We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Sierra Johnson a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.
Sierra, thanks for taking the time to share your stories with us today Can you talk to us about a project that’s meant a lot to you?
The most meaningful project I’ve worked on is IVO Early Athlete Camp. IVO (Improve, Vitalize, Optimize) is my creative wellness company that has an athletic division, IVO Athletics. IVO Athletics focuses on building the fundamentals in athletics for children ages 12 and under. As a retired professional athlete and creative elementary educator, I have great passion towards helping children succeed in multiple areas of their lives. I have always believed that being committed to athletics or having experience with athletics at a young age, instills characteristics that promote lifelong success. With that said, I decided to do a summer camp to coach children the building blocks and fundamentals to being successful athletes. I’ve ran the camp for the past three summers and it has done extremely well with great reviews from the families of the children. I also have two children of my own and have grown up with parents who deeply supported my athletic endeavors and even coached me for a large chunk of my athletic career. With that said, it was so important and meaningful for me to provide a fun, engaging and educational program for children in our community.
Sierra, love having you share your insights with us. Before we ask you more questions, maybe you can take a moment to introduce yourself to our readers who might have missed our earlier conversations?
My name is Sierra Johnson, The Creative Educator, and I am a 31 year old Maryland native with two children. My work is with my businesses – IVO the Co (creative wellness) and SCJ Captures (photography). Ultimately, I support children and adults to develop a stronger sense of self and confidence in academia, wellness and fitness, that they can sustain long term. I lead and work with a gentle, introspective approach to help my students and clients feel confident in their individuality, propelling them to achieve their goals and feel empowered to encourage others. Within my creative wellness company, IVO, we facilitate events, sell merchandise and resources that encourage and support wellness for mind, body and spirit. I created IVO (my oldest son Ivan’s nickname) to combine my passion for athletics and motherhood and it has continued to blossom in many different ways. I am most proud of the way that IVO continues to help build the confidence and strength of mothers who are trying to find their way back to self after giving birth.
For you, what’s the most rewarding aspect of being a creative?
The most rewarding aspect of being a creative is fulfilling the desires of my inner child, which helps me to show up for my children and understand their need for a fun, intentional mother. Each time I bring an idea from my mind and see it become a reality, I develop a stronger sense of self which inevitably pours into my abilities as a mother.
Can you share a story from your journey that illustrates your resilience?
I had an IVO event in March of 2023, it was well executed, well promoted, I partnered with a successful business owner and expected it to go well. On the day of the event, about 3 people showed up total, despite having sold more tickets. It was the first IVO wellness event of that year and I easily could have seen that as a sign to step away from the events and move towards something else. I did the opposite, reminded myself of the many successful events I’ve had through my first business (Styleyourcrown) and planned differently but included alot of the same structures I included in the first event. In October of that same year, I executed a vert successful IVO event where we surpassed of goal of attendees and had excellent reviews from all involved. It felt like a true testament of my resilience and ability to see past what is negative and focus on what is positive.
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Image Credits
@scjcaptures Richard Williams