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.

Sabeen Arianpour | Your Mindful Mama Bestie | Career Mama & Writer in my Soft Mama Season

I see life in two distinct phases: pre-motherhood and motherhood. Motherhood has profoundly impacted my perspective on balance. Before becoming a mom, my work-life balance was non-existent. I believed working hard meant working around the clock. I was quite Type A and meticulous, especially with time management. I couldn’t stand wasting even a minute and admired those who could multi-task. And then motherhood happened. Read more>>

Daria Vakula | Medical doctor, PhD

Managing my finances is key to planning and reaching my overall goals. I budget for monthly expenses, fun activities, travel, investing, and also allocate funds for developing my blog. This helps me balance my spending between what I need now and what I’m saving for in the future. One of the regular expenses category is donations to Ukraine, my home, which is under rusian invasion right now. Read more>>

Thomas Arnold | Realtor

As a parent, the most important thing I’ve done in terms of impact on my son is fostering a strong sense of emotional security and self-worth. This involves consistently showing him love and support, actively listening to his needs and concerns, and providing a stable strong and nurturing environment. By doing so, I would like to think I’m helping him develop confidence, strength in himself, resilience, and the ability to navigate challenges with a positive mindset. Read more>>

Pamela O’Brien | Principal and Lead Designer, Pamela Hope Designs

I am very passionate about design and not just because it’s pretty. I believe that everyone needs a space where they can relax, rejuvenate and be themselves. Your personal space, whether just a room or a whole house needs to be safe, healthy and comfortable. Making it attractive and functional are added bonuses. These are core values to me and at our firm, Pamela Hope Designs. We strive for safety, comfort and beauty for all. We also believe that good design is a huge pleasure and we want our clients to enjoy the process as well as the results. Read more>>

Lisa Nikfarjam | Jewelry designer and businesswoman

I am enamored by Greek mythology actually. My son and I are both obsessed. I love the stories because of how the lessons endure the test of time. There is relevance to humanity in these stories that endures generations. I sometimes wonder if everything in modern day entertainment is not derived from these stories in some way. Read more>>

Jenine Cinco | Content creator, Realtor, Baby Investor

Coming from credit card debt of almost $30,000, my husband and I have a combined net worth of a quarter of a million at age 30 (this is not to brag at all but to hopefully spark inspiration) thanks to these two books: Millionaire Fastlane by MJ DeMarco and Rental Property Investing by Brandon Turner. We are both your average employees earning less than $100,000 combined on the journey to financial freedom. Read more>>

Kimberly Terasa | Photographer/Videographer & Cybersecurity Student

The end goal for me is to be able to cultivate a creative, supportive, and thriving community. In the future, I would love to start my own photography studio – possibly even expanding that into a full-on production studio and company. Possibly having audio recording room, props, photo ops, and even a venue to host events and bring the community together. But the bigger picture is about being a part of the greater world and helping people help themselves, so they can in turn help each other. I want to be able to spread more love and positivity. Read more>>

Dion McInnis | Author, photographer, speaker, fundraiser, storyteller

People are beautifully complicated, with a myriad of interests, skills, passions, fears and motivations, and those change over time. Finding the ONE career path that fulfills all those aspects is nearly impossible, truth be told. And one can’t forget that a career also must pay the bills and cover responsibilities. Some people opt for the money and let it pay for the life that provides opportunities for interests, skills development, etc. All that to say, be adaptable and listen to your heart and gut to find the various paths, trails, roads and highways that comprise a career journey. Read more>>