We’ve been fortunate to connect with so many brilliant, thoughtful entrepreneurs and creatives and we regularly ask them about the most important lessons they’ve learned over the course of their careers. We’ve shared some highlights below.

Eric Lutz | Actor & Model

I am from the same place that ‘Dorothy’ and ‘Superman’ were raised: Kansas. As a child I spent most of my time outside in nature, enjoying time with friends, playing every sport imaginable, and watching movies with friends. Read more>>

Fay Kanevsky | Content Creator, Artist, and Small Business Owner

I’m a first generation American. Both of my parents are Jewish refugees from a Russian speaking part of Ukraine. They came to the US in the 90s and I was born in San Diego. They refer to me as “local produce”, so that’s what I say. My first language was Russian, but my parents both stopped speaking it when I went to school. I’ve tried to keep my Russian skills but all I have now is that I can understand a lot but barely speak conversationally. I think that growing up with immigrant refugee parents, especially of Jewish Soviet descent, really shaped who I am in so many ways. Read more>>

Adrian Miller | CEO & Founder of Xyion Inc

Originally hailing from St. Louis, I have always been an advent fan of music being raised on primarily the soul records that my aunts and uncles would play and dance to along with my cousins along with the trinkets and records my dad sold at his record store. All of this sensibility attracted me to want to hear the next best thing that was entertaining all of them, I would listen to the radio for countless hours at a time and get lost. Read more>>

Rivka Rivera | Playwright, Actor, Educator

I’m a born and raised New Yorker! I identify as Jew-Yo-Rican, because I am half Jewish and half Puerto Rican from New York. After attending undergrad at Carnegie Mellon in Pittsburgh, I spent six years living in Los Angeles. While I loved every city I’ve called home, my heart has always been in New York, and I knew I would return. Growing up, my parents split when I was young, which meant I had the unique experience of living in different parts of the city. I spent my early childhood in Park Slope, Brooklyn, a beautiful neighborhood filled with open spaces, parks, and diversity. Read more>>

Bekah Duchateau | Home Birth Midwife

For most of my childhood I lived in Guangzhou, China as the middle child in a missionary family with five children. I always had an interest in pregnant women and babies for as long as I can remember, but my passion began to flourish when my family started fostering special needs babies. When I was fourteen, my mom and I went to visit a local orphanage and were sent home with a six-day-old baby boy who needed immediate intestine surgery followed by heart surgery. We had little Joseph for fourteen months, then began to take in more babies who needed surgeries that the orphanage could not pay for. These babies were my life. Read more>>

Ivo Müller | Actor and producer

I was born and raised in Brazil. My father is the only among 10 siblings who had the chance to get a College degree. My parents came from rural towns to study in the capital and they chose to raise me and my sister in there, but built our house in a rural working class neighborhood, at the same time he and my mom worked hard to keep the kids in private schools. Read more>>

Liam Fitzgerald | Music Producer & DJ

In every way!
I was born and raised in Puerto Vallarta, Mexico. Paradise for those who don’t know where this is.
Growing up in a jungle beach town hugged by beautiful mountains, surrounded by rivers and waterfalls gave me a lot of freedom to roam in nature since I was young. I believe that that has a lot of influence in the sound I’ve created for myself and that I play. My family being big into music as well gave me an upbringing where I was surrounded by all sorts of genres and artist being played constantly. Read more>>

Renee Ross | Writer, Actress, Educator

I’m a Baltimore girl at heart! It’s been all I’ve known until I made the big move to LA three years ago. It’s often labeled as a tough place to live but in my experience, there is such a beauty in its spirit. The people of Baltimore are funny, talented, creative, hardworking, and resilient. All qualities that I believe I possess as well. So much of my comedy is rooted in its unique culture. I’ve written two comedy pilots that take place there because I think the world would have so much fun taking a glimpse into our city. Read more>>

Steffie Chau | Multidisciplinary Artist & Art Director

When I was little, I visited the Louvre for the first time. I ran towards a painting as if I could jump into the world of the figures depicted on the canvas. Security had to stop me, and my parents had a laugh with the guard. Looking back, I guess it was evident that from that day forward I had a deep love for art and it makes sense why I decided to pursue a career in the arts. Read more>>

Taegwoo Kim | Composer

I was born in South Korea and immigrated to South Africa with my family when I was 8 years old. My musical journey began in high school, where I was fortunate to attend a school with a strong music program, thanks to a scholarship for violin, bassoon, and vocal performance. I spent countless afternoons in the music building, practicing and performing in the orchestra, choir, acapella groups, and various chamber ensembles. Read more>>

Bruce Puyu Wang | Director & Cinematographer & Musician

I’ve been working as a director and cinematographer for about seven years. It’s been a long journey, but one that I truly enjoy. I’ve been away from my hometown, wandering in foreign lands for over a decade. During this time, I’ve witnessed the clash of different cultures and seen how people view things from unique and different perspectives. Read more>>