We regularly ask our interviewees what makes them happy because at the end of the day, what else really matters? We’ve highlighted some of the responses below.

Jaray Daniel-Banks | Professional Hair & Make Up Artist

What makes me happy is being able to work day in and day out to fulfill my dreams of working as a Professional Make Up Artist. Now don’t get me wrong my boyfriend, pups, and family play a huge part in my happiness! But there is something about not settling for a job just because it “makes good money”. I have worked so many side jobs and gigs over the years, just to be able to focus on main business as a Make Up Artist. I don’t always get the most consistent schedule, or convenient work hours. But I do get to proudly declare that I love what I do, and I’ll take that any day over a 9-5!. Read more>>

Sara + Troy DeRose | Partners, Strategist + Designer at FIXER Brand Design Studio

One of the things that makes us the absolute happiest in our work is seeing our clients be reinvigorated about what they do. Whether it’s a rebrand, a new brand, a customer experience design or marketing campaign, we love to see what branding and design does internally. Of course, design should impact people, and so much of our work is strategic to reach audiences effectively — but we find that the impact it has on the client themselves is what really puts the smile on our face. We’re pretty invested in our projects and have created a thoughtful process in order to design work that is meaningful, useful and delightful for intentional companies. The number of times in the last decade we’ve had our clients tell us how excited they are to finally have a brand that expresses their work; the energy created in their company as they experience the growth from a rebrand; the relief they feel to finally be empowered to market better; or just see the sparkle in their eye when they see their vision come to life in a mural, product, digital or print design we’ve created for them — it’s too numerous to count. Read more>>

Jordan Kerr | Owner of Role Playing Glamour

I had never considered running a business before. I never thought about how I wanted to be my own boss or wanted to make money that was purely for myself and my business. When the idea for Role Playing Glamour came around, my only thought was about how I wanted more nerdy makeup and bath products out there for people like me, and I think I can do that for us all. My favorite part about having a small business is to bring my vision and joy to others out there. I’ve been part of so many gifts, gender reveals, and relaxing baths at the end of the day. I love to write messages on all my orders thanking them for the support, and making it clear that each product was made with joy that I am passing on to them. It makes me happy to make others happy, and Role Playing Glamour helps me achieve that every day. Read more>>

Melissa Ryan | Business Therapist & Founder

I’ve been exploring this topic for quite a while. Probably most of my adult life. Initially, I thought happiness was based on my external circumstances and that the feeling would manifest if I did certain activities, put myself in certain places, and surrounded myself with certain people. However, through my own research as well as trial and error my perspective has shifted and so has my goal. I have realized that for me, sustained happiness is less of an emotion and more of a state of being. In fact, the states of being that help support my sense of happiness are the internal states of peace, joy, and enthusiasm. When I first began cultivating these states of being, internally I felt the opposite of peaceful and the states of joy and enthusiasm weren’t even on my radar. This period of time occurred about 13 years ago when my parents were going through a complicated, messy, and traumatic divorce. Read more>>

Michaela Smith | Entrepreneur

Dogs. I absolutely love and adore them so much. Dogs have taught me more about meditation and the ability to connect to anyone. Dogs are always present and they know who they are no matter what occurs with other people! They always no matter what show up in love!. Read more>>

Jeff Sloan | Art Director, Graphic Designer, Illustrator & Artist

I get to be creative everyday, what’s cooler than that! Whether I’m drawing animals for a t-shirt design, creating patterns for wallpaper, laying out copy on a menu for a restaurant, working on a branding project or making art, I love what I do. It’s a challenge for sure and can be a struggle to be motivated all of the time to be creative but just getting into the process is what’s drives me to keep going. Don’t get me wrong Design and Art has its ups and downs just like everything else and it can be hard. But at the end of the day I get to make visual graphics that can make people smile, laugh, or stop them in their tracks to think for a minute. Plus I get to work with so many different types of people and industry’s so the learning never stops. Read more>>

Marisa Jones | Domestic Violence & Mental Health Advocate & Mindset Coach

This is the million dollar question, isn’t it?! 11 years ago I hit what I call my mental rock bottom. I had it all – a successful career, a long marriage, two kids, and the big house, yet I was dying inside. After my husband had an affair, I filed for divorce and fell apart mentally. I realized I had been unhappy my entire life. A victim of childhood abuse and trauma, I carried that pain with me, along with anger, depression, PTSD, suicidal ideation and a cycle of drugs and alcohol abuse. You would never know it though. On the outside, I was a success and had it all. In a moment of dire necessity, I made a 100% commitment to heal myself and find out what it meant to be happy. I wanted to know what ‘normal’ people felt like. The first thing that came to mind was to wish for a calm and peaceful mind – rid of anger, negative self-talk, endless mind-chatter of self-loathing. My self-help journey started 11 years ago and it’s become a lifetime’s journey for me. Today, I have that calm and peaceful mind and each night as I lay down to sleep, I say a prayer of gratitude for a great mental health day. That makes me happy more than anything in the world. Read more>>