About Steph

I remember when I was about 8 years old, I picked my neighbors flowers & sold them back to him for 25 cents each. He bought it (lol).  I've always been a crafty, creator type; whether it was scrapbooks, homemade cards, pretending to be CEO of Crate & Barrel (truth) or selling lemonade on the corner, I never stopped moving. My Mom used to call me Monkey because I’d sit in my high chair with one leg up ... probably why she enrolled me into Gymnastics at 2 years, which quickly became my life outside of school & friends. Training 25 hours weekly, eating dinners at 9PM & trying to balance a social life was all the learnings I needed to my future journey in business. Gymnastics has shaped me to be who I am today.

Dedicated. Passionate. Encouraging. Self led. Independent. Strong. Courageous. 

My gymnastics & dance background will always be a part of me which is why I will be teaching group fitness & yoga for a lifetime. In 2010 when I transferred from WMU to Elmhurst University I started working at a Barre Studio & studied to get my 200 HR Yoga Certification with Corepower Yoga. It's also the time in which dove right into Communications & Social Media Marketing. Naturally people came to me for both. 

Post grad, landed my first agency gig downtown Chicago.  As much as I loved the work, I always disliked being chained to a desk 9-5 in agency & then in Corporate. It wasn’t until 1 year after becoming Social Media Specialist for Elkay Manufacturing. I finally felt the itch for change.

 In 2018, I took the leap … with nothing lined up. Except, sociallysteph.com. 

It was on a Monday (June 26th), my life forever changed. I presented at Baird & Warner Real Estate agency to train their agents on Facebook Ads & Instagram specifically. When the girl on the Mic welcomed me in as “Socially Steph” I started laughing with everyone because that was my blog name! Little did I know or imagine I’d be starting a business, gained my first client. Later that day I taught my Group Fitness Class per usual, 50+ packed room & energy so high! What I call my #HappyHour 

10:47PM rolls around... I get a text from my Dad that my Grandpa, Founder of Chicago Studio City, isn’t well.  He was battling Stage 4 Prostate Cancer for years. I was in disbelief, his strength up until this point was unbelievable. I held his hand not sure what was to come; his final breath on earth. Final moments. How my business was born the day he left has been quite impactful. 

How quickly life can change & how powerful one can be in your life. 

One week prior we had a conversation regarding the direction I want to go in my career. I had always been torn between social media & fitness. It was then he said, “Whatever you put your energy into you’ll be successful.” I took these words very seriously & I remembered that to be the true essence of who I am would not be to box myself into one thing, but to pursue my passion(s) and apply all my strengths to my business as best as I could.  

I applied this wisdom to my pursuit with Socially Steph llc & matched my corporate salary in 8 months. I’ve been running the social department for 4.5 years & still don’t know what to call myself. I wear a lot of hats. 

I love social media because it’s one of the most powerful communication tools. The opportunities are endless & the ability to connect, collaborate & share your gifts with the world is truly like no other form of Marketing. Helping my clients grow in their business has become extremely rewarding.

If I were to look back at this point, I"d say this was me finally following my heart. ❤️