Woman Wednesday: Ellen

*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.     


 

Q and A with Ellen, Pemberton, British Columbia

 

“I have learned that not making a choice is a choice in itself. If you want something specific and you have a vision for your life, just take some action. Take small steps towards that vision…even if you’re not 100% ready. If you wait until you’re ready, you will forever be waiting.”

 

 

Q: What are you passionate about?

A: I’ve always had a drive to create and express myself in different artistic ways. I’ve had a blog, dabbled in acting, singing, drawing, writing, and am a huge yoga lover! Finding my purpose inside of those things that alight my soul has been so important to me.

 

When I became a mom to my one little guy, I stayed home from building my career as a hairstylist. I’ve always had a drive to build something of my own. So, I started exploring ways to build a business from home. Everything is starting to transition into the online space! New ways of marketing is a hot need for businesses now! So, that’s where I found my place. I’ve been building a thriving digital marketing business for almost a year now, which has also opened up so many other doors of opportunity and ideas to expand my business and my brand.
I have been able to help other beautiful women reignite from within and harness their confidence and power to be their own boss and build businesses online alongside me. We are very supportive of each other and keep in contact almost daily in our mastermind group chats. Keeping in regular contact in group chats and through video calls, where we can share our journeys and lessons, has been probably one of the most important factors in each of our own successes and growth as entrepreneurs!
I initially started my own business for myself but only did I start to see it really take off when it stopped being about me and started being about sharing the opportunities out there with other women, connecting and really learning that we are all so much more connected than we are aware. The internet has been the most amazing way to meet each other and become great friends and biz associates!

 

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

A: It’s taken me many years of trial and error to get to where I am today. I’ve been through many business ideas–none of them really sticking until I found affiliate marketing, where I’ve finally been able to build a secure, sustainable business from scratch!

 

I have learned that not making a choice is a choice in itself. If you want something specific and you have a vision for your life, just take some action. Take small steps towards that vision…even if you’re not 100% ready. If you wait until you’re ready, you will forever be waiting. We’ll always find an excuse that it’s not the right time to start that business, quit that job you hate, move to a new town, et cetera. I used to roll my eyes when I heard that, until I had to live it myself.

 

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There will never be a better time than the present. If you’re unable to get a dream out of your head…go get it. Maybe it’ll take some time! But what’s a couple years rather than waiting your whole life for the “right time”? And the right time, if no action is taken towards something–will never come on it’s own.

 

Q: What does feminism mean to you? 

A: In my own mind, I would rather call it women’s empowerment.  When I think of what it means to me, it expresses itself as more of a feeling deep-rooted inward. To me, it means giving women the right to be themselves–to be what and who they want to be. I believe when we step into our own power by following our hearts and our passions that we are taking back our power to be women and human beings. If we tap into our own inner strength, that there’s not much if anything that can stand in our way.

 

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As women, we have a strong and unwavering tie to the Earth and its power. To heal, to regenerate, and to be able to withstand pain and suffering that the outside world can impose upon us. I believe when we stand up for ourselves, our beliefs, our rights in whatever setting, we keep that momentum moving forward as a collective consciousness for women everywhere.

 

I feel such a strong connection to all of the women I come in contact with. We have a deep-rooted connection to each other and should support and stand up for one another in any way another may need. We are stronger when we are supportive and work to empower one another. It starts with us being able to see each other as we are, without judgment, and to see one another as a different form of ourselves. Then will the rest of the world follow our lead.

That’s what feminism means to me!

 

Let’s connect! 🙂 Follow me on Facebook! https://facebook.com/ellenjbarbeau/

 

 

 

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Woman Wednesday: Kelly

*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.     


 

Q and A with Kelly, Toronto, Canada

 

One thing I’ve learned is this: You cannot control what happens in your life, but you can control how you react to it. I think if I continued to sulk and think negatively, nothing significantly positive would’ve happened in my life. Changing my perspective and immersing myself in hope and positive thinking only resulted in positive changes in my life.”   

 

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Q: What are you passionate about?

A: It would be exceptionally hard to pinpoint one thing I am passionate about because I am passionate about everything I do. I currently work as a communications coordinator for a company that promotes financial stability in underdeveloped countries. Luckily, I found this position by accident, and I am proud to say that I am a part of a project that helps those in need in someway somehow. One of my passions is definitely helping others. Aside from my full-time job, I am the founder of the subscription box business “Petite Princess Box,” and I have to say building, creating, and executing my own ideas and seeing it all come to life is one thing I will always be passionate about. I think I have always been an entrepreneur at heart.

 

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Pictured: One of Kelly’s customers enjoying her Petite Princess Box! 

 

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

A: A year ago, I lost my dad suddenly from a heart attack. I had such a stable life and everything was going great for me. I just got into my master’s program, had a growing business, and my family was happy and healthy, and then my world just changed dramatically with his death. You can say I had to grow up quick. I had my hands fully immersed in everything after his death. I guess you can say I became the “new man” in the house. After his death, I lost a lot of motivation. He passed away two weeks before my master’s program would begin, and I could barely focus. I felt like the quality in my work was slowly diminishing. I also stopped focusing on my subscription box business, and I could see it literally sinking. I ended up picking myself up and telling myself that I have to really immerse myself in positive thinking and to focus on finishing the goals my father wanted me to complete. And so I did that, and a year later, my whole life has changed (for the better). I graduated with my degree, found a close and loyal tribe of friends and loved ones, got my very first “big girl” job, and rebranded my entire subscription box business, and it is growing very quickly.

 

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One thing I’ve learned is this: You cannot control what happens in your life, but you can control how you react to it. I think if I continued to sulk and think negatively, nothing significantly positive would’ve happened in my life. Changing my perspective and immersing myself in hope and positive thinking only resulted in positive changes in my life.

 

 

Q: What were your younger years like? 

A: My childhood was nothing but great! We lived a pretty modest life in the suburbs. I grew up with my parents who immigrated from Palestine and my younger sister. My parents have always been supportive and always pushed us to be our best. Growing up, I struggled in school—all the way up to my high school years. I was never able to maintain exceptionally good grades and as many tutors as I had to assist me in my studies, there was still this struggle I had in obtaining a single “A” on my report card. Before starting my last year of high school, I told my guidance counselor that I wanted to get into university after I graduate. She told me that based on my grades from my previous years, attending a university would not be a realistic goal unless I managed to maintain an 80% average in my final year. I remember going home to tell my parents how angry I was at the lack of encouragement my guidance counselor had for me, and I promised myself and my parents that I would work hard enough to get accepted into a university program. In my last year of high school, I ended up maintaining an 87% average and got accepted into the highest ranked university in Canada. Fast forward to my last year of university—I had maintained a substantial GPA and ended up getting accepted into a very competitive program for a master’s degree in communications. You can say that these experiences in school really impacted my life to where I am today. If you were to ask me if I’m still upset that my guidance counsellor for discouraging me, I would say no. If she didn’t discourage me, I wouldn’t have pushed myself as hard as I did to prove her wrong and prove myself right.

 

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Pictured: One of Kelly’s customers enjoying her Petite Princess Box!

 

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Connect with me! I’d love to chat with you! 

Business Links:

www.petiteprincessbox.com

instagram.com/petiteprincessbox

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/petiteprincessbox/

 

 

 

 

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Woman Wednesday: Sarah

*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.    


 

Q and A with Sarah, Seattle, Washington

 

“Sports have been a passion of mine since I started playing soccer at 4 years old, and I have been coaching for 15 years. In addition to being a soccer player, I have now joined the Seattle Majestics football team to try my hand at something new. As a rookie this year, I am excited to step outside of my comfort zone, learn to tackle, and hopefully win a championship with the impressive women who make up this team.”   

 

Q: What are you passionate about?

A: As the CEO/ Founder of Girl Boss Sports and a professional tackle football player with the Seattle Majestics this year, you could say that one of my biggest passions is sports. Girl Boss Sports is a company I created for two main reasons: 1) To improve the pipeline of female sports coaches as there are simply too few of us (for example, only 21% of soccer coaches in the US are women) and 2) To provide a quality sports experience FOR girls BY women (currently we are focusing on soccer in the Seattle area). We work on soccer-specific development, mentality, fitness, AND do all of this with the added benefit of providing female role models to the athletes we coach.

 

Sarah Wolfer (1)

 

Sports have been a passion of mine since I started playing soccer at 4 years old, and I have been coaching for 15 years. In addition to being a soccer player, I have now joined the Seattle Majestics football team to try my hand at something new. As a rookie this year, I am excited to step outside of my comfort zone, learn to tackle, and hopefully win a championship with the impressive women who make up this team.

 

I am also passionate about leadership, women supporting women, and being a “womanpreneur.” Currently, my two big goals are having the best season I can with the Majestics and scaling up Girl Boss Sports as we hire several coaches and are establishing partnerships with other local businesses who have similar goals.

 

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Q: What were your younger years like?

A: Being an athlete my entire life was one of the most impactful things on who I am to this day (and I’m not alone in this). According to a survey of female C-Suite Executives, 96% said that they participated in sports as a teenager, and I am one of those individuals. Sports ignited my passion for leadership when I first took on the role of “captain” and then eventually “coach.” Sports also taught me life lessons about teamwork, accountability, working toward goals, sportsmanship, confidence, and communication–all these things that have helped me to be successful as a woman in this world and at work. These lessons I learned along the way are a huge part of who I am today and what Girl Boss Sports is working to do for the next generation of female athletes and coaches.

 

 

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

A: I have learned that if you want success (in whatever area that is for you), it takes hard work, grit, preparation, and resilience (and one without the other doesn’t work). Life will hit us hard at one point or another, and the ability to be resilient in the face of adversity is one lesson that sports taught me that is transferable to finding success and happiness in life. Secondly, I have learned that nothing comes easy that is worthwhile, and this is where hard work and grit comes in. One thing I often find myself speaking about to the athletes I work with is centered around these topics. Often I have found that athletes can be hard on themselves if every movement, touch, etc. is not perfect every time. Instead of getting frustrated about not having fully developed a specific skill we are working on, I discuss that it is not perfection we are after, but progress. The only way to progress at something is to go through the discomfort of imperfection. Finally, whenever I am working on a “hard thing” (and what that is varies depending on the circumstances), I have found that by preparing for it ahead of time not only does it go better, but I have significantly less anxiety around it as well. Preparation really is the key to success in life!

 

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One of the things I hope you learn from my story is the power that sports can have on anyone and everyone. Being involved with sports provides so many opportunities to teach life lessons and find success on AND off the field. Whether you are someone who has never played before or thinking about getting back into it, just do it! There are a ton of recreational leagues and teams and classes around the nation that could be a great outlet for you and I highly recommend it. And if you are someone with children (or know somebody who has children) I’d encourage you to get them involved in (and help them stay in) sports. If you have girls, it’s even better that you’re reading this. By age 14, girls are 1.5 to 2 times more likely to drop out of sports, and this is incredibly sad to hear. This is due to a ton of reasons including lack of access, costs associated with participation in sports, and lack of positive female role models. These are all things that Girl Boss Sports is working to change.

 

 

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Q: What does feminism mean to you? 

A: Intersectional feminism is where it’s at! This means that I am striving to do my part in advocating for equality not only among the sexes, but also working to be inclusive of women with other intersectional identities (i.e. women of color, LGBT+ women, women with different abilities, and more). As someone who has experienced how hard society can be on us women, it is so important for us to stand together and advocate for one another in everything we do.

 

 

Connect with me!

 

Girl Boss Sports:

Website: https://girlbosssports.com/

Email: Info@GirlBossSports.com

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/girlbosssports/

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/girlbosssports/

Twitter: https://twitter.com/girlbosssports1

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/girlbosssports/

 

 

Sarah Wolfer:

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/ceo_sarahwolfer/

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/sarahwolfer/

 

 

Seattle Majestics Women’s Tackle Football:

Website: https://seattlemajestics.wnfcfootball.com/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/theseattlemajestics/

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/seattle_majestics/

 

 

 

 

 

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Woman Wednesday: Jessica K

*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.    


 

Q and A with Jessica from Kelowna, British Columbia, Canada  

 

“We are human. We can only learn from that and try to be better next time.”  

 

Q: What are you passionate about?

A: I’m passionate about so many things! I’m an enthusiastic person by nature, and everything I discover is always “the best thing ever” [laughs]. Things I love that have stuck are reading, cooking, red wine, and hiking.

I’m also super invested in (and passionate about) helping other women succeed in their own entrepreneurial businesses. Once upon a time, I was a freelance copywriter and found such success that I was able to quit my full-time job to focus on my writing. Now, I’m giving back and helping other women achieve success like I once did, and girl, it feels amazing!

 

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Q: What were your younger years like?

A: It’s funny because I don’t really feel like my younger years influenced where I am now. I’m completely different from my family and have always marched to the beat of my own drum. My family is very much the “you get a good job, work all day, come home to live your 4 hours of normal life until it’s time to wake up and do it again” mentality, whereas I’ve always been extremely expressive, creative, and nontraditional.

My mom often asks where the heck I came from [laughs]!

But you know what? I really enjoy that part of me. I love being able to teach my family new things and hearing the surprise in their voices when they hear my latest endeavor because it’s just so different from anything they are used to. We certainly learn from each other!

 

 

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

A: I’m an extremely positive person by nature and genuinely love helping others find their way. Over the years, I’ve really learned to be accepting of others and keep the judgment at the door because you never know what someone else has been through. Above all, always be kind!

Of course, I’m not perfect and neither are you. Try and practice these things, and if you catch yourself being judgmental, don’t beat yourself up. It happens, we are human. We can only learn from that and try to be better next time.

 

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Q: What does feminism mean to you? 

A: To me, feminism is about equality. No matter what gender we are, we all deserve to be treated as equal human beings. And that’s it. It’s quite simple really. Treat others with kindness, respect, and equality. Women are strong, and we deserve the same treatment as any man. Girl power!

 

 

Connect with me!

You can find me here:

Facebook

Instagram

Website 

https://www.bravedigitalcoaching.com/

 

 

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Woman Wednesday: Chanel

*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.  


 

Q and A with Chanel, Annapolis, Maryland 

 

“Staying true to yourself is important in any industry. It’s easy for others to laugh or joke or not take you seriously, so try and tune out those voices. No one else is responsible for your happiness or life successes.”

 

Q: What are you passionate about?

A: I am passionate about empowering women in the form of positive thinking, learning independent lifestyle habits to allow us to not have to fully rely on anyone else, and body positivity. I am currently a lifestyle, boudoir, and wedding photographer. This career allows me to meet so many different people. We have a self-love project going on right now. I also have spent two years working as a distributor for a makeup company, Senegence International. This has opened many doors from opening a team of over 120 ladies all over the USA and helping others learn makeup skills with a cruelty-free brand.

 

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Pictured: Chanel ready to take some amazing photos! 

 

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Pictured: Some shots of Chanel promoting self-love. 

 

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Pictured: Photos Chanel took while collaborating with My Lilianas.

 

 

Q: What were your younger years like?

A: My younger years were focused around finding myself. I studied early childhood education in college, but I never fully dove in. My passion became photography.

 

My parents have a huge influence on my life. They’ve encouraged me to make my own path, money, and success since high school. I immediately worked multiple jobs from 15 and up. Savings was my main focus versus spending money on some of the things that friends were. It helped fund the start of multiple businesses. My mom is very much into makeup and helping women find confidence within themselves. She’s constantly showering others with praise. My dad is a businessman who has paved a way of multiple streams of income, hard work, and goal setting.

 

 

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Pictured: Chanel, her husband, and their three children. 

 

 

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

A: Staying true to yourself is important in any industry. It’s easy for others to laugh or joke or not take you seriously, so try and tune out those voices. No one else is responsible for your happiness or life successes. Making goals and understanding that plans will change is crucial in finding growth. I also feel it’s important for women to make their own money, save some for life-changing events, and invest in themselves and their family. I would love for ladies to learn that you can honestly become anyone you want to be. Whether it’s a teacher, photographer, life coach, makeup artist, or something else entirely.

 

 

 

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Pictured: Chanel and her friends, Brittani and Kristin.

 

Q: What does feminism mean to you? 

A: I feel it means not letting others have a hold on you. Feminism means knowing you’re the one in charge of your life’s outcome. One of the hardest things for me to see in relationships and marriages is a male figure seeking dominance over someone based on income or working status. Or when couples separate seeing a female say she has nothing to her own name or has nothing for herself. I hope to one day design a course for ladies in high school and college to help encourage women to protect themselves.

 

 

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Pictured: Chanel and her daughter.

 

You can check out the variety of services Chanel provides by clicking here. 

Chanel Photography services, click here. 

Chanel’s SeneSite, click here.

 

 

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