We were fortunate to catch up with some brilliant artists, creatives and entrepreneurs from throughout the Houston area and they share the wisdom with us below.

Anne Powell Elle Varnell | Lovely Vintage Rug Co

Far and away our success completely matters on our personal communication and involvement with our customers! We so enjoy our interactions with our beloved customers. We want them to feel that we are invested in their decision, can help support them in the process, and create an environment they enjoy during the buying process. Early on we focused on the value of making our customers feel like their interaction with us was personal and that we cared from start to finish. We never want them to feel like we take them purchasing from us for granted, because we don’t! Read more>>

Carlos Patrick | Record Label Executive

The most important factors behind Carlos Patrick, The Patricks, and CHISPA Music Group is humanity, care, and integrity. Our team not only loves music, we love to serve and educate our clients bridging the gap between artists and listeners. One of our West Coast associates, Dr. Calvin Bonds, is a brand ambassador for CHISPA Music in Los Angeles, CA. Dr. Calvin Bonds is an executive producer, publicist, international business strategist, and director. I honor him today. Read more>>

Nora Harris | Content Creator/Influencer & Real Estate Agent

Honesty, Transparency and Integrity will carry you far in life. These values are incredibly important to me because they ultimately speak volumes about your character. Being honest, transparent and operating in/with integrity help you to build solid relationships and can provide you favor in rough situations. When building community, in business and in developing a legacy with which you can be proud of, these values are essential to success. Read more>>

Kelsey | Knitwear Designer / owner of Studio Kelsey

Growing up, both of my parents worked together in a business they started the year they got married – and they still do to this day! My sister later joined the business, so it’s become a big part of our family dynamic. I remember thinking ‘there’s no way I’d want to be an entrepreneur’ because I’d seen all the ups, downs, and realities of running a small business. Read more>>

Bobby Blevins | Creative Director at Nolensville Drone Production

I actually didn’t mean to start my own business. I left my job in April 2020 because of covid. A few months later I was bored and started capturing business commercials for local companies. I just never stopped capturing content, because customers kept coming to work with us. Read more>>

Catchfire | Band

Our end goal is to bring people together through our music. By the “end” of our career, we hope that we have brought together every person we could find on this planet who loves our music and wants to be a part of something great. And we hope that our music will continue to live on long after we are gone and further that mission for generations to come. Read more>>

Lauren Routledge | Performer & Actor

My whole career can be sifted down to one moment of personal clarity: at the age of seven, I stepped onto the stage for the first time with a giant lollipop held in front of my face as a Wonka Kid in Willy Wonka Jr… This may not sound significant, but from that very moment forward, I knew I would be pursuing musical theatre for the rest of my life. Propelling from that moment, I have now performed professionally across the United States in various means. Each opportunity opens my eyes to the possibilities that surround us and the reality of hard work. There is something about live theatre that seems almost more genuine than real life. Every part or character that is played bring moments that derive from real experience or emotion one may have even forgotten they had. Theatre is a daunting pursuit because it demands that you as an actor are transparent with anyone willing to pay attention. I think this is beautiful. I love that each flaw while live performing can be transformed into a choice or new discovery about how one might respond. Pursuing my passion has been a bundle of late-night memorizing, collaborating with new friends, and widening my knowledge of the art; I could never give it up. To be frank, it has never been a question as to what I wanted to pursue as a career, but rather how I would get there. Performing is my passion; there is no place that makes me feel more myself than on the stage surrounded by other like minded, creative individuals. God has given me a gift and I strive to steward that gift to the best of my ability every day I have the privilege of doing so through whatever platform He opens for me. Read more>>

Alee Anderson | Ghostwriter, Editor, and Founder of Hey! Young Writer

I never really decided to go into a creative career–that life chose me. I come from a family of poets, painters, and writers, so being creative felt like it was part of my ancestral makeup. I never even considered anything else. I was just built with creativity in my bones. Read more>>