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Woman Wednesday: Cha

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Q and A with Cha, Philippines

“Success is not about money. It’s about fulfilling the little things that make you YOU.”


Q: What are you passionate about? 

A: I love to learn new things every day, but what I am most passionate about is creativity. I am Cha Consul, and I graduated in visual communication arts from a small province in the Philippines. I graduated in 2019, and I worked in corporate companies as a graphic artist but never felt satisfied with it. As young as 20 years old, I knew the career path I’d been taking was not for me. So, I started a part-time job as a freelancer while working on my 9–5 job.

I slowly felt I that was in the right place, and before I knew it, my little studio called Risseia was born! Now, I work as a freelance book illustrator and brand designer for female entrepreneurs. I am now working on a children’s book illustration project that will be released this 2020 worldwide!

Q: What were your younger years like?

A: I grew up in a very traditional and cultured family. My parents are religious and strict, but despite that, they were hard-working. I never really got that trait though. I used to be a slacker when I was in high school. I never got to be a top student and almost failed in every college application. I love making art though. It was like my sanctuary even when I was a little girl. My parents wanted me to be an architect, yet the only thing I achieved during that time was disappointing them.

When I luckily passed one college application, I took an art course instead of the one they wanted me to take. I was planning to shift on architecture after one year, but I guess the artist in me got in the way. I continued being an art student and I grew fond of it. I loved how art made me motivated to learn. Before long, I was acing all of my subjects! I was one of the top students in class without realizing it, and slowly, I am finding what I am truly capable of.

I graduated last year in 2019 and started working on a famous cosmetic brand as a graphic artist. While I was really having fun with it, living in a third-world country became hard. My salary was minimum wage and I had to travel 6 hours a day to get to my work. It was a crazy experience and I realized it wasn’t worth it. I decided to resign in less than a month knowing of the situation. In between those days, I kept thinking of what could happen if I become a freelancer instead. Well, my anxious self discouraged me.

Fast forward, I successfully worked at another company, but I decided to become a part-time freelancer. I never realized how exciting it was to work for other brands and challenge myself to execute a great design! I worked secretly on my freelancing projects when my boss wasn’t around. My mother wasn’t also supportive of the idea of me working as a full-time freelancer, so I knew I had to prove something to her.

It was the pandemic when my career changed its course miraculously. Despite the horrible events happening, it helped me become stronger and made me more self-reliant! My current company wouldn’t let me work from home, so I decided to try freelancing as a temporary ‘full-time’ job. It was then when I realized the vast opportunities waiting for me outside my day job, I worked harder and made my mom realize that this path is helping me release my true potential. Before I knew it, I took the biggest risk and resigned again to become my own boss. To be honest, my partner Jupert, was the one who really inspired me to take this risk. He was so supportive, and I’m glad I could rely on him every day.

Now, my parents are the proudest, and I realized that all the things that happened were all there for a reason. I am blessed with all these projects I am handling right now and I can’t wait to learn more in the next coming years! I believe that when you want something, you just have to trust yourself and the process!

Q: What is something valuable you’d like others to know?

A: Some people might not support you right away, even your loved ones might not support you, but that doesn’t mean you have to give up. We tend to feel discouraged when someone disagrees with us. Honestly, not everyone should matter to you. Analyze those people who are valuable to you and focus on them instead. It’s okay to prove yourself to others who are important to you, but know that you should prioritize how to prove yourself wrong. Anyway, our greatest enemy is ourselves.

It won’t be an easy process, but if you believe in yourself enough, your true potential will automatically shine! Trust your process, and as long as you love what you are doing, that is enough reason for you to keep going. So, quit that job you hate, start doing what you love, risk for freedom, risk for happiness…risk for yourself.

Q: What does feminism mean to you? 

A: Feminism for me is about fighting for equal rights. Most people think that Feminism is just about us fighting on how women are more superior to men, but I think we need to voice out what the true meaning of this advocacy is. It’s not about who is better or who is more valuable; it’s about learning to respect each other’s potential and lifting each other up no matter who you are!

Q: Is there anything else you would like the readers to know?

A: I’d like to use this platform to simply encourage anyone out there who is struggling with their careers. I know a lot of people who aren’t happy with what they are doing right now. I hope you find the strength to finally choose what you really love to do. For once, don’t think about the money and don’t think about what others might think; just think about how content you will become if you love the path you are taking. I believe that money will run after you when you are doing what you love. I hope you get excited to wake up one day because the dream you’ve always wanted to do is already happening. Success is not about money. It’s about fulfilling the little things that make you YOU.

I am Charisse Consul, a 22 year old Filipina illustrator and designer who is the founder of Risseia Studio. I chose this career for myself and to help others fulfill their dream career with my skills & services. I hope this interview inspired you. Talk to you again soon!

Thank you for reading!


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Woman Wednesday: Chitra

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Q and A with Chitra, Johor Bahru, Malaysia

“I definitely have come to realize my outer world is a reflection of my inner world.”


Q: What are you passionate about? 

A: I am passionate about living life to the fullest; doing what makes me happy. My husband, kids, and I love traveling and being in nature, so that is something we do quite often.

I have loved natural skincare since I was young. The Body Shop used to be my favorite shop to hang out in. Even if I could buy a small jar of lip balm from there, it used to make me happy. I somehow knew I always wanted to do something with natural ingredients as I love the smell of shea butter, cocoa butter, and essential oils, but I didn’t know where to start. About 6 or 7 years ago while reading Dr. Oz’s website, an article on ’99 Amazing Uses for Coconut Oil’ (one was on how to make lotions bars), I had a lightbulb moment. Immediately, I started researching this. I started off by making lotion bars, but it didn’t do that well in Malaysia as our country is quite humid, and it was not suitable to use lotion bars in our weather. Then about 2 years later, when I was looking for something for my skin and couldn’t find anything that helped, I decided to make it on my own and this time, I formulated a balm to be used on my face to reduce freckles and scars. I also made one for my mother and she introduced it to her friends. As I wanted to do it right, I studied on natural skincare formulation. I took a few courses before I started it as a business. That is how Esha CG Beauty & Health started. We are into our third year now. It brings me so much happiness that I can be of service to people and when I get messages from our customers saying that our products have helped them or their children heal certain skin issues that they had.

Q: What were your younger years like?

A: There are 6 of us in our family. Mom, dad, and 4 children. I am the eldest, and I have 2 sisters and a brother. I grew up in Petaling Jaya, Malaysia. Being the eldest and helping out with my siblings from a young age has made me a responsible person. What I find really hard now is our brother passed away last year from cancer and he was 29 years old. This has impacted me a lot, but this has also made me realize I know I want to do what I love as long as I can.

Q: What is something valuable you’d like others to know?

A: I have learned that it is important to believe in yourself, do what you love, and don’t give up. I have made mistakes, but I learn from them.

When I first started, I had a few people telling me what I was doing wrong. I started off with my own pocket money, so I didn’t have a big budget to start with great photography or proper packaging. It was basic, and that was what some were talking about. Slowly, I reinvested the sales money into the business and changed the packaging, took better pictures, bought better quality ingredients. Even if you have to start small, it’s okay. Just start with what you have. If I would have waited until I had more money so that I could do it 100% right, I may have not started until today. Last year, we were nominated for two of our products and one of it won the Readers Choice Award from BabyTalk and MamaPapa magazine. For the employee of the magazine to call me alone was a surprise, as I had no idea how they found me. My marketing is just not one of the best. It’s from word of mouth that our business is growing.

Q: What does feminism mean to you? 

A: Feminism, to me, means equal rights for women in every opportunities. I do not consider myself to be a feminist, but at the same time, I don’t keep quiet when someone tells me it’s okay for a man to do that but not me because I am a woman.

Q: Is there anything else you would like the readers to know?

A: Life has its ups and downs. It’s not always a bed of roses. There are days where I am just not strong; I cry if I want to, but I pick myself up and don’t stay there for long. I do the best in what I am doing; do it with love and trust the universe knows what’s next for me. I definitely have come to realize my outer world is a reflection of my inner world. The moment I started loving myself and working on myself and stopped judging myself so much, I attracted better circumstances in my life.

Thank you for reading!

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Woman Wednesday: Ashley I.

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Q and A with Ashley I., Asheville, North Carolina

“My dad told me that I had two options—I could allow the statistics to govern who I would become or I could recognize that those statistics were BS and define life on my terms.“


Q: What are you passionate about? 

A: First and foremost, I am massively passionate about empowering women. Not even just empowering them but ingraining in them their infinite possibility that can only come from intimate relationships with oneself. I am so completely obsessed with reminding women of how incredibly powerful and needed they are in the world, exactly as they are. I believe that when women are empowered, they show up in a way that completely changes the way we operate as a collective whole. On the flip side, my other passions include food, baking, cooking, and feeding people. Feeding people, to me, is absolutely a love language and allows me to nourish people from the inside out. I have also found that if you truly want to know people, share a meal with them. Some other passions include photography, being outside, going on adventures, travel, fitness, and being present in life. Meditation is my jam! Life is what happens when we disconnect from this version of “reality” and connect back into the truth of ourselves.

Q: What were your younger years like?

A: I grew up seeing two sides of the coin. Being a child of divorce, I had the unique opportunity to experience life in two different ways. On one side, I saw what it was like to live in a balanced partnership through my dad and stepmom. They got married almost 30 years ago, and they’ve been together through it all. They’ve been an amazing example of how it’s done and what it takes to build a real partnership that is equal in all parts. On the other side, I learned what being a strong, independent woman was from my mom. There literally wasn’t any situation that she couldn’t make it through. She always reminded me, as did my dad and stepmom, that anything was possible on this planet as long as I put my whole self into it. I definitely grew up always being told that there were no limits to what I could do in my life. This, in turn, really prepared me for the moment my life did change. When I was 16, I dropped out of high school, acquired my GED, moved to NC from FL and found out I was pregnant (with my now 15 year old daughter). All of this happened within three months. My dad told me that I had two options—I could allow the statistics to govern who I would become or I could recognize that those statistics were BS and define life on my terms. It didn’t matter what the world said or how anyone else showed up in it. What mattered was how I chose to show up every single day, and that’s how I chose to live life from then on. I knew that I would do more, and I would change the space that I was taking up so that my daughter wouldn’t continue fighting the generational battles passed down to us. Fifteen years later, I can testify that all chains are broken, contracts voided, and ancestral lines healed. We are not victims in this family.

Q: What is something valuable you’d like others to know?

A: As cliché as it may sound, anything is possible once we figure out what we’re here for and what it is we truly want to do in this world. Not what anyone else tells you, what you tell you. I always tell people that I get what I want and that has proven true 100% of the time when I am fully invested in the direction I am placing my intentions and energy into. It doesn’t necessarily look like how I see it, but it always works out in my favor with far better outcomes than I could’ve created. On the other side of that, once you have an idea of what you want, START TAKING ACTION! Don’t worry about the how. Know your why, and start taking action right now. The ‘how’ will present itself. The universe loves a determined heart. Before I manifested my TV show, I spoke about it for the year I was operating it on FB and YouTube. I would tell everyone that I am the next Oprah, and one day, this will be a globally syndicated TV show. I didn’t know how that would happen. I didn’t have connections, money, or anything that told me it was a possibility for me, but I still knew. I knew that if I kept speaking it, showed up, and took action, the rest would fall into place. As of next week, The TUF Woman Table airs, GLOBALLY, on Amazon TV, Apple TV, and Roku. Best part is, it’s just the start. Seek that which is in your heart and then take the next step, even if it seems miniscule in the moment. Sow seeds continuously, and I promise you they will harvest when the time comes. You cannot fail when you bet on you.

Q: What does feminism mean to you? 

A: Feminism to me is empowerment, equality, and freedom of the feminine to exist and take up space. It means creating a space for all people who resonate to feel safe, seen, heard, and allowed to be, as is. Feminism doesn’t say that you must show up in this way to be included, instead it allows space for you to just be. Feminism is saying that you are worthy, equal, and important in all capacities. Feminism is the most beautiful space when we begin understanding that it’s about embodying the fluidity, compassion, inclusiveness, and true balance of both the masculine and feminine working together in harmony. Neither one being more or less, simply equal as they are right now. I think everyone has the capacity to be a feminist and the world would be a better place if we were.

Thank you for reading!


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Woman Wednesday: Katie M.

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Q and A with Katie M., Seymour, Connecticut

“Just because you set a goal doesn’t mean it won’t change.“

“There will never be a seat at the table if you don’t pull up a chair.”


Q: What are you passionate about? 

A: I love working in public health, being able to contribute to the community through my work and my writing. As a dental hygienist, I worked in mobile dental settings providing care in schools, homeless shelters, soup kitchens, and much more. Through that work, I found that many children and adults feared having dental work done…even a cleaning. That is what led me to my first book, Roxy’s Adventure to the School Dentist. In this book, I help families tackle a fearful first from a safe environment- their home, in hopes of alleviating that fear factor of the unknown and educating them on what to expect during a typical visit. From that moment on, it was the theme of all my children’s books. How to create a show-do-tell method book that is educational and fun for families to use as an introductory tool.

Paw Elementary was born after I lost my first fur child, Roxy, to cancer in 2017. I wanted to step out of my comfort zone and provide a way to have her live on forever and be a friend for children. Paw Elementary has five books in the series currently, with the newest book coming out at the end of this month: Paw Elementary: Astoria Learns to Swim. I also have a soundtrack for the series coming out in October. I think it’s important to encourage children to try new things and to be brave, positive, inspire creativity, and be courageous. I have four encouragement cards out right now to go along with the books in hopes to make a difference in a child’s life. 

I also write romance suspense novels and have my second book coming out in the spring! These books center around strong female characters who show hard times and how they don’t let [those hard times] define them. In hopes of inspiring women to not give up, go for their goals/dreams, and to not be afraid to make something out of themselves.

I’ve been married for 10 years, and we have 4 rescues: 2 dogs and 2 cats. They are my life and motivation to keep moving forward. My hope is that my books become so successful that I can donate proceeds to children’s shelters and animal shelters.

Q: What were your younger years like?

A: I grew up with my parents and brother in Seymour, CT, and still live there till this day. I went to school to be a registered dental hygienist and have a master’s degree. My mom has always been a strong role model in my life and always pushed me to be my best, and both my parents encouraged me to go for my goals.

Q: What is something valuable you’d like others to know?

A: Life is built on hard work and dedication, long-term goals and pivoting. Just because you set a goal doesn’t mean it won’t change, just that you are evolving and following your path to success, wherever that may lead you. While it is good to have role models and mentors, build your own path. Following someone else’s path won’t lead to the same success; forge your own and be unique…be YOU!

Q: What does feminism mean to you? 

A: Being a strong woman who goes for what they want and not being afraid to speak for what they believe in, want, and will achieve. There will never be a seat at the table if you don’t pull up a chair. You have to make your success and it won’t be handed to you. GO for it and don’t let other people make you feel unfocused and vulnerable about what you want! Follow your gut!

Thank you for reading!

I’d love to connect with you!

My books come in three languages: English, Spanish, and French. All available on amazon and my website: www.KatieMelko.com.

Contact me: Katie.Melko@gmail.com


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Woman Wednesday: Christine

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Q and A with Christine, Boulder, Colorado

“When I did say ‘yes’ to trying something new and get out of my comfort zone, I almost always had a blast and was so proud that I accomplished something new.”


Q: What are you passionate about? 

A: I’m passionate about many things such as business, health, family, God, and helping people thrive by bringing them up and helping them see their potential that they have lost seeing. I currently am a project control analyst at Ball Aerospace, and I love my job so much. I get to work for an amazing company that provides crucial ideas, objects, and units that help keep our country safe from the ground up. As a young woman, starting my career at a place like Ball is empowering. I feel respected, I feel valued for all my opinions, I’m learning so many new things every day, and I get to use my passion for helping those around me by leading team meetings that remind everyone that even though we are working from home, we are a team and we are here for each other. I get to facilitate Q&A’s that the team have and haven’t voiced since working remotely has made people lose their voice that much more. By leading these team meetings, I help rebuild and restore our strength as a team, I get to build people back up and give them a place to vent all their worries, questions, and concerns, while also allowing them to have a place to speak their mind and say what’s working best for them and what they want to see happen in the future. From these meetings, management gets to hear from us all and everyone’s ideas, concerns, and voices all get heard and people couldn’t be happier, which makes me so happy. I thrive knowing I’m helping others to thrive and feel confident too!

Q: What were your younger years like?

A: My younger years were amazing; I couldn’t of asked for a better childhood. I grew up in Boulder, Colorado, in a great area and apartment complex where all us kids would constantly play outside together, explore what nature had to offer, and we all felt safe even though there wasn’t always a parent watching over us all. I’m the youngest of two; I have an older brother and having him made me feel as though I got interested in what men liked too like sports, video games, and wrestling around with one another. I am very girly, but because of him, I also am a girl that doesn’t mind getting her knees dirty, playing videos games with my boyfriend, and watching sports. My mom was a stay at home mom when we both were very young. She cooked and cleaned the house daily, she took naps with us, and really just made the house so warm and loving. My dad owned a restaurant at the local mall that was down the street from our house and, because of that, we went to the mall often for the free food and the really fun arcade place they had there. Having the freedom to be around so many kids in my community and then being able to run around the mall knowing everyone knew my brother and I (that we were my dad’s kids), they all would watch over us and we always felt so safe and a huge sense of community.

There is truly nothing better than being exposed to a diverse group of people at such young ages. It helped us understand other cultures. I grew up as both Christian and Catholic. God has always been at the forefront of my life. I have a big heart, and growing up with my dad owning a restaurant, whenever other kids from my school or neighborhood were hungry, my brother and I would take them to eat at my dad’s restaurant and my dad was always more than happy to feed anyone for free that needed the help. I learned how to give and help others in their time of need at a young age. My dad was always helping anyone out that truly needed it. God has always placed me where I needed to be in order to help the people He needed me to help and in order to thrive in areas He needed me to thrive in. Being able to help people and to motivate them and spread positivity in this world has always brought me so much pleasure, and I know that that comes from my religion and love for God and the love He has placed in me and the compassion and love He gave me for other people.

Q: What is something valuable you’d like others to know?

A: Something valuable I’ve learned that I want others to know is that life is too short. As we’ve all heard this many times in our life, it’s true. I blew off group gatherings before because I was tired or wasn’t in the mood that night. I’ve wasted some opportunities to go out and try new things because I was nervous to do so or too scared, and I’ve said no to potential job opportunities because I wasn’t sure if it was for me. We’ve all done things like that, and what I’ve learned was when I did say ‘yes’ and push through to go out with friends even though I was so tired, I almost always ended up having such a great time. When I did say ‘yes’ to trying something new and get out of my comfort zone, I almost always had a blast and was so proud that I accomplished something new. And when I did allow a random job opportunity to come into my life, it didn’t always work out, but sometimes, even if I left with just meeting inspiring and wonderful people, that was worth it to me. Life is too short to be unhappy, to over stress, to worry and be anxious. We don’t truly take advantage of every day, every minute, and every waking breath we are given by God. We need to let go of the nonsense, worry and stress less, get rid of toxic people and habits in our lives, and learn to take advantage of our everyday gifts of life. Meet new people, try new things, say ‘yes’ to the chances you do have to hang with the people you love, put yourself out there every once and a while, and don’t waste your life. You never want to look back and say, “I wish I did that, I wish I said yes, I wish I could hang with that person just one more time, etc.” You want to know that you lived a good life, made your mistakes, but came back stronger every time and really love that life you are living with the right people in your life and the right career. Life is too short, be happy, love hard, giggle as loud as you want, and eat that piece of cake!

Q: What does feminism mean to you? 

A: Feminism means a few things to me. It means equal pay and equal rights amongst men and women, but it’s also more than that. When females come together and build each other up instead of tear each other down, I love that. I love seeing women who feel weak be empowered by other women, have their crown readjusted and put back together by other women helping them and rebuilding them to be the strong, confident queens. I hate seeing women tear each other apart through their own insecurities. When we come together, help each other out, build each other’s confidences back up, and stay strong together, we are one heck of a tight force that no one can then mess with. Empowering each other, inspiring and motivating one another, and pushing each other further than our comfort zone makes my heart full and that to me is what feminism should be all about.

Q: Is there anything else you want to tell readers?

A: I want to thank Samantha for reaching out to me and giving me this opportunity to be a part of this wonderful website. When she did that, it reiterated how I love when people are so kind to one an another and when you can inspire people you don’t even know is watching. I love inspiring people for the positive and knowing I somehow did that to her by posting my usual posts, that felt amazing. Thank you for giving me the opportunity to be a part of this!

Thank you for reading!


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