Since I was young, the creative arts have always been my safe space. Whether it was film, art or music, I always found something that would allow me to escape from whatever was happening around me. I would not just spend hours creating stories in my head; I also loved to lose myself in whatever I was making. 

I initially left school to study to become a PE teacher. Then I changed to something in multimedia, then some random musical theatre courses and then I switched again to learn jazz piano for a year. However, I decided that university wasn't for me. So, I left without finishing any degrees. 

I was a little lost when the global financial crisis hit. And being in my early 20s, I wasn't happy and felt there was more to see and do than working in retail. I wanted to create something. Challenge myself and make an impact.

While I initially left school to study to become a physical education teacher, then something in multimedia, some random musical theatre courses and then a year studying jazz piano. But I didn’t finish any of these and never really settled on just one creative field. 

An idea from somewhere unexpected came. While on several daily calls, I noticed the blank wall behind me. If I was stuck there on calls staring at this blank wall, I would quickly get bored of it. And if I was already getting bored of staring at this wall, then people on the call would also get bored of it. 

So I decided to do a painting. What else was I going to do? I had all the time and wasn't allowed to go anywhere. I might as well do something. I decided to do a pour painting, and after a month of teaching myself how to do this, I bought the materials and planned out what I would do; one Sunday afternoon in April, I painted. 

Throughout lockdown, I got reacquainted with the creative side I hadn't let loose for a long time. And it wasn't just art; I also created stop motion videos, wrote stories and started my journey of sharing how we are all leaders.