For three years, I had followed Belema Ogulu online. She was the creator who shared gems freely, the entrepreneur behind the sleek For Azari home décor brand, the strategist who later launched Easel Digital. I’d watched her juggle multiple roles with grace, but what I hadn’t fully understood until this conversation was the central thread tying her journey together: her relationship with money.
The Early Spark
Belema’s journey with creativity began long before money came into the equation. As a child, she was sketching designs in a fashion pad and dreaming up entire collections. At the time, money wasn’t the focus. It was an expression. But what she didn’t know was that these early experiments with creating value out of nothing would become the foundation for how she later thought about money.
“I’ve always had a pull towards creativity,” she tells me. “But the moment I saw a design I made come to life, that was when I knew. If I can create this, then I can create anything.”
In hindsight, this was also her first lesson in wealth creation: the ability to take imagination and turn it into something tangible that people would want to buy, admire, or use.
When Depression Meets Scarcity
Years later, after giving birth to her son, Belema found herself in the depths of postpartum depression. The money that used to come in from influencer deals slowed to a trickle. Creating content, her main source of income, felt impossible.
“The brand deals stopped. The money stopped. And I just couldn’t create anymore,” she recalls.
This was rock bottom, financially and emotionally. For many, the story could have ended there. But for Belema, this season was when she stumbled into her most unexpected and profitable venture: For Azari.
What began as a therapeutic hobby, pouring candles to distract herself from depression, slowly became a side hustle. Then it became a brand. And within a year, it was more profitable than anything she’d done before.
“I didn’t set out to make money from it. But when people started asking to buy the candles, I realized, this thing I created for myself could become a real stream of income.”
For Azari went from a décor brand to a new money move. It turned healing into revenue, a personal outlet into a profitable enterprise.
Building Easel Digital
If For Azari was the accident, Easel Digital was the intentional money play. Belema had long dreamed of owning her own agency but kept pushing it off. Then one day, a big client reached out. She already had the logo designed, the brand name ready. With what she calls “mad audacity,” she registered the Instagram page, made it official, and started pitching.
In just months, retainers began rolling in. What was once occasional freelance work became steady recurring income.
“I realized that I had been sitting on money all along,” she admits. “The same work I was doing under other people’s brands, I could do under mine. The difference was just ownership.”
With Easel Digital, she positioned herself not just as a freelancer but as a business. This shift unlocked financial stability and scale. She wasn’t chasing one-off payments anymore, she was building long-term revenue.
From Creator to Advocate
Her years as a content creator also reshaped how she views money in the creative industry. She has been underpaid, overlooked, and expected to deliver endless “exposure” work. Now, as the head of her own agency, she insists on protecting creators.
“Content is value,” she says firmly. “It takes time, skill, and energy. That deserves money. At Easel, if a creator delivers on the brief, they get paid, even if the client changes their mind. We don’t let brands exploit them.”
This advocacy is a direct result of her own money lessons. Having been on the other side, she knows how easy it is to undersell yourself or accept scraps out of fear. Today, she negotiates with confidence and audacity, not just for herself, but for others.
A New Money Mindset
Perhaps the most powerful shift in Belema’s journey is her unlearning of scarcity.
“I used to hold onto money tightly, afraid that if I let it go, I’d never get it back,” she admits. “But I’m learning now that money flows. It comes back. It’s not running away.”
This new mindset has changed how she spends and saves. She no longer deprives herself of enjoyment in the name of extreme saving, nor does she spend recklessly. Instead, she aims for balance: trust, discipline, and flow.
She describes it beautifully: “I’m learning not to be a helicopter parent with money. If I manage what I have well, I’ll be trusted with more.”
This philosophy is reshaping her future. Rather than building from fear, she is now building from abundance and faith.
How Do You Balance It All?
Belema is a mother, an employee, and a two-time founder. Managing money and time across all these roles requires structure.
Her secret weapon? Her husband. “I just have a supportive partner, that’s how it is,” she says. Together, they share household and parenting duties, giving her space to focus on her ventures.
This partnership allows her to make bold money moves. It’s reinvesting in her businesses, funding production for For Azari, or paying salaries at Easel. Without a support system, she admits, it would have been nearly impossible.
The Wealth of Excellence
When asked what she wants people to feel when they encounter her work, her answer ties it all together: excellence.
“I hope they feel that excellence was put behind whatever it is that I put out. Whether it’s joy in my content, comfort from my décor, or solutions from my agency. I want people to know it was intentional.”
Belema’s money journey is about building with purpose. From depression to profitable ventures, from scarcity to flow, she has learned that wealth isn’t just about what sits in the bank. It’s about freedom, creativity, and audacity.
“Every so-called failure was preparation,” she says. “At 29, I feel fulfilled, grateful, and ready for more.”
And in truth, that’s the ultimate money move.
Money is my love language