something you believe many others might not?
Do what makes you happy.

I heard it growing up, and I still hear it today. Though, I don’t think it’s bad advice, I think it’s horribly incomplete.
Happy is an emotion that tends to wear down after you the dopamine high from all the likes and positive comments from your Instagram post of telling your friends your will be leaving your corporate job to chase a passion!
Anyone that has started or attempted to run their own business will tell you that happy is not the adjective that describes most days.
Frustration, exhaustion, hours turned days of focusing on a single task, chasing deadlines and clients, all while deciding if you made the right choice.

There might be happiness weaved through those things, but , I think a huge disservice we do as mentors or thought leaders to young hungry minds is to feed them the idea that if they chase happiness, you will be fulfilled. The alternative is to teach them that “through” is the gateway to fulfillment, that shortcuts and dopamine spikes are not where you will find the best version of yourself. Your passion might point you to what makes you happy, but starting a business doing your passion does not make you happy if you aren’t willing to go “through” plenty of “unhappiness. “

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 came from the niche performing arts world of Spoken Word Poetry. It sits rudely as the red headed step child to theater and is gasped at by the literary poetry world.
I was able to gain my confidence as a young adult by telling stories on stages to strangers at local open mics in the city.
Soon I was invited to join teams, and compete in poetry slams nationally, and was brought on to groups that would tour college campuses and venues around the United States. As a broke young artist, having someone pay for your flight and food to new places was luxury no one would pass up.
Fast forward, I picked a camera and haven’t been able to put it down.
My love for storytelling started to leak into the pictures and videos I would take.
I would take freelance photography gigs on the weekend between a sales job i had for a fortune 100 company for over a decade.
One day a friend asked if I would want to join his team in a start up marketing company as a photo/video brand storyteller.
It sounded like alignment, so after some week, heavy consideration and prayer I took a leap and this began my journey as a full time photo/video brand story strategist.

Let’s say your best friend was visiting the area and you wanted to show them the best time ever. Where would you take them? Give us a little itinerary – say it was a week long trip, where would you eat, drink, visit, hang out, etc.
Every time we have friends or family, visiting from out of town, there are some LA “musts”
A dodger game, mixed with a nice cocktail, maybe at Seven Grand, Thunderbolt, or Wolf and Crane. and topped off with a nice dinner. LA arts District has two of my favorite restaurants “Girl and the Goat” and “Bavel” those are a bit nicer,
But if it’s a more casual night we just as easily could grab a bowl of Ramen at “Shin Sen Gumi” or piece of pizza at “ Prince St., Pizza” or pick up the street taco and walk into brewery in LA !

Shoutout is all about shouting out others who you feel deserve additional recognition and exposure. Who would you like to shoutout?
My shoutout is to my wife & partner Alexandra Oliva! I’m not 100% sure how she finds it fun to support all of my crazy endeavors, ideas, and now this business.
But, there is zero chance, I would be in any position to dream, or leap into this new chapter without her foresight, wisdom, and encouragement. She has championed me in ways I don’t think I could ever repay her for.
So I will start with thanking and recognizing her every chance i get.

Website: https://bigfishphotography70.mypixieset.com/?fbclid=PAQ0xDSwLNDRVleHRuA2FlbQIxMQABp0MwMtIkAv0r93xbfGRGjrO51HutCXWyWY8woKmUKDJ6UnqSPLpMPbVTWeMW_aem_iNucGEVOvmIL5QvBkbFQ7w

Instagram: bigfishphotography

Image Credits
Instagram:
@akidnamedlos

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