1. What does a typical Thursday look like for you, starting from when you wake up – to heading to bed?

I check emails in bed on my Blackberry until 7:30 or 8. Once I’m up, I have a breakfast shake and head to the computer for more emailing.

Around 9 or 10, I make my way to the studio, sleep-sitting on public transit the whole way. At the studio I go through mail (bills and registrations), correspond with the staff and instructors, and communicate changes and additions with my web master. Throughout the day I organize the studio for current and upcoming classes and work on collaborations and marketing.

Before I return home, I assign and edit and research and write stories. (In addition to running The Sewing Studio, I’m also the Editorial Director of Faze Magazine, Canada’s largest teen publication, and I work as a freelance writer.)

At night I catch up on PVR and chat with friends while I work on the magazine and any freelance stories I’m doing.

Before I go to bed, which is usually around 1 or 2 in the morning, I work on business planning and finances, check email, and think about how bad I am for going another day without working out.

2. What was your first job out of school?

The day after my convocation at Ryerson University I started as an intern in the art department of Flare Magazine. That role transitioned into a permanent position in the beauty department and I stayed with the company for five years before moving on to work for other national publications. It was when I was at Flare (I had been sewing for years and years at that point) that I started teaching friends and coworkers to sew in my one-bedroom apartment.

3. What are the 3 skills you require most to do your job well?

Drive—the ability to push for more.

Focus—knowing what’s needed and what takes priority.

Organization—a knack for putting it all in place.

4. What do you love most about your career?

I love seeing the joy people get from learning and loving something new. And I love challenging myself with one goal after another.

5. If a woman wanted to get into this business, what are your recommendations of how they should start?

To start your own business, just get on it. Don’t wait for anything and don’t borrow money. Just do what you can with what you have. And when you grow a little bit, do what else you can with what else you have. Instead of waiting until I owned a home with a separate space that could be used as a sewing school, I started teaching sewing classes out of my apartment. Friends came over with their own machines and placed them on my computer table, dining room table, and coffee table. One baby step after another has brought The Sewing Studio to now operate on Toronto’s chic Avenue Road. Plus, we’re in the process of opening a second location outside the city.

6. Do you have any warnings?

There are a lot of people out there who work hard. You have to be the person who works harder and better and smarter.

7. If you could try a different career on for a year, what would it be?

Working in a factory on an assembly line is my dream job. Your hours are defined, you know exactly what you’re supposed to do, and you don’t have to deal with unexpected problems. Then you go home and live your life.