Today we’d like to introduce you to Devon Waslusky.
Hi Devon, so excited to have you on the platform. So before we get into questions about your work-life, maybe you can bring our readers up to speed on your story and how you got to where you are today?
I grew up in the little village of Breckenridge right in the center of the mitten. My mom was white collar and my dad was blue collar. Neither completed college, so I was determined to go get my degree. I got a full ride to Saginaw Valley State University, where I studied for four-and-a-half years toward a Bachelor’s of Arts in Creative Writing. Toward the end of my time at SVSU, I got a job at the local Parks & Recreation Department for Saginaw Township where I was able to put on programs and events for the township. I even coached girls’ softball at one point for them. Then after university, I got a job as a Reading & Writing Interventionist for an alternative education school in Saginaw for the students who – for one reason or another – couldn’t attend the other schools in the area. At this point in my life, I had already traveled a lot. I had been to Australia, Haiti, and Costa Rica, as well as a bunch of different states and cities in the US. It was then that I decided to make a shift and move to Metro Detroit. I started just living in an acquaintance’s basement and helping a friend from college do product fulfillment for his BigMoods.com sticker business based on popular Vines at the time. Eventually I got a job in Detroit at the Grand Circus Coding Bootcamp and then moved into Detroit proper. Living in Detroit was great. I was freshly out of the closet at the time, so it was excellent being able to explore what it’s like to be out and proud. During this time, I also took a trip to Europe and visited Iceland, France, and Spain. This was about a month before Notre Dame caught on fire, to give you the timing of it all. And then the Pandemic happened, and I had to leave Detroit and move back home to little Breckenridge with my parents. That was tough because all of the momentum and friendships I was building just ceased when the world shut down. I’m among a lot of folks who got on unemployment, which was good for a while, but when that ran out I couldn’t find a job for a long time. I tried doing freelance work. I got a small gig working for a marketing agency out of Chicago and wrote social media copy for tool brands Paslode & Tapcon. They also had a business called 4042 North that worked with Dip Devices Cannabis Products. I consulted and designed emails for them for a time. I even got mentored by people in the industry, including a former creative director of Coca-Cola & Skittles. I got a contract job back to my alma mater – SVSU – working for the Marshall M. Fredericks Sculpture Museum, running their NEA Big Reads Community Project and running their social media. The position’s contract was only for 8 months because it was grant-based. I once again had to go back on the job grind. Eventually the pandemic eased up and I was scrambling to find a job until I finally got one that paid well. I moved to Mt. Pleasant and setup my life in anticipation of that job’s decent salary, but then they lost funding and my position was terminated because it was the newest. I was down out of my luck after having budgeted for the year, with no savings because of the pandemic. It was tough, and I couldn’t find a job that was even close to what I was making in that role. I picked up a communications and marketing position for the local children’s museum – but that was paying half of what my previous job had promised. I was in a tight spot, so I decided to make extra money on the side. I started taking up my photography skills from when I did yearbook in high school and started taking photos. I used my graphic design to start taking side gigs. And that’s when I learned that I could make okay money on my own with my skillset. The job at the children’s museum wasn’t a good fit and it wasn’t paying me enough. I decided to start working on my own and formed my Dev Creative Services, LLC., as the catch-all for all for my skillset. It’s been almost three years since I moved to Mt. Pleasant, and in that time I have been able to build a relationship with a handful of business owners downtown as well as some local nonprofits. Like the Broadway Theater. They worked with me this past year to put on the Comedy Slam! Contest that invites local comedians from across the state to come to Mt. Pleasant’s Broadway Theater to compete against each other. We had our first season earlier this year and just started the new season. I had gotten a job with a company out of Clare, but the owner refused to pay me for over 30 days. I racked up 150 hours of work with them and had to fight through the state’s Wage & Hour Division to get what I was owed. I only got 2/3rds of what I was owed, so I was in a rough spot. To make ends meet, I’m working at Olive Garden but also have a bunch of other gigs. I run soundboard for the Rubbles dive bar when they have bands coming in. I take on photography gigs. I make flyers for drag shows. It’s a lot, but that’s kind of the world we are in right now. I am trying to catch up after a bunch of setbacks in my life that were beyond my control, and that’s where I’m at now. Trying to make my community a better place and trying to do the good work, with a smile.
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?
Absolutely not. When I came out of the closet, I lost my entire community and support system because my life had revolved around the evangelical church. After that, I was going through a tough spot, and I got diagnosed with major depression, anxiety disorder, ADHD, BPD, and trauma-stress disorder. It was a lot to deal with. The BPD & trauma disorder were because of my time with the church living in the closet.
Later, I was fired from my job in Detroit because another employee decided to throw a party in our office space, and the company scapegoated me to appease the building management even though I had nothing to do with it. The building management then hired me and paid me more – if that tells you anything. But then the pandemic happened and I had to leave Detroit and that job because they didn’t want to provide me healthcare during a pandemic for some reason.
The job I got in Mt. Pleasant eliminated my position only after 4 months of working there – 1 month after I moved into my duplex by myself. I had to get a roommate and figure out how to manage my expenses after budgeting for the year based on a 60k salary.
The next job I got at the children’s museum was one I had for a year, until an anonymous person sent the museum a link to my Twitter account and got me fired. That was the second time someone had tried to use my Twitter to get me fired from the place I worked, so I deleted my Twitter after that (I had around 12k followers).
And the company out of Clare that hired me with a promise of 40-50k/yr to work at the Casino as their sound and av tech contractor did a whole bait-and-switch on me. They gave me the job, but then tried everything to reduce how much they were trying to pay me, and then stopped paying me and really screwed me over. It was really shady, and the owner threatened legal action against me if I complained about it online and warned other people. Which sucks but that’s how it is.
The one grace is that I don’t have student debt, just credit card debt. But I’m using National Debt Relief to help handle that.
As you know, we’re big fans of you and your work. For our readers who might not be as familiar what can you tell them about what you do?
I’m very eclectic in my skillset, but most of it has to do with the digital sphere. I can’t draw to save my life, but I am a wiz at graphic design. I have an eye for photography. I am an excellent host for events. I can sing, dance, play guitar a little. I’m really trying to be the modern Renaissance Man, if you will. I think what I specialize in – what sets me apart from others – is that I try to make much of what I do bright, vibrant, saturated with color and life and light. I think outside the box in my approach to design – my photography has captured some breathtaking moments – and I understand a lot about how the world works when approaching business, seeing patterns, trends, and the ebb and flow of community. On the latter note, for example, the Comedy Slam!’s ticket price is fixed at $5. This is because I want a low barrier to access the event to maximize the amount of people that will attend. If I fill out the Broadway Theater with a comedy show, it’ll give the theater an opportunity to say they filled out their space. It’s also a nexus point for a bunch of comedians throughout the state to come, see Mt. Pleasant and remember its name and what it looks like. I’m also so good at networking. I think a big part of my successes has always been because of my charisma paired with my acuity.
Do you have recommendations for books, apps, blogs, etc?
Spotify for the vibes.
Adobe Creative Suite – Indesign, Photoshop, Premiere, Lightroom, etc etc. – for the deliverables.
DropoutTV to help me stay on top of culture (and to help me stay sane).
Google for literally everything. Google Calendar, tasks, gmail, drive, business, etc.
My Samsung Phone – because it is my mobile workstation that I can do literally anything with.
Discord – for communication & Dungeons & Dragons
Facebook – best marketing tool.
Pricing:
- Project Services – $50/hr
- Retainer Services – $100-500/month
- Media Packages – $750-2500 depending on workload
- Others – negotiable/sliding scale
Contact Info:
- Website: https://devcreativellc.com
- Instagram: @devcreativellc
- Facebook: devcreatesthings
- Youtube: @mrunclefanny
