To pivot or to persevere? Or more bluntly – to give up or to not to give up? This is a haunting question, a question that has ramifications far after an answer has been chosen and it’s also a question that almost everyone in our community has had to face at one time or another. How do you know when to give up and when to keep trying?

AmbiKa Sanjana | Stylist & Producer & Creative Director

Every artist eventually comes to a crossroads and has to choose whether to keep fighting and continue on or to give up. Every time I reach the point where I feel defeated, I remember my father and the sacrifices he made as a single father with two kids immigrating to America to make a better life for us. I want to honor the sacrifices he made for us by pushing through all of the challenges and difficulties that come my way with the strength and grit passed down by my courageous dad. Read more>>

Jesamine De Leon | Data Scientist & Realtor

“You can’t ever reach perfection, but you can believe in an asymptote toward which you are ceaselessly striving.” – Paul Kalinithi, When Breath Becomes Air Read more>>

Juanita Mantz | Creative nonfiction writer, performer and lawyer/deputy public defender

I am a full-time lawyer and a part time writer, podcaster and performer. I started writing my memoir “Tales of an Inland Empire Girl” over 15 years ago and it took over a decade to finish and more than a few years after that to publication. Read more>>

Noa Wolff | Actor & Singer-songwriter

This is a hard one, especially in the entertainment field. There are a lot of people that give up and find a more ‘secure’ job, which I don’t blame them for. It’s totally understandable, since it’s hard to make it as an artist. For me, the way I know whether to keep going or give up, is to think about what ultimately makes me happy. I’ve always been so passionate about acting and singing, but that doesn’t mean it’s always going to be easy, which is a big misconception. There is a fine line between wanting to give up because you genuinely don’t like what you’re doing, or wanting to give up because you’ve been working hard and am tired. I’ve realized that I will have moments where I just want to rest and I won’t fully enjoy my job as much as other times, but that doesn’t mean I’m unhappy and want to give up. Read more>>