One of the most important lessons we learned is that our lives and our businesses will teach us along the way. We don’t need to know everything on day one because the challenges we face on day will likely be ones we are already equipped to handle. As we overcome challenges we get better and better and as the challenges increase in difficulty so too does our ability to tackle them.

We asked members of the community that we admire to share important lessons their business or career has taught them and have shared some of those responses below.

Jenny Uribe | Lash Artist

I was born and raised in Houston, Texas, in a loving home with two siblings and both parents. My parents are pretty traditional and encouraged us to attend college, which we all did, to pursue conventional career paths. However, during my university years, I began to realize that I wanted to become a successful entrepreneur like my dad. It was during Covid that I seriously considered how to make that happen. I’ve always had an interest in the beauty industry, and after researching lash extensions, I knew immediately that it was the path for me. My upbringing has profoundly shaped my character and values, instilling in me the importance of working hard for what you want in life. Read more>>

Eva Jahn | Licensed Psychotherapist and Executive Director at the Climate Emotional Resilience Institute (CERI)

I grew up in a small town in Northern Germany, the land of the Northern Germanic people, home to oak, chestnut and birch trees, wild boars, hedgehogs, blackbirds, throttle, lots of slugs and mosses and great swimming lakes. I spent my days biking around and playing in a nearby forest. When I was 19 I decided to move to Norway, Trondheim and work for a while before I started my Social Work studies back in West Germany which later changed to Barcelona, Spain. Read more>>

Christian Phelps | Organizer & Coach

I grew up in Orange in Orange County California. My parents are still living in the same house that we moved to when I was 7 years old. As long as I can remember I was always organizing and moving things around to fit in my space. I feel growing up I was always applying my organizational skills, especially when it came to school and later in the jobs and work I did. This is what drew me to get my home organizing certification and provide home organizing services along with coaching. Read more>>

William Whitehouse | Small Business Owner & Culinary Nutritionist

I am from a small town called Mountain Lakes in Northern New Jersey. I had a great family upbringing, with wonderful parents and siblings. I struggled with a learning disability in school, which made me feel less than others. When I started getting curious about cooking at age 8, it felt like I fit in somewhere. With these struggles growing up, cooking was always a nice outlet for me. Growing up with learning disabilities has been challenging, even into adulthood but I wouldn’t change these things. My struggles have made me who I am today. I enjoy being creative as I build my small business, and connecting with the community is important to me. Read more>>

Monique Macias | Local photographer

I’m from around North east Denver born and raised, I have grown up and lived in the Cole neighborhood and graduated from DSST Cole in 2022. I was a low income kid with limited access. With the help from my school I went to a journalism program where I fell in love with photography even more. I was always the person taking pictures and video, with reason. I lost family at a very young age, so pictures are my way of love. I have always been the one cousin or friend that’s always taking pictures or videos It’s the way I cherish the moments that should be shared with the world. I love capturing peoples beautiful moments and helping them build their confidence! Read more>>

Bia Dias | Artist & Marine Scientist

I am from a small town in the Brazilian Amazon region. I grew up in a surreal place surrounded by nature, and from a very young age, I always had this curiosity to learn more about our natural systems. My parents were strict, but they always incentivized my ideas and my pursue to be my own person, even when they did not understand me and my interests to the full. I spent my childhood camping, exploring the rivers and by the water. This led me to pursue a career in environmental conservation and marine science research. Read more>>

Brianna Kraus

I am a Colorado native, raised in Littleton. I love living in Colorado and cannot imagine living anywhere else. When I was 16 years old, I came down with a strong flu-like illness: horrible sore throat, super high fever, horrible body aches, etc. When those symptoms resolved, I was left with zero energy to do anything beyond attending classes- no extracurriculars, no homework, no spending time with friends or family. I went to my doctor, who ran as many tests as he could think of to explain my fatigue, and all my tests came back negative or normal, which was a good thing, but also didn’t provide me with any answers. Read more>>