This subsequently created a rift between her and her father, and they didn’t speak for years as a result.

After years of hard work, Asiyami, now 26, is now a full time instagrammer, photographer, designer, and model, with over 192,000 followers.

She recently spoke to Cosmopolitan about her journey. Here are excerpts from the interview:

You’ve been described as a visual storyteller, an artist, a photographer, an artistic creator, and, obviously, an Instagrammer. How would you describe yourself?

I would say that I’m more of a creator or creative.

But at first, you thought you wanted to become a nurse. What made you change your mind?

I had tricked myself into believing that’s what I wanted to do with my life. I had a Tumblr, and on Tumblr, you get to reblog beautiful images of people, and I was just fascinated by the fact that people could create such beautiful imagery and I wanted to replicate that. When I got on Instagram [when I was 21] I saw more of it but I didn’t see anyone who looked like me. So I began to wonder, “This aesthetically pleasing and beautiful lifestyle I’m drawn to — is it only attainable by people who don’t look like me?” So I decided I wanted to give different perspective to women of color. I decided to quit nursing school.

What’s it like to tell your family, “Uh, hey, I’m quitting nursing school?”

My older brother had always told me to do what I wanted to do instead of trying to please mom and dad. He said they’d figure out how they can fit into [my] life plans. So he was excited. My mother was not.

And your dad?

My dad and I actually didn’t speak until this year. I’m from Nigeria, and those with Nigerian backgrounds know that to our parents, education is the most important and most valuable thing you could ever achieve in your life. So when you work that hard and then you have this daughter who wants to now be an artist, to them it’s like saying you want to be an astronaut. They don’t understand.

What led him to a change of heart after so long?

Last year, his sister died. So when I reached out to him last December, he was a bit more receptive. In [the first e-mail he sent me in years], he was very open. At the end of the day, his sister’s death made him realize our relationship was important. He still brings up that he wants me to go back to school, though.

What did you do after you quit nursing school?

I moved to New York from Georgia. A friend who lived in Harlem told me I could stay with her for the first two weeks. I remember on the way to New York I was reading The Alchemist for like the fifth time and I remember praying and I said, “I just need a sign to know that I’m not making one of the biggest mistakes of my life.” I got to New York on a Thursday, and that Friday, at my new job at the Urban Outfitters in Williamsburg, I checked my e-mail, and [there] was a message from Gap. They wanted me to be one of their Atlanta photographers for a children’s project.

How’d they find you?

They’d seen my Instagram. I had about 20,000 followers from sharing my adventures and had been on Instagram for two years by then. But at the time, I didn’t know this influencer thing was … a thing. From then on, though, it wasn’t as easy as I thought it would be.

What difficulties have you encountered?

I honestly don’t think I get to book as many jobs as most [white lifestyle influencers do]. I usually ask people, “Hey, how much are they paying you for stuff?” And I’ve learned a lot of times, when brands come to me, they offer me the lowest amount. My [white] friends [who book similar jobs] tell me, “Oh yeah, I was offered about $5,000-$10,000.” But with me, the offer normally comes in around $2,000. So I always have to figure out how I can talk my way up and show people, “Yes I’m actually valuable. And I’m exposing you to a different market, you know?”

What is the biggest misconception people have about influencers?

You [can] go through a month, two months, three months of not knowing where your daily bread is coming from. Sometimes you have to save that $5,000 you got for the next five months, because you don’t know when you’re going to make money [again].

Read the entire interview on Cosmopolitan

Photo Credit: Cosmpolitan/Michelle Kaye/Asiyami Gold

Here are a few ways you can market your business without breaking the bank.

1. Build an active and loyal social media following

Social media platforms like Facebook, Snapchat, Instagram and Twitter give you direct access to millions of potential customers, located all over the world. You’re not going to attract followers by just being average. There are far too many options out there. You will need to put out interesting and unique content in order to build a large following.

As you work on your social audience, you will create a valuable asset that allows you to market over and over, without it costing you an arm and a leg. Make sure you don’t overwhelm your social audience with constant promotional offers. If someone follows your business on social media, he or she is obviously interested in what you offer. You don’t need to flood their timeline with direct advertisements; as this will turn them off and cause them to disconnect with your brand on social media. Instead, subtle and clever posts will naturally spark interest in your brand.

2. Develop referral partnerships or collaborate with businesses that share your audience

This is a very easy way to place your brand in front of a strategically-targeted audience and quickly build a customer base and generate revenue, which in turn will give you more working capital to scale.

You will have to identify potential referral opportunities that will complement the product or service of the partner. For example, are you an ice-making factory? Partner with a mobile bar owner or an events planning agency and you could offer them a flat fee for any referrals made to you.

It’s important to set up a deal with two things in mind — longevity and keeping the referral partner happy, so he or she continues to funnel business your way. While this strategy may eat up a portion of your profits, think of it as an advertising expense. Only, it’s at a lesser cost. Also, you’re receiving direct benefits as opposed to advertising to a large audience and never really being able to measure the success of the advertisement.

3. Constantly engage with your current customers.

Who are the best customers? Repeat customers.

You should have an email list of all your customers, and make it a priority to constantly touch base with all of them often. Rather than send direct-sales offers, send interesting information related to your industry. E-mail marketing comes in very handy here. Some useful tools include Netcore and Mailchimp, which send out bulk e-newsletters to your audience. Make the content interesting by having personalized subject titles and images within the email.

This kind of marketing keeps your brand fresh in the minds of your customers. That way, the next time they’re in the market for what you offer, you’ll be the first company they think of.

4. Get out on the streets

Too many new entrepreneurs think that you can come up with a business, slap together a website, sit back and wait for the money to roll in. There are many success stories about how startups grow into multi-million dollar businesses, and while there are plenty of examples, the media never talks about the early-day hustle and bustle it took to get them to this point. It wasn’t always prim, proper in fancy looking office spaces – but they don’t tell you that! 

Successful businesses gain the traction that eventually equals success because of their founder’s hustle. They eat, sleep and breathe their business. You can’t be afraid to dive in and do the groundwork yourself. So, get on the phones all day and night to generate sales. Hit the street, and go talk to every potential customer you can think of.

Photo Credit: Dreamstime

Kudos to Nollywood actress, ChizzyAlichi, who refused to give in to this pressure.

In a moving Instagram post, Chizzy revealed how she had been ridiculed for not wearing the latest clothes and Brazilian hair, but unknown to her critics, she was saving a ton of money to build her parents a house in the village:

People have always refer to me as “mgbeke” (local girl) that I dont know fashion or carry designer bags/shoes/clothes That I don’t wear expensive hair. Well my darlings I do know and want to wear those things but I have been saving for this building right here. I can’t remember d last time my family travelled for Xmas because their is no house to stay. My mother falls sick whenever she goes for August meeting and comes back. My father wanted to sell half of our compound to fix d leaking roof, buy ceiling and also patch the broken wall but I told him No. ( PAPA I WILL BUILD HOUSE FOR YOU) after saving for sometime, I wanted to use the money to buy myself another car (A bigger car) but I said to myself, what’s d need for d car when we don’t have roof over our head in d village moreover the car I have is still in good condition and serves me well, I can always buy another one later. Today am grateful to Almight God that it came to pass. My parents are d happiest ppl on earth. 4 masters bedroom, extra 2 toilets, kitchen, dinning and palour. God is the Greatest.

A post shared by ChizzyAlichi (@chizzyalichi) on Dec 26, 2017 at 7:03am PST

She’s such a great role model.