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?

Carla Garfias | lawyer, mom, wife, businesswoman, tv host

For me, success did not come alone; I asked for help and I allowed myself to be helped. My dad, university teachers, fellow students, and partners were key to building a future. The moment I knew what I wanted to do, I left the right people in my life and eliminated those who were in the way … it’s that simple … Read more>>

HASNA ALATTAS | photographer & concept creator

The most important factor behind the success of my brand and I is 1-My faith in God. I always put the Him first in every decision I make. I seek His guidance in all matters. 2- my personality plays a major roll in my success. I am a peoples person ,i talk to any and everyone, you can call me a social butterfly lol . I get pleasure knowing new personality, learn from one another and growing together. its all about building relationship and inspiring each other. 3- My Artistic and creative mind, often people ask me how did i think of it. its mt unique style and colorful and crazy angles that attract my audience. Read more>>

Andrew Gates | Owner

The most important factor that defines success for The Lost Cajun is our Culture. Our culture is based on courtesy and respect. You will hear all of our staff use three words all day every day, Please, Thank You, and Your Welcome! We want our guest to feel like they came over to a friend’s house for dinner. We welcome them in and treat them like family. All of our food is prepared fresh. We don’t have heat lamps or microwaves in our kitchen. Everything is prepared when the guest order their food! Read more>>

Alex Antoine | Owner and DJ

The most important factor behind our success at Complete Houston is our authenticity and our team’s commitment to excellence and collective attitude. Our motto at Complete is literally “Be Awesome” and we strive to bring that to every event that we are a part of whether that is being a photographer or videographer capturing the couples’ story, or even just working a photo booth ensuring every guest is having an amazing time. Especially now, as the event industry is starting to get back into full swing, we think it is more important than ever to provide guests that incredible experience that only happens at large events like weddings that makes everyone forget about the rest of their problems, if only for one night. We embrace our “Be Awesome” motto fully with every event that we do. Read more>>

Remington Bruce | Head of Operations – MAD Restaurants

At MAD, we serve more than just food, we curate an atmosphere and an energy that is palpable for the guests. Someone who dines with us at 5:00pm can (and should) have an entirely different experience than someone who dines at 10:30pm… why? Because these two guests are looking for entirely different ambiance and service than each other. We cater the dining experience – temperature, lights, music – all bespoke for the guest. This is what makes us special. The true thoughtful investment in caring about our customer. Read more>>

Christine Smith | Graduate Student, Healthcare Professional & Entrepreneur

The most important factor behind my success is the ability to believe in myself. You would be surprised at the amount of obstacles that we think that we cannot overcome but in all actuality, we are completely equipped for if we just change our mindset to believing that we are able to. I’m reminded of a study where one group of participants learned to play the piano for a week while another group simply thought about playing the piano for a week, without actually touching a piano. At the end of the week, both groups were able to play the piano with the same amount of skill. Not because playing a piano is easy (which it’s not), but because the second group was able to change their pathway just by believing they could. Our mind is a powerful tool. Read more>>

Josh & Samantha Wilmeth | Photographer & Photography Coordinator

No matter what type of session someone books with us (maternity, engagements, weddings, etc.) our main goal is to capture their story. Every session has its own special purpose and we want to convey that through our photography. That’s why we spend a little time before our sessions getting to know our clients. Having even a small a relationship like this helps our clients feel more comfortable around us – we’re able to tell stories; joke around; and have fund during our sessions. Because of this, we’re able to capture candid and genuine photos which are a true representation of their personalities and stories. I believe this has, and will always, lead to success for All Things Love Photography. Read more>>