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.

Janelle Santacruz | Metro Detroit Photographer

To me, success is finding pleasure in your own creations. It honestly took me a while to feel comfortable praising my own work out loud in fear of coming off as cocky or anything of that nature, but there should not be any shame in wanting the world to see something you are so proud of. Read more>>

Angelina Urdiales | Entrepreneur

I think you will never know whether to give up or keep going! That’s the beauty in life and hope in general!! You will never know but as long as you have faith in what you are doing and what you want for yourself, you’ll always come out on top! Read more>>

Bree D’Aloisio | Owner of Prismatic Health & Functional Medicine Certified Health Coach

Hands down, staying home to raise my children has had the most significant impact on their development. There is no doubt in my mind that providing them with consistent, unconditional love and support, morning to night, has shaped them into the wise, sympathetic young adults that they are now. I see the difference everyday and wish that all parents had this privilege. Read more>>

Sammie Hershock | Singer/Songwriter, creative, and mother

Great question. I think risk taking is a huge part of being a creative, honestly.
For me it’s been less on One Big Risk, and more like a million Tiny Risks, over and over. Some feel riskier than others though, for sure. Read more>>

Angela Chi | Creator, Taster & Foodie

I never thought I would start a business in food since I grew up hearing about how tough the industry is, but looking back it makes a lot sense. Food at its core has always been the way my family expressed their love. I deeply appreciate so many aspects of food from learning how ingredients are grown, how and why different cultures use certain ingredients, the process of cooking, the family stories, and my favorite part — eating. I enjoy how unique and complimentary flavors, textures, colors, and smells all come together to create a dish. I also love learning about people’s different stories Read more>>

Bella Sanchez | Home Bakery Owner

It wasn’t until I was involved in the Baking and Pastry Arts program and GRCC that I truly found my passion for baking. I decided to start posting my work on Instagram, and after a while I started getting requests from friends and family for birthday cakes and other treats. After a while I decided – why not make this a little side gig? And so I came up with a name and obtained an LLC. This was back in 2020, & since then I’ve been trying to find exactly where I want to be in the baking world. I had a few bakery jobs here and there, but I kept feeling the urge to try and make a name for myself – my work, my creativity. Read more>>

Paige Young | Pastry chef and gardener

Honestly, what makes me happy is simply being in our garden and having a farm store available for our local community to visit. We have tried a corn maze here on our farm and that just didn’t work due to lack of interest. So we decided to scrap that idea and we now have a 8,000 square foot flower garden! It is a lot of work, but I just love being able to plant flowers and hopefully have folks come by our farm and pick a beautiful arrangement for their homes. We have our farm store here that offers our jams, jellies, salsas, breads, and treats, and so rewarding when a customer comes back for more . Read more>>