We’ve been fortunate to connect with so many brilliant artists, business owners and leaders over the years and so we reached out to some of these talented folks to discuss what it takes to be successful.

Blake Duplass | Head Chef & Owner

As corny as it may sound, all you need is love. Or at the very least, figuring out what you love is, in my opinion, the 1st step to success. Because if you truly, obsessively love something, you will put every ounce of waking energy you have into it. Whether its action or just you alone with your thoughts, your focus will always come back to this thing that you love so much… and in time you will inevitably become good at this obsession due to your relentless devotion to your passion. That’s when people start to take notice of your hard work and become customers. Read more>>

Heather Armijo | Newborn Photographer

I believe that when you start a business, you should put your definition as success as your goal. Success can mean many different things to everyone and it can change constantly. When I first began my business I thought being busy and having my calendar full of sessions meant I was successful. Obviously doing this did not allow for much balance in my life and I soon realized I was not happy with this version of success. After 10 years in business, I view success as having a business that first, provides for a great experience for my clients, exceeding their expectations and second, provides for my family while allowing us to live a balanced life. Read more>>

Jill Broussard | Jill Broussard | Photographer & Director, Storyteller & Community Activist, Mentor

Grit and perseverance. I think that sometimes, opportunities go to those who have unearned resources, can work unpaid internships, or who have generational wealth or resources that allow them to wait for opportunity instead of fighting for it. There’s nothing wrong with being born in the right place and the right time, but what about everyone else who doesn’t find themselves at those doorways? Are they to give up? Say this wasn’t meant for me? While we don’t give everyone the same opportunities, there are hidden pathways for those who truly seek and persevere. Read more>>

Joe Costello | Entrepreneur and CEO

I honestly believe integrity is by far, the most important asset when running a business. It helps you make the right decisions 99.9% of the time and is an important barometer for how you treat people. The next important characteristic is honesty because the only way you can do business with people and sleep good at night, is to know you spoken the truth. Much of our success has come from our responsiveness. We get complimented on that aspect of our business all the time and it has definitely catapulted us pass our competitors who are lackadaisical about how they treat their customers and their requests. In closing, over-delivering what you promise is a must. Read more>>

Lauren Bogle | Owner of The Bogle Agency

Grit. It takes so much grit, perseverance, faith, dedication and discipline. You have to a student of this game called life. There are many things that happen personally that can effect your professional career and vice verse. It’s imperative to use the lessons as learning opportunities to try and better everyday. The second you think you’ve got it figured out, you’ve lost. This world is ever-evolving and in order to adapt and evolve, you have to swallow your pride and be a student. It’s not about who is right or wrong. I’ve tried to of course to help guide clients and friends based on my own personal and professional experience, but at the end of the day, it’s more of a matter of taking care of yourself. Read more>>

Shari Zolna | Yacht Charters

It takes persistence, dedication, and a strong belief in yourself and your business to become successful. However, all the persistence, dedication and self worth can not replace having a great business idea and the knowledge of how to create the business. We own a luxury private yacht charter business on the San Diego Bay. There are many components that we had to put together to become a 5 star highly rated business. We had to find the best yacht possible that could not only qualify for USCG certification but also thrill our wide variety of customers. Whether it’s a birthday party, a wedding or a corporate event, we had to create a uniquely beautiful and welcoming environment. Read more>>

Neelu Kharbanda | Enterpreneur

Success is a subjective term. My definition of success is achieving what you want as an individual. In my opinion, the top 3 things to achieve your goals would be 1) The want to do it- You should want your goal or vision, not because someone told you but because you want it 2)The discipline to achieve what you want- Set your priorities 3) Being consistent- Put this on repeat. Remember leaders are people who don’t quit Read more>>

Georgia Grey | INHC and Founder of Whole Body Healing Nutrition

I’ve found that you cannot be self-employed without working on yourself. When you run your own business, it’s just you most of the time, which is both beautiful and difficult. There are days when it is hard to motivate, you run into a challenge or dilemma that can be all-consuming. I’ve found it crucial to not only work endlessly on my business but work on my own limiting beliefs about myself. As I evolve my business, I’ve also made an effort to evolve as a person. Success is a hard word, especially as an entrepreneur. I find there is always something more to do, to work on, and that at the end of the day you are never truly finished. Read more>>

Dana Ben Kaplan | Krav Maga Instructor, Civilian, Military, and Law Enforcement Certified

Honesty. That usually works for everything in life. It’s also what our founder, Imi Lichtenfeld, always said was the most important thing. Example: we don’t have internet ads, but we see other krav maga locations do, using “Krav Maga San Diego” in the title; click on it and of course it redirects to their website – trying to confuse students who’ve heard of us. Or they’ll suck people in with a “fitness challenge”, and try to convert them to krav maga students. We understand that students (and Instructors) who live by the Honesty rule will do well with KMSD; those who don’t, leave. We see people claim, “s/he was the youngest krav maga instructor in the world”; not true. Read more>>

Nicholas Howard | Barber To The Stars

Professionalism, consistency, and reliability are three things that I would say are the keys to my success. Professionalism has a lot to do with customer service. It includes understanding who your clients are and their interests. I have personal relationships with most of my clients and I practice “Barber Client Privilege”. Barbers are sometimes wearing many hats, but the most important hat I wear is to create a professional environment where people can be comfortable. Consistency means being able to deliver the same service every time they come. Read more>>

Hillary Waters | Co-Owner and Creative Director

I have so many thoughts on this. First, success is going to be different for everyone. But regardless of what it means to you and how successful you are, there will be times that will test you in business ownership. The traits that I have that work to my benefit in this regard are grit, tenacity and a bit of stubbornness. I feel certain that most business advisors would have told us to throw in the towel more than once over the years but I never would have listened. I always have faith that the “sun will rise” as they say. Staying calm is a superpower but staying calm when things are uncertain is next level. My tenacity in that way has worked in my favor. Read more>>

Brian Copeland | Martial Arts & Fitness Coach

People who are successful in any area of life do something that ordinary people don’t. It isn’t glamorous. It won’t wind up on any “5 Tips to Success.” But it is the proven formula for getting what you want in life. And it can be summed up in two words. Consistent and persistent. When a music star seemingly comes out of nowhere to dominate the top 10 charts we often say things like “overnight sensation.” When an athlete rises up and dominates their sport we use words like “natural talent.” If someone is successful in business, finances, relationships, etc. we use phrases such as “they are lucky.” But the truth is you didn’t see the music star spending the last 10 years grinding away making less than good music. Read more>>

Jamie Lyon | Fashion Designer- Electric Lyon Fashion

I believe it takes many things to be successful, but the most important thing is making a positive difference through my form of art and expression. I want people to enjoy looking at or wearing my creations, and also to feel inspired to pursue their own interests. I also believe that being passionate, persistent, and keeping my eyes on the end goal is important for success. I remind myself to count my blessings each day and focus on the good and know that I can overcome any challenge and better is yet to come. A positive mindset and being thankful is key. Read more>>

Justin Frank | Head Cheese at Bread & Cheese Eatery

In order to be successful in any business it requires growth….growth of knowledge, growth of skills, growth of your team. I see many entrepreneurs start a business and don’t do any personal growth. There is so much information out there, and it is foolish to think you know it all. If you aren’t trying to grow, that means you’re going to stay where you are. If you stay where you are, I wouldn’t consider that successful. Read more>>

Anastasia Ovanessoff | Florist

I believe everyone has their own definition of success. For me, success is reaching new heights, innovating my craft, and creating a life that is fulfilling and balanced between work and pleasure. Success is not a destination or end goal, but instead a constant yearning to go further in my own business ventures, travel farther, and be able to look back on a life where I gave happiness to others just as much as I received it. Read more>>

GEORGE SALVANS | Taco Catering

The ability to reach your goals in life, whatever those goals may be, its important to all of us. So what do you do in order to achieve those goals?? Do you follow habits from successful people? Do you work harder than anyone else? Do you sacrifice your quality of life to reach your goals? There is no single right way to be successful. What works for you might not work for someone else. There may not be a perfect combination of ingredients that can guarantee success, but there are some basic steps you can follow that can improve your chances of being successful in life, love, work, or whatever happens to be important to you. Read more>>

Esteban Blanco | Chief Geek Officer

Service, humility, be teachable and hard work. You have to realize that you don’t know everything. It takes humility to be teachable and allow others to teach you. You can be taught by your subordinates, other people in your industry, other business people, etc. Make sure that you work HARD and that you want to serve. It’s not all about making money. To be successful you have to be willing to serve others, get your hands dirty if need be and go out there to make your community better. Read more>>

Velicia Hill | Emmy Winner & Founder of Ms. Heel Magazine

Personally, I think before anyone becomes successful in the real world, they must first have already lived it and received the accolades and given the acceptance speeches in their minds. Visualization is a helluva drug-I highly recommend it! EVERY thing, business or personal goal I wanted to achieve, I visualized it first. And to be very clear, it’s not a one off. Oh no, it’s constant…like 3-5 times a day. Feel what it’ll feel like, taste like, smell like-literally live it all in your mind. I promise you, it will come to fruition. Combine this with some grit & determination-nothing can stop you. Read more>>

Tristan Quigley | Photographer specializing in newborn, maternity & family photography

I consider my business successful for more reasons than just money. To me, seeing my loyal client base grow year after year for over 12 years is one marker for success. I’ve created timeless memories over the years for hundreds and hundreds of families and I love that they keep coming back for more. I am constantly tweaking things in my business to make it better and better. I pride myself on outstanding customer service, building strong relationships & friendships with my clients and providing them with beautiful portraits that they cherish for years to come. Read more>>

Reginald Bourdeau | Sales & Marketing

Being successful has many factors. Having discipline, a great work ethic and ability to execute your ideas are all very important qualities in being successful not only when it comes to business but just a human-being overall. Read more>>

Jennie Lasater | Founding Owner of Lice Ladies, Lice Ladies Products and Franchisor

I think that in order to be successful, people cannot be afraid to make mistakes. Mistakes do not equal failure. Mistakes are opportunities to learn, change what went wrong and grow. I have made plenty of mistakes. However, failure was not an option for me. I had to learn to accept my mistakes and realize they were making me better at my craft. I was LEARNING. Another important aspect of success is to trust experts in fields that you are NOT an expert. Let me be blunt in my examples. I am TERRIBLE at computer savvy things, marketing, etc… Read more>>

Tonya Freeman | professional pet sitter

In the pet sitting industry there are a lot of hobby sitters and other professional sitters as well. In order to stand out and make your business successful with so many other in the same industry is to grow your knowledge of pet care. You must continue find ways to increase your learning . There are pet first aid classes to help handle an animal injury or an emergency if it arises. Training in animal behavior so you can deal with pets who have many different behavior issues whether its from anxiety or aggression. Read and under stand each breed you may be watching so you know how to understand the pest personality. Read more>>

Shreeda Tailor | Hairstylist & Educator

Success can be defined in so many ways. Is it the money in the bank? Is it the love in your life? Is it the experiences? No matter how you define success, there’s a few basic principles I believe set you up to receive that success abundantly. Hold yourself accountable for everything. Humility in your mistakes and failures will allow you to see the lesson through the sting of failure. I wouldn’t even consider it a failure if you learned a lesson. Then it becomes a valuable experience. Boundaries help me keep pace in a busy life. I don’t always have the bandwidth for social engagements. Read more>>

Joe Carbajal | Plumbing

Well that’s the million dollar question that everybody wants to know. There is really not one thing that makes you successful, and success is measured differently by everybody. But this is my take on this subject, there is a lot of ingredients that you need to be successful in my opinion, like when you bake a cake, it needs all the ingredients in order to make a great tasting and good looking cake. First of My Faith, has kept me going, because without it, i wouldnt be where im at. Another of the things that I have learned is that Consistency is a must, you must be consistent in the little boring things, day after day. Just like when you work out, it wont happen right away, you have to keep on working out, to see results. Read more>>

Nick Jiwa | Founder and President, CustomerServ

We are pre-programmed to measure success by financial milestones but monetary accomplishments alone, should not define success. To begin with, success is relative, and it could take on a different meaning in various phases of your life. Most of us redefine success as we mature, gain knowledge, experience, and clarity over time. Success must be earned, and it starts with an unbridled commitment to paying your dues. Success requires initiative and accountability, not necessarily advanced degrees, or higher intellect. Success is also about constantly evolving and knowing when to walk away. Read more>>

sephanie coutoulakis | Cheer Gym owner and independent event producer

I think everyone’s definition of success is different. For me, success takes a lot of patience, learning and support. In any industry with children and athletics, success means happy, strong, safe and healthy kids first and foremost. So if we can provide a platform for young girls to learn confidence, pride, teamwork, hard work and perseverance than we are successful. Read more>>

JACK LEVINE | BOUTIQUE CPA FIRM

The most important characteristic in becoming successful is the drive and the vision to succeed. Many people today want it all, but don’t have that passion it takes to get there. Read more>>

Darren Taylor | Horseman

To be successful requires a tremendous amount of sacrifices, sleepless nights, and hard work. You can not put stipulations on what you will or will not do. Success requires an attitude geared toward doing whatever it takes to reach your goals. I wrote a self development book titled “Don’t get Outworked” which explains to people step by step how to develop a strong work ethic to become successful. Read more>>

Krystal Yates | Talent Management Consultant

Being successful is about mindset. Focus and drive are important, but knowing you are going to be successful is even more important. You have to make the decision you aren’t going to fail. There is a story about navy general who makes his soldiers burn all the boats after they land on enemy soil. When asked why, he says “The only way off this beach is now forward, we can’t afford to fail”. I use that mindset in my business regularly asking myself what it will take to move forward another step. Then I do it. When failure is not an option, you work harder and more creatively. Read more>>

Carla Bisong | The Only Black Woman Owned Commercial Art Gallery Owner in Houston Texas

In order to be successful, you must embrace the following characteristics: – Willingness to keep learning and have honest reflections from mistakes – Surround yourself with others equally wanting to be successful – Invest in yourself professionally and personally – Avoid negativity – Be willing to dream big and have faith you accomplish your goals Read more>>

Leisha Olesch | Psychic Medium

I think to be successful we must have a deep passion for what we’re doing. There needs to be a great love for it. There’s also definitely a need to be dedicated and to never ever give up! Read more>>

Don Hudson | Wildlife Management

Entrepreneurs play a key role in any economy because small business runs America, using the skills and initiative necessary to anticipate needs and bringing good new ideas to the forefront. Entrepreneurship that proves to be successful in taking on the risks of creating a startup is rewarded with profits, fame, and continued growth opportunities just like we see with Wildlife X Team. Entrepreneurship isn’t easy but it can be rewarding if you are successful. While the prospect of becoming your own boss and raking in a fortune is alluring to entrepreneurial dreamers, the possible downside to hanging one’s own shingle is vast and can be scary. Read more>>

Manny Macedo | Woodworker & Artist

This is a tricky question for everyone has their own definition of success. In my opinion success is the ability to do what you want to do when you want to do it. To be successful you need to see beyond the obvious, you have to believe in what no one else believes. It’s being sure that there is something there but you can’t see, feel or touch it but you chase it anyways. It’s doing what you say you will do and holding yourself accountable for it. It’s going the extra mile and not expecting anyone else to see it. It’s being honest, grateful, respectful. It’s like taking all those quotes that we often see and putting them into action, instead of just reading them and relating to it. You have to be relentless. Read more>>

Derek Johnson | Small business owner & Pirate

Quite simply and possibly cliché… Honesty, transparency, and good communication. I attribute our success as a company to properly communicating with the customer in a way they can understand and walk away feeling educated about their choices. We have a simple approach… Give the customer their options with clearcut price points and let them make the decision on how they want us to proceed. This let’s them know they are in control of their financial decisions and in turn builds the trust between us and them. We never try to sell the customer something they don’t need. Read more>>

Shannon Cole Veloz | Equine Rehab Specialist

Successful people continue to have vision and new ideas and goals that they work towards every day. They get out of bed excited to go to work doing what they love. They are continuing to learn and better themselves so they can improve their skills. Successful people actively create their lives in order to be happy, comfortable and have enough time to rest and connect with meaningful relationships in life. They have an excellent support system of spouses, family, friends and coworkers. Read more>>