By Lizzie Poliakova Images By Si Sun The women working here at VIBE 105 are always strong, sometimes extremely hilarious, and never afraid to stand up for what they believe in. I asked our wonderful female team some personal and inspiring questions in honour of International Women’s Day. Here is your chance to get a peek at what’s keeping these amazing women motivated on a daily basis. Hopefully, their words of wisdom and advice can inspire you to keep being the best person you can be every day. This is a two part series, catch Part 2. Natasha Roldán Resource Development Coordinator Natasha is our Resource Development Coordinator, she is the organizational guru every striving organization NEEDS to have. She develops professional media and arts initiatives through our educational programs, while keeping all our departments informed and running efficiently. She is your first contact if you ever want to get involved with VX3 Exchange and VIBE. Are there any women who inspire you? My mother, my sister, and my aunt. They are admirable in every single way. What advice can you give to women who are striving to succeed? Women are so incredibly strong and courageous that even after being subjected to the most horrific abuses and oppression, they go ahead and win Nobel Prizes and gold medals. So, never doubt your strengths and qualities. If you feel you are missing something, go ahead and get it! What are important lessons in life every woman should learn on her own? Being able to critically analyze societal constructs about what it means to be a woman and our place in history and society, is key to reclaiming our rights and establishing healthy and fair systems for the present and future generations. “Educate yourself, be the owner of your life, love yourself, build up and encourage the women who surround you, use any privilege you may have to help others, trust your gut, question the things you think are not right, and never be afraid to speak up. There is always an army of us behind you and we have your back.” Fatima Husain News Desk Coordinator We are glad to have Fatima on our team because she has an enormous amount of experience travelling the world, and we appreciate the awesome insight she has on all sorts of international and national issues. As the News Desk Coordinator, she is always in the know of important issues happening in our communities. Is there a special way you overcome obstacles? I see obstacles as challenges rather than threats. This therefore gives me the opportunity to devise a plan and perform at my maximum best rather than getting worked up over an obstacle. This enables me to uncover new skills and abilities in the process, sometimes leading to self-discovery of a new level. What advice can you give to women who are striving to succeed? Be ruthless. I strongly believe in a quote I once came across: “If nations were deprived of courageous women, they would decline and collapse." What is a lesson in life that you had to learn the hard way? Neglecting oneself. Practicing self-love is not selfish; it is rather liberating. Move away from anything that is toxic to your mental and physical being. Surround yourself with positive people. Indulge in activities that make you happy. As the saying goes: Do what you love and love what you do. Sierra ‘Ci’ Sun Digital Media Specialist Ci is VIBE’s Digital Media Specialist; what does that mean exactly? She is the one behind the scenes of Vx3 Exchange and VIBE's new and interactive websites, as well as the VIBE E-Shop; which would not have been possible to launch without her. She is also the videographer behind many of our YouTube videos. Ci is definitely a person of many talents. What keeps you going every day? CHEESE! (Yay food motivation - but seriously I love cheese.) I guess being so busy keeps me going every day. It's enjoying what I do and even if I don't (and it's a "growing pain”) then you just have to look at the bright side until you're ready to move on. But change doesn't come on its own. You have to make it happen. What advice can you give to women who are striving to succeed? Keep doing anything and everything you can. Make yourself as indispensable and versatile so people can appreciate you as a hard-working ambitious person who is willing to learn and achieve success. Take the night shifts, take the early shifts - heck - take all that you can and learn. What is a lesson in life that you had to learn the hard way? People will want to take care of you or make decisions for you because they worry "for you"; or most often it's because you're a woman. But if you don't need them to create an overbearing environment where it impedes in your self-confidence and self-development, make your own decisions anyway and learn from your mistakes on your own. “You don't need to be validated by significant others, family, social media - no one. When you stop worrying about everyone else, that pretentious social pressure bubble won't exist.” Adriana Steele VP of Sales and Marketing Adriana worked over 25 years in the radio business, that’s why we are so lucky to have her expertise here at VIBE now. She is the VP of Sales and Marketing, which means without her, this station would be commercial free (and I would be out of a job). What keeps you going every day? Boy, if I had a dollar for every time I have been asked that question. In all sincerity, my family is what keeps me going. I’m a bit of a workaholic, but I think that it all initially steamed from the need, as a single Mom, back in the day, to ensure that I was able to provide a comfortable life for my children while being a good role model and showing them that they too could do anything that they put their mind to. What advice can you give to women who are striving to succeed? Follow your dreams but also keep in mind that God has a path for you in life and that it is important to stay on that path. When you do, doors open, if you walk through them, opportunities exist. Don’t be afraid to do so, making the decision not to do so will take you off that path and will often mean that you may not reach the level of success that is intended for you. What are important lessons in life every woman should learn on her own? How you affect other lives is not only important but ever so empowering. I enjoy the mentoring part of my job more than anything…when I see an Account Manager grow his/her business and watch them succeeding in life and achieving their dreams, that’s when I truly feel that I have made a difference. What is a lesson in life that you had to learn the hard way? That I have to remember to put myself first; as a wife/mother/employee I tend to put others needs first. I’ll be honest to say that I’m still a work in progress with learning this life lesson. There are more amazing women working here at VIBE; catch part 2 of the article here. Hopefully, our words of wisdom and personal stories will leave an impact on the way women are perceived and viewed in society, and can make a change for the better.
*All interview questions have been edited for length and clarity* |
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