We asked some brilliant entrepreneurs, artists and creatives to reflect on lessons they’ve learned at prior jobs. We’ve shared highlights below.

Q. Martelle

The majority of my workforce background is retail management. I’ve always loved the structure of running a team and time management. I’m really big on working smarter not harder and playing to your strengths. Read more>>

Caroline Aycock.

I have always been drawn to creative entrepreneurs and worked for many throughout the years (I should’ve taken a hint that maybe I wanted to be one!). I spent the first 10 years of my career helping other creative entrepreneurs build their businesses across all different industries from interior design, to non-profits, fashion and more. The most important lesson I learned in working closely with these business owners, was to learn how to wear every single hat. Read more>>

Aimee Mitchell.

In my previous administrative roles, I learned the importance of organizational skills. Organizational skills ensure that the business runs efficiently and successfully. As Program Manager, I use these skills daily to streamline procedures, update documents and policies, and communicate effectively. When Buckeye Paws expanded animal assisted intervention to the students, faculty, and staff of The Ohio State University, being able to use these skills and adapt quickly proved to be essential. Read more>>

Cami Fabry

One of the most important lessons I learned was how important your customers are and how you make them feel. From the moment you see them and greet them to each time they come back to your business. Clients & customers make up a big part of any business so I learned it is important to make them feel wanted and appreciated. Something I do with all my clients is to remembering their names and little things we talk about at each of their appointments. This helps them feel like they are not just another number. Read more>>

Rachel Clay

What a good question! Along my journey not only as a professional, but as an individual I have learned that we cannot do ALL THE THINGS well at one time. In reality, to do some things exceptionally well that means others have be let go or at the very least relaxed. Therefore it’s essential to examine how many things you’re trying to commit to excellence with. I began my journey as a physical therapist as an outpatient generalist. Read more>>

Shalon Barnett

My first job as an adult was with Wausau Insurance. I remember working in the mailroom as a temp, and they started hiring for full-time opportunities, but you had to type at least 30wpm, and I could not. They eventually lowered the typing speed requirement to 25 wpm. I passed and was hired full-time. I spent almost 2 years at the job when Liberty Mutual acquired Wasau. Those of us who were initially hired under Wasau remained employed by them. I was a Customer Service Rep inputting worker’s comp claims that went to a claims adjuster. I wanted to be an adjuster. Read more>>

Devon Leibee

The most important thing I’ve ever learned in my career is that- people are the healthiest when they understand how much power they have over their health. I made a big shift in my career as a nurse when I realized that we are all falling victim to a system thats best interest functions on making money instead of supporting and helping us reach our optimum level of health. To help make this make more sense, let me explain it this way.. . . Read more>>

Eddy Prawiro

I worked as a dental office space planner at the biggest dental office supplies distributor in the country. At this job, I developed creativity in problem-solving and learned communication skill that are proved to be very helpful in my personal development as a business owner. When designing a dental office, often times our clients asked us to provide several design options. When I was not able to, my supervisor showed me the way that would eventually open my mind that there’s always a different way to solve a problem. Read more>>

Stephanie Verni

My life changed when I was 19 and floundering in college, when I secured a job working in public relations for the Baltimore Orioles in professional baseball. It didn’t take long for me to mature and learn the true meaning of a work ethic. The people I worked for were the best role models; they worked hard and taught us to do the same, sometimes by setting expectations and sometimes by example. The long hours spent working in baseball forged lifelong friendships similar to those found in the military or among those who work in law enforcement: there’s a bond of kinship that doesn’t fade with time, even if we don’t see each other as regularly as we would like. Read more>>

Mike Egan

Well, before becoming a full time artist I was actually funeral directing and embalming in funeral homes. It was a very stressful job with long hours. I would be on call 24 hours a day four days a week. There were plenty of sleepless nights up driving to pick people up so I could bring them back and do the embalming. While I did this job I’d keep dreaming of being an artist but just didn’t know how to go about it. Read more>>

Michelle Moran

One of the most important things I learned from working a job is that employees need to feel valued. As a business owner, I ensure that anyone I employ or work with knows that they are appreciated, and that I understand and value their worth. This lesson has also helped me build a super-competitive incentive plan for the licensee program we are launching in 2023. Read more>>

Matt Martinez

Giving 25 years of your life, to a company that used the best of what you had to offer only to throw you out like yesterday’s leftovers without a care in the world. No severance deal. No thanks for 25 years of loyal service. Nothing. Life is way too short to not get what you need out of life. Just love each day like it’s your last day on earth. Love unconditionally. Give generously. Be humble. Stay grounded. Set your sights., and fire away. Read more>>

Jennifer Murphy

From my previous traditional work experience, I now realize how much I learned from working in the 9-5 sector before entering entrepreneurship. Today I understand the importance of showing up consistently for myself. But when I made the transition to full-time business, I thought “I have all the time in the world to do x,y, and z.” Ha! I was clueless! Read more>>

Thea Ny

One of the most important lessons I’ve learned that’s helped me along the way is to just put content out there. It doesn’t have to be right or perfect because you’ll eventually figure out what’s right for you. The longer you try to perfect something, you’ll never have anything to show or know what works. . I learned this while at a content creatives meet-up and had been feeling stuck in the process. A local video creator who had become successful in his own right with a local TV show and vlog shared that the only way he learned and got more. recognition was just by putting videos out. Read more>>