Building a Heart-Centered Business with Nata Ringe

Nata’s artwork popped up as ‘Suggested’ on my Instagram. I saw her post and remember thinking: Wow this is so relatable; I’m really not alone in this emotion. Scrolling through the rest of her feed I was so impressed by her content. 

As a digital illustrator with a background in therapy, Nata’s artwork simplifies and explains complex emotions/feelings through simple, aesthetic visuals.

There are several pages on Instagram that have similar objectives. Many of them, however, try so hard to say and do the right things that they don’t seem genuine. Nata’s page felt different. It was raw, open, and honest. I could feel Nata’s heart without even knowing who she was.

Interviewing Nata was exactly what I expected as well - she was so authentic and kind to talk to. Her truest wish is to be remembered as an ever changing woman that touched people on a heart to heart level. In my opinion Nata’s already succeeded in doing just that! I couldn’t recommend reading the following transcription enough. Nata has the ability to connect with people on a deep level, touching their cores with her words. Enjoy!

Interview Transcription

Nata's background

The easy answer is that I create digital art. The more complicated one is that I share my story through my art, to show that everyone has purpose and that healing is possible. It's not always easy, but it's possible and you can make it happen yourself. 

Growing up - alive & social to afraid & anxious

I was born in Latvia and I grew up there. Young Nata was really cool. She was very alive, creative, and social. She had no fear. I like to look back on those days. I was always in the center of my group of friends. I was the child doing stupid stuff, things that kids do -- not afraid of the consequences because somehow I had a lot of confidence.

My family then moved to Germany and that was very challenging for me. I had a language barrier and that was also the first time I met people that I didn't understand (language wise) and didn't understand me because of the different cultures. That's when the bullying started. In second grade the kids were really mean, cruel even. That was the first time I had a really bad phase in my life -- language barriers and bullying. That really broke me, the happy little child. It gave me a mental hit and I really lost a lot of what I had. I lost my confidence because I wasn’t welcome or accepted. When you’re so young you don’t understand it. You’re not able to reflect what is happening to you, so I started to believe that something was wrong with me. As a result I wasn’t able to accept myself the way I was. 

Overcoming victim mentality

The biggest obstacle for me was overcoming my victim mentality. To understand who I am and find a way out. It wasn’t okay what was happening and overcoming it was a big project. I was maturing faster than the other kids. In Latvia I used to wear shirts that would show a bit of my belly and I liked shorts very much. The time when my body started changing, I didn’t change the way I was dressing. It wasn’t anything crazy, but the children were really mean. They would always point it out. They would say, “You’re dressed like a slut” and other really bad and hurtful things. I was also bullied over body hair and pimples so I started to put on makeup at a very young age, but then they started bullying me because I was wearing makeup. Looking back on it, it only seems ridiculous.

How Nata copes with obstacles

It’s something I learned over the years. It’s not something that you have right away. I had obstacles in my life in general, not career related. And every time I overcame them, I learned how to cope with different situations and also trust myself - trust myself that it’s going to be fine and that I have the tools to manage any situation, and if I don’t then I can ask for help. Two major things helped me. 1. Every obstacle is really an opportunity for growth. 2. I have a purpose and so I have to keep going. Both of them together kept me going. So I couldn’t accept giving up.

The stigma around art as a career

I was always drawing and painting, but I was always taught to not pursue it as a career. I come from a home of academic people -- professors and mathematicians. I’m really the opposite of everyone. They told me I needed good money. They never told me that there are artists that make a lot of money and no one told me that you don’t need a bunch of money to live a good life. They associated art with being poor, which turned me off from it because they didn’t want that for me. 

Where I come from a conventional piece of advice is that you have to study in the university and get a degree, and get a good job in order to be happy or to live a good life. A lot of people I know did that, earned a bunch of money and are depressed as hell and can’t really get out of it because it’s not okay according to society. I took this advice as well - I studied and have a different profession as well. I don’t regret it, because I chose a path that resonates with what I believe in. But I could have given my all to my passions from a young age. That’s why I say: You should only listen to this advice with one ear and always  tune into your heart and listen to what it wants. Tune into what you want for yourself from life and what pulls you. Sometimes it might be an academic degree and sometimes it won’t, both are absolutely fine.

Choosing a life of fulfillment

I was stuck once in my life and my friend asked me, “Do you want to live a mediocre life and be satisfied or do you want to be happy/fulfilled?” That really moved me. It was a few years ago, but I still sometimes remember it because when I ask myself this question I’m usually in the moment between staying where I am or growing and moving forward. It’s always this choice between the uncomfortable and staying where you are. So many times I chose to stay where I am - for quite some years. I had an amazing life situation, but it was not what I really wanted. When my friend asked me that question in 2016 it changed a lot of things for me down the road.

The books that inspired her artistic career

The Alchemist inspired me. It’s about how the stars align when you’re following your purpose. I started seeing more and more art, and thought “Oh, wow, I could do that as well. Why am I not doing it? That’s something I really want to do.” This moment connected to another book, that I’m actually rereading right now: The Subtle Art of Not Giving a Fuck. It’s so good, there’s so much profound wisdom in it. I couldn’t recommend it more. When I read it I thought: Ok I’m just going to do it! I’m going to start and however it’s going to go, I have to do it - I can’t regret it later! That thinking never ended. 

The moments that light Nata up

The most gratifying moments are when people reach out to me and tell me how I changed their perspective during hard times. How much better they feel or how much they discovered, that there’s room to grow for them. In these moments where they write me I’m crying tears of joy because that’s exactly what I want - to reach as many people as I can to help them see that there’s so much more to life. They don’t have to be in a place of depression 24/7. I was once feeling really bad and I remember those moments when I was feeling hopeful. The more I can give this feeling to people, the happier I am.

Creating order in mess

My days are not typical at all. I just moved to Israel and I’m still in a messy situation with my documents and stuff like that. Right now I’m 100% focusing on art and my business. I’m trying to create order in this mess. 

The days I like the most are when I wake up at around 7am and have my morning routine. I usually start my morning by drinking coffee with my boyfriend, then I meditate, journal and do some yoga. I start off in the sunny hours with all of the art related work and creation. I work on my patreon, podcast, and commissions. When it turns dark I usually go on the computer to go through emails and do other non-business related things. 

In the evening I try to get rid of my phone, at least one hour before. I connect with my partner or read. I like to have a quiet mind because on days when I look at my phone right before I go to sleep my mind is not quiet and I wake up a bit messy in the head. I prefer reading and just calming down, maybe sitting with friends. It’s like the saying ‘The morning starts the night before’. It’s so true! When I don’t know exactly how the structure is going to be in the morning or what I’m looking forward to in the early morning I won’t have enough motivation to wake up.

Nata’s plans for the future

I have finally taken the leap to take a course to become a certified life coach. I am also studying The Gene Keys which is very transformative. I am looking forward to keep on creating art, but I will also offer my services as a purpose activation coach and OT-therapist when I will get my certification. I am currently working on my patreon and working on the podcast. We have a community of people who do monthly challenges together and zoom calls a couple of times a month. Another project is to develop my art in a different direction as well, to work more on my skills, and go back to canvas painting. 

What Nata wants to be remembered for

If I would be dead and someone was standing and giving an eulogy and talking about how my life was, I want them to think that I lived the most fulfilling life while helping others do the same. From the other point of view as me looking down on my life, I want to be remembered as someone with an open heart full of love who shared from that place of love, who was a positive person, but mostly an authentic person -- someone you can relate to. There are a lot of masks we wear on a daily basis and it gets harder to connect sometimes. I also want to be remembered as an exciting and ever changing woman. I don’t want to be the same all my life. I want to change and experience different things and be different things. I want to reach the hearts of many, to really touch people on a heart to heart level. 

Nata’s takeaways for you

I’m very organized. I need a set of rules or some sort of order in my life to be free or to express myself and feel safe to let it all go. In my life I've noticed that I’m very attached to the outcome of a certain situation. For example: If I wanted to apply to a specific school, I really wanted this school to accept me. Or, if I wanted this job I really want this specific place. A lesson I’ve learned over the years is trusting the timing of my life. It’s really priceless. As soon as you trust the timing of your life and surrender into what’s happening instead of trying to control it, that’s when life becomes interesting and beautiful things start to happen

Second piece of advice: the sun is the #1 medicine. It’s crazy how much it helps health-wise and mental health wise. I realized how in the sunny days I have everything much more under control and I’m much happier, people always tell me that. Vitamin D and sunshine on your skin can really change a lot. It’s no joke!