We had the good fortune of connecting with Aracelly Houston DelRio and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Aracelly, we’d love to hear more about how you thought about starting your own business?
I wish I could say there was more of a process than hating my day job… but there wasn’t! I had always said I was going to freelance and become self-employed, but that was something I saw happening 5-10 years after finishing my degree – not after a year.

In December of 2020, I decided my 9-5 was no longer for me and started working on a new portfolio, submitting tons of job applications, and submitting proposals to freelance on Upwork. I was in the last stage of an interview process for a local design position that I was about to settle for, when I received offers to 3 freelance jobs – all starting at almost double my hourly pay. Although it was unnamed at that time, that’s how Aracelly Designs began.

It was a little scary accepting 3 freelance positions over a traditional “steady” employment opportunity, but it ended up being the best thing I had ever did.


Alright, so let’s move onto what keeps you busy professionally?
It’s simplest to call myself a graphic designer since that’s what everyone has always known this career as, but I realized quickly after designing so many different projects that I actually do a lot more than just graphic design. I would say what sets me apart from others is my ability to do just that. I’ve worked creating websites, editing Shopify stores, developing digital ads, pitching marketing campaigns, and other non-traditional graphic design projects that I’ve started to call myself a “creative marketing designer”. I’m proud of my ability to provide more than just the basic graphic design requests to my clients.

Being your own boss is an incredible thing, but it is definitely not easy! In the first year of my design business, I had to overcome losing clients, managing incredibly difficult clients, balancing work & home life while both working and living at home & a lot more. I didn’t know anyone that had started a freelance design business, so it was, and still is, very challenging to figure things out as I go.

What I’d love for other designers to know about me and my story is that so much of your success comes from how much you actually believe in succeeding. It won’t work out if you constantly think it’s going to fail. Whatever it is that you aspire to do, stop thinking about it and just start doing it. Your future self will thank you.

Who else deserves some credit and recognition?
Back when I was considering quitting my job to start freelancing, I found myself thinking of every negative what-if scenario I could come up with and I managed to talk myself out of it each time. Each and every one of those times, my boyfriend, Donald, was there to talk me back into it.

Fast forward to a year after starting my business, he’s now my husband and I wouldn’t be where I am today without him. He gave me the courage I needed to take a leap of faith in myself and has wholeheartedly supported everything I’ve done since. I owe so much of my success to him.

Website: https://aracellydesigns.com

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/aracellydesigns/

Linkedin: www.linkedin.com/in/aracellyHD

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