Meet Jenay Zhyrov | Freelance Writer

We had the good fortune of connecting with Jenay Zhyrov and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Jenay, how do you think about risk?
I’m an anxious person, but I try not to let that hold me back from taking risks, or rather, calculated risks. I’ve experienced some amazing life changes and personal and professional growth because of them.

I manage the fear of taking a risk by developing a plan. First, I do a bunch of research and then mull over the worst and best-case scenarios before I plot my next move. Having a plan takes a little pressure off the risk so that I’m not blind going into whatever the situation is. Taking a risk is how I moved from Los Angeles to Dallas and pivoted from a corporate marketing job to being a freelance writer, all within the same year.

Can you open up a bit about your work and career? We’re big fans and we’d love for our community to learn more about your work.
This is my first year as a freelance writer, and I’m so glad I finally took the leap to try it. I have a journalism degree and a background in marketing, and it’s been fun to merge the two to help companies, service providers, and nonprofits with editorial content and copywriting. I’m all about supporting people’s joy because life can be pretty tricky at times, so I love writing feel-good blogs and website copy that are warm, educational, fun, and inspiring.

There’s never a dull moment when you’re trying to build a business; every day is different. Being a self-employed writer doesn’t mean I sit at my desk all day and write. I also have to manage finances, admin tasks, marketing to secure new clients, pitching ideas, client experience, research, etc. It can be a lot to handle! But even when it’s hard, and there are moments of self-doubt and fear, it still feels like I’m on the right path to learn how to do this long-term, which is my current goal.

Let’s say your best friend was visiting the area and you wanted to show them the best time ever. Where would you take them? Give us a little itinerary – say it was a week long trip, where would you eat, drink, visit, hang out, etc.
Dallas has so much to offer. I’ve lived here for a little over a year, and I still want to check out and explore so many places. I like taking out-of-town guests to Katy Trail, White Rock Lake, and the Arboretum for nature walks. I’ll take them to McKinney, the Bishop Arts District, and North Park for shopping. I’d probably take them to Sueño in Richardson, Ida Claire in Addison, Haywire in Uptown, and Ascension in the Design District for food. There are so many other delicious places to eat and fun activities in Dallas, too. The list goes on and on.

The Shoutout series is all about recognizing that our success and where we are in life is at least somewhat thanks to the efforts, support, mentorship, love and encouragement of others. So is there someone that you want to dedicate your shoutout to?
I want to shout out a few writers and communities that graciously share their learnings with others so newbies like me can feel less alone and clueless while we figure out how to build our businesses. This is a list of who I turned to the most in the very beginning: Kat Boogaard, The Writer’s Co-Op, Eva Recinos, L’Oreal Thompson Payton (whose debut book just came out!), and Peak Freelance.

Website: https://www.jenayzhyrov.com/

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

Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jenayzhyrov/

Twitter: https://twitter.com/jenayzhyrov

Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@jenayzhyrov