We were fortunate to catch up with some brilliant artists, creatives and entrepreneurs from throughout the Houston area and they share the wisdom with us below.

Melanie Damore | Artist & Entrepreneur | Owner of Denver Art Days

There is a phrase that I think about every single day, and it’s embarrassingly simple: “Forward is forward.”

Two days after I moved to Colorado from Pennsylvania, my first roommate asked if I was interested in climbing a 14er peak. I immediately expressed that I didn’t think I was capable of anything like that. With a little push and my fear of missing out hiking a mountain named after my favorite painter, the next day, I was at the top of Mount Bierstadt. The best part was that it was so much easier than I expected. I’ve now climbed 11 14,000 foot peaks, am illustrating awesome stickers and merch for each and every one, and have plans to conquer 8 more in 2024. Forward is forward. Read more>>

Megan Waddell | Body Positive & Self Love Coach

“There’s no one around who’s youer than you”

I feel like this quote helps you understand how powerful and BEAUTIFUL, YOU are. Having a confidence within yourself is one of the hardest things to achieve. Whether it be in your looks or going out there and doing something. Read more>>

Bonnie Ramone | Musician/Performer & Tattoo Artist/Shop Owner

Bonnie & the Mere Mortals started formulating in my brain in 2016. I grew up on a 103-acre beef cattle farm on the border of the West-Virginian Panhandle as a strange little farm girl, and then I moved to the “big city” of Pittsburgh to go to school for Literature, begin my tattooing career, and live out some of my queer goth girl dreams. When you grow up in a rural area and then you leave that area, especially in the rust belt, you’re taught to be ashamed of your accent, your culture, and your people, and I spent a lot of time in my early 20s doing just that. At some point, that segmentation of my identity started to take a toll on my mental health. Around this time, I also rediscovered my love of old country music, being in the woods, and Appalachian culture in general. I stopped code-switching so much. I fell in love with Gillian Welch. I spent time being myself. I remembered spending afternoons in a tree on the farm reading Edgar Allan Poe for the first time listening to Johnny Cash–like some little goth Anne of Green Gables. I started to think about how the goth music I ran to as a teenager really wasn’t so different than the Appalachian music I grew up on…. and how both of them made me feel like I was home. Listening to P*rnography by the Cure started to sound not so different than The Bridge by Dolly Parton. I noticed similarities between the storytelling, the lush wet reverbs on the guitars, the catchy melodies, the sadness and yearning, the tongue-in-cheek little punchlines. Enter: Tennessee. My first single. I had had bands before, but this was the first thing I wrote that felt like I wasn’t making myself smaller to fit a mold. This sort of exploded and expanded in my mind over time into this giant concept: a Southern/Gothic band. All the glam, all the drama, the camp, the fun, the sad bedroom music, the murder ballads… it all made sense, and Bonnie & the Mere Mortals was born. Read more>>

Tanara Landor

Starting my LGBTQ podcast, Fake Straight™, has been such a journey! I had no clue how much work it would be—learning to market the podcast, figuring out how to record and edit, and so much more. I almost gave up before I even started because it was all so overwhelming. Read more>>

Gina Parker | Creative, Food and Beverage Journalist

I am deeply inspired by people. It might sound cheesy, but having the ability to talk, learn, and listen to new and old people in my life has always been one of the biggest inspirational factors for me. I am always moved by personal stories and narratives, perhaps a little too much sometimes. Read more>>

Lindsey Beatrice | Flower Farmer, Native Garden Designer, Writer

Nature and her beauty. That’s why I started my small, sustainable flower farm and why I help people beautify their yards with native plants. For far too long we’ve used the resources of the Earth without replenishing them, and we’ve destroyed ecosystems and replaced them with parking lots and lawns. Biodiversity loss is one of the biggest climate issues. Simply by planting native flowers that attract pollinators and songbirds, you can help replenish the Earth. Read more>>

Jen Ward | Maker & Owner

As someone who is extremely type A – habits, systems, structure and balance are an intrinsic part of my life both inside my business and outside of it as well.
Some habits that have helped me succeed in my business are always ensuring I leave my workspace clean when my work day is done. This doesn’t necessarily mean its wiped down and pristine, but it does mean that I have my next day tasks laid out before me so that I can jump right in when I get to my office to work. Read more>>

Megan McCrae | CEO- California/Colorado Beauty Co

I have always been unconventional. Ive always been an outside the box thinker. when you truly are this type of personality, may considerate being a black sheep, rebel etc. I have since a young age been seen as defiant, persistent, convicted and no one really knew what to do about it or had the ability to understand this type of mentality. It’s the risk takers the ones who stray, the ones who believe that we don’t always have to do what society thinks is best for us. The 9-5, the social security, the house with assets the acquisitions that make us respectable. So far from true ” in my opinion ” We are in control of our own happiness and what that looks like for everyone is different. Read more>>

Jean Denney | Violinist, Personnel Manager, Method Book Author

They say learn to say no. I say learn to say yes.

So many doors have been opened for me because I said yes. Years ago I was asked by a university professor to speak to the students in his careers in music class. I didn’t think I had much to offer because my music career has been divided among performing, teaching, administration, and an abundance of not-too-glamorous chores that just needed to be done. In my mind I had been gathering and living off scraps, yet in this professor’s mind, I had a successful, diverse, life-long career in music with wisdom to share. Read more>>

Mike Meares | Visual Artist

I think people are vaguely aware that being an artist is a tough job, but may not consider the extent to which this business is challenging. The creation of art alone is a time consuming and non-linear process which can make it hard to monetize. You need to consistently sell originals and reproductions, which can have slim margins, to continue turning a small profit. Consider Art Festivals, the amount of time and monetary investment artists put in before the fair even begins is significant. Additionally, networking and socializing are a vital but time consuming aspect of the job if you want to access more opportunities to gain exposure for your work. It is one of the few businesses which is reliant on one person being the development, production, marketing, sales and management simultaneously. You have to be tenacious and unrelenting in your pursuit of making art your livelihood. Read more>>

Monica Juarez

The most important lesson my business has taught me is to just go for it. You’ll never know how successful your idea or talent can turn out to be if you don’t take that risk of finding out. Read more>>

Alicia Vélez | Psychotherapist & Licensed Clinical Social Worker

My business has taught me many lessons over the years, and it continues to teach me more as it grows and evolves. One consistent lesson I have learned is that creating something for myself was never about the pressure to make a lot of money, tempting as it may be. Rather, it was about finding a sustainable way to achieve economic sovereignty that also allowed me to be closer to my values. Creating something for myself was a way to honor and respect my own wants and needs without the burnout and constrictions that I was experiencing in settings where I was achieving someone else’s dream at the sake of my own. I wanted a career pathway that would allow me time with my family, where I could live a healthier lifestyle in mind and body, and be able to do the activities that I enjoy. My parents and grandparents often did not have a choice. They worked very hard often just to survive. I am grateful for their sacrifices which allowed me to get to a point where I could even consider being an entrepreneur. Yet, I wanted to make a paradigm shift where the next generations of my family no longer need to live their lives solely focused on work, but we could work as a means to live the lives we want to live. Read more>>

Dr. Ashlee Saddler

At one point in time, I banked so many vacation hours in my school district that I reached the maximum allowed. I wasn’t saving the vacation time for anything specific; instead, I was taking small spurts of time but not taking full advantage of my accrued time. As a school and district leader, I felt that taking sufficient time (or the time I needed) would be more work. I hated the idea of returning to work, facing massive To-Do lists and compounding expectations. Read more>>