Through the work we do we are incredibly fortunate to find and learn about so many incredible local artists, creatives and entrepreneurs. Their stories, the lessons that they’ve learned and the legacies they are building inspire us beyond words. Below, we have highlighted a few of those amazing folks and we hope you’ll check out their stories and their responses to some of the fundamental questions the help form the foundation of our lives and careers.
Stephanie Aguguo-Orelus
A normal day for me begins with gratitude, thanking God for another day, for my health, and for the mindset to start each morning with positivity and intention. That moment of grounding shapes everything that follows. From there, I move into my regular routine and head to work at my newly established salon suites. Read more>>
Alethia Cadore
waking up without an alarm clock, reading for a couple of minutes, listening to affirmations. Starting my day with a herbal tea & smiling Read more>>
Lisa Maree
There is no normal day for me. I might be on a flight to another state or another country. Or in my showroom with the team, or in my retail store redressing mannequins and chatting to staff or working on the new collection OR on location at a photoshoot. Read more>>
Doc Murphy
I get up and pray, study scriptures or read a chapter or page in a book (usually a spiritual book or business book). Get ready to help a local coffee shop. I typically do a few zoom meetings, train staff, prepare for sermons, promote my businesses online, write in a book that I need to finish, build key realtionships, and some days travel. Read more>>
ShaKill JacSun
A normal day for me now is spending most of my time working on my first indie game title; along with watching the crypto market. Read more>>
Josh Whiteley
Usually, I wake up in the morning and try to sit for at least a few minutes of meditation before the day starts. Read more>>
Ai Toyoshima
As I am writing, directing, choreographing, and designing the stage for The Nutcracker and Marie, my own version of the Nutcracker production, I usually have many different tasks related to the production throughout the day. Read more>>
Jay lang
Right now, I’m juggling three jobs that keep me on my toes. I work for a media company, a publishing house, and handle publicity for a rock band. Oh, and I can’t forget my Portuguese Water Dog, Molly, who keeps me just as busy. Read more>>
NOURA KNOWS BEST
No day is normal. Read more>>
Kiara Jones
A normal day right now looks like working from home at my full time job. I talk to real estate agents all day, so that’s cool. When I’m not doing that, I’m working out, doing vocal exercises, coming up with marketing strategies–you know all the business stuff. However, I like to relax too lol. Read more>>
Elyssa Bennawit
A normal day for me looks like waking up at a reasonable time to feed my cats breakfast & to get myself ready for my work day! I usually get to my studio at about 11a to prep for my day & clients ahead. Getting the ambient vibes rolling & the space ready for the crafting of a new fine line tattoo. Read more>>
Roman Perez
I currently work at 4 different schools with my Victorious Program, a basketball coach for 2 High Schools, workout or play basketball daily and father of 2 & husband. Read more>>
Mike Romeo
Aside from my day job, my typical day you’ll find me at work in my studio space in Gowanus Brooklyn. This is where I am able to experiment with materials and ideas. Read more>>
Matthew Paris
I coach the first ever 6×6 football team for Second Baptist University Model – North. Most of my day is planning for practice and getting the players ready for the game. It’s fun. I’ve been coaching for about 16 years and have a passion for it. Read more>>
Brie Pointer
I start my day off getting my sweet kiddos ready for school. We eat breakfast together, prep lunch, and then walk to drop-off. Once they are handed off, I take our dogs for a walk in my neighbourhood to get grounded before I start the work day. Read more>>
Ari Spence
I’ve been dimming myself for a while. I can be socially awkward and have a difficult time ‘reading the room,’ as they say. There are times that I want to avoid being perceived, let alone receive attention. The past bad voices will play on repeat in my head and will react to that rather than the reality. Read more>>
Lynne Hancock Pearson
It is easy to accept praise for the writing I do on behalf of others. It is difficult for me to accept praise for my own writing. I’m happy to read about it—a glowing review makes my day—but I squirm when someone tells me face-to-face that they love my books. I need to accept praise gracefully and not demur or deflect. Read more>>
Nessa Amherst
There’s one big part of me that’s been dimmed for so long, and I want to bring it out in blazing light. And it’s the chance to dream big. When I was a little girl, I had these big dreams of being onstage, becoming famous, and being able to go around the world to new places and meet all these people. Read more>>
Krystal White
For the record, I just want to assure you that I am not a 7/11. I am definitely NOT open 24 hours a day, lights on, ready to radiate, on demand. Haha. But, I am the type of person who historically has burned the candle at both ends. I require gentle bullying from others who care for me to rest. Read more>>
MK Feldman
The relationship that has most shaped how I see myself is the one I share with my older brother, Mackie. He has been by my side through every high and low, cheering me on through every new idea, adventure, and wild endeavor I dream up. Read more>>
Nubia Merriman
The relationship that has most shaped how I see myself is the one I have with my mom. She has always been the person who believed in me long before I believed in myself. Even when I’m hard on myself or hold impossibly high expectations, she sees me with a kind of clarity and compassion that reminds me of my worth. Read more>>
Kariz Zozaya
The relationship that has shaped me the most is the one I have with my 9-year-old daughter. Becoming her mom changed the way I see myself. She has taught me patience, resilience, and what it means to show up with love even on the hardest days. She pushes me to grow, to stay grounded, and to be someone she can look up to. Read more>>
Elizabeth Zamets
I think the relationship with my mom. She always saw the ways I was hiding from myself growing up, and when I sold myself short. Any inkling of interest I had in anything; movies, music, places, art, were immediately encouraged and nurtured. I think she saw me as if I were a precious child with adult capabilities. Read more>>
Nick Fierro
I feel good whenever an animal likes me right away. Praise from a human is cool and all, but if you meet a dog for the first time and it likes you, you tend to walk away feeling like you’re doing something right. Read more>>
Yolanda Woodruff
My relationship with God shaped how I see myself. Read more>>
Kim O’Neill
I believe all our relationships have the potential to contribute to how we see and know ourselves. One of the most pivotal relationships in my life, however, was also a relationship that didn’t really happen. A long time ago I fell in love with a man whose words and actions never matched – but I couldn’t see that at the time. Read more>>
Domoohh (Dominic Ray) Palacios
There’s a lot of relationships that have shaped myself: Tanner Munn Amber Giles Taylor Character (HoneyLuv) Aido Marchant Julian Sacheli Ian Beato Nick Leonardus van de Wall Arnold Sallan Taylor Lane Louis Garcia Pam Garcia Jacob Grosse Laura Lungen Nikhil Thakar Micheal Reza Cody Lee Andy Sherman Dorothy Sherman Luke Anderson Hannah (Hannah Laing) John T. Read more>>
Alison P
The relationship that most shaped how I see myself is Jesus Christ. His word tells me that I am loved, chosen, worthy, saved, accepted, strong and so much more. While the world tells me ‘ who can love you, no one wants you, you’re not good enough, you don’t fit in, you’re weak’. Read more>>
Julie Gladstone
The relationship I have with my daughter has been extremely empowering. It has give me so much clarity, strength and purpose. It has shown me the ways that I have compromised and not stood up for myself in my life. Imagining my daughter as an adult, has shown me the ways that I haven’t always been kind to myself or believed in myself. Read more>>
Emelie Woodruff
The relationship that most shaped how I see myself is with my younger brother, Simon. Losing him, and still feeling him here in ways I can’t fully explain, showed me that love can’t be defeated. I think about him every single day. Read more>>
Feyisayo Anjorin
My relationship with God. God is holy and I am not, God is wise and I am a fool, God is everything that I am not; and I want to be like him. So every day I learn from scriptures and ask the Holy Spirit to teach me. Read more>>
Nicole Sanders
Probably the relationship that I have with my parents. I think like most adults, we realize that who we are is greatly shaped by where we come from, our parents, and our upbringing. I figured out really quickly as an adult that you either want to be a lot like your parents, or nothing like your parents. Read more>>
Destiny Gant
One of the truths that’s so foundational in my life that I rarely say out loud is this: God designed every person with the capacity to do good works. Each of us has something unique and powerful that He placed in us that equips us to do meaningful work—work that serves others, shifts culture, and builds lasting legacies. Read more>>
Alicia Wilson
One truth that has guided my entire life is that family is everything. It is what keeps me steady no matter what is happening around me. My parents mean the world to me, . As they have gotten older and faced health challenges, I have realized even more how precious time and care really are. Read more>>
Betesha Bloise Ponciano
That we are ongoing projects, whose actions, thoughts and reactions can be molded through conscious choice. While difficult, it’s this proactive approach that leads us down a path of becoming who we want to be. This belief informs my personal life as much as my creative practice. Read more>>
Ksenia Khelman
One of the biggest truths for me is that you have to build the life you want with your own hands. No one is coming to save you or fix things for you. We create our own happiness, our confidence, and our future by showing up every day, even in small steps. Another truth is that things take time. Good things grow slowly. Read more>>
Trevor WALTERS
My earliest memory of feeling powerful came during the lowest point of my life. After the affair, I lost my job and then caught COVID. My body was so weak that I collapsed on the floor and stayed there for three days. I didn’t call anyone. I didn’t reach out for help. Read more>>
Latoya Burris
I think my earliest memory of feeling truly powerful was when I competed in my very first powerlifting competition, the Jersey Rumble back in 2017. Before then, I didn’t fully grasp that strength could be realized in so many different ways and across such a diverse range of body types. Read more>>
Erica Warner
My earliest memory of feeling powerful is when I finished all my paperwork for Mildred’s Bar and Grill. I believed in myself and I took the step. That day I really did feel powerful. Read more>>
Olena Dovgan
I think the first time I felt powerful was when I started teaching. I was only 18 and I was lucky to have both deep knowledge and incredibly hardworking students. Together, we achieved results that placed them among the best in the country — and even the world — for their age group. It also made me one of the top coaches in the area. Read more>>
Simiao Wang
When I was little, I had a cat that picked up from park. It was more than ten years ago. I didn’t know anything about how to raising a cat. We had a heating radiator at home, and the cat’s leg got stuck between the radiator bars. I was the only one at home, and I heard the cat yelling, I ran over to help. Read more>>
Ben Boateng
My earliest memory of feeling powerful was way back in December 2016, back in the day, I got to watch a nice movie with my favourite celebrity model named Victoria Michaels. The movie’s title was ‘Office Christmas Party,’ with Jennifer Aniston as one of the actors who played a lead role. It was actually showed at the Silverbird Cinemas, Accra Ghana. Read more>>
Brisa Gonzaga
When I was around 18, a friend, 20 years older then me, with a husband and a kid was telling me about her jealousy and anger towards her family. And empirically, I came up with a hole explanation of why she was feeling that way, I could see and feel her emotions and put it in words, and help her to see it. Read more>>
Camille Bright
The moment I felt the most powerful was when I moved to New York City straight out of high school to attend acting school and pursue my dreams. My parents were encouraging, but not everyone in my family believed a career in the arts was realistic for me. So I had to trust myself and have complete faith in God to pave the way. Read more>>
Shani Atias
It’s not my earliest memory, but it is the moment I understood true power — and it happened four years ago during the birth of my daughter. I was nine months pregnant and had severe COVID. As I went into labor, we rushed to the hospital, but the moment we arrived my husband was taken away by security due to the strict protocols. Read more>>
Emma Mulvany
My earliest memory of feeling powerful is one from 8th grade. We were assigned to give a presentation to the class, telling them about ourselves. We had spent most of the year preparing for it (at least it felt like it!) and I felt ready to share a little more vulnerably about myself than I normally would. Read more>>
Vanessa McCaffrey
Having my children are moments the most powerful I have ever felt. Assistant god in the miracle of life, and vessel that gives life — that was a moment I often go back to whenever I feel in need of remembering my power. Read more>>
Myla Pearce
I learned at an early age that I was adopted when I was only four days old. That fact always made me question who I really was and why I wasn’t wanted by my biological parents. Read more>>
Rosemarine
The earliest memory I have of this powerful feeling is probably one of the earliest memories I have of myself. I was in kindergarten performing on stage with my class. Read more>>
Esther Boesche
I’ve always felt that we are born with inherent powers, such as intuition, our voice and creativity. Many people lose touch with their natural powers through social, cultural, and familial pressures. I was fortunate, to build an empowered life based on creative expression, wisdom from experience and being asked to take roles of leadership early on. Read more>>
Allan Campbell
The earliest memory of feeling powerful is actually one of my fondest, this was the time i started to really become myself. I just finished the Kokoda Trek in Papua New Guinea at the age of 16. Read more>>
Elicia Nademin
My earliest memory of feeling powerful goes back to middle school, when I used to visit 96-year-old Ms. Hardy who lived down the alley behind my home. She was deaf and her speech was often difficult to understand, yet we built an unlikely and beautiful friendship. Read more>>
Heather Roma Wicks
It’s a bit of a funny one because I was naked. I was in our ‘front yard’ (which was a private beach in St. Croix Virgin Islands). I was standing with my feet in the sand at the break of the water, watching the two Crusian men swim their horse. They did this often. I remember feeling so grounded and at one with it all. Read more>>
Twinkle Zaman
I think I was about 21 years old when I first had that feeling. I remember having certain experiences where it was so different from what the other kids in college were doing. The very reason people go to college to go find themselves and what they are supposed be/do, I was ironically finding myself within those moments. Read more>>
