Today we’d like to introduce you to Alex Pradhan
Hi Alex, please kick things off for us with an introduction to yourself and your story.
I’m from Danville, Virginia. It’s a small town and I eventually went to school at the University of Virginia in Charlottesville. I’ve been able to travel all over, from New York to San Francisco to Paris to Dublin and more. I actually studied abroad in Lyon, France for six weeks during one summer while I was a student at UVA. So, I’m from a small town, but I’ve seen a lot of beautiful places and met great people. I knew that I was really looking to head west after I finished my undergrad and masters degrees at UVA. I was considering LA, Denver, Austin, and some other places. Unlike some of my peers, I didn’t have a job offer immediately after I finished school. I went home and was applying to jobs while eating the best home-cooked meals you could ever dream of. It was a couple of months or so after I came back that I eventually received a job offer for a company with an office in Austin. They also had an office in NYC and Philadelphia, but I followed my gut instinct and chose Austin. My mom and I flew out shortly after to look at apartments and get to know the city. It was kind of surreal. We checked out several places and landed on one that felt comfortable, safe, and fairly close to downtown. We had this really nice dinner on the last night at Eddie V’s downtown before we flew home. I’m not sure what my mom was thinking, but I was thinking, “I guess this is what adulting is like. You get a job somewhere, find a place to live, and so on.” I moved into my apartment in September 2021–I remember it was so hot and humid. A typical summer day in Austin, you could say. I had been an avid casual biker in college–I would ride to class from the dorms, to go get a coffee, to go to a party, basically whenever I could. I didn’t end up bringing my bike from Virginia when I moved in, but I knew about this group called “Breakfast Club” and knew that I wanted to get a used bike here to start riding more. I’ll spare you with the long list of details, but my first ride with Breakfast Club was in the spring/summer of 2022. It was a cool and friendly group of people of all skill levels. Like many people, I was instantly hooked and dove headfirst into cycling. I eventually got a brand new bike from a local shop called Cycleast. That was such an exciting day. I rode it for just over a year and even took it to Santa Fe on a trip with Breakfast Club. Over time, I started documenting my rides on Instagram and sharing them. I just wanted to keep a record for myself. I guess you could say I’ve been posting cycling content on Instagram for 2-3 years now. I’d say my main focus these days is to share pictures and reels that encourage people to get out and ride. It’s not my full time job right now, so I have a lot of say-so as to what, when, and how I share ideas. My parents have always encouraged me to trust my gut instincts, lean into creativity, and bring positivity and thoughtfulness to every conversation and relationship.
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?
It’d be pretty crazy (and boring) if my answer was “yes, so smooth.” No, I mean, like many people, I’ve had all kinds of struggles and things to overcome. I grew up fairly privileged in terms of my family life, food, clothing, opportunities and such. One struggle was not playing Division I soccer. That was such a letdown. I guess I largely had myself to blame for that. That’s a whole rabbit hole that I might share more about on Instagram sometime. In short, I think I didn’t take it seriously and apply myself enough. I also think that I lacked assuredness and self-confidence back then, which factors into athletic performance. Another struggle was finding groups in college. I felt like I couldn’t find people where it just “clicked.” I met some really good guys in my first year dorm, and other people here and there, but I struggled to find a group or club that really resonated with me. Nowadays, I think I struggle with taking enough time to rest. I like to be outside and hang out with people. It kind of adds up after a while and I’ll feel extra tired and moody. So, that’s something I’m actively working on.
Appreciate you sharing that. What else should we know about what you do?
Again, this isn’t my full-time job right now, but I share content about cycling on Instagram. I share videos of rides, voiceovers, or pictures from rides. I’m proud of how I’ve gone about working on that skill. I’ve learned how to film while riding, stitch together clips, maybe add music or just use the original audio, adjust the image quality, and more all by myself. There’s nothing wrong with asking for help, but this has truly been a passion project for me. I love riding bikes, and I get so much joy from creating and sharing content. I hope that people either smile, laugh, or think about going outside for a ride. I don’t know how much I could say that this “sets me apart from others,” but I try to keep it real on Instagram. I mean, social media is absolutely a highlight reel. But, I make a conscious effort to share how I’m feeling or how that ride went or how I thought that could’ve been better. I also like to think that I come across as genuine when I’m with friends or when I meet new people. And that factors into my content and how I share it.
What has been the most important lesson you’ve learned along your journey?
Everyone is absolutely in their own little worlds. Basically, no one else is sitting there, analyzing you, what you’re doing, or how you’re doing it. They’re on their way to get groceries or go to the park or go see a movie. And that means that there’s no need to overthink what you share on social media. Part of this lesson is that it’s important to create, edit and share a lot of content if you want to get great at it. I don’t even think I’m great at it yet, but I’m better than when I started. A switch flipped when I realized that it’s important to have a vision, but don’t get too into the weeds before you’ve even really started.
Contact Info:
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/alex.pradhan/
