To persevere or to pivot is a question that do-ers have been asking themselves since the beginning of time. It’s never a straight road when you are doing something new, blazing a trail, breaking a ceiling, or pushing boundaries, so it’s only natural to wonder whether to give up midway. How do you know whether to keep going or to give up?

Sydney Noel | Pro Makeup Artist and Content Creator

I keep going when I know that—deep inside my soul—something is meant for me. Now, what’s meant for me won’t come without resistance, but resistance and roadblocks don’t deter me from finding an alternative path to what I want. I’ve hit many roadblocks with makeup artistry: Read more>>

Ko & DeMarkus Trinidad-Williams | Co-Founders/Owners

As Queer Non-Binaries from low income neighborhoods such as our own (Compton and Inglewood), society, media, pop culture and everything else around us tells us that we will NOT be successful let alone start a business. What keeps us going is our community. The QTPOC community has been silenced for such a long time and when we live as our full selves despite the backlash, Read more>>

Adam Assad | Filmmaker

This is an excellent question and one that I consider all the time. I guess it depends on what you mean by “to give up” exactly. Los Angeles is a very difficult place to live for a variety of reasons. Packing up your bags and moving back home after six months wasn’t for me but it might be a good decision for others. Read more>>