Michelle Elaine shared their story and experiences with us recently and you can find our conversation below.
Michelle, we’re thrilled to have you with us today. Before we jump into your intro and the heart of the interview, let’s start with a bit of an ice breaker: What do the first 90 minutes of your day look like?
The first 90 minutes of my day look like snoozing my 5:45 alarm until 6:10AM, giving me and my children a whole 35 minutes to get out of the house in the morning! I beg and plead with them both to get out of the bed (mostly my boy requires the many pleas) and I lay out clothes from them and encourage them to keep moving every step of the way! I throw on clothes and make myself look quarter decent, just enough to not embarrass myself on the walk from the parking lot to the cafeteria door at school where I kiss my babies and wish them a good day! If I’m lucky I can get back with enough time to spend a moment with hubby before he is out the door. And whereas I always say that I’m going back to bed after I drop them off, I seldom do! And by seldom I mean never, lol!
Can you briefly introduce yourself and share what makes you or your brand unique?
I am a creative storyteller born and raised in Houston, TX! Most of the time you can find me on stage working hard at crafting complex and hilarious characters that I’m so fortunate to portray, but I wear many hats including writing, directing, producing and most recently, podcasting! What I love most of all about the art of creating is the opportunity to collaborate with other passionate people. I’m most joyful when I’m working with like minded individuals to bring a story to life and I think that love for community through creation is what makes my work so special. It certainly makes it more fun!
Okay, so here’s a deep one: What was your earliest memory of feeling powerful?
The earliest memory I have of feeling powerful was in elementary school. And I must say, it was not the right kind of powerful. I would tease my friends about silly stuff like liking a boy or making them watch a scary movie- classic bully stuff, but not to the extent that we couldn’t laugh about later. Just to be clear. I realized that I had an ability to influence, and though it started as a form of intimidation, in my maturity I realized that I had a quality about me that compelled people to listen to what I had to say. An ability to command a room if I chose to or to encourage that my ideas shape the way in which we proceed to do a thing. And that may have played into my desire to tell stories and play different characters. It certainly feels like a special kind of power being able to usher people into that willing suspension of disbelief where imagination and storytelling takes place!
What fear has held you back the most in your life?
I think the fear of rejection has held me back the most in my life. And it has certainly stunted or stalled a many of good ideas and potential opportunities! The fear of the unknown is another one and I think it’s closely related because how can you KNOW that you are going to be rejected? I think wanting to have everything laid out for me so that there are no surprises and no unfortunate happenings has wasted a lot of my energy. Fortunately, I can now more easily recognize these fears and deal with them accordingly!
Sure, so let’s go deeper into your values and how you think. Is the public version of you the real you?
I am proud to say that the public version of me is the real me! Now, do I share my deepest secrets in public or divulge everything about my personal life? Absolutely not! BUT I’m being myself. I love to laugh, I make jokes, I wonder about a lot, I’m interested in (and often fascinated by) what folks are doing in their lives and I show that in my interactions with people, in my work and with people I just meet in passing. I like being myself because then I dont have to remember who I was pretending to be yesterday! Also, most of the time I can get a good and quick read on whether or not someone can appreciate me for who I am or if they are completely annoyed!! Lolol, but seriously!
Thank you so much for all of your openness so far. Maybe we can close with a future oriented question. If you knew you had 10 years left, what would you stop doing immediately?
I would stop over analyzing and dragging my feet to get important stuff done. Relational things such as talks that I need to have with myself and others close to me. I would just buy the thing that would make my life easier and happier and stop waiting for it to go on sale!! I would also PLAY LIKE CRAZY with my babies! I would take trips with my family and do all the things we have been wanting to do. I would make sure that people knew how much they mean to me. Especially my family. I honestly try to do that now, but I would make even more of a point to encourage people and tell them “I see you, you add value to my life and to everyone who knows you!” I’m reminded of the importance of loving people and making memories right now. Not later.
Contact Info:
- Instagram: Michelleelaineofficial
- Youtube: @castmedammit
- Other: Unpacked Podcast with Kendall Antron & Michelle Elaine (streaming platforms)
Image Credits
Lynn Lane, Eisani Apedemak-Saba
