MY STORY
My journey from powerless, broke, jealous scroller to powerful, rich Instagram Star began exactly where yours begins: where I’m from, what I’ve done, and who I’ve always wanted to be.
I grew up in a small town in the Pacific Northwest. My family was working class, so I went to public school and had to take advantage of what was offered to me there. For most of my life I took dance classes, in high school I started doing a little modeling, and in college I dabbled a bit in acting.
Then, after graduation, I moved to New York City to become a star.
In my first few years in the Big Apple, I did shows with a few decent choreographers, went to casting calls at some modeling agencies, and even found myself working with some B-level photographers and producers. And while these were exciting opportunities for a newcomer to be having, by my fourth year I realized it was time to be honest with myself.
First, I wasn’t making any money, and living in the city was expensive, so much of my time was spent doing catering gigs. Second, it was becoming clear that I was a little too short and full-figured to be a fashion model. Finally, dancing the way choreographers wanted me to dance and acting the way producers wanted me to act simply wasn’t very satisfying.
Yes, I wanted to be a star, but I wanted to be a star on my own terms. In my own way. I wanted power, agency, and freedom.
The year was 2014, and it was right around this time that social media really took off. You started hearing about people having “millions of followers,” and it became clear that a large online presence was suddenly a viable way to become a star.
So, like many others, I started an Instagram page.
I quickly became struck by how much posting on my page was like doing a performance. And while I was really down on the entertainment industry, I had to admit that I’d learned a great deal from it. I’d learned about the process of “Development, Production, and Distribution” on which every show and stardom was based, and in feeding my Instagram with images and captions I found that I was instinctively going through those steps myself.
I also became obsessed with my follower count. Over the next two years, I spent countless hours researching, trying different things, and studying what the big accounts were doing. Slowly I began to hone in on successful strategies of imagery, engagement, and growth, and from that experience I created my YBI Method.
Then, implementing Story + Show + Share on my page, my account started growing by leaps and bounds and I began to monetize.
It was amazing. I was making money doing exactly what I wanted. I didn’t have to answer to anyone. I had all the power. I made my own schedule, chose my own locations and wardrobe, got brand endorsements, took paid-for trips, followed the lucrative leads that came into my DMs, and kept all the revenue from my monetization projects. I felt followed. I felt famous. I felt like a star.
And then one night I had a dream...
I dreamt that I was speaking at a Business Leaders conference. The announcer said, “Please welcome to the stage an amazing social media expert and a truly inspiring entrepreneur.” As I took to the mic, I started talking about how Instagram offered a way for people to control their own destinies free of the powers that be, to make money off the expression of their genuine selves, and to live the life of a star. And then I said that my ultimate goal was to help people get in on this action, and to do that I was starting a company called Your Best Insta. And so a dream came to life.
My passion used to be to make myself a star, but now it’s to make you a star.
I want to give you all the knowledge I’ve learned along the way, to help you implement the YBI Method into your world, to let you in on my dream. Your Best Insta is exactly what I wish I’d had when I started out on my own so many years ago, because I would have saved so much time and money! But I have no regrets. In fact, I have only joy because I get to share it all with you.
Fact is, becoming a star is as easy as 1-2-3: 1) find your story, 2) shoot your show, 3) share it right. It’s the YBI Method, it’s worked for Hollywood, it’s worked for me, and it’s going to work for you. It’s a simple and effective system for social media success.