*Note: Woman Wednesday is a part of our blog. Each Woman Wednesday post will feature a woman who would like to share information in the hopes of inspiring and motivating other women. Comments are welcome below.
“I want others to know that it’s OK to do more than one thing. People thought I was crazy in college for playing more than one sport, and people think I am crazy now for having three jobs. I love what I do, and I enjoy all of it. If you can find a healthy balance, do everything. Be a jack of all trades. Know a little bit about all things.”
Q and A with Steph, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Q: What are you passionate about?
A: It’s difficult for me to identify just one thing that I am passionate about. To start, my full time job is being a high school math teacher. I work in a small alternative school, and I find joy in encouraging my students and helping them to be comfortable and successful in a modified school setting. It’s challenging, but I wouldn’t trade it for the world. There is nothing better than seeing a student succeed when others thought they wouldn’t.
Another passion that I put a majority of my time into is coaching. I am an assistant coach for a cross country team and a lacrosse team. I was a 3 sport athlete in college, so athletics are something that keep me driven and focused. I love being able to share my love of sports with others and helping them to learn life lessons through them.
Lastly, but certainly not least, is my passion for photography and videography. I, along with my fiance, run a small production company called
Ollie Productions. When we first met, we discovered that we had serious overlapping loves for the arts and most things dealing with visual design. It was inevitable that a business would be formed between our skill sets and our shared joy of working with people. Our business is something that we love working on together and have found success in. We have the opportunity to help people promote businesses, capture weddings, and simply create.
Q: What were your younger years like?
A: I was very active growing up. I was always doing something. My parents and family were very supportive of this (driving me everywhere and bringing me wherever I needed to go). I believe that this formed who I am now. I love to be busy, and if I am not working or working out, I am planning my next move. Something that impacted me more growing up than I ever thought, was running cross country. It taught me that I was powerful in my own unique ways and that literally anything is possible if you put in enough work and effort. I understood that being successful is painful. There are sacrifices that need to be made, but it is possible. Growing a business with my fiance has not been easy, but putting in those extra hours and finding the time to plan our success has made it a fast growing endeavor. Most of my passions showed in me at an early age. Sports were an everyday thing that I loved to do, teaching was something that everyone else saw in me well before I saw it in myself, and my first camera as a kid pushed me to want to capture every moment in the way I saw it.
Q: What is something valuable you’ve learned that you’d like others to know?
A: There are two things that I think are important for everyone to know. Teaching has taught me an immense amount of patience. You truly have no idea what any person is going through or what their story is, so be patient and take everything with a grain of salt. I think it is important to remember that we are all different, and it’s important to learn as much as you can about others in order to be the best for them and yourself. The second thing is that you are more powerful than you think and more prepared than you know. If someone asks you to do something or be somewhere, it is because they believe in you. Believe in yourself, and everyone else will as well.
Q: What would you like others to learn from your story?
A: I want others to know that it’s OK to do more than one thing. People thought I was crazy in college for playing more than one sport, and people think I am crazy now for having three jobs. I love what I do, and I enjoy all of it. If you can find a healthy balance, do everything. Be a jack of all trades. Know a little bit about all things.
Q: What does feminism mean to you?
A: Feminism to me is a broad and encompassing word. To me, it means empowering others and yourself to be our best in whatever situation. It means being kind and compassionate and loving, but also strong and willful and driven. To me, feminism means seeing where there are few females and asking why. It is being inquisitive and looking for changes where possible and wondering how if it’s impossible.
Check out Steph’s Insta! :
@ollie.productions
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