WEEK #52: ELLEN HYSLOP

 

Please tell us a little bit about yourself. 

 

I grew up in a small town called Carlisle, Ontario which is close to Hamilton, Ontario. Growing up I played a ton of sports including soccer, figure skating, basketball and badminton. Then I went to Queen’s University to study Commerce. There, I was part of the inaugural varsity Quidditch team and I played for 4 years. After graduation, I worked for Chubb Insurance for 4 years. Last year, in 2018 a few close friends and I committed to doing The Gist full-time. Now I’m working on media and engagement in the sport industry.

 

Please share a story about an internal or external barrier you have faced.

 

I am new to the sport industry, as well as I’m new to media writing as I write for The Gist. It is completely novel to me all together and sometimes I can struggle with Imposter Syndrome to a certain extent. When people are reading our articles, I often ask myself “am I the right person to be delivering these messages and am I an expert on the topic?” Sometimes I question, how qualified I’m going to be to talk about the issue or will readers trust what I’m saying? I know I just have to believe in myself and stand up for what I believe in. Transitioning into the sports journalism industry, it doesn’t mean that I am not the right person to be doing the job. I have the knowledge and skills to do it!

 

How did you overcome that barrier? What skills did you develop in sport that helped you overcome your barrier?

 

In terms of overcoming the barrier I think that it’s more of constant reminder about what I know through research and development. There is a lot of growth in our reach for our audience and readers, which suggests The GIST is doing really well. It’s been a really great experience so far and I think that our results can speak for themselves and people are telling me what they like they don’t like. It has been helpful to learn from other people and gain feedback from them.

 

If you had one word to describe your character, experiences or philosophy what would it be? Why?

GRITTY

 

I think that being gritty is something that you develop and continue to work on. I read a really great book called Mindset by Carol Dweck. Sometimes you may experience failures along the way and I had to be gritty. Is so important to have passion and perseverance. It’s all about having a growth mindset and seeing how I can develop from my experiences.

 

If you wanted to motivate a young female athlete to #BuildHerUp, what quote would you use? Why?

 

“We never give up.”

 

This was the cheer that was used while growing up. We consistently used this quote every day and it was also on the team clothes we wore. Since we saw this quote in so many different places it was a great reminder for us. It was also helpful for us as teammates because we were able to keep each other accountable and we wanted to do the best for each other. I also think this is why I never give up now.

 

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