One of the most important lessons we learned is that our lives and our businesses will teach us along the way.  We don’t need to know everything on day one because the challenges we face on day will likely be ones we are already equipped to handle.  As we overcome challenges we get better and better and as the challenges increase in difficulty so too does our ability to tackle them.

We asked members of the community that we admire to share important lessons their business or career has taught them and have shared some of those responses below.

Ivon Herrera | Mental Health Therapist

One of the most important lessons my career has taught me is the critical role of balance and self-care. As a mental health therapist, my work revolves around supporting others, often through incredibly challenging moments in their lives. It’s easy to get caught up in the desire to excel, to go above and beyond for clients, and to dedicate long hours to ensure everything is done to the highest standard. However, I’ve learned that this approach, while well-intentioned, can quickly lead to burnout if I don’t prioritize my own well-being. This is a lesson I’ve not only experienced personally but also observed in many of the individuals I’ve worked with who struggle to balance professional aspirations with personal needs. Read more>>

Shahmeer Mirza | Shahmeer Nadeem Mirza book designer and author

The importance of completing something the right way opposed to what is considered to be the “easy way”, for example each reference was done by hand to ensure that the correct creators were credited, within the right format, within the correct legal manner. If we had taken the easy route which would have been the reliance on AI to write citations, we would have most likely approached legal issues, a lack of quality control, and most of all not had gained any experience on the subject at all… Additionally this involved doing a massive amount of research, theoretically it would have been easier to rely on AI to gather information, companies, analyze it for us, and for us to essentially just be the human resource which puts it together as a manuscript; Read more>>

Tom Clark | Comedian/Actor/Writer

After 30 years of doing comedy I’ve learned there’s a lot of ups and downs in the entertainment industry. When things change you have to make adjustments and not panic. This past year I lost my agent who was submitting for TV and movies and I had to pivot and started submitting myself. I recently booked a movie that will be shooting in December. Feeling sorry for myself wasn’t going to get me what I wanted and waiting around for someone else to do the work also wasn’t going to cut it. Don’t get me wrong I’d still like an agent, but in the meantime I’ll do things on my own. Read more>>

Ashtonee Bryant

When I first began in business, especially when I was a single mom. I discouraged myself trying to create a balance that didn’t exist. I now actually don’t believe there’s really balance, I believe that we must always simply be aligned with everything we do. The more aligned I am with what I’m called to do day by day moment by moment the more ease and productivity I actually have. Read more>>

Elisa Pena

This is really important to me. I always want my family to appreciate the importance of my work and creativity but I never want them to feel like they have to compete for my time. This is hard to navigate sometimes but being really focused and learning to say no sometimes is a key factor to me. If I stretch myself too thin, I’m not any good to anybody. You have to establish healthy boundaries to create a nice balance. Read more>>

Victoria Nguyen

Starting my food Instagram, @northtx.gemz, was a creative outlet for me in college. During the pandemic, I had to move back home during college, which was the worst experience ever. Once I moved back out, I was freshly 21 and wanted to try all the new bars and restaurants now that places were slowly opening after the pandemic. My food Instagram was a way for me to find purpose in trying these new places while in college and focusing on my premedical classes. Focusing on school is always my first priority, but once I finish my school work, I have my food Instagram hobby to look forward to jumping back into, which I believe is important in maintaining that work-life balance. Read more>>