Our mission is to create a space for artists, creatives and entrepreneurs to be able to learn from their peers through the magic and power of storytelling. As we reflect back on 2023, we are grateful for the wisdom we’ve picked up by reading your stories – they’ve impacted every part of our lives from our careers and romantic relationships to our parenting practices and more.  Below, we’ve highlighted 10 of the most read stories of 2023, stories filled with wisdom and inspiration regardless of your industry.

Meet Alyssa Pallant

I started in the car world when I was just 18 years old modeling with different modified cars. A lot of times it was European or Japanese cars but sometimes American muscle too. What really got me started was my boyfriend at the time was a photographer and thought it would be something that I would enjoy doing and got me in front of the camera. I learn very quickly how much I love doing it and how much confidence it helped give me as it was something I lacked at the time. I focus on modeling out a bunch of different car shows in doing paid work for one on one car enthusiasts.

It was hard to set myself a part in the modeling world, but I felt having the niche of a car model sent me a part from a lot of other models. There were plenty of people that modeled, but there is only so many that had the knowledge in the automotive field as well. This benefited me tremendously so that when I work shows I was able to better explain the cars I was modeling. Read More >>

Melissa Barnes

I think my Love In Ordinary Places photo series has been one of the most meaningful photo projects of mine. Love In Ordinary Places is where I take couples and do a photoshoot in the most normal-every day locations and make it romantic somehow. I just wanted to show by example that your photos, where you do them, or even your relationship doesn’t have to be extravagant to be truly romantic. Read More >>

Rachel & Tristan Thompson

Tristan and I work in an industry that works with students and their parents, there is a lot of emotion and expectations when someone hires our services to help their child. There can be very challenging and emotional days where you wonder how much longer you can do it, how many difficult days you can take, and what is next. Sometimes I think about going back to corporate myself, but the pros of being a business owner has significantly outweigh the cons, if it were easy wouldn’t everyone do it? As for Tristan all he has ever known is working for himself, the idea of working for someone else, is impossible for him to imagine, which is why he focuses on expanding and growing, building teams to delegate and trust with more work to allow us to focus on upcoming projects and ventures. The reality is, once you have worked for yourself and have been able to be successful at it, the idea of working for someone else in a corporate job isn’t something you think about doing. Read More >>

Donna Feldman

I started in this industry when I was studying fashion marketing and business management at FIDM. I became a fit model for many fashion brands, and that was a good way to get an inside look at the process of making an item of clothing. I had an agent that wanted me to do print work as well, and once I started it ended up being a full-time career where I traveled doing editorials, catalogs, ad campaigns, TV, commercials, TV, hosting, and acting projects as well. At the start of Covid I had a lot of brands reach out to me wanting me to create content, and I realized that with my years of experience as a model and with all the shoots I basically produced for many clients without realizing it, it made so much sense to start a production company. I have always recommended the best, Makeup Artist, Stylist, photographers, post production, people to clients, and often came up with a creative direction for their campaigns. It was a natural fit for me to start to help brands with these things since I had been doing that anyway for so long. Read More >>

Caitlin Clark

I am incredibly happy with the work that I am doing now. I absolutely love the creative freedoms I have. Before I started Made By Morgan Gifts, I worked in factories. I enjoyed the hands on aspects of these jobs but I was doing the same thing every single day and after awhile I felt incredibly burned out mentally and emotionally. These days I am excited with the endless possibilities of what I am going to create and work on. Everyday is different and of course setting my own schedule is a major benefit. The only time that I wonder about having a regular job is when the orders are slow to come in but I have to remind myself that this is a work in progress and the more time I invest in myself and in the work- the more orders I will have come in or even have more shops carry my jewelry. Read More >>

Justine Willeford

I started Pelican House because I wanted to bring positive change to the industry. Most swimwear is made with cheap labor over seas using virgin nylon and toxic fabric dyes and chemicals. I wanted to make the most sustainable bikini possible, using only domestically sourced recycled materials, and ethical local labor. At the same time I created designs that actually flatter many body shapes and sizes, were extremely comfortable to wear, and would bring confidence to women who wore them. I wanted to also bring a different mindset to apparel commerce, not just the swimwear industry. I created my business around the purpose of giving back, and using commerce to raise funding for non-profits that are helping with the conservation of our planets biodiversity. Commerce with a purpose, that puts people and the planet FIRST. Read More >>

Olive (awlivv)

I think non-creatives might find it hard to believe/understand that making content is stressful and time consuming, and honestly, I get it. From the outside, content creation can look like it’s all fun. But that’s literally what a content creator does, they make their lives/work look that way. In reality, content creation (at least for me), is always feeling like someone is waiting on you, wanting your time and attention. It can feel very weighty and draining at times. Additionally, with content creation, you CONSTANTLY have to be thinking of ideas for content. It leaves you feeling very scatterbrained most days. Read More >>

Ashley Lanna

From a young age I always wanted to have a career where I could express my creative side. In grade school I knew I wanted to pursue acting which lead me to taking acting classes early on. As I grew up I developed a passion for creating radio shows where I voiced all the characters. This form of art expression led me to create a podcast where I got to examine true crime cases in an exciting way that allows the audience to become immersed in the art of storytelling and acting together in a podcast. My goal is to discuss the intricacies of what has occurred in the world of crime. Read More >>

Hope Schwing

I grew up in a very small town in central Minnesota. Everyone knows everyone. We even had “drive your tractor to school” day believe it or not. I lived within a 30 mile radius of my hometown until I was 23 years old. I had never lived in a city with more than 5,000 people. I realized, with the help of my agency, that if I wanted to be as successful as I can be, I needed to move. The small town, middle-of-nowhere vibe wasn’t cutting it for me personally and for business reasons. I was missing out on huge opportunities because I was so far away from the heart of social media, Los Angeles. It took me a few years to finally bite the bullet and move out of MN. My whole family lives in MN, and my family is the most important thing to me. Leaving them felt like my heart was literally ripped out of my body, but I knew they wanted me to make the most of my life. So, they understood that this was best for me. In January 2021, I started my LONG drive from MN to Los Angeles. It took me over 30 hours to drive there. I was absolutely terrified when I saw more than 4 lanes of traffic, and a speed limit sign faster than 70 mph. It was a whole new world, but I was ready for it even though I was scared as heck. It has been almost two years since my move to California, and I know for a fact that this was the best decision I could have made for myself. Although risky, I have no regrets. Read More >>

Rachael Wixom

I live in Manhattan Beach, with my husband and three boys. We live in a small beach cottage (one of the last ones standing) with no front or backyard. With not much space to play, we were blessed, that all our boys were born with a strong love of the ocean and surf. When my oldest son was as young as 3 years old he would spend all day in the water. He would only get out to change up a surfboard for another board. It was hard to get him to reapply sunscreen and he would get out with rashes. I looked for something for him to wear under his board shorts and wetsuits to prevent the rashes but all I could find was black swim speedos. Always having a love for prints I designed a printed surf short and we called it, The Salty Grom, SHRED guard. Read More >>