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.

Meghan Ondo | Mother and Baker

I came up with the idea for Three Sisters Barkery while watching my Grandma’s celebration of life service over a Zoom call. I had to miss the service because my 7 month old daughter had COVID and I could drive to another state to be with my family. While I watched and heard people talk about the woman she was and all that she had done I wondered what I was doing with my life. Being a stay-at-home mom is the best and luckiest job to have in the world but I had always wanted to own my own business. I thought what would make me happy in that moment. At one point I had wanted to own a bed and breakfast at another point and art studio. However neither of those made sense with a baby and almost 3 year old. Read more>>

Arnika Carter | CEO of Loaded Juice

If I did not take a risk to start my business, I would not be where I am today. I know I have way more ahead of me to accomplish, but you have to start somewhere. When I started my cold pressed juice business, people were interested in my juice and wanted to try it. Although people were excited about my business, I think there were people around me that didn’t realize how serious I was about it. I mentioned things about expanding my business by selling online and purchasing a food truck; but I think that risk was too far fetch for people around me to think it was possible. How I see it is if I don’t take a risk on myself now, I will never know the potential I have with being successful in what ever it is. I worked really hard to get my business in front of people in 2023.  Read more>>

Jennifer Nudo | Certified Functional Medicine Practitioner

Freedom! Freedom to run my business the way I want and provide a completely custom experience for my clients. Read more>>

Mallory Johnson | Artist & Songwriter

The most important lesson I’ve learned thus far is that the music industry owes me nothing. Sure I’ve put in decades of work and have tried to invest my time, efforts and budget in the right places, but at the end of the day none of it is guaranteed. The reward for hard work is more work. I try to celebrate every win because you never know when the momentum will slow down. For real, I keep a bottle of Prosecco in my fridge at all times. Read more>>

Vicki Bechet | Mother, Wife, Registered Nurse, and Award-Winning Community Volunteer

That I successfully juggled raising a family, thriving in my nursing career (beyond my wildest dreams), and volunteering for my community and beyond.

My children are wonderful human beings, I am so very proud of them. They are good friends to many, strive to be excellent participatory parents, are blessed with a strong work ethic, and have rewarding (albeit stressful) careers. They and my grandchildren are my best legacy. Read more>>

Dr. Bee | Author & Divorce Coach

I contribute grit and grind to any success I’ve experienced in life. Read more>>

Monica Bynum | Affiliate Broker

Well what makes me happy is when my clients are happy. To know that I have done a great job and they are completely satisfied with my services. Buying or selling a home can be a very stressful situation for people and my goal is to make sure that I’m there for them every step of the way. At the end of the process, when all is done and they say Monica I’m so happy then I have completed the mission. That fuels me to go on to the next client and do it all over again. Read more>>

Satoshi Takeishi | Musician

The most important value for me is to give every task my full attention and care. I believe in treating each task as if it’s the most important one, even the smallest and most mundane, even when it feels like I’m overqualified. I often remind myself of a saying in Japan: ‘Even in the color of the tea you serve, it manifests your soul.’ The sound one creates is a direct reflection of one’s soul, and music deserves nothing less than our full attention and care. Read more>>

Natalie Hollis Clem | FNP| Nurse Injector

To be honest, when I started it, it was only meant to be a part time thing. I work at a local OBGYN practice part time and this was something I wanted to do 1-2 days a week because I enjoyed it and I loved the client base that I had grown in the past 3-4 years where I previously worked. Well it quickly blossomed into a 3-4 day a week thing and is growing by leaps and bounds to a full time gig! Read more>>

Silvia Passiflora | Songwriter, Poet and Creative

Business cards. I still see people talk about networking and giving out your business card. But in Nashville there’s what I call the “New Nashville Handshake”. The old “Nashville Handshake” referred to slipping someone your CD with tracks on it. Now, instead of exchanging business cards or CD’s, you exchange Instagram handles with one another. I prefer using Instagram to further delve into someone’s work and to drop a message later. It sure helps with face recognition when I run into them later. Read more>>

Twanda Collins | MVS, BS, CH

Im from the south side of Chicago, Ill born and raise by my grandmother. My grandmother was a single, hard working parent who was determine to make sure we (my sister and I) were taken care of. Growing up on the south side of Chicago had its fair share of moments that a child should never witness or have to endure, but they do. Not having my parents in my life made me form a shell at a very young age. Watching my grandmother do it all by her self while taking care of two children not biologically hers, showed me how strong a woman can be, let alone a black woman. Growing up in a place that is now known as “Chi-raq” showed me how tough I needed to be. I never thought I will have to fight for my life in school, run for my life while at family functions because of shoot outs, and see life be taken away from me. Read more>>

Billy Smiley | CEO and Producer, Songwriter, and Developer of The Music City Collective

Making the music, the lyrics, and the melodies matter as I was an artist (WhiteHeart, The Union of Sinners and Saints, and The River Cryers) and to continue to produce and develop the artists I work with.

In a world that seems to have forgotten the secret sauce of great art, I still hold onto the fact that exceptional and passionate art will always find its home for the downtrodden, the weary, the lost, the happy, the melancholy, the energetic; those who want to discover music that connects with them in a meaningful way. Read more>>

Bryce Roberts | Recording & Mixing Engineer

As a recording and mixing engineer, I am musically inspired by a lot of the same core artists that have inspired most of us in the music world. However, the music that made me obsessed with music at a young age is metal music. Not the modern drum trigger and Neural amp simulator stuff…My friends and I were meticulously analyzing old thrash albums and early death or black metal recordings, or going to see local sludge metal bands in central Arkansas where I grew up. Most of it sounded awful in the best way. My goal was to create our own sound as heavy and disgusting as theirs. My musical tastes soon progressed, as did my recording abilities, and by the time I had the skill to make something sound as heavy as the bands I admired as a kid, I was making quiet acoustic folk music. But I took with me an appreciation for things that are sonically ugly and imperfect. Read more>>

Melissa Sweazy | co-creator and co-host of You Can See Me in the Dark, a true ghost story podcast

I work at a video production company as writer/director and I would often chat with my friend, the audio engineer, Nate Reisman on set, and one day we started trading ghost stories. This was back in 2018 when podcasts were starting to really explode in popularity, and we decided wouldn’t it be great if we started one? Our skillsets perfectly complimented each other, so as a lark, we started telling friends that we were hosting a ghost podcast and the stories started coming in. Six years later, we tell ghost stories from around the world with over 2 million downloads. Read more>>

Garrett Knaub | Musician, Graphic Designer & Entrepreneur

I came up with the idea for Wildwood Guitar Hangers when I was looking to create a specific product that would fill a niche with my laser business, Nashville Laser Art. As a lifelong musician and instrument collector I’ve used all sorts of guitar hangers. Most work as intended if properly installed but very few compliment the beauty of the instrument on display. So I wanted to funnel my creative energy into something I was already passionate about and Wildwood Hangers was born. Read more>>

Megan Mcandress | Catering Director / Partner

Willingness to take risks is integral to grow as a human and an entrepreneur. It may feel comfortable to play things safe within the realms of what’s familiar, but doing so will limit your personal development. It’s important to listen to the quiet voice inside yourself, urging you onward towards uncharted territory. I’ve found that each small leap of faith has given me the confidence to take larger leaps; each choice creating a launching pad for the next. Read more>>

Justvibez | Music Producer, Mixer and Mastering engineer

Some of my inspirations for me producing are: Common, J Dilla (Jay Dee), Pete Rock, Organized Noize, UGK, Curtis Mayfield and Isley Brothers. I can go for days but if I had to stick to simply my influence of my sound then those are the key names for me. Read more>>

Mandee Jones | Founder

Staying humble and thankful. Read more>>

Morgan Nagle | Wedding Photographer

My husband and I got married in 2016, right after I had graduated college with a degree in graphic design. We didn’t have the best experience with our wedding photographer. I knew that I could give couples an amazing experience. I had a little bit of a background in photography due to my degree, so I spent a year studying wedding photography and that’s when I launched my business. Read more>>

Rachel Benkowski | Co-Founder of the Beer Babes Family

Throughout history, women were the original brewers, crafting beer as a domestic task alongside baking bread and raising children. However, with the Industrial Revolution and the increasing profitability of brewing, the industry shifted predominantly to male hands. Thankfully, the outdated stereotype of beer as a “man’s drink” is steadily fading in modern society (thank goodness). Inspired by this cultural shift, the Beer Babes Family was founded to empower women in reclaiming their place in the beer industry, providing support to grow their beer businesses. Established in 2020 by seasoned beer professionals Rachel Benkowski and Roxy Brossoit, the Beer Babes Family is dedicated to supporting women in beer. Read more>>

Meagan Schreiber | Entrepreneur

That I am capable, strong and can do hard things. Being a business owner taught me to further trust myself and be humble. The lessons are tough and never ending but so valuable. Read more>>

Alexie Smith | Ceramic Artist & Coach

Unlike in other careers where you are at the mercy of others constantly while a creative career allows for me to just be curious and change as I grow as an individual.

I’ve always been a person who has been interested in process. I love knowing how things work and how to get from point A to point B. Being in the Arts allows for me to not only become engrossed in process but also allows for me to start over without any kind of hold ups besides time. In pottery especially if something doesn’t workout or doesn’t go in our way of thinking there is so much room to just restart with the least amount of upset feelings possible. Read more>>

Jessica Richmond | Tattoo Artist & Private Studio Owner

I don’t know that there was really ever any other choice for me, I have been a creator for as long as I can remember. As a child I was always creating, whether it was sewing, crocheting, building things with wood, drawing, painting etc., it was my escape from the harsh reality of my life in a very dysfunctional and abusive home.
My mother was a very talented sketch artist but never did anything with her talents, I never understood why she never used those talents to improve our financial situation. As an adult I now understand that life’s responsibilities and stresses often seem to tie our hands, and back then there was less of an understanding on the importance of having a creative outlet to deal with life’s difficulties. But her talents sparked a desire in me to be capable of creating things as well. Read more>>