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

Ryan Rocha

Some of the best advice I ever received was, “Move far away from home.” The reasoning is so you don’t get distracted by family and friends. Just do what you want to do. Taking that advice, I moved to New Mexico 9 years ago for film school where I ended up dropping out to work as a production assistant on big budget films and TV. 5 years later I found that I was a very good production assistant and seemingly worked myself into just a good worker that deserved, but never really found myself move up in the way I wanted or least where this avenue was taking me.  Read more>>

Michelle Cote

In medicine, we work with a wide range of professionals, from other healthcare providers to pharmaceutical companies. One of my former supervising physicians gave me invaluable advice: never burn bridges with another medical provider. You never know when you might cross paths with the, need their help or collaborate with them again. This lesson has stayed with me throughout my 18 year career as a Physician Assistant. It’s easy to react emotionally, especially when faced with a difficult boss or a physician who does not value non-physicians. However, to maintain respectability, it’s always best to take the high road. Acting with integrity and professionalism is never the wrong choice. Read more>>

Xiao Lyu

As artists, we often work alone, but sometimes we collaborate with others. I have learned a lot and grown from my past collaborative experiences. For two years, I ran my own graphic studio with a college classmate. We had been close friends since our undergraduate days, frequently working on group projects together. Having known each other for years, we stayed in touch and shared similar aesthetics and interests. This eventually led to us formally working together at what felt like the right time. However, misunderstandings and disagreements gradually arose. Over time, we found ourselves accusing each other of issues that the other was unaware of, but that had been brewing for a while, leading to a very unpleasant closure of the studio. Read more>>

Mark Shiba

During my six years in the Navy as a Nuclear Surface Warfare Officer, I supervised the operation of nuclear reactors on an aircraft carrier. This role demanded immense discipline, focus, and the ability to thrive under pressure—skills that have proven invaluable in my transition to a full-time singer-songwriter. Working in the nuclear reactors department involved long, intense days filled with high-stakes responsibilities. Deployments often meant months away from home, standing watch through the night, and navigating a constantly stressful environment. Although I’ve moved on from that technical realm, the core principles of hard work and sacrifice remain central to my journey as a musician. Read more>>

Ashley Shihab

I had a great boss some years back who probably gave me the most helpful, most unexpected great advice – to GIVE UP. Give up on the things that are outside of my control, give up on trying to change things that I cannot change. I feel that this life lesson has served me so well in running my business, where so many factors are outside of my control. If you really think about it, the only things we have control over are our attitude and our effort. To be blunt, we have little control over whether someone hires us, if they fall on financial hard times and can no longer afford us, and really anything pertaining to other people. When we give up on trying to force things that we simply can’t force we free up a lot of space for what is within our control as well as space to create and decompress. Read more>>

Devan Southerland

One of the most important lessons that I’ve learned at a prior job is being able to perform in multiple capacities. At times, people will say that it’s a negative to ‘wear many hats..’ To me, the ABILITY to wear many hats comfortably and successfully makes someone a valuable part of a team. When working toward a shared goal, it’s common to have projects stumble, halt or fail as a result of missing key, integral members whose strengths can add value to a project. Having the willingness and ability to learn about the various tasks that lend to a desired outcome can really take you far. Read more>>

Masa Endo

I am very happy with my growing up in the ordinary middle class family in Japan. One of the very important life lessons in Japanese culture is called “mottainai” that translates literally “what a waste!” It implies the situation of when a thing or food not being used or eaten fully and thrown into trash or garbage. When I started working at a private club where all the members are affluent and acclaimed, I had no idea how the rich people spend money. Moreover, to my ignorance, they are mostly more modest and caring for others. It was quite opposite of my thoughts before working at the club. They understand and find more value in whatever they can. I realized I need to practice more “mottainai” concept. . Read more>> 

Jessica Powers

Prior to being in Real Estate, most of my professional life was spent as a Paramedic and in the Service Industry. While working in restaurants I dabbled in almost every role imaginable. I worked as a hostess, server, bartender, manager and even as a consultant for restaurant owners. This field taught me two important lessons – the importance of cross training and how to successfully interact with a variety of people. I use these skills in Real Estate on a daily basis. Understanding and successfully communicating with five different personality types in a day is a regular occurrence! My clients are all so different and so are the other agents I work with. Being flexible with different personalities is essential to being effective with and for my clients.  Read more>>

Scotty Johnson

One of the most crucial lessons I learned from my previous job that has greatly helped me as a business owner was the importance of effective communication. Allow me to share the backstory to provide context and help you grasp the lesson more vividly. In my past role, I worked in a cross-functional team where communication breakdowns were common. This led to misunderstandings, delays in projects, and frustration among team members. Over time, I realized that clear and open communication was not only essential for smooth project execution but also vital for fostering a positive work environment. Read more>>

Suyeu Kuo

Never put more into a job than the company puts into you. Depending on where you are in your life path, you might not always get a choice in terms of what types of jobs you can get hired for, but the amount of personal resources (e.g. time, physical labor, mental energy) you put in should be equivalent to what the company can do for you. Right out of college, I wasn’t entirely sure what my next step was going to be, so I ended up at an entry-level direct marketing job that was definitely unfamiliar with labor laws and standard human resources policies that make for a safe work environment. This job paid minimum wage and had me working 12-hour days for 10 days straight at a time. Read more>>

Leah Cohen

When I was early in my career, I had a client I worked with for a while—one of my first. She was a middle-schooler who felt out of place both at school and within her family. She struggled to identify her own feelings, likely due to the chronic invalidations she regularly experienced. Yet, through our work together, she slowly began to recognize her emotions, see them as valid and even valuable, and express them—verbally or otherwise. Read more>>

Natasha Bowers

It is important to know your worth as an artist and a worker. It is also important to ask questions when it comes to work. As artists, we tend to romanticize the person we want to become and the “dream job” we want to have. However, this becomes a problem when we are so blinded by what we want that we fail to acknowledge the here-and-now, and how far we’ve already come. Taking the time to evaluate your skills in alignment with your goals– and hence knowing the value you bring to the table– is an important step in avoiding pitfalls such as burnout, needless competition, or being taken advantage of. Also, I think being unafraid to ask questions is just an overall mark of an effective communicator, not just a professional. Read more>>