Stacey Hudak. Transamerica Financial Advisor. Toledo, Ohio Headshots.

toledo professional business photography

toledo ohio professional business photography

Meet Stacey! Stacey and her husband, Andy, run a local Toledo WFG Transamerica Financial Advisors office. I got to meet Stacey at a headshot collaboration for local creatives and entrepreneurs. Stacey was paired with me to create some professional images that she could use to promote her brand. Stacey was fun, confident and ready to take my directions. It was a pleasure to document her professional and fun personality.

I was contacted by Stacey a couple days later and we set up a networking meeting. As a business owner, it is so beneficial to make connections and grow relationships with other local professionals. I highly value having a list of service providers that I trust to refer my friends and clients to. Stacey explained how passionate she is about changing the face of her industry and calling her peers to a higher service standard. She hopes to see more diversity in the professional world, specifically more women entrepreneurs. Stacey enjoys using her time to network and invest in the community as well.

Special thanks to Rustbelt Coffee for your amazing space!

Get to know Stacey through her interview:

What is your business/profession? How long have you been doing it? I work with Transamerica Financial Advisors, where my husband and I own and operate an independent financial services firm. I quit my pharmaceutical sales job four years ago to join my husband in business.
Why do you love what you do? I love helping people! I’ve always wanted to do something meaningful and have an impact on my community. I truly believe that we are doing that through financial education and empowering people to take control of their financial future. I love being able to take away stress, fear and anxiety surrounding money. I love building real relationships with our clients and being a part of their success.
What is one professional struggle you have had and how did you overcome it? Did it make you stronger? The biggest hurdle I’ve overcome and still struggle with is other people’s opinions and/or judgments of me. I used to let it stop me from contacting someone or going outside of my comfort zone. I was afraid to fail and have people see me fail.
I attended conferences, read a ton of books and listen to podcasts on personal growth & development. Eventually, I was able to identify that was my biggest issue and what was holding me back. Once I was able to identify it, I could work on it.
I’ve decided that someone who doesn’t have what I want, or hasn’t achieved what I want doesn’t get to have an opinion. I am the one who will live with the regret if I don’t do something. I still have to tell myself sometimes “who cares?” I know that I have good intentions and I am working towards something that matters.
I’ve also learned that my fear of failure was my ego, and that failure just means you’re trying. I would rather try and fail, then never try anything new. Fail forward. I do believe this has made me stronger and a better version of myself.

Who is someone you look up to professionally and why? Honestly, there isn’t one person in my field that I look up to. I have many mentors, most I haven’t met, but read their content and follow on social media. My favorites are Ed Mylett, Rachel Hollis, Brene Brown, Tony Robbins, Lewis Howes, and John Maxwell. I do look up to any woman who is owning her career, being the best Mom she can and being a good human.
What is one tip you would give other self employed professionals who are just starting out? Make time to work on yourself. Read books, listen to podcasts, surround yourself with people who have what you want. You also have to push yourself outside of your comfort zone... if there’s something that you don’t want to do, that’s probably what you need to do to get better or grow your business. If being an entrepreneur were easy, everyone would do it.
What stood out to you about your experience working with Rebecca? Rebecca was so great to work with! I just met her minutes before she started shooting and she made me feel so comfortable that I forgot I didn’t know her. She gave me direction and made me feel confident. She is professional and easy going. I love the photos she took and I highly recommend her!