Every overnight success we’ve seen has been years in the making. And those overnight successes are rarely because of an amazing idea or a stroke of luck. We asked some of our favorite folks from the community about what characteristics are at the heart of their success story?

Vanessa Garcia | Interior Decorator & Realtor

I am Hispanic. I feel like most of us Hispanics have always had to work extra hard for everything we earn. This was the case in my family. Most of my childhood was spent with babysitters or, once we got old enough, stayed home by ourselves while both my parents worked full time jobs. We learned to fend for ourselves and learned the value of money quite young. Because of this, at a young age I decided I wanted to do something to change this and wanted to give my future kids a more present parent. Read more>>

John Stewart | CEO & philanthropist.

Sagrado was based on the idea that life is short and our time with each other is sacred. Sagrado translates to sacred. Our product is highly qualified to bring people together for sacred moments. Quality products are designed to be consumed slowly, savored, and shared with loved ones. Our products are not low cost, and the bigger mission is to create a massive wealth to be shared and invested in people who need help and an opportunity to get ahead in life. Sustainability has been essential to our company, and we have intimate relationships with all our partners in our supply chain. Read more>>

Vera Quartet | Written by: Kate Arndt & Grace Takeda

One of the unique challenges in a string quartet is that all four people must be able to work well together both from a musical and personal standpoint. We have found that it is crucial that we all have good relationships with each other in order to build mutual trust and respect within the group, which ultimately benefits our musical expression as well. We all genuinely enjoy each other’s company and when you are traveling together and seeing so much of each other all the time, Read more>>

Maestra Wendy C. Carrion | Metaphysical Healer/ Cultivator/ Mycoremediologist

? I would say love is the most important factor in the success of my business. My business is also a lifestyle. Nurturing my business comes easy for me in the sense that it doesn’t feel like work or a chore. There are so many demands within my business with their own little idiosyncracies. These fungi are supremely intelligent. They emit a vibratory language I’m learning near fluency. I like saying that we cultivators grow them, but in actuality they’re the ones growing us. How can I not love what I do? Read more>>

Donny Dust | Primitive Skills Self Reliance Educator and TV/Film Consultant

In all honesty…I listened to know one, took zero advice from “experts” or “consultants” and did everything I needed to do to establish what success meant for me and went after it. Everyone on the outside likes to offer their opinions with little investment of their time, effort or energy into my business concept or plan for success. However, I was never afraid to sit at my own lunch table and go at it alone. Success and what it is, is only determined by the one who holds the paintbrush in his hands…not the person who just gets to look at the painting in the end. Read more>>

Jasper Riddle | President- Noisy Water Winery

Having a good team and never thinking that quitting was an option was instrumental to the success of the brand. I had great people around me that believed in me and believed in what we were doing. We all wanted to be a part of something bigger than ourselves and it was truly amazing to have people around me that believed in what we were doing as much as I believed. I was committed but when you are getting started its tough. Read more>>

Carla Vaughn | Business & Tax Consultant

The most important factor behind my success has been the understanding that many failures leads to success. Before you can claim to be ‘successful’ you as an entrepreneur need to define that word. Success for one person isn’t the same as the next. Success has to be defined, imagined, and well thought out. With this as a basis you can measure if you have accomplished it or not. Read more>>