In celebration of National Women's Day today, we decided to go around the office of NowMedia Group and ask our female staff about a woman or women that inspire them.
From mothers, sisters to coworkers, here are the women that inspire our staff.
Alexa Anderson
Alexa is inspired by our CEO Nikki Csek, not only is she the CEO of a company that has 6 different divisions, she sits on several boards, she is a community leader, a community mentor and she inspires hundreds of women. And to top that off, she's a mother of three and a wife.
Her passion and dedication to our company and her Kelowna business community is inspiring – this woman works seven days a week 14 hours a day.
Sometimes Alexa stops and thinks, "is she real (haha), how does she do it", yet she manages to get up every day with bigger and better dreams.
Alexa pinches herself sometimes that she gets to sit beside the most driven, hard-working, passionate businesswomen she has ever met, "how did I get so lucky?"
Her confidence is empowering, women want to meet her and women want to be her.
Nina Harder
Nina has an amazing girl tribe that consists of truly inspiring women from all over the world.
One that stands out, in particular, is her best friend Erin Grant. She is fierce, independent and amazingly loyal when it comes to friendship.
She has taught Nina not to settle for anyone or anything less than what she truly deserves, which has been integral advice throughout recent life decisions.
Erin always has a fun, energetic and fiery attitude that is infectious to be around.
If only the world had more Erin's, it would be a wonderful world indeed!
Karen Montgomery
Karen is inspired by many women in the community.
Of course, Karen has an amazing mother who inspires her for when she becomes a mother, and friends who are doing amazing things and always support everything she does.
She is very lucky to have the women in her life who inspire her every day.
But this year, she would like to talk about an individual who she is not super close with, but has looked up to for many years.
Monique is one of those women who walks into a room, steps onto a stage, laughs in a coffee shop, or poses in a photo and everyone is mesmerized.
But the funny thing is, she spends a lot of her time behind a lens capturing life's most beautiful moments and travels the world doing what she loves.
She is one of the most humble, beautiful, positive, optimistic and inspiring women I have ever met. Not only is she a successful photographer, but an ambassador for Lululemon, an extremely engaged and connected person in the business and yoga community of Winnipeg and runs her own workshops to teach other women about photography.
Karen is inspired by her radiant energy to work hard and to do what she loves, and hopes to cross paths with her again soon!
Doortje Geelkerken
Doortje is inspired by a woman who has been there for her, her entire life.
The woman that really inspires her is her mother, she is a hardworking, smart and motivated lady.
Being an entrepreneur she built up a successful business and works hard to succeed every single day which is really inspiring for Doortje to see.
Ever since Doortje was born she has raised me to be a strong and independent woman, to think logically and build up a thick skin in this world.
Her passion and honesty is something that Doortje wishes to carry on to her children.
My mom is not only my best friend but someone who I look up to and hope to be even half as amazing as one day.
Taylor Siemens
Taylor is inspired by her friend.
One individual who continues to inspire Taylor is her close friend, Charmaine. She was one of the first people Taylor met at university, and since then they have been inseparable – minus the fact they live in different cities.
Charmaine is someone who always has your back and tells you the truth. She has wit like no other, always sees the best in people, and always has an optimistic outlook on life. Also she loves puns, a bonus really.
These are a few reasons why Charmaine continues to inspire Taylor.
P.S. Thanks for being such a great friend, Charmaine!
Nicole Warkentin
Nicole's favourite women in her life is her mom, Corinne Warkentin.
She's the most hilarious, generous and thoughtful woman.
Nicole feels lucky to call her my mom!
She always knows how to make anyone feel special and listened to.
She's got the greatest sense of humour and Nicole and her will frequently just speak in sarcasm.
She's the epitome of a "Pinterest Mom" – she's all about DIY's, thrifting and minimalism. She's also turned two of her favourite projects into small companies.
Nicole is constantly inspired by her motivation to try something new and her ability to find beauty in anything.
Nicole loves her mom!
Shannon MacNamara
Shannon's mom Christine is the woman that inspires her!
She moved across the country from Ontario to BC when she was only 19 and has built an amazing life for herself in Whistler.
She raised Shannon on her own as a single mom which is not easy and always ensured that Shannon was happy and had a great childhood.
She is constantly there for Shannon to offer advice, help her make decisions, or just to chat with Shannon when she is stressed out.
This past fall Shannon and her mom were lucky enough to be able to go on a three week trip to Europe and share the experiences of a lifetime!
Nikki Csek
Nikki wants to give a shout out to all the inspiring and hardworking women in our community.
This valley is chocked full of incredible women.
There is not one woman in particular that she looks up to exclusively.
There are traits she takes from many as many are trailblazers in the space they occupy and the passion they bring to what they do each day.
Share with us in the comments what women in your life inspires you the most!
