Who’s Ellen (aka Zyra)?
Hey! As you can see from the photo on the left, I’m Ellen, the owner and creator of this so-called Australian lifestyle blog, ZyraKuma. I’m currently a student in university studying a major in Psychology Studies and I also work at Appen (yes, I help AI, do SEO stuff and all that jazz).
Technically I started this blog for the sake of my mental health back in high school but now I do it to help people find themselves again (like I did)! I want others to learn how to improve themselves to the best of their abilities whether that be in personal growth, ditching the procrastination or even building their brand (business).
Why I Did It
I suffer from social anxiety, depression and low self-esteem (diagnosed by a professional btw) until this day back when I moved into my first years of high school (self-esteem and depression are getting better but the social anxiety… nu-uh). I’m pretty sure any teenager can relate to those days where they can get “overly” emotional and, oh no, the “rebel” phase. Well for me, I kept my self hidden. Even though I had friends, it’s clear that I just keep everything to myself because I didn’t want to feel like a bother to them. That’s when I went into blogging to escape my reality.
Now hold up! This blog that you’re on right now? It’s not my first blog. I created two blogs before that. But they’re probably deleted and got lost in the universe- I never got to reclaim them back. My third blog was this one where I started off as an online journal and wrote everything that bothered me in my personal life. Now I turned it to a brand about things that I’m interested in such as self-improvement, mental health, productivity, blogging and branding advice.
After dropping out of my business course in uni, I decided to enrol in Psychology studies to learn and bring impactful information about mental health and wellbeing to my readers.
Oh, don’t know where the blogging and branding scene came from? I have an interest in art and design so I studied Graphic Design through courses online such as LinkedIn Lynda during my free time and I also did a year 12 course in VCD (Visual Communication & Design). Now I want to collab both my passion for blogging and design into one.
I also do Pinterest Marketing on the side for my freelancing job and my own website. I love pretty much anything related to Pinterest so I decided to create multiple posts on them to help beginners learn how to use Pinterest for their site.
You can check out some of the posts here:
- How to Post your Blog Post on Pinterest (for Beginner Bloggers)
- Easily Create Unique Pinterest Board Covers On Your Phone
- Use These Amazing 10 Pinterest Marketing Strategies to Increase Traffic
- The Ultimate Guide to Pinterest for Beginners
- How To Make Pinterest Board Covers (& Bring Engagement)
I’ve Written Posts for:
If you want to come for the ride in both our journey to self-discovery, join below. You can receive free 7-page colouring worksheets, a PDF of the best 45+ blogging resources AND a Canva “featured image” template (like you see on my site).
If you would like to contact me, here’s how: my email ellen(@)zyrakuma(dot)com OR my contact page.
Other Stuff About Me
- I love playing video games. It was another one of my escapes back in high school. I would play on PS2 (PlayStation 2) with games including WWE smackdown vs raw, Kingdom Hearts, GTA and more. I had a DS where I would play Pokemon (my favourite was Pokemon Pearl & Diamond), Imagine games, Nintendogs (omg I remember I had a pet toy poodle and corgi. They were adorable!!) and the list goes on. Now that I’m pretty busy with life, I usually stick with playing League of Legends (PC) and Animal Crossing on the Nintendo Switch.
- I have pretty strange pets. You probably won’t know this but I have a pet duck and chicken in my backyard. I also have 4 fishes (with one being a large a** fish the size of an ocean!).
- I love food (and can cook). I love eating ramen, chips/fries, pasta, duck and bamboo noodle soup, hotpot, Maccas and more.
