Jesse Whelpley shared their story and experiences with us recently and you can find our conversation below.
Good morning Jesse, it’s such a great way to kick off the day – I think our readers will love hearing your stories, experiences and about how you think about life and work. Let’s jump right in? What is something outside of work that is bringing you joy lately?
Reading fiction novels. Currently reading Throne of Glass and loving it!!
Can you briefly introduce yourself and share what makes you or your brand unique?
My name is Jesse Whelpley and I’ve been living in Tampa for the past three years. I’m from a small town in northern Michigan, which was fun for a while, but I wanted to make my dream of moving to Florida a reality. From the moment I got to Tampa, I knew my life would change completely – and it did. The last time I was interviewed with VoyageTampa I mentioned my state of limbo after applying to an Echocardiography program, which I did end up getting accepted and I’m currently in my first semester!
While I’ve always wanted to become a cardiac sonographer, I also have a passion for social media and content creation. Currently I’m active on TikTok, Instagram and YouTube, creating and posting videos about a range of topics: Get Ready With Me, normal day-to-day, product reviews, “BookTok” videos, etc. My main focus has and always will be to keep my content genuine and fun because the day it feels like work is the day I’ve lost sight of why I started. My goal is to continue to grow the community around me and spread light and positivity to those who I reach through my channels.
Appreciate your sharing that. Let’s talk about your life, growing up and some of topics and learnings around that. What part of you has served its purpose and must now be released?
Growing up I was always a people pleaser; someone who kept her head down and just did what she was told. I tended to not branch out and would shy away at any light shown towards me. While this taught me to always stay humble and how to follow directions, I realized that it also extremely limited my abilities and the impact I could have on others. For the last few years living in Tampa, I have shaped the person who I am today to portray confidence, in my abilities as well as my communication with others, all while keeping myself humble, geniune, and kind. It was important for me to recognize the difference between the person I was and the person I truly wanted to be.
If you could say one kind thing to your younger self, what would it be?
Go after your dreams and passions and take other people’s opinions with a grain of salt. People will always have an opinion of you in everything that you do, whether they tell you or not. Your dreams are yours alone; not the person closest to you, and definitely not the person who’s judging you for chasing them. Someone who’s followed their own dreams won’t make fun of you for following yours.
Sure, so let’s go deeper into your values and how you think. Is the public version of you the real you?
Absolutely. I would be doing myself and everyone around me a disservice by being someone I’m not. I want to surround myself with others who truly like me for me and form genuine connections, but they would never know the real me if I was pretending to be someone else. I would rather someone not like me while I’m being myself than have them like a fake version of me.
Before we go, we’d love to hear your thoughts on some longer-run, legacy type questions. When do you feel most at peace?
When I talk to God. He is the center of all my decisions, the one I go to in light and in dark times, and who provides me true peace. I pray every single day, if not multiple times a day. I have Him to thank for everything I’ve been given and continue to be blessed with. Not only does this provide me with peace, but He brings me joy, even when my life doesn’t take the turn that I thought it would.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://linktr.ee/jessicawhelpley?utm_source=linktree_profile_share<sid=aa02a228-2f8b-4f37-9ce1-a272267fa84e
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/jessicawhelpley/
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@jessicawhelpley
- Other: TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@jessicawhelpley
