It’s interesting that the foundation of who we are remains with us even as we go to the next level.

Take my love for coffee shops, for instance. I confess that I have a slight addiction. Not even for the oat milk lattes that come in various flavors, but for the vibes that come from being in a place where coffee lovers and creatives come together. My preference is local coffee shops (no shade to the big chains). There’s a sense of community that comes from a neighborhood watering hole, and I love that when I walk in the baristas already know my name and order. And lowkey, the coffee is usually better.

But more importantly, these are the spaces where I plot and put in work for my next moves. When I lived in LA, I would trek down the hill from my tiny studio apartment to Solar de Cahuenga where I’d post up on the back patio with a goat cheese salad and a chai tea latte. I’d slip on my headphones, exhale, open my laptop and proceed to research, transcribe and pen profiles on celebrities and girl bosses, which would eventually carry me into rooms with the likes of Oprah, attend events like the BET Awards, and get me a seat at the table at Google.

Even as I went deeper into debt (my fellow freelance writers know the struggle), I found peace in operating in my purpose. And whenever I typed out the final line of an article and hit submit, I would transition my mind to planning how I, too, was one day going to be someone worthy of interviewing. I knew in my heart that I was destined for more even when I had less, and being in a beautiful environment where I never knew if I was going to run into a producer, entrepreneur, or fellow creative was just the energy that I needed to be around.

When I moved back to Atlanta, coffee shops were once again my creative safe haven. After a full day of work, I’d escape from my noisy apartment and walk the streets of Old Fourth Ward to my favorite cafés such as The James Room— a perfect European vibe for a travel lover like myself. Where the café lacks in space it makes up for in aesthetic, with delicious bites and a mean lavender sea salt oat milk latte, or a rosemary oat milk latte if you’re feeling adventurous. And on a beautiful fall day, the patio offers serene views of passersby on the beltline as you type away on your computer. Not to mention their music playlist? A1.

“I knew in my heart that I was destined for more even when I had less.”

For hours I would work on freelance projects for clients or ideas for my brand until they closed up shop. It was in these spaces that I rebirthed my blog with the help and support of my amazing photographers Coco and Shah. It was here that I’d continue to dream, even when my circumstances were depleting the desire to do more.

Since becoming debt free, that fire has been reignited. At the top of the year, I moved out of my old space and moved up into a better one— a fresh start in a sense, even though it’s just a few miles down the road. With it came new coffee shops to explore, and baristas who speak my name as soon as I walk through the door.

But this time when I open my laptop I’m not working on celebrity profiles or freelance work. I’m focused on building towards my future as an author and a storyteller. The spaces that inspire me have remained the same, but the vision has only gotten bigger. And I love that for me.