Today we’d like to introduce you to Kaela Erbe.
Kaela, we appreciate you taking the time to share your story with us today. Where does your story begin?
Well, I am a San Diego native. I was born at Kaiser hospital and grew up in National City. I graduated from Chula Vista High School with Honors and went onto college out of state to NAU (Northern Arizona University). I completed my freshmen year, being on the Dean’s List and then transferred back home where I went to community college to earn enough credits to transfer to SDSU where I graduated with a Bachelors Degree in Business Management. I’ve had many jobs but my first full time job was when I was still going to SDSU. I became a Table Games Dealer at Barona Casino, working graveyard. I started working for The County of San Diego in 2015. I started in HHSA, went into the Assessor’s office, then the Recorder’s office. When you go into the Recorder’s office you sign up for mandatory overtime and I told myself I would do it as long as I could and save up as much as I could. And I also wanted to become vested so that I would keep all of the benefits I had earned. After that happened, and I had did as much as I could handle, even after my accident, not feeling fulfilled with what I was doing and wanting more, I left my steady paycheck and good benefits and I took the plunge to focus on doing something that I would enjoy and pursue my dreams of being an entrepreneur and business owner. My main passion currently being modeling. My modeling career got started by creating a Model Mayhem account back in 2015. I uploaded some pictures to that website which led to photoshoots with local photographers and I would do that in my spare time. I also booked photoshoots from Instagram and I just created my own website. I’ve taken a few breaks from modeling over the years. The most recent break was in 2020-2021 because on October 31, 2020, I had an accident while riding in a Razr in Glamis where my fingers were crushed and led to amputation of two of my fingers on my right hand. So I was off of work for a while recovering. And once I went back to work I continued to work a lot of overtime and mentally I didn’t know if I’d ever get back to modeling. But one day this year I just decided I wanted to because I enjoy it so much and it really is a passion of mine, so I was ready to shoot again and started accepting photoshoots via Instagram. Back in 2015 one of the first photoshoots I did was with Richard Keith, @rkphotos_ on IG, and it led to 3 magazine publications- FUSE magazine, B.A.D.D. Magazine, and RHK magazine. I was published in Summer Magazine from a shoot with David Tahuite in 2020. And this year shooting with Marcus Recasner, @marcusrecasner on IG, we’ll be published in 3 magazines this month- Vigour Magazine, GEZNO Magazine, and Beautica Magazine. I’ve also had the opportunity to do a collaboration with a really cool brand on IG and hope to do more of that. I love being creative and making content and I hope to expand on that as well. I have that entrepreneurial spirit and I have been working on creating some online businesses that I hope to launch soon. I also created an LLC- SK Electric, with my boyfriend who is an electrician and we’re in the process of getting our business started too.
Alright, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall, and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
One of the reasons for my breaks in modeling was from the passing of my grandpa on my dad’s side. It was tough and I just wasn’t up for it, working full-time was enough for me to handle at the time. Then again when I had my accident in 2020, that was another physical and mental ordeal. Also working full time and so much overtime my spare time was so limited, and it made it hard to focus on this passion of mine. But that’s how life is and if you want something you have to go for it and work hard at it. I’m most proud of all of the obstacles I’ve been able to overcome. I’ve had a few life-threatening experiences. One being when I accidentally cut an artery on my wrist when I was in Tijuana, Mexico, almost bleeding to death, but thank God my now boyfriend who was there at the time rushed me in a taxi to the border where an ambulance picked us up and rushed me to the hospital where they were able to save my life. Another being when I was physically assaulted by my cousin’s boyfriend in a limo in downtown, being beat up so bad and unconscious with so many injuries and blood everywhere that my friends thought I was dead. Then not only having to heal physically and mentally but also having to endure all of the court sessions that eventually led to him being incarcerated for 14 years. And then the last one in Glamis 2020, when I was in a Razr (0ffroad vehicle) and the driver flipped it over, crushing my fingers, exposing bone, tissue, and tendons, having to be airlifted to the hospital, and leading to them being amputated. Another process of healing physically and emotionally after losing two fingers on my dominant hand. As well as many other bad situations over the years. I’ve been through a lot, and it’s never changed the bright, genuine, happy, kind, positive person I am. I’ve always wanted to be an entrepreneur and have my own businesses and I’m trying to do things that bring me joy and make me happy. I don’t want to look back and think- what if? Another struggle of mine would be wanting things to be perfect before I put them out there, but that’s another work in progress. I like the quote about there never being a perfect time, the time is now. That’s something I’m still working on, as well as analysis paralysis. Doing so much research on all of the different aspects running a business entails but spending too much time on that and not taking enough action. I want to have all of the solutions and perfect business plans implemented and avoid choosing to do anything that’s not the best way or having to redo stuff and make changes, but you’re never going to know everything and it’s better to just start somewhere and make mistakes along the way because at least you’ll actually be doing it. So I’m trying to get better at not taking so long to make decisions and just learn as I go. Life is too short and I think you should pursue your passions and create a life you love.
Appreciate you sharing that. What else should we know about what you do?
I’m very passionate about modeling and I love it. I shoot beauty, fashion, lifestyle, editorial, swimsuit, fitness, boudoir, and print work. I’ve done shoots for companies to create content for marketing, one of them being for a brand in Hawaii- Ainofea, @ainofeashop on IG, shot by David- @pdm.photo.sd. Also, for 7SS Excursions, a power boat rental here in San Diego. I’m a freelance model so I use IG and my website to book photoshoots. I’ve been a model for hair and make-up artists to showcase their work like @makeup_kayastreicher and @mariammakeupart_. I’ve been published in 8 magazines as well. I love creating art and love teaming up with local photographers to help bring their visions come to life and to create content for small business owners. I hope to keep growing and expanding and continue modeling for as long as I can. I’ve also been working on the trademark for a business I’m starting, so I want to have that done before I talk about it more. Then there’s our company- SK Electric that’s in the beginning stage, where we’re working on expanding our clientele.
Are there any books, apps, podcasts, or blogs that help you do your best?
I love podcasts, I’m always listening to one. My favorite is JRE because he talks about everything and to everyone and it’s so informative and also entertaining. I haven’t missed an episode since I started listening to it, I don’t know how many years ago. I also love comedy, so I listen to a lot of comedians like Bert Kreisher and Tom Segura, their podcast together- 2 bears, 1 cave, Your Mom’s House, Whitney Cummings, Tim Dillon, The Lunchroom, The Mindset Mentor is a really good one. I used to listen to Listen Money Matters, but I think they stopped making episodes, The Upgrade by Lifehacker, Money Lab, Second Life, How I Built This, The Life Coach School, The Rachel Hollis Podcast, The Playbook with David Meltzer. I watch a lot of informative videos on YouTube to learn about investing and keep current on the financial situations in the world. I also subscribe to the newsletter- Morning Brew. For books, all the ones that everyone has probably already read like The Power of Habit, The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People, The Game of Life and How to Play It, The Four Agreements, The Life-changing Magic of Tidying Up, How to Find Your Passion, Zen Life, The Seven Spiritual Laws of Success, The 4 Hour Work Week, High-Performance Habits, The Alchemist, The Emotion Code, Think and Grow Rich, Girl, Stop Apologizing, Girl, Wash Your Face, and when I was little my favorite was Go Ask Alice.
Contact Info:
- Website: www.kaelaerbe.com
- Instagram: kaelaerbe
Image Credits
Ivan G
Smith Sinzia
Marcus Recasner
Ken James
Richard Keith Picture
Flicks Studio
David- PDMedia Photography
