Her Story
About Stephanie
I work as a materials management clerk at XR Laboratories, where I work in a facility with a group of pathologists that work with local hospitals and go over different cancers and diseases. After the histotechnicians, the cytotechs, and all of them create the slides, what I do is I send those slides out to the different hospitals and facilities for a continuation of care, so that they can review what the pathologists have found. I make sure that the materials we're providing are being delivered in a very timely fashion. Before this, I worked in the firearms industry for about two and a half years, where I was dealing with federal paperwork and making sure that the background check forms are filled out correctly, vetting people as they walk in to make sure that we're not selling someone who shouldn't have a firearm, as well as sales. Throughout this time, I was either in two part-time jobs or a full-time job and school, raising my two kids with my husband, and everything I did was online. I just graduated with my bachelor's degree in geology from Southern New Hampshire University, where I was able to transfer 78 credits from my previous nursing studies. I'm looking to get into volcanology and seismology to advance hazard warnings and to find more productive warning systems for volcanic eruptions.
Her Interview
Ten minutes with Stephanie
01What do you attribute your success to?
I attribute my success to pushing myself above and beyond and really changing my mindset. I wasn't really an A-plus student when I was in high school, but I've managed to get onto the president's list twice and was on the honor roll every single semester. It really helped to show what I can accomplish by putting my mind towards it and just saying, yeah, I can accomplish this, I'm going to do this. That's been my mantra, my mindset. I also learned from David Goggins' quote that when your mind tells you you are absolutely exhausted and reached a breaking point, you're actually only about 40% of your true physical and mental capacity. Any time that I would feel like I'm exhausted, or feel like I'm done, and I can't go anymore, I would stop, breathe, and go right back at it. That helps me to put things into perspective in my own head, where it's okay to break things down, and it's okay to do small things. Even a failure is an accomplishment because you're learning something from it. It's only a failure if you don't learn. Learning that you can push yourself even further, just that extra little bit, will help you to keep pushing more and more, so you can be who you need to be and go where you want to go. The only thing that holds you back is what's in your own head. Once you get that out of the way, and stop saying you can't do it, and start saying you can, then it will happen.
02What advice would you give to young women entering your industry?
I would say go out and do it. I really believe in what David Goggins said: when your mind tells you you are absolutely exhausted and reached a breaking point, you're actually only about 40% of your true physical and mental capacity. Any time that you would feel like you're exhausted, or feel like you're done, and you can't go anymore, stop, breathe, and go right back at it. That helps to put things into perspective in your own head, where it's okay to break things down, and it's okay to do small things. Even a failure is an accomplishment because you've learned something from it. It's only a failure if you don't learn. Learning that you can push yourself even further, just that extra little bit, will help you to keep pushing more and more, so you can be who you need to be and go where you want to go. The only thing that holds you back is what's in your own head. Once you get that out of the way, and stop saying you can't do it, and start saying you can, then it will happen.
Keep Exploring
More Influential Women · New York
Join Influential Women and start making an impact. Register now.