Today we’d like to introduce you to Viviana Camacho.
Viviana, please share your story with us. How did you get to where you are today?
I began my college journey not having a clue as to what I wanted to do. At the end of my first semester, I finally decided I would major in Human Development with a concentration in counseling services, but still did not have any real insight on what this would lead me too. During my last semester, I was required to do 90 hours of internship work with a company related to my major. I reached out to a few and ended up finding a company that provides 1:1 Applied Behavioral Analysis therapy for individuals with Autism and other developmental disabilities. I ended up loving my internship and pursued a full-time job as a Registered Behavior Technician. A Registered Behavior Technician implements behavior plans and skills programming created by a Board Certified Behavior Analyst, who supervises client cases.
Over the years, I have worked for several companies that provide ABA services and eventually decided that I wanted to become a Board Certified Behavior Analyst. In order to pursue this, I had to go back to school to pursue my Master’s degree. After my Bachelor’s degree, I told myself that I did not think I could do more school and well here I am. I will graduate my Master’s program in August 2020. My daughter had been my main motivation to finish anything I put my mind to. She’s the most caring kid and is so understanding when most times I have to spend time completing assignments rather than playing with her. She’ll sit with me and color while I am on my computer for hours. I want to be able to provide the best life for her and she is definitely my biggest motivator.
We’re always bombarded by how great it is to pursue your passion, etc – but we’ve spoken with enough people to know that it’s not always easy. Overall, would you say things have been easy for you?
Growing up, things were not always easy for me. My mother raised my four siblings and I on her own, usually working two or more jobs trying to make ends meet. While my mother was working, my siblings and I had to do our best to take care of ourselves. As a teenager, it was hard to try do well-juggling honors/AP classes, working a part-time job and just being a teen. Then came the struggles with starting at a university, I felt so discouraged at first having no idea or real plan of what I wanted to do. Halfway through my bachelor’s program, I became pregnant with my daughter.
I was 20 years old and most people thought that would be the end of my college career. I missed classes for a month and withdrew one class because I was constantly missing class to make doctor’s appointments. Three weeks after I gave birth, I went back to school. College was one of the most difficult times and I wanted to give up so many times. Luckily, the support system I had was amazing. My mother, my siblings, my boyfriend and his family, were always willing to help. Whether it was paying for my classes or textbooks, watching my daughter when I was at school or finishing assignments. I would not have been able to do it without them.
We’d love to hear more about your work.
Along with working full time as an RBT & completing my Master’s courses, I also run a beauty blog on Instagram. My page consists of product reviews, tutorials, makeup looks and fun flat lays. One thing that sets me apart from others is that I am just a regular person sharing my love for all things beauty. I am not perfect and I show my flaws. I began this page as a fun hobby, but have been blessed to be able to be noticed by brands that have sent me products to review & post on my page. While I am still a fairly small page, being able to be sent anything by brands has definitely motivated me to try hard to grow more.
It has not always been easy, and at times I do start to doubt myself. Social media has become so big on numbers and people measuring your worth by how many people are following you, or how many likes you get on your pictures. Another aspect that keeps me going is the amazing friendships I have made from people who I don’t even know face to face, but show support in what I do. Not everyone understands that it takes hours and hours to create content to post and it can be discouraging when you’re posts don’t do well. I am thankful for my small circle of beauty lovers who take the time to engage with my page and have helped me get to where I am today. This started out as a hobby and I never thought my page would even hit 1,000 followers. I am proud of how far I have gotten pushing to do something I love doing!
So, what’s next? Any big plans?
I plan to complete my Master’s and be able to sit for my exam to become certified as a Behavior Analyst. I would love to be able to continue what I am doing in aspects of my blog. It would be amazing to be able to grow my page and be noticed by other brands.
I look forward to what the future holds with my career and blog. I have so much I want to do!
Contact Info:
- Email: vivily11@hotmail.com
- Instagram: www.instagram.com/vivianaaa11
Image Credit:
Melissa Rosdahl, Angel Felix
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