Parents teach us many things including how to be a parent. We can learn from their mistakes, sure, but we can also learn a lot from the things they got right. We asked successful entrepreneurs and creatives to open up to us about their parents and what they felt their parents got right.

Justin Senense

Both my parents are immigrants from the Philippines. At the time, for many in the Philippines, the way to immigrate to the United States was to become a nurse or doctor. Both my parents were nurses. They always instilled in me a sense of working hard for your dreams. That anything and everything could be achieved through hard work. Working hard and doing the work has been something that has definitely helped me in my personal training and acting careers. I don’t know any other way than to do my best, to do the work, to try and keep trying. Read more>>

Kate Jennings

My parents always encouraged me to “be the change you wish to see in the world.” It wasn’t enough to want change or wish for a difference- if I wanted something to change, I have implement that change. As children, the #1 protective factor against thoughts of self-harm and suicide are reliable and trustworthy adults. They were reliable adults in my world who I knew I could count on 100% no matter what I do well or how big I mess up. Read more>>

Laurel McMillan

I was lucky enough to grow up in a loving, supportive home with my parents, and older brother, Matt. Throughout my early childhood, I was always encouraged that I could achieve anything, and to always approach things with a positive attitude and a big smile. While this often resulted in trying different sports and clubs, none of them really clicked and my mom finally said, “you don’t have the aggressive spirit”, which couldn’t have been more true. This led me to use my free time as a teenager volunteering in my mom’s classrooms, and seeking out my first job as an after school program leader, which was the first time I formally worked with children. Read more>>

Gina Medina

Both of my parents have always been absolute beasts when it comes to their hearts, their work ethic, and their faith. I was able to see them balance five kids, constantly work multiple jobs, still go to school, make sure we always had everything we needed, helped us with our homework in ways we’d later hilariously be able to teach our babies lol our daddy is a true comedian and it’s where we get our hilarious comedic timing from lol our parents above all else instilled the importance of family and taking care of each other…  Read more>>

Laura Dreyer

When I was in elementary school, there was a county-wide Arbor Day art contest. The winning drawing got their art produced on a T-shirt that was given to all the winners from each school. I entered every year, and finally around 5th grade, I won for the whole county! They put my art on the T-shirts, and my Dad went out and bought tons of them! He had our whole family wear them for a photo we used as our Christmas card that year. Read more>>

Jen MacQueen

My parents listened. I mean, they REALLY listened. To whatever I was saying, and however I was saying it. When I was little, I would do anything artistic I could get my hands on. I’d paint pictures. I’d compose music. I’d create stories. I’d write (really terrible) poetry. I’d choreograph dances. Anything and everything even remotely artsy, I’d do. Read more>>

Doug Renfro

My parents performed the very difficult balancing act of being very strict but also in letting me learn by making mistakes. This sounds like a contradiction, but we tried to raise our children the same way. Another wrinkle in this story is that neither of my parents were not academically inclined, but all three of their children had a proclivity to make straight A’s. Read more>>

Sania Ferguson

My parents, Jolee and Walton Ferguson, are two of the most loving, hard-working, honest, caring, humble, and accepting humans I know. I am confident that this is reflected in the woman I am today. They have always accepted my free spirit lifestyle, which allowed me to explore life without the usual restraints parents can have for their children. I realized early on that I was fortunate to have parents that encouraged me to be my authentic self. They just wanted me to be safe, healthy, and happy. Read more>>

Kennington Groff

I think there are a lot of things my parents got right and as the oldest child who was the guinea pig for all of it, they learned what worked and what didn’t. One of the most important things they did that I believe impacted by life and career was teaching us the value of hard work and always keeping us busy. From a young age, they encouraged us to work hard and showed us that if you did the work, you would be rewarded. Growing up on four acres, when I was little, we would help my parents in the yard on the weekends. Read more>>

Elisabeth Cuttino-Vereen

I love my parents, more than words can say. I am very close to my mom and dad and I am beyond thankful, for the lessons learned. So much so, that Noughtie Girl is based solely on the creativity my parents allowed me to express, from the young age of 3. I highly value my experiences as a child, because those are the most important years, in which I developed my sense of fashion and taste in movies to music. Read more>>

Owen Osborne

My parents made sure to demonstrate to me that hardships do not have to derail dreams. I have food allergies; therefore, I have never been able to eat at my schools’ cafeterias, in classroom parties, or friends’ gatherings. Special provisions have always been the norm for me. Kids in my classes didn’t understand why I declined their offers of food, and on many occasions, this led to excluding me or bullying. Read more>>

Regina Robinson

My parents have always been supportive of my dreams but it was my mother who set the tone for greatness. My mother always believed in me. She has always been my biggest cheerleader. My whole life she told me I was beautiful and smart and that God had great plans for my life. It makes a big difference when you grow up hearing these words about yourself. It becomes what you believe. Read more>>

Carolyn Rogers

I may be a little biased but my parents are two of the most amazing people in the world. It’s hard to pick just one thing that they did right. But since I have to settle on one thing I’ll say that they taught me that I can take care of myself and still be fair and kind to others. Part of that was learning the difference between wants and needs and learning to prioritize the needs over that wants. Read more>>